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TECHNICAL FIELD
The present invention relates to a rotary electric machine including a ring core made up of a plurality of stacked ring-shaped core plates each comprising a plurality of divided core plates, a shaft inserted through the ring core, and a plurality of magnets inserted in magnet insertion holes defined in the divided core plates.
BACKGROUND ART
There are known rotary electric machines for use as parts in electric motors or the like. The rotary electric machines mainly include a ring core made up of a plurality of stacked ring-shaped core plates, a shaft inserted through the ring core, and a plurality of magnets disposed in the ring core. Known technologies for fitting the ring core over the shaft include a shrink-fitting process and a press-fitting process (for example, Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. 07-022168). According to Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. 07-022168, a hollow cylindrical rotor (1) is heated to increase its inside diameter, and a shaft (7) is inserted therein. The rotor (1) is then cooled to reduce the inside diameter thereof to fit over the shaft (7) (for example, see paragraph [0031] and FIG. 3(b) of Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. 07-022168).
There is also known a technology wherein each of a plurality of ring-shaped core plates that make up a ring core comprises a plurality of divided core plates (for example, Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. 2002-262496). In addition, Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. 2002-262496 discloses that internal involute splines (11) are formed on the inner circumferential surface of divided cores (1), external involute splines (18) are formed on the outer circumferential surface of a shaft (17), and they are brought into mesh with each other to fasten a rotor (16) to the shaft (17) (for example, see paragraphs [0020], and FIGS. 11, 12, and 14 of Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. 2002-262496).
SUMMARY OF INVENTION
According to Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. 07-022168, since the rotor (1) is fixed to the shaft (7) by the shrinkage of the rotor (1), if the torque applied to the shaft (7) increases, then the rotor (1) may possibly be spaced from the shaft (7) under centrifugal forces, failing to transmit the torque sufficiently.
Even with the meshing structure disclosed in Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. 2002-262496, inasmuch as the internal involute splines (11) and the external involute splines (18) engage perpendicularly to each other, when centrifugal forces are applied to the rotor (16) upon rotation of the shaft (17), the rotor (16) may possibly be displaced in a direction away from the shaft (17). At this time, magnets disposed in the rotor (16) are also displaced, and the rotor (16) tends to be brought into contact with the stator, damaging the rotary electric machine.
The present invention has been made in view of the above problems. It is an object of the present invention to provide a rotary electric machine which is capable of efficiently transmitting a torque from a shaft to a ring core and also of preventing itself from contacting a stator while the rotary electric machine is rotating at a high speed, and a method of manufacturing such a rotary electric machine.
A rotary electric machine according to the present invention comprises a ring core made up of a plurality of stacked ring-shaped core plates each comprising a plurality of divided core plates, a shaft inserted through the ring core, and a plurality of magnets inserted in magnet insertion holes defined in the divided core plates, wherein each of the ring-shaped core plates has on an inner circumferential surface thereof a plurality of plate-side protrusions projecting toward the shaft, and the shaft has on an outer circumferential surface thereof a plurality of shaft-side protrusions projecting toward the divided core plates, each of the plate-side protrusions has a plate-side tapered portion having a width progressively greater toward the shaft, and each of the shaft-side protrusions has a shaft-side tapered portion having a width progressively greater toward the divided core plates, and a tapered surface of the plate-side tapered portion and a tapered surface of the shaft-side tapered portion are pressed against each other, securing the ring core to the shaft, under a force acting in a direction to move the plate-side protrusions and the shaft-side protrusions away from each other.
According to the present invention, the ring core is secured to the shaft by pressing the tapered surface of the plate-side tapered portion which is progressively wider toward the shaft and the tapered surface of the shaft-side tapered portion which is progressively wider toward the divided core plates, against each other. Therefore, a torque can efficiently be transmitted from the shaft to the ring core. Even when the rotary electric machine rotates at a high speed, applying centrifugal forces to the ring-shaped core plates, the ring-shaped core plates are prevented from increasing in diameter. Consequently, the rotary electric machine is capable of performing as desired while rotating at a high speed.
The plate-side tapered portions may be disposed in phase with the magnets. Since the plate-side tapered portion is held in press-contact with the shaft-side tapered portion, the position in phase with the plate-side tapered portion is relatively hard to displace while the rotary electric machine is in rotation. Consequently, the rotary electric machine is prevented from being damaged due to contact with the stator while the rotary electric machine is in high speed rotation.
The plate-side tapered portion may comprise a plate-side trapezoidal region in the shape of an inverted isosceles trapezoid having a width progressively greater toward the shaft, and the shaft-side tapered portion comprises a shaft-side trapezoidal region in the shape of an inverted isosceles trapezoid having a width progressively greater toward the ring-shaped core plates.
Each of an angle formed between two slant lines interconnecting upper and lower bottoms of the plate-side trapezoidal region and an angle formed between two slant lines interconnecting upper and lower bottoms of the shaft-side trapezoidal region may be in the range from 60° to 120° inclusive. The angle which is equal to or greater than 60° makes it easy to inhibit the relative displacement between the plate-side tapered portion and the shaft-side tapered portion and the displacement of the ring-shaped core plates with respect to the shaft while the rotary electric machine is in rotation. The angle which is equal to or smaller than 120° makes it easy to fit the ring-shaped core plates over the shaft.
A space defined between adjacent ones of the plate-side protrusions may be greater than the shaft-side tapered portion as viewed in plan.
The coefficient of thermal expansion of the shaft may be equal to or greater than the coefficient of thermal expansion of the divided core plates.
The rotary electric machine may further comprise a plurality of securing pins inserted in the ring-shaped core plates along the directions in which the ring-shaped core plates are stacked, securing the ring-shaped core plates together, wherein the ring-shaped core plates may have a plurality of pin holes defined therein for receiving the securing pins inserted therein, and the pin holes may be disposed in positions in which the magnetic flux density of the magnets is lowest and which are in phase with the magnets. Therefore, it is possible to inhibit a reduction in the performance of the rotary electric machine due to the securing pins inserted into the pin holes.
The pin holes may be disposed in positions which are spaced from the magnet insertion holes by the thickness of one magnet. It is thus possible to inhibit a reduction in the performance of the rotary electric machine.
Each of the ring-shaped core plates may have a plurality of dowels deformed along the directions in which the ring-shaped core plates are stacked, the dowels may be disposed along a circle that is concentric to the rotational axis of the shaft, and have a U-shaped cross section along lines tangential to the circle, and the dowels may have longitudinal directions parallel to the lines tangential to the circle. The ring-shaped core plates are thus prevented from being deformed while the rotary electric machine is in rotation.
According to the present invention, a method of manufacturing a rotary electric machine including a ring core made up of a plurality of stacked ring-shaped core plates each comprising a plurality of divided core plates, a shaft inserted through the ring core, and a plurality of magnets inserted in magnet insertion holes defined in the divided core plates, comprises the heating step of heating the shaft, the fitting step of fitting the ring core over the heated shaft, and the cooling step of cooling the shaft to integrally combine the shaft and the ring core with each other, after the fitting step, wherein each of the ring-shaped core plates has on an inner circumferential surface thereof a plurality of plate-side protrusions projecting toward the shaft, and the shaft has on an outer circumferential surface thereof a plurality of shaft-side protrusions projecting toward the divided core plates, each of the plate-side protrusions has a plate-side tapered portion having a width progressively greater toward the shaft, and each of the shaft-side protrusions has a shaft-side tapered portion having a width progressively greater toward the divided core plates, and in the fitting step, the plate-side protrusions are brought into fitting engagement with the shaft-side protrusions which are thermally expanded, and, in the cooling step, the shaft shrinks to bring a tapered surface of the plate-side tapered portion and a tapered surface of the shaft-side tapered portion into intimate contact with each other.
The plate-side tapered portion may comprise a plate-side trapezoidal region in the shape of an inverted isosceles trapezoid having a width progressively greater toward the shaft, and the shaft-side tapered portion may comprise a shaft-side trapezoidal region in the shape of an inverted isosceles trapezoid having a width progressively greater toward the ring-shaped core plates, each of an angle formed between two slant lines interconnecting upper and lower bottoms of the plate-side trapezoidal region and an angle formed between two slant lines interconnecting upper and lower bottoms of the shaft-side trapezoidal region may be in the range from 60° to 120° inclusive, and a space defined between adjacent ones of the plate-side protrusions may be greater than the shaft-side tapered portion which is heated in the heating step, as viewed in plan.
The coefficient of thermal expansion of the shaft may be equal to or greater than the coefficient of thermal expansion of the divided core plates.
According to the present invention, a method of manufacturing a rotary electric machine including a ring core made up of a plurality of stacked ring-shaped core plates each comprising a plurality of divided core plates, a shaft inserted through the ring core, and a plurality of magnets inserted in magnet insertion holes defined in the divided core plates, comprises the cooling step of cooling the ring core, the fitting step of fitting the ring core which is cooled over the shaft, and the normal temperature restoring step of restoring the ring core to normal temperature after the fitting step, wherein each of the ring-shaped core plates has on an inner circumferential surface thereof a plurality of plate-side protrusions projecting toward the shaft, and the shaft has on an outer circumferential surface thereof a plurality of shaft-side protrusions projecting toward the divided core plates, each of the plate-side protrusions has a plate-side tapered portion having a width progressively greater toward the shaft, and each of the shaft-side protrusions has a shaft-side tapered portion having a width progressively greater toward the divided core plates, and in the fitting step, the plate-side protrusions which are cooled to shrink are brought into fitting engagement with the shaft-side protrusions, and, in the normal temperature restoring step, the ring-shaped core plates are thermally expanded to bring a tapered surface of the plate-side tapered portion and a tapered surface of the shaft-side tapered portion into intimate contact with each other.
The plate-side tapered portion may comprise a plate-side trapezoidal region in the shape of an inverted isosceles trapezoid having a width progressively greater toward the shaft, and the shaft-side tapered portion may comprise a shaft-side trapezoidal region in the shape of an inverted isosceles trapezoid having a width progressively greater toward the ring-shaped core plates, each of an angle formed between two slant lines interconnecting upper and lower bottoms of the plate-side trapezoidal region and an angle formed between two slant lines interconnecting upper and lower bottoms of the shaft-side trapezoidal region may be in the range from 60° to 120° inclusive, and a space defined between adjacent ones of the plate-side protrusions may be greater than the plate-side tapered portion which is cooled in the cooling step, as viewed in plan.
The coefficient of thermal expansion of the divided core plates may be equal to or greater than the coefficient of thermal expansion of the shaft.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS
FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view of a rotor as a rotary electric machine according to an embodiment of the present invention;
FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view of a portion of a rotor core of the rotor;
FIG. 3 is a plan view of the rotor;
FIG. 4 is an enlarged fragmentary plan view of the rotor shown in FIG. 3 ;
FIG. 5 is a flowchart of a method of manufacturing the rotor according to the embodiment;
FIG. 6 is a view showing one state in the method of manufacturing the rotor;
FIG. 7 is an enlarged fragmentary plan view showing the manner in which a shaft is expanded due to heat in FIG. 4 ;
FIG. 8 is a view showing another state in the method of manufacturing the rotor;
FIG. 9 is an enlarged fragmentary plan view of a modification of the rotor; and
FIG. 10 is a flowchart of a modification of the method of manufacturing the rotor.
DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS
Arrangement of the Embodiment
FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view of a rotor 10 as a rotary electric machine according to an embodiment of the present invention. The rotor 10 according to the present embodiment cooperates with a stator, etc., not shown, in making up an electric motor.
The rotor 10 includes a rotor core 12 (ring core) made up of a plurality of (e.g., one hundred sheets of) stacked ring-shaped core plates 14 , a shaft 16 inserted through the rotor core 12 , and a plurality of magnets 18 inserted in the rotor core 12 . The shaft 16 according to the present embodiment has a higher coefficient of thermal expansion than each of the ring-shaped core plates 14 .
Each of the ring-shaped core plates 14 comprises a predetermined number (3 in the present embodiment) of thin, sectorial divided core plates 20 arranged circumferentially into a ring shape. If it is assumed that the position where two divided core plates 20 of the ring-shaped core plate 14 in the lowermost layer (first layer) abut against each other is indicated by an arrow E 1 , then the position where two divided core plates 20 of the ring-shaped core plate 14 in the layer (second layer) above the lowermost layer abut against each other is indicated by an arrow E 2 . Similarly, the corresponding abutting position in the ring-shaped core plate 14 in the third layer is indicated by an arrow E 3 , the corresponding abutting position in the ring-shaped core plate 14 in the fourth layer by an arrow E 4 , and the corresponding abutting position in the ring-shaped core plate 14 in the fifth layer by an arrow E 1 (the abutting position in the fifth layer is the same as the abutting position in the first layer). The ring-shaped core plates 14 in layers above the fifth layer are stacked in the same sequence. As can be understood from FIG. 1 , the arrows E 1 through E 4 are shifted 30° out of phase with each other. The abutting positions in the ring-shaped core plates 14 in each layer, e.g., in the first layer, are angularly spaced by the same angles as the angle of the arc represented by a single divided core plate 20 . These abutting positions are located as a total of three positions angularly spaced by 120° from the reference position indicated by the arrow E 1 . The abutting positions in the other layers are similarly angularly spaced apart.
Specifically, as shown in FIG. 2 , the ring-shaped core plate 14 in the first layer has a total of three positions E 1 where the ends (abutting surfaces) of two divided core plates 20 abut against each other, angularly spaced by a predetermined angle θ 1 (120° in the present embodiment). The ring-shaped core plate 14 in the second layer has three positions E 2 where the ends of two divided core plates 20 abut against each other, angularly spaced by a predetermined angle θ 2 (30° in the present embodiment) from the positions E 1 . The ring-shaped core plate 14 in the third layer has three positions E 3 where the ends of two divided core plates 20 abut against each other, angularly spaced by the predetermined angle θ 2 (30° in the present embodiment) from the positions E 2 . The abutting positions in the upper layers are similarly angularly spaced apart. With the rotor core 12 , therefore, the ring-shaped core plates 14 in the respective layers are stacked in the positions that are angularly spaced by the predetermined angle θ 2 )(30°).
Each of the divided core plates 20 that make up the ring-shaped core plates 14 has magnet holes 22 (magnet insertion holes) for receiving magnets 18 inserted therein. The magnet holes 22 are defined at equal angular intervals in the circumferential directions of the rotor core 12 and are positioned in phase with each other through the ring-shaped core plates 14 with respect to the rotational axis Ax of the rotor 10 . That the magnet holes 22 are positioned in phase with each other means that the magnet holes 22 are positioned in line through the ring-shaped core plates 14 with respect to the rotational axis Ax as viewed in plan ( FIG. 3 ). The magnet holes 22 positioned in phase with each other through the ring-shaped core plates 14 jointly define slots 24 for housing therein the magnets 18 each substantially in the form of a rectangular parallelepiped.
Each of the divided core plates 20 has pin holes 26 defined therein in phase with the magnet holes 22 . When securing pins 28 are inserted into the pin holes 26 along the directions in which the ring-shaped core plates 14 are stacked, the ring-shaped core plates 14 are secured to each other. Each of the pin holes 26 is defined in a position which is spaced from the corresponding magnet hole 22 (in phase in the pin hole 26 ) toward the rotational axis Ax of the rotor 10 by the thickness of one magnet 18 . The magnetic flux density of the magnet 18 is lowest in the position where each of the pin holes 26 is defined.
Dowels 30 are disposed on both sides of each pin hole 26 . Each of the dowels 30 is defined by a convexity in one of the directions in which the ring-shaped core plates 14 are stacked and a concavity in the other of the directions in which the ring-shaped core plates 14 are stacked. All the dowels 30 are arranged along a circle that is concentric to the rotational axis Ax, and have a U-shaped cross section along the directions of a line tangential to the circle that is concentric to the rotational axis Ax. The dowels 30 are longer in the directions of the line tangential to the circle than in the directions of a line perpendicular to the line tangential to the circle. When the ring-shaped core plates 14 are stacked together, the dowels 30 of adjacent ones of the ring-shaped core plates 14 engage each other.
Each of the ring-shaped core plates 14 (the divided core plates 20 ) has tapered keys 32 (plate-side protrusions) disposed on an inner side thereof (shaft 16 side) at respective positions that are in phase with the magnets 18 and the pin holes 26 . As shown in FIGS. 1 and 3 , the shaft 16 has a plurality of tapered keys 34 (shaft-side protrusions) disposed on an outer circumferential surface thereof and held in mesh with the tapered keys 32 of the divided core plates 20 . In other words, each of the tapered keys 32 of the divided core plates 20 is disposed in a space 36 defined between adjacent ones of the tapered keys 34 of the shaft 16 . Stated otherwise, each of the tapered keys 34 of the shaft 16 is disposed in a space 38 defined between adjacent ones of the tapered keys 32 of the divided core plates 20 .
As shown in FIG. 4 , each of the tapered keys 32 of the divided core plates 20 includes a proximal portion 50 (plate-side proximal portion) having a constant width, an intermediate portion 52 (plate-side tapered portion) disposed more closely to the shaft 16 than the proximal portion 50 and having a progressively greater width, and a distal end portion 54 disposed more closely to the shaft 16 than the intermediate portion 52 and having a constant width. The width Wp 1 of the distal end portion 54 is greater than the width Wp 2 of the proximal portion 50 . The intermediate portion 52 is in the shape of an inverted isosceles trapezoid, and includes two sides interconnecting upper and lower bottoms thereof and defined by two tapered surfaces 56 which are angularly spaced by an angle θp of about 100°.
Each of the tapered keys 34 of the shaft 16 includes a proximal portion 60 (shaft-side proximal portions) having a width progressively greater toward the divided core plates 20 , an intermediate portion 62 (shaft-side tapered portion) disposed more closely to the divided core plates 20 than the proximal portion 60 and having a width which increases at a larger rate of change than the width of the proximal portion 60 , and a distal end portion 64 disposed more closely to the divided core plates 20 than the intermediate portion 62 and having a width which increases at a smaller rate of change than the width of the intermediate portion 62 . The minimum width Ws 1 of the distal end portion 64 is greater than the maximum width Ws 2 of the proximal portion 60 . Side surfaces 66 which face adjacent ones of the proximal portions 60 lie parallel to each other (with a constant distance Ds 1 between adjacent side surfaces 66 ). Side surfaces 68 which face adjacent ones of the distal end portions 64 lie parallel to each other (with a constant distance Ds 2 between adjacent side surfaces 68 ). The intermediate portion 62 is in the shape of an inverted isosceles trapezoid, and includes two sides interconnecting upper and lower bottoms thereof and defined by two tapered surfaces 70 which are angularly spaced by an angle θs of about 120°.
As shown in FIG. 4 , the distance Ds 1 between the proximal portions 60 of the shaft 16 is greater than the width Wp 1 of the distal end portion 54 of the divided core plates 20 . The distance Ds 2 between the distal end portions 64 of the shaft 16 is greater than the width Wp 2 of the proximal portion 50 of the divided core plates 20 . Furthermore, the tapered surfaces 56 of the intermediate portion 52 and the tapered surfaces 70 of the intermediate portion 62 which face the tapered surfaces 56 lie parallel to each other. In addition, the side surfaces 66 of the proximal portion 60 of the shaft 16 and the side surfaces 72 of the distal end portion 54 of the divided core plates 20 lie parallel to each other. The side surfaces 68 of the distal end portions 64 of the shaft 16 and side surfaces 74 of the proximal portion 50 of the divided core plates 20 lie parallel to each other.
The tapered keys 32 of the divided core plates 20 and the tapered keys 34 of the shaft 16 are of the structure described above. As shown in FIG. 4 , the intermediate portions 52 of the tapered keys 32 and the intermediate portions 62 of the tapered keys 34 are held in intimate contact with each other through the tapered surfaces 56 , 70 . According to the present embodiment, as described later, the shaft 16 is heated to thermally expand in its entirety (see FIG. 7 ), then the tapered keys 32 and the tapered keys 34 are positioned, and thereafter the shaft 16 is cooled to shrink in its entirety. At normal temperature, the tapered keys 34 of the shaft 16 keep the tapered keys 32 of the divided core plates 20 pulled toward the rotational axis Ax of the rotor 10 , thereby securely coupling the divided core plates 20 to the shaft 16 .
While the intermediate portions 52 , 62 are being held in intimate contact with each other, the distal end portions 54 of the tapered keys 32 have distal end surfaces 76 kept out of contact with the shaft 16 , and the distal end portions 64 of the tapered keys 34 have distal end surfaces 78 kept out of contact with the divided core plates 20 .
Method of Manufacturing a Rotor
A method of manufacturing the rotor 10 according to the present embodiment will be described below.
FIG. 5 is a flowchart of a method of manufacturing the rotor 10 . In step S 1 , the shaft 16 is heated to a prescribed temperature (e.g., several hundreds ° C.). In step S 2 , the heated shaft 16 is set in a jig 80 (see FIG. 6 ). At this time, the tapered keys 34 of the shaft 16 are thermally expanded as indicated by the two-dot-and-dash lines in FIG. 7 .
In step S 3 , the rotor core 12 at normal temperature is fitted over the shaft 16 (see FIGS. 6 and 8 ). Since the tapered keys 34 of the shaft 16 which is heated are thermally expanded, as described above, the rotor core 12 can be fitted over the shaft 16 without the tapered keys 32 and the tapered keys 34 being brought into contact with each other.
In step S 4 , the shaft 16 and the rotor core 12 which is heated by the heat of the shaft 16 are cooled. As a result, the tapered keys 32 , 34 shrink. At normal temperature, the tapered keys 34 of the shaft 16 keep the tapered keys 32 of the divided core plates 20 pulled toward the rotational axis Ax of the rotor 10 , thereby securely coupling the divided core plates 20 to the shaft 16 .
Advantages of the Present Embodiment
According to the present embodiment, as described above, the tapered surfaces 56 of the tapered keys 32 of the divided core plates 20 and the tapered surfaces 70 of the tapered keys 34 of the shaft 16 are held in intimate contact with each other, securing the divided core plates 20 to the shaft 16 . Therefore, a torque can efficiently be transmitted from the shaft 16 to the rotor core 12 . Even when the rotor 10 rotates at a high speed, applying centrifugal forces to the divided core plates 20 , the divided core plates 20 are prevented from increasing in diameter. Consequently, the rotor 10 is prevented from being damaged due to an increase in diameter while rotating at a high speed.
According to the present embodiment, the tapered keys 32 of the divided core plates 20 are disposed in phase with the magnets 18 . Since the tapered keys 32 and the tapered keys 34 are held in pressed contact with each other, the positions in phase with the tapered keys 32 are relatively hard to displace while the rotor 10 is in rotation.
According to the present embodiment, each of the angle θp of the tapered keys 32 and the angle θs of the tapered keys 34 is in the range from 60° to 120° inclusive. The angle range makes it easy to inhibit the relative displacement between the tapered keys 32 and the tapered keys 34 and the displacement of the divided core plates 20 with respect to the shaft 16 while the rotor 10 is in rotation, and also to shrink-fit the divided core plates 20 over the shaft 16 .
According to the present embodiment, the rotor core 12 can be fitted over the shaft 16 without contacting the shaft 16 by shrink fitting. It is thus possible to prevent demerits (e.g., scoring on the rotor core 12 and the shaft 16 when the rotor core 12 is fitted over the shaft 16 ) caused if the rotor core 12 is fitted over the shaft 16 by press fitting.
According to the present embodiment, the pin holes 26 are located at the position where the magnetic flux density of the magnet 18 is the lowest, i.e., the position which is spaced from the magnet hole 22 by the thickness of one magnet 18 . Therefore, it is possible to inhibit a reduction in the performance of the rotor 10 due to the securing pins 28 inserted into the pin holes 26 .
According to the present embodiment, the dowels 30 of the U-shaped cross section have their longitudinal directions parallel to the lines tangential to the circle which is concentric to the rotational axis Ax of the rotor 10 , for thereby preventing the ring-shaped core plates 14 from being deformed while the rotor 10 is in rotation.
According to the present embodiment, the divided core plates 20 are divided at angular intervals of 120°. The ring-shaped core plates 14 in adjacent layers are stacked such that the abutting positions of the divided core plates 20 are angularly spaced by the predetermined angle θ 2 )(30°). Since the ring-shaped core plates 14 are stacked such that the abutting positions of the divided core plates 20 are angularly spaced, the divided core plates 20 are prevented from being positionally displaced.
Modifications
The present invention is not limited to the above embodiment, but may adopt various arrangements based on the contents of the present description. For example, the present invention may adopt the following arrangements:
In the above embodiment, the tapered keys 32 , 34 are of linear shapes as viewed in plan. However, the tapered keys 32 , 34 are not limited to linear shapes, but, as shown in FIG. 9 , may have round edges at corners (e.g., the bases of the proximal portions 50 , 60 and the boundaries between the proximal portions 50 , 60 and the intermediate portions 52 , 62 ), for thereby making the tapered keys 32 , 34 more rigid.
In the above embodiment, the numbers of the tapered keys 32 , 34 are as shown in FIGS. 1 and 3 . However, the numbers of the tapered keys 32 , 34 are not limited to those illustrated, but may be changed according to design.
In the above embodiment, the angles θp, Os of the tapered keys 32 , 34 are as shown in FIG. 4 . However, the angles θp, Os of the tapered keys 32 , 34 may be of other values. If the angles θp, θs are equal to or greater than 60°, then it is easy to inhibit relative displacement between the tapered keys 32 and the tapered keys 34 and displacement of the ring-shaped core plates 14 with respect to the shaft 16 while the rotor 10 is in rotation. If the angles θp, Os are equal to or smaller than 120°, then it is easy to shrink-fit or cooling-fit the ring-shaped core plates 14 over the shaft 16 .
In the above embodiment, each of the tapered keys 32 comprises the proximal portion 50 , the intermediate portion 52 , and the distal end portion 54 , and each of the tapered keys 34 comprises the proximal portion 60 , the intermediate portion 62 , and the distal end portion 64 . However, insofar as each of the tapered keys 32 , 34 has only a region corresponding to the intermediate portions 52 , 62 , it may dispense with other regions. In the above embodiment, each of the intermediate portions 52 , 62 is in the shape of an inverted isosceles trapezoid. However, each of the intermediate portions 52 , 62 is not limited to the shape of an inverted isosceles trapezoid, but may be of other shapes. For example, each of the intermediate portions 52 , 62 may be of a trapezoidal shape including only one tapered surface 56 or 70 .
In the above embodiment, the shaft 16 is set in the jig 80 after the shaft 16 is heated. However, the jig 80 may have a heating means, and the shaft 16 may be heated after it is set in the jig 80 . While the rotor core 12 is shrink-fitted over the shaft 16 while only the shaft 16 is being heated in the above embodiment, the rotor core 12 may be shrink-fitted over the shaft 16 while both the shaft 16 and the rotor core 12 are being heated provided that the coefficient of thermal expansion of the shaft 16 is higher than the coefficient of thermal expansion of the rotor core 12 .
The rotor core 12 may be fitted over the shaft 16 by cooling fitting rather than shrink fitting.
FIG. 10 is a flowchart of a method of manufacturing the rotor 10 using a cooling fitting process. According to the manufacturing method shown in FIG. 10 , the coefficient of thermal expansion of the divided core plates 20 should preferably be equal to or higher than the coefficient of thermal expansion of the shaft 16 .
In step S 11 , the shaft 16 at normal temperature is set in the jig 80 . Then, in step S 12 , the rotor core 12 is cooled. The rotor core 12 thus shrinks in its entirety, with its inside diameter reduced. As a result, the tapered keys 32 of the divided core plates 20 are displaced toward the rotational axis Ax of the rotor 10 . It is thus possible to fit the rotor core 12 over the shaft 16 without the tapered keys 32 and the tapered keys 34 being brought into contact with each other.
Then, in step S 13 , the cooled rotor core 12 is fitted over the shaft at normal temperature. Thereafter, in step S 14 , the rotor core 12 and the shaft 16 which is cooled by contacting the shaft 16 are left to stand or heated to normal temperature. As a result, the tapered keys 32 , 34 are thermally expanded. The tapered keys 32 of the divided core plates 20 keep the tapered keys 34 of the shaft 16 pulled away from the rotational axis Ax of the rotor 10 , thereby securely coupling the divided core plates 20 to the shaft 16 .
The rotor core 12 may be fitted over the shaft 16 by press fitting rather than shrink fitting or cooling fitting. | Provided are a rotating electrical machine and a method for manufacturing the rotating electrical machine, wherein the tapered surface of a plate-side tapered section and the tapered surface of a shaft-side tapered section are bonded with pressure by having forces operate between a plurality of plate-side protruding sections and a plurality of shaft-side protruding sections n the directions wherein the plate-side protruding sections and the shaft-side protruding sections are separated from each other. Thus, a ring core is fixed to a shaft. | Provide a concise summary of the essential information conveyed in the context. | [
"TECHNICAL FIELD The present invention relates to a rotary electric machine including a ring core made up of a plurality of stacked ring-shaped core plates each comprising a plurality of divided core plates, a shaft inserted through the ring core, and a plurality of magnets inserted in magnet insertion holes defined in the divided core plates.",
"BACKGROUND ART There are known rotary electric machines for use as parts in electric motors or the like.",
"The rotary electric machines mainly include a ring core made up of a plurality of stacked ring-shaped core plates, a shaft inserted through the ring core, and a plurality of magnets disposed in the ring core.",
"Known technologies for fitting the ring core over the shaft include a shrink-fitting process and a press-fitting process (for example, Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. 07-022168).",
"According to Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. 07-022168, a hollow cylindrical rotor (1) is heated to increase its inside diameter, and a shaft (7) is inserted therein.",
"The rotor (1) is then cooled to reduce the inside diameter thereof to fit over the shaft (7) (for example, see paragraph [0031] and FIG. 3(b) of Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. 07-022168).",
"There is also known a technology wherein each of a plurality of ring-shaped core plates that make up a ring core comprises a plurality of divided core plates (for example, Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. 2002-262496).",
"In addition, Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. 2002-262496 discloses that internal involute splines (11) are formed on the inner circumferential surface of divided cores (1), external involute splines (18) are formed on the outer circumferential surface of a shaft (17), and they are brought into mesh with each other to fasten a rotor (16) to the shaft (17) (for example, see paragraphs [0020], and FIGS. 11, 12, and 14 of Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. 2002-262496).",
"SUMMARY OF INVENTION According to Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. 07-022168, since the rotor (1) is fixed to the shaft (7) by the shrinkage of the rotor (1), if the torque applied to the shaft (7) increases, then the rotor (1) may possibly be spaced from the shaft (7) under centrifugal forces, failing to transmit the torque sufficiently.",
"Even with the meshing structure disclosed in Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. 2002-262496, inasmuch as the internal involute splines (11) and the external involute splines (18) engage perpendicularly to each other, when centrifugal forces are applied to the rotor (16) upon rotation of the shaft (17), the rotor (16) may possibly be displaced in a direction away from the shaft (17).",
"At this time, magnets disposed in the rotor (16) are also displaced, and the rotor (16) tends to be brought into contact with the stator, damaging the rotary electric machine.",
"The present invention has been made in view of the above problems.",
"It is an object of the present invention to provide a rotary electric machine which is capable of efficiently transmitting a torque from a shaft to a ring core and also of preventing itself from contacting a stator while the rotary electric machine is rotating at a high speed, and a method of manufacturing such a rotary electric machine.",
"A rotary electric machine according to the present invention comprises a ring core made up of a plurality of stacked ring-shaped core plates each comprising a plurality of divided core plates, a shaft inserted through the ring core, and a plurality of magnets inserted in magnet insertion holes defined in the divided core plates, wherein each of the ring-shaped core plates has on an inner circumferential surface thereof a plurality of plate-side protrusions projecting toward the shaft, and the shaft has on an outer circumferential surface thereof a plurality of shaft-side protrusions projecting toward the divided core plates, each of the plate-side protrusions has a plate-side tapered portion having a width progressively greater toward the shaft, and each of the shaft-side protrusions has a shaft-side tapered portion having a width progressively greater toward the divided core plates, and a tapered surface of the plate-side tapered portion and a tapered surface of the shaft-side tapered portion are pressed against each other, securing the ring core to the shaft, under a force acting in a direction to move the plate-side protrusions and the shaft-side protrusions away from each other.",
"According to the present invention, the ring core is secured to the shaft by pressing the tapered surface of the plate-side tapered portion which is progressively wider toward the shaft and the tapered surface of the shaft-side tapered portion which is progressively wider toward the divided core plates, against each other.",
"Therefore, a torque can efficiently be transmitted from the shaft to the ring core.",
"Even when the rotary electric machine rotates at a high speed, applying centrifugal forces to the ring-shaped core plates, the ring-shaped core plates are prevented from increasing in diameter.",
"Consequently, the rotary electric machine is capable of performing as desired while rotating at a high speed.",
"The plate-side tapered portions may be disposed in phase with the magnets.",
"Since the plate-side tapered portion is held in press-contact with the shaft-side tapered portion, the position in phase with the plate-side tapered portion is relatively hard to displace while the rotary electric machine is in rotation.",
"Consequently, the rotary electric machine is prevented from being damaged due to contact with the stator while the rotary electric machine is in high speed rotation.",
"The plate-side tapered portion may comprise a plate-side trapezoidal region in the shape of an inverted isosceles trapezoid having a width progressively greater toward the shaft, and the shaft-side tapered portion comprises a shaft-side trapezoidal region in the shape of an inverted isosceles trapezoid having a width progressively greater toward the ring-shaped core plates.",
"Each of an angle formed between two slant lines interconnecting upper and lower bottoms of the plate-side trapezoidal region and an angle formed between two slant lines interconnecting upper and lower bottoms of the shaft-side trapezoidal region may be in the range from 60° to 120° inclusive.",
"The angle which is equal to or greater than 60° makes it easy to inhibit the relative displacement between the plate-side tapered portion and the shaft-side tapered portion and the displacement of the ring-shaped core plates with respect to the shaft while the rotary electric machine is in rotation.",
"The angle which is equal to or smaller than 120° makes it easy to fit the ring-shaped core plates over the shaft.",
"A space defined between adjacent ones of the plate-side protrusions may be greater than the shaft-side tapered portion as viewed in plan.",
"The coefficient of thermal expansion of the shaft may be equal to or greater than the coefficient of thermal expansion of the divided core plates.",
"The rotary electric machine may further comprise a plurality of securing pins inserted in the ring-shaped core plates along the directions in which the ring-shaped core plates are stacked, securing the ring-shaped core plates together, wherein the ring-shaped core plates may have a plurality of pin holes defined therein for receiving the securing pins inserted therein, and the pin holes may be disposed in positions in which the magnetic flux density of the magnets is lowest and which are in phase with the magnets.",
"Therefore, it is possible to inhibit a reduction in the performance of the rotary electric machine due to the securing pins inserted into the pin holes.",
"The pin holes may be disposed in positions which are spaced from the magnet insertion holes by the thickness of one magnet.",
"It is thus possible to inhibit a reduction in the performance of the rotary electric machine.",
"Each of the ring-shaped core plates may have a plurality of dowels deformed along the directions in which the ring-shaped core plates are stacked, the dowels may be disposed along a circle that is concentric to the rotational axis of the shaft, and have a U-shaped cross section along lines tangential to the circle, and the dowels may have longitudinal directions parallel to the lines tangential to the circle.",
"The ring-shaped core plates are thus prevented from being deformed while the rotary electric machine is in rotation.",
"According to the present invention, a method of manufacturing a rotary electric machine including a ring core made up of a plurality of stacked ring-shaped core plates each comprising a plurality of divided core plates, a shaft inserted through the ring core, and a plurality of magnets inserted in magnet insertion holes defined in the divided core plates, comprises the heating step of heating the shaft, the fitting step of fitting the ring core over the heated shaft, and the cooling step of cooling the shaft to integrally combine the shaft and the ring core with each other, after the fitting step, wherein each of the ring-shaped core plates has on an inner circumferential surface thereof a plurality of plate-side protrusions projecting toward the shaft, and the shaft has on an outer circumferential surface thereof a plurality of shaft-side protrusions projecting toward the divided core plates, each of the plate-side protrusions has a plate-side tapered portion having a width progressively greater toward the shaft, and each of the shaft-side protrusions has a shaft-side tapered portion having a width progressively greater toward the divided core plates, and in the fitting step, the plate-side protrusions are brought into fitting engagement with the shaft-side protrusions which are thermally expanded, and, in the cooling step, the shaft shrinks to bring a tapered surface of the plate-side tapered portion and a tapered surface of the shaft-side tapered portion into intimate contact with each other.",
"The plate-side tapered portion may comprise a plate-side trapezoidal region in the shape of an inverted isosceles trapezoid having a width progressively greater toward the shaft, and the shaft-side tapered portion may comprise a shaft-side trapezoidal region in the shape of an inverted isosceles trapezoid having a width progressively greater toward the ring-shaped core plates, each of an angle formed between two slant lines interconnecting upper and lower bottoms of the plate-side trapezoidal region and an angle formed between two slant lines interconnecting upper and lower bottoms of the shaft-side trapezoidal region may be in the range from 60° to 120° inclusive, and a space defined between adjacent ones of the plate-side protrusions may be greater than the shaft-side tapered portion which is heated in the heating step, as viewed in plan.",
"The coefficient of thermal expansion of the shaft may be equal to or greater than the coefficient of thermal expansion of the divided core plates.",
"According to the present invention, a method of manufacturing a rotary electric machine including a ring core made up of a plurality of stacked ring-shaped core plates each comprising a plurality of divided core plates, a shaft inserted through the ring core, and a plurality of magnets inserted in magnet insertion holes defined in the divided core plates, comprises the cooling step of cooling the ring core, the fitting step of fitting the ring core which is cooled over the shaft, and the normal temperature restoring step of restoring the ring core to normal temperature after the fitting step, wherein each of the ring-shaped core plates has on an inner circumferential surface thereof a plurality of plate-side protrusions projecting toward the shaft, and the shaft has on an outer circumferential surface thereof a plurality of shaft-side protrusions projecting toward the divided core plates, each of the plate-side protrusions has a plate-side tapered portion having a width progressively greater toward the shaft, and each of the shaft-side protrusions has a shaft-side tapered portion having a width progressively greater toward the divided core plates, and in the fitting step, the plate-side protrusions which are cooled to shrink are brought into fitting engagement with the shaft-side protrusions, and, in the normal temperature restoring step, the ring-shaped core plates are thermally expanded to bring a tapered surface of the plate-side tapered portion and a tapered surface of the shaft-side tapered portion into intimate contact with each other.",
"The plate-side tapered portion may comprise a plate-side trapezoidal region in the shape of an inverted isosceles trapezoid having a width progressively greater toward the shaft, and the shaft-side tapered portion may comprise a shaft-side trapezoidal region in the shape of an inverted isosceles trapezoid having a width progressively greater toward the ring-shaped core plates, each of an angle formed between two slant lines interconnecting upper and lower bottoms of the plate-side trapezoidal region and an angle formed between two slant lines interconnecting upper and lower bottoms of the shaft-side trapezoidal region may be in the range from 60° to 120° inclusive, and a space defined between adjacent ones of the plate-side protrusions may be greater than the plate-side tapered portion which is cooled in the cooling step, as viewed in plan.",
"The coefficient of thermal expansion of the divided core plates may be equal to or greater than the coefficient of thermal expansion of the shaft.",
"BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view of a rotor as a rotary electric machine according to an embodiment of the present invention;",
"FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view of a portion of a rotor core of the rotor;",
"FIG. 3 is a plan view of the rotor;",
"FIG. 4 is an enlarged fragmentary plan view of the rotor shown in FIG. 3 ;",
"FIG. 5 is a flowchart of a method of manufacturing the rotor according to the embodiment;",
"FIG. 6 is a view showing one state in the method of manufacturing the rotor;",
"FIG. 7 is an enlarged fragmentary plan view showing the manner in which a shaft is expanded due to heat in FIG. 4 ;",
"FIG. 8 is a view showing another state in the method of manufacturing the rotor;",
"FIG. 9 is an enlarged fragmentary plan view of a modification of the rotor;",
"and FIG. 10 is a flowchart of a modification of the method of manufacturing the rotor.",
"DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS Arrangement of the Embodiment FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view of a rotor 10 as a rotary electric machine according to an embodiment of the present invention.",
"The rotor 10 according to the present embodiment cooperates with a stator, etc.",
", not shown, in making up an electric motor.",
"The rotor 10 includes a rotor core 12 (ring core) made up of a plurality of (e.g., one hundred sheets of) stacked ring-shaped core plates 14 , a shaft 16 inserted through the rotor core 12 , and a plurality of magnets 18 inserted in the rotor core 12 .",
"The shaft 16 according to the present embodiment has a higher coefficient of thermal expansion than each of the ring-shaped core plates 14 .",
"Each of the ring-shaped core plates 14 comprises a predetermined number (3 in the present embodiment) of thin, sectorial divided core plates 20 arranged circumferentially into a ring shape.",
"If it is assumed that the position where two divided core plates 20 of the ring-shaped core plate 14 in the lowermost layer (first layer) abut against each other is indicated by an arrow E 1 , then the position where two divided core plates 20 of the ring-shaped core plate 14 in the layer (second layer) above the lowermost layer abut against each other is indicated by an arrow E 2 .",
"Similarly, the corresponding abutting position in the ring-shaped core plate 14 in the third layer is indicated by an arrow E 3 , the corresponding abutting position in the ring-shaped core plate 14 in the fourth layer by an arrow E 4 , and the corresponding abutting position in the ring-shaped core plate 14 in the fifth layer by an arrow E 1 (the abutting position in the fifth layer is the same as the abutting position in the first layer).",
"The ring-shaped core plates 14 in layers above the fifth layer are stacked in the same sequence.",
"As can be understood from FIG. 1 , the arrows E 1 through E 4 are shifted 30° out of phase with each other.",
"The abutting positions in the ring-shaped core plates 14 in each layer, e.g., in the first layer, are angularly spaced by the same angles as the angle of the arc represented by a single divided core plate 20 .",
"These abutting positions are located as a total of three positions angularly spaced by 120° from the reference position indicated by the arrow E 1 .",
"The abutting positions in the other layers are similarly angularly spaced apart.",
"Specifically, as shown in FIG. 2 , the ring-shaped core plate 14 in the first layer has a total of three positions E 1 where the ends (abutting surfaces) of two divided core plates 20 abut against each other, angularly spaced by a predetermined angle θ 1 (120° in the present embodiment).",
"The ring-shaped core plate 14 in the second layer has three positions E 2 where the ends of two divided core plates 20 abut against each other, angularly spaced by a predetermined angle θ 2 (30° in the present embodiment) from the positions E 1 .",
"The ring-shaped core plate 14 in the third layer has three positions E 3 where the ends of two divided core plates 20 abut against each other, angularly spaced by the predetermined angle θ 2 (30° in the present embodiment) from the positions E 2 .",
"The abutting positions in the upper layers are similarly angularly spaced apart.",
"With the rotor core 12 , therefore, the ring-shaped core plates 14 in the respective layers are stacked in the positions that are angularly spaced by the predetermined angle θ 2 )(30°).",
"Each of the divided core plates 20 that make up the ring-shaped core plates 14 has magnet holes 22 (magnet insertion holes) for receiving magnets 18 inserted therein.",
"The magnet holes 22 are defined at equal angular intervals in the circumferential directions of the rotor core 12 and are positioned in phase with each other through the ring-shaped core plates 14 with respect to the rotational axis Ax of the rotor 10 .",
"That the magnet holes 22 are positioned in phase with each other means that the magnet holes 22 are positioned in line through the ring-shaped core plates 14 with respect to the rotational axis Ax as viewed in plan ( FIG. 3 ).",
"The magnet holes 22 positioned in phase with each other through the ring-shaped core plates 14 jointly define slots 24 for housing therein the magnets 18 each substantially in the form of a rectangular parallelepiped.",
"Each of the divided core plates 20 has pin holes 26 defined therein in phase with the magnet holes 22 .",
"When securing pins 28 are inserted into the pin holes 26 along the directions in which the ring-shaped core plates 14 are stacked, the ring-shaped core plates 14 are secured to each other.",
"Each of the pin holes 26 is defined in a position which is spaced from the corresponding magnet hole 22 (in phase in the pin hole 26 ) toward the rotational axis Ax of the rotor 10 by the thickness of one magnet 18 .",
"The magnetic flux density of the magnet 18 is lowest in the position where each of the pin holes 26 is defined.",
"Dowels 30 are disposed on both sides of each pin hole 26 .",
"Each of the dowels 30 is defined by a convexity in one of the directions in which the ring-shaped core plates 14 are stacked and a concavity in the other of the directions in which the ring-shaped core plates 14 are stacked.",
"All the dowels 30 are arranged along a circle that is concentric to the rotational axis Ax, and have a U-shaped cross section along the directions of a line tangential to the circle that is concentric to the rotational axis Ax.",
"The dowels 30 are longer in the directions of the line tangential to the circle than in the directions of a line perpendicular to the line tangential to the circle.",
"When the ring-shaped core plates 14 are stacked together, the dowels 30 of adjacent ones of the ring-shaped core plates 14 engage each other.",
"Each of the ring-shaped core plates 14 (the divided core plates 20 ) has tapered keys 32 (plate-side protrusions) disposed on an inner side thereof (shaft 16 side) at respective positions that are in phase with the magnets 18 and the pin holes 26 .",
"As shown in FIGS. 1 and 3 , the shaft 16 has a plurality of tapered keys 34 (shaft-side protrusions) disposed on an outer circumferential surface thereof and held in mesh with the tapered keys 32 of the divided core plates 20 .",
"In other words, each of the tapered keys 32 of the divided core plates 20 is disposed in a space 36 defined between adjacent ones of the tapered keys 34 of the shaft 16 .",
"Stated otherwise, each of the tapered keys 34 of the shaft 16 is disposed in a space 38 defined between adjacent ones of the tapered keys 32 of the divided core plates 20 .",
"As shown in FIG. 4 , each of the tapered keys 32 of the divided core plates 20 includes a proximal portion 50 (plate-side proximal portion) having a constant width, an intermediate portion 52 (plate-side tapered portion) disposed more closely to the shaft 16 than the proximal portion 50 and having a progressively greater width, and a distal end portion 54 disposed more closely to the shaft 16 than the intermediate portion 52 and having a constant width.",
"The width Wp 1 of the distal end portion 54 is greater than the width Wp 2 of the proximal portion 50 .",
"The intermediate portion 52 is in the shape of an inverted isosceles trapezoid, and includes two sides interconnecting upper and lower bottoms thereof and defined by two tapered surfaces 56 which are angularly spaced by an angle θp of about 100°.",
"Each of the tapered keys 34 of the shaft 16 includes a proximal portion 60 (shaft-side proximal portions) having a width progressively greater toward the divided core plates 20 , an intermediate portion 62 (shaft-side tapered portion) disposed more closely to the divided core plates 20 than the proximal portion 60 and having a width which increases at a larger rate of change than the width of the proximal portion 60 , and a distal end portion 64 disposed more closely to the divided core plates 20 than the intermediate portion 62 and having a width which increases at a smaller rate of change than the width of the intermediate portion 62 .",
"The minimum width Ws 1 of the distal end portion 64 is greater than the maximum width Ws 2 of the proximal portion 60 .",
"Side surfaces 66 which face adjacent ones of the proximal portions 60 lie parallel to each other (with a constant distance Ds 1 between adjacent side surfaces 66 ).",
"Side surfaces 68 which face adjacent ones of the distal end portions 64 lie parallel to each other (with a constant distance Ds 2 between adjacent side surfaces 68 ).",
"The intermediate portion 62 is in the shape of an inverted isosceles trapezoid, and includes two sides interconnecting upper and lower bottoms thereof and defined by two tapered surfaces 70 which are angularly spaced by an angle θs of about 120°.",
"As shown in FIG. 4 , the distance Ds 1 between the proximal portions 60 of the shaft 16 is greater than the width Wp 1 of the distal end portion 54 of the divided core plates 20 .",
"The distance Ds 2 between the distal end portions 64 of the shaft 16 is greater than the width Wp 2 of the proximal portion 50 of the divided core plates 20 .",
"Furthermore, the tapered surfaces 56 of the intermediate portion 52 and the tapered surfaces 70 of the intermediate portion 62 which face the tapered surfaces 56 lie parallel to each other.",
"In addition, the side surfaces 66 of the proximal portion 60 of the shaft 16 and the side surfaces 72 of the distal end portion 54 of the divided core plates 20 lie parallel to each other.",
"The side surfaces 68 of the distal end portions 64 of the shaft 16 and side surfaces 74 of the proximal portion 50 of the divided core plates 20 lie parallel to each other.",
"The tapered keys 32 of the divided core plates 20 and the tapered keys 34 of the shaft 16 are of the structure described above.",
"As shown in FIG. 4 , the intermediate portions 52 of the tapered keys 32 and the intermediate portions 62 of the tapered keys 34 are held in intimate contact with each other through the tapered surfaces 56 , 70 .",
"According to the present embodiment, as described later, the shaft 16 is heated to thermally expand in its entirety (see FIG. 7 ), then the tapered keys 32 and the tapered keys 34 are positioned, and thereafter the shaft 16 is cooled to shrink in its entirety.",
"At normal temperature, the tapered keys 34 of the shaft 16 keep the tapered keys 32 of the divided core plates 20 pulled toward the rotational axis Ax of the rotor 10 , thereby securely coupling the divided core plates 20 to the shaft 16 .",
"While the intermediate portions 52 , 62 are being held in intimate contact with each other, the distal end portions 54 of the tapered keys 32 have distal end surfaces 76 kept out of contact with the shaft 16 , and the distal end portions 64 of the tapered keys 34 have distal end surfaces 78 kept out of contact with the divided core plates 20 .",
"Method of Manufacturing a Rotor A method of manufacturing the rotor 10 according to the present embodiment will be described below.",
"FIG. 5 is a flowchart of a method of manufacturing the rotor 10 .",
"In step S 1 , the shaft 16 is heated to a prescribed temperature (e.g., several hundreds ° C.).",
"In step S 2 , the heated shaft 16 is set in a jig 80 (see FIG. 6 ).",
"At this time, the tapered keys 34 of the shaft 16 are thermally expanded as indicated by the two-dot-and-dash lines in FIG. 7 .",
"In step S 3 , the rotor core 12 at normal temperature is fitted over the shaft 16 (see FIGS. 6 and 8 ).",
"Since the tapered keys 34 of the shaft 16 which is heated are thermally expanded, as described above, the rotor core 12 can be fitted over the shaft 16 without the tapered keys 32 and the tapered keys 34 being brought into contact with each other.",
"In step S 4 , the shaft 16 and the rotor core 12 which is heated by the heat of the shaft 16 are cooled.",
"As a result, the tapered keys 32 , 34 shrink.",
"At normal temperature, the tapered keys 34 of the shaft 16 keep the tapered keys 32 of the divided core plates 20 pulled toward the rotational axis Ax of the rotor 10 , thereby securely coupling the divided core plates 20 to the shaft 16 .",
"Advantages of the Present Embodiment According to the present embodiment, as described above, the tapered surfaces 56 of the tapered keys 32 of the divided core plates 20 and the tapered surfaces 70 of the tapered keys 34 of the shaft 16 are held in intimate contact with each other, securing the divided core plates 20 to the shaft 16 .",
"Therefore, a torque can efficiently be transmitted from the shaft 16 to the rotor core 12 .",
"Even when the rotor 10 rotates at a high speed, applying centrifugal forces to the divided core plates 20 , the divided core plates 20 are prevented from increasing in diameter.",
"Consequently, the rotor 10 is prevented from being damaged due to an increase in diameter while rotating at a high speed.",
"According to the present embodiment, the tapered keys 32 of the divided core plates 20 are disposed in phase with the magnets 18 .",
"Since the tapered keys 32 and the tapered keys 34 are held in pressed contact with each other, the positions in phase with the tapered keys 32 are relatively hard to displace while the rotor 10 is in rotation.",
"According to the present embodiment, each of the angle θp of the tapered keys 32 and the angle θs of the tapered keys 34 is in the range from 60° to 120° inclusive.",
"The angle range makes it easy to inhibit the relative displacement between the tapered keys 32 and the tapered keys 34 and the displacement of the divided core plates 20 with respect to the shaft 16 while the rotor 10 is in rotation, and also to shrink-fit the divided core plates 20 over the shaft 16 .",
"According to the present embodiment, the rotor core 12 can be fitted over the shaft 16 without contacting the shaft 16 by shrink fitting.",
"It is thus possible to prevent demerits (e.g., scoring on the rotor core 12 and the shaft 16 when the rotor core 12 is fitted over the shaft 16 ) caused if the rotor core 12 is fitted over the shaft 16 by press fitting.",
"According to the present embodiment, the pin holes 26 are located at the position where the magnetic flux density of the magnet 18 is the lowest, i.e., the position which is spaced from the magnet hole 22 by the thickness of one magnet 18 .",
"Therefore, it is possible to inhibit a reduction in the performance of the rotor 10 due to the securing pins 28 inserted into the pin holes 26 .",
"According to the present embodiment, the dowels 30 of the U-shaped cross section have their longitudinal directions parallel to the lines tangential to the circle which is concentric to the rotational axis Ax of the rotor 10 , for thereby preventing the ring-shaped core plates 14 from being deformed while the rotor 10 is in rotation.",
"According to the present embodiment, the divided core plates 20 are divided at angular intervals of 120°.",
"The ring-shaped core plates 14 in adjacent layers are stacked such that the abutting positions of the divided core plates 20 are angularly spaced by the predetermined angle θ 2 )(30°).",
"Since the ring-shaped core plates 14 are stacked such that the abutting positions of the divided core plates 20 are angularly spaced, the divided core plates 20 are prevented from being positionally displaced.",
"Modifications The present invention is not limited to the above embodiment, but may adopt various arrangements based on the contents of the present description.",
"For example, the present invention may adopt the following arrangements: In the above embodiment, the tapered keys 32 , 34 are of linear shapes as viewed in plan.",
"However, the tapered keys 32 , 34 are not limited to linear shapes, but, as shown in FIG. 9 , may have round edges at corners (e.g., the bases of the proximal portions 50 , 60 and the boundaries between the proximal portions 50 , 60 and the intermediate portions 52 , 62 ), for thereby making the tapered keys 32 , 34 more rigid.",
"In the above embodiment, the numbers of the tapered keys 32 , 34 are as shown in FIGS. 1 and 3 .",
"However, the numbers of the tapered keys 32 , 34 are not limited to those illustrated, but may be changed according to design.",
"In the above embodiment, the angles θp, Os of the tapered keys 32 , 34 are as shown in FIG. 4 .",
"However, the angles θp, Os of the tapered keys 32 , 34 may be of other values.",
"If the angles θp, θs are equal to or greater than 60°, then it is easy to inhibit relative displacement between the tapered keys 32 and the tapered keys 34 and displacement of the ring-shaped core plates 14 with respect to the shaft 16 while the rotor 10 is in rotation.",
"If the angles θp, Os are equal to or smaller than 120°, then it is easy to shrink-fit or cooling-fit the ring-shaped core plates 14 over the shaft 16 .",
"In the above embodiment, each of the tapered keys 32 comprises the proximal portion 50 , the intermediate portion 52 , and the distal end portion 54 , and each of the tapered keys 34 comprises the proximal portion 60 , the intermediate portion 62 , and the distal end portion 64 .",
"However, insofar as each of the tapered keys 32 , 34 has only a region corresponding to the intermediate portions 52 , 62 , it may dispense with other regions.",
"In the above embodiment, each of the intermediate portions 52 , 62 is in the shape of an inverted isosceles trapezoid.",
"However, each of the intermediate portions 52 , 62 is not limited to the shape of an inverted isosceles trapezoid, but may be of other shapes.",
"For example, each of the intermediate portions 52 , 62 may be of a trapezoidal shape including only one tapered surface 56 or 70 .",
"In the above embodiment, the shaft 16 is set in the jig 80 after the shaft 16 is heated.",
"However, the jig 80 may have a heating means, and the shaft 16 may be heated after it is set in the jig 80 .",
"While the rotor core 12 is shrink-fitted over the shaft 16 while only the shaft 16 is being heated in the above embodiment, the rotor core 12 may be shrink-fitted over the shaft 16 while both the shaft 16 and the rotor core 12 are being heated provided that the coefficient of thermal expansion of the shaft 16 is higher than the coefficient of thermal expansion of the rotor core 12 .",
"The rotor core 12 may be fitted over the shaft 16 by cooling fitting rather than shrink fitting.",
"FIG. 10 is a flowchart of a method of manufacturing the rotor 10 using a cooling fitting process.",
"According to the manufacturing method shown in FIG. 10 , the coefficient of thermal expansion of the divided core plates 20 should preferably be equal to or higher than the coefficient of thermal expansion of the shaft 16 .",
"In step S 11 , the shaft 16 at normal temperature is set in the jig 80 .",
"Then, in step S 12 , the rotor core 12 is cooled.",
"The rotor core 12 thus shrinks in its entirety, with its inside diameter reduced.",
"As a result, the tapered keys 32 of the divided core plates 20 are displaced toward the rotational axis Ax of the rotor 10 .",
"It is thus possible to fit the rotor core 12 over the shaft 16 without the tapered keys 32 and the tapered keys 34 being brought into contact with each other.",
"Then, in step S 13 , the cooled rotor core 12 is fitted over the shaft at normal temperature.",
"Thereafter, in step S 14 , the rotor core 12 and the shaft 16 which is cooled by contacting the shaft 16 are left to stand or heated to normal temperature.",
"As a result, the tapered keys 32 , 34 are thermally expanded.",
"The tapered keys 32 of the divided core plates 20 keep the tapered keys 34 of the shaft 16 pulled away from the rotational axis Ax of the rotor 10 , thereby securely coupling the divided core plates 20 to the shaft 16 .",
"The rotor core 12 may be fitted over the shaft 16 by press fitting rather than shrink fitting or cooling fitting."
] |
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention generally relates to liquid crystal display devices and, more particularly, is directed to a liquid crystal display with back light.
2. Description of the Prior Art
A variety of liquid crystal displays (hereinafter simply referred to as LCDs) have been proposed so far and a twisted nematic display mode (TN mode) liquid crystal is known as one of the most popular LCDs.
As shown in a schematic diagram forming FIG. 1, this type of LCD is comprised of X-axis and Y-axis transparent electrodes 6, 8 formed on the inner surface of a pair of glass substrates 5, 9 in the direction perpendicular to each other in a matrix fashion, a TN liquid crystal 7 sandwiched between the two electrodes 6 and 8 with a twisted orientation of 90 degrees and a pair of polarizing plates 4, 10 unitarily formed with the outer surfaces of the glass substrates 5, 9 in the direction perpendicular to each other. In this case, the pair of polarizing plates 4, 10 are bonded to the outer surfaces of the glass substrates 5, 9. A voltage is applied between the transparent electrodes 6, 8 of a liquid crystal panel 13 formed by the above-mentioned elements by means of a driving source 11 and a switching device 12. When this TN mode liquid crystal is in its off state, that is, without application of voltage, a linearly-polarized light is rotated 90 degrees and passed by the liquid crystal panel 13. When on the other hand this TN mode liquid crystal is applied with voltage and turned on, then the twisted state is removed and the linearly-polarized light is inhibited from passing the liquid crystal panel 13.
When the LCD is constructed by using such liquid crystal panel 13, the LCD is generally formed as a reflection type, a reflection type using a back light or a transparent type. The kinds of back light 2 are selected in accordance with the purpose that for which the LCD is to be used. The back light might be an incandescent lamp, a fluorescent lamp, an electroluminescent lamp (EL) and so on. The fluorescent lamp is a light source suitable for color LCD and widely used because the fluorescent lamp produces light having a plurality of peaks of brightness in the visible region and this light becomes substantially white light. The fluorescent lamp is generally formed as a hot cathode type or a cold cathode type. The hot cathode type of fluorescent lamp is driven by a voltage of from 200 to 300 Volts and the cold cathode type of fluorescent lamp is driven by a high voltage of nearly 4000 Volts. The back light 2 formed of, for example, the fluorescent lamp is housed in a casing 1 having a diffuser 3 on the front surface thereof. This casing 1 is generally made of metal and the diffuser 3 is made of a white plastic plate or the like. The casing 1 has the liquid crystal panel 13 unitarily assembled into the front portion of the diffuser 3 as shown in FIG. 2.
When the back light 2 of the LCD is driven, a voltage of 200 to 300 Volts is applied to the cathode of the hot cathode type fluorescent lamp and a high voltage of about 4000 Volts is applied to the cathode of the cold cathode type fluorescent lamp. Further, a driving source is not a commercially available voltage source but a high frequency of about 40 kHz is employed as a switching means to thereby increase light emission efficiency.
Let us now consider that such LCD is installed, for example, on the rear surface of each of the passenger seats in the cabin of an airplane so that the passengers can enjoy watching video programs of different channels. In that case, the airplane has very strict specification on the leaked electromagnetic noise so as to prevent the automatic pilot system of the airplane from being affected thereby. Particularly, since the electromagnetic noise from the fluorescent lamp 2 is emitted from the LCD panel surface through the diffuser 3 and the liquid crystal panel 13, it is necessary to provide a countermeasure to prevent the electromagnetic noise, i.e., electromagnetic waves, from being leaked. As one of the methods for preventing electromagnetic waves from being leaked, it is proposed that, as shown in FIG. 2, a conductive film 14 such as an ITO film or the like is bonded to or coated on the front surface of the liquid crystal panel 13 to thereby shield the electromagnetic noise from the back light 2. In this arrangement, however, in order to visually confirm whether the light is passed through or cut off by the liquid crystal panel 13, the conductive film 14 must be made transparent, which unavoidably decreases the light utilizing ratio of the liquid crystal panel 13.
OBJECTS AND SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide an improved liquid crystal display with a back light in which the aforementioned shortcomings and disadvantages of the prior art can be eliminated.
More specifically, it is an object of the present invention to provide a liquid crystal display with a back light in which electromagnetic noise from the back light is completely shielded by rendering a diffuser (diffusing plate) conductive, thereby making it possible to utilize a conductive material which is not transparent.
As an aspect of the present invention, a liquid crystal display with a back light is provided, in which a diffuser (diffusing plate) mounted on a front surface of a casing in which the back light is housed is rendered conductive to thereby reduce the leakage of electromagnetic waves.
The above and other objects, features, and advantages of the present invention will become apparent in the following detailed description of an illustrative embodiment thereof to be read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which like reference numerals are used to identify the same or similar parts in the several views.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram showing a conventional liquid crystal display;
FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional side view of the conventional liquid crystal display with a back light;
FIGS. 3A and 3B are front view and cross-sectional side view illustrating a liquid crystal display with a back light according to an embodiment of the present invention; and
FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional side view of a main portion of the liquid crystal display with a back light of the present invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
The arrangement of the liquid crystal display with a back light according to the present invention will now be described with reference to FIGS. 3A, 3B and FIG. 4. In FIGS. 3A, 3B and FIG. 4, like parts corresponding to those of FIGS. 1 and 2 are marked with the same references and therefore need not be described in detail.
As shown in FIGS. 3A, 3B, the casing 1 is made of a metal material and shaped substantially as a box whose front surface is opened. The diffuser 3 is rectangular and made of white plastic or the like. This diffuser 3 is mounted on the front surface of the casing 1 and the back light 2 formed of a fluorescent lamp having an M-letter configuration is disposed within a space defined by the casing 1 and the diffuser 3. The back light 2 has two electrodes 2a, 2b connected, for example, to a switching power supply source of high frequency, e.g., 40 kHz (not shown) and, a voltage of 200 to 300 Volts is supplied to the cathode of the back light 2 if the back light 2 is formed of the hot cathode type fluorescent lamp.
If the diffuser 3 is made of white plastic, then a conductive member 15 may be produced by bonding a transparent conductive film (manufactured by TEIJIN LTD.) to the front or rear surface of the diffuser 3. Alternatively, this conductive member 15 may be provided by mixing a predetermined amount of conductive material, such as very small particle powder of carbon or the like into the diffuser 3 during the manufacturing-process of the diffuser 3 or the transparent or conductive member 15 may be produced by vapor-depositing a certain kind of metal thin film, such as gold, titanium or the like onto the diffuser 3.
If the diffuser 3 is formed of a glass substrate whose surface is formed as a frosted glass by the etching-process so as to improve its light diffusion effect, then a NESA,film or ITO film available on the market can be deposited onto the diffuser 3. The NESA film is a transparent conductive glass formed by depositing a stannic oxide (SnO 2 ) film on the glass substrate, and the ITO film is produced by vapor-depositing an indium oxide (In 2 C 2 ) film on the glass substrate.
The diffuser 3 having the conductive member 15 is rendered conductive to the metal casing 1 sufficiently via a brush 16 or metal fitting of L-letter configuration, etc., as shown in FIG. 4. Then, the liquid crystal panel 13 similar to that of FIG. 1 is mounted on the front surface of the diffuser 3 and the diffuser 3 is unitarily secured to the casing 1. As shown in FIG. 4, the liquid crystal panel 13 is composed of a pair of polarizing plates 4, 10 and a TN type liquid crystal 7 sandwiched between the transparent electrodes 6 and 8 provided on the pair of glass substrates 5, 9. Of course, the liquid crystal 7 is not limited to a STN (super twisted nematic) liquid crystal, a DSTN (double STN) liquid crystal or the like and might be an active matrix type LCD and so on.
Since the liquid crystal display with back light of this embodiment is arranged as described above, the electromagnetic noise from the back light 2 can be shielded even though the high voltage of the back light 2 is switched at high frequency, the electromagnetic noise from the back light 2 can be shielded. Also, effect of the diffusing plate for diffusing light from the back light 2 and effect of the electromagnetic shielding plate can be achieved at the same time.
It is clear that the shape of the back light 2 is not limited to the M-letter configuration and may be modified variously.
According to the liquid crystal display with back light of the present invention, since the electromagnetic noise from the back light can be shielded and this liquid crystal display can be unitarily formed with the diffusing plate, the diffuser is not necessarily made of the transparent conductive material, which renders the diffuser conductive with ease.
Having described the preferred embodiment of the invention with reference to the accompanying drawings, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited to that precise embodiment and that various changes and modifications thereof could be effected by one skilled in the art without departing from the spirit or scope of the invention as defined in the appended claims. | A liquid crystal display with a back light is provided, in which a diffuser (diffusing plate) mounted on a front surface of a casing in which the back light is housed is rendered conductive to thereby reduce the leakage of electromagnetic waves. | Identify the most important aspect in the document and summarize the concept accordingly. | [
"BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1.",
"Field of the Invention The present invention generally relates to liquid crystal display devices and, more particularly, is directed to a liquid crystal display with back light.",
"Description of the Prior Art A variety of liquid crystal displays (hereinafter simply referred to as LCDs) have been proposed so far and a twisted nematic display mode (TN mode) liquid crystal is known as one of the most popular LCDs.",
"As shown in a schematic diagram forming FIG. 1, this type of LCD is comprised of X-axis and Y-axis transparent electrodes 6, 8 formed on the inner surface of a pair of glass substrates 5, 9 in the direction perpendicular to each other in a matrix fashion, a TN liquid crystal 7 sandwiched between the two electrodes 6 and 8 with a twisted orientation of 90 degrees and a pair of polarizing plates 4, 10 unitarily formed with the outer surfaces of the glass substrates 5, 9 in the direction perpendicular to each other.",
"In this case, the pair of polarizing plates 4, 10 are bonded to the outer surfaces of the glass substrates 5, 9.",
"A voltage is applied between the transparent electrodes 6, 8 of a liquid crystal panel 13 formed by the above-mentioned elements by means of a driving source 11 and a switching device 12.",
"When this TN mode liquid crystal is in its off state, that is, without application of voltage, a linearly-polarized light is rotated 90 degrees and passed by the liquid crystal panel 13.",
"When on the other hand this TN mode liquid crystal is applied with voltage and turned on, then the twisted state is removed and the linearly-polarized light is inhibited from passing the liquid crystal panel 13.",
"When the LCD is constructed by using such liquid crystal panel 13, the LCD is generally formed as a reflection type, a reflection type using a back light or a transparent type.",
"The kinds of back light 2 are selected in accordance with the purpose that for which the LCD is to be used.",
"The back light might be an incandescent lamp, a fluorescent lamp, an electroluminescent lamp (EL) and so on.",
"The fluorescent lamp is a light source suitable for color LCD and widely used because the fluorescent lamp produces light having a plurality of peaks of brightness in the visible region and this light becomes substantially white light.",
"The fluorescent lamp is generally formed as a hot cathode type or a cold cathode type.",
"The hot cathode type of fluorescent lamp is driven by a voltage of from 200 to 300 Volts and the cold cathode type of fluorescent lamp is driven by a high voltage of nearly 4000 Volts.",
"The back light 2 formed of, for example, the fluorescent lamp is housed in a casing 1 having a diffuser 3 on the front surface thereof.",
"This casing 1 is generally made of metal and the diffuser 3 is made of a white plastic plate or the like.",
"The casing 1 has the liquid crystal panel 13 unitarily assembled into the front portion of the diffuser 3 as shown in FIG. 2. When the back light 2 of the LCD is driven, a voltage of 200 to 300 Volts is applied to the cathode of the hot cathode type fluorescent lamp and a high voltage of about 4000 Volts is applied to the cathode of the cold cathode type fluorescent lamp.",
"Further, a driving source is not a commercially available voltage source but a high frequency of about 40 kHz is employed as a switching means to thereby increase light emission efficiency.",
"Let us now consider that such LCD is installed, for example, on the rear surface of each of the passenger seats in the cabin of an airplane so that the passengers can enjoy watching video programs of different channels.",
"In that case, the airplane has very strict specification on the leaked electromagnetic noise so as to prevent the automatic pilot system of the airplane from being affected thereby.",
"Particularly, since the electromagnetic noise from the fluorescent lamp 2 is emitted from the LCD panel surface through the diffuser 3 and the liquid crystal panel 13, it is necessary to provide a countermeasure to prevent the electromagnetic noise, i.e., electromagnetic waves, from being leaked.",
"As one of the methods for preventing electromagnetic waves from being leaked, it is proposed that, as shown in FIG. 2, a conductive film 14 such as an ITO film or the like is bonded to or coated on the front surface of the liquid crystal panel 13 to thereby shield the electromagnetic noise from the back light 2.",
"In this arrangement, however, in order to visually confirm whether the light is passed through or cut off by the liquid crystal panel 13, the conductive film 14 must be made transparent, which unavoidably decreases the light utilizing ratio of the liquid crystal panel 13.",
"OBJECTS AND SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide an improved liquid crystal display with a back light in which the aforementioned shortcomings and disadvantages of the prior art can be eliminated.",
"More specifically, it is an object of the present invention to provide a liquid crystal display with a back light in which electromagnetic noise from the back light is completely shielded by rendering a diffuser (diffusing plate) conductive, thereby making it possible to utilize a conductive material which is not transparent.",
"As an aspect of the present invention, a liquid crystal display with a back light is provided, in which a diffuser (diffusing plate) mounted on a front surface of a casing in which the back light is housed is rendered conductive to thereby reduce the leakage of electromagnetic waves.",
"The above and other objects, features, and advantages of the present invention will become apparent in the following detailed description of an illustrative embodiment thereof to be read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which like reference numerals are used to identify the same or similar parts in the several views.",
"BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram showing a conventional liquid crystal display;",
"FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional side view of the conventional liquid crystal display with a back light;",
"FIGS. 3A and 3B are front view and cross-sectional side view illustrating a liquid crystal display with a back light according to an embodiment of the present invention;",
"and FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional side view of a main portion of the liquid crystal display with a back light of the present invention.",
"DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT The arrangement of the liquid crystal display with a back light according to the present invention will now be described with reference to FIGS. 3A, 3B and FIG. 4. In FIGS. 3A, 3B and FIG. 4, like parts corresponding to those of FIGS. 1 and 2 are marked with the same references and therefore need not be described in detail.",
"As shown in FIGS. 3A, 3B, the casing 1 is made of a metal material and shaped substantially as a box whose front surface is opened.",
"The diffuser 3 is rectangular and made of white plastic or the like.",
"This diffuser 3 is mounted on the front surface of the casing 1 and the back light 2 formed of a fluorescent lamp having an M-letter configuration is disposed within a space defined by the casing 1 and the diffuser 3.",
"The back light 2 has two electrodes 2a, 2b connected, for example, to a switching power supply source of high frequency, e.g., 40 kHz (not shown) and, a voltage of 200 to 300 Volts is supplied to the cathode of the back light 2 if the back light 2 is formed of the hot cathode type fluorescent lamp.",
"If the diffuser 3 is made of white plastic, then a conductive member 15 may be produced by bonding a transparent conductive film (manufactured by TEIJIN LTD.) to the front or rear surface of the diffuser 3.",
"Alternatively, this conductive member 15 may be provided by mixing a predetermined amount of conductive material, such as very small particle powder of carbon or the like into the diffuser 3 during the manufacturing-process of the diffuser 3 or the transparent or conductive member 15 may be produced by vapor-depositing a certain kind of metal thin film, such as gold, titanium or the like onto the diffuser 3.",
"If the diffuser 3 is formed of a glass substrate whose surface is formed as a frosted glass by the etching-process so as to improve its light diffusion effect, then a NESA,film or ITO film available on the market can be deposited onto the diffuser 3.",
"The NESA film is a transparent conductive glass formed by depositing a stannic oxide (SnO 2 ) film on the glass substrate, and the ITO film is produced by vapor-depositing an indium oxide (In 2 C 2 ) film on the glass substrate.",
"The diffuser 3 having the conductive member 15 is rendered conductive to the metal casing 1 sufficiently via a brush 16 or metal fitting of L-letter configuration, etc.",
", as shown in FIG. 4. Then, the liquid crystal panel 13 similar to that of FIG. 1 is mounted on the front surface of the diffuser 3 and the diffuser 3 is unitarily secured to the casing 1.",
"As shown in FIG. 4, the liquid crystal panel 13 is composed of a pair of polarizing plates 4, 10 and a TN type liquid crystal 7 sandwiched between the transparent electrodes 6 and 8 provided on the pair of glass substrates 5, 9.",
"Of course, the liquid crystal 7 is not limited to a STN (super twisted nematic) liquid crystal, a DSTN (double STN) liquid crystal or the like and might be an active matrix type LCD and so on.",
"Since the liquid crystal display with back light of this embodiment is arranged as described above, the electromagnetic noise from the back light 2 can be shielded even though the high voltage of the back light 2 is switched at high frequency, the electromagnetic noise from the back light 2 can be shielded.",
"Also, effect of the diffusing plate for diffusing light from the back light 2 and effect of the electromagnetic shielding plate can be achieved at the same time.",
"It is clear that the shape of the back light 2 is not limited to the M-letter configuration and may be modified variously.",
"According to the liquid crystal display with back light of the present invention, since the electromagnetic noise from the back light can be shielded and this liquid crystal display can be unitarily formed with the diffusing plate, the diffuser is not necessarily made of the transparent conductive material, which renders the diffuser conductive with ease.",
"Having described the preferred embodiment of the invention with reference to the accompanying drawings, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited to that precise embodiment and that various changes and modifications thereof could be effected by one skilled in the art without departing from the spirit or scope of the invention as defined in the appended claims."
] |
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to an extreme UV radiation source which is used as the light source for semiconductor exposure, and a semiconductor or very fine machines exposure device using this radiation source.
2. Description of the Related Art
Extreme UV radiation (13.5 nm in the EUV wavelength range) is considered as an exposure light source for use in a lithography process in processes for producing a semiconductor which will be even more highly integrated in the future. It is imagined that currently 10-valent Xe ions and roughly 10-valent Sn ions are promising as the radiation substance which emits this radiation.
These highly ionized ions are often produced in high temperature plasmas. This generation of plasmas is being performed, at present, by heating by discharge energy or laser energy.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
For the most part, there are two processes for producing plasma by heating and excitation, specifically:
“laser heating process” in which a gaseous, liquid or solid “radiation substance in itself” or a “substance which contains a radiation substance” is heated with laser light, made into a high temperature plasma in a certain temperature range, and thus, the given radiation is obtained; and “discharge process” in which a high current is allowed to flow for only a short time in a “radiation substance in itself” or a “substance which contains a radiation substance” so that a high temperature plasma is produced and the given radiation is obtained.
Furthermore, there are the following two requirements with respect to the particle density of the radiation substance.
In order to suppress absorption of the radiation used for exposure, it is more advantageous if, in the space from the heating and excitation part (radiation part) up to the exposure surface, all particle densities of the components of the substance which contains the radiation substance and all other substances are low.
On the other hand, it is necessary for the particle density of the radiation substance in the radiation part (the expression “particle density” is defined as the sum of the particle densities of neutral atoms which are average in space and time in the plasma within the time interval in which 13.5 nm radiation is carried out, and the ions of all stages) is high in order to achieve a high radiation density. It is desirable that it be greater than or equal to 1×10 24 /m 3 , if possible.
A radiation substance is generally heated and excited at a certain position in a device for generating plasmas with a high speed repetition frequency of a few thousand Hz. At this frequency, intermittent extreme UV (EUV) radiation is carried out. Here, the important point is that it is more advantageous, the higher the ratio of the 13.5 nm radiation energy to the energy which is consumed for heating and excitation, the higher the transformation efficiency. The reason for this is that, according to the plasma generation, a solid, a liquid or a toxic gas or the like is formed at the same time which reduces the reflection factor of an optical system, such as a mirror or the like, and that this amount is increased, the more the supplied energy increases.
Therefore, if the energy of plasma generation is efficiently converted into 13.5 nm radiation, the supplied energy can be kept at a low level. At the same time, the condition can also be implemented under which the supplied energy for the radiation which is unnecessary for exposure, for formation of a substance which is detrimental to the optical system or the like, is not distributed as much as possible. In this way, the disadvantage of heat elimination or the like is also reduced even more.
On the other hand, the lower limit of the exposure treatment time per semiconductor wafer is limited. For this reason, an irradiance on the resist surface of at least a certain value must be reached. To do this, the product of the amount of light radiation at 13.5 nm which is emitted each time with high speed repetitive heating and excitation of the plasmas, and the repetition frequency must reach at least a certain value. At the same time, the absorption of the 13.5 nm radiation, especially by the gas which is present from the radiation source, plasma must be suppressed as far as the resist surface as much as possible. The radiation path (=optical path) is therefore evacuated in a vacuum device. When a gaseous substance within the device with a small radiation absorption cross-sectional area of this wavelength is used, with an attenuation factor with low radiation which emerges from the radiation part, the resist can be reached; this is advantageous.
The components which form the light source part, of course, also the plasma component, are subjected to an extremely high temperature or come into contact with particles with high energy, by which they vaporize, are abraded and spray. For a substance in which, even when this sprayed debris forms, the efficiency of the optical system, especially the reflection factor, is not degraded prematurely and in which the reflector material is not degenerated either, the damage is reduced.
When Xe is the radiation substance, Xe after the 13.5 nm radiation in the gaseous state is introduced in the radiation path. The radiation substance in itself therefore does not become debris. However, the Xe introduced in the radiation path has a great absorption cross-sectional area of 13.5 nm radiation. Besides the fact that its radiation absorption cross-sectional area at 13.5 nm is large, Xe is an extremely good radiation substance. However, that Xe has a low transformation efficiency of the plasma heating-excitation energy into 13.5 nm radiation energy, is regarded more and more often as the most seriously disadvantageous. Conversely, Sn has a transformation efficiency of the plasma heating-excitation energy into 13.5 nm radiation energy which is several times greater than that of Xe. Thus, Sn in extremely good in this respect.
The J. Opt. Soc. Am. B/Vol. 17, no. 9/September 2000, p. 1616 to p. 1625 discloses a technique in which metallic Sn is used as the target material which is irradiated, heated and excited with Nd:YAG laser light and in which extreme UV light with a main wavelength of 13.5 nm is emitted. However, since Sn is a solid at a temperature which is near room temperature, it is not transported as easily and quickly with good reproducibility as Xe as far as the plasma generation site. It is even worse that there is the danger of formation of a large amount of “debris” in the case of heating and excitation since it is a solid at room temperature. Since the vapor pressure is relatively low, it accumulates in the area with a low temperature within the device when it returns from the plasma state into the normal gaseous state. In this way, extremely serious damage is caused.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The invention was devised to eliminate the above described disadvantage in the prior art. Thus, a primary object of the invention is to devise a usable 13.5 nm radiation source in which Sn is the radiation substance, in which rapid transport with good reproducibility is possible up to the plasma generation site and in which formation of detrimental “debris” and coagulation of the vapor are suppressed as much as possible.
For this purpose, there are the following desirable properties of a substance which contains a radiation substance.
(1) Even if during heating and excitation the substance is sprayed, the substance which contains the radiation substance must be a substance in which this formation of the sprayed substance does not cause either degradation of the efficiency of Si, Mo, the resist and the components comprising the device composed of the radiation source and exposure system, or the like. It is advantageous when the decomposition product of the substance which has emerged from the heating/excitation part and which contains the radiation substance in an area with a low temperature which is close to room temperature returns to molecules with a high vapor pressure. (2) The substance which contains the radiation substance must be able to be supplied at a fixed time, in a fixed amount and at a fixed location with good reproducibility. (3) The substance which contains the radiation substance must be a substance which has high transformation efficiency of the plasma heating-excitation energy into 13.5 nm radiant light.
The aforementioned three points are desirable. Therefore, the inventors considered SnH 4 to be a substance which contains the radiation substance Sn. It can be imagined that by using SnH 4 , Sn can be quickly supplied to the heating-excitation part because SnH 4 , due to its melting point of −146° C. and its boiling point of −51.8° C., is always a gas at a normal room temperature. The Sn present in the heating/excitation part returns to a large extent to the original SnH 4 with a high vapor pressure by recombination with H 2 . Therefore, “debris” forms only to a small extent.
The object is achieved according to a first aspect of the invention for an extreme UV radiation source using emission of Sn ions in that SnH 4 (mono stannane) is supplied intermittently or continuously to the heating/excitation part, it is subjected to discharge heating and excitation or laser irradiation heating and excitation, it is thus converted into a plasma, and that extreme UV light with a main wavelength of 13.5 nm is emitted.
The object is achieved according to one development of the invention for an extreme UV radiation source in that SnH 4 is supplied to the above described heating/excitation part in the state of a liquid, gaseous or solid single phase or in the state of a multiphase in which at least two phases thereof coexist.
The object is achieved according to another development of the invention for an extreme UV radiation source in that liquid SnH 4 is mixed beforehand with at least one of liquid Kr, liquid Xe, and liquid N 2 and it is supplied to the above described heating/excitation part.
The object is achieved according to another development of the invention for an extreme UV radiation source in that a mixture of droplet-like SnH 4 with at least one of the gases H 2 , N 2 , He, Ar, Kr and Xe is supplied to the above described heating/excitation part.
The object is achieved according to a further development of the invention for an extreme UV radiation source in that solid SnH 4 is mixed beforehand with at least one of liquid He, liquid H 2 , liquid Ar and liquid Kr and it is caused to spray out in the mixed state in the above described heating/excitation part.
The object is achieved in accordance with the invention for an extreme UV radiation source in that gaseous SnH 4 is mixed with at least one of the gases H 2 , N 2 , He, Ar, Kr and Xe and supplied to the above described heating/excitation part so that the Sn hydride which was decomposed in the heating/excitation part easily returns again to the original hydride.
The object is achieved according to yet another development of the invention for an extreme UV radiation source in that in the case of the above described use of H 2 as the substance which is mixed with the SnH 4 the molar ratio of H (hydrogen) atoms to the Sn of the SnH 4 is at least 2.
The object is achieved according to another development of the invention for an extreme UV radiation source in that between the end on one side of the extreme UV radiation of the above described heating/excitation part and an optical system in the immediate vicinity of this end on the radiation side a H 2 gas flow with a temperature of less than or equal to roughly room temperature is formed such that it crosses an evacuation flow which is being evacuated from the above described heating/excitation part and that thus vaporous Sn is made into a compound with a high vapor pressure.
The object is achieved according to a further development of the invention for an extreme UV radiation source in that the above described heating/excitation part is formed from a material with the main component being one of Ta, Nb, Mo and W with a narrow opening or a porous arrangement and that liquid SnH 4 is supplied to the inside through this narrow opening or the porous part from outside the above described heating/excitation part.
The object is achieved according to another development of the invention in a semiconductor exposure device in that the semiconductor exposure device is formed by a combination of the above described extreme UV radiation source with a reflector.
The expression “extreme UV radiation source,” for purposes of the invention, is defined as an extreme UV radiation source of the discharge-heating/excitation type of the Z pinch type, an extreme UV radiation source of the discharge-heating/excitation type of the plasma focus type, an extreme UV radiation source of the discharge-heating/excitation type of the capillary type, and an extreme UV radiation source of the laser radiation type which is heated and excited by laser irradiation such as with a YAG laser or the like. These extreme UV radiation sources are described, for example, in the journal “Optics”; Japanese Optical Society, 2002, vol. 31, no. 7, pp. 545 to 552.
The expression “heating/excitation part,” for purposes of the invention is defined as a part in which a radiation substance supplied to the radiation source is heated by a discharge or laser irradiation and shifted into an excited state in these extreme UV radiation sources.
The invention is further described below with reference to the accompanying drawings.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG. 1 is a schematic cross-sectional view of important parts of an extreme UV radiation source of the Z pinch type as an extreme UV radiation source in accordance with the invention;
FIG. 2 is a schematic cross-sectional view of important parts of an extreme UV radiation source of the laser irradiation type as an extreme UV radiation source in accordance with the invention;
FIG. 3 is a schematic cross-sectional view of important parts of an extreme UV radiation source of the capillary type as an extreme UV radiation source in accordance with the invention;
FIG. 4 shows a schematic of important parts of an extreme UV radiation source of the laser irradiation type as an extreme UV radiation source in accordance with the invention; and
FIG. 5 shows a schematic of one example of an arrangement of a semiconductor exposure device using an extreme UV radiation source in accordance with the invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
FIG. 1 shows important parts of an extreme UV radiation source of the Z pinch type as an extreme UV radiation source of the invention. The substance which contains the radiation substance Sn is SnH 4 (monostannane). SnH 4 is continuously or intermittently supplied to the heating/excitation part A, it is subjected to discharge heating and excitation, it is thus converted into a plasma and emits extreme UV light with a main wavelength of 13.5 nm.
As is shown in FIG. 1 , the important parts of the extreme UV radiation source of the Z pinch type have an arrangement in which there is a pair of electrodes 52 , 53 on opposite ends of a cylindrical or corner-cylindrical discharge vessel 51 . The discharge vessel 51 is formed from an insulator. This insulator, under certain circumstances, can be formed by the vessel wall of the device in which the discharge vessel is installed. For example, a certain amount of gaseous SnH 4 is sprayed into a hollow cylindrical shape from a side of the discharge vessel 51 which is opposite the end from which the light radiation of 13.5 nm wavelength emerges.
Simultaneously with spraying, a high frequency voltage is applied to the electrode 54 for high frequency auxiliary ionization and by means of a high frequency discharge the injected SnH 4 gas is subjected to auxiliary ionization. Directly afterwards, the main discharge is started, and thus, the discharge current is quickly caused to rise. If a large current flows at the location which is relatively near the wall of the discharge vessel on which there are a plurality of electron-ion pairs which have been formed by the auxiliary ionization, at the same time, an inductive magnetic field is formed. Due to the Lorentz force which is formed by this current and the magnetic field, the plasma is pinched in the axial direction of the discharge vessel, by which the density and the temperature of the plasma increase and by which strong radiation of 13.5 nm wavelength light emerges.
FIG. 2 shows an extreme UV radiation source of the laser radiation type as an extreme UV radiation source of the invention. The substance which contains Sn as the radiation substance is SnH 4 (monostannane). SnH 4 is continuously or intermittently supplied from the tip of a heat-resistant nozzle 21 to the heating/excitation part B in the vicinity of this tip, the Nd:YAG laser light is focused by means of a lens 8 , irradiation and heating/excitation are carried out and a plasma is produced, by which extreme UV light with a main wavelength of 13.5 nm is emitted.
SnH 4 can be obtained as the substance which contains the radiation substance Sn, for example, by the following process.
In a stainless steel reaction chamber AlLiH 4 (lithium aluminum hydride) is reacted with SnCl 4 (tin tetrachloride) in ether at −30° C., chlorine (Cl) is substituted by hydrogen (H), and in this way, SnH 4 is obtained.
As the process for feeding SnH 4 into the heating/excitation part of the extreme UV radiation source, the resulting gaseous SnH 4 as the material of a single-phase gas can also be directly fed into the heating/excitation part. Alternatively, the gaseous SnH 4 (tin hydride) can be cooled to −52° C. and fed into the heating/excitation part as the material of single-phase liquid.
Furthermore, tin hydride SnH 4 which has been formed by the above described reaction can be cooled to −146° C., solidified, finely ground and introduced into the heating/excitation part as the material of solid single phase.
In addition, SnH 4 in the multiphase state in which at least two phases of a liquid single phase, a gaseous single phase and a solid single phase, coexist, can be fed into the heating/excitation part.
Furthermore the following is possible:
The tin hydride SnH 4 which has been formed by the reaction of SnCl 4 (tin tetrachloride) with AlLiH 4 (lithium aluminum hydride) is fed into liquid Xe, liquid Kr or into liquid N 2 , liquefies it and produces a mixed liquid of the two. This mixed liquid is sprayed mechanically and directly into the heating/excitation part, and in this way, the particle density of the Sn atoms in the heating/excitation part is kept high. In this case, there is also the advantage that uniform mixing takes place since the two are liquids.
The tin hydride SnH 4 which has been formed by the reaction of SnCl 4 (tin tetrachloride) and AlLiH 4 (lithium aluminum hydride) is cooled to a temperature less than or equal to −52° C., and the liquified, droplet-like SnH 4 is mixed with at least one of the gases Xe gas, Kr gas, N 2 gas, H 2 gas and Ar gas and the mixture is atomized. The particle density of the Sn atoms in the heating/excitation part can be kept high by this measure.
FIG. 3 shows important parts of an extreme UV radiation source of the capillary type as an extreme UV radiation source. FIG. 3 is a cross section which was cut by a plane through which the optical axis of the extreme UV light which is emitted by the extreme UV radiation source passes. As is shown in FIG. 3 , between the electrode 12 on the ground side and the electrode 11 on the high voltage side (which is made, for example, of tungsten), a capillary arrangement 13 is formed which comprises a cylindrical insulator, for example, of silicon nitride or the like, and which in the middle has a capillary 131 with a diameter of 3 mm.
A power source (not shown) is electrically connected to the electrode 12 on the ground side and to the electrode 11 on the high voltage side via electrical inlet wires 16 , 17 and a high voltage from the power source is applied in a pulse-like manner between the electrode 12 on the ground side and the electrode 11 on the high voltage side. The electrode 12 on the ground side is normally grounded. For example, a negative high voltage is applied in a pulse-like manner to the electrode 12 on the ground side. The electrode 11 on the high voltage side and the electrode 12 on the ground side each have through openings 111 , 121 . These through openings 111 , 121 and the capillary 131 of the capillary arrangement 13 are arranged coaxially and are continuously connected to one another.
As the substance which contains the radiation substance Sn, liquid SnH 4 is fed into the through openings 111 , 121 and the capillary 131 from an opening 15 for feeding liquid SnH 4 into the through opening 111 which is connected to the capillary 131 , by a nozzle 18 . Kr gas is fed and blown into this through opening 111 from an opening 14 for feeding Kr gas. When a high voltage is applied in a pulse-like manner between the electrode 12 on the ground side and the electrode 11 on the high voltage side, within the capillary 131 , as the heating/excitation part, a gas discharge is formed by which high temperature plasma is formed. In this way, extreme UV light of 13.5 nm wavelength is formed and emitted.
Even when cooled to less than or equal to −146° C., SnH 4 can be sprayed into the heating/excitation part as a solid in a state in which it is mixed with at least one of liquid He, H 2 , Ar and Kr.
When gaseous SnH 4 is mixed with at least one of the gases H 2 , N 2 , He, Ar, Kr, and Xe and supplied to the above described heating/excitation part, mixing and handling are simplified.
In the case of using H 2 as the substance which is mixed into the SnH 4 , it is desirable for the molar ratio of H (hydrogen) atoms to Sn to be at least 2. The reason for this is to increase the ratio with which Sn forms SnH 4 after discharge. The following can be imagined as the specific measure for this purpose.
Between the end of the above described heating/excitation part on the side of the extreme UV radiation and the optical system in the immediate vicinity of this end on the radiation side a H 2 gas flow with a temperature of less than or equal to roughly room temperature is formed such that it crosses an evacuation flow of vaporous Sn which has been evacuated from the heating/excitation part so that the vaporous Sn is converted to SnH 4 as a compound with a high vapor pressure.
The heating/excitation part can also be formed from a material with one of Ta, Nb, Mo, and W as the main component with a narrow opening or a porous arrangement, and liquid SnH 4 can be supplied to the inside through this narrow opening or the porous part from outside the heating/excitation part.
As is shown in FIG. 4 , for an extreme UV radiation source of the laser irradiation type, a target 7 comprising the heating/excitation part is formed from a W (tungsten) sintered body with a porous structure. From the side which is opposite the laser irradiation surface, liquid SnH 4 is supplied. The location at which SnH 4 seeps to the surface of the target is irradiated with Nd:YAG laser light, heated/excited and converted into a plasma, by which extreme UV light with 13.5 nm is emitted. Furthermore, in this case, since there is the action that SnH 4 inherently cools the target, there is also the action that the cooling means of the device can be simplified.
This idea of the arrangement of the heating/excitation part as a porous arrangement is also used, besides for the above described extreme UV radiation source of the laser irradiation type, for the discharge vessel in the above described extreme UV radiation source of the Z pinch type and for the electrode parts for an extreme UV radiation source of the plasma focus type.
FIG. 5 shows one example of the arrangement in the case of an arrangement of a semiconductor exposure device using the above described extreme UV radiation source. For the semiconductor exposure device using the above described extreme UV radiation source, as is shown in FIG. 5 , in a vacuum vessel, there are an extreme UV radiation source 1 using a capillary discharge or the like, a focusing mirror 2 with a reflection surface which is provided with a multilayer film, a mask of the reflection type 3 , a projection-optics system 4 , a wafer 5 and the like. The extreme UV light emitted from the extreme UV radiation source 1 is focused by means of a focusing mirror 2 and is emitted onto the mask of the reflection type 3 . The light reflected by the mask 3 is projected via the projection-optics system 4 onto the surface of the wafer 5 by reduction. The focusing mirror 2 is formed by a combination of reflectors, in which a multilayer film of Si and Mo is formed on the glass substrate with a small coefficient of thermal expansion.
ACTION OF THE INVENTION
As was described above, in accordance with the invention, by using SnH 4 as the substance which contains Sn as the radiation substance, Sn can be supplied quickly to the heating/excitation part because SnH 4 , due to its melting point of −146° C. and its boiling point of −51.8° C. is always present as a gas at normal temperature. The Sn which has emerged from the heating/excitation part returns by recombination with H 2 for the most part to the original SnH 4 with a high vapor pressure. In doing so, “debris” is formed only to a small extent.
The possibility of practical use for semiconductor exposure of a fine semiconductor can be increased by a semiconductor exposure device using the extreme UV radiation source of the invention. | A usable 13.5 nm radiation source in which Sn is the radiation substance, in which rapid transport with good reproducibility is possible up to the plasma generation site and in which formation of detrimental “debris” and coagulation of the vapor are suppressed as much as possible is achieved using emission of Sn ions in that SnH 4 is supplied continuously or intermittently to the heating/ excitation part, is subjected to discharge heating and excitation or laser irradiation heating and excitation, and thus, is converted into a plasma from which extreme UV light with a main wavelength of 13.5 nm is emitted. | Identify and summarize the most critical features from the given passage. | [
"BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1.",
"Field of the Invention The invention relates to an extreme UV radiation source which is used as the light source for semiconductor exposure, and a semiconductor or very fine machines exposure device using this radiation source.",
"Description of the Related Art Extreme UV radiation (13.5 nm in the EUV wavelength range) is considered as an exposure light source for use in a lithography process in processes for producing a semiconductor which will be even more highly integrated in the future.",
"It is imagined that currently 10-valent Xe ions and roughly 10-valent Sn ions are promising as the radiation substance which emits this radiation.",
"These highly ionized ions are often produced in high temperature plasmas.",
"This generation of plasmas is being performed, at present, by heating by discharge energy or laser energy.",
"SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION For the most part, there are two processes for producing plasma by heating and excitation, specifically: “laser heating process”",
"in which a gaseous, liquid or solid “radiation substance in itself”",
"or a “substance which contains a radiation substance”",
"is heated with laser light, made into a high temperature plasma in a certain temperature range, and thus, the given radiation is obtained;",
"and “discharge process”",
"in which a high current is allowed to flow for only a short time in a “radiation substance in itself”",
"or a “substance which contains a radiation substance”",
"so that a high temperature plasma is produced and the given radiation is obtained.",
"Furthermore, there are the following two requirements with respect to the particle density of the radiation substance.",
"In order to suppress absorption of the radiation used for exposure, it is more advantageous if, in the space from the heating and excitation part (radiation part) up to the exposure surface, all particle densities of the components of the substance which contains the radiation substance and all other substances are low.",
"On the other hand, it is necessary for the particle density of the radiation substance in the radiation part (the expression “particle density”",
"is defined as the sum of the particle densities of neutral atoms which are average in space and time in the plasma within the time interval in which 13.5 nm radiation is carried out, and the ions of all stages) is high in order to achieve a high radiation density.",
"It is desirable that it be greater than or equal to 1×10 24 /m 3 , if possible.",
"A radiation substance is generally heated and excited at a certain position in a device for generating plasmas with a high speed repetition frequency of a few thousand Hz.",
"At this frequency, intermittent extreme UV (EUV) radiation is carried out.",
"Here, the important point is that it is more advantageous, the higher the ratio of the 13.5 nm radiation energy to the energy which is consumed for heating and excitation, the higher the transformation efficiency.",
"The reason for this is that, according to the plasma generation, a solid, a liquid or a toxic gas or the like is formed at the same time which reduces the reflection factor of an optical system, such as a mirror or the like, and that this amount is increased, the more the supplied energy increases.",
"Therefore, if the energy of plasma generation is efficiently converted into 13.5 nm radiation, the supplied energy can be kept at a low level.",
"At the same time, the condition can also be implemented under which the supplied energy for the radiation which is unnecessary for exposure, for formation of a substance which is detrimental to the optical system or the like, is not distributed as much as possible.",
"In this way, the disadvantage of heat elimination or the like is also reduced even more.",
"On the other hand, the lower limit of the exposure treatment time per semiconductor wafer is limited.",
"For this reason, an irradiance on the resist surface of at least a certain value must be reached.",
"To do this, the product of the amount of light radiation at 13.5 nm which is emitted each time with high speed repetitive heating and excitation of the plasmas, and the repetition frequency must reach at least a certain value.",
"At the same time, the absorption of the 13.5 nm radiation, especially by the gas which is present from the radiation source, plasma must be suppressed as far as the resist surface as much as possible.",
"The radiation path (=optical path) is therefore evacuated in a vacuum device.",
"When a gaseous substance within the device with a small radiation absorption cross-sectional area of this wavelength is used, with an attenuation factor with low radiation which emerges from the radiation part, the resist can be reached;",
"this is advantageous.",
"The components which form the light source part, of course, also the plasma component, are subjected to an extremely high temperature or come into contact with particles with high energy, by which they vaporize, are abraded and spray.",
"For a substance in which, even when this sprayed debris forms, the efficiency of the optical system, especially the reflection factor, is not degraded prematurely and in which the reflector material is not degenerated either, the damage is reduced.",
"When Xe is the radiation substance, Xe after the 13.5 nm radiation in the gaseous state is introduced in the radiation path.",
"The radiation substance in itself therefore does not become debris.",
"However, the Xe introduced in the radiation path has a great absorption cross-sectional area of 13.5 nm radiation.",
"Besides the fact that its radiation absorption cross-sectional area at 13.5 nm is large, Xe is an extremely good radiation substance.",
"However, that Xe has a low transformation efficiency of the plasma heating-excitation energy into 13.5 nm radiation energy, is regarded more and more often as the most seriously disadvantageous.",
"Conversely, Sn has a transformation efficiency of the plasma heating-excitation energy into 13.5 nm radiation energy which is several times greater than that of Xe.",
"Thus, Sn in extremely good in this respect.",
"The J. Opt.",
"Soc.",
"Am.",
"B/Vol.",
"17, no. 9/September 2000, p. 1616 to p. 1625 discloses a technique in which metallic Sn is used as the target material which is irradiated, heated and excited with Nd:YAG laser light and in which extreme UV light with a main wavelength of 13.5 nm is emitted.",
"However, since Sn is a solid at a temperature which is near room temperature, it is not transported as easily and quickly with good reproducibility as Xe as far as the plasma generation site.",
"It is even worse that there is the danger of formation of a large amount of “debris”",
"in the case of heating and excitation since it is a solid at room temperature.",
"Since the vapor pressure is relatively low, it accumulates in the area with a low temperature within the device when it returns from the plasma state into the normal gaseous state.",
"In this way, extremely serious damage is caused.",
"SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The invention was devised to eliminate the above described disadvantage in the prior art.",
"Thus, a primary object of the invention is to devise a usable 13.5 nm radiation source in which Sn is the radiation substance, in which rapid transport with good reproducibility is possible up to the plasma generation site and in which formation of detrimental “debris”",
"and coagulation of the vapor are suppressed as much as possible.",
"For this purpose, there are the following desirable properties of a substance which contains a radiation substance.",
"(1) Even if during heating and excitation the substance is sprayed, the substance which contains the radiation substance must be a substance in which this formation of the sprayed substance does not cause either degradation of the efficiency of Si, Mo, the resist and the components comprising the device composed of the radiation source and exposure system, or the like.",
"It is advantageous when the decomposition product of the substance which has emerged from the heating/excitation part and which contains the radiation substance in an area with a low temperature which is close to room temperature returns to molecules with a high vapor pressure.",
"(2) The substance which contains the radiation substance must be able to be supplied at a fixed time, in a fixed amount and at a fixed location with good reproducibility.",
"(3) The substance which contains the radiation substance must be a substance which has high transformation efficiency of the plasma heating-excitation energy into 13.5 nm radiant light.",
"The aforementioned three points are desirable.",
"Therefore, the inventors considered SnH 4 to be a substance which contains the radiation substance Sn.",
"It can be imagined that by using SnH 4 , Sn can be quickly supplied to the heating-excitation part because SnH 4 , due to its melting point of −146° C. and its boiling point of −51.8° C., is always a gas at a normal room temperature.",
"The Sn present in the heating/excitation part returns to a large extent to the original SnH 4 with a high vapor pressure by recombination with H 2 .",
"Therefore, “debris”",
"forms only to a small extent.",
"The object is achieved according to a first aspect of the invention for an extreme UV radiation source using emission of Sn ions in that SnH 4 (mono stannane) is supplied intermittently or continuously to the heating/excitation part, it is subjected to discharge heating and excitation or laser irradiation heating and excitation, it is thus converted into a plasma, and that extreme UV light with a main wavelength of 13.5 nm is emitted.",
"The object is achieved according to one development of the invention for an extreme UV radiation source in that SnH 4 is supplied to the above described heating/excitation part in the state of a liquid, gaseous or solid single phase or in the state of a multiphase in which at least two phases thereof coexist.",
"The object is achieved according to another development of the invention for an extreme UV radiation source in that liquid SnH 4 is mixed beforehand with at least one of liquid Kr, liquid Xe, and liquid N 2 and it is supplied to the above described heating/excitation part.",
"The object is achieved according to another development of the invention for an extreme UV radiation source in that a mixture of droplet-like SnH 4 with at least one of the gases H 2 , N 2 , He, Ar, Kr and Xe is supplied to the above described heating/excitation part.",
"The object is achieved according to a further development of the invention for an extreme UV radiation source in that solid SnH 4 is mixed beforehand with at least one of liquid He, liquid H 2 , liquid Ar and liquid Kr and it is caused to spray out in the mixed state in the above described heating/excitation part.",
"The object is achieved in accordance with the invention for an extreme UV radiation source in that gaseous SnH 4 is mixed with at least one of the gases H 2 , N 2 , He, Ar, Kr and Xe and supplied to the above described heating/excitation part so that the Sn hydride which was decomposed in the heating/excitation part easily returns again to the original hydride.",
"The object is achieved according to yet another development of the invention for an extreme UV radiation source in that in the case of the above described use of H 2 as the substance which is mixed with the SnH 4 the molar ratio of H (hydrogen) atoms to the Sn of the SnH 4 is at least 2.",
"The object is achieved according to another development of the invention for an extreme UV radiation source in that between the end on one side of the extreme UV radiation of the above described heating/excitation part and an optical system in the immediate vicinity of this end on the radiation side a H 2 gas flow with a temperature of less than or equal to roughly room temperature is formed such that it crosses an evacuation flow which is being evacuated from the above described heating/excitation part and that thus vaporous Sn is made into a compound with a high vapor pressure.",
"The object is achieved according to a further development of the invention for an extreme UV radiation source in that the above described heating/excitation part is formed from a material with the main component being one of Ta, Nb, Mo and W with a narrow opening or a porous arrangement and that liquid SnH 4 is supplied to the inside through this narrow opening or the porous part from outside the above described heating/excitation part.",
"The object is achieved according to another development of the invention in a semiconductor exposure device in that the semiconductor exposure device is formed by a combination of the above described extreme UV radiation source with a reflector.",
"The expression “extreme UV radiation source,” for purposes of the invention, is defined as an extreme UV radiation source of the discharge-heating/excitation type of the Z pinch type, an extreme UV radiation source of the discharge-heating/excitation type of the plasma focus type, an extreme UV radiation source of the discharge-heating/excitation type of the capillary type, and an extreme UV radiation source of the laser radiation type which is heated and excited by laser irradiation such as with a YAG laser or the like.",
"These extreme UV radiation sources are described, for example, in the journal “Optics”;",
"Japanese Optical Society, 2002, vol.",
"31, no. 7, pp. 545 to 552.",
"The expression “heating/excitation part,” for purposes of the invention is defined as a part in which a radiation substance supplied to the radiation source is heated by a discharge or laser irradiation and shifted into an excited state in these extreme UV radiation sources.",
"The invention is further described below with reference to the accompanying drawings.",
"BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a schematic cross-sectional view of important parts of an extreme UV radiation source of the Z pinch type as an extreme UV radiation source in accordance with the invention;",
"FIG. 2 is a schematic cross-sectional view of important parts of an extreme UV radiation source of the laser irradiation type as an extreme UV radiation source in accordance with the invention;",
"FIG. 3 is a schematic cross-sectional view of important parts of an extreme UV radiation source of the capillary type as an extreme UV radiation source in accordance with the invention;",
"FIG. 4 shows a schematic of important parts of an extreme UV radiation source of the laser irradiation type as an extreme UV radiation source in accordance with the invention;",
"and FIG. 5 shows a schematic of one example of an arrangement of a semiconductor exposure device using an extreme UV radiation source in accordance with the invention.",
"DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION FIG. 1 shows important parts of an extreme UV radiation source of the Z pinch type as an extreme UV radiation source of the invention.",
"The substance which contains the radiation substance Sn is SnH 4 (monostannane).",
"SnH 4 is continuously or intermittently supplied to the heating/excitation part A, it is subjected to discharge heating and excitation, it is thus converted into a plasma and emits extreme UV light with a main wavelength of 13.5 nm.",
"As is shown in FIG. 1 , the important parts of the extreme UV radiation source of the Z pinch type have an arrangement in which there is a pair of electrodes 52 , 53 on opposite ends of a cylindrical or corner-cylindrical discharge vessel 51 .",
"The discharge vessel 51 is formed from an insulator.",
"This insulator, under certain circumstances, can be formed by the vessel wall of the device in which the discharge vessel is installed.",
"For example, a certain amount of gaseous SnH 4 is sprayed into a hollow cylindrical shape from a side of the discharge vessel 51 which is opposite the end from which the light radiation of 13.5 nm wavelength emerges.",
"Simultaneously with spraying, a high frequency voltage is applied to the electrode 54 for high frequency auxiliary ionization and by means of a high frequency discharge the injected SnH 4 gas is subjected to auxiliary ionization.",
"Directly afterwards, the main discharge is started, and thus, the discharge current is quickly caused to rise.",
"If a large current flows at the location which is relatively near the wall of the discharge vessel on which there are a plurality of electron-ion pairs which have been formed by the auxiliary ionization, at the same time, an inductive magnetic field is formed.",
"Due to the Lorentz force which is formed by this current and the magnetic field, the plasma is pinched in the axial direction of the discharge vessel, by which the density and the temperature of the plasma increase and by which strong radiation of 13.5 nm wavelength light emerges.",
"FIG. 2 shows an extreme UV radiation source of the laser radiation type as an extreme UV radiation source of the invention.",
"The substance which contains Sn as the radiation substance is SnH 4 (monostannane).",
"SnH 4 is continuously or intermittently supplied from the tip of a heat-resistant nozzle 21 to the heating/excitation part B in the vicinity of this tip, the Nd:YAG laser light is focused by means of a lens 8 , irradiation and heating/excitation are carried out and a plasma is produced, by which extreme UV light with a main wavelength of 13.5 nm is emitted.",
"SnH 4 can be obtained as the substance which contains the radiation substance Sn, for example, by the following process.",
"In a stainless steel reaction chamber AlLiH 4 (lithium aluminum hydride) is reacted with SnCl 4 (tin tetrachloride) in ether at −30° C., chlorine (Cl) is substituted by hydrogen (H), and in this way, SnH 4 is obtained.",
"As the process for feeding SnH 4 into the heating/excitation part of the extreme UV radiation source, the resulting gaseous SnH 4 as the material of a single-phase gas can also be directly fed into the heating/excitation part.",
"Alternatively, the gaseous SnH 4 (tin hydride) can be cooled to −52° C. and fed into the heating/excitation part as the material of single-phase liquid.",
"Furthermore, tin hydride SnH 4 which has been formed by the above described reaction can be cooled to −146° C., solidified, finely ground and introduced into the heating/excitation part as the material of solid single phase.",
"In addition, SnH 4 in the multiphase state in which at least two phases of a liquid single phase, a gaseous single phase and a solid single phase, coexist, can be fed into the heating/excitation part.",
"Furthermore the following is possible: The tin hydride SnH 4 which has been formed by the reaction of SnCl 4 (tin tetrachloride) with AlLiH 4 (lithium aluminum hydride) is fed into liquid Xe, liquid Kr or into liquid N 2 , liquefies it and produces a mixed liquid of the two.",
"This mixed liquid is sprayed mechanically and directly into the heating/excitation part, and in this way, the particle density of the Sn atoms in the heating/excitation part is kept high.",
"In this case, there is also the advantage that uniform mixing takes place since the two are liquids.",
"The tin hydride SnH 4 which has been formed by the reaction of SnCl 4 (tin tetrachloride) and AlLiH 4 (lithium aluminum hydride) is cooled to a temperature less than or equal to −52° C., and the liquified, droplet-like SnH 4 is mixed with at least one of the gases Xe gas, Kr gas, N 2 gas, H 2 gas and Ar gas and the mixture is atomized.",
"The particle density of the Sn atoms in the heating/excitation part can be kept high by this measure.",
"FIG. 3 shows important parts of an extreme UV radiation source of the capillary type as an extreme UV radiation source.",
"FIG. 3 is a cross section which was cut by a plane through which the optical axis of the extreme UV light which is emitted by the extreme UV radiation source passes.",
"As is shown in FIG. 3 , between the electrode 12 on the ground side and the electrode 11 on the high voltage side (which is made, for example, of tungsten), a capillary arrangement 13 is formed which comprises a cylindrical insulator, for example, of silicon nitride or the like, and which in the middle has a capillary 131 with a diameter of 3 mm.",
"A power source (not shown) is electrically connected to the electrode 12 on the ground side and to the electrode 11 on the high voltage side via electrical inlet wires 16 , 17 and a high voltage from the power source is applied in a pulse-like manner between the electrode 12 on the ground side and the electrode 11 on the high voltage side.",
"The electrode 12 on the ground side is normally grounded.",
"For example, a negative high voltage is applied in a pulse-like manner to the electrode 12 on the ground side.",
"The electrode 11 on the high voltage side and the electrode 12 on the ground side each have through openings 111 , 121 .",
"These through openings 111 , 121 and the capillary 131 of the capillary arrangement 13 are arranged coaxially and are continuously connected to one another.",
"As the substance which contains the radiation substance Sn, liquid SnH 4 is fed into the through openings 111 , 121 and the capillary 131 from an opening 15 for feeding liquid SnH 4 into the through opening 111 which is connected to the capillary 131 , by a nozzle 18 .",
"Kr gas is fed and blown into this through opening 111 from an opening 14 for feeding Kr gas.",
"When a high voltage is applied in a pulse-like manner between the electrode 12 on the ground side and the electrode 11 on the high voltage side, within the capillary 131 , as the heating/excitation part, a gas discharge is formed by which high temperature plasma is formed.",
"In this way, extreme UV light of 13.5 nm wavelength is formed and emitted.",
"Even when cooled to less than or equal to −146° C., SnH 4 can be sprayed into the heating/excitation part as a solid in a state in which it is mixed with at least one of liquid He, H 2 , Ar and Kr.",
"When gaseous SnH 4 is mixed with at least one of the gases H 2 , N 2 , He, Ar, Kr, and Xe and supplied to the above described heating/excitation part, mixing and handling are simplified.",
"In the case of using H 2 as the substance which is mixed into the SnH 4 , it is desirable for the molar ratio of H (hydrogen) atoms to Sn to be at least 2.",
"The reason for this is to increase the ratio with which Sn forms SnH 4 after discharge.",
"The following can be imagined as the specific measure for this purpose.",
"Between the end of the above described heating/excitation part on the side of the extreme UV radiation and the optical system in the immediate vicinity of this end on the radiation side a H 2 gas flow with a temperature of less than or equal to roughly room temperature is formed such that it crosses an evacuation flow of vaporous Sn which has been evacuated from the heating/excitation part so that the vaporous Sn is converted to SnH 4 as a compound with a high vapor pressure.",
"The heating/excitation part can also be formed from a material with one of Ta, Nb, Mo, and W as the main component with a narrow opening or a porous arrangement, and liquid SnH 4 can be supplied to the inside through this narrow opening or the porous part from outside the heating/excitation part.",
"As is shown in FIG. 4 , for an extreme UV radiation source of the laser irradiation type, a target 7 comprising the heating/excitation part is formed from a W (tungsten) sintered body with a porous structure.",
"From the side which is opposite the laser irradiation surface, liquid SnH 4 is supplied.",
"The location at which SnH 4 seeps to the surface of the target is irradiated with Nd:YAG laser light, heated/excited and converted into a plasma, by which extreme UV light with 13.5 nm is emitted.",
"Furthermore, in this case, since there is the action that SnH 4 inherently cools the target, there is also the action that the cooling means of the device can be simplified.",
"This idea of the arrangement of the heating/excitation part as a porous arrangement is also used, besides for the above described extreme UV radiation source of the laser irradiation type, for the discharge vessel in the above described extreme UV radiation source of the Z pinch type and for the electrode parts for an extreme UV radiation source of the plasma focus type.",
"FIG. 5 shows one example of the arrangement in the case of an arrangement of a semiconductor exposure device using the above described extreme UV radiation source.",
"For the semiconductor exposure device using the above described extreme UV radiation source, as is shown in FIG. 5 , in a vacuum vessel, there are an extreme UV radiation source 1 using a capillary discharge or the like, a focusing mirror 2 with a reflection surface which is provided with a multilayer film, a mask of the reflection type 3 , a projection-optics system 4 , a wafer 5 and the like.",
"The extreme UV light emitted from the extreme UV radiation source 1 is focused by means of a focusing mirror 2 and is emitted onto the mask of the reflection type 3 .",
"The light reflected by the mask 3 is projected via the projection-optics system 4 onto the surface of the wafer 5 by reduction.",
"The focusing mirror 2 is formed by a combination of reflectors, in which a multilayer film of Si and Mo is formed on the glass substrate with a small coefficient of thermal expansion.",
"ACTION OF THE INVENTION As was described above, in accordance with the invention, by using SnH 4 as the substance which contains Sn as the radiation substance, Sn can be supplied quickly to the heating/excitation part because SnH 4 , due to its melting point of −146° C. and its boiling point of −51.8° C. is always present as a gas at normal temperature.",
"The Sn which has emerged from the heating/excitation part returns by recombination with H 2 for the most part to the original SnH 4 with a high vapor pressure.",
"In doing so, “debris”",
"is formed only to a small extent.",
"The possibility of practical use for semiconductor exposure of a fine semiconductor can be increased by a semiconductor exposure device using the extreme UV radiation source of the invention."
] |
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION
[0001] This application claims the priority, under 35 U.S.C. §119, of German Patent Applications DE 10 2011 102 382.1, filed May 25, 2011 and DE 10 2011 112 487.3, filed Sep. 5, 2011; the prior applications are herewith incorporated by reference in their entirety.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Field of the Invention
[0002] The present invention relates to a printing method and to lithographic offset printing units that are suitable for implementing the method.
[0003] Inking units for planographic offset printing are constructed either as short inking units without zones or as inking units with zonal ink metering. Short inking units without zones include an anilox roller. Inking units with zonal ink metering include an ink fountain that has a metering device with ink zones. Those ink zones are disposed adjacent each other across the printing width and enable different ink metering from ink zone to ink zone. The ink zones may be formed by ink zone screws.
[0004] In web-fed printing presses, the inking units that have zonal metering are constructed as film-type inking units in which an ink fountain roller and a film roller form a film nip that may be 0.05 mm wide, for example. Due to the film nip, the film roller is not engaged with the ink fountain roller. The film roller rotates at a higher speed than the ink fountain roller and takes off the uppermost layer of an ink film on the ink fountain roller to receive ink from the ink fountain roller.
[0005] In sheet-fed printing presses, inking units that have zonal metering are constructed as vibrator-type inking units. In a vibrator-type inking unit, the ink is transferred from the ink fountain roller to a vibrator roller. The vibrator roller is not in continuous contact with the ink fountain roller, rather contact between those rollers is discontinuous. The vibrator roller periodically contacts the ink fountain roller to receive ink from the latter.
[0006] Short zone-free inking units (inking units without metering devices that include ink zones) that do not include an anilox roller are also known in the art. German Patent Application DE 102006061393 A1 describes a short inking unit without ink zones in which a roller and a metering roller form a metering nip that is 20 μm wide. The roller rotates at the same circumferential speed as the printing form cylinder. Cooling devices are provided for the roller and the printing form cylinder. The described short inking unit is constructed for applications using high-viscosity printing inks.
[0007] All known types of lithographic offset printing units, whether they are part of a web-fed press or a sheet-fed press, whether they include a zonal inking unit, an inking unit without zones, a film-type inking unit, or a vibrator-type inking unit, have one specific characteristic. That specific characteristic is that when the ink is metered, for example through the use of the anilox roller or the zonal metering device, the viscosity of the ink is higher than when the ink is present on the printing form cylinder. Offset printing ink is thixotropic. Consequently, the viscosity of the offset printing ink is reduced as it is subjected to rheological stress in the roller nips of the inking unit on its metering path to the printing form cylinder.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0008] It is accordingly an object of the invention to provide a further printing method and a suitable offset printing unit for implementing the method, which overcome the hereinafore-mentioned disadvantages of the heretofore-known methods and devices of this general type.
[0009] With the foregoing and other objects in view there is provided, in accordance with the invention, a printing method for a printing press. The printing method comprises zonally metering a printing ink at a first viscosity with a metering device, and transferring the printing ink at a second viscosity, being greater than the first viscosity, with a printing form cylinder.
[0010] There is a fundamental difference between the printing method of the invention and the prior art printing methods, in which the second viscosity is lower than the first viscosity. In accordance with the printing method of the invention, the viscosity of the printing ink is lower when the ink is zonally metered than in its condition on the printing form cylinder. The low first viscosity reduces the hydrodynamic stress that the ink applies to the metering device, thus increasing the degree of precision of the zonal metering. The higher second viscosity results in a particularly sharp separation of printing areas and non-printing areas on the printing form cylinder and prevents the non-printing areas from receiving ink (a phenomenon sometimes referred to as toning).
[0011] In accordance with a first aspect of the invention, the printing method may be a direct printing method. In accordance with a second aspect of the invention, the method may be an indirect printing method. If the method is a direct printing method, the printing ink is directly transferred from the printing form cylinder to the printing substrate. In an indirect printing method, the printing form cylinder transfers the ink to a transfer cylinder (blanket cylinder), which then transfers the ink to the printing substrate, which may be a web of printing material or, preferably, a sheet of printing material.
[0012] In accordance with another mode of the method of the invention, the second viscosity is at least ten times higher than the first viscosity. For instance, the first viscosity may be less than 1 pascal-second and the second viscosity may be more than 10 pascal-seconds.
[0013] In accordance with a further mode of the method of the invention, the first viscosity may be adjusted by reducing the viscosity of the printing ink in the printing press and/or the second viscosity of the printing ink may be adjusted by increasing the viscosity of the printing ink in the printing press.
[0014] The reduction of the viscosity may be achieved by heating the printing ink. An increase of the viscosity may, for example, be achieved by cooling the printing ink.
[0015] With the objects of the invention in view, there is also provided an offset printing unit, comprising an ink fountain having a metering device with ink zones, an ink fountain roller, an inking unit roller in continuous engagement with the ink fountain roller, and a printing form cylinder, in which the ink fountain roller and the printing form cylinder are driven in such a way that they have the same circumferential speed. In accordance with various alternatives of the lithographic offset printing unit of the invention, the ink fountain roller may be equipped with a heating device and/or the printing form cylinder may be equipped with a cooling device. The heating device of the ink fountain roller may heat the printing ink to reduce the viscosity of the printing ink in order for the printing ink to have a reduced viscosity as it is zonally metered by the metering device. The cooling device of the printing form cylinder may cool the printing ink to increase its viscosity in order for the printing ink to have an increased viscosity on the printing form cylinder.
[0016] The invention and its further developments provide ways of controlling the viscosity of the ink in a targeted way. The control may be carried out in such a way as to ensure that in the ink metering region, the viscosity of the ink is low, for instance less than one pascal-second. Furthermore, the control of the viscosity of the ink may be accomplished in such a way as to ensure that in the image forming region, i.e. on the printing form cylinder, the viscosity of the ink is comparatively high, for instance more than 10 pascal-seconds. The viscosity difference between the ink metering region and the image forming region and, to be more precise, the increase in viscosity from the ink metering region to the image forming region, may be achieved in various ways. For instance, the low viscosity in the ink metering region may be a given fact because the viscosity of the printing at room temperature is low anyway even without any temperature-control measures. Alternatively, the low viscosity in the ink metering region may be the result of a specific reduction of the viscosity of the ink. This reduction may be achieved by heating the printing ink. The reduction may likewise be achieved by increasing the inking unit speed and/or by generating a relative movement, which has a heating and smoothing effect. Another way to reduce the viscosity of the ink may be to add drops of water or dampening solution. In addition, the viscosity may be reduced by subjecting the printing ink to ultrasound. Due to the reduced viscosity of the ink, the ink may be metered at machine speed, and the use of a vibrator roller or of a film roller is no longer required. In addition, the inking unit may be as short as an anilox inking unit. In contrast to such an anilox inking unit, however, in the inking unit of the invention, the ink metering may be zonally varied across the entire printing width. Due to the high circumferential speed of the ink fountain roller, a blade-type ink fountain is preferred as an ink metering device. The ink zones of the blade-type ink fountain may be formed by ink keys that bend a metering blade of the blade-type ink fountain to different extents in the individual ink zones. The ink keys may be driven by hand or by a motor.
[0017] In order to ensure that the viscosity of the ink is comparatively high in the image forming region (on the printing form cylinder), for instance more than 10 pascal-seconds, the viscosity of the ink may be increased in various ways. One way of increasing the viscosity of the ink is to cool the printing ink. Another way of increasing the viscosity of the ink is to evaporate a carrier liquid from the printing ink. In addition, the printing ink may be or contain an electrorheological fluid and the viscosity may be increased by an electric field. Furthermore, a specific evaporation of components of the printing ink may be effected to increase the viscosity of the ink.
[0018] In order to achieve an increased viscosity of the ink from the ink fountain to the printing form cylinder it is possible to use an ink that has a low-viscosity carrier liquid that evaporates on the printing form cylinder. In addition, ink components may be melted and thus cross-linked on the printing form cylinder to obtain an additional increase in viscosity. The printing ink may likewise include an infrared (IR) absorber or a near-infrared (NIR) absorber or UV photoinitiators that absorb IR laser radiation or NIR laser radiation or UV radiation (generated by a UV source, a UV LED or a UV laser) to achieve a controlled increase in viscosity. The increased viscosity may be based on physical effects (in particular evaporation or accelerated volatilization) or on chemical cross-linking. It may be necessary to remove the evaporated or volatilized ink components by suction and thus to provide a suitable suction device in the printing unit. In the case of chemical cross-linking, which may be caused by the UV radiation, the use of an inerting system may be expedient.
[0019] A zonally controllable light source or laser source may be provided to provide zonal viscosity control. The light or laser source may preferably be actuated in wide zones, but it may also be actuated precisely in accordance with the printed image if desired. The actuation may occur both in the direction of rotation of the printing form cylinder and perpendicular to the direction of rotation.
[0020] The lithographic offset printing unit of the invention may be a printing unit for wet-offset printing. In wet-offset printing, a defined amount of dampening solution needs to emulsify into the printing ink to avoid dot touch, a defect that would otherwise occur in respective very dense screens and dot screens such as 80% screens. In order to prevent dot touch despite the relatively high degree of viscosity of the printing ink on the printing form cylinder as proposed by the invention, the printing ink may have an increased water content or an additive that improves emulsification with the dampening fluid. A further method is to provide an inking unit that is formed of more than three rollers, for instance of a maximum of four to six rollers, to improve the emulsification in a sufficient way. The inking unit may, for example, include only two ink form rollers rolling off on the printing form cylinder during printing. Compared to a conventional anilox inking unit, such an inking unit would be more efficient in terms of emulsification. Compared to conventional vibrator-type inking units and conventional film-type inking units, the inking unit of the invention would be less expensive to manufacture because it contains fewer rollers.
[0021] A further way of rendering the printing ink more viscous on the printing form cylinder than in the ink fountain is to cross-link ink components, for instance by melting latex particles, by partial curing through the use of UV radiation, or by precipitating ink components. If latex or synthetic resin dispersions on a styrene butadiene basis or on a styrene methacrylate basis or on a different polymeric basis are used to form the printing ink, a viscosity increase can be attained in various ways. For instance, the printing form cylinder may be heated. In the case of aqueous dispersions, this would cause an increase in the concentration of the particles and thus a fusing of the individual polymeric particles on the hand and would lead to the creation of a continuous ink film of high viscosity when a minimum film-forming temperature is exceeded. In other cases, the viscosity of the ink dispersion may be increased to a considerable extent by contact with multivalent cations. In such a case, multivalent cations such as divalent calcium cations or divalent magnesium cations or trivalent aluminum cations, for instance in the form of aqueous solutions or fluorides or sulfates or nitrates thereof would be applied to the surface of the printing form cylinder, i.e. to the printing form. Upon contact with the printing ink, ionic clusters will form, which considerably increase the viscosity of the printing ink. Increasing the viscosity by adding acids would also be conceivable. If acrylate-based UV printing inks are used, the viscosity increase can be achieved by a partial curing of the printing ink using UV radiation. In this context, the intensity and the wavelength range of the UV radiation would be selected in such a way as to ensure that only a very low degree of cross-linking is caused due to the formation of only a few links on the surface of the ink. This ensures that the viscosity is increased without causing the ink to adhere to the printing form cylinder.
[0022] Another way of controlling the viscosity of the printing ink in such a way as to ensure that it has a lower viscosity when it is zonally metered by the metering device than when it is transferred by the printing form cylinder is to use a printing ink that includes latent heat storage particles, also known as phase change particles (PCM) such as paraffin. PCMs are based on the principle that the material can absorb a large amount of thermal energy upon a phase change from solid to liquid and can give off this energy at a later time. For example, paraffin is liquid at temperatures above 26° C. and cannot absorb any more energy above this temperature. A capsule effect guarantees reversibility and prevents paraffin from leaking out. If the PCM is a component of the printing ink, a special “temperature comfort range” would have to be defined specifically for the printing press. By adding the latent heat storage particles to the printing ink, the latter would be able to store latent heat. The stored thermal energy can be dissipated with the ink through the printing substrate to counteract a further temperature increase and thus a reduction of the viscosity of the ink in the inking unit. Influencing the viscosity of ink by using latent heat storage particles contained in the printing ink may be combined with other methods of changing the viscosity of the ink, for instance using ultrasound. This is a way to adjust the viscosity of the printing ink independently of temperature effects.
[0023] German Patent Application DE 103 06 939 A1 discloses an offset printing ink that includes a PCM. The PCM described therein experiences a phase change from solid to liquid, may be encapsulated and may be present as a paraffin, for instance. The offset printing ink includes the PCM to render the components (such as tarpaulin) coated with the offset printing ink capable of storing heat on their surfaces. The document describes that for this purpose, a close connection between the PCM and the component is necessary. A specific dissipation of heat from an inking unit for offset printing using the PCM is not described.
[0024] Furthermore, European Patent Application EP 2 087 998 A1, corresponding to U.S. Patent Application Publication No. US 2009/0202936 A1, discloses a rubber jacket for a roller. The rubber jacket includes a PCM for heat-regulation purposes. That document does not describe the dissipation of heat through the use of the PCM either.
[0025] The storage and dissipation of heat from a printing unit using a PCM can preferably be attained by the following method: A method of dissipating thermal energy form a printing unit including the steps of providing a printing ink that contains a substance (preferably a PCM), the substance being in a first state in the printing unit at a first point in time, and the substance being in a second state in the printing unit at a second point in time, causing the substance to experience a phase change between the first and the second state between the first point in time and the second point in time and to absorb thermal energy in the process, dissipating thermal energy from the printing unit with the substance.
[0026] PCMs that are suitable for the method have a phase change temperature of between approximately 20° C. and approximately 50° C. (between approximately 68° F. and 122° F.) and a particle size of between approximately 0.1 μm and 50 μm. The concentration of the PCM in the offset printing ink is preferably between approximately 5% by weight and approximately 40% by weight.
[0027] The PCM (latent heat storage unit) is preferably a paraffin and is preferably added to the printing ink in an encapsulated form. Such encapsulated paraffins are available, for instance, from the BASF Company under the trade name Micronal®. They typically have a size of between 2 and 20 μm and a maximum heat capacity of approximately 110 kJ/kg. Such a PCM can be dispersed in known offset printing ink to be used in the method described above. The preferred mass proportion of weight is approximately 10% by weight. A suitable offset printing ink is, for example, K+E Novastar® F 912 MAGIC BIO. In this example, the storage capacity of the printing ink is approximately 11 kJ/kg. At a common heat capacity of offset printing inks of approximately 1.5 to approximately 2.5 kJ/Kelvin×kg, the heat storage of the PCM capsules compensates a temperature increase of the printing ink by approximately 4.4 to approximately 7.3 Kelvin that would otherwise occur. Preferred PCM particles are Micronal® DS 5000× at a capsule diameter of 5 μm and a phase change temperature of approximately 26° C. (approximately 78.8° F.).
[0028] The encapsulated PCM particles may also assume other functions in the offset printing ink. For instance, the capsules may act as spacer particles and abrasion protection particles. If used as spacer particles, the particles preferably have a size of between approximately 1 μm and approximately 50 μm and a mass weight proportion of approximately 0.5 to 5% by weight.
[0029] In addition to being used in offset printing inks, the particles may also be used in flexographic printing inks, UV printing inks, varnishes and even directly in the printing material.
[0030] Other features which are considered as characteristic for the invention are set forth in the appended claims.
[0031] Although the invention is illustrated and described herein as embodied in a printing method and an offset printing unit, it is nevertheless not intended to be limited to the details shown, since various modifications and structural changes may be made therein without departing from the spirit of the invention and within the scope and range of equivalents of the claims.
[0032] The construction and method of operation of the invention, however, together with additional objects and advantages thereof will be best understood from the following description of specific embodiments when read in connection with the accompanying drawings.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWING
[0033] FIG. 1 is a fragmentary, diagrammatic, sectional view of a lithographic offset printing unit including a heated ink fountain roller;
[0034] FIG. 2 is a fragmentary, sectional view of a lithographic offset printing unit with a cooled printing form cylinder;
[0035] FIG. 3 is a fragmentary, sectional view of a lithographic offset printing unit with a heated ink fountain roller and a cooled printing form cylinder; and
[0036] FIG. 4 is a fragmentary, sectional view of a lithographic offset printing unit with a radiation source directed toward printing ink on the printing form cylinder.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
[0037] Referring now in detail to FIGS. 1 to 4 of the drawings as a whole, in which corresponding elements and components are identified by identical reference symbols, there are seen different embodiments which have various features in common and in which each of the figures illustrates a section of a printing press 1 . The printing press 1 is a sheet-fed printing press. The illustrated section is a planographic offset printing unit 2 of the printing press 1 . The offset printing unit 2 includes an inking unit 3 and a dampening unit 4 . The inking unit 3 includes an ink fountain 5 with an ink zone metering device 6 for zonal metering of a printing ink 7 stored in the ink fountain 5 . The zonal ink metering varies across the printing width (perpendicular to the plane of the image of FIGS. 1 to 4 ).
[0038] The zonal ink metering device 6 includes ink zones that are disposed adjacent each other in a line parallel to an axis of rotation of an ink fountain roller 8 . The ink zones may be formed by ink keys, screws, metering slides, metering levers, or metering tabs. The ink zone metering device 6 may include a metering blade that is subdivided into the metering tabs. The zonal ink metering device 6 and the ink fountain roller 8 define a metering nip for metering the printing ink 7 . The width of the metering nip may be varied from ink zone to ink zone by adjusting the metering elements (metering slides, metering levers, metering tabs) or by adjusting ink keys that act on the metering blade. Such a zonal adjustment is done as a function of the image to be printed to create a corresponding ink profile in the ink film that is formed on the ink fountain roller 8 as a result of the zonal ink metering.
[0039] The ink fountain roller 8 interacts with an inking unit roller 9 that is in continuous engagement with the ink fountain roller 8 in a roller contact point 10 during printing. The inking unit roller 9 is an ink form roller that rolls on a printing form cylinder 11 during printing to apply ink to a lithographic offset printing form 12 mounted to the cylinder. The length of the outer circumference of the inking unit roller 9 is substantially the same as the length of the outer circumference of the printing form cylinder 11 . The printing form cylinder 11 or rather the offset printing form 12 mounted thereon transfers the printing ink located thereon to a transfer or blanket cylinder 13 . The blanket cylinder 13 transfers the printing ink it has received to a (non-illustrated) sheet-like printing substrate to create a printed image thereon.
[0040] The dampening unit 4 includes a dipping roller 14 and a metering roller 15 engaged with the dipping roller 14 and with a dampening form roller 16 . An axially oscillating distributor roller 17 is in engagement with only the dampening form roller 16 . A bridge roller 18 is simultaneously in engagement with the dampening form roller 16 and the inking unit roller 9 . The aforementioned roller engagements refer to the condition in a printing operation.
[0041] The ink fountain roller 8 , the inking unit roller 9 and the printing form cylinder 11 are driven to rotate in such a way that these three rotating bodies 8 , 9 , 11 rotate at the same circumferential speed 22 during printing. The ink fountain roller 8 and the inking unit roller 9 rotate in opposite directions of rotation. In the example shown in FIGS. 1 to 4 , the inking unit roller 9 rotates in a clockwise direction and the ink fountain roller 8 rotates in a counter-clockwise direction. The point of roller contact 10 is a pressure nip in which the inking unit roller 9 is pressed against the ink fountain roller 8 or the ink fountain roller 8 is pressed against the inking unit roller 9 .
[0042] In the following, the particularities of the individual exemplary embodiments will be described separately.
[0043] In the exemplary embodiment of FIG. 1 , a heating device 19 is provided. The heating device 19 heats the printing ink 7 in the ink fountain 5 . The heating device 19 is integrated into the ink fountain roller 8 and may be formed by a temperature control medium channel for a heating fluid such as warm water. The heating device 19 heats the circumferential surface of the ink fountain roller 8 , which is in contact with the printing ink 7 in the ink fountain 5 , thus heating the printing ink 7 . The heating of the printing ink 7 results in a reduction of its viscosity. Thus, the printing ink 7 has a comparatively low viscosity when the printing ink 7 is metered by the zonal ink metering device 6 .
[0044] After the metering, the printing ink gives off heat to the environment, for instance to the inking unit roller 9 . As a consequence, the viscosity of the ink will re-increase. As a result of the cooling effect, when the printing ink 7 reaches the printing form cylinder 11 or rather the offset printing form 12 mounted thereon, its viscosity is higher than the viscosity of the printing ink 7 in the ink fountain 5 . This higher viscosity will preferably have been attained already at the instant of the transfer of the printing ink from the inking unit roller 9 to the printing form cylinder 11 or rather to the offset printing form 12 mounted thereon or when the printing ink is transferred from the printing form cylinder 11 or rather from the offset printing form 12 mounted thereon to the blanket cylinder 13 at the latest.
[0045] In the exemplary embodiment shown in FIG. 2 , a cooling device is provided to cool the printing ink 7 on the printing form cylinder 11 , i.e. on the printing form 12 . The cooling device 20 is integrated into the printing form cylinder 11 and may be formed by a temperature control medium channel for a cooling fluid such as cooling water. The cooling device 20 cools the printing form cylinder 11 and thus the offset printing form 12 and the printing ink 7 present thereon. Due to the cooling effect, the viscosity of the printing ink 7 on the printing form cylinder 11 , i.e. on the offset printing form 12 mounted thereon, is increased to a level above the viscosity of the same printing ink in the ink fountain 5 , i.e. when it is metered by the zonal ink metering device 6 .
[0046] The exemplary embodiment shown in FIG. 3 is a combination of the exemplary embodiments shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 . A heating device 19 for the ink fountain roller 8 and a cooling device 20 for the printing form cylinder 11 are present. In this example, the temperature difference between the printing ink 7 in the ink fountain 5 and the same printing ink on the printing form cylinder 11 , i.e. on the offset printing form 12 mounted thereon, and the difference in viscosity resulting from the temperature difference is caused by heating the printing ink 7 in the ink fountain 5 through the use of the heating device 19 and simultaneously cooling the printing ink on the printing form cylinder 11 through the use of the cooling device 12 .
[0047] In the exemplary embodiment shown in FIG. 4 , a radiation source 21 is directed to a circumferential region of the printing form cylinder 11 . As viewed in the direction of rotation of the printing form cylinder 11 , the radiation source 21 is downstream of the inking unit roller 9 and upstream of the blanket cylinder 13 . The radiation source 21 emits radiation towards the printing ink that has been applied by the inking unit roller 9 to the printing form cylinder 11 , i.e. to the offset printing form 12 mounted thereon, to increase the viscosity of the ink. The viscosity of the printing ink present on the printing form cylinder is increased by the radiation source to a level above the viscosity of the same printing ink in the ink fountain 5 or as it is metered by the zonal ink metering device 6 .
[0048] If the printing ink 7 processed in the offset printing unit 2 is a UV ink and contains UV photoinitiators, the radiation source 21 may be a UV radiator, for instance a UV laser. The UV radiation emitted by the radiation source 21 results in a partial cross-linking in the surface of the printing ink on the printing form cylinder 11 , thus increasing the viscosity of the printing ink.
[0049] The printing ink 7 that is processed in the offset printing unit 2 may likewise include IR absorbers or NIR absorbers. In this case, the radiation source 21 is a respective IR emitter or a NIR emitter. The radiation emitted by the radiation source 21 heats the printing ink 7 on the printing form cylinder 11 to evaporate specific components of the printing ink or to volatilize them in an accelerated way. The result is an increased viscosity of the printing ink on the printing form cylinder 11 . | A printing method in a printing press includes zonally metering a printing ink at a first viscosity with a metering device and transferring the printing ink at a second viscosity with a printing form cylinder, in which the second viscosity is greater than the first viscosity. An offset printing unit for implementing the method is also provided. | Summarize the key points of the given patent document. | [
"CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION [0001] This application claims the priority, under 35 U.S.C. §119, of German Patent Applications DE 10 2011 102 382.1, filed May 25, 2011 and DE 10 2011 112 487.3, filed Sep. 5, 2011;",
"the prior applications are herewith incorporated by reference in their entirety.",
"BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Field of the Invention [0002] The present invention relates to a printing method and to lithographic offset printing units that are suitable for implementing the method.",
"[0003] Inking units for planographic offset printing are constructed either as short inking units without zones or as inking units with zonal ink metering.",
"Short inking units without zones include an anilox roller.",
"Inking units with zonal ink metering include an ink fountain that has a metering device with ink zones.",
"Those ink zones are disposed adjacent each other across the printing width and enable different ink metering from ink zone to ink zone.",
"The ink zones may be formed by ink zone screws.",
"[0004] In web-fed printing presses, the inking units that have zonal metering are constructed as film-type inking units in which an ink fountain roller and a film roller form a film nip that may be 0.05 mm wide, for example.",
"Due to the film nip, the film roller is not engaged with the ink fountain roller.",
"The film roller rotates at a higher speed than the ink fountain roller and takes off the uppermost layer of an ink film on the ink fountain roller to receive ink from the ink fountain roller.",
"[0005] In sheet-fed printing presses, inking units that have zonal metering are constructed as vibrator-type inking units.",
"In a vibrator-type inking unit, the ink is transferred from the ink fountain roller to a vibrator roller.",
"The vibrator roller is not in continuous contact with the ink fountain roller, rather contact between those rollers is discontinuous.",
"The vibrator roller periodically contacts the ink fountain roller to receive ink from the latter.",
"[0006] Short zone-free inking units (inking units without metering devices that include ink zones) that do not include an anilox roller are also known in the art.",
"German Patent Application DE 102006061393 A1 describes a short inking unit without ink zones in which a roller and a metering roller form a metering nip that is 20 μm wide.",
"The roller rotates at the same circumferential speed as the printing form cylinder.",
"Cooling devices are provided for the roller and the printing form cylinder.",
"The described short inking unit is constructed for applications using high-viscosity printing inks.",
"[0007] All known types of lithographic offset printing units, whether they are part of a web-fed press or a sheet-fed press, whether they include a zonal inking unit, an inking unit without zones, a film-type inking unit, or a vibrator-type inking unit, have one specific characteristic.",
"That specific characteristic is that when the ink is metered, for example through the use of the anilox roller or the zonal metering device, the viscosity of the ink is higher than when the ink is present on the printing form cylinder.",
"Offset printing ink is thixotropic.",
"Consequently, the viscosity of the offset printing ink is reduced as it is subjected to rheological stress in the roller nips of the inking unit on its metering path to the printing form cylinder.",
"SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION [0008] It is accordingly an object of the invention to provide a further printing method and a suitable offset printing unit for implementing the method, which overcome the hereinafore-mentioned disadvantages of the heretofore-known methods and devices of this general type.",
"[0009] With the foregoing and other objects in view there is provided, in accordance with the invention, a printing method for a printing press.",
"The printing method comprises zonally metering a printing ink at a first viscosity with a metering device, and transferring the printing ink at a second viscosity, being greater than the first viscosity, with a printing form cylinder.",
"[0010] There is a fundamental difference between the printing method of the invention and the prior art printing methods, in which the second viscosity is lower than the first viscosity.",
"In accordance with the printing method of the invention, the viscosity of the printing ink is lower when the ink is zonally metered than in its condition on the printing form cylinder.",
"The low first viscosity reduces the hydrodynamic stress that the ink applies to the metering device, thus increasing the degree of precision of the zonal metering.",
"The higher second viscosity results in a particularly sharp separation of printing areas and non-printing areas on the printing form cylinder and prevents the non-printing areas from receiving ink (a phenomenon sometimes referred to as toning).",
"[0011] In accordance with a first aspect of the invention, the printing method may be a direct printing method.",
"In accordance with a second aspect of the invention, the method may be an indirect printing method.",
"If the method is a direct printing method, the printing ink is directly transferred from the printing form cylinder to the printing substrate.",
"In an indirect printing method, the printing form cylinder transfers the ink to a transfer cylinder (blanket cylinder), which then transfers the ink to the printing substrate, which may be a web of printing material or, preferably, a sheet of printing material.",
"[0012] In accordance with another mode of the method of the invention, the second viscosity is at least ten times higher than the first viscosity.",
"For instance, the first viscosity may be less than 1 pascal-second and the second viscosity may be more than 10 pascal-seconds.",
"[0013] In accordance with a further mode of the method of the invention, the first viscosity may be adjusted by reducing the viscosity of the printing ink in the printing press and/or the second viscosity of the printing ink may be adjusted by increasing the viscosity of the printing ink in the printing press.",
"[0014] The reduction of the viscosity may be achieved by heating the printing ink.",
"An increase of the viscosity may, for example, be achieved by cooling the printing ink.",
"[0015] With the objects of the invention in view, there is also provided an offset printing unit, comprising an ink fountain having a metering device with ink zones, an ink fountain roller, an inking unit roller in continuous engagement with the ink fountain roller, and a printing form cylinder, in which the ink fountain roller and the printing form cylinder are driven in such a way that they have the same circumferential speed.",
"In accordance with various alternatives of the lithographic offset printing unit of the invention, the ink fountain roller may be equipped with a heating device and/or the printing form cylinder may be equipped with a cooling device.",
"The heating device of the ink fountain roller may heat the printing ink to reduce the viscosity of the printing ink in order for the printing ink to have a reduced viscosity as it is zonally metered by the metering device.",
"The cooling device of the printing form cylinder may cool the printing ink to increase its viscosity in order for the printing ink to have an increased viscosity on the printing form cylinder.",
"[0016] The invention and its further developments provide ways of controlling the viscosity of the ink in a targeted way.",
"The control may be carried out in such a way as to ensure that in the ink metering region, the viscosity of the ink is low, for instance less than one pascal-second.",
"Furthermore, the control of the viscosity of the ink may be accomplished in such a way as to ensure that in the image forming region, i.e. on the printing form cylinder, the viscosity of the ink is comparatively high, for instance more than 10 pascal-seconds.",
"The viscosity difference between the ink metering region and the image forming region and, to be more precise, the increase in viscosity from the ink metering region to the image forming region, may be achieved in various ways.",
"For instance, the low viscosity in the ink metering region may be a given fact because the viscosity of the printing at room temperature is low anyway even without any temperature-control measures.",
"Alternatively, the low viscosity in the ink metering region may be the result of a specific reduction of the viscosity of the ink.",
"This reduction may be achieved by heating the printing ink.",
"The reduction may likewise be achieved by increasing the inking unit speed and/or by generating a relative movement, which has a heating and smoothing effect.",
"Another way to reduce the viscosity of the ink may be to add drops of water or dampening solution.",
"In addition, the viscosity may be reduced by subjecting the printing ink to ultrasound.",
"Due to the reduced viscosity of the ink, the ink may be metered at machine speed, and the use of a vibrator roller or of a film roller is no longer required.",
"In addition, the inking unit may be as short as an anilox inking unit.",
"In contrast to such an anilox inking unit, however, in the inking unit of the invention, the ink metering may be zonally varied across the entire printing width.",
"Due to the high circumferential speed of the ink fountain roller, a blade-type ink fountain is preferred as an ink metering device.",
"The ink zones of the blade-type ink fountain may be formed by ink keys that bend a metering blade of the blade-type ink fountain to different extents in the individual ink zones.",
"The ink keys may be driven by hand or by a motor.",
"[0017] In order to ensure that the viscosity of the ink is comparatively high in the image forming region (on the printing form cylinder), for instance more than 10 pascal-seconds, the viscosity of the ink may be increased in various ways.",
"One way of increasing the viscosity of the ink is to cool the printing ink.",
"Another way of increasing the viscosity of the ink is to evaporate a carrier liquid from the printing ink.",
"In addition, the printing ink may be or contain an electrorheological fluid and the viscosity may be increased by an electric field.",
"Furthermore, a specific evaporation of components of the printing ink may be effected to increase the viscosity of the ink.",
"[0018] In order to achieve an increased viscosity of the ink from the ink fountain to the printing form cylinder it is possible to use an ink that has a low-viscosity carrier liquid that evaporates on the printing form cylinder.",
"In addition, ink components may be melted and thus cross-linked on the printing form cylinder to obtain an additional increase in viscosity.",
"The printing ink may likewise include an infrared (IR) absorber or a near-infrared (NIR) absorber or UV photoinitiators that absorb IR laser radiation or NIR laser radiation or UV radiation (generated by a UV source, a UV LED or a UV laser) to achieve a controlled increase in viscosity.",
"The increased viscosity may be based on physical effects (in particular evaporation or accelerated volatilization) or on chemical cross-linking.",
"It may be necessary to remove the evaporated or volatilized ink components by suction and thus to provide a suitable suction device in the printing unit.",
"In the case of chemical cross-linking, which may be caused by the UV radiation, the use of an inerting system may be expedient.",
"[0019] A zonally controllable light source or laser source may be provided to provide zonal viscosity control.",
"The light or laser source may preferably be actuated in wide zones, but it may also be actuated precisely in accordance with the printed image if desired.",
"The actuation may occur both in the direction of rotation of the printing form cylinder and perpendicular to the direction of rotation.",
"[0020] The lithographic offset printing unit of the invention may be a printing unit for wet-offset printing.",
"In wet-offset printing, a defined amount of dampening solution needs to emulsify into the printing ink to avoid dot touch, a defect that would otherwise occur in respective very dense screens and dot screens such as 80% screens.",
"In order to prevent dot touch despite the relatively high degree of viscosity of the printing ink on the printing form cylinder as proposed by the invention, the printing ink may have an increased water content or an additive that improves emulsification with the dampening fluid.",
"A further method is to provide an inking unit that is formed of more than three rollers, for instance of a maximum of four to six rollers, to improve the emulsification in a sufficient way.",
"The inking unit may, for example, include only two ink form rollers rolling off on the printing form cylinder during printing.",
"Compared to a conventional anilox inking unit, such an inking unit would be more efficient in terms of emulsification.",
"Compared to conventional vibrator-type inking units and conventional film-type inking units, the inking unit of the invention would be less expensive to manufacture because it contains fewer rollers.",
"[0021] A further way of rendering the printing ink more viscous on the printing form cylinder than in the ink fountain is to cross-link ink components, for instance by melting latex particles, by partial curing through the use of UV radiation, or by precipitating ink components.",
"If latex or synthetic resin dispersions on a styrene butadiene basis or on a styrene methacrylate basis or on a different polymeric basis are used to form the printing ink, a viscosity increase can be attained in various ways.",
"For instance, the printing form cylinder may be heated.",
"In the case of aqueous dispersions, this would cause an increase in the concentration of the particles and thus a fusing of the individual polymeric particles on the hand and would lead to the creation of a continuous ink film of high viscosity when a minimum film-forming temperature is exceeded.",
"In other cases, the viscosity of the ink dispersion may be increased to a considerable extent by contact with multivalent cations.",
"In such a case, multivalent cations such as divalent calcium cations or divalent magnesium cations or trivalent aluminum cations, for instance in the form of aqueous solutions or fluorides or sulfates or nitrates thereof would be applied to the surface of the printing form cylinder, i.e. to the printing form.",
"Upon contact with the printing ink, ionic clusters will form, which considerably increase the viscosity of the printing ink.",
"Increasing the viscosity by adding acids would also be conceivable.",
"If acrylate-based UV printing inks are used, the viscosity increase can be achieved by a partial curing of the printing ink using UV radiation.",
"In this context, the intensity and the wavelength range of the UV radiation would be selected in such a way as to ensure that only a very low degree of cross-linking is caused due to the formation of only a few links on the surface of the ink.",
"This ensures that the viscosity is increased without causing the ink to adhere to the printing form cylinder.",
"[0022] Another way of controlling the viscosity of the printing ink in such a way as to ensure that it has a lower viscosity when it is zonally metered by the metering device than when it is transferred by the printing form cylinder is to use a printing ink that includes latent heat storage particles, also known as phase change particles (PCM) such as paraffin.",
"PCMs are based on the principle that the material can absorb a large amount of thermal energy upon a phase change from solid to liquid and can give off this energy at a later time.",
"For example, paraffin is liquid at temperatures above 26° C. and cannot absorb any more energy above this temperature.",
"A capsule effect guarantees reversibility and prevents paraffin from leaking out.",
"If the PCM is a component of the printing ink, a special “temperature comfort range”",
"would have to be defined specifically for the printing press.",
"By adding the latent heat storage particles to the printing ink, the latter would be able to store latent heat.",
"The stored thermal energy can be dissipated with the ink through the printing substrate to counteract a further temperature increase and thus a reduction of the viscosity of the ink in the inking unit.",
"Influencing the viscosity of ink by using latent heat storage particles contained in the printing ink may be combined with other methods of changing the viscosity of the ink, for instance using ultrasound.",
"This is a way to adjust the viscosity of the printing ink independently of temperature effects.",
"[0023] German Patent Application DE 103 06 939 A1 discloses an offset printing ink that includes a PCM.",
"The PCM described therein experiences a phase change from solid to liquid, may be encapsulated and may be present as a paraffin, for instance.",
"The offset printing ink includes the PCM to render the components (such as tarpaulin) coated with the offset printing ink capable of storing heat on their surfaces.",
"The document describes that for this purpose, a close connection between the PCM and the component is necessary.",
"A specific dissipation of heat from an inking unit for offset printing using the PCM is not described.",
"[0024] Furthermore, European Patent Application EP 2 087 998 A1, corresponding to U.S. Patent Application Publication No. US 2009/0202936 A1, discloses a rubber jacket for a roller.",
"The rubber jacket includes a PCM for heat-regulation purposes.",
"That document does not describe the dissipation of heat through the use of the PCM either.",
"[0025] The storage and dissipation of heat from a printing unit using a PCM can preferably be attained by the following method: A method of dissipating thermal energy form a printing unit including the steps of providing a printing ink that contains a substance (preferably a PCM), the substance being in a first state in the printing unit at a first point in time, and the substance being in a second state in the printing unit at a second point in time, causing the substance to experience a phase change between the first and the second state between the first point in time and the second point in time and to absorb thermal energy in the process, dissipating thermal energy from the printing unit with the substance.",
"[0026] PCMs that are suitable for the method have a phase change temperature of between approximately 20° C. and approximately 50° C. (between approximately 68° F. and 122° F.) and a particle size of between approximately 0.1 μm and 50 μm.",
"The concentration of the PCM in the offset printing ink is preferably between approximately 5% by weight and approximately 40% by weight.",
"[0027] The PCM (latent heat storage unit) is preferably a paraffin and is preferably added to the printing ink in an encapsulated form.",
"Such encapsulated paraffins are available, for instance, from the BASF Company under the trade name Micronal®.",
"They typically have a size of between 2 and 20 μm and a maximum heat capacity of approximately 110 kJ/kg.",
"Such a PCM can be dispersed in known offset printing ink to be used in the method described above.",
"The preferred mass proportion of weight is approximately 10% by weight.",
"A suitable offset printing ink is, for example, K+E Novastar® F 912 MAGIC BIO.",
"In this example, the storage capacity of the printing ink is approximately 11 kJ/kg.",
"At a common heat capacity of offset printing inks of approximately 1.5 to approximately 2.5 kJ/Kelvin×kg, the heat storage of the PCM capsules compensates a temperature increase of the printing ink by approximately 4.4 to approximately 7.3 Kelvin that would otherwise occur.",
"Preferred PCM particles are Micronal® DS 5000× at a capsule diameter of 5 μm and a phase change temperature of approximately 26° C. (approximately 78.8° F.).",
"[0028] The encapsulated PCM particles may also assume other functions in the offset printing ink.",
"For instance, the capsules may act as spacer particles and abrasion protection particles.",
"If used as spacer particles, the particles preferably have a size of between approximately 1 μm and approximately 50 μm and a mass weight proportion of approximately 0.5 to 5% by weight.",
"[0029] In addition to being used in offset printing inks, the particles may also be used in flexographic printing inks, UV printing inks, varnishes and even directly in the printing material.",
"[0030] Other features which are considered as characteristic for the invention are set forth in the appended claims.",
"[0031] Although the invention is illustrated and described herein as embodied in a printing method and an offset printing unit, it is nevertheless not intended to be limited to the details shown, since various modifications and structural changes may be made therein without departing from the spirit of the invention and within the scope and range of equivalents of the claims.",
"[0032] The construction and method of operation of the invention, however, together with additional objects and advantages thereof will be best understood from the following description of specific embodiments when read in connection with the accompanying drawings.",
"BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWING [0033] FIG. 1 is a fragmentary, diagrammatic, sectional view of a lithographic offset printing unit including a heated ink fountain roller;",
"[0034] FIG. 2 is a fragmentary, sectional view of a lithographic offset printing unit with a cooled printing form cylinder;",
"[0035] FIG. 3 is a fragmentary, sectional view of a lithographic offset printing unit with a heated ink fountain roller and a cooled printing form cylinder;",
"and [0036] FIG. 4 is a fragmentary, sectional view of a lithographic offset printing unit with a radiation source directed toward printing ink on the printing form cylinder.",
"DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [0037] Referring now in detail to FIGS. 1 to 4 of the drawings as a whole, in which corresponding elements and components are identified by identical reference symbols, there are seen different embodiments which have various features in common and in which each of the figures illustrates a section of a printing press 1 .",
"The printing press 1 is a sheet-fed printing press.",
"The illustrated section is a planographic offset printing unit 2 of the printing press 1 .",
"The offset printing unit 2 includes an inking unit 3 and a dampening unit 4 .",
"The inking unit 3 includes an ink fountain 5 with an ink zone metering device 6 for zonal metering of a printing ink 7 stored in the ink fountain 5 .",
"The zonal ink metering varies across the printing width (perpendicular to the plane of the image of FIGS. 1 to 4 ).",
"[0038] The zonal ink metering device 6 includes ink zones that are disposed adjacent each other in a line parallel to an axis of rotation of an ink fountain roller 8 .",
"The ink zones may be formed by ink keys, screws, metering slides, metering levers, or metering tabs.",
"The ink zone metering device 6 may include a metering blade that is subdivided into the metering tabs.",
"The zonal ink metering device 6 and the ink fountain roller 8 define a metering nip for metering the printing ink 7 .",
"The width of the metering nip may be varied from ink zone to ink zone by adjusting the metering elements (metering slides, metering levers, metering tabs) or by adjusting ink keys that act on the metering blade.",
"Such a zonal adjustment is done as a function of the image to be printed to create a corresponding ink profile in the ink film that is formed on the ink fountain roller 8 as a result of the zonal ink metering.",
"[0039] The ink fountain roller 8 interacts with an inking unit roller 9 that is in continuous engagement with the ink fountain roller 8 in a roller contact point 10 during printing.",
"The inking unit roller 9 is an ink form roller that rolls on a printing form cylinder 11 during printing to apply ink to a lithographic offset printing form 12 mounted to the cylinder.",
"The length of the outer circumference of the inking unit roller 9 is substantially the same as the length of the outer circumference of the printing form cylinder 11 .",
"The printing form cylinder 11 or rather the offset printing form 12 mounted thereon transfers the printing ink located thereon to a transfer or blanket cylinder 13 .",
"The blanket cylinder 13 transfers the printing ink it has received to a (non-illustrated) sheet-like printing substrate to create a printed image thereon.",
"[0040] The dampening unit 4 includes a dipping roller 14 and a metering roller 15 engaged with the dipping roller 14 and with a dampening form roller 16 .",
"An axially oscillating distributor roller 17 is in engagement with only the dampening form roller 16 .",
"A bridge roller 18 is simultaneously in engagement with the dampening form roller 16 and the inking unit roller 9 .",
"The aforementioned roller engagements refer to the condition in a printing operation.",
"[0041] The ink fountain roller 8 , the inking unit roller 9 and the printing form cylinder 11 are driven to rotate in such a way that these three rotating bodies 8 , 9 , 11 rotate at the same circumferential speed 22 during printing.",
"The ink fountain roller 8 and the inking unit roller 9 rotate in opposite directions of rotation.",
"In the example shown in FIGS. 1 to 4 , the inking unit roller 9 rotates in a clockwise direction and the ink fountain roller 8 rotates in a counter-clockwise direction.",
"The point of roller contact 10 is a pressure nip in which the inking unit roller 9 is pressed against the ink fountain roller 8 or the ink fountain roller 8 is pressed against the inking unit roller 9 .",
"[0042] In the following, the particularities of the individual exemplary embodiments will be described separately.",
"[0043] In the exemplary embodiment of FIG. 1 , a heating device 19 is provided.",
"The heating device 19 heats the printing ink 7 in the ink fountain 5 .",
"The heating device 19 is integrated into the ink fountain roller 8 and may be formed by a temperature control medium channel for a heating fluid such as warm water.",
"The heating device 19 heats the circumferential surface of the ink fountain roller 8 , which is in contact with the printing ink 7 in the ink fountain 5 , thus heating the printing ink 7 .",
"The heating of the printing ink 7 results in a reduction of its viscosity.",
"Thus, the printing ink 7 has a comparatively low viscosity when the printing ink 7 is metered by the zonal ink metering device 6 .",
"[0044] After the metering, the printing ink gives off heat to the environment, for instance to the inking unit roller 9 .",
"As a consequence, the viscosity of the ink will re-increase.",
"As a result of the cooling effect, when the printing ink 7 reaches the printing form cylinder 11 or rather the offset printing form 12 mounted thereon, its viscosity is higher than the viscosity of the printing ink 7 in the ink fountain 5 .",
"This higher viscosity will preferably have been attained already at the instant of the transfer of the printing ink from the inking unit roller 9 to the printing form cylinder 11 or rather to the offset printing form 12 mounted thereon or when the printing ink is transferred from the printing form cylinder 11 or rather from the offset printing form 12 mounted thereon to the blanket cylinder 13 at the latest.",
"[0045] In the exemplary embodiment shown in FIG. 2 , a cooling device is provided to cool the printing ink 7 on the printing form cylinder 11 , i.e. on the printing form 12 .",
"The cooling device 20 is integrated into the printing form cylinder 11 and may be formed by a temperature control medium channel for a cooling fluid such as cooling water.",
"The cooling device 20 cools the printing form cylinder 11 and thus the offset printing form 12 and the printing ink 7 present thereon.",
"Due to the cooling effect, the viscosity of the printing ink 7 on the printing form cylinder 11 , i.e. on the offset printing form 12 mounted thereon, is increased to a level above the viscosity of the same printing ink in the ink fountain 5 , i.e. when it is metered by the zonal ink metering device 6 .",
"[0046] The exemplary embodiment shown in FIG. 3 is a combination of the exemplary embodiments shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 .",
"A heating device 19 for the ink fountain roller 8 and a cooling device 20 for the printing form cylinder 11 are present.",
"In this example, the temperature difference between the printing ink 7 in the ink fountain 5 and the same printing ink on the printing form cylinder 11 , i.e. on the offset printing form 12 mounted thereon, and the difference in viscosity resulting from the temperature difference is caused by heating the printing ink 7 in the ink fountain 5 through the use of the heating device 19 and simultaneously cooling the printing ink on the printing form cylinder 11 through the use of the cooling device 12 .",
"[0047] In the exemplary embodiment shown in FIG. 4 , a radiation source 21 is directed to a circumferential region of the printing form cylinder 11 .",
"As viewed in the direction of rotation of the printing form cylinder 11 , the radiation source 21 is downstream of the inking unit roller 9 and upstream of the blanket cylinder 13 .",
"The radiation source 21 emits radiation towards the printing ink that has been applied by the inking unit roller 9 to the printing form cylinder 11 , i.e. to the offset printing form 12 mounted thereon, to increase the viscosity of the ink.",
"The viscosity of the printing ink present on the printing form cylinder is increased by the radiation source to a level above the viscosity of the same printing ink in the ink fountain 5 or as it is metered by the zonal ink metering device 6 .",
"[0048] If the printing ink 7 processed in the offset printing unit 2 is a UV ink and contains UV photoinitiators, the radiation source 21 may be a UV radiator, for instance a UV laser.",
"The UV radiation emitted by the radiation source 21 results in a partial cross-linking in the surface of the printing ink on the printing form cylinder 11 , thus increasing the viscosity of the printing ink.",
"[0049] The printing ink 7 that is processed in the offset printing unit 2 may likewise include IR absorbers or NIR absorbers.",
"In this case, the radiation source 21 is a respective IR emitter or a NIR emitter.",
"The radiation emitted by the radiation source 21 heats the printing ink 7 on the printing form cylinder 11 to evaporate specific components of the printing ink or to volatilize them in an accelerated way.",
"The result is an increased viscosity of the printing ink on the printing form cylinder 11 ."
] |
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a discharge device for one or more media, which can be gaseous, liquid, pasty, pulverulent, powder-like, etc. and/or a mixture of such use media to be discharged, as well as to a method for the manufacture and filling of such a device.
2. Description of Related Art
Before or after the first discharge of a use medium from a container space, such as a tank, a pressure or pump space or the like, the space can be temporarily or permanently filled only partly with the use medium, the remaining volumes or volume of the container space being filled with a replacement medium not intended for discharge. This can be a medium which does not react e.g. with the use medium and/or does not physically dissolve in the use medium, so that despite the close juxtaposition the two media are clearly separated from one another, at least in the low-flow, calmed state. However, the replacement medium can contain impurities such as dirt, bacteria, etc., which react with and spoil the use medium for its intended medical, cosmetic or other use. In order to avoid this risk it is possible to add to the use or replacement medium preservatives, stabilizers or similar substances, but these are frequently not desired due to medical side effects, for cost reasons, etc.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The object of the invention is to provide a discharge device and a method of the indicated type, which avoid the disadvantages of known constructions or of the indicated type and in which in particular undesired contamination of the use medium can be significantly reduced or avoided for as long as the use medium is not discharged, being stored in a manner sealed with respect to the exterior.
For achieving this object at least one compensating and/or reception container receives at least one different replacement medium and the reception space for the replacement medium is substantially closed with respect to one or the particular associated container space at least in one operating state. If the reception container is only partly, or not in contact with the use medium, it can be filled e.g. with a replacement medium free from impurities or can be externally hermetically sealed against the penetration of impurities and, as required, the replacement medium can be delivered to areas of the container space free from the use medium by means of one or more line connections. However, it is particularly appropriate if a reception container is bounded with a container wall or the like directly with respect to the use medium, or the container space areas free from the use medium are partly, largely or virtually completely filled and namely essentially independently thereof, with a variable filling level, or to which percentage the use medium fills the container space. Unlike in the case of a climbing or drag member, etc., no large-surface, tight sliding seats are required, which are difficult if not impossible to seal against the penetration of impurities.
As a result of the inventive construction of the space area taken up in volume-variable manner by the use medium, confinement of the use medium within a volume boundary, referred to herein as bounding, is possible substantially independently of the total volume of the container space approximately to the volume of the filling with the use medium, so that there is always an at least approximate complete filling of said space with only the use medium. In the areas in which the use filling is not adjacent to the container vessel, said use filling is substantially only adjacent to the position-variable container wall of the reception container for the replacement medium, so that as a result of the construction according to the invention, instead of for the said actions said construction may only be suitable for protecting the use filling against shaking movements.
Independently of the described effects and actions, the reception container can also influence the pressure of said use medium filling. The reception container can also influence, by position variation of a container wall or the like in the container space, e.g. for the suction of a vacuum or for the discharge of the use medium for producing an overpressure or in other pressure modifications the damping thereof. In addition, one wall of a reception container can be pretensioned in at least one operating state and/or can engage in raisable manner on the inside of a vessel wall and can therefore elastically support the wall. In addition, a reception container can be solely provided for displacing the stored use medium substantially completely from the container space and/or for acquiring the external shape of a vessel substantially independently of the emptying level, because e.g. the reception container restores the walls of the vessel following their cupping or indentation, for example by means of the medium located between it and the wall.
A reception container for a medium separate from the use medium is suitable for virtually random discharge devices or vessels, e.g, bottles, tubes, pump or cylinder spaces of thrust piston pumps, etc., bag casks, canisters, tanks, etc. If the use medium is highly volatile or easily ignitable, a reception container or replacement medium enables dangerous gaseous mixtures to be expelled substantially completely from the container space.
A reception container for the indicated or other purposes is appropriately not constructed as a bellows, whose wall forms over most areas of its extension prefolded joint zones. Instead the wall can assume random folds diverging therefrom and is advantageously sufficiently flexible that the reception container in the emptied state forms a bending-slack bladder, whose facing wall areas engage on one another with their insides without any particular force expenditure. Thus, in the empty state the reception container can be reduced to a space volume, which is significantly smaller than 1/2, 1/4 or in a range of 1/10 to at least 1/50 of its space volume in the maximum filled operating state.
For filling or emptying a reception container and/or container space, it is possible to provide a valve, which is controlled in flow or pressure-dependent manner by mechanical actuation, particularly in such a way that a flow therethrough can only take place in one direction, whereas in the case of flows in the other direction its passage cross-section is reduced or completely closed. The discharge mechanism provided in the vicinity of an outlet, which can also be formed by a vessel-separate pump unit or a thrust piston pump, a bellows pump, etc. and through which the use medium flows during discharge, can influence or bring about the control of the reception container passage. For example, substantially before, during and/or after the outflow of the use medium, the reception container passage can be closed or opened. In particular, the control is so provided that substantially only due to a vacuum resulting from the discharge of a charge of the use medium in the container space, the replacement medium or the reception container is exposed to an attracting action, which leads to its propagation into those space areas of the container space which have become free due to use medium discharge.
The reception container can be partly or completely inserted in the container space through an opening provided in the vicinity of an emptying opening or formed by the latter, and said opening can optionally also be used as an assembly or fitting opening for the positionally secured anchoring of the reception container within the container space. However, it is appropriate to use for this purpose a remote or separate assembly or fitting opening, which e.g. traverses a wall or bottom wall of the vessel facing the container space discharge zone. An assembly wall, which can be simultaneously also used for the positionally secure anchoring of an associated reception container portion, is appropriately made by profiling or the like, much more dimensionally rigid than the walls connected thereto at right angles. This or another assembly wall can also be reinforced by a type of cross-sectional thickening, e.g. by a separate body, such as a mounting support, flange, closure for the assembly opening, valve case or the like. Instead of being filled through an opening in the vicinity of the outlet zone, the vessel space can also be filled with the use medium through an assembly opening and only then is the associated reception container inserted and fitted, and the assembly opening closed by it. The reception container, including the closure, can form a preassembled constructional unit, which is appropriately inserted in stop-limited manner in the assembly opening in such a way that its portions optionally located on the outside of the vessel, or the discharge device, are located in a completely countersunk or flush manner in a depression of the outside thereof.
Independently of the described constructions, the compensating container or the like can be made from the same material or a material with the same characteristics as the remaining boundaries of the container space, e.g. so as not to bring the use medium into contact with different materials, or in order to facilitate a pure-type reuse of the container materials without complicated prior sorting. The inside of the outer container can be provided in all areas coming into contact with the medium with a film-thin or similar lining or coating of a corresponding material, which is appropriately constructed in one piece with the volume-variable compensating or filling body. This filling body is advantageously invertable through an opening in one piece therewith and/or bounded from the outer container accompanied by the turning over of the inside so as to form the outside, so that it can be transferred from its outer position into an inner position in the outer container or in the reverse direction. The opening can be narrower or of the same width as the greatest or median width of the particular container, as a function of the flexibility of the walls of the invertable container. The inversion or bringing of the filling body into the outer container can take place mechanically or additionally or exclusively by at least one driving fluid. which brings about a vacuum constricting or sucking in the filling body in the outer container and/or an overpressure conveying the filling body into the outer container.
Advantageously, the lining or the substantially maximum widened filling body engages in full surface manner on the inside of the outer container in a substantially fold-free manner and engages both on the circumference and on the front faces, and optionally in the vicinity of container openings or connecting pieces, so that a complete emptying of the container space without leaving any cavities is possible. This can in particular be achieved if the outer container is constructed as a mold for the lining or the filling body. If the container body or filling body is produced from a e.g. hollow, cup-shaped, sleeve-like or tubular blank, accompanied by a reduction of the wall thickness by stretching, following the production of the outer container the lining or filling body can be brought into its finished shape, while also the outer container undergoes said shaping. For shaping purposes the outer, lining or filling container, optionally under a suitably increased temperature, can be exposed to a fluid pressure in the interior and/or on the outer circumference exposed to a vacuum, and can thereby be shaped against a mold, which only forms a negative shape of the outer shape or mold. This makes it possible to carry out production by an extrusion or blowing process.
Independently of the described constructions it is also possible to produce two mutually closing and optionally separate space-bounding containers in one operation together and/or partially to substantially, or even completely, in one piece form. At least wall parts of the two containers can have widely varying wall thicknesses representing 5, 10 or 15 times and said values can represent minimum or maximum limits. For example, the walls of a container can be intrinsically stiff and those of the other container can have a much lower strength, so that it is bending-slack or foldable in film-like manner. The two containers can be prefabricated in the reciprocal outer layer and then appropriately the less stiff container is at least partly transferred into the stiffer container.
The constructions according to the invention are also suitable for so-called squeeze bottles from which a use medium is discharged in that the squeeze container is manually compressed and consequently the medium located therein is subject to an overpressure or discharge pressure. In these or similar containers, from two containers receiving separate media by applying the same manual discharge/actuating pressure simultaneously, successively or in time-overlapping manner, a medium can be discharged from both containers and separate outlet openings. A common outlet opening and/or with a position-constant orientation of the discharge device outside the particular discharge opening can be supplied to an application point. For example, the inner container can be exposed by a pressure rise in the outer container by means of the fluid contained therein to the action of an overpressure through which the medium contained therein is discharged. In the case of a pressure relief, the compensating space of the inner container can then be refilled by a volume corresponding to the volume discharged therefrom, plus the volume discharged from the outer or medium container. If, as is conceivable, in the compensating container no medium is sucked from the outside-adjacent outlet opening of the discharge device or medium container, a separate suction opening from the compensating container outlet opening can be provided and is e.g. linked with the atmosphere. For controlling said discharge or refilling of the compensating container, it is possible to provide a corresponding valve control, optionally with alternately or displaced opening and closing valves, which operate in a pressure and/or path-dependent or mechanically controlled manner.
The invention also relates to a method for the manufacture of a discharge device which can be constructed in the described or some other way. According to the invention at least two containers, which have substantially different or approximately identical, but in particular, not inherently rigid wall thicknesses, can be manufactured or molded in reciprocal material connection, after which they are transferred from this position into a different operating or initial operating position. This permits a very simple manufacture, e.g. in one piece, a manufacture in the heat and/or a manufacture in a single working process, provided that the shaping or molding of the two containers is not intended completely or at least partly in time-succeeding manner, so that after the complete shaping or molding of one another the other still has to undergo shaping or molding.
The invention also relates to a method for filling a discharge device of the described or some other type, particularly for filling with one of the said media or fluids. The container space to be filled, prior to filling, is appropriately reduced to a substantially or completely cavity-free volume and is then so filled with the medium that it is only widened to the volume of the particular medium introduced until it has taken up its predetermined filling quantity. This completely prevents the penetration of extraneous medium or air to the filling space and the discharge device in the filled starting state can be filled in bubble-free manner. The use of a volume-variable compensating container enables filling to take place under an overpressure, which works against the internal pressure of the compensating container and leads to its accompanying emptying or reduction and/or the compensating container can by means of evacuation be placed under a vacuum, which leads to a suction of the medium into the container space.
In each case the particular container, e.g. the compensating container, can be so constricted during emptying by a random folding, wrinkling or the like of its walls that facing walls are engaged against one another in substantially gap-free manner by their insides, or the container is substantially to completely cavity-free and only takes up a volume corresponding to one or at the most four to five times the material volume of its walls. In particular if the inner container engages in large to complete-surface manner on the inside of the outer container in the maximum widened state, the inner container has on the outside at least one projection or spaced projections, such as folds, ribs or similar spacers, which instead of or in addition to, can be provided on the inside of the outer container, and through which passage gaps are left open for the medium even if the inner container has engaged on the inside of the outer container. This also prevents the inner container from subdividing the outer container into two tightly mutually separated container spaces. As a result of the wrinkled or disordered folding of the inner container it is also possible to ensure that even on its outside no inclusions or closed chambers form, which on emptying the container space could form by constriction and medium filling so that this also ensures a complete emptying of all the medium stored.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG. 1 is a discharge device according to the invention in a part sectional view.
FIG. 2 is the discharge device of FIG. 1 in a larger-scale detail.
FIGS. 3-4 are further embodiments in representations corresponding to FIG. 2.
FIGS. 5-6 are embodiments in the finished state.
FIG. 7 is a blank for producing the discharge device according to FIG. 6.
FIG. 8 is another embodiment in a representation corresponding to FIG. 5.
FIG. 9 is another embodiment of a discharge device.
FIG. 10 is a detail of another embodiment.
FIGS. 11-12 are two further embodiments in representations corresponding to FIG. 1.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
The discharge device 1 has an elongated, bottle-shaped vessel 2 in the form of a thin-walled, hollow vessel body made from soft elastic plastic, which bounds a container space 3 of corresponding shape and which can almost completely be grasped by a hand. The vessel body 2 is substantially formed by continuously approximately constantly thick vessel walls 4, 5 and 6, whose thickness is less than 5 mm, less than 2 mm, and in a presently preferred embodiment, is as small as approximately 1 mm. An approximately cylindrical vessel jacket 4 is connected at one end in one piece to an optionally ring disk-like bottom wall 5 at right angles thereto and at the other end, in the vicinity of a discharge zone 7, to a front wall 6. through which the use medium can be discharged outwards into the open from the vessel 2 by means of a vessel neck 8. The bottom wall 5 and/or the front wall 6, unlike the vessel jacket 4, is substantially dimensionally stable. On or in the dimensionally stable neck 8, projecting outwards in one piece from the front wall 6, is provided a discharge mechanism 9 with a base body inserted in a substantially positionally fixed and centered manner through which the use medium is discharged.
According to the invention for such a discharge device 1, or another, at least one filling compensating means 10 is provided so as to wholly or partly fill the use medium-free space area 13 of the container space 3 in such a way that the area 3 is adjacent in large surface-flush manner directly with the space area 12 taken up by the medium 11. Through flow movements of the medium 11 the two space areas 12, 13 can be shaped in complimentary manner in such a way that e.g. in the case of position changes of the vessel 2, the specifically lighter space area 13 always tends to rise upwards with respect to the space area 12. In the upright position according to FIG. 1, the space area 13 is consequently stretched by buoyancy in the direction of the discharge zone 7, whereas it rises towards the bottom wall 5 in the inverted upside down position.
The space area 13 is substantially completely taken up by a compensating or supplementary medium 14, which with respect to the space area 12, is enclosed in sealed manner in a reception container 15. Reception container 15 is here located in substantially completely encapsulated manner within the container space 3, and like its container wall 16, is substantially freely movable with respect to said space 3 or the space area 12, over most of its extension in the direction of one, two or three space axes. The through, one-piece and approximately constantly thick container wall 16 is substantially bendable and slack, but self-restoring tensile elastic and/or by tensile elongation, permanently deformable without tearing. Without any damage it can be uniformly folded at any random point and therefore the reception container 15 can be so crumpled together that the reception space surrounded by it is reduced towards a zero volume. Through filling with the medium 14, the reception container 15 can be brought to its maximum volume size accompanied by unfolding in continuous manner to all intermediate sizes. In each case longitudinally and/or transversely linking portions of the reception container 15 or the container wall 16 can be deformed or moved substantially independently of one another in said directions and/or at right angles to the surface thereof, and can therefore be adapted to random distributions of the medium 11 in the container space 3 or the space area 12. With a maximum volume size, the reception container 15 can almost completely or at least 80% to 90% fill the container space 3.
At one end the reception container 15, comprising e.g. a seamless bag of a wrinkle film, passes into a container neck 17 or a bag rim, which is constructed in one piece with the remaining container wall 16 and in the tautly widened state can have roughly the same width as the connecting, exposed longitudinal portions of the bag, or can be reduced compared therewith as in the fitted state. In the vicinity of the container neck 17, the reception container 15 is fixed with respect to the container space 3 with a mounting support 18 at a single point 19 located adjacent to the boundary of the space 3, whereas all the remaining areas of the reception container 15 are freely movable in each of the said directions up to a flat-engaging stopping on the vessel walls 4, 5 and 6 with respect to the container space 3.
The reception container 15 forms with the mounting support 18, or one or two mounting support bodies 21, 22, a subassembly 20. Subassembly 20 is preassembled separately from the vessel and in the case of a tightly closed discharge zone 7, can be so installed on the vessel 2 that the bodies 21, 22 are connected in their predetermined functional position with the reception container 15. This subassembly 20, which can optionally be introduced through the neck 8, is then inserted from the outside of an associated vessel wall 5 with most of its extension in the container space 3 and is fixed with respect to the vessel wall 5 by the mounting support 18.
The two approximately coaxial or interengaging mounting support bodies 21, 22 form with approximately complimentary circumferential surfaces a sealing and force fit 23, in whose clamping gap is tautly spread out the container neck 17 and/or fixed in constricted form by a wrinkle fold. A mounting support body 21 is in substantially whole-surface engagement with the inside or inner circumference of the container neck 17 and the other mounting support body 22 engages on the outside or on the outer circumference of approximately the same longitudinal portion of the container neck 17. The clamping faces of the clamping seat 23 are self-locking, acute-angled to conical with approximately the same cone angle and constricted to the outer end of the container neck 17, so that the inner mounting support body 21 formed on the outer circumference of its surface can be inserted from the interior of the reception container 15 into the outer mounting support body 22. The clamping gap of the clamping seat 23 extending up to the outside of the vessel 2 can only be sealed by the container neck 17 located in it and/or consequently both against the use medium 11 and against the compensating medium 14. Between the container neck 17 and the particular clamping or supporting face a direct sealing or adhesive connection is provided, which can be a melt connection, a bonding connection, etc.
Instead of this or in addition thereto, for sealing a supporting gap it is possible to provide a seal 24, e.g. a ring seal. The mounting support body 21 can also be so preassembled with the reception container 15, that the container neck 17 is fixed in its longitudinal direction with respect to said body 21. For this purpose a holding and a clamping member is provided, which clamps the container neck 17 against the outer circumference of the body 21 and/or secures container neck 17 by cross-sectional deformation. The holding member can be formed by the seal 24 and so engages in a circumferential groove in the supporting face of the body 21 with radial pretension that it clamps the container neck 17 in this area in whole-surface manner against the bottom face of the circumferential groove or depression. Following this preassembly, the container neck 17, together with the mounting support body 21 and the holding member 24, can be axially inserted into the mounting support member 22 up to abutment. At the end of the inserting movement, a snap connection locks and its snap member can also be formed by the seal 24. For this purpose the supporting face of the mounting support member 22 can also leave a depression, circumferential groove or similar snap countermember adapted to the snap member 24, which sealingly locks under pretension the seal 24 projecting outwards over the supporting face of the body 21. As the reception container 15 following on to the container neck 17 is highly flexible, its container wall 16 can be applied to its rear end face in the plugging direction for the fitting of the mounting support body 21 and can be pressed into its assembly position via the container wall 16 of the body 21. In this fitting or assembly position, said end face of the mounting support member 21 appropriately projects slightly over the associated end face of the mounting support member 22, the clamping fit 23 extending appropriately approximately up to the latter end face.
The mounting support body 22 which, like the mounting support body 21, is essentially dimensionally stable, forms with its end facing the container space 3 a ring portion 25 projecting freely into the space area 12 and which at the outer end passes in one piece into a ring disk-like support flange 26 projecting over its outer circumference and is closely adapted to an assembly opening 27 traversing the vessel wall 5. This assembly opening 27 is narrower than the inside width or diameter of the container space 3 or the vessel wall 4 following on to the vessel wall 5, so that the container neck 17 and ring portion 25 have a radial spacing with respect to the inside of the vessel wall 4. With a limited axial spacing from the inner, circular, front or support face of the support flange 26, the ring portion 25 carries in a ring groove a circular seal 28 which, like the seal 24, is made from rubber elastic, resilient material and is cross-sectionally elastically deformable by squeezing. By means of said seal 28, the space area 12 is sealed against the outside in the vicinity of the assembly opening 27. The seal 28 and/or another member can also form a snap member of a snap connection 29 with which the mounting support member 22 is secured against the vessel wall 5 in substantially axial clearance-free manner by axial bracing both positively and against rotation in frictionally gripping manner. On inserting the mounting support body 22 preassembled with the seal 28 in the assembly opening 27, the seal 28 is initially automatically radially constricted by sliding along the inner circumference of the opening 27 and then engages over both the inside of the vessel wall 5 and the inner circumference of the assembly opening 27 in such a way that the support face of the support flange 26 engages under the pretension of the seal 28 on the outer face of the vessel wall 5. From the inner front or end face of the mounting support body 21 or 22, the reception container 15 then extends freely into the container space 3.
The reception container 15 can be constructed in completely hermetically sealed manner, optionally as a bladder floating freely in the container space 3, and being fillable e.g. to fill it with a medium, such as a reagent upstream of the closure only openable by destruction and, which adapting to the emptying of the space area 12, undergoes expansion. However, a particularly simple construction is obtained if the reception container 15 or the space area 13 is so refillable corresponding to the reduction in the space area 12, that in said space areas 12, 13, at least in the operative state of the discharge device 1, approximately atmospheric pressure prevails. A compensating passage 30 is provided for this purpose in the subassembly 20 which traverses the mounting support 18 or mounting support body 21 in such a way that it forms a line connection between the interior and exterior of the reception container 15, which in space-saving manner is located at least partly or completely within the container neck 17.
Here the passage 30 forms a connection between the container interior and the outer atmosphere, so that in the reception container 15 or the space area 13, it is possible to suck air from the outside of the container space 3 with a lower flow resistance than it can be ejected again to the outside. These actions could be obtained with a corresponding operation by constructing the passage 30 as a flow restrictor, but a faster response thereof is obtained if a control valve 31, such as a one-way or check valve is provided, which forms a component of the subassembly 20 or the subassembly formed by the reception container 15 and mounting support body 21.
The passage 30 or valve 31 is located roughly in the central axis Of the mounting support 18, which can also be the central axis of the vessel 2, container space 3, vessel walls 4, 5, 6, discharge zone 7, neck 8 and/or discharge mechanism 9, provided that these components are mutually coaxial. A central area of the one-piece mounting support body 1 forms a valve casing 32, in which a circular or disk-shaped valve body 33 is freely movable, without a valve spring, between a closed position and an open position. In the closed position the end face of the valve body 33 engages on a ring disk-like valve seat 34 of the valve case 32. In the open position the valve body 33 engages with the other front face on a valve stop 35, which is formed by a sleeve inserted in a widened bore portion of the valve case 32 and formed by an associated portion of the passage 30. The valve 31 closes for an overpressure and opens for a vacuum in the reception container 15.
The end or insert opening 36 of the through, substantially linear passage outwardly displaced with respect to the valve seat 34 and remote from the interior of the reception container 15, is so countersunk or flush with respect to the outside of the associated vessel wall 5 or support flange 26 surrounding it, that it is unlikely to be closed accidentally even if the outside of the vessel 2 is located on a support face. Radially outside the inlet opening 36 or the support flange 26, the vessel wall 5 forms a circular outside 37 as a stable base for the discharge device 1, and within said outside 37 the vessel wall 5, on the outside forms a depression 38 in which the support flange 26 is located in completely flush manner with respect to the outside 37. As the outer face of the mounting support member 21 is slightly set back compared with that of the mounting support member 22 and in said end face the inlet opening 36 is located, said opening 36 can also be secured against accidental closure by the outer end face of the body 22.
The discharge device 1 is appropriately equipped with a pump 40 with which on the one hand the use medium 11 can be discharged via the discharge zone 7, and on the other hand, the quantity of the specifically heavier compensating medium 14 located in the reception space 39 of the reception container 15 can be modified. For example, during the return of the pump 40 to the starting position following a pump stroke, the reception space can be increased by suction. The pump 40 is here constructed in the manner of a bellows or squeezing pump, namely being operable by the manual constriction of the vessel wall 40 and therefore the outer circumference of the container space 3. The pump 40 is e.g. resiliently self-restoring in that the vessel 2, following compression and release, as a result of its inherent elasticity, returns approximately to its starting shape of the container space 3. On operating the pump 40, a pressure rise is brought about in the pump or container space 3, namely in the space area 12 and space area 13 or in the reception space 39 through which the valve 31 is closed and an outlet valve 44, associated with an outlet duct 43 of the discharge mechanism 9 is opened in pressure-dependent manner. Therefore the use medium 11 passes via an inlet 42 of the outlet duct 43 spaced opposite the vessel wall 6 within the container space into the reception container 15, traverses the valve 44, and passes out of the outlet opening 45 located on the outside of the discharge device 1 or the discharge mechanism 9. The outlet opening 45 can optionally, prior to the initial use, be formed by a completely closed wall, which must be perforated for opening purposes. Operation also leads to a pressure rise of the medium 14 which then, by means of the wall 16, can slowly discharge the medium 11 in the manner of a resilient energy accumulator.
If at the end of this pump stroke the pump 40 is freed from operation, it automatically returns to the starting position, so that a vacuum is formed in the container space 3 or space area 12 or 13, and consequently the valve 31 is opened, so that in the manner of a venting of the container space 3, air is sucked from the outside into the reception container 15 in such a way that the volume of said container 15 is increased by unfolding and/or expansion of its container wall 16 roughly by the volume made free by the preceding discharge of the use medium 11 in the container space 3. At the start of said suction, the valve 44 closes e.g. in pressure-dependent manner and/or before or at the latest on opening the valve 31, so that by means of the outlet 45 no air can be sucked from the outside into the container space 3 or the space area 12. The pump can also be formed by the discharge mechanism 9 and can e.g. be constructed as a bellows and/or piston pump, in which case the vessel wall can also be dimensionally rigid.
With increasing emptying of the space area 12, the reception container 15 is widened, so that the use medium 11 can be redistributed in the vessel space 3 due to the changing gravitational conditions caused by changes to the position of the vessel 2 and correspondingly adapts to the shape of the reception container 15. The container wall 16 can be temporarily flat or slightly adhesively engaged with the inside of the vessel wall 4, 5 and 6 and is then detached again and spaced by the medium 11. Preferably, the use medium 11 is not compressible or less compressible than the compensating medium 14, which with the reception container 15, can form in the container space 3 a displacement or core body scavenged over most of its circumference. The container wall 16 can also engage in the manner of a climbing member in increasing form along the inside with the vessel wall 4 in the direction of the discharge zone 7, so that the space area 12 does not surround the space area 13 in the manner of an envelope, and is instead separated transversely to the central axis from the space area 13 by the interposed front portion of the container wall 16.
The container space 3 with the discharge zone 7 can be filled in the upside down position through the assembly opening 27 with the use medium 11, and only then is the subassembly 20 inserted and the filling opening 27 closed. The substantially empty reception container 15 can initially be applied to or forced into the medium in the container space 3 and then shortly before or during the production of the seal or the snap connection 29, by means of the inlet opening 36 and with a limited overpressure, sufficient compensating medium can be forced into the container 15 that the latter fills all the areas of the container space 3 still free from the use medium 11. Air which was previously present in the areas can escape outwards along the still not snapped in seal 28. The inventive construction is also suitable for such a bubble-free filling of a container space 3 or space area 12. Filling can also take place via the discharge zone 7.
Instead of, or in addition thereto, it is possible to provide an outlet closure 46 which, during said filling or non-use of the discharge device 1, keeps the outlet 45 or outlet duct 43, and/or when providing an outlet valve 44, its valve body 48, closed in pressure-tight manner. A pin 49 or the like removable outwardly in non-destructive manner and then reinsertable prior to the discharge of the use medium 11 can form a closure pin for the outlet opening 45 and/or a positively acting holding down device for the valve body 48. Appropriately, the pin 49 is a component of a snap cover 50 or the like, which can be engaged by means of a snap connection on the outer end of the discharge mechanism 9, the pin 49 projecting from the inside of the cover end wall.
In FIGS. 3 to 12 corresponding parts are given the same reference numerals, but followed by different letters. All the features of claims 1 to 12 can be interchanged or used additively and/or in combination with one another. Thus, several reception containers, mounting supports or filling compensators or discharge devices or mechanisms can be provided for the same container space or separate vessels can be provided, or in a single vessel there can be separate container spaces and/or space areas, so that e.g. separate use media can be discharged as a function of one another or simultaneously and/or independently of one another with the same discharge device. The container space with the inside of its vessel jacket can also form a cylinder path for a pump piston with which, in axially succeeding partial strokes, individual discharge charges can be pressed out, e.g. via a discharge duct traversing the pump piston or plunger.
In the embodiment according to FIG. 3 the mounting support 18a only has one mounting support body 21a, the mounting support faces of the force fit 23a being formed by the outer circumferential surface of the ring portion 25a of the body 29a and the inner circumference of the assembly opening 27a. The snap member 28a is constructed in one piece with the mounting support body 21a as a radial collar 28a projecting over the ring portion 25a connected to the inner end of the body 21a. Over said inner end project several circumferentially mutually spaced snap cams 32a, which form a valve cage for receiving the valve body 33a, so that this small number of only two components is all that is needed for the mounting and the valve. Valve 31a, like the valve body 33a, is positioned substantially freely within the reception space 39a. The outer end of the container neck 17a can be located between the support face of the support flange 26a constructed in one piece with the mounting support body 21a and the outside of the vessel wall 5a and also has a pressuretight securing manner in the way described.
Whereas in FIG. 2 the outlet valve 44 is constructed as a one-way or check valve, whose valve body 48 can be moved without the action of a valve spring in pressure-dependent manner only between the closed and open positions, the valve 44a according to FIG. 3 has a valve spring 51 constructed in one piece with the valve seat in the manner of a disk valve and which is traversed by an associated portion of the outlet duct 43a forming the outlet 45a and is formed by the front wall of a ring body fixed to the vessel 2a. The valve seat engages on the inside of the valve spring 51 remote from the outlet 45a, and whose radially inner area associated with the valve seat is axially movable with respect to its radially outer, axially fixed area. This inner area is maintained in the closed position against the valve body 48a by a torus 49a of the cover 50a surrounding in ring-like radially spaced and approximately tight manner the outlet 45a, and which as a pin projects freely from the inside of the valve spring 51 in the direction of the outlet 45a and is essentially not located within the neck, but follows on to its outer front face.
Whereas in the embodiments according to FIGS. 1 to 3 the neck 8, 8a with respect to the vessel walls 4, 5 and 6 is dimensionally stable by wall thickening or has a snap collar for fixing the discharge mechanism 9 or 9a, the neck 8b of FIG. 4 has roughly the same thickness as the vessel walls. The outer end of the neck which is much narrower than the vessel jacket is cross-sectionally angled for forming an approximately planar, ring disk-like neck flange 52 projecting over its outer circumference. The neck flange 52 used for the snap fixing of the discharge mechanism 9b also has roughly the same thickness as the vessel walls or the neck jacket connected to the vessel wall 6a.
The outlet valve 44 is here constructed as a ball valve with a spherical valve body 48b and an acute-angled, conical valve seat. The valve spring 51b acts on the valve body 48b formed by a separate helical spring or the like inserted in the valve case and/or is inserted between the valve body 48b and the outlet 45b in a valve case. Thus, the valve 44b is closed if a slight overpressure prevails within the container space 3b. The body 33b of the valve 31b is shown here with a much smaller diameter than in FIGS. 2 and 3.
According to FIG. 5 the insides of one to all the vessel walls 4c, 5c and 6c and the neck 8c, and therefore the discharge zone or opening 7c, are wholly or partly provided with a thin coating or cover or lining 53, which has an unfixed, or is adhesively fixed, partly or wholly, engagement to the particular inside and forms an inner container 53, as described relative to the compensating container 15. Inner container 53 has a wall made from a thin, bending-slack plastic sheet, which in the substantially fold-free, smoothed position is reinforced by the associated vessel wall, and so at least when the container space 3c is filled, is also positionally secured under the fluid pressure.
Jacket wall 54, the ring-disk-like or frustum-shaped bottom and cover walls 55, 56 connected thereto, a portion 57 of the jacket wall 54 directly connected to the wall 55 and narrowed roughly by the thickness of the vessel wall 4c, a neck portion emanating from and narrowed with respect to the cover wall 56, and an outer or ring-shaped front portion 59 located outside the container space 3c, substantially completely cover the associated vessel wall or the outer front face of the neck 8c or the neck flange 52c. Adjacent walls pass in one-piece and cross-sectionally over an also substantially full-surface engaging roundness 60 with a constant wall thickness. The radius of curvature of the roundness 60 is larger, e.g. two to five times larger than the thickness of the vessel walls.
The lining 53 can be formed from a film hose blank inserted in the vessel body 2c or traversing the same in the opening 7c, 27c by applying an overpressure in the interior, evacuating the space area between the vessel walls and the lining walls and/or an increased temperature accompanied by permanent wall stretching and widening directly on said insides or the front side of the neck 8c, so that the vessel body 2c forms the mold and the lining 53 a precise image of the associated faces of the vessel body 2c without any gaps. The vessel body 2c can be completely shaped or simultaneously shaped in the described manner against a mold determining its external shape, the increased temperature bringing about the necessary adhesion between the walls. However, the lining 53 can also be partly or completely pre-shaped in a separate, multiply reusable mold, cooled or removed and then inserted in the vessel body 2c by means of one of the openings 7c, 27c.
The compensating container 15c essentially has the shape and size described relative to the inner container 53, so that in the substantially tension-free, completely widened state can so engage on the outer boundary of the container space 3c formed by the inner container 53 in the way which has been described with respect to the engagement of the inner container 53 on the vessel body 2c. However, during manufacture or assembly the reception container 15c is initially located outside the vessel body 2c, in the axis thereof and as an extension on the bottom wall 5c, the container 15c being connected by means of its jacket neck 17c to the inside of the vessel wall 5c and consequently the mounting support 18c is formed. In this outside position the container 15c, invertable through the interior of the neck 17c, is so turned with respect to its functional position that the function insides 61 of its walls, including the neck 17c are located on its outside and its function outsides 62 on its inside. The walls of the container 15c outside the vessel body 2c are substantially tightly closed, so that its interior only communicates with the container space 3c, and in the case of a sterile or dust-free action on the container space 3c, its side 62 subsequently coming into contact with the medium can be kept clean and sterile.
The arrangement, construction and connection of the walls of the container 15c correspond to what has been described with respect to the walls 54 to 58 of the inner container 53. The constriction 57, not shown, can be provided. The container 15c has at its associated end a hollow projection 63 emanating from its cover wall and which is also constructed in one piece from a film with the remaining walls, and in the extension of the vessel wall 6c, can completely or up to a discharge unit engaging in the neck interior, can fill the interior of the neck 8c, 58. This permits a substantially complete emptying of the medium in the container space 3c by a pressure which conveys the medium upwards.
The container 15c can be produced by the method described relative to the inner container 53 and can therefore be produced in the outside position or together with the inner container 53, the same pressure being built up in both containers 15c, 53, because they surround a common space, which is tightly closed except for the opening 7c used for pressure supply purposes.
It is particularly appropriate if the two containers 15c, 53 are partly or completely produced in one piece or from the same material, which can partly or completely differ from that of the vessel body 2c. The substantially cylindrical jacket neck 17c is connected in one piece, and via ring-like joint zones, directly to the radially inner boundaries of the bottom of the container 15c and the bottom wall 55 of the container 53, the length of the neck 17c being many times, e.g. five to ten times smaller than its width. All the remaining transition roundness between the walls of the container 15c also form circular articulation zones permitting an inversion. The partly or completely shaped container 15c is, after its production, self-inverted from its end remote from the containers 2c, 53 and thereby transferred substantially completely into the container space 3c. However, the container 15c can initially be folded in the outside position to a volume which roughly corresponds to the material volume of its walls or at most two to three times the same, and is only then transferred through the opening 27c on the inside of the vessel wall 55. In both cases the folding or transfer is possible by evacuating the container space 3c or the inner space of the outer container 15c from the opening 7c. If the container 15c is stretched or inverted during the transfer into the container space 3c, through evacuation from the outside of the vessel wall 5c, namely through the turned neck 17c, it can be folded in closely engaging manner onto the bottom 5c, 55.
When the container 15c is entirely located in the container space 3c, the opening 27c can be closed with a cap-like cover 65, whose front wall engages on the outside of the vessel wall 5c and whose jacket wall engages on the outside of the constriction 57 of the vessel wall 4c in such a way that its outer circumference is aligned with that of the vessel wall 4c and passes approximately continuously into it. The cover 65 can carry the control valve for filling the compensating container 15c and forms the base 37c.
In another advantageous procedure the container 15c, inverted or transferred into the container space 3c e.g. by the action of an internal pressure from the neck 17c of the opening 27c, can be so engaged in full-surface manner on the insides of the container space 3c that between it and the insides there are no longer any cavities or air, etc. The use medium can then be filled in bubble-free manner from the opening 7c by a gradient, overpressure and/or underpressure delivery between said walls. The container 15c with the increasing filling volume synchronously gives way or undergoes size reduction by folding. The medium in the compensating container 15c can then escape outwards against an overpressure limiter through the neck 17c, said medium being compressible or gaseous. In the case of a medium or pressure-tight connection of the filling duct to the opening 7c the conveying or delivery of the medium can also take place by suction in the container space 3c, namely e.g. by evacuating the container 15c from the neck 17c. In any case, the container 15c is initially folded with the filling, so that any folding-caused cavities on its outside and completely surrounded by it cannot contain any extraneous medium and instead only the filling medium.
No separate seals are required in the described construction. The sealing of the medium space in the vicinity of the walls 5c, 55 or the opening 27c takes place through the transition in the area 19c or the connection of the neck 17c to the bottom walls 5c, 55. The sealing of a cover or a discharge unit in the vicinity of the opening 7c takes place through the front ring 59, which has corresponding sealing characteristics.
According to FIGS. 6 and 7 the compensating container 15d can also be constructed in one piece with one to all the vessel walls 4d to 6d, 8d, 52d or the areas thereof forming the inside of the container space 3d and/or the outside of the vessel body 2d. The neck 17d here passes in one piece into the vessel wall 5d on its radially inner boundary, which forms a cross-sectionally roughly axially angled and exclusively outwardly projecting, ringlike closed step 66, which can be rounded in approximately pitch circular or quadrantal manner, and in the vicinity of this transition 67, decreases approximately continuously or in step free manner from the wall thickness of the wall 5d to the much smaller wall thickness of the container 15d or the neck 17d. The last mentioned smallest wall thickness can be at a distance from the outside of said wall 5d corresponding to one to three times the thickness of said wall 5d, or can be reached between the planes of the two sides of the wall 5d. Roughly in the center between its ends, the neck 17d forms an inversion articulation zone, about which it can be folded inwards in double layer form, so that its two layers of in part different thickness form at the end of a step 66 a ring fold-like inversion edge or rim 68. The rim 68 and the step 66 are then completely covered to the outside by the cover 65d, which has the insertion opening for filling the compensating container 5d in the jacket and/or in its front wall, which can be spaced from the bottom wall 5d, accompanied by the formation of a circular cavity.
The through, one-piece subassembly according to FIG. 6 can e.g. be produced from a blank 64 or a one-piece preblank according to FIG. 7, which is here elongated, cup-shaped or sleeve-like as an injection plastic molding. The blank 64 has in prefabricated or finished form the neck flange 52d' or the neck 8d' bounding the opening 7d' and the zones 6d', 4d', 5d' for the vessel walls 6d, 4d, 5d connected thereto. The wall zones 4d' to 6d' have approximately the same thickness, a reduced thickness compared with the finished walls 4d to 6d and/or approximately the same inside or outside width and pass in step-free manner into one another. The bottom 15d' of the blank 64 is connected in cross-sectionally continuous manner to the wall zone 5d' and is outwardly constructed in dome or hemispherical cup-shaped manner and can have a smaller wall thickness than the zone 5d' to 6d', 8d' and advantageously passes continuously into the wall thickness of the zone 5d'.
Following manufacture, the blank 64 without complete solidification cooling or in the plastically deformable state from manufacture, can be transferred into a blow mold, which has the characteristics described relative to FIG. 5. Optionally accompanied by a further supply of heat and pressure, the zones 4d' to 8d', 52d', accompanied by stretching and plastic deformation, are transferred into the final container shape of FIG. 6d, said zones being almost exclusively axially stretched; an inner mold not being required. Zone 15d' is also located in a cavity of the outer mold corresponding to the inverted shape of the container 15d, said zone 15d' being so strongly axially and radially plastically stretched by the internal pressure and without an inner mold that the very thin film wall in the container 15d is formed and is connected by means of the transition 67 to the vessel body 2d. Thus, both containers 2d, 15d are simultaneously produced in a single operation, after which by means of the duct supplying the pressure medium a return suction flow can be produced, through which the container 15d shaped in the outer layer can be sucked through the opening 27d into the container space 3d accompanied by folding and the formation of the inversion edge 68. This process can also take place in a separate operation or after removing the subassembly from the mold or after cooling or solidification.
As soon as the discharge unit to be inserted in the neck 8d, such as a thrust piston pump, has a casing step projecting freely into the container space 3d, the container 15d can also have a corresponding, pocket-like depressed receptacle 69, which receives said casing step in substantially gap-free manner. The receptacle 69 emanates in one piece from the circular front wall of the projection 63d and can either, in accordance with FIG. 6, be invertable for transfer into the function position or instead of this can project outwards in the shaped state into the interior of the container 15d located in the outer position or layer, so that no inversion is needed for transfer into the function position.
The container can also be partly or completely produced in an extrusion or blowing process in such a way that as the medium present, or pressure medium, use is made of carbon monoxide or a gas with similar properties. The containers 2e, 53e are jointly produced from a double-walled, tubular blank and simultaneously the container 15e is produced in the outer position or layer. The blank open at both ends and having approximately constant cross-sections over its length can have a width corresponding to the pipe connections 21e, 22e, which in the finished vessel body 2e only project outwards from the remote outsides of the walls 5e, 6e and are approximately equiaxially positioned in the central axis 70 of the vessel body 2e. On the inner circumference of the connection 22e is fixed the neck 17e of the container 15e or the associated blank, while correspondingly on the other connection 21e is fixed the other end of the blank or the neck 58e. This connection 21e can have an opening 71 for the introduction of the shape-giving pressure medium, for filling the container space 3e and/or for fixing a discharge mechanism for the medium or a removable closure. For this purpose, it is also possible to have in laterally displaced manner alongside the connection 22e, a neck 8e projecting outwards over the wall 6e and emanating from the latter and which serves to form the opening 7e, also being lined by the container 53e up to its end.
Following shaping or molding said lining part closes the opening 7e with a front wall, but it can easily be opened by cutting, perforating, etc. On the finished vessel body 2e the equally wide connections 21e, 22e are much narrower than the vessel wall 4e. If the opening 7e is used for medium discharge, the compensating container 15e transferred from its outer position into the container space 3e is fixed substantially only in the vicinity of the cover wall 6e, so that it expands towards the bottom wall 5e with increasing emptying of the use medium. The wall of the container 15e or 53e associated with the bottom wall 5e can be welded to the latter or said container can hang freely against the bottom 5e not fixed by the cover wall 6e. On the outside the wall 5e or 6e is appropriately covered by a cover of the indicated type and which also covers the associated connecting piece or pieces. The compensating passage 30e passing through the neck 17e is here on the same side of the container space 3e as the opening 7e and immediately alongside the same.
According to FIG. 9, the necks 17f, 58f of the substantially tubular compensating container 15f are so fixed to the connections 21f, 22f by fastenings 23f, that the main portion of the container 15f between them is located in unfixed manner in the container space 3f, but is tightly closed to the outside in the vicinity of the connections. The neck 8f filling projection 63f is indicated in dot-dash line form in its function position and here no separate inner lining has to be provided. By evacuating the reception space 39f, the compensating container 15f is transferred into its function starting position shown partly in continuous line form and partly in dot-dash line form in FIG. 9, in which the projection 63f is also closely folded up. The container 15f is then located in the manner of an elongated strand around which the medium completely flows between the walls 5f, 6f in contact-free manner in the container space 3f. From this state the container 15f can expand radially and axially in all directions until it engages in gap-free manner on the vessel walls.
The cover 50f closes the opening 27f with a step 49f and is traversed by the outlet opening 45f of the discharge mechanism 9f inserted in the neck 8f, so that it does not have to be removed for discharge purposes. Tie discharge mechanism 9f can contain one of the aforementioned outlet valves. The fastening 23h on the associated wall can also take place according to FIG. 10 in that the associated end 53h of at least one of the inner containers, e.g. the container 15h is embedded in the wall 5h in such a closely surrounded manner in the folded state that it is connected thereto accompanied by reciprocal welding and closure of the associated opening of the container 15h. The wall 5h then forms an opening 71h substantially completely filled by the embedded portion 58h and can partly or completely traverse the wall 5h.
According to FIG. 11 control means are provided in order to e.g. so introduce the medium located in the compensating container 15k as a function or action medium that it influences by pressurizing, discharge or the like the discharge behavior or characteristics of the discharge device 1k. For example, the air or some other medium in the container 15k can be supplied directly upstream and/or downstream of the outlet opening 45k to the medium from the space area 12k and so finely atomizes the latter outside the device 1k, transfers it into a foamed state or in the case of an unatomized, flowing, concentrated beam discharge, can be traversed by the supplied medium. A volume-compensating self-filling suction takes place into the container 15k through the inlet 36k and via the valve 31k. An outlet duct 72, which is separate or branched from the intake duct leads in the cover 50k to the discharge nozzle, e.g. into a twisting device between a nozzle cap and a nozzle core inserted therein. In said outlet duct 72 is provided a pressure-dependently operating outlet valve 73, which opens in the case of an overpressure in the container 15k, while the valve 31k closes. On compressing the vessel wall 4k the container 15k is pressurizable by means of the incompressible medium in the space area 12k, if it is not in direct contact with the vessel walls of the vessel body 2k. Thus, the compressible medium in the container 15k is pressurized, and simultaneously with the supply of the use medium to the discharge nozzle, is supplied to the latter via the outlet duct 72 and is mixed with the use medium. Following the release of the pump 40k the valves 44k, 73 close and air is again sucked from the outside into the container 15k by means of the valve 31k.
The neck 17k of the container 15k is here mounted on a connecting piece of the mounting support member 21k projecting through the vessel wall 6k into the container space 3k, and which engages with an outwardly projecting end of said connecting piece into the cover 50k. The cover 50k contains the valves 31k, 73, the inlet 36k and the outlet duct 72 as well as the discharge nozzle, it then forms a stop for the opened valve body 48k. The mounting support 18k and the valve 44k are both laterally displaced with respect to the axis 70k, but the mounting support body 21k can also be located in said axis 70k, together with the container 15k which can be fitted by inversion. Moreover, in the inlet and/or outlet duct of the container 15k can be provided at least one screen or filter, e.g. an ultrafine or sterile filter. If at least one or all the valves for the container 15k are omitted, said control can also take place by a corresponding reciprocal matching of the inlet and outlet cross-sections. It is also conceivable to suck into the container 15k through at least one of optionally several outlet openings 45k and clean the same with respect to medium constituents. The wall 5k can be completely free from openings and constructed substantially in one piece.
According to FIG. 12 two independently discharge-functional individual discharge units with separate vessel bodies 2m and pumps 40m are combined into a unit, which can be operated jointly and/or separately, so that two separate media, such as toothpaste, can be simultaneously or successively discharged. The pump 40m is inserted in the associated neck 8m in approximately completely filling manner and projects into the container space 3m in contact-free manner with a casing step, which forms at its free or tubular constricted end the inlet opening for the thrust piston pump 40m and can be received in a receptacle corresponding to the receptacle 69 of FIG. 6. Each pump 40m has outside the pump casing and the vessel 2m on a pump plunger an actuating head with the associated outlet opening 45m, both actuating heads being jointly surrounded with the cover 50m and operable by means of plug connections, because the latter is axially displaceable with respect to the vessels 2m engaging with one another by their walls 4m.
The neck 17m of the container 15m engages under the ring disk-like fold in double layer manner in a ring gap 23m on the inner circumference of the connecting piece 22m, so that in simple manner the mounting support 18m is formed. The ring groove 23m can be formed by compression or corresponding double layer folding of the jacket of the connecting piece 22m and can be connected in welding-like manner with the radially outwardly projecting ring part of the neck 17m. If during the pump stroke small medium quantities pass out of the inlet of the pump 40m into the container space 3m, the container 15m can be constricted by emptying, by means of the valve-free inlet 36m. Then, in the case of a self-sucking return stroke of the pump 40m and suction of the medium from the container space 3m, corresponding to the action of a climbing member, the container 15m can follow in widening manner and air can be sucked via the inlet 36m.
The discharge device according to the invention operates in any position, e.g. horizontally, upside down or the normal upright position. Advantageously it also allows a preservative-free product storage of the use medium. The outlet valve can also be constructed as a dosing valve, so that e.g. through the valve stroke the discharge medium quantity can be precisely defined for each actuation. | A dispensing container, comprising: a vessel body container and at least one reception container, the containers defining a container space sub-divided into substantially separated first and second space sections; the vessel body container defining a first container shape in the vicinity of the first space section, the first space section being adapted for receiving a first volume of a first medium; the second space section being adapted for receiving a second volume of a second medium, said first and second volumes being operationally variable; said second space section including a reception space, and being bounded by a section wall expandable to a full-size shape substantially corresponding to the first container shape, and, a pump for expelling at least one of the media with manually exerted pressure, wherein the section wall, when expanded, includes a region substantially free of tension. | Identify the most important claim in the given context and summarize it | [
"BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1.",
"Field of the Invention The invention relates to a discharge device for one or more media, which can be gaseous, liquid, pasty, pulverulent, powder-like, etc.",
"and/or a mixture of such use media to be discharged, as well as to a method for the manufacture and filling of such a device.",
"Description of Related Art Before or after the first discharge of a use medium from a container space, such as a tank, a pressure or pump space or the like, the space can be temporarily or permanently filled only partly with the use medium, the remaining volumes or volume of the container space being filled with a replacement medium not intended for discharge.",
"This can be a medium which does not react e.g. with the use medium and/or does not physically dissolve in the use medium, so that despite the close juxtaposition the two media are clearly separated from one another, at least in the low-flow, calmed state.",
"However, the replacement medium can contain impurities such as dirt, bacteria, etc.",
", which react with and spoil the use medium for its intended medical, cosmetic or other use.",
"In order to avoid this risk it is possible to add to the use or replacement medium preservatives, stabilizers or similar substances, but these are frequently not desired due to medical side effects, for cost reasons, etc.",
"SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The object of the invention is to provide a discharge device and a method of the indicated type, which avoid the disadvantages of known constructions or of the indicated type and in which in particular undesired contamination of the use medium can be significantly reduced or avoided for as long as the use medium is not discharged, being stored in a manner sealed with respect to the exterior.",
"For achieving this object at least one compensating and/or reception container receives at least one different replacement medium and the reception space for the replacement medium is substantially closed with respect to one or the particular associated container space at least in one operating state.",
"If the reception container is only partly, or not in contact with the use medium, it can be filled e.g. with a replacement medium free from impurities or can be externally hermetically sealed against the penetration of impurities and, as required, the replacement medium can be delivered to areas of the container space free from the use medium by means of one or more line connections.",
"However, it is particularly appropriate if a reception container is bounded with a container wall or the like directly with respect to the use medium, or the container space areas free from the use medium are partly, largely or virtually completely filled and namely essentially independently thereof, with a variable filling level, or to which percentage the use medium fills the container space.",
"Unlike in the case of a climbing or drag member, etc.",
", no large-surface, tight sliding seats are required, which are difficult if not impossible to seal against the penetration of impurities.",
"As a result of the inventive construction of the space area taken up in volume-variable manner by the use medium, confinement of the use medium within a volume boundary, referred to herein as bounding, is possible substantially independently of the total volume of the container space approximately to the volume of the filling with the use medium, so that there is always an at least approximate complete filling of said space with only the use medium.",
"In the areas in which the use filling is not adjacent to the container vessel, said use filling is substantially only adjacent to the position-variable container wall of the reception container for the replacement medium, so that as a result of the construction according to the invention, instead of for the said actions said construction may only be suitable for protecting the use filling against shaking movements.",
"Independently of the described effects and actions, the reception container can also influence the pressure of said use medium filling.",
"The reception container can also influence, by position variation of a container wall or the like in the container space, e.g. for the suction of a vacuum or for the discharge of the use medium for producing an overpressure or in other pressure modifications the damping thereof.",
"In addition, one wall of a reception container can be pretensioned in at least one operating state and/or can engage in raisable manner on the inside of a vessel wall and can therefore elastically support the wall.",
"In addition, a reception container can be solely provided for displacing the stored use medium substantially completely from the container space and/or for acquiring the external shape of a vessel substantially independently of the emptying level, because e.g. the reception container restores the walls of the vessel following their cupping or indentation, for example by means of the medium located between it and the wall.",
"A reception container for a medium separate from the use medium is suitable for virtually random discharge devices or vessels, e.g, bottles, tubes, pump or cylinder spaces of thrust piston pumps, etc.",
", bag casks, canisters, tanks, etc.",
"If the use medium is highly volatile or easily ignitable, a reception container or replacement medium enables dangerous gaseous mixtures to be expelled substantially completely from the container space.",
"A reception container for the indicated or other purposes is appropriately not constructed as a bellows, whose wall forms over most areas of its extension prefolded joint zones.",
"Instead the wall can assume random folds diverging therefrom and is advantageously sufficiently flexible that the reception container in the emptied state forms a bending-slack bladder, whose facing wall areas engage on one another with their insides without any particular force expenditure.",
"Thus, in the empty state the reception container can be reduced to a space volume, which is significantly smaller than 1/2, 1/4 or in a range of 1/10 to at least 1/50 of its space volume in the maximum filled operating state.",
"For filling or emptying a reception container and/or container space, it is possible to provide a valve, which is controlled in flow or pressure-dependent manner by mechanical actuation, particularly in such a way that a flow therethrough can only take place in one direction, whereas in the case of flows in the other direction its passage cross-section is reduced or completely closed.",
"The discharge mechanism provided in the vicinity of an outlet, which can also be formed by a vessel-separate pump unit or a thrust piston pump, a bellows pump, etc.",
"and through which the use medium flows during discharge, can influence or bring about the control of the reception container passage.",
"For example, substantially before, during and/or after the outflow of the use medium, the reception container passage can be closed or opened.",
"In particular, the control is so provided that substantially only due to a vacuum resulting from the discharge of a charge of the use medium in the container space, the replacement medium or the reception container is exposed to an attracting action, which leads to its propagation into those space areas of the container space which have become free due to use medium discharge.",
"The reception container can be partly or completely inserted in the container space through an opening provided in the vicinity of an emptying opening or formed by the latter, and said opening can optionally also be used as an assembly or fitting opening for the positionally secured anchoring of the reception container within the container space.",
"However, it is appropriate to use for this purpose a remote or separate assembly or fitting opening, which e.g. traverses a wall or bottom wall of the vessel facing the container space discharge zone.",
"An assembly wall, which can be simultaneously also used for the positionally secure anchoring of an associated reception container portion, is appropriately made by profiling or the like, much more dimensionally rigid than the walls connected thereto at right angles.",
"This or another assembly wall can also be reinforced by a type of cross-sectional thickening, e.g. by a separate body, such as a mounting support, flange, closure for the assembly opening, valve case or the like.",
"Instead of being filled through an opening in the vicinity of the outlet zone, the vessel space can also be filled with the use medium through an assembly opening and only then is the associated reception container inserted and fitted, and the assembly opening closed by it.",
"The reception container, including the closure, can form a preassembled constructional unit, which is appropriately inserted in stop-limited manner in the assembly opening in such a way that its portions optionally located on the outside of the vessel, or the discharge device, are located in a completely countersunk or flush manner in a depression of the outside thereof.",
"Independently of the described constructions, the compensating container or the like can be made from the same material or a material with the same characteristics as the remaining boundaries of the container space, e.g. so as not to bring the use medium into contact with different materials, or in order to facilitate a pure-type reuse of the container materials without complicated prior sorting.",
"The inside of the outer container can be provided in all areas coming into contact with the medium with a film-thin or similar lining or coating of a corresponding material, which is appropriately constructed in one piece with the volume-variable compensating or filling body.",
"This filling body is advantageously invertable through an opening in one piece therewith and/or bounded from the outer container accompanied by the turning over of the inside so as to form the outside, so that it can be transferred from its outer position into an inner position in the outer container or in the reverse direction.",
"The opening can be narrower or of the same width as the greatest or median width of the particular container, as a function of the flexibility of the walls of the invertable container.",
"The inversion or bringing of the filling body into the outer container can take place mechanically or additionally or exclusively by at least one driving fluid.",
"which brings about a vacuum constricting or sucking in the filling body in the outer container and/or an overpressure conveying the filling body into the outer container.",
"Advantageously, the lining or the substantially maximum widened filling body engages in full surface manner on the inside of the outer container in a substantially fold-free manner and engages both on the circumference and on the front faces, and optionally in the vicinity of container openings or connecting pieces, so that a complete emptying of the container space without leaving any cavities is possible.",
"This can in particular be achieved if the outer container is constructed as a mold for the lining or the filling body.",
"If the container body or filling body is produced from a e.g. hollow, cup-shaped, sleeve-like or tubular blank, accompanied by a reduction of the wall thickness by stretching, following the production of the outer container the lining or filling body can be brought into its finished shape, while also the outer container undergoes said shaping.",
"For shaping purposes the outer, lining or filling container, optionally under a suitably increased temperature, can be exposed to a fluid pressure in the interior and/or on the outer circumference exposed to a vacuum, and can thereby be shaped against a mold, which only forms a negative shape of the outer shape or mold.",
"This makes it possible to carry out production by an extrusion or blowing process.",
"Independently of the described constructions it is also possible to produce two mutually closing and optionally separate space-bounding containers in one operation together and/or partially to substantially, or even completely, in one piece form.",
"At least wall parts of the two containers can have widely varying wall thicknesses representing 5, 10 or 15 times and said values can represent minimum or maximum limits.",
"For example, the walls of a container can be intrinsically stiff and those of the other container can have a much lower strength, so that it is bending-slack or foldable in film-like manner.",
"The two containers can be prefabricated in the reciprocal outer layer and then appropriately the less stiff container is at least partly transferred into the stiffer container.",
"The constructions according to the invention are also suitable for so-called squeeze bottles from which a use medium is discharged in that the squeeze container is manually compressed and consequently the medium located therein is subject to an overpressure or discharge pressure.",
"In these or similar containers, from two containers receiving separate media by applying the same manual discharge/actuating pressure simultaneously, successively or in time-overlapping manner, a medium can be discharged from both containers and separate outlet openings.",
"A common outlet opening and/or with a position-constant orientation of the discharge device outside the particular discharge opening can be supplied to an application point.",
"For example, the inner container can be exposed by a pressure rise in the outer container by means of the fluid contained therein to the action of an overpressure through which the medium contained therein is discharged.",
"In the case of a pressure relief, the compensating space of the inner container can then be refilled by a volume corresponding to the volume discharged therefrom, plus the volume discharged from the outer or medium container.",
"If, as is conceivable, in the compensating container no medium is sucked from the outside-adjacent outlet opening of the discharge device or medium container, a separate suction opening from the compensating container outlet opening can be provided and is e.g. linked with the atmosphere.",
"For controlling said discharge or refilling of the compensating container, it is possible to provide a corresponding valve control, optionally with alternately or displaced opening and closing valves, which operate in a pressure and/or path-dependent or mechanically controlled manner.",
"The invention also relates to a method for the manufacture of a discharge device which can be constructed in the described or some other way.",
"According to the invention at least two containers, which have substantially different or approximately identical, but in particular, not inherently rigid wall thicknesses, can be manufactured or molded in reciprocal material connection, after which they are transferred from this position into a different operating or initial operating position.",
"This permits a very simple manufacture, e.g. in one piece, a manufacture in the heat and/or a manufacture in a single working process, provided that the shaping or molding of the two containers is not intended completely or at least partly in time-succeeding manner, so that after the complete shaping or molding of one another the other still has to undergo shaping or molding.",
"The invention also relates to a method for filling a discharge device of the described or some other type, particularly for filling with one of the said media or fluids.",
"The container space to be filled, prior to filling, is appropriately reduced to a substantially or completely cavity-free volume and is then so filled with the medium that it is only widened to the volume of the particular medium introduced until it has taken up its predetermined filling quantity.",
"This completely prevents the penetration of extraneous medium or air to the filling space and the discharge device in the filled starting state can be filled in bubble-free manner.",
"The use of a volume-variable compensating container enables filling to take place under an overpressure, which works against the internal pressure of the compensating container and leads to its accompanying emptying or reduction and/or the compensating container can by means of evacuation be placed under a vacuum, which leads to a suction of the medium into the container space.",
"In each case the particular container, e.g. the compensating container, can be so constricted during emptying by a random folding, wrinkling or the like of its walls that facing walls are engaged against one another in substantially gap-free manner by their insides, or the container is substantially to completely cavity-free and only takes up a volume corresponding to one or at the most four to five times the material volume of its walls.",
"In particular if the inner container engages in large to complete-surface manner on the inside of the outer container in the maximum widened state, the inner container has on the outside at least one projection or spaced projections, such as folds, ribs or similar spacers, which instead of or in addition to, can be provided on the inside of the outer container, and through which passage gaps are left open for the medium even if the inner container has engaged on the inside of the outer container.",
"This also prevents the inner container from subdividing the outer container into two tightly mutually separated container spaces.",
"As a result of the wrinkled or disordered folding of the inner container it is also possible to ensure that even on its outside no inclusions or closed chambers form, which on emptying the container space could form by constriction and medium filling so that this also ensures a complete emptying of all the medium stored.",
"BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a discharge device according to the invention in a part sectional view.",
"FIG. 2 is the discharge device of FIG. 1 in a larger-scale detail.",
"FIGS. 3-4 are further embodiments in representations corresponding to FIG. 2. FIGS. 5-6 are embodiments in the finished state.",
"FIG. 7 is a blank for producing the discharge device according to FIG. 6. FIG. 8 is another embodiment in a representation corresponding to FIG. 5. FIG. 9 is another embodiment of a discharge device.",
"FIG. 10 is a detail of another embodiment.",
"FIGS. 11-12 are two further embodiments in representations corresponding to FIG. 1. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS The discharge device 1 has an elongated, bottle-shaped vessel 2 in the form of a thin-walled, hollow vessel body made from soft elastic plastic, which bounds a container space 3 of corresponding shape and which can almost completely be grasped by a hand.",
"The vessel body 2 is substantially formed by continuously approximately constantly thick vessel walls 4, 5 and 6, whose thickness is less than 5 mm, less than 2 mm, and in a presently preferred embodiment, is as small as approximately 1 mm.",
"An approximately cylindrical vessel jacket 4 is connected at one end in one piece to an optionally ring disk-like bottom wall 5 at right angles thereto and at the other end, in the vicinity of a discharge zone 7, to a front wall 6.",
"through which the use medium can be discharged outwards into the open from the vessel 2 by means of a vessel neck 8.",
"The bottom wall 5 and/or the front wall 6, unlike the vessel jacket 4, is substantially dimensionally stable.",
"On or in the dimensionally stable neck 8, projecting outwards in one piece from the front wall 6, is provided a discharge mechanism 9 with a base body inserted in a substantially positionally fixed and centered manner through which the use medium is discharged.",
"According to the invention for such a discharge device 1, or another, at least one filling compensating means 10 is provided so as to wholly or partly fill the use medium-free space area 13 of the container space 3 in such a way that the area 3 is adjacent in large surface-flush manner directly with the space area 12 taken up by the medium 11.",
"Through flow movements of the medium 11 the two space areas 12, 13 can be shaped in complimentary manner in such a way that e.g. in the case of position changes of the vessel 2, the specifically lighter space area 13 always tends to rise upwards with respect to the space area 12.",
"In the upright position according to FIG. 1, the space area 13 is consequently stretched by buoyancy in the direction of the discharge zone 7, whereas it rises towards the bottom wall 5 in the inverted upside down position.",
"The space area 13 is substantially completely taken up by a compensating or supplementary medium 14, which with respect to the space area 12, is enclosed in sealed manner in a reception container 15.",
"Reception container 15 is here located in substantially completely encapsulated manner within the container space 3, and like its container wall 16, is substantially freely movable with respect to said space 3 or the space area 12, over most of its extension in the direction of one, two or three space axes.",
"The through, one-piece and approximately constantly thick container wall 16 is substantially bendable and slack, but self-restoring tensile elastic and/or by tensile elongation, permanently deformable without tearing.",
"Without any damage it can be uniformly folded at any random point and therefore the reception container 15 can be so crumpled together that the reception space surrounded by it is reduced towards a zero volume.",
"Through filling with the medium 14, the reception container 15 can be brought to its maximum volume size accompanied by unfolding in continuous manner to all intermediate sizes.",
"In each case longitudinally and/or transversely linking portions of the reception container 15 or the container wall 16 can be deformed or moved substantially independently of one another in said directions and/or at right angles to the surface thereof, and can therefore be adapted to random distributions of the medium 11 in the container space 3 or the space area 12.",
"With a maximum volume size, the reception container 15 can almost completely or at least 80% to 90% fill the container space 3.",
"At one end the reception container 15, comprising e.g. a seamless bag of a wrinkle film, passes into a container neck 17 or a bag rim, which is constructed in one piece with the remaining container wall 16 and in the tautly widened state can have roughly the same width as the connecting, exposed longitudinal portions of the bag, or can be reduced compared therewith as in the fitted state.",
"In the vicinity of the container neck 17, the reception container 15 is fixed with respect to the container space 3 with a mounting support 18 at a single point 19 located adjacent to the boundary of the space 3, whereas all the remaining areas of the reception container 15 are freely movable in each of the said directions up to a flat-engaging stopping on the vessel walls 4, 5 and 6 with respect to the container space 3.",
"The reception container 15 forms with the mounting support 18, or one or two mounting support bodies 21, 22, a subassembly 20.",
"Subassembly 20 is preassembled separately from the vessel and in the case of a tightly closed discharge zone 7, can be so installed on the vessel 2 that the bodies 21, 22 are connected in their predetermined functional position with the reception container 15.",
"This subassembly 20, which can optionally be introduced through the neck 8, is then inserted from the outside of an associated vessel wall 5 with most of its extension in the container space 3 and is fixed with respect to the vessel wall 5 by the mounting support 18.",
"The two approximately coaxial or interengaging mounting support bodies 21, 22 form with approximately complimentary circumferential surfaces a sealing and force fit 23, in whose clamping gap is tautly spread out the container neck 17 and/or fixed in constricted form by a wrinkle fold.",
"A mounting support body 21 is in substantially whole-surface engagement with the inside or inner circumference of the container neck 17 and the other mounting support body 22 engages on the outside or on the outer circumference of approximately the same longitudinal portion of the container neck 17.",
"The clamping faces of the clamping seat 23 are self-locking, acute-angled to conical with approximately the same cone angle and constricted to the outer end of the container neck 17, so that the inner mounting support body 21 formed on the outer circumference of its surface can be inserted from the interior of the reception container 15 into the outer mounting support body 22.",
"The clamping gap of the clamping seat 23 extending up to the outside of the vessel 2 can only be sealed by the container neck 17 located in it and/or consequently both against the use medium 11 and against the compensating medium 14.",
"Between the container neck 17 and the particular clamping or supporting face a direct sealing or adhesive connection is provided, which can be a melt connection, a bonding connection, etc.",
"Instead of this or in addition thereto, for sealing a supporting gap it is possible to provide a seal 24, e.g. a ring seal.",
"The mounting support body 21 can also be so preassembled with the reception container 15, that the container neck 17 is fixed in its longitudinal direction with respect to said body 21.",
"For this purpose a holding and a clamping member is provided, which clamps the container neck 17 against the outer circumference of the body 21 and/or secures container neck 17 by cross-sectional deformation.",
"The holding member can be formed by the seal 24 and so engages in a circumferential groove in the supporting face of the body 21 with radial pretension that it clamps the container neck 17 in this area in whole-surface manner against the bottom face of the circumferential groove or depression.",
"Following this preassembly, the container neck 17, together with the mounting support body 21 and the holding member 24, can be axially inserted into the mounting support member 22 up to abutment.",
"At the end of the inserting movement, a snap connection locks and its snap member can also be formed by the seal 24.",
"For this purpose the supporting face of the mounting support member 22 can also leave a depression, circumferential groove or similar snap countermember adapted to the snap member 24, which sealingly locks under pretension the seal 24 projecting outwards over the supporting face of the body 21.",
"As the reception container 15 following on to the container neck 17 is highly flexible, its container wall 16 can be applied to its rear end face in the plugging direction for the fitting of the mounting support body 21 and can be pressed into its assembly position via the container wall 16 of the body 21.",
"In this fitting or assembly position, said end face of the mounting support member 21 appropriately projects slightly over the associated end face of the mounting support member 22, the clamping fit 23 extending appropriately approximately up to the latter end face.",
"The mounting support body 22 which, like the mounting support body 21, is essentially dimensionally stable, forms with its end facing the container space 3 a ring portion 25 projecting freely into the space area 12 and which at the outer end passes in one piece into a ring disk-like support flange 26 projecting over its outer circumference and is closely adapted to an assembly opening 27 traversing the vessel wall 5.",
"This assembly opening 27 is narrower than the inside width or diameter of the container space 3 or the vessel wall 4 following on to the vessel wall 5, so that the container neck 17 and ring portion 25 have a radial spacing with respect to the inside of the vessel wall 4.",
"With a limited axial spacing from the inner, circular, front or support face of the support flange 26, the ring portion 25 carries in a ring groove a circular seal 28 which, like the seal 24, is made from rubber elastic, resilient material and is cross-sectionally elastically deformable by squeezing.",
"By means of said seal 28, the space area 12 is sealed against the outside in the vicinity of the assembly opening 27.",
"The seal 28 and/or another member can also form a snap member of a snap connection 29 with which the mounting support member 22 is secured against the vessel wall 5 in substantially axial clearance-free manner by axial bracing both positively and against rotation in frictionally gripping manner.",
"On inserting the mounting support body 22 preassembled with the seal 28 in the assembly opening 27, the seal 28 is initially automatically radially constricted by sliding along the inner circumference of the opening 27 and then engages over both the inside of the vessel wall 5 and the inner circumference of the assembly opening 27 in such a way that the support face of the support flange 26 engages under the pretension of the seal 28 on the outer face of the vessel wall 5.",
"From the inner front or end face of the mounting support body 21 or 22, the reception container 15 then extends freely into the container space 3.",
"The reception container 15 can be constructed in completely hermetically sealed manner, optionally as a bladder floating freely in the container space 3, and being fillable e.g. to fill it with a medium, such as a reagent upstream of the closure only openable by destruction and, which adapting to the emptying of the space area 12, undergoes expansion.",
"However, a particularly simple construction is obtained if the reception container 15 or the space area 13 is so refillable corresponding to the reduction in the space area 12, that in said space areas 12, 13, at least in the operative state of the discharge device 1, approximately atmospheric pressure prevails.",
"A compensating passage 30 is provided for this purpose in the subassembly 20 which traverses the mounting support 18 or mounting support body 21 in such a way that it forms a line connection between the interior and exterior of the reception container 15, which in space-saving manner is located at least partly or completely within the container neck 17.",
"Here the passage 30 forms a connection between the container interior and the outer atmosphere, so that in the reception container 15 or the space area 13, it is possible to suck air from the outside of the container space 3 with a lower flow resistance than it can be ejected again to the outside.",
"These actions could be obtained with a corresponding operation by constructing the passage 30 as a flow restrictor, but a faster response thereof is obtained if a control valve 31, such as a one-way or check valve is provided, which forms a component of the subassembly 20 or the subassembly formed by the reception container 15 and mounting support body 21.",
"The passage 30 or valve 31 is located roughly in the central axis Of the mounting support 18, which can also be the central axis of the vessel 2, container space 3, vessel walls 4, 5, 6, discharge zone 7, neck 8 and/or discharge mechanism 9, provided that these components are mutually coaxial.",
"A central area of the one-piece mounting support body 1 forms a valve casing 32, in which a circular or disk-shaped valve body 33 is freely movable, without a valve spring, between a closed position and an open position.",
"In the closed position the end face of the valve body 33 engages on a ring disk-like valve seat 34 of the valve case 32.",
"In the open position the valve body 33 engages with the other front face on a valve stop 35, which is formed by a sleeve inserted in a widened bore portion of the valve case 32 and formed by an associated portion of the passage 30.",
"The valve 31 closes for an overpressure and opens for a vacuum in the reception container 15.",
"The end or insert opening 36 of the through, substantially linear passage outwardly displaced with respect to the valve seat 34 and remote from the interior of the reception container 15, is so countersunk or flush with respect to the outside of the associated vessel wall 5 or support flange 26 surrounding it, that it is unlikely to be closed accidentally even if the outside of the vessel 2 is located on a support face.",
"Radially outside the inlet opening 36 or the support flange 26, the vessel wall 5 forms a circular outside 37 as a stable base for the discharge device 1, and within said outside 37 the vessel wall 5, on the outside forms a depression 38 in which the support flange 26 is located in completely flush manner with respect to the outside 37.",
"As the outer face of the mounting support member 21 is slightly set back compared with that of the mounting support member 22 and in said end face the inlet opening 36 is located, said opening 36 can also be secured against accidental closure by the outer end face of the body 22.",
"The discharge device 1 is appropriately equipped with a pump 40 with which on the one hand the use medium 11 can be discharged via the discharge zone 7, and on the other hand, the quantity of the specifically heavier compensating medium 14 located in the reception space 39 of the reception container 15 can be modified.",
"For example, during the return of the pump 40 to the starting position following a pump stroke, the reception space can be increased by suction.",
"The pump 40 is here constructed in the manner of a bellows or squeezing pump, namely being operable by the manual constriction of the vessel wall 40 and therefore the outer circumference of the container space 3.",
"The pump 40 is e.g. resiliently self-restoring in that the vessel 2, following compression and release, as a result of its inherent elasticity, returns approximately to its starting shape of the container space 3.",
"On operating the pump 40, a pressure rise is brought about in the pump or container space 3, namely in the space area 12 and space area 13 or in the reception space 39 through which the valve 31 is closed and an outlet valve 44, associated with an outlet duct 43 of the discharge mechanism 9 is opened in pressure-dependent manner.",
"Therefore the use medium 11 passes via an inlet 42 of the outlet duct 43 spaced opposite the vessel wall 6 within the container space into the reception container 15, traverses the valve 44, and passes out of the outlet opening 45 located on the outside of the discharge device 1 or the discharge mechanism 9.",
"The outlet opening 45 can optionally, prior to the initial use, be formed by a completely closed wall, which must be perforated for opening purposes.",
"Operation also leads to a pressure rise of the medium 14 which then, by means of the wall 16, can slowly discharge the medium 11 in the manner of a resilient energy accumulator.",
"If at the end of this pump stroke the pump 40 is freed from operation, it automatically returns to the starting position, so that a vacuum is formed in the container space 3 or space area 12 or 13, and consequently the valve 31 is opened, so that in the manner of a venting of the container space 3, air is sucked from the outside into the reception container 15 in such a way that the volume of said container 15 is increased by unfolding and/or expansion of its container wall 16 roughly by the volume made free by the preceding discharge of the use medium 11 in the container space 3.",
"At the start of said suction, the valve 44 closes e.g. in pressure-dependent manner and/or before or at the latest on opening the valve 31, so that by means of the outlet 45 no air can be sucked from the outside into the container space 3 or the space area 12.",
"The pump can also be formed by the discharge mechanism 9 and can e.g. be constructed as a bellows and/or piston pump, in which case the vessel wall can also be dimensionally rigid.",
"With increasing emptying of the space area 12, the reception container 15 is widened, so that the use medium 11 can be redistributed in the vessel space 3 due to the changing gravitational conditions caused by changes to the position of the vessel 2 and correspondingly adapts to the shape of the reception container 15.",
"The container wall 16 can be temporarily flat or slightly adhesively engaged with the inside of the vessel wall 4, 5 and 6 and is then detached again and spaced by the medium 11.",
"Preferably, the use medium 11 is not compressible or less compressible than the compensating medium 14, which with the reception container 15, can form in the container space 3 a displacement or core body scavenged over most of its circumference.",
"The container wall 16 can also engage in the manner of a climbing member in increasing form along the inside with the vessel wall 4 in the direction of the discharge zone 7, so that the space area 12 does not surround the space area 13 in the manner of an envelope, and is instead separated transversely to the central axis from the space area 13 by the interposed front portion of the container wall 16.",
"The container space 3 with the discharge zone 7 can be filled in the upside down position through the assembly opening 27 with the use medium 11, and only then is the subassembly 20 inserted and the filling opening 27 closed.",
"The substantially empty reception container 15 can initially be applied to or forced into the medium in the container space 3 and then shortly before or during the production of the seal or the snap connection 29, by means of the inlet opening 36 and with a limited overpressure, sufficient compensating medium can be forced into the container 15 that the latter fills all the areas of the container space 3 still free from the use medium 11.",
"Air which was previously present in the areas can escape outwards along the still not snapped in seal 28.",
"The inventive construction is also suitable for such a bubble-free filling of a container space 3 or space area 12.",
"Filling can also take place via the discharge zone 7.",
"Instead of, or in addition thereto, it is possible to provide an outlet closure 46 which, during said filling or non-use of the discharge device 1, keeps the outlet 45 or outlet duct 43, and/or when providing an outlet valve 44, its valve body 48, closed in pressure-tight manner.",
"A pin 49 or the like removable outwardly in non-destructive manner and then reinsertable prior to the discharge of the use medium 11 can form a closure pin for the outlet opening 45 and/or a positively acting holding down device for the valve body 48.",
"Appropriately, the pin 49 is a component of a snap cover 50 or the like, which can be engaged by means of a snap connection on the outer end of the discharge mechanism 9, the pin 49 projecting from the inside of the cover end wall.",
"In FIGS. 3 to 12 corresponding parts are given the same reference numerals, but followed by different letters.",
"All the features of claims 1 to 12 can be interchanged or used additively and/or in combination with one another.",
"Thus, several reception containers, mounting supports or filling compensators or discharge devices or mechanisms can be provided for the same container space or separate vessels can be provided, or in a single vessel there can be separate container spaces and/or space areas, so that e.g. separate use media can be discharged as a function of one another or simultaneously and/or independently of one another with the same discharge device.",
"The container space with the inside of its vessel jacket can also form a cylinder path for a pump piston with which, in axially succeeding partial strokes, individual discharge charges can be pressed out, e.g. via a discharge duct traversing the pump piston or plunger.",
"In the embodiment according to FIG. 3 the mounting support 18a only has one mounting support body 21a, the mounting support faces of the force fit 23a being formed by the outer circumferential surface of the ring portion 25a of the body 29a and the inner circumference of the assembly opening 27a.",
"The snap member 28a is constructed in one piece with the mounting support body 21a as a radial collar 28a projecting over the ring portion 25a connected to the inner end of the body 21a.",
"Over said inner end project several circumferentially mutually spaced snap cams 32a, which form a valve cage for receiving the valve body 33a, so that this small number of only two components is all that is needed for the mounting and the valve.",
"Valve 31a, like the valve body 33a, is positioned substantially freely within the reception space 39a.",
"The outer end of the container neck 17a can be located between the support face of the support flange 26a constructed in one piece with the mounting support body 21a and the outside of the vessel wall 5a and also has a pressuretight securing manner in the way described.",
"Whereas in FIG. 2 the outlet valve 44 is constructed as a one-way or check valve, whose valve body 48 can be moved without the action of a valve spring in pressure-dependent manner only between the closed and open positions, the valve 44a according to FIG. 3 has a valve spring 51 constructed in one piece with the valve seat in the manner of a disk valve and which is traversed by an associated portion of the outlet duct 43a forming the outlet 45a and is formed by the front wall of a ring body fixed to the vessel 2a.",
"The valve seat engages on the inside of the valve spring 51 remote from the outlet 45a, and whose radially inner area associated with the valve seat is axially movable with respect to its radially outer, axially fixed area.",
"This inner area is maintained in the closed position against the valve body 48a by a torus 49a of the cover 50a surrounding in ring-like radially spaced and approximately tight manner the outlet 45a, and which as a pin projects freely from the inside of the valve spring 51 in the direction of the outlet 45a and is essentially not located within the neck, but follows on to its outer front face.",
"Whereas in the embodiments according to FIGS. 1 to 3 the neck 8, 8a with respect to the vessel walls 4, 5 and 6 is dimensionally stable by wall thickening or has a snap collar for fixing the discharge mechanism 9 or 9a, the neck 8b of FIG. 4 has roughly the same thickness as the vessel walls.",
"The outer end of the neck which is much narrower than the vessel jacket is cross-sectionally angled for forming an approximately planar, ring disk-like neck flange 52 projecting over its outer circumference.",
"The neck flange 52 used for the snap fixing of the discharge mechanism 9b also has roughly the same thickness as the vessel walls or the neck jacket connected to the vessel wall 6a.",
"The outlet valve 44 is here constructed as a ball valve with a spherical valve body 48b and an acute-angled, conical valve seat.",
"The valve spring 51b acts on the valve body 48b formed by a separate helical spring or the like inserted in the valve case and/or is inserted between the valve body 48b and the outlet 45b in a valve case.",
"Thus, the valve 44b is closed if a slight overpressure prevails within the container space 3b.",
"The body 33b of the valve 31b is shown here with a much smaller diameter than in FIGS. 2 and 3.",
"According to FIG. 5 the insides of one to all the vessel walls 4c, 5c and 6c and the neck 8c, and therefore the discharge zone or opening 7c, are wholly or partly provided with a thin coating or cover or lining 53, which has an unfixed, or is adhesively fixed, partly or wholly, engagement to the particular inside and forms an inner container 53, as described relative to the compensating container 15.",
"Inner container 53 has a wall made from a thin, bending-slack plastic sheet, which in the substantially fold-free, smoothed position is reinforced by the associated vessel wall, and so at least when the container space 3c is filled, is also positionally secured under the fluid pressure.",
"Jacket wall 54, the ring-disk-like or frustum-shaped bottom and cover walls 55, 56 connected thereto, a portion 57 of the jacket wall 54 directly connected to the wall 55 and narrowed roughly by the thickness of the vessel wall 4c, a neck portion emanating from and narrowed with respect to the cover wall 56, and an outer or ring-shaped front portion 59 located outside the container space 3c, substantially completely cover the associated vessel wall or the outer front face of the neck 8c or the neck flange 52c.",
"Adjacent walls pass in one-piece and cross-sectionally over an also substantially full-surface engaging roundness 60 with a constant wall thickness.",
"The radius of curvature of the roundness 60 is larger, e.g. two to five times larger than the thickness of the vessel walls.",
"The lining 53 can be formed from a film hose blank inserted in the vessel body 2c or traversing the same in the opening 7c, 27c by applying an overpressure in the interior, evacuating the space area between the vessel walls and the lining walls and/or an increased temperature accompanied by permanent wall stretching and widening directly on said insides or the front side of the neck 8c, so that the vessel body 2c forms the mold and the lining 53 a precise image of the associated faces of the vessel body 2c without any gaps.",
"The vessel body 2c can be completely shaped or simultaneously shaped in the described manner against a mold determining its external shape, the increased temperature bringing about the necessary adhesion between the walls.",
"However, the lining 53 can also be partly or completely pre-shaped in a separate, multiply reusable mold, cooled or removed and then inserted in the vessel body 2c by means of one of the openings 7c, 27c.",
"The compensating container 15c essentially has the shape and size described relative to the inner container 53, so that in the substantially tension-free, completely widened state can so engage on the outer boundary of the container space 3c formed by the inner container 53 in the way which has been described with respect to the engagement of the inner container 53 on the vessel body 2c.",
"However, during manufacture or assembly the reception container 15c is initially located outside the vessel body 2c, in the axis thereof and as an extension on the bottom wall 5c, the container 15c being connected by means of its jacket neck 17c to the inside of the vessel wall 5c and consequently the mounting support 18c is formed.",
"In this outside position the container 15c, invertable through the interior of the neck 17c, is so turned with respect to its functional position that the function insides 61 of its walls, including the neck 17c are located on its outside and its function outsides 62 on its inside.",
"The walls of the container 15c outside the vessel body 2c are substantially tightly closed, so that its interior only communicates with the container space 3c, and in the case of a sterile or dust-free action on the container space 3c, its side 62 subsequently coming into contact with the medium can be kept clean and sterile.",
"The arrangement, construction and connection of the walls of the container 15c correspond to what has been described with respect to the walls 54 to 58 of the inner container 53.",
"The constriction 57, not shown, can be provided.",
"The container 15c has at its associated end a hollow projection 63 emanating from its cover wall and which is also constructed in one piece from a film with the remaining walls, and in the extension of the vessel wall 6c, can completely or up to a discharge unit engaging in the neck interior, can fill the interior of the neck 8c, 58.",
"This permits a substantially complete emptying of the medium in the container space 3c by a pressure which conveys the medium upwards.",
"The container 15c can be produced by the method described relative to the inner container 53 and can therefore be produced in the outside position or together with the inner container 53, the same pressure being built up in both containers 15c, 53, because they surround a common space, which is tightly closed except for the opening 7c used for pressure supply purposes.",
"It is particularly appropriate if the two containers 15c, 53 are partly or completely produced in one piece or from the same material, which can partly or completely differ from that of the vessel body 2c.",
"The substantially cylindrical jacket neck 17c is connected in one piece, and via ring-like joint zones, directly to the radially inner boundaries of the bottom of the container 15c and the bottom wall 55 of the container 53, the length of the neck 17c being many times, e.g. five to ten times smaller than its width.",
"All the remaining transition roundness between the walls of the container 15c also form circular articulation zones permitting an inversion.",
"The partly or completely shaped container 15c is, after its production, self-inverted from its end remote from the containers 2c, 53 and thereby transferred substantially completely into the container space 3c.",
"However, the container 15c can initially be folded in the outside position to a volume which roughly corresponds to the material volume of its walls or at most two to three times the same, and is only then transferred through the opening 27c on the inside of the vessel wall 55.",
"In both cases the folding or transfer is possible by evacuating the container space 3c or the inner space of the outer container 15c from the opening 7c.",
"If the container 15c is stretched or inverted during the transfer into the container space 3c, through evacuation from the outside of the vessel wall 5c, namely through the turned neck 17c, it can be folded in closely engaging manner onto the bottom 5c, 55.",
"When the container 15c is entirely located in the container space 3c, the opening 27c can be closed with a cap-like cover 65, whose front wall engages on the outside of the vessel wall 5c and whose jacket wall engages on the outside of the constriction 57 of the vessel wall 4c in such a way that its outer circumference is aligned with that of the vessel wall 4c and passes approximately continuously into it.",
"The cover 65 can carry the control valve for filling the compensating container 15c and forms the base 37c.",
"In another advantageous procedure the container 15c, inverted or transferred into the container space 3c e.g. by the action of an internal pressure from the neck 17c of the opening 27c, can be so engaged in full-surface manner on the insides of the container space 3c that between it and the insides there are no longer any cavities or air, etc.",
"The use medium can then be filled in bubble-free manner from the opening 7c by a gradient, overpressure and/or underpressure delivery between said walls.",
"The container 15c with the increasing filling volume synchronously gives way or undergoes size reduction by folding.",
"The medium in the compensating container 15c can then escape outwards against an overpressure limiter through the neck 17c, said medium being compressible or gaseous.",
"In the case of a medium or pressure-tight connection of the filling duct to the opening 7c the conveying or delivery of the medium can also take place by suction in the container space 3c, namely e.g. by evacuating the container 15c from the neck 17c.",
"In any case, the container 15c is initially folded with the filling, so that any folding-caused cavities on its outside and completely surrounded by it cannot contain any extraneous medium and instead only the filling medium.",
"No separate seals are required in the described construction.",
"The sealing of the medium space in the vicinity of the walls 5c, 55 or the opening 27c takes place through the transition in the area 19c or the connection of the neck 17c to the bottom walls 5c, 55.",
"The sealing of a cover or a discharge unit in the vicinity of the opening 7c takes place through the front ring 59, which has corresponding sealing characteristics.",
"According to FIGS. 6 and 7 the compensating container 15d can also be constructed in one piece with one to all the vessel walls 4d to 6d, 8d, 52d or the areas thereof forming the inside of the container space 3d and/or the outside of the vessel body 2d.",
"The neck 17d here passes in one piece into the vessel wall 5d on its radially inner boundary, which forms a cross-sectionally roughly axially angled and exclusively outwardly projecting, ringlike closed step 66, which can be rounded in approximately pitch circular or quadrantal manner, and in the vicinity of this transition 67, decreases approximately continuously or in step free manner from the wall thickness of the wall 5d to the much smaller wall thickness of the container 15d or the neck 17d.",
"The last mentioned smallest wall thickness can be at a distance from the outside of said wall 5d corresponding to one to three times the thickness of said wall 5d, or can be reached between the planes of the two sides of the wall 5d.",
"Roughly in the center between its ends, the neck 17d forms an inversion articulation zone, about which it can be folded inwards in double layer form, so that its two layers of in part different thickness form at the end of a step 66 a ring fold-like inversion edge or rim 68.",
"The rim 68 and the step 66 are then completely covered to the outside by the cover 65d, which has the insertion opening for filling the compensating container 5d in the jacket and/or in its front wall, which can be spaced from the bottom wall 5d, accompanied by the formation of a circular cavity.",
"The through, one-piece subassembly according to FIG. 6 can e.g. be produced from a blank 64 or a one-piece preblank according to FIG. 7, which is here elongated, cup-shaped or sleeve-like as an injection plastic molding.",
"The blank 64 has in prefabricated or finished form the neck flange 52d'",
"or the neck 8d'",
"bounding the opening 7d'",
"and the zones 6d', 4d', 5d'",
"for the vessel walls 6d, 4d, 5d connected thereto.",
"The wall zones 4d'",
"to 6d'",
"have approximately the same thickness, a reduced thickness compared with the finished walls 4d to 6d and/or approximately the same inside or outside width and pass in step-free manner into one another.",
"The bottom 15d'",
"of the blank 64 is connected in cross-sectionally continuous manner to the wall zone 5d'",
"and is outwardly constructed in dome or hemispherical cup-shaped manner and can have a smaller wall thickness than the zone 5d'",
"to 6d', 8d'",
"and advantageously passes continuously into the wall thickness of the zone 5d'.",
"Following manufacture, the blank 64 without complete solidification cooling or in the plastically deformable state from manufacture, can be transferred into a blow mold, which has the characteristics described relative to FIG. 5. Optionally accompanied by a further supply of heat and pressure, the zones 4d'",
"to 8d', 52d', accompanied by stretching and plastic deformation, are transferred into the final container shape of FIG. 6d, said zones being almost exclusively axially stretched;",
"an inner mold not being required.",
"Zone 15d'",
"is also located in a cavity of the outer mold corresponding to the inverted shape of the container 15d, said zone 15d'",
"being so strongly axially and radially plastically stretched by the internal pressure and without an inner mold that the very thin film wall in the container 15d is formed and is connected by means of the transition 67 to the vessel body 2d.",
"Thus, both containers 2d, 15d are simultaneously produced in a single operation, after which by means of the duct supplying the pressure medium a return suction flow can be produced, through which the container 15d shaped in the outer layer can be sucked through the opening 27d into the container space 3d accompanied by folding and the formation of the inversion edge 68.",
"This process can also take place in a separate operation or after removing the subassembly from the mold or after cooling or solidification.",
"As soon as the discharge unit to be inserted in the neck 8d, such as a thrust piston pump, has a casing step projecting freely into the container space 3d, the container 15d can also have a corresponding, pocket-like depressed receptacle 69, which receives said casing step in substantially gap-free manner.",
"The receptacle 69 emanates in one piece from the circular front wall of the projection 63d and can either, in accordance with FIG. 6, be invertable for transfer into the function position or instead of this can project outwards in the shaped state into the interior of the container 15d located in the outer position or layer, so that no inversion is needed for transfer into the function position.",
"The container can also be partly or completely produced in an extrusion or blowing process in such a way that as the medium present, or pressure medium, use is made of carbon monoxide or a gas with similar properties.",
"The containers 2e, 53e are jointly produced from a double-walled, tubular blank and simultaneously the container 15e is produced in the outer position or layer.",
"The blank open at both ends and having approximately constant cross-sections over its length can have a width corresponding to the pipe connections 21e, 22e, which in the finished vessel body 2e only project outwards from the remote outsides of the walls 5e, 6e and are approximately equiaxially positioned in the central axis 70 of the vessel body 2e.",
"On the inner circumference of the connection 22e is fixed the neck 17e of the container 15e or the associated blank, while correspondingly on the other connection 21e is fixed the other end of the blank or the neck 58e.",
"This connection 21e can have an opening 71 for the introduction of the shape-giving pressure medium, for filling the container space 3e and/or for fixing a discharge mechanism for the medium or a removable closure.",
"For this purpose, it is also possible to have in laterally displaced manner alongside the connection 22e, a neck 8e projecting outwards over the wall 6e and emanating from the latter and which serves to form the opening 7e, also being lined by the container 53e up to its end.",
"Following shaping or molding said lining part closes the opening 7e with a front wall, but it can easily be opened by cutting, perforating, etc.",
"On the finished vessel body 2e the equally wide connections 21e, 22e are much narrower than the vessel wall 4e.",
"If the opening 7e is used for medium discharge, the compensating container 15e transferred from its outer position into the container space 3e is fixed substantially only in the vicinity of the cover wall 6e, so that it expands towards the bottom wall 5e with increasing emptying of the use medium.",
"The wall of the container 15e or 53e associated with the bottom wall 5e can be welded to the latter or said container can hang freely against the bottom 5e not fixed by the cover wall 6e.",
"On the outside the wall 5e or 6e is appropriately covered by a cover of the indicated type and which also covers the associated connecting piece or pieces.",
"The compensating passage 30e passing through the neck 17e is here on the same side of the container space 3e as the opening 7e and immediately alongside the same.",
"According to FIG. 9, the necks 17f, 58f of the substantially tubular compensating container 15f are so fixed to the connections 21f, 22f by fastenings 23f, that the main portion of the container 15f between them is located in unfixed manner in the container space 3f, but is tightly closed to the outside in the vicinity of the connections.",
"The neck 8f filling projection 63f is indicated in dot-dash line form in its function position and here no separate inner lining has to be provided.",
"By evacuating the reception space 39f, the compensating container 15f is transferred into its function starting position shown partly in continuous line form and partly in dot-dash line form in FIG. 9, in which the projection 63f is also closely folded up.",
"The container 15f is then located in the manner of an elongated strand around which the medium completely flows between the walls 5f, 6f in contact-free manner in the container space 3f.",
"From this state the container 15f can expand radially and axially in all directions until it engages in gap-free manner on the vessel walls.",
"The cover 50f closes the opening 27f with a step 49f and is traversed by the outlet opening 45f of the discharge mechanism 9f inserted in the neck 8f, so that it does not have to be removed for discharge purposes.",
"Tie discharge mechanism 9f can contain one of the aforementioned outlet valves.",
"The fastening 23h on the associated wall can also take place according to FIG. 10 in that the associated end 53h of at least one of the inner containers, e.g. the container 15h is embedded in the wall 5h in such a closely surrounded manner in the folded state that it is connected thereto accompanied by reciprocal welding and closure of the associated opening of the container 15h.",
"The wall 5h then forms an opening 71h substantially completely filled by the embedded portion 58h and can partly or completely traverse the wall 5h.",
"According to FIG. 11 control means are provided in order to e.g. so introduce the medium located in the compensating container 15k as a function or action medium that it influences by pressurizing, discharge or the like the discharge behavior or characteristics of the discharge device 1k.",
"For example, the air or some other medium in the container 15k can be supplied directly upstream and/or downstream of the outlet opening 45k to the medium from the space area 12k and so finely atomizes the latter outside the device 1k, transfers it into a foamed state or in the case of an unatomized, flowing, concentrated beam discharge, can be traversed by the supplied medium.",
"A volume-compensating self-filling suction takes place into the container 15k through the inlet 36k and via the valve 31k.",
"An outlet duct 72, which is separate or branched from the intake duct leads in the cover 50k to the discharge nozzle, e.g. into a twisting device between a nozzle cap and a nozzle core inserted therein.",
"In said outlet duct 72 is provided a pressure-dependently operating outlet valve 73, which opens in the case of an overpressure in the container 15k, while the valve 31k closes.",
"On compressing the vessel wall 4k the container 15k is pressurizable by means of the incompressible medium in the space area 12k, if it is not in direct contact with the vessel walls of the vessel body 2k.",
"Thus, the compressible medium in the container 15k is pressurized, and simultaneously with the supply of the use medium to the discharge nozzle, is supplied to the latter via the outlet duct 72 and is mixed with the use medium.",
"Following the release of the pump 40k the valves 44k, 73 close and air is again sucked from the outside into the container 15k by means of the valve 31k.",
"The neck 17k of the container 15k is here mounted on a connecting piece of the mounting support member 21k projecting through the vessel wall 6k into the container space 3k, and which engages with an outwardly projecting end of said connecting piece into the cover 50k.",
"The cover 50k contains the valves 31k, 73, the inlet 36k and the outlet duct 72 as well as the discharge nozzle, it then forms a stop for the opened valve body 48k.",
"The mounting support 18k and the valve 44k are both laterally displaced with respect to the axis 70k, but the mounting support body 21k can also be located in said axis 70k, together with the container 15k which can be fitted by inversion.",
"Moreover, in the inlet and/or outlet duct of the container 15k can be provided at least one screen or filter, e.g. an ultrafine or sterile filter.",
"If at least one or all the valves for the container 15k are omitted, said control can also take place by a corresponding reciprocal matching of the inlet and outlet cross-sections.",
"It is also conceivable to suck into the container 15k through at least one of optionally several outlet openings 45k and clean the same with respect to medium constituents.",
"The wall 5k can be completely free from openings and constructed substantially in one piece.",
"According to FIG. 12 two independently discharge-functional individual discharge units with separate vessel bodies 2m and pumps 40m are combined into a unit, which can be operated jointly and/or separately, so that two separate media, such as toothpaste, can be simultaneously or successively discharged.",
"The pump 40m is inserted in the associated neck 8m in approximately completely filling manner and projects into the container space 3m in contact-free manner with a casing step, which forms at its free or tubular constricted end the inlet opening for the thrust piston pump 40m and can be received in a receptacle corresponding to the receptacle 69 of FIG. 6. Each pump 40m has outside the pump casing and the vessel 2m on a pump plunger an actuating head with the associated outlet opening 45m, both actuating heads being jointly surrounded with the cover 50m and operable by means of plug connections, because the latter is axially displaceable with respect to the vessels 2m engaging with one another by their walls 4m.",
"The neck 17m of the container 15m engages under the ring disk-like fold in double layer manner in a ring gap 23m on the inner circumference of the connecting piece 22m, so that in simple manner the mounting support 18m is formed.",
"The ring groove 23m can be formed by compression or corresponding double layer folding of the jacket of the connecting piece 22m and can be connected in welding-like manner with the radially outwardly projecting ring part of the neck 17m.",
"If during the pump stroke small medium quantities pass out of the inlet of the pump 40m into the container space 3m, the container 15m can be constricted by emptying, by means of the valve-free inlet 36m.",
"Then, in the case of a self-sucking return stroke of the pump 40m and suction of the medium from the container space 3m, corresponding to the action of a climbing member, the container 15m can follow in widening manner and air can be sucked via the inlet 36m.",
"The discharge device according to the invention operates in any position, e.g. horizontally, upside down or the normal upright position.",
"Advantageously it also allows a preservative-free product storage of the use medium.",
"The outlet valve can also be constructed as a dosing valve, so that e.g. through the valve stroke the discharge medium quantity can be precisely defined for each actuation."
] |
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a method in optical fiber based spectral filtering. The invention further relates to a spectral filter device implementing the method.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Telecommunications based on optical fibers is a rapidly evolving technical field. In addition to long distance transmission fibers replacing more traditional conducting wire cables, a large variety of other types of optical fiber components are also required in order to make up a complete modern optical telecommunication system. Such components include, for example, optical amplifiers based on rare-earth metal doped active fibers and different types of spectral multiplexing and filtering devices. Spectral filtering in various forms is especially important in systems based on wavelength division multiplexing, WDM.
It is known that an optical fiber, more specifically a single mode fiber can be used as a spectral filter device by coiling the fiber around a reel or corresponding circular body in order to subject the fiber lengthwise to a certain continuous curvature. The radius of this curvature determines the cut-off wavelength of such a coiled fiber filter. With smaller radius of the curvature the cut-off wavelength moves towards shorter wavelengths. When the wavelength of the light transmitted through the fiber core exceeds the aforementioned cut-off wavelength, the optical power starts to leak from the fiber core to the cladding layer surrounding the core. In the cladding layer the light experiences significantly higher attenuation than in the fiber core. The overall attenuation characteristics of a the fiber filter can be controlled by the number of fiber turns coiled around the reel.
In practise, the operation of a coiled fiber filter deviates from ideal because above the cut-off wavelength all of the wavelengths do not become attenuated equally and homogeneously. Because only a finite number of guided modes exits in the cladding layer, some wavelengths become coupled to cladding modes more effectively than others. The limited number of cladding modes gives rise to a certain amount of unwanted coupling of the light from the cladding layer back to the fiber core, i.e. reversed coupling effects. As a result of these aforementioned effects, the typical transmission of a prior art coiled fiber filter shown in FIG. 1 as graph P is not a smooth downward curve after the cut-off wavelength λ off , but instead shows significant “interference” peaks at certain wavelengths. For comparison, FIG. 1 also shows a more desirable smooth transmission graph I of a more ideal low-pass filter.
From the prior art certain solutions are known in order to reduce the aforementioned effects. These solutions are primarily based on the idea of increasing the attenuation of the cladding layer and/or by arranging the cladding layer to be surrounded with a specific envelope layer, which allows the light to leak from the cladding layer further to this outside envelope or jacket layer. However, these prior art solutions have certain significant limitations. Because they are basically based on increasing the attenuation of the cladding layer, they are not suitable for those applications where also the cladding layer itself is utilized as an optical waveguide. Such applications include, for example, cladding pumped optical fiber amplifiers, where the pump light propagating in the cladding layer should not become attenuated due to the intrinsic optical properties of the cladding layer.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The objective of the present invention is to introduce a new approach that makes it possible to construct optical fiber based spectral filtering devices, whose spectral properties are superior to the prior art devices. Especially, the intention is to achieve filter devices where after the cut-off wavelength the transmission drops down more smoothly than in the prior art devices. Further, one specific objective of the invention is to construct devices, which are also suitable to be used in the kind of applications, where, in addition to the fiber core, also the cladding layer of the fiber has a role of acting as an optical waveguide. An important example of such application can be found among cladding pumped fiber amplifiers.
In this invention it has been rather surprisingly discovered that the performance of a coiled optical fiber filter can be significantly improved when the fiber is twisted over its length in whole or in part around its longitudinal axis in addition to subjecting it to a certain longitudinal curvature.
In order for the longitudinal twisting of the fiber to have the desired effect, the optical fiber needs to be of a type without radial symmetry, i.e. radially asymmetrical fiber. Such radially asymmetrical optical fibers are known as such from the prior art. Radial asymmetry can be achieved, for example, by using an off-centered core, or by providing a cladding layer where the refraction index varies in a radially asymmetrical manner. Radial asymmetry may also be achieved by using optical fiber structures, where the cross-section of the fiber core (or even cladding) is non-circular. Such fibers are known from polarization sensitive applications. Fundamentally, in this context the radial asymmetry refers broadly to any optical fiber structures where the radial distribution of the refractive index is asymmetrical.
In an optical fiber filter, where the fiber is both coiled and twisted according to the invention, the leak of light from the fiber core to the cladding layer takes place more ideally than in the prior art filters, i.e. without significant amount of reversed coupling effects. Above the cut-off wavelength all wavelengths thus “see” temporally substantially equal amount of matching with the cladding modes. In other words, when a certain length of the twisted and coiled optical fiber is considered, with high probability, there always exist such cladding modes which allow the light to become coupled from the core to the cladding.
As a result of this the transmission curve of the device has a smoothly descending behaviour after the cut-off wavelength.
The current invention is especially suitable to be used as a distributed spectral filter in cladding pumped fiber amplifiers, because the fiber structure allows the propagation of the pump light in the cladding layer.
For a person skilled in the art, it is clear that compared to the prior art solutions, the invention significantly widens the possibilities to optimize the fiber filter structures. Without “interference” peaks the cut-off wavelength and the attenuation properties of the fiber filter can be more freely adjusted than in the prior art devices.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
In the following, the invention will be described in more detail with reference to the appended drawings, in which
FIG. 1 shows schematically a typical transmission behaviour of a prior art coiled fiber filter together with a more ideal smooth transmission curve,
FIG. 2 shows some experimental and comparison results illustrating the basic transmission properties of an optical fiber filter according to the invention,
FIGS. 3 a,b describe conceptually the propagation of light in a substantially straight and radially symmetric fiber,
FIGS. 4 a,b describe conceptually the propagation of light in a longitudinally curved and radially symmetric fiber, and
FIGS. 5 a,b,c describe conceptually the propagation of light in a longitudinally curved and radially asymmetric fiber, which has been twisted around its longitudinal axis according to the invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
The following conceptual explanation is meant to describe, in a simplified way, some of the most important physical phenomena behind the invention. It should be noted that this description is not intended to be scientifically exhaustive, but it is only meant to help recognise the most essential features of the invention.
To begin, a few measurement results are presented in FIG. 2 in order to illustrate the effect that can be achieved when the optical fiber in a coiled fiber filter is additionally twisted around its longitudinal axis according to the invention. It should be understood, that the results in FIG. 2 and the construction of the corresponding fiber filter devices are provided only to illustrate the effect itself and therefore do not necessarily correspond with the results or construction of any practical fiber filter device.
The measurement results shown in FIG. 2 have been recorded using an approximately 2 meter long single-mode fiber having an off-centered core, i.e. a radially asymmetric construction. The fiber core diameter was 6 μm and the total diameter of the fiber including the cladding layer was 125 μm. The core was located approximately 30 μm from the center. The refractive index distribution of the fiber was of the same “W-type” as schematically shown in FIGS. 5 a – 5 c , i.e. with a depressed refractive index cladding region G next to the fiber core.
In FIG. 2 graph C 70 first shows the transmission for the aforementioned off-centered fiber, which has been coiled without twisting one lap around a reel with an approximately 70 mm diameter. Therefore, graph C 70 may be regarded to correspond to the performance of a prior art type fiber filter, such as shown schematically in FIG. 1 with graph P. Graph TC 70 shows the transmission of the same fiber in an otherwise similar situation, except that in this case the fiber was twisted around its longitudinal axis according to the invention. After coiling the fiber was twisted so that the fiber experienced an approximately 720° twist around its longitudinal axis substantially evenly along its coiled length. In other words, the fiber was first coiled one turn around the 70 mm reel. Then the fiber was fixed from the starting point of the turn to the reel and the fiber was twisted approximately two full turns from the point close to the ending point of the lap. It can be clearly seen, that graph TC 70 corresponds to much more desirable transmission properties than graph C 70 .
For comparison, FIG. 2 also contains additional graphs MS 70 and MS 150 . These graphs correspond to coiled, but non-twisted fibers with reel diameters of approximately 70 and 150 mm, correspondingly. The coating of these fibers was stripped off and immersion oil was further used for mode stripping, i.e. for elimination of the cladding modes.
In the following, with reference to FIGS. 3 a – 5 c , the basic physical phenomena behind the invention are further explained together with some possible embodiments of the invention.
FIGS. 3 a , 3 b describe conceptually the propagation of light in a substantially straight and radially symmetric fiber 30 comprising a core region CR and a cladding region CL. FIG. 3 a shows in its upper section the refractive index profile R and the corresponding mode field M of the fiber 30 . In this case the refractive index profile R includes a narrow depressed refractive index cladding region G in the cladding next to the fiber core. In this depressed refractive index cladding region G the refractive index is arranged to be somewhat lower than in the other outer parts of the cladding region CL. Such “W-type” refractive index profiles R having a certain depressed region G in the refractive index around the fiber core are known as such from the prior art. Respectively, FIG. 3 b shows conceptually in its upper section the core mode propagation constant PCR and the cladding mode propagation constants PCL depicted with horizontal solid lines.
When the wavelength of the light changes, this affects the core mode propagation constant PCR in a known manner. This effect is depicted in FIG. 3 b with arrow A. The core mode propagation constant PCR depends substantially linearly on the wavelength. When the core mode propagation constant PCR decreases the amount of mode field M in the cladding region CL increases exponentially. When the wavelength of light increases, the core mode propagation constant PCR becomes smaller and when the core mode propagation constant PCR and that of the cladding modes PCL coincide, there exists strong coupling from the core mode to the cladding modes. The amount of the mode field in the cladding region CL gives the coupling coefficient between the core mode and the cladding modes. If and when the propagation constants are the same for the core mode and a cladding mode, the power starts to go back and forth between these two modes.
FIGS. 4 a , 4 b describe in a similar conceptual manner the propagation of light in a longitudinally curved and radially symmetric fiber 40 . Therefore, FIGS. 4 a , 4 b describe the basic phenomena covering the operation of a prior art coiled fiber filter.
From FIGS. 4 a , 4 b it can be seen that the curvature of the fiber 40 (to the left in FIGS. 4 a , 4 b and also in FIGS. 5 a – 5 c ) causes an increase in the refractive index in the outer bend of the fiber 40 . Therefore, the refractive index profile R becomes tilted as schematically shown in the upper sections of FIGS. 4 a , 4 b . Correspondingly, the propagation constants of the modes in the cladding region CL in the outer bend become elevated. This lowers the cut-off wavelength for a coiled and curved fiber.
The “interference” peaks shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 (graphs P and C 70 , respectively) arise due to the fact that there exists only a finite number of propagating modes in the cladding layer CL. Therefore, for certain wavelengths above the cut-off wavelength the conditions become such, that the light power is able to couple to the cladding layer CL (and back) only at certain occasions when moving along the length of the fiber 40 . In other words, when a certain length of the fiber 40 is considered, the different wavelengths become treated unequally in what comes to the coupling between core CR and cladding CL and to the consequential loss of the light from core CR.
FIGS. 5 a – 5 c now describe conceptually the propagation of light in a longitudinally curved and radially asymmetric fiber 50 , which has been further twisted around its longitudinal axis according to the invention. FIGS. 5 a – 5 c describe three different situations with a relative twist of approximately 90° between FIGS. 5 a and 5 b , and again the same between FIGS. 5 b and 5 c.
Because of the twist of the fiber 50 , in different locations along the fiber length, the core mode propagation constant PCR can be found to have moved compared to the cladding modes PCL. The reason for this is that when moving along the length of the twisted and coiled fiber 50 , the core CR moves into different positions compared to the outer curved surface (cladding surface) of the fiber (see lower sections of FIGS. 5 a – 5 c ). This “averages” the coupling between the core mode to a certain set of the cladding modes. Now, above the cut-off wavelength substantially all wavelengths, i.e. substantially all core mode propagation constants PCR, “see” temporally an equal amount of matching with the cladding modes PCL. In other words, when a certain length of the fiber 50 is considered, such cladding modes which allow the light to become coupled from the core to the cladding always exist. As a result of this, above the cut-off wavelength the transmission of the fiber 50 has a smooth descending behaviour without disturbing interference peaks.
In the lower sections of FIGS. 5 a – 5 c the hatched area CA depicts the cross-sectional area in which the cladding mode propagation constants PCL are equal or higher than the core mode propagation constant PCR. In those situations the core and cladding modes have possibility to match and energy can move from the core to the cladding layer.
In order for the longitudinal twisting of the fiber 50 to have the desired effect, the fiber 50 needs to have a certain degree of radial asymmetry. In the embodiment described in FIGS. 5 a – 5 c the radial asymmetry is achieved by using an optical fiber 50 with an off-centered core CR. However, the current invention is not limited to such embodiments, but also other means for providing radial asymmetry of the refractive index distribution may be applied. For example, radial asymmetry in a fiber can be achieved by providing a cladding layer CL where the refraction index varies in a radially asymmetrical manner. Radial asymmetry may also be achieved by using such fiber structures, where the cross-section of the fiber core CR and/or the fiber cladding CL is non-circular. Such fibers are known, for example, from certain polarization sensitive applications where the fiber core is non-circular or cladding pumped fibers where the fiber cladding is non-circular.
It should be noted, that even if the fiber 50 shown in FIGS. 5 a – 5 c includes the depressed refractive index cladding region G in the cladding layer next to the fiber core, this is not an absolute necessity for a fiber filter according to the invention. Such a structure, however, is preferable in many applications because it makes the filtering effect sharper.
The current invention is especially suitable to be used as a distributed spectral filter in cladding pumped fiber amplifiers, because the fiber structure now allows the propagation of the pump light in the cladding layer. For a person skilled in the art, it is clear that compared to the prior art solutions the invention significantly widens the possibilities to optimize the fiber filter structures. Without “interference” peaks the cut-off wavelength and the attenuation properties of the fiber filter can be freely engineered and fine-tuned according to the respective needs.
The invention also makes it possible to use very large fiber core designs (>10 um), which can handle higher laser powers without problems created by non-linear optical phenomena.
An important benefit of the invention is that the fiber filter devices according to the invention are simple to manufacture also in practise. In addition to coiling an optical fiber, the fiber only needs to be twisted around its longitudinal axis either before, during or after the coiling process. The strength of the effect can be adjusted by selecting the amount of twisting (degrees or turns) per a certain length of the fiber. The twisting may be arranged to appear evenly along the total length of the fiber, or to be concentrated only to certain parts of the fiber. In a fiber filter having several laps coiled around a reel, the twisting may be arranged to distribute over all of the coiled laps or only to some or one of the coiled laps. Depending on the amount of radial asymmetry of the fiber, the amount of twisting may be freely adjusted to accomplish desired transmission properties. These and other parameters, including the length and the optical properties of the fiber, may be freely selected.
Even though the invention has been shown and described above with respect to selected types of embodiments, it should be understood that these embodiments are only examples and that a person skilled in the art could construct other fiber filter devices utilizing techniques other than those specifically disclosed herein while still remaining within the spirit and scope of the present invention. It should, therefore, be understood that various omissions and substitutions and changes in the form and detail of the filter devices illustrated, as well as in the operation of the same, may be made by those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit of the invention. It is the intention, therefore, to restrict the invention only in the manner indicated by the scope of the claims appended hereto. | A method and a device in optical fiber based spectral filtering. A length of an optical fiber including at least a core region surrounded by a cladding region is coiled over its length in whole or in part to subject the fiber to longitudinal curvature in order to affect the optical transmission properties of the fiber. The fiber is arranged to have radially asymmetric refractive index distribution and in addition to coiling the fiber lengthwise, the fiber is over its length in whole or in part also twisted around its longitudinal axis. The method and device can be used to significantly improve the performance of fiber based filtering devices. | Provide a concise summary of the essential information conveyed in the context. | [
"FIELD OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to a method in optical fiber based spectral filtering.",
"The invention further relates to a spectral filter device implementing the method.",
"BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Telecommunications based on optical fibers is a rapidly evolving technical field.",
"In addition to long distance transmission fibers replacing more traditional conducting wire cables, a large variety of other types of optical fiber components are also required in order to make up a complete modern optical telecommunication system.",
"Such components include, for example, optical amplifiers based on rare-earth metal doped active fibers and different types of spectral multiplexing and filtering devices.",
"Spectral filtering in various forms is especially important in systems based on wavelength division multiplexing, WDM.",
"It is known that an optical fiber, more specifically a single mode fiber can be used as a spectral filter device by coiling the fiber around a reel or corresponding circular body in order to subject the fiber lengthwise to a certain continuous curvature.",
"The radius of this curvature determines the cut-off wavelength of such a coiled fiber filter.",
"With smaller radius of the curvature the cut-off wavelength moves towards shorter wavelengths.",
"When the wavelength of the light transmitted through the fiber core exceeds the aforementioned cut-off wavelength, the optical power starts to leak from the fiber core to the cladding layer surrounding the core.",
"In the cladding layer the light experiences significantly higher attenuation than in the fiber core.",
"The overall attenuation characteristics of a the fiber filter can be controlled by the number of fiber turns coiled around the reel.",
"In practise, the operation of a coiled fiber filter deviates from ideal because above the cut-off wavelength all of the wavelengths do not become attenuated equally and homogeneously.",
"Because only a finite number of guided modes exits in the cladding layer, some wavelengths become coupled to cladding modes more effectively than others.",
"The limited number of cladding modes gives rise to a certain amount of unwanted coupling of the light from the cladding layer back to the fiber core, i.e. reversed coupling effects.",
"As a result of these aforementioned effects, the typical transmission of a prior art coiled fiber filter shown in FIG. 1 as graph P is not a smooth downward curve after the cut-off wavelength λ off , but instead shows significant “interference”",
"peaks at certain wavelengths.",
"For comparison, FIG. 1 also shows a more desirable smooth transmission graph I of a more ideal low-pass filter.",
"From the prior art certain solutions are known in order to reduce the aforementioned effects.",
"These solutions are primarily based on the idea of increasing the attenuation of the cladding layer and/or by arranging the cladding layer to be surrounded with a specific envelope layer, which allows the light to leak from the cladding layer further to this outside envelope or jacket layer.",
"However, these prior art solutions have certain significant limitations.",
"Because they are basically based on increasing the attenuation of the cladding layer, they are not suitable for those applications where also the cladding layer itself is utilized as an optical waveguide.",
"Such applications include, for example, cladding pumped optical fiber amplifiers, where the pump light propagating in the cladding layer should not become attenuated due to the intrinsic optical properties of the cladding layer.",
"SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The objective of the present invention is to introduce a new approach that makes it possible to construct optical fiber based spectral filtering devices, whose spectral properties are superior to the prior art devices.",
"Especially, the intention is to achieve filter devices where after the cut-off wavelength the transmission drops down more smoothly than in the prior art devices.",
"Further, one specific objective of the invention is to construct devices, which are also suitable to be used in the kind of applications, where, in addition to the fiber core, also the cladding layer of the fiber has a role of acting as an optical waveguide.",
"An important example of such application can be found among cladding pumped fiber amplifiers.",
"In this invention it has been rather surprisingly discovered that the performance of a coiled optical fiber filter can be significantly improved when the fiber is twisted over its length in whole or in part around its longitudinal axis in addition to subjecting it to a certain longitudinal curvature.",
"In order for the longitudinal twisting of the fiber to have the desired effect, the optical fiber needs to be of a type without radial symmetry, i.e. radially asymmetrical fiber.",
"Such radially asymmetrical optical fibers are known as such from the prior art.",
"Radial asymmetry can be achieved, for example, by using an off-centered core, or by providing a cladding layer where the refraction index varies in a radially asymmetrical manner.",
"Radial asymmetry may also be achieved by using optical fiber structures, where the cross-section of the fiber core (or even cladding) is non-circular.",
"Such fibers are known from polarization sensitive applications.",
"Fundamentally, in this context the radial asymmetry refers broadly to any optical fiber structures where the radial distribution of the refractive index is asymmetrical.",
"In an optical fiber filter, where the fiber is both coiled and twisted according to the invention, the leak of light from the fiber core to the cladding layer takes place more ideally than in the prior art filters, i.e. without significant amount of reversed coupling effects.",
"Above the cut-off wavelength all wavelengths thus “see”",
"temporally substantially equal amount of matching with the cladding modes.",
"In other words, when a certain length of the twisted and coiled optical fiber is considered, with high probability, there always exist such cladding modes which allow the light to become coupled from the core to the cladding.",
"As a result of this the transmission curve of the device has a smoothly descending behaviour after the cut-off wavelength.",
"The current invention is especially suitable to be used as a distributed spectral filter in cladding pumped fiber amplifiers, because the fiber structure allows the propagation of the pump light in the cladding layer.",
"For a person skilled in the art, it is clear that compared to the prior art solutions, the invention significantly widens the possibilities to optimize the fiber filter structures.",
"Without “interference”",
"peaks the cut-off wavelength and the attenuation properties of the fiber filter can be more freely adjusted than in the prior art devices.",
"BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS In the following, the invention will be described in more detail with reference to the appended drawings, in which FIG. 1 shows schematically a typical transmission behaviour of a prior art coiled fiber filter together with a more ideal smooth transmission curve, FIG. 2 shows some experimental and comparison results illustrating the basic transmission properties of an optical fiber filter according to the invention, FIGS. 3 a,b describe conceptually the propagation of light in a substantially straight and radially symmetric fiber, FIGS. 4 a,b describe conceptually the propagation of light in a longitudinally curved and radially symmetric fiber, and FIGS. 5 a,b,c describe conceptually the propagation of light in a longitudinally curved and radially asymmetric fiber, which has been twisted around its longitudinal axis according to the invention.",
"DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The following conceptual explanation is meant to describe, in a simplified way, some of the most important physical phenomena behind the invention.",
"It should be noted that this description is not intended to be scientifically exhaustive, but it is only meant to help recognise the most essential features of the invention.",
"To begin, a few measurement results are presented in FIG. 2 in order to illustrate the effect that can be achieved when the optical fiber in a coiled fiber filter is additionally twisted around its longitudinal axis according to the invention.",
"It should be understood, that the results in FIG. 2 and the construction of the corresponding fiber filter devices are provided only to illustrate the effect itself and therefore do not necessarily correspond with the results or construction of any practical fiber filter device.",
"The measurement results shown in FIG. 2 have been recorded using an approximately 2 meter long single-mode fiber having an off-centered core, i.e. a radially asymmetric construction.",
"The fiber core diameter was 6 μm and the total diameter of the fiber including the cladding layer was 125 μm.",
"The core was located approximately 30 μm from the center.",
"The refractive index distribution of the fiber was of the same “W-type”",
"as schematically shown in FIGS. 5 a – 5 c , i.e. with a depressed refractive index cladding region G next to the fiber core.",
"In FIG. 2 graph C 70 first shows the transmission for the aforementioned off-centered fiber, which has been coiled without twisting one lap around a reel with an approximately 70 mm diameter.",
"Therefore, graph C 70 may be regarded to correspond to the performance of a prior art type fiber filter, such as shown schematically in FIG. 1 with graph P. Graph TC 70 shows the transmission of the same fiber in an otherwise similar situation, except that in this case the fiber was twisted around its longitudinal axis according to the invention.",
"After coiling the fiber was twisted so that the fiber experienced an approximately 720° twist around its longitudinal axis substantially evenly along its coiled length.",
"In other words, the fiber was first coiled one turn around the 70 mm reel.",
"Then the fiber was fixed from the starting point of the turn to the reel and the fiber was twisted approximately two full turns from the point close to the ending point of the lap.",
"It can be clearly seen, that graph TC 70 corresponds to much more desirable transmission properties than graph C 70 .",
"For comparison, FIG. 2 also contains additional graphs MS 70 and MS 150 .",
"These graphs correspond to coiled, but non-twisted fibers with reel diameters of approximately 70 and 150 mm, correspondingly.",
"The coating of these fibers was stripped off and immersion oil was further used for mode stripping, i.e. for elimination of the cladding modes.",
"In the following, with reference to FIGS. 3 a – 5 c , the basic physical phenomena behind the invention are further explained together with some possible embodiments of the invention.",
"FIGS. 3 a , 3 b describe conceptually the propagation of light in a substantially straight and radially symmetric fiber 30 comprising a core region CR and a cladding region CL.",
"FIG. 3 a shows in its upper section the refractive index profile R and the corresponding mode field M of the fiber 30 .",
"In this case the refractive index profile R includes a narrow depressed refractive index cladding region G in the cladding next to the fiber core.",
"In this depressed refractive index cladding region G the refractive index is arranged to be somewhat lower than in the other outer parts of the cladding region CL.",
"Such “W-type”",
"refractive index profiles R having a certain depressed region G in the refractive index around the fiber core are known as such from the prior art.",
"Respectively, FIG. 3 b shows conceptually in its upper section the core mode propagation constant PCR and the cladding mode propagation constants PCL depicted with horizontal solid lines.",
"When the wavelength of the light changes, this affects the core mode propagation constant PCR in a known manner.",
"This effect is depicted in FIG. 3 b with arrow A. The core mode propagation constant PCR depends substantially linearly on the wavelength.",
"When the core mode propagation constant PCR decreases the amount of mode field M in the cladding region CL increases exponentially.",
"When the wavelength of light increases, the core mode propagation constant PCR becomes smaller and when the core mode propagation constant PCR and that of the cladding modes PCL coincide, there exists strong coupling from the core mode to the cladding modes.",
"The amount of the mode field in the cladding region CL gives the coupling coefficient between the core mode and the cladding modes.",
"If and when the propagation constants are the same for the core mode and a cladding mode, the power starts to go back and forth between these two modes.",
"FIGS. 4 a , 4 b describe in a similar conceptual manner the propagation of light in a longitudinally curved and radially symmetric fiber 40 .",
"Therefore, FIGS. 4 a , 4 b describe the basic phenomena covering the operation of a prior art coiled fiber filter.",
"From FIGS. 4 a , 4 b it can be seen that the curvature of the fiber 40 (to the left in FIGS. 4 a , 4 b and also in FIGS. 5 a – 5 c ) causes an increase in the refractive index in the outer bend of the fiber 40 .",
"Therefore, the refractive index profile R becomes tilted as schematically shown in the upper sections of FIGS. 4 a , 4 b .",
"Correspondingly, the propagation constants of the modes in the cladding region CL in the outer bend become elevated.",
"This lowers the cut-off wavelength for a coiled and curved fiber.",
"The “interference”",
"peaks shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 (graphs P and C 70 , respectively) arise due to the fact that there exists only a finite number of propagating modes in the cladding layer CL.",
"Therefore, for certain wavelengths above the cut-off wavelength the conditions become such, that the light power is able to couple to the cladding layer CL (and back) only at certain occasions when moving along the length of the fiber 40 .",
"In other words, when a certain length of the fiber 40 is considered, the different wavelengths become treated unequally in what comes to the coupling between core CR and cladding CL and to the consequential loss of the light from core CR.",
"FIGS. 5 a – 5 c now describe conceptually the propagation of light in a longitudinally curved and radially asymmetric fiber 50 , which has been further twisted around its longitudinal axis according to the invention.",
"FIGS. 5 a – 5 c describe three different situations with a relative twist of approximately 90° between FIGS. 5 a and 5 b , and again the same between FIGS. 5 b and 5 c. Because of the twist of the fiber 50 , in different locations along the fiber length, the core mode propagation constant PCR can be found to have moved compared to the cladding modes PCL.",
"The reason for this is that when moving along the length of the twisted and coiled fiber 50 , the core CR moves into different positions compared to the outer curved surface (cladding surface) of the fiber (see lower sections of FIGS. 5 a – 5 c ).",
"This “averages”",
"the coupling between the core mode to a certain set of the cladding modes.",
"Now, above the cut-off wavelength substantially all wavelengths, i.e. substantially all core mode propagation constants PCR, “see”",
"temporally an equal amount of matching with the cladding modes PCL.",
"In other words, when a certain length of the fiber 50 is considered, such cladding modes which allow the light to become coupled from the core to the cladding always exist.",
"As a result of this, above the cut-off wavelength the transmission of the fiber 50 has a smooth descending behaviour without disturbing interference peaks.",
"In the lower sections of FIGS. 5 a – 5 c the hatched area CA depicts the cross-sectional area in which the cladding mode propagation constants PCL are equal or higher than the core mode propagation constant PCR.",
"In those situations the core and cladding modes have possibility to match and energy can move from the core to the cladding layer.",
"In order for the longitudinal twisting of the fiber 50 to have the desired effect, the fiber 50 needs to have a certain degree of radial asymmetry.",
"In the embodiment described in FIGS. 5 a – 5 c the radial asymmetry is achieved by using an optical fiber 50 with an off-centered core CR.",
"However, the current invention is not limited to such embodiments, but also other means for providing radial asymmetry of the refractive index distribution may be applied.",
"For example, radial asymmetry in a fiber can be achieved by providing a cladding layer CL where the refraction index varies in a radially asymmetrical manner.",
"Radial asymmetry may also be achieved by using such fiber structures, where the cross-section of the fiber core CR and/or the fiber cladding CL is non-circular.",
"Such fibers are known, for example, from certain polarization sensitive applications where the fiber core is non-circular or cladding pumped fibers where the fiber cladding is non-circular.",
"It should be noted, that even if the fiber 50 shown in FIGS. 5 a – 5 c includes the depressed refractive index cladding region G in the cladding layer next to the fiber core, this is not an absolute necessity for a fiber filter according to the invention.",
"Such a structure, however, is preferable in many applications because it makes the filtering effect sharper.",
"The current invention is especially suitable to be used as a distributed spectral filter in cladding pumped fiber amplifiers, because the fiber structure now allows the propagation of the pump light in the cladding layer.",
"For a person skilled in the art, it is clear that compared to the prior art solutions the invention significantly widens the possibilities to optimize the fiber filter structures.",
"Without “interference”",
"peaks the cut-off wavelength and the attenuation properties of the fiber filter can be freely engineered and fine-tuned according to the respective needs.",
"The invention also makes it possible to use very large fiber core designs (>10 um), which can handle higher laser powers without problems created by non-linear optical phenomena.",
"An important benefit of the invention is that the fiber filter devices according to the invention are simple to manufacture also in practise.",
"In addition to coiling an optical fiber, the fiber only needs to be twisted around its longitudinal axis either before, during or after the coiling process.",
"The strength of the effect can be adjusted by selecting the amount of twisting (degrees or turns) per a certain length of the fiber.",
"The twisting may be arranged to appear evenly along the total length of the fiber, or to be concentrated only to certain parts of the fiber.",
"In a fiber filter having several laps coiled around a reel, the twisting may be arranged to distribute over all of the coiled laps or only to some or one of the coiled laps.",
"Depending on the amount of radial asymmetry of the fiber, the amount of twisting may be freely adjusted to accomplish desired transmission properties.",
"These and other parameters, including the length and the optical properties of the fiber, may be freely selected.",
"Even though the invention has been shown and described above with respect to selected types of embodiments, it should be understood that these embodiments are only examples and that a person skilled in the art could construct other fiber filter devices utilizing techniques other than those specifically disclosed herein while still remaining within the spirit and scope of the present invention.",
"It should, therefore, be understood that various omissions and substitutions and changes in the form and detail of the filter devices illustrated, as well as in the operation of the same, may be made by those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit of the invention.",
"It is the intention, therefore, to restrict the invention only in the manner indicated by the scope of the claims appended hereto."
] |
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention generally relates to the construction of a spring system on a tubular leg of the front fork of a bicycle.
2. Background Information
German Patent No. 94 00 166 describes a known shock absorber mechanism consisting of a combination of shock absorbing springs with rubber rings and a mounting block, whereby the damping takes place by means of the friction against the cylindrical inner part which carries a friction lining. The absence of damping fluid simplifies the system, but it may have disadvantages in terms of breakaway force and damping.
OBJECT OF THE INVENTION
An object of the present invention is to create a spring system for installation in a tubular leg on a telescoping front fork for bicycles, which spring system can preferably improve the ride comfort, in particular in the range of small spring travels, by means of a soft response of the spring system and low breakaway forces.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention teaches that this object can be accomplished, in accordance with at least one preferred embodiment, by a spring system comprising at least one suspension spring, at least one guide ring, at least one cage, and at least one supplemental spring, whereby the suspension springs and the cage are located one behind the other with bias between the bias screw and a stop ring in the upper cylindrical housing, and whereby the supplemental spring, when it is uncoupled from the bias of the suspension springs, creates the active connection to the lower cylindrical housing as a compression spring.
Other advantageous refinements of the present invention are disclosed herebelow.
When the word "invention" is used in this specification, the word "invention" includes "inventions", that is, the plural of "invention". By stating "invention", the Applicants do not in any way admit that the present application does not include more than one patentably and non-obviously distinct invention, and maintains that this application may include more than one patentably and non-obviously distinct invention. The Applicants hereby assert that the disclosure of this application may include more than one invention, and, in the event that there is more than one invention, that these inventions may be patentable and non-obvious one with respect to the other.
In summary, one aspect of the present invention resides broadly in a bicycle comprising: a front wheel hub on which there is rotationally mounted a front wheel; a frame including a front fork structure comprising two legs and a bridge connecting the two legs; the front fork structure comprising at least one tubular leg, the at least one tubular leg comprising: an upper cylindrical housing connected to the bridge; a lower cylindrical housing; the upper cylindrical housing and the lower cylindrical housing being coaxially oriented with respect to one another to retract and extend one within the other; spring means; the spring means comprising upper spring means and lower spring means; the lower spring means operatively connecting the upper cylindrical housing and the lower cylindrical housing; the lower spring means being disposed to prevent the upper cylindrical housing and the lower cylindrical housing from moving apart and extending from one another excessively on rebound; the upper spring means comprising compression spring means being disposed in the upper cylindrical housing; an additional spring; the additional spring being disposed between the upper spring means and the lower spring means; and an additional hollow cylindrically shaped member being disposed within at least one of the upper and the lower cylindrical housing; the additional hollow cylindrical member being substantially closed upwardly; and the additional spring being disposed within the additional hollow cylindrical member.
Another aspect of the present invention resides broadly in a bicycle front fork structure comprising two legs and a bridge connecting the two legs; the front fork structure comprising at least one tubular leg, the at least one tubular leg comprising: an upper cylindrical housing connected to the bridge; a lower cylindrical housing; the upper cylindrical housing and the lower cylindrical housing being coaxially oriented with respect to one another to retract and extend one within the other; spring means; the spring means comprising upper spring means and lower spring means; the lower spring means operatively connecting the upper cylindrical housing and the lower cylindrical housing; the lower spring means being disposed to prevent the upper cylindrical housing and the lower cylindrical housing from moving apart and extending from one another excessively on rebound; the upper spring means comprising compression spring means being disposed in the upper cylindrical housing; an additional spring; the additional spring being disposed between the upper spring means and the lower spring means; and an additional hollow cylindrically shaped member being disposed within at least one of the upper and the lower cylindrical housing; the additional hollow cylindrical member being substantially closed upwardly; and the additional spring being disposed within the additional hollow cylindrical member.
An additional aspect of the present invention resides broadly in a tubular leg of a front fork of a bicycle, comprising: an upper cylindrical housing connected to a bridge; a bias screw which forms the upper closure of the upper cylindrical housing and can be screwed to a greater or lesser depth into the upper cylindrical housing; a lower cylindrical housing with a support tube which is oriented coaxially with this cylindrical housing; at least one sliding ring; a spring between the upper cylindrical housing and the lower cylindrical housing, which spring acts in the rebound direction; and a spring system, characterized by the fact that the spring system includes at least one suspension spring, at least one guide ring, at least one cage, and at least one supplemental spring, whereby the suspension springs and the cage are located one behind the other with bias between the bias screw and a stop ring in the upper cylindrical housing, and whereby the supplemental spring, when it is uncoupled from the bias of the suspension springs, creates the active connection to the lower cylindrical housing as a compression spring.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG. 1 schematically illustrates one embodiment of a tubular leg of a telescoping front fork for bicycles, showing an upper and lower cylindrical housing which are biased in relation to one another by means of a spring system;
FIG. 2 is a diagram of a bicycle from a side view, showing various components of one embodiment of the present invention; and
FIG. 2a is a diagram of a bicycle from a front view illustrating various components of one embodiment of the present invention.
DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
As illustrated in FIG. 1, the complete tubular leg 1 of a telescoping front fork for bicycles can comprise an upper cylindrical housing 2 and a lower cylindrical housing 8, whereby a telescoping front fork can comprise two such tubular legs 1 which can be connected to one another by means of a bridge 18. The bridge 18 can preferably be connected to the frame of the bicycle and thus to the unsuspended part of the bicycle. The two cylindrical housings 2 and 8 can be partly inserted coaxially inside one another and can be displaced with respect to one another. At least one friction bearing that includes sliding rings 17 can essentially guarantee low friction during such movements. The sliding rings 17 in this embodiment can be non-detachably connected to the outer cylindrical surface 7 of the upper cylindrical housing 2, and may slide over an inner cylindrical surface 9 in the lower cylindrical housing 8, whereby attention essentially must be paid to selecting a good friction pair with regard to the materials of which the friction partners are made, as well as good surface characteristics of the inner cylindrical surface 9.
Preferably inside the first cylindrical housing 2, there can be a spring system which comprises at least one suspension spring 14 and an additional spring or supplemental spring 19. The suspension springs 14 and the supplemental spring 19 can be located in series one above the other, and preferably comprise a compressible elastic foamed, or expanded cellular elastomer, whereby the spring constant of the supplemental spring 19 is preferably lower than the spring constant of the suspension springs 14. The lower cylindrical housing 8, in addition to having an eye 12 for fastening the axle of a front wheel of a bicycle, can have a support tube 10 which can be provided on the upper end with a stop collar 11, which stop collar 11 can preferably act as an axial support for the supplemental spring 19. The support springs 14 can lie essentially concentric to one another, whereby they can be held in their position, both with respect to one another and with respect to an inner cylindrical surface 6 of the upper cylindrical housing 2, by means of a guide ring 15.
The guide rings 15 can be made of a plastic material, and when necessary, preferably slide essentially without major resistance on the inner cylindrical surface 6. As an abutment for the bias forces from the suspension springs 14 of the spring system, a stop ring 5 can be connected with the upper cylindrical housing 2, whereby the stop ring 5 can be used to establish the rest position by way of a rebound-direction spring 13 positioned against the stop collar 11. Between the supplemental spring 19 and the suspension springs 14 there can be an additional hollow cylindrically shaped member or cage 16 which could preferably have a tubular extension 20 to create the proper bias conditions. The cage 16 can be in contact under bias with its ring-shaped terminal surface and by means of a soft stop 21 against the stop ring 5. This bias can preferably be generated by the suspension springs 14 which can be supported on the axially opposite side on a bias screw 3. The supplemental spring 19 could work against this force direction, since the supplemental spring 19 can be supported against the support tube 10 and engaged on the other side of the cage 16. At rest, the force of the supplemental spring 19 can be lower than that of the suspension springs 14 on account of the lower bias and the lower spring constant, a situation which can be achieved by means of the design of the springs 19 and 14, but above all by preferably selecting the appropriate length of the tubular extension 20. The bias screw 3 can be screwed at different depths into the upper cylindrical housing 2, as a result of which the bias of the suspension springs 14 can be adjusted, within limits.
In accordance with at least one preferred embodiment of the present invention, if the bicycle is ridden over a road which has uneven spots of low height, the supplemental spring 19 is compressed during deflection, whereby the upper cylindrical housing 2 and the lower cylindrical housing 8 are pushed into one another, and the stop collar 11 breaks away from its biased position with respect to the stop ring 5 and the rebound-direction spring 13. At the low spring travels of the spring systems described above, the suspension springs 14 essentially would not be used, and the tubular extension 20 of the cage 16 would essentially remain in place with respect to the stop ring 5.
In accordance with at least one preferred embodiment of the present invention, the supplemental spring 19 is compressed to its block length only in the event of longer spring travels when the bicycle is ridden over much rougher roads, and force is transmitted from the supplemental spring 19 to the guide cage 16, which then preferably breaks away from its position defined by the tubular extension 20, when the bias force generated by the suspension springs 14 is exceeded by the carrying force. Then the suspension springs 14 can be compressed except for the spring travel, which could mark the upper culmination point of the force curve or the maximum possible compressibility of the suspension springs 14. If the force generated by the uneven spots in the road decreases, first the tubular extension 20 is preferably pushed until it comes into contact with the stop ring 5 and then the stop collar 11 can come into contact with the stop ring 5 by means of the rebound-direction spring 13.
In other words, as the bicycle would travel over rougher terrain, the supplemental spring 19 can be compressed to a point where it may not be able to be compressed further. Force can then be transmitted by way of the guide cage 16 to the suspension springs 14.
In accordance with at least one embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 1 could be considered to represent, essentially, a moment in time in the operation of a tubular leg 1 according to the present invention. As the front wheel of the bicycle encounters a bump in a road surface, the bicycle can essentially maintain momentum and direction. When the bicycle initially hits the bump, the bump can cause the front wheel of the bicycle to force the lower cylindrical housing 8 upward by way of the fastening eye 12 connection to the axle of the front wheel. This upward movement of the lower cylindrical housing 8 can cause compression of the supplemental spring 19 and possibly also of the suspension spring 14. The bicycle wheel then travels to the other side of the bump, and in doing so, the front wheel of the bicycle can return to a preferably normal road surface. At this point, the lower cylindrical housing 8, by way of fastening eye 12, begins to return to an essentially normal position.
In a moment of operation of a tubular leg 1 according to one embodiment of the present invention, the supplemental spring 19 can be released, or uncoupled from the bias of the suspension springs 14. As can be seen in FIG. 1, the lower cylindrical housing 8 can move downward as the front wheel of the bicycle returns to an essentially normal operating position after a bump. A gap 11a can essentially occur at that moment between the supplemental spring 19 and the combined stop collar 11 and support tube 10. In the final moment of return of the tubular leg 1 to normal operating position, the cage 16 and the supplemental spring 19 can then move downward making an active connection, by compression, with the lower cylindrical housing 8 by way of the supplemental spring 19. The compression, or the extra compression provided by the bump on the suspension springs 14 is essentially released and the supplemental spring 19, again, is not in a relationship of direct compression contact with respect to the suspension springs 14.
To center all the elements which participate in the spring system, a centrally-located guide rod 4 can preferably extend from the bias screw 3 into the interior of the support tube 10.
The use of a lubricant can be advantageous, e.g. shock absorber oil, which can preferably improve the mobility of all the elements which would participate in the spring system.
The above-mentioned adjustability of the load bearing capacity of the spring system as a result of the bias screw 3, which can be screwed to different depths, can create a bias range of the suspension springs 14 which can be expanded even further by replacing the suspension springs 14 and using springs which have higher or lower spring constants. It has been shown that it can be advantageous, for drivers of different weights, to provide several sets of suspension springs 14 which have different spring constants, to achieve a comparably comfortable ride.
FIG. 2 illustrates, in accordance with at least one embodiment of the present invention, a bicycle from a side view showing a tubular leg 1' of a bicycle. This drawing illustrates a connection of the tubular leg 1' by means of an eye 12' to an axle 24' of a front wheel 25' of a bicycle.
FIG. 2a, in accordance with at least one embodiment of the present invention, illustrates the front assembly 24" of a bicycle from a front view. This illustration shows a bridge 18" connecting the two tubular legs 26". Also shown are the upper cylindrical housing 2" and the lower cylindrical housing 8" of the tubular legs 26".
One feature of the invention resides broadly in the tubular leg of a front fork of a bicycle, comprising an upper cylindrical housing connected to a bridge, a bias screw which forms the upper closure of the upper cylindrical housing and can be screwed to a greater or lesser depth into the upper cylindrical housing, a lower cylindrical housing with a support tube which is oriented coaxially with this cylindrical housing, at least one sliding ring, a spring between the upper cylindrical housing and the lower cylindrical housing, which spring acts in the rebound direction, and a spring system, characterized by the fact that the spring system includes at least one suspension spring, at least one guide ring, at least one cage and at least one supplemental spring, whereby the suspension springs and the cage are located one behind the other with bias between the bias screw and a stop ring in the upper cylindrical housing, and whereby the supplemental spring, when it is uncoupled from the bias of the suspension springs, creates the active connection to the lower cylindrical housing as a compression spring.
Another feature of the invention resides broadly in the tubular leg characterized by the fact that the suspension springs, the supplemental spring and the rebound direction spring consist of a compressible elastic foamed, or expanded cellular elastomer.
Yet another feature of the invention resides broadly in the tubular leg characterized by the fact that the spring constant of the supplemental spring is less than the spring constant of the suspension springs.
Still another feature of the invention resides broadly in the tubular leg characterized by the fact that the mobility of the spring system is increased by a lubricant.
A further feature of the invention resides broadly in the tubular leg characterized by the fact that the cage has a tubular extension which separates the bias of the suspension springs and the bias of the supplemental spring.
Another feature of the invention resides broadly in the tubular leg characterized by the fact that the design of the spring system can be varied as a function of higher or lower vehicle weights by the selection of suspension springs which have higher or lower spring constants.
Examples of bicycles, and components thereof, in which the embodiments of the present invention may be employed, may be found in the following U.S. patents: U.S. Pat. No. 5,324,059, which issued to Bryne on Jun. 28, 1994; No. 5,312,125 which issued to Tse-acu-a-o-shu on May 17, 1994; No. 5,242,182, which issued to Bezerra et al. on Sep. 7, 1993; and No. 5,240,268, which issued to Allsop et al. on Aug. 31, 1993.
Examples of materials which could possibly be used in conjunction with the embodiments of the present invention as set forth hereabove can possibly be found in the following U.S. patents: U.S. Pat. No. 4,932,637 which issued to Jarret on Jun. 12, 1990; and U.S. Pat. No. 5,014,967 which issued to Wolf and Pletsch on May 14, 1991.
Examples of types of materials, with various coefficients of friction, which could possibly be used in conjunction with the embodiments of the present invention as set forth hereinabove can possibly be found in the following U.S. patents: U.S. Pat. No. 4,703,075 issued Oct. 27, 1987 to Egami; No. RE32,514 (Reissue of U.S. Pat. No. 4,473,676) issued Oct. 6, 1987 to Steklenski; and No. 4,714,740 issued Dec. 22, 1987 to Lee and Golden.
Examples of types of lubricants which could possibly be used in conjunction with the embodiments of the present invention as set forth hereabove can possibly be found in the following U.S. patents: U.S. Pat. No. 4,372,863 which issued to Elliott et al. on Feb. 8, 1983; No. 4,376,711 which issued to Shaub on Mar. 15, 1983; and No. 4,459,223 which issued to Shaub et al. on Jul. 10, 1984.
Examples of types of elastomeric materials, types of elastomeric springs, and components thereof, which could possibly be used in conjunction with the embodiments of the present invention as set forth hereinabove can possibly be found in the following U.S. patents: U.S. Pat. No. 4,369,284 which issued to Chen on Jan. 18, 1983; No. 5,192,057 which issued to Wydra and Geick on Mar. 9, 1993; and No. 5,351,844 which issued to Carlstedt on Jun. 1, 1994.
In general, a rebound is usually considered to be the recovery of an entity, or a system which has had a setback, or been struck in some manner. In the case of a bicycle, the rebound of a bicycle wheel is generally considered to be when the wheel of the bicycle is recovering from hitting a bump and the wheel is returning to a relatively normal operational condition involving a relatively smooth riding surface. In the case of a bicycle utilizing an embodiment of a shock absorber mechanism, such as that of the present invention, the original force of hitting a bump is damped by the mechanism; additionally, as the mehcanism is recovering from the bump, or rebounding, it may be necessary to employ a spring in the mechanism to damp what could be considered excessive rebound. A rebound-direction spring employed in a bicycle shock absorber mechanism can make a bumpy ride more comfortable.
A rebound could also be considered to be the reaction of the bicycle after it has recovered from a bump and is returning to smooth riding operation. In other words, first of all the bicycle would hit the bump and the shock absorber mechanism would be compressed; secondly, as the wheel has gone over the bump, the shock absorber mechanism can be somewhat extended as the wheel begins the return to the riding surface; and thirdly, there can be an essentially very minor bump, as the shock absorber mechanism again is essentially slightly compressed, if the original bump was somewhat large. This slight, or secondary compression, may in this case be considered as occurring on rebound, even though it is essentially the same as hitting a small bump.
As mentioned hereinabove, in the case of a bicycle hitting a bump, rebound is considered to be when the wheel goes back down to the riding surface after a wheel has hit a bump, the shock absorber mechanism has been compressed as necessary, and the wheel has left the bump. If a bicycle, utilizing an embodiment of the present invention however, runs over a depression, or a hole, or runs off a curb, rebound can be considered to be very different.
As the bicycle would go over the edge of a hole, firstly, the wheel of the bicycle would drop, thus extending the shock absorber mechanism which would preferably absorb any impact as the wheel would hit the bottom of the hole; secondly, the bicycle wheel would come to, and hit, the opposite edge of the hole and cause the wheel, in this case, to move upward, or rebound; and thirdly, the bicycle would begin to return to normal operation as the shock absorber mechanism loses compression, or in other words, rebounds again.
The components disclosed in the various publications, disclosed or incorporated by reference herein, may be used in the embodiments of the present invention, as well as, equivalents thereof.
The appended drawings in their entirety, including all dimensions, proportions and/or shapes in at least one embodiment of the invention, are accurate and to scale and are hereby included by reference into this specification.
All, or substantially all, of the components and methods of the various embodiments may be used with at least one embodiment or all of the embodiments, if more than one embodiment is described herein.
All of the patents, patent applications and publications recited herein, and in the Declaration attached hereto, are hereby incorporated by reference as if set forth in their entirety herein.
The corresponding foreign patent publication applications, namely, Federal Republic of Germany Patent Application No. P 44 46 756.7, filed on Dec. 24, 1994, having inventors Wolfgang Zirk and Gerald Bischof, and DE-OS P 44 46 756.7 and DE-PS P 44 46 756.7, are hereby incorporated by reference as if set forth in their entirety herein.
The details in the patents, patent applications and publications may be considered to be incorporable, at applicant's option, into the claims during prosecution as further limitations in the claims to patentably distinguish any amended claims from any applied prior art.
The invention as described hereinabove in the context of the preferred embodiments is not to be taken as limited to all of the provided details thereof, since modifications and variations thereof may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. | A telescoping front fork of a bicycle which has a spring system which acts between an upper cylindrical housing and a lower cylindrical housing and includes at least one suspension spring, a supplemental spring and a spring in the rebound direction, each of which is made of a compressible elastic foamed, or expanded cellular elastomer. The spring constant of the supplemental spring is lower than that of the suspension spring. This arrangement has the advantage that acceleration peaks are reduced during the transition from a situation in which the two cylindrical houses are at rest and one in which the two cylindrical houses slide in relation to one another. The breakaway force is oriented to the weaker supplemental spring in connection with the rebound direction spring and as the support force increases, the suspension spring is compressed on a delayed basis, without any measurable additional breakaway force. | Provide a concise summary of the essential information conveyed in the context. | [
"BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1.",
"Field of the Invention The present invention generally relates to the construction of a spring system on a tubular leg of the front fork of a bicycle.",
"Background Information German Patent No. 94 00 166 describes a known shock absorber mechanism consisting of a combination of shock absorbing springs with rubber rings and a mounting block, whereby the damping takes place by means of the friction against the cylindrical inner part which carries a friction lining.",
"The absence of damping fluid simplifies the system, but it may have disadvantages in terms of breakaway force and damping.",
"OBJECT OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to create a spring system for installation in a tubular leg on a telescoping front fork for bicycles, which spring system can preferably improve the ride comfort, in particular in the range of small spring travels, by means of a soft response of the spring system and low breakaway forces.",
"SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention teaches that this object can be accomplished, in accordance with at least one preferred embodiment, by a spring system comprising at least one suspension spring, at least one guide ring, at least one cage, and at least one supplemental spring, whereby the suspension springs and the cage are located one behind the other with bias between the bias screw and a stop ring in the upper cylindrical housing, and whereby the supplemental spring, when it is uncoupled from the bias of the suspension springs, creates the active connection to the lower cylindrical housing as a compression spring.",
"Other advantageous refinements of the present invention are disclosed herebelow.",
"When the word "invention"",
"is used in this specification, the word "invention"",
"includes "inventions", that is, the plural of "invention".",
"By stating "invention", the Applicants do not in any way admit that the present application does not include more than one patentably and non-obviously distinct invention, and maintains that this application may include more than one patentably and non-obviously distinct invention.",
"The Applicants hereby assert that the disclosure of this application may include more than one invention, and, in the event that there is more than one invention, that these inventions may be patentable and non-obvious one with respect to the other.",
"In summary, one aspect of the present invention resides broadly in a bicycle comprising: a front wheel hub on which there is rotationally mounted a front wheel;",
"a frame including a front fork structure comprising two legs and a bridge connecting the two legs;",
"the front fork structure comprising at least one tubular leg, the at least one tubular leg comprising: an upper cylindrical housing connected to the bridge;",
"a lower cylindrical housing;",
"the upper cylindrical housing and the lower cylindrical housing being coaxially oriented with respect to one another to retract and extend one within the other;",
"spring means;",
"the spring means comprising upper spring means and lower spring means;",
"the lower spring means operatively connecting the upper cylindrical housing and the lower cylindrical housing;",
"the lower spring means being disposed to prevent the upper cylindrical housing and the lower cylindrical housing from moving apart and extending from one another excessively on rebound;",
"the upper spring means comprising compression spring means being disposed in the upper cylindrical housing;",
"an additional spring;",
"the additional spring being disposed between the upper spring means and the lower spring means;",
"and an additional hollow cylindrically shaped member being disposed within at least one of the upper and the lower cylindrical housing;",
"the additional hollow cylindrical member being substantially closed upwardly;",
"and the additional spring being disposed within the additional hollow cylindrical member.",
"Another aspect of the present invention resides broadly in a bicycle front fork structure comprising two legs and a bridge connecting the two legs;",
"the front fork structure comprising at least one tubular leg, the at least one tubular leg comprising: an upper cylindrical housing connected to the bridge;",
"a lower cylindrical housing;",
"the upper cylindrical housing and the lower cylindrical housing being coaxially oriented with respect to one another to retract and extend one within the other;",
"spring means;",
"the spring means comprising upper spring means and lower spring means;",
"the lower spring means operatively connecting the upper cylindrical housing and the lower cylindrical housing;",
"the lower spring means being disposed to prevent the upper cylindrical housing and the lower cylindrical housing from moving apart and extending from one another excessively on rebound;",
"the upper spring means comprising compression spring means being disposed in the upper cylindrical housing;",
"an additional spring;",
"the additional spring being disposed between the upper spring means and the lower spring means;",
"and an additional hollow cylindrically shaped member being disposed within at least one of the upper and the lower cylindrical housing;",
"the additional hollow cylindrical member being substantially closed upwardly;",
"and the additional spring being disposed within the additional hollow cylindrical member.",
"An additional aspect of the present invention resides broadly in a tubular leg of a front fork of a bicycle, comprising: an upper cylindrical housing connected to a bridge;",
"a bias screw which forms the upper closure of the upper cylindrical housing and can be screwed to a greater or lesser depth into the upper cylindrical housing;",
"a lower cylindrical housing with a support tube which is oriented coaxially with this cylindrical housing;",
"at least one sliding ring;",
"a spring between the upper cylindrical housing and the lower cylindrical housing, which spring acts in the rebound direction;",
"and a spring system, characterized by the fact that the spring system includes at least one suspension spring, at least one guide ring, at least one cage, and at least one supplemental spring, whereby the suspension springs and the cage are located one behind the other with bias between the bias screw and a stop ring in the upper cylindrical housing, and whereby the supplemental spring, when it is uncoupled from the bias of the suspension springs, creates the active connection to the lower cylindrical housing as a compression spring.",
"BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 schematically illustrates one embodiment of a tubular leg of a telescoping front fork for bicycles, showing an upper and lower cylindrical housing which are biased in relation to one another by means of a spring system;",
"FIG. 2 is a diagram of a bicycle from a side view, showing various components of one embodiment of the present invention;",
"and FIG. 2a is a diagram of a bicycle from a front view illustrating various components of one embodiment of the present invention.",
"DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT As illustrated in FIG. 1, the complete tubular leg 1 of a telescoping front fork for bicycles can comprise an upper cylindrical housing 2 and a lower cylindrical housing 8, whereby a telescoping front fork can comprise two such tubular legs 1 which can be connected to one another by means of a bridge 18.",
"The bridge 18 can preferably be connected to the frame of the bicycle and thus to the unsuspended part of the bicycle.",
"The two cylindrical housings 2 and 8 can be partly inserted coaxially inside one another and can be displaced with respect to one another.",
"At least one friction bearing that includes sliding rings 17 can essentially guarantee low friction during such movements.",
"The sliding rings 17 in this embodiment can be non-detachably connected to the outer cylindrical surface 7 of the upper cylindrical housing 2, and may slide over an inner cylindrical surface 9 in the lower cylindrical housing 8, whereby attention essentially must be paid to selecting a good friction pair with regard to the materials of which the friction partners are made, as well as good surface characteristics of the inner cylindrical surface 9.",
"Preferably inside the first cylindrical housing 2, there can be a spring system which comprises at least one suspension spring 14 and an additional spring or supplemental spring 19.",
"The suspension springs 14 and the supplemental spring 19 can be located in series one above the other, and preferably comprise a compressible elastic foamed, or expanded cellular elastomer, whereby the spring constant of the supplemental spring 19 is preferably lower than the spring constant of the suspension springs 14.",
"The lower cylindrical housing 8, in addition to having an eye 12 for fastening the axle of a front wheel of a bicycle, can have a support tube 10 which can be provided on the upper end with a stop collar 11, which stop collar 11 can preferably act as an axial support for the supplemental spring 19.",
"The support springs 14 can lie essentially concentric to one another, whereby they can be held in their position, both with respect to one another and with respect to an inner cylindrical surface 6 of the upper cylindrical housing 2, by means of a guide ring 15.",
"The guide rings 15 can be made of a plastic material, and when necessary, preferably slide essentially without major resistance on the inner cylindrical surface 6.",
"As an abutment for the bias forces from the suspension springs 14 of the spring system, a stop ring 5 can be connected with the upper cylindrical housing 2, whereby the stop ring 5 can be used to establish the rest position by way of a rebound-direction spring 13 positioned against the stop collar 11.",
"Between the supplemental spring 19 and the suspension springs 14 there can be an additional hollow cylindrically shaped member or cage 16 which could preferably have a tubular extension 20 to create the proper bias conditions.",
"The cage 16 can be in contact under bias with its ring-shaped terminal surface and by means of a soft stop 21 against the stop ring 5.",
"This bias can preferably be generated by the suspension springs 14 which can be supported on the axially opposite side on a bias screw 3.",
"The supplemental spring 19 could work against this force direction, since the supplemental spring 19 can be supported against the support tube 10 and engaged on the other side of the cage 16.",
"At rest, the force of the supplemental spring 19 can be lower than that of the suspension springs 14 on account of the lower bias and the lower spring constant, a situation which can be achieved by means of the design of the springs 19 and 14, but above all by preferably selecting the appropriate length of the tubular extension 20.",
"The bias screw 3 can be screwed at different depths into the upper cylindrical housing 2, as a result of which the bias of the suspension springs 14 can be adjusted, within limits.",
"In accordance with at least one preferred embodiment of the present invention, if the bicycle is ridden over a road which has uneven spots of low height, the supplemental spring 19 is compressed during deflection, whereby the upper cylindrical housing 2 and the lower cylindrical housing 8 are pushed into one another, and the stop collar 11 breaks away from its biased position with respect to the stop ring 5 and the rebound-direction spring 13.",
"At the low spring travels of the spring systems described above, the suspension springs 14 essentially would not be used, and the tubular extension 20 of the cage 16 would essentially remain in place with respect to the stop ring 5.",
"In accordance with at least one preferred embodiment of the present invention, the supplemental spring 19 is compressed to its block length only in the event of longer spring travels when the bicycle is ridden over much rougher roads, and force is transmitted from the supplemental spring 19 to the guide cage 16, which then preferably breaks away from its position defined by the tubular extension 20, when the bias force generated by the suspension springs 14 is exceeded by the carrying force.",
"Then the suspension springs 14 can be compressed except for the spring travel, which could mark the upper culmination point of the force curve or the maximum possible compressibility of the suspension springs 14.",
"If the force generated by the uneven spots in the road decreases, first the tubular extension 20 is preferably pushed until it comes into contact with the stop ring 5 and then the stop collar 11 can come into contact with the stop ring 5 by means of the rebound-direction spring 13.",
"In other words, as the bicycle would travel over rougher terrain, the supplemental spring 19 can be compressed to a point where it may not be able to be compressed further.",
"Force can then be transmitted by way of the guide cage 16 to the suspension springs 14.",
"In accordance with at least one embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 1 could be considered to represent, essentially, a moment in time in the operation of a tubular leg 1 according to the present invention.",
"As the front wheel of the bicycle encounters a bump in a road surface, the bicycle can essentially maintain momentum and direction.",
"When the bicycle initially hits the bump, the bump can cause the front wheel of the bicycle to force the lower cylindrical housing 8 upward by way of the fastening eye 12 connection to the axle of the front wheel.",
"This upward movement of the lower cylindrical housing 8 can cause compression of the supplemental spring 19 and possibly also of the suspension spring 14.",
"The bicycle wheel then travels to the other side of the bump, and in doing so, the front wheel of the bicycle can return to a preferably normal road surface.",
"At this point, the lower cylindrical housing 8, by way of fastening eye 12, begins to return to an essentially normal position.",
"In a moment of operation of a tubular leg 1 according to one embodiment of the present invention, the supplemental spring 19 can be released, or uncoupled from the bias of the suspension springs 14.",
"As can be seen in FIG. 1, the lower cylindrical housing 8 can move downward as the front wheel of the bicycle returns to an essentially normal operating position after a bump.",
"A gap 11a can essentially occur at that moment between the supplemental spring 19 and the combined stop collar 11 and support tube 10.",
"In the final moment of return of the tubular leg 1 to normal operating position, the cage 16 and the supplemental spring 19 can then move downward making an active connection, by compression, with the lower cylindrical housing 8 by way of the supplemental spring 19.",
"The compression, or the extra compression provided by the bump on the suspension springs 14 is essentially released and the supplemental spring 19, again, is not in a relationship of direct compression contact with respect to the suspension springs 14.",
"To center all the elements which participate in the spring system, a centrally-located guide rod 4 can preferably extend from the bias screw 3 into the interior of the support tube 10.",
"The use of a lubricant can be advantageous, e.g. shock absorber oil, which can preferably improve the mobility of all the elements which would participate in the spring system.",
"The above-mentioned adjustability of the load bearing capacity of the spring system as a result of the bias screw 3, which can be screwed to different depths, can create a bias range of the suspension springs 14 which can be expanded even further by replacing the suspension springs 14 and using springs which have higher or lower spring constants.",
"It has been shown that it can be advantageous, for drivers of different weights, to provide several sets of suspension springs 14 which have different spring constants, to achieve a comparably comfortable ride.",
"FIG. 2 illustrates, in accordance with at least one embodiment of the present invention, a bicycle from a side view showing a tubular leg 1'",
"of a bicycle.",
"This drawing illustrates a connection of the tubular leg 1'",
"by means of an eye 12'",
"to an axle 24'",
"of a front wheel 25'",
"of a bicycle.",
"FIG. 2a, in accordance with at least one embodiment of the present invention, illustrates the front assembly 24"",
"of a bicycle from a front view.",
"This illustration shows a bridge 18"",
"connecting the two tubular legs 26".",
"Also shown are the upper cylindrical housing 2"",
"and the lower cylindrical housing 8"",
"of the tubular legs 26".",
"One feature of the invention resides broadly in the tubular leg of a front fork of a bicycle, comprising an upper cylindrical housing connected to a bridge, a bias screw which forms the upper closure of the upper cylindrical housing and can be screwed to a greater or lesser depth into the upper cylindrical housing, a lower cylindrical housing with a support tube which is oriented coaxially with this cylindrical housing, at least one sliding ring, a spring between the upper cylindrical housing and the lower cylindrical housing, which spring acts in the rebound direction, and a spring system, characterized by the fact that the spring system includes at least one suspension spring, at least one guide ring, at least one cage and at least one supplemental spring, whereby the suspension springs and the cage are located one behind the other with bias between the bias screw and a stop ring in the upper cylindrical housing, and whereby the supplemental spring, when it is uncoupled from the bias of the suspension springs, creates the active connection to the lower cylindrical housing as a compression spring.",
"Another feature of the invention resides broadly in the tubular leg characterized by the fact that the suspension springs, the supplemental spring and the rebound direction spring consist of a compressible elastic foamed, or expanded cellular elastomer.",
"Yet another feature of the invention resides broadly in the tubular leg characterized by the fact that the spring constant of the supplemental spring is less than the spring constant of the suspension springs.",
"Still another feature of the invention resides broadly in the tubular leg characterized by the fact that the mobility of the spring system is increased by a lubricant.",
"A further feature of the invention resides broadly in the tubular leg characterized by the fact that the cage has a tubular extension which separates the bias of the suspension springs and the bias of the supplemental spring.",
"Another feature of the invention resides broadly in the tubular leg characterized by the fact that the design of the spring system can be varied as a function of higher or lower vehicle weights by the selection of suspension springs which have higher or lower spring constants.",
"Examples of bicycles, and components thereof, in which the embodiments of the present invention may be employed, may be found in the following U.S. patents: U.S. Pat. No. 5,324,059, which issued to Bryne on Jun. 28, 1994;",
"No. 5,312,125 which issued to Tse-acu-a-o-shu on May 17, 1994;",
"No. 5,242,182, which issued to Bezerra et al.",
"on Sep. 7, 1993;",
"and No. 5,240,268, which issued to Allsop et al.",
"on Aug. 31, 1993.",
"Examples of materials which could possibly be used in conjunction with the embodiments of the present invention as set forth hereabove can possibly be found in the following U.S. patents: U.S. Pat. No. 4,932,637 which issued to Jarret on Jun. 12, 1990;",
"and U.S. Pat. No. 5,014,967 which issued to Wolf and Pletsch on May 14, 1991.",
"Examples of types of materials, with various coefficients of friction, which could possibly be used in conjunction with the embodiments of the present invention as set forth hereinabove can possibly be found in the following U.S. patents: U.S. Pat. No. 4,703,075 issued Oct. 27, 1987 to Egami;",
"No. RE32,514 (Reissue of U.S. Pat. No. 4,473,676) issued Oct. 6, 1987 to Steklenski;",
"and No. 4,714,740 issued Dec. 22, 1987 to Lee and Golden.",
"Examples of types of lubricants which could possibly be used in conjunction with the embodiments of the present invention as set forth hereabove can possibly be found in the following U.S. patents: U.S. Pat. No. 4,372,863 which issued to Elliott et al.",
"on Feb. 8, 1983;",
"No. 4,376,711 which issued to Shaub on Mar. 15, 1983;",
"and No. 4,459,223 which issued to Shaub et al.",
"on Jul. 10, 1984.",
"Examples of types of elastomeric materials, types of elastomeric springs, and components thereof, which could possibly be used in conjunction with the embodiments of the present invention as set forth hereinabove can possibly be found in the following U.S. patents: U.S. Pat. No. 4,369,284 which issued to Chen on Jan. 18, 1983;",
"No. 5,192,057 which issued to Wydra and Geick on Mar. 9, 1993;",
"and No. 5,351,844 which issued to Carlstedt on Jun. 1, 1994.",
"In general, a rebound is usually considered to be the recovery of an entity, or a system which has had a setback, or been struck in some manner.",
"In the case of a bicycle, the rebound of a bicycle wheel is generally considered to be when the wheel of the bicycle is recovering from hitting a bump and the wheel is returning to a relatively normal operational condition involving a relatively smooth riding surface.",
"In the case of a bicycle utilizing an embodiment of a shock absorber mechanism, such as that of the present invention, the original force of hitting a bump is damped by the mechanism;",
"additionally, as the mehcanism is recovering from the bump, or rebounding, it may be necessary to employ a spring in the mechanism to damp what could be considered excessive rebound.",
"A rebound-direction spring employed in a bicycle shock absorber mechanism can make a bumpy ride more comfortable.",
"A rebound could also be considered to be the reaction of the bicycle after it has recovered from a bump and is returning to smooth riding operation.",
"In other words, first of all the bicycle would hit the bump and the shock absorber mechanism would be compressed;",
"secondly, as the wheel has gone over the bump, the shock absorber mechanism can be somewhat extended as the wheel begins the return to the riding surface;",
"and thirdly, there can be an essentially very minor bump, as the shock absorber mechanism again is essentially slightly compressed, if the original bump was somewhat large.",
"This slight, or secondary compression, may in this case be considered as occurring on rebound, even though it is essentially the same as hitting a small bump.",
"As mentioned hereinabove, in the case of a bicycle hitting a bump, rebound is considered to be when the wheel goes back down to the riding surface after a wheel has hit a bump, the shock absorber mechanism has been compressed as necessary, and the wheel has left the bump.",
"If a bicycle, utilizing an embodiment of the present invention however, runs over a depression, or a hole, or runs off a curb, rebound can be considered to be very different.",
"As the bicycle would go over the edge of a hole, firstly, the wheel of the bicycle would drop, thus extending the shock absorber mechanism which would preferably absorb any impact as the wheel would hit the bottom of the hole;",
"secondly, the bicycle wheel would come to, and hit, the opposite edge of the hole and cause the wheel, in this case, to move upward, or rebound;",
"and thirdly, the bicycle would begin to return to normal operation as the shock absorber mechanism loses compression, or in other words, rebounds again.",
"The components disclosed in the various publications, disclosed or incorporated by reference herein, may be used in the embodiments of the present invention, as well as, equivalents thereof.",
"The appended drawings in their entirety, including all dimensions, proportions and/or shapes in at least one embodiment of the invention, are accurate and to scale and are hereby included by reference into this specification.",
"All, or substantially all, of the components and methods of the various embodiments may be used with at least one embodiment or all of the embodiments, if more than one embodiment is described herein.",
"All of the patents, patent applications and publications recited herein, and in the Declaration attached hereto, are hereby incorporated by reference as if set forth in their entirety herein.",
"The corresponding foreign patent publication applications, namely, Federal Republic of Germany Patent Application No. P 44 46 756.7, filed on Dec. 24, 1994, having inventors Wolfgang Zirk and Gerald Bischof, and DE-OS P 44 46 756.7 and DE-PS P 44 46 756.7, are hereby incorporated by reference as if set forth in their entirety herein.",
"The details in the patents, patent applications and publications may be considered to be incorporable, at applicant's option, into the claims during prosecution as further limitations in the claims to patentably distinguish any amended claims from any applied prior art.",
"The invention as described hereinabove in the context of the preferred embodiments is not to be taken as limited to all of the provided details thereof, since modifications and variations thereof may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention."
] |
CROSS REFERENCES TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
This application claims the benefit of priority from commonly owned U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 60/241,757, filed Oct. 16, 2000, entitled ADAPTIVE USER. TRAINING FOR SPEECH RECOGNITION APPLICATION, and is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/978,611 filed Oct. 16, 2001 now abandoned.
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates generally to a method of and system for providing adaptive respondent training in a speech recognition algorithm, and more particularly to a method of and system for determining the level of understanding and capability of a respondent to a telephonic speech recognition application, and both providing specific instructions to the respondent regarding the application and adapting the application to suit the capabilities of the respondent.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
In the new, connected economy, it has become increasingly important for companies or service providers to become more in tune with their clients and customers. Such contact can be facilitated with automated telephonic transaction systems, in which interactively-generated prompts are played in the context of a telephone transaction, and the replies of a human user are recognized by an automatic speech recognition system. The answers given by the respondent are processed by the system in order to convert the spoken words to meaning, which can then be utilized interactively, or stored in a database.
In order for a computer system to recognize the words that are spoken and convert these words to text, the system must be programmed to phonetically break down the words and convert portions of the words to their textural equivalents. Such a conversion requires an understanding of the components of speech and the formation of the spoken word. The production of speech generates a complex series of rapidly changing acoustic pressure waveforms. These waveforms comprise the basic building blocks of speech, known as phonemes. Vowel and consonant sounds are made up of phonemes and have many different characteristics, depending on which components of human speech are used. The position of a phoneme in a word has a significant effect on the ultimate sound generated. A spoken word can have several meanings, depending on how it is said. Speech scientists have identified allophones as acoustic variants of phonemes and use them to more explicitly define how a particular word is formed.
While there are several distinct methods for analyzing the spoken word and extracting the information necessary to enable the recognition system to convert the speech to word-strings, including Hidden Markov modeling and neural networks, these methods generally perform similar operations. The differences in these methods are typically in the manner in which the system determines how to break the phonetic signal into portions that define phonemes. Generally, a speech recognition system first converts an incoming analog voice signal into a digital signal. The second step is called feature extraction, wherein the system analyzes the digital signal to identify the acoustic properties of the digitized signal. Feature extraction generally breaks the voice down into its individual sound components. Conventional techniques for performing feature extraction include subband coding Fast Fourier Transforms and Linear Predictive Coding. Once the signal has been analyzed, the system then determines where distinct acoustic regions occur. The goal of this step is to divide the acoustic signal into regions that will be identified as phonemes which can be converted to a textual format. In isolated word systems, this process is simplified, because there is a pause after each word. In continuous speech systems, however, this process is much more difficult, since there typically are no breaks between words in the acoustic stream. Accordingly, the system must be able not only to break the words themselves into distinct acoustic regions, but must also be able to separate consecutive words in the stream. It is in this step that conventional methods such as Hidden Markov modeling and neural networks are used. The final step involves comparing a specific acoustic region, as determined in the previous step, to a known set of templates in a database in order to determine the word or word portion represented by the acoustic signal region. If a match is found, the resulting textual word is output from the system. If one is not, the signal can either be dynamically manipulated in order to increase the chances of finding a match, or the data can be discarded and the system prompted to repeat the query to the respondent, if the associated answer cannot be determined due to the loss of the data.
In customer service applications, it is important for service providers to be able to obtain information from, or to provide information to, their customers. Oftentimes, service providers will need to contact customers via the telephone to obtain or provide the desired information. In order to reduce the costs associated with such information exchanges, many service providers utilize automated telephone calling devices to contact customers. While the automated telephone calling devices are extremely capable of converting spoken words into text phrases and thereby obtaining valuable information from respondents, in some cases, the respondents are not capable of providing adequate responses to the posed questions, or do not understand what is involved in an automated telephonic application. Prior art speech recognition applications are not able to identify that the respondent is having trouble with the application and then adjust the application accordingly. This results in wasted time and money for the company in charge of the survey and in frustration on the part of the respondent.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention is directed to a method for adaptive training of a respondent to a telephonic speech recognition application. The method is used in connection with the speech recognition application to enable the administrator of the application to explain the function of the application, to train the respondent in how to effectively respond to the queries in the application and to adapt the application to the needs of the respondent, based on the initial responses given by the respondent.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
The foregoing and other objects of this invention, the various features thereof, as well as the invention itself may be more fully understood from the following description when read together with the accompanying drawings in which:
FIG. 1 is a schematic block diagram of the system for providing adaptive respondent training in accordance with the present invention;
FIG. 2 is a flow diagram of a method for providing adaptive respondent training in accordance with the present invention; and
FIGS. 3A-3C are flow diagrams showing an example of the instruction stage of the present invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
As set forth above, many customer-oriented organizations, including retail operations, service organizations, health care organizations, etc. rely on interactions with their customers in order to obtain valuable information that will enable the organizations to optimize their operations and to provide better service to the customers. Telephonic speech recognition applications, in which specific prompts about the organization's products or services, enable the organizations to obtain information from customers in a manner which consumes very little time and which does not require repeat visits to the organization's location. For many organizations, these types of interactions are much less troublesome for customers who might have difficulties in traveling.
While speech recognition applications can be an extremely efficient way to gather information from respondents, if the respondent is not able to respond to the prompts of the survey or does not understand the survey process or how to respond to certain types of queries, the process can be frustrating for respondent, thus inhibiting future interactions with the respondent, and the process can be costly and time consuming for the organization providing the service.
The present invention includes a method and system for determining whether a respondent is capable of responding to the prompts in a telephonic speech recognition application and what extra explanations or instructions, with modified application functionality, might be required to assist the respondent in completing the application. The method is incorporated into the application, and responses to introductory prompts of the application direct the application to present prompts to the respondent that will enable the respondent to learn how to correctly complete the application.
Referring now to FIGS. 1-3 , a preferred embodiment of the present invention will be described. System 12 , FIG. 1 , includes an automated telephone calling system 14 and a speech recognition system 16 . Preferably, the automated telephone calling system 14 is a personal computer such as an IBM PC or IBM PC compatible system or an APPLE MacINTOSH system or a more advanced computer system such as an Alpha-based computer system available from Compaq Computer Corporation or SPARC Station computer system available from SUN Microsystems Corporation, although a main frame computer system can also be used. In such a system, all of the components of the system will reside on the computer system, thus enabling the system to independently process data received from a respondent in the manner described below. Alternatively, the components may be included in different systems that have access to each other via a LAN or similar network. For example, the automated telephone calling device 14 may reside on a server system which receives the audio response from a telephone 18 and transmits the response to the speech recognition device 16 .
The automated telephone calling system 14 may also include a network interface that facilitates receipt of audio information by any of a variety of networks, such as telephone networks, cellular telephone networks, the Web, Internet, local area networks (LANs), wide area networks (WANs), private networks, virtual private networks (VPNs), intranets, extranets, wireless networks, and the like, or some combination thereof. The system 10 may be accessible by any one or more of a variety of input devices capable of communicating audio information. Such devices may include, but are not limited to, a standard telephone or cellular telephone 18 .
Automated telephone calling system 14 includes a database of persons to whom the system 12 is capable of initiating or receiving telephone calls, referred to hereinafter as the “target person”, a telephone number associated with each person and a recorded data file that includes the target person's name. Such automated telephone calling devices are known in the art. As is described below, the automated telephone calling system 14 is capable of initiating or receiving a telephone call to or from a target person and playing a prerecorded greeting prompt asking for the target person. The system 14 then interacts with speech recognition system 16 to analyze responses received from the person on telephone 18 .
Speech recognition system 16 is an automated system on which a speech recognition application, including a series of acoustic outputs called prompts, which comprise queries about a particular topic, are programmed so that they can be presented to a respondent, preferably by means of a telephonic interaction between the querying party and the respondent. However, a speech recognition application may be any interactive application that collects, provides, and/or shares information. As examples, in the present invention, a speech application may be any of a group of interactive applications, including consumer service or survey applications; Web access applications; customer service applications; educational applications, including computer-based learning and lesson applications and testing applications; screening applications; consumer preference monitoring applications; compliance applications, including applications that generate notifications of compliance related activities, including notifications regarding product maintenance; test result applications, including applications that provide at least one of standardized tests results, consumer product test results, and maintenance results; and linking applications, including applications that link two or more of the above applications.
In the preferred embodiment, each speech recognition application includes an application file programmed into the speech recognition system 16 . Preferably, the series of queries that make up the application is designed to obtain specific information from the respondents to aid in customer or consumer service, education and research and development of particular products or services or other functions. For example, a particular speech application could be designed to ask respondents specific queries about a particular product or service. The entity that issues the application may then use this information to further develop the particular product or service. An application may also be used to provide specific information to a particular person or department.
FIG. 2 is a flow diagram which shows the method of adapting a speech recognition application and training a speech recognition application respondent in order to enable the respondent to effectively complete the application. First, either the automatic calling system 14 initiates a call to the target person at telephone 18 , or the target person initiates a telephone call to the system 12 based on information provided to the respondent by the organization providing the application. The system 12 initiates the application by providing an introduction to the respondent, stage 22 . The introduction generally identifies the host organization and informs the respondent of the purpose of the application.
In stage 24 , the system 12 provides a brief explanation of the application, including the fact that the respondent is speaking to a computer that is only capable of posing queries, recognizing certain of the respondent's responses The system then prompts the respondent to affirm that he or she understands how to interact with the system 12 . This prompt enables the system 12 to determine if the respondent is capable of interacting with an automated speech recognition system. Based on the response given, the system determines which step will be executed next. If the respondent replies quickly with a “yes” or some similar affirmation, the system may move on to the identification check, stage 26 , in which the respondent is asked to provide identification, typically in the form of a personal identification number (PIN), voice verification, or other method. While the use of a PIN is desirable in application surveys that address private matters concerning the respondent, the use of a PIN is not required in the present invention.
If the respondent answers “no” or does not respond to the affirmation request in stage 24 , the system 12 explains in greater detail how the system operates. The system prompts the respondent to answer “Hello” to a similar greeting offered by the system, as a training exercise for the respondent. If the respondent replies correctly, the system can repeat the explanation of the system and proceed to the identification stage 26 . If the respondent is does not reply to the greeting request or replies with a reply that is not understood by the system 12 , the system can initiate several more attempts at, and approaches to trying to explain the process to the respondent, including attempting to determine whether the respondent is having difficulty hearing the application, in which the system 12 would be instructed to increase the volume of the prompts and/or to slow the speed at which the prompts are played by the system 12 . If the system is unable to teach the respondent how to respond to the application, the system enters an end call stage 25 , in which the respondent is thanked and optionally informed that they will be contacted by a human being, and the call is terminated.
In optional identification stage 26 , the respondent is asked for identification, which in one example may include a PIN. If the PIN is correctly input either by speaking the numbers or by pressing the number on the telephone keypad, the application moves to the instruction step 28 . If the respondent enters an incorrect PIN or does not know his or her PIN, the system enters an end call stage 25 , in which the respondent is thanked and optionally informed how they can obtain a proper PIN, and the call is terminated.
After the identity of the respondent has been confirmed in step 26 , the system enters instruction stage 28 . In instruction stage 28 , the system 12 explains the purpose of the application and the benefits provided by the application. The system 12 explains the structure of the application and informs the respondent of what types of answers are necessary for the application to be successful. The system 12 can then provide a sample prompt to the respondent in order to prepare the respondent for what to expect during the actual application. If the survey includes a rating system, it is explained in this stage and the sample question can require an answer that uses the rating system. An example of this process in shown in FIGS. 3A-3C , which include an example question and the options available, depending on the responses given. If, in this stage, the respondent is unable to answer the sample prompt satisfactorily, the system enters an end call stage 25 , in which the respondent is thanked and optionally informed that they will be contacted by a human being, and the call is terminated.
After stage 28 has been completed satisfactorily, the system enters stage 30 , in which the prompts of the application are presented to the respondent. At any point during stage 30 , if the respondent does not understand the process or becomes confused by the application, prompts or rating system, the system 12 can re-enter either or both of explanation stage 24 and instruction stage 28 to provide help for the respondent, as necessary. The system 12 , when appropriate, can then return to survey stage 30 to complete the application. During the application, the system records each of the responses provided by the respondent for review at a later time.
At the completion of the application, the system enters a “wrap up” stage 32 in which the respondent is informed that the survey is over and is thanked by the host organization for participating in the application. Application feedback stage 34 provides an opportunity for the respondent to have his or her comments regarding the application itself or regarding the speech recognition application system recorded for review by the host organization.
Accordingly, the present invention enables the system 12 both to train the respondent in properly responding to the prompts of the associated application and to alter the course of the application based on responses to introductory and explanatory prompts. For example, if the respondent, from the beginning of the call, understands the application process and is capable of responding to the prompts, the explanation stage 24 and instruction stage 28 can be quickly navigated through, saving time and money for the host organization, since more respondents can be processed in a given period of time. On the other hand, if the respondent is having difficulty understanding or hearing the system 12 , the system is able to offer further explanations, training and sample prompts and, if the person is still not able to complete the survey, the system 12 is able to terminate the application.
The invention may be embodied in other specific forms without departing from the spirit or essential characteristics thereof. The present embodiments are therefore to be considered in respects as illustrative and not restrictive, the scope of the invention being indicated by the appended claims rather than by the foregoing description, and all changes which come within the meaning and range of the equivalency of the claims are therefore intended to be embraced therein. | A system for conducting a telephonic speech recognition application includes an automated telephone device for making telephonic contact with a respondent and a speech recognition device which, upon the telephonic contact being made, presents the respondent with at least one introductory prompt for the respondent to reply to; receives a spoken response from the respondent; and performs a speech recognition analysis on the spoken response to determine a capability of the respondent to complete the application. If the speech recognition device, based on the spoken response to the introductory prompt, determines that the respondent is capable of competing the application, the speech recognition device presents at least one application prompt to the respondent. If the speech recognition device, based on the spoken response to the introductory prompt, determines that the respondent is not capable of completing the application, the speech recognition system presents instructions on completing the application to the respondent. | Briefly summarize the invention's components and working principles as described in the document. | [
"CROSS REFERENCES TO RELATED APPLICATIONS This application claims the benefit of priority from commonly owned U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser.",
"No. 60/241,757, filed Oct. 16, 2000, entitled ADAPTIVE USER.",
"TRAINING FOR SPEECH RECOGNITION APPLICATION, and is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser.",
"No. 09/978,611 filed Oct. 16, 2001 now abandoned.",
"FIELD OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates generally to a method of and system for providing adaptive respondent training in a speech recognition algorithm, and more particularly to a method of and system for determining the level of understanding and capability of a respondent to a telephonic speech recognition application, and both providing specific instructions to the respondent regarding the application and adapting the application to suit the capabilities of the respondent.",
"BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION In the new, connected economy, it has become increasingly important for companies or service providers to become more in tune with their clients and customers.",
"Such contact can be facilitated with automated telephonic transaction systems, in which interactively-generated prompts are played in the context of a telephone transaction, and the replies of a human user are recognized by an automatic speech recognition system.",
"The answers given by the respondent are processed by the system in order to convert the spoken words to meaning, which can then be utilized interactively, or stored in a database.",
"In order for a computer system to recognize the words that are spoken and convert these words to text, the system must be programmed to phonetically break down the words and convert portions of the words to their textural equivalents.",
"Such a conversion requires an understanding of the components of speech and the formation of the spoken word.",
"The production of speech generates a complex series of rapidly changing acoustic pressure waveforms.",
"These waveforms comprise the basic building blocks of speech, known as phonemes.",
"Vowel and consonant sounds are made up of phonemes and have many different characteristics, depending on which components of human speech are used.",
"The position of a phoneme in a word has a significant effect on the ultimate sound generated.",
"A spoken word can have several meanings, depending on how it is said.",
"Speech scientists have identified allophones as acoustic variants of phonemes and use them to more explicitly define how a particular word is formed.",
"While there are several distinct methods for analyzing the spoken word and extracting the information necessary to enable the recognition system to convert the speech to word-strings, including Hidden Markov modeling and neural networks, these methods generally perform similar operations.",
"The differences in these methods are typically in the manner in which the system determines how to break the phonetic signal into portions that define phonemes.",
"Generally, a speech recognition system first converts an incoming analog voice signal into a digital signal.",
"The second step is called feature extraction, wherein the system analyzes the digital signal to identify the acoustic properties of the digitized signal.",
"Feature extraction generally breaks the voice down into its individual sound components.",
"Conventional techniques for performing feature extraction include subband coding Fast Fourier Transforms and Linear Predictive Coding.",
"Once the signal has been analyzed, the system then determines where distinct acoustic regions occur.",
"The goal of this step is to divide the acoustic signal into regions that will be identified as phonemes which can be converted to a textual format.",
"In isolated word systems, this process is simplified, because there is a pause after each word.",
"In continuous speech systems, however, this process is much more difficult, since there typically are no breaks between words in the acoustic stream.",
"Accordingly, the system must be able not only to break the words themselves into distinct acoustic regions, but must also be able to separate consecutive words in the stream.",
"It is in this step that conventional methods such as Hidden Markov modeling and neural networks are used.",
"The final step involves comparing a specific acoustic region, as determined in the previous step, to a known set of templates in a database in order to determine the word or word portion represented by the acoustic signal region.",
"If a match is found, the resulting textual word is output from the system.",
"If one is not, the signal can either be dynamically manipulated in order to increase the chances of finding a match, or the data can be discarded and the system prompted to repeat the query to the respondent, if the associated answer cannot be determined due to the loss of the data.",
"In customer service applications, it is important for service providers to be able to obtain information from, or to provide information to, their customers.",
"Oftentimes, service providers will need to contact customers via the telephone to obtain or provide the desired information.",
"In order to reduce the costs associated with such information exchanges, many service providers utilize automated telephone calling devices to contact customers.",
"While the automated telephone calling devices are extremely capable of converting spoken words into text phrases and thereby obtaining valuable information from respondents, in some cases, the respondents are not capable of providing adequate responses to the posed questions, or do not understand what is involved in an automated telephonic application.",
"Prior art speech recognition applications are not able to identify that the respondent is having trouble with the application and then adjust the application accordingly.",
"This results in wasted time and money for the company in charge of the survey and in frustration on the part of the respondent.",
"SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention is directed to a method for adaptive training of a respondent to a telephonic speech recognition application.",
"The method is used in connection with the speech recognition application to enable the administrator of the application to explain the function of the application, to train the respondent in how to effectively respond to the queries in the application and to adapt the application to the needs of the respondent, based on the initial responses given by the respondent.",
"BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS The foregoing and other objects of this invention, the various features thereof, as well as the invention itself may be more fully understood from the following description when read together with the accompanying drawings in which: FIG. 1 is a schematic block diagram of the system for providing adaptive respondent training in accordance with the present invention;",
"FIG. 2 is a flow diagram of a method for providing adaptive respondent training in accordance with the present invention;",
"and FIGS. 3A-3C are flow diagrams showing an example of the instruction stage of the present invention.",
"DETAILED DESCRIPTION As set forth above, many customer-oriented organizations, including retail operations, service organizations, health care organizations, etc.",
"rely on interactions with their customers in order to obtain valuable information that will enable the organizations to optimize their operations and to provide better service to the customers.",
"Telephonic speech recognition applications, in which specific prompts about the organization's products or services, enable the organizations to obtain information from customers in a manner which consumes very little time and which does not require repeat visits to the organization's location.",
"For many organizations, these types of interactions are much less troublesome for customers who might have difficulties in traveling.",
"While speech recognition applications can be an extremely efficient way to gather information from respondents, if the respondent is not able to respond to the prompts of the survey or does not understand the survey process or how to respond to certain types of queries, the process can be frustrating for respondent, thus inhibiting future interactions with the respondent, and the process can be costly and time consuming for the organization providing the service.",
"The present invention includes a method and system for determining whether a respondent is capable of responding to the prompts in a telephonic speech recognition application and what extra explanations or instructions, with modified application functionality, might be required to assist the respondent in completing the application.",
"The method is incorporated into the application, and responses to introductory prompts of the application direct the application to present prompts to the respondent that will enable the respondent to learn how to correctly complete the application.",
"Referring now to FIGS. 1-3 , a preferred embodiment of the present invention will be described.",
"System 12 , FIG. 1 , includes an automated telephone calling system 14 and a speech recognition system 16 .",
"Preferably, the automated telephone calling system 14 is a personal computer such as an IBM PC or IBM PC compatible system or an APPLE MacINTOSH system or a more advanced computer system such as an Alpha-based computer system available from Compaq Computer Corporation or SPARC Station computer system available from SUN Microsystems Corporation, although a main frame computer system can also be used.",
"In such a system, all of the components of the system will reside on the computer system, thus enabling the system to independently process data received from a respondent in the manner described below.",
"Alternatively, the components may be included in different systems that have access to each other via a LAN or similar network.",
"For example, the automated telephone calling device 14 may reside on a server system which receives the audio response from a telephone 18 and transmits the response to the speech recognition device 16 .",
"The automated telephone calling system 14 may also include a network interface that facilitates receipt of audio information by any of a variety of networks, such as telephone networks, cellular telephone networks, the Web, Internet, local area networks (LANs), wide area networks (WANs), private networks, virtual private networks (VPNs), intranets, extranets, wireless networks, and the like, or some combination thereof.",
"The system 10 may be accessible by any one or more of a variety of input devices capable of communicating audio information.",
"Such devices may include, but are not limited to, a standard telephone or cellular telephone 18 .",
"Automated telephone calling system 14 includes a database of persons to whom the system 12 is capable of initiating or receiving telephone calls, referred to hereinafter as the “target person”, a telephone number associated with each person and a recorded data file that includes the target person's name.",
"Such automated telephone calling devices are known in the art.",
"As is described below, the automated telephone calling system 14 is capable of initiating or receiving a telephone call to or from a target person and playing a prerecorded greeting prompt asking for the target person.",
"The system 14 then interacts with speech recognition system 16 to analyze responses received from the person on telephone 18 .",
"Speech recognition system 16 is an automated system on which a speech recognition application, including a series of acoustic outputs called prompts, which comprise queries about a particular topic, are programmed so that they can be presented to a respondent, preferably by means of a telephonic interaction between the querying party and the respondent.",
"However, a speech recognition application may be any interactive application that collects, provides, and/or shares information.",
"As examples, in the present invention, a speech application may be any of a group of interactive applications, including consumer service or survey applications;",
"Web access applications;",
"customer service applications;",
"educational applications, including computer-based learning and lesson applications and testing applications;",
"screening applications;",
"consumer preference monitoring applications;",
"compliance applications, including applications that generate notifications of compliance related activities, including notifications regarding product maintenance;",
"test result applications, including applications that provide at least one of standardized tests results, consumer product test results, and maintenance results;",
"and linking applications, including applications that link two or more of the above applications.",
"In the preferred embodiment, each speech recognition application includes an application file programmed into the speech recognition system 16 .",
"Preferably, the series of queries that make up the application is designed to obtain specific information from the respondents to aid in customer or consumer service, education and research and development of particular products or services or other functions.",
"For example, a particular speech application could be designed to ask respondents specific queries about a particular product or service.",
"The entity that issues the application may then use this information to further develop the particular product or service.",
"An application may also be used to provide specific information to a particular person or department.",
"FIG. 2 is a flow diagram which shows the method of adapting a speech recognition application and training a speech recognition application respondent in order to enable the respondent to effectively complete the application.",
"First, either the automatic calling system 14 initiates a call to the target person at telephone 18 , or the target person initiates a telephone call to the system 12 based on information provided to the respondent by the organization providing the application.",
"The system 12 initiates the application by providing an introduction to the respondent, stage 22 .",
"The introduction generally identifies the host organization and informs the respondent of the purpose of the application.",
"In stage 24 , the system 12 provides a brief explanation of the application, including the fact that the respondent is speaking to a computer that is only capable of posing queries, recognizing certain of the respondent's responses The system then prompts the respondent to affirm that he or she understands how to interact with the system 12 .",
"This prompt enables the system 12 to determine if the respondent is capable of interacting with an automated speech recognition system.",
"Based on the response given, the system determines which step will be executed next.",
"If the respondent replies quickly with a “yes”",
"or some similar affirmation, the system may move on to the identification check, stage 26 , in which the respondent is asked to provide identification, typically in the form of a personal identification number (PIN), voice verification, or other method.",
"While the use of a PIN is desirable in application surveys that address private matters concerning the respondent, the use of a PIN is not required in the present invention.",
"If the respondent answers “no”",
"or does not respond to the affirmation request in stage 24 , the system 12 explains in greater detail how the system operates.",
"The system prompts the respondent to answer “Hello”",
"to a similar greeting offered by the system, as a training exercise for the respondent.",
"If the respondent replies correctly, the system can repeat the explanation of the system and proceed to the identification stage 26 .",
"If the respondent is does not reply to the greeting request or replies with a reply that is not understood by the system 12 , the system can initiate several more attempts at, and approaches to trying to explain the process to the respondent, including attempting to determine whether the respondent is having difficulty hearing the application, in which the system 12 would be instructed to increase the volume of the prompts and/or to slow the speed at which the prompts are played by the system 12 .",
"If the system is unable to teach the respondent how to respond to the application, the system enters an end call stage 25 , in which the respondent is thanked and optionally informed that they will be contacted by a human being, and the call is terminated.",
"In optional identification stage 26 , the respondent is asked for identification, which in one example may include a PIN.",
"If the PIN is correctly input either by speaking the numbers or by pressing the number on the telephone keypad, the application moves to the instruction step 28 .",
"If the respondent enters an incorrect PIN or does not know his or her PIN, the system enters an end call stage 25 , in which the respondent is thanked and optionally informed how they can obtain a proper PIN, and the call is terminated.",
"After the identity of the respondent has been confirmed in step 26 , the system enters instruction stage 28 .",
"In instruction stage 28 , the system 12 explains the purpose of the application and the benefits provided by the application.",
"The system 12 explains the structure of the application and informs the respondent of what types of answers are necessary for the application to be successful.",
"The system 12 can then provide a sample prompt to the respondent in order to prepare the respondent for what to expect during the actual application.",
"If the survey includes a rating system, it is explained in this stage and the sample question can require an answer that uses the rating system.",
"An example of this process in shown in FIGS. 3A-3C , which include an example question and the options available, depending on the responses given.",
"If, in this stage, the respondent is unable to answer the sample prompt satisfactorily, the system enters an end call stage 25 , in which the respondent is thanked and optionally informed that they will be contacted by a human being, and the call is terminated.",
"After stage 28 has been completed satisfactorily, the system enters stage 30 , in which the prompts of the application are presented to the respondent.",
"At any point during stage 30 , if the respondent does not understand the process or becomes confused by the application, prompts or rating system, the system 12 can re-enter either or both of explanation stage 24 and instruction stage 28 to provide help for the respondent, as necessary.",
"The system 12 , when appropriate, can then return to survey stage 30 to complete the application.",
"During the application, the system records each of the responses provided by the respondent for review at a later time.",
"At the completion of the application, the system enters a “wrap up”",
"stage 32 in which the respondent is informed that the survey is over and is thanked by the host organization for participating in the application.",
"Application feedback stage 34 provides an opportunity for the respondent to have his or her comments regarding the application itself or regarding the speech recognition application system recorded for review by the host organization.",
"Accordingly, the present invention enables the system 12 both to train the respondent in properly responding to the prompts of the associated application and to alter the course of the application based on responses to introductory and explanatory prompts.",
"For example, if the respondent, from the beginning of the call, understands the application process and is capable of responding to the prompts, the explanation stage 24 and instruction stage 28 can be quickly navigated through, saving time and money for the host organization, since more respondents can be processed in a given period of time.",
"On the other hand, if the respondent is having difficulty understanding or hearing the system 12 , the system is able to offer further explanations, training and sample prompts and, if the person is still not able to complete the survey, the system 12 is able to terminate the application.",
"The invention may be embodied in other specific forms without departing from the spirit or essential characteristics thereof.",
"The present embodiments are therefore to be considered in respects as illustrative and not restrictive, the scope of the invention being indicated by the appended claims rather than by the foregoing description, and all changes which come within the meaning and range of the equivalency of the claims are therefore intended to be embraced therein."
] |
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
This invention relates to systems and methods for producing medical devices.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Many indwelling medical devices have a hollow portion. For example, stents are hollow devices that are inserted into body ducts for preventing narrowing of the duct lumen, for tutoring a dilated lumen or for acting as a substrate for tissue growth. As another example, a catheter may have a hollow portion that may serve to transfer a fluid from outside the body to a body cavity, or for draining fluid from a body cavity. As yet another example, an artificial blood vessel valve has a casing enclosing a space through which blood flows.
International Patent Publication WO03/099166 discloses an indwelling unravable medical device having a hollow portion, such as a stent. The device has a generally helical seam which is a weakened region in the wall of the device. When it is desirable to remove the indwelling device from the body, an end of the device is grasped and pulled. As the end is pulled, the seam splits so that the device is removed as a slender strip of material.
U.S. Pat. No. 8,119,151 to Heidner et al discloses a method for coating portions of a medical device. A layer of coating is applied to a surface of a medical device with an applicator. While the coating is being applied, the spreader is positioned in contact with the coating to reduce the coating thickness by spreading the coating over a larger surface area of the target surface.
US Patent Publication 20120029616 of Guerriero et al discloses a method of coating a stent in which the flow rate of a coating material sprayed onto the stent is varied while axially moving the stent. The stent repeatedly passes from one end of the stent to another relative to a major axis of the stent adjacent to a fixed or movable spray nozzle. The axial speed may be varied during spraying of the stent based on the modified flow rate of the coating material to deposit a selected amount of coating material per pass.
U.S. Pat. No. 7,959,999 to Prabhu discloses a stent formed by encasing or encapsulating metallic rings in an inner polymeric layer and an outer polymeric to layer. At least one polymer link connects adjacent metallic rings. The stent is drug loaded with one or more therapeutic agents or drugs.
US Patent Publication 20090259294 to Cully et al discloses a removable device such as a stent-graft, intended for applications where it may be desirable to remove the device at some time following implantation. The stent-graft includes a helically-wound stent provided with a covering of graft material. It is removable by gripping an end of the helically-wound stent component with a retrieval device and applying tension to the stent component in the direction in which it is intended to be withdrawn from the site of implantation.
US Patent Publication 20090192593 to Meyer et al discloses implantable medical devices, such as a stent, for delivering a therapeutic agent, and methods for making such medical devices. In one embodiment, the medical device comprises a stent having a plurality of struts, at least one of which has a cavity disposed therein. A therapeutic agent is delivered from the cavity through and opening in a strut surface.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention provides a system and method for manufacturing a stent. The system of the invention includes a mandrel and a micromanipulator that generates a longitudinal movement and a rotational movement of the mandrel. The system also includes a spraying device that sprays a polymeric coating material such as a polymeric suspension onto the mandrel During spraying of the polymeric suspension onto the mandrel, the mandrel is manipulated by a micromanipulator to produce a continuous coating on the mandrel not having any holes or breaks therein. At least one of the flow rate of the liquid streams, the width of the liquid streams, a velocity of the linear movement of the mandrel and a rotational velocity of the mandrel is varied during manipulation of the mandrel, so that a continuous coating is produced having a non-constant thickness. The polymeric coating is allowed to cure on the mandrel to form the stent, which is then removed from the mandrel.
In one embodiment of the invention, the mandrel is manipulated to produce a stent having a helical groove on the outer surface of the stent. The helical groove is a weakened region in the stent that forms a tear line. When it is desired to remove the stent from the body, the end of the stent can be grasped by a grasping device and pulled. As the end is pulled, the tear line splits so that the stent is removed from the body as a slender strip.
In the manufacture of a medical device by the method of the invention, application of the polymer suspension to the filament may be carried out in a single application step, as described above. Alternatively, two or more application steps may be used, in which at least one of the applications involves spraying polymer suspension, using the system of the invention. For example, a first coat may be sprayed onto the mandrel producing a coating having a smooth outer surface, and then a second coat may be applied having a grooved outer surface. As another example, a first coat of polymer suspension may be applied by dipping the mandrel and filament into a polymer suspension, and then spraying a second coat using the system of the invention. When more than one polymer applications are used, the different coats may be from the same material or from different materials.
After formation of the stent of the medical device, the device may be adapted, for example, to contain one or more drugs that are released over time after deployment of the device in the body. For example, a small region of the polymer can be removed and replaced with a plug contain the drug or drugs to be released.
Thus, in one of its aspects, the present invention provides a system for manufacturing a stent comprising:
(a) a spraying device configured to deliver one or more liquid streams, each liquid stream having a flow rate and a width; (b) a mandrel having a longitudinal axis; (c) a micromanipulator configured to grasp the mandrel and to manipulate the mandrel in the liquid streams; and (d) a processor configured to
(a) activate the micromanipulator to manipulate the mandrel in the one or more liquid streams according to a predetermined pattern of movement of the mandrel, the predetermined pattern of movement having a linear movement of the mandrel along the longitudinal axis and further having a rotational movement of the mandrel around the longitudinal axis; and (b) activate the spraying device to spray the one or more liquid streams onto the mandrel as the mandrel is being manipulated in the liquid streams to form a continuous coating over the mandrel; wherein at least one of the flow rate of the liquid streams, the width of the liquid streams, a velocity of the linear movement of the mandrel and a rotational velocity of the mandrel is varied during manipulation of the mandrel.
The system of the invention may further comprise a glove box.
The spraying device may be provided with a focusing mechanism that allows selection of the spray width. The spraying device may comprise an atomizer. The spraying device may be configured to spray a polymer suspension.
The processor may be configured, for example, to manipulate the mandrel during spraying to produce a stent having a helical groove in the continuous coating. The processor may be configured to fill the helical groove with a polymer solution. The processor may be configured to repeat the step of spraying one or more liquid streams one or more additional times.
In another of its aspects, the invention provides a method for manufacturing a stent comprising:
(a) spraying one or more polymer solutions onto a mandrel, each liquid stream having a flow rate and a width; (b) manipulating the mandrel in the one or more liquid streams according to a predetermined pattern of movement of the mandrel to produce a continuous coating of the polymer solutions on the mandrel, the predetermined pattern of movement having a linear movement of the mandrel along a longitudinal axis of the mandrel and further having a rotational movement of the mandrel around the longitudinal axis; (c) varying at least one of the flow rate of the liquid streams, the width of the liquid streams, a velocity of the linear movement of the mandrel and a rotational velocity of the mandrel during manipulation of the mandrel; (d) allowing the one or more polymer solutions to cure on the mandrel and produce the stent; and (e) removing the stent from the mandrel.
The step of spraying the one or more polymer solutions onto the mandrel may be repeated one or more additional times. A filament may be embedded in the continuous coating. The filament may be fashioned, for example, into a helix or an undulating helix.
The mandrel may be manipulated in the polymer streams to produce a continuous coating having a helical groove. The helical groove may be filled with a second polymer solution.
One or more drugs may be incorporated into the stent.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
In order to understand the invention and to see how it may be carried out in practice, embodiments will now be described, by way of non-limiting example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:
FIG. 1 shows a system for producing a stent in accordance with one embodiment of the system invention;
FIG. 2 shows a stent in accordance with one embodiment of the method of the invention;
FIG. 3 shows an intermediate step in the production of another stent by the to method of the invention;
FIG. 4 a shows the stent of FIG. 3 in a perspective view after completion and FIG. 4 b shows the stent of FIG. 3 in longitudinal section after completion;
FIG. 5 a shows an intermediate step in the production of another stent by the method of the invention; and
FIG. 5 b shows the stent of FIG. 5 a in a perspective view after completion.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS
FIG. 1 shows a system 1 for producing a medical device having an unravable portion in accordance with one embodiment of the invention. The system 1 includes a mandrel 4 .
The system 1 also includes a micromanipulator 8 . The mandrel 4 is mounted into a chuck 6 of the micromanipulator 8 . The micromanipulator 8 is under the control of a programmable processor 10 which is configured to manipulate the mandrel 4 as explained below. The micromanipulator 8 can generate a longitudinal movement of the mandrel 4 , as well as rotational movement.
The system 1 further includes an atomizer 14 . The mandrel 4 mounted in the chuck 6 is positioned under a nozzle 12 of the atomizer 14 . The atomizer 14 applies a coating material such as a polymeric suspension onto the mandrel in the form of an atomized stream 16 of the suspension. The atomizer may be, for example, the AccuMist system of Sono-Tek. In the AccuMist system, an ultrasonically produced spray of the polymeric suspension is produced at the tip of the nozzle 12 and is immediately entrained in a low pressure air stream (typically about 1 psi) from a second nozzle 18 . An adjustable focusing mechanism (not shown) allows selection of the spray width which may be, for example, as small as 0.25 mm. The atomizer 14 is also under the control of the processor 10 , so that the spraying of the polymer suspension can be coordinated with the manipulation of the mandrel 4 by the micromanipulator 8 .
The system 1 is preferably enclosed in a glove box (not shown), in order to isolate the system from external factors such as vibrations and drafts, while allowing a user to monitor the manufacturing process. A low-velocity exhaust (not to shown) may be used to maintain a negative air pressure in the glove-box to remove unwanted polymer suspension beyond the target area.
The coating material may be a polymer such as a urethane, polycarbonate, silicone, or styrene. The solvent of the polymer suspension may be, for example, THF, acetone, DMAC, toluene, or chloroform. After curing of the polymer suspension, the completed stent 26 is removed from the mandrel 4 , as shown in FIG. 4 . The coating material may be a biodegradable material.
During spraying of the polymeric suspension onto the mandrel 4 , the mandrel 4 is manipulated by the micromanipulator 8 under the control of the processor 10 in order to produce a coating on the mandrel 4 .
In one embodiment of the invention, the processor 10 is configured to manipulate the mandrel 4 during spraying of the polymeric suspension so as to produce a stent 26 shown in FIG. 2 , having a coating 20 on the mandrel 4 having a surface topography in which there is a shallow helical groove 22 . The helical groove 22 in the polymer layer 20 is a weakened region in the coating 20 that forms a tear line that allows the stent to be unraveled by grasping an end 30 of the stent 26 and pulling on the end. When it is desired to remove the stent 22 from the body, the end 30 of the stent can be grasped by a grasping device and pulled. As the end is pulled, the tear line 22 splits so that the stent is removed from the body as a slender strip.
In the manufacture of a medical device by the method of the invention, application of the polymer suspension to the filament may be carried out in a single application step, as described above. Alternatively, two or more application steps may be used, in which at least one of the applications involves spraying polymer suspension, using the system of the invention. For example, a first coat may be sprayed onto the mandrel producing a coating having a smooth outer surface, and then a second coat may be applied having a grooved outer surface. As another example, a first coat of polymer suspension may be applied by dipping the mandrel and filament into a polymer suspension, and then spraying a second coat using the system of the invention. When more than one polymer applications are used, the different coats may be from the same material or from different materials.
In another embodiment of the invention, shown in FIGS. 3 and 4 , a first coating 50 is applied to the mandrel 4 having a smooth outer surface. After curing of the first coating 50 , a flexible filament 2 is mounted onto the mandrel 4 over the first coating in a desired shape. The filament may be for example a metal wire from stainless steel or a nickel-titanium alloy (Nitinol). The filament may be made from a biodegradable material. In FIG. 3 , the filament 2 has been fashioned into a helix. The wire may also be fashioned into an undulating helix, as disclosed in WO03/099166. A second coating material 52 is then applied over the first coating material that bonds to the first coating material so that the filament 2 becomes embedded between the two coatings. The outer coating 20 has a surface topography in which there is a shallow helical groove 22 with the filament running parallel to the groove that forms a helical tear line. The stent 26 is shown in a perspective view in FIG. 4 a and in longitudinal section in FIG. 4 b . This process produces a stent 54 shown in perspective view in FIG. 4 a , and in longitudinal cross-sectional view in FIG. 4 b.
FIG. 5 shows a method for producing an unravable stent in accordance with another embodiment of the invention. As shown in FIG. 5 a , a first coating material such as a polymer suspension is applied to the mandrel 4 so as to form a coating 40 of the mandrel in which a groove 42 is present. A filament may or may not be embedded in the coating 40 . The groove 42 may be completely devoid of the coating material, as shown in FIG. 5 a , so that after formation of the coating 40 the mandrel 4 is exposed in the grooves 42 . Alternatively, the groove may contain a thin layer of the coating so that the thickness of the coating is thinner in the grooves. Then, as shown in FIG. 5 b , a second material 44 is sprayed into the grooves 42 . The second material 44 is selected to be weaker than the first material 40 . A stent 46 is thus formed in which the second material 44 forms a helically shaped tear line. The tear line can be detached by pulling on an end of the stent 46 , as explained above.
After formation of the stent of the medical device, the device may be adapted, for example, to contain one or more drugs that are released over time after deployment of the device in the body. For example, a small region of the polymer can be removed and replaced with a plug contain the drug or drugs to be released. | The invention provides a system ( 1 ) and method for manufacturing a stent. A spraying device ( 14 ) sprays a polymeric suspension ( 16 ) onto a mandrel ( 4 ). During spraying of the polymeric suspension ( 16 ) onto the mandrel ( 4 ), the mandrel ( 4 ) is manipulated by a micromanipulator ( 8 ) to produce a continuous coating on the mandrel ( 4 ) having a nonuniform thickness. The polymeric coating is allowed to cure on the mandrel ( 4 ) to form the stent, which is then removed from the mandrel ( 4 ). The method can comprise embedding a filament ( 2 ) in the polymeric coating and incorporating one or more drugs in the stent. | Provide a concise summary of the essential information conveyed in the given context. | [
"FIELD OF THE INVENTION This invention relates to systems and methods for producing medical devices.",
"BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Many indwelling medical devices have a hollow portion.",
"For example, stents are hollow devices that are inserted into body ducts for preventing narrowing of the duct lumen, for tutoring a dilated lumen or for acting as a substrate for tissue growth.",
"As another example, a catheter may have a hollow portion that may serve to transfer a fluid from outside the body to a body cavity, or for draining fluid from a body cavity.",
"As yet another example, an artificial blood vessel valve has a casing enclosing a space through which blood flows.",
"International Patent Publication WO03/099166 discloses an indwelling unravable medical device having a hollow portion, such as a stent.",
"The device has a generally helical seam which is a weakened region in the wall of the device.",
"When it is desirable to remove the indwelling device from the body, an end of the device is grasped and pulled.",
"As the end is pulled, the seam splits so that the device is removed as a slender strip of material.",
"U.S. Pat. No. 8,119,151 to Heidner et al discloses a method for coating portions of a medical device.",
"A layer of coating is applied to a surface of a medical device with an applicator.",
"While the coating is being applied, the spreader is positioned in contact with the coating to reduce the coating thickness by spreading the coating over a larger surface area of the target surface.",
"US Patent Publication 20120029616 of Guerriero et al discloses a method of coating a stent in which the flow rate of a coating material sprayed onto the stent is varied while axially moving the stent.",
"The stent repeatedly passes from one end of the stent to another relative to a major axis of the stent adjacent to a fixed or movable spray nozzle.",
"The axial speed may be varied during spraying of the stent based on the modified flow rate of the coating material to deposit a selected amount of coating material per pass.",
"U.S. Pat. No. 7,959,999 to Prabhu discloses a stent formed by encasing or encapsulating metallic rings in an inner polymeric layer and an outer polymeric to layer.",
"At least one polymer link connects adjacent metallic rings.",
"The stent is drug loaded with one or more therapeutic agents or drugs.",
"US Patent Publication 20090259294 to Cully et al discloses a removable device such as a stent-graft, intended for applications where it may be desirable to remove the device at some time following implantation.",
"The stent-graft includes a helically-wound stent provided with a covering of graft material.",
"It is removable by gripping an end of the helically-wound stent component with a retrieval device and applying tension to the stent component in the direction in which it is intended to be withdrawn from the site of implantation.",
"US Patent Publication 20090192593 to Meyer et al discloses implantable medical devices, such as a stent, for delivering a therapeutic agent, and methods for making such medical devices.",
"In one embodiment, the medical device comprises a stent having a plurality of struts, at least one of which has a cavity disposed therein.",
"A therapeutic agent is delivered from the cavity through and opening in a strut surface.",
"SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention provides a system and method for manufacturing a stent.",
"The system of the invention includes a mandrel and a micromanipulator that generates a longitudinal movement and a rotational movement of the mandrel.",
"The system also includes a spraying device that sprays a polymeric coating material such as a polymeric suspension onto the mandrel During spraying of the polymeric suspension onto the mandrel, the mandrel is manipulated by a micromanipulator to produce a continuous coating on the mandrel not having any holes or breaks therein.",
"At least one of the flow rate of the liquid streams, the width of the liquid streams, a velocity of the linear movement of the mandrel and a rotational velocity of the mandrel is varied during manipulation of the mandrel, so that a continuous coating is produced having a non-constant thickness.",
"The polymeric coating is allowed to cure on the mandrel to form the stent, which is then removed from the mandrel.",
"In one embodiment of the invention, the mandrel is manipulated to produce a stent having a helical groove on the outer surface of the stent.",
"The helical groove is a weakened region in the stent that forms a tear line.",
"When it is desired to remove the stent from the body, the end of the stent can be grasped by a grasping device and pulled.",
"As the end is pulled, the tear line splits so that the stent is removed from the body as a slender strip.",
"In the manufacture of a medical device by the method of the invention, application of the polymer suspension to the filament may be carried out in a single application step, as described above.",
"Alternatively, two or more application steps may be used, in which at least one of the applications involves spraying polymer suspension, using the system of the invention.",
"For example, a first coat may be sprayed onto the mandrel producing a coating having a smooth outer surface, and then a second coat may be applied having a grooved outer surface.",
"As another example, a first coat of polymer suspension may be applied by dipping the mandrel and filament into a polymer suspension, and then spraying a second coat using the system of the invention.",
"When more than one polymer applications are used, the different coats may be from the same material or from different materials.",
"After formation of the stent of the medical device, the device may be adapted, for example, to contain one or more drugs that are released over time after deployment of the device in the body.",
"For example, a small region of the polymer can be removed and replaced with a plug contain the drug or drugs to be released.",
"Thus, in one of its aspects, the present invention provides a system for manufacturing a stent comprising: (a) a spraying device configured to deliver one or more liquid streams, each liquid stream having a flow rate and a width;",
"(b) a mandrel having a longitudinal axis;",
"(c) a micromanipulator configured to grasp the mandrel and to manipulate the mandrel in the liquid streams;",
"and (d) a processor configured to (a) activate the micromanipulator to manipulate the mandrel in the one or more liquid streams according to a predetermined pattern of movement of the mandrel, the predetermined pattern of movement having a linear movement of the mandrel along the longitudinal axis and further having a rotational movement of the mandrel around the longitudinal axis;",
"and (b) activate the spraying device to spray the one or more liquid streams onto the mandrel as the mandrel is being manipulated in the liquid streams to form a continuous coating over the mandrel;",
"wherein at least one of the flow rate of the liquid streams, the width of the liquid streams, a velocity of the linear movement of the mandrel and a rotational velocity of the mandrel is varied during manipulation of the mandrel.",
"The system of the invention may further comprise a glove box.",
"The spraying device may be provided with a focusing mechanism that allows selection of the spray width.",
"The spraying device may comprise an atomizer.",
"The spraying device may be configured to spray a polymer suspension.",
"The processor may be configured, for example, to manipulate the mandrel during spraying to produce a stent having a helical groove in the continuous coating.",
"The processor may be configured to fill the helical groove with a polymer solution.",
"The processor may be configured to repeat the step of spraying one or more liquid streams one or more additional times.",
"In another of its aspects, the invention provides a method for manufacturing a stent comprising: (a) spraying one or more polymer solutions onto a mandrel, each liquid stream having a flow rate and a width;",
"(b) manipulating the mandrel in the one or more liquid streams according to a predetermined pattern of movement of the mandrel to produce a continuous coating of the polymer solutions on the mandrel, the predetermined pattern of movement having a linear movement of the mandrel along a longitudinal axis of the mandrel and further having a rotational movement of the mandrel around the longitudinal axis;",
"(c) varying at least one of the flow rate of the liquid streams, the width of the liquid streams, a velocity of the linear movement of the mandrel and a rotational velocity of the mandrel during manipulation of the mandrel;",
"(d) allowing the one or more polymer solutions to cure on the mandrel and produce the stent;",
"and (e) removing the stent from the mandrel.",
"The step of spraying the one or more polymer solutions onto the mandrel may be repeated one or more additional times.",
"A filament may be embedded in the continuous coating.",
"The filament may be fashioned, for example, into a helix or an undulating helix.",
"The mandrel may be manipulated in the polymer streams to produce a continuous coating having a helical groove.",
"The helical groove may be filled with a second polymer solution.",
"One or more drugs may be incorporated into the stent.",
"BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS In order to understand the invention and to see how it may be carried out in practice, embodiments will now be described, by way of non-limiting example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: FIG. 1 shows a system for producing a stent in accordance with one embodiment of the system invention;",
"FIG. 2 shows a stent in accordance with one embodiment of the method of the invention;",
"FIG. 3 shows an intermediate step in the production of another stent by the to method of the invention;",
"FIG. 4 a shows the stent of FIG. 3 in a perspective view after completion and FIG. 4 b shows the stent of FIG. 3 in longitudinal section after completion;",
"FIG. 5 a shows an intermediate step in the production of another stent by the method of the invention;",
"and FIG. 5 b shows the stent of FIG. 5 a in a perspective view after completion.",
"DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS FIG. 1 shows a system 1 for producing a medical device having an unravable portion in accordance with one embodiment of the invention.",
"The system 1 includes a mandrel 4 .",
"The system 1 also includes a micromanipulator 8 .",
"The mandrel 4 is mounted into a chuck 6 of the micromanipulator 8 .",
"The micromanipulator 8 is under the control of a programmable processor 10 which is configured to manipulate the mandrel 4 as explained below.",
"The micromanipulator 8 can generate a longitudinal movement of the mandrel 4 , as well as rotational movement.",
"The system 1 further includes an atomizer 14 .",
"The mandrel 4 mounted in the chuck 6 is positioned under a nozzle 12 of the atomizer 14 .",
"The atomizer 14 applies a coating material such as a polymeric suspension onto the mandrel in the form of an atomized stream 16 of the suspension.",
"The atomizer may be, for example, the AccuMist system of Sono-Tek.",
"In the AccuMist system, an ultrasonically produced spray of the polymeric suspension is produced at the tip of the nozzle 12 and is immediately entrained in a low pressure air stream (typically about 1 psi) from a second nozzle 18 .",
"An adjustable focusing mechanism (not shown) allows selection of the spray width which may be, for example, as small as 0.25 mm.",
"The atomizer 14 is also under the control of the processor 10 , so that the spraying of the polymer suspension can be coordinated with the manipulation of the mandrel 4 by the micromanipulator 8 .",
"The system 1 is preferably enclosed in a glove box (not shown), in order to isolate the system from external factors such as vibrations and drafts, while allowing a user to monitor the manufacturing process.",
"A low-velocity exhaust (not to shown) may be used to maintain a negative air pressure in the glove-box to remove unwanted polymer suspension beyond the target area.",
"The coating material may be a polymer such as a urethane, polycarbonate, silicone, or styrene.",
"The solvent of the polymer suspension may be, for example, THF, acetone, DMAC, toluene, or chloroform.",
"After curing of the polymer suspension, the completed stent 26 is removed from the mandrel 4 , as shown in FIG. 4 .",
"The coating material may be a biodegradable material.",
"During spraying of the polymeric suspension onto the mandrel 4 , the mandrel 4 is manipulated by the micromanipulator 8 under the control of the processor 10 in order to produce a coating on the mandrel 4 .",
"In one embodiment of the invention, the processor 10 is configured to manipulate the mandrel 4 during spraying of the polymeric suspension so as to produce a stent 26 shown in FIG. 2 , having a coating 20 on the mandrel 4 having a surface topography in which there is a shallow helical groove 22 .",
"The helical groove 22 in the polymer layer 20 is a weakened region in the coating 20 that forms a tear line that allows the stent to be unraveled by grasping an end 30 of the stent 26 and pulling on the end.",
"When it is desired to remove the stent 22 from the body, the end 30 of the stent can be grasped by a grasping device and pulled.",
"As the end is pulled, the tear line 22 splits so that the stent is removed from the body as a slender strip.",
"In the manufacture of a medical device by the method of the invention, application of the polymer suspension to the filament may be carried out in a single application step, as described above.",
"Alternatively, two or more application steps may be used, in which at least one of the applications involves spraying polymer suspension, using the system of the invention.",
"For example, a first coat may be sprayed onto the mandrel producing a coating having a smooth outer surface, and then a second coat may be applied having a grooved outer surface.",
"As another example, a first coat of polymer suspension may be applied by dipping the mandrel and filament into a polymer suspension, and then spraying a second coat using the system of the invention.",
"When more than one polymer applications are used, the different coats may be from the same material or from different materials.",
"In another embodiment of the invention, shown in FIGS. 3 and 4 , a first coating 50 is applied to the mandrel 4 having a smooth outer surface.",
"After curing of the first coating 50 , a flexible filament 2 is mounted onto the mandrel 4 over the first coating in a desired shape.",
"The filament may be for example a metal wire from stainless steel or a nickel-titanium alloy (Nitinol).",
"The filament may be made from a biodegradable material.",
"In FIG. 3 , the filament 2 has been fashioned into a helix.",
"The wire may also be fashioned into an undulating helix, as disclosed in WO03/099166.",
"A second coating material 52 is then applied over the first coating material that bonds to the first coating material so that the filament 2 becomes embedded between the two coatings.",
"The outer coating 20 has a surface topography in which there is a shallow helical groove 22 with the filament running parallel to the groove that forms a helical tear line.",
"The stent 26 is shown in a perspective view in FIG. 4 a and in longitudinal section in FIG. 4 b .",
"This process produces a stent 54 shown in perspective view in FIG. 4 a , and in longitudinal cross-sectional view in FIG. 4 b. FIG. 5 shows a method for producing an unravable stent in accordance with another embodiment of the invention.",
"As shown in FIG. 5 a , a first coating material such as a polymer suspension is applied to the mandrel 4 so as to form a coating 40 of the mandrel in which a groove 42 is present.",
"A filament may or may not be embedded in the coating 40 .",
"The groove 42 may be completely devoid of the coating material, as shown in FIG. 5 a , so that after formation of the coating 40 the mandrel 4 is exposed in the grooves 42 .",
"Alternatively, the groove may contain a thin layer of the coating so that the thickness of the coating is thinner in the grooves.",
"Then, as shown in FIG. 5 b , a second material 44 is sprayed into the grooves 42 .",
"The second material 44 is selected to be weaker than the first material 40 .",
"A stent 46 is thus formed in which the second material 44 forms a helically shaped tear line.",
"The tear line can be detached by pulling on an end of the stent 46 , as explained above.",
"After formation of the stent of the medical device, the device may be adapted, for example, to contain one or more drugs that are released over time after deployment of the device in the body.",
"For example, a small region of the polymer can be removed and replaced with a plug contain the drug or drugs to be released."
] |
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to bird cages.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Many designs of cages are shown in the prior art for housing pet birds. One problem that is common to many of these designs is that it is difficult to clean the bottom of the cage where debris inevitably collects. Some bird cages are designed such that the bird must be captured and removed from the cage before the interior of the cage can be cleaned. This is obviously a cumbersome process and can result in injury to the bird or escape. An example of this type of cage is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 1,963,414 (Little), which discloses a removable bottom 10 positioned above the main bottom 2 of the bird cage. The removable bottom 10 can be removed for cleaning while the main bottom 2 confines the birds and collects debris. However, since the main bottom 2 is not itself removable, it is difficult to clean without capture of the bird.
Other known bird cage designs require that the entire cage be lifted in order to clean the debris from the bottom. An example of such a bird cage is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,815,549 (Opmeer). Opmeer discloses a bird cage having a bottom and an upper portion connected by a coupling section. The coupling section contains a separator 28 that confines the birds in the upper portion of the cage and collects debris while the bottom section is removed from the cage for cleaning. However, to remove the bottom section, it is necessary to lift the entire cage. Thus, there is a need for a bird cage that can be completely and thoroughly cleaned without removal of the bird or lifting of the cage.
U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,129,786 (Sacre) and 2,983,251 (Lingis) both disclose the use of replaceable paper sheets on the bottom of bird cages for debris collection. U.S. Pat. No. 3,100,474 (Schneider) discloses a commode for pets that has a removable plate member that collects debris positioned above two removable drawers. The upper drawer contains a screen that strains the debris to filter the recyclable litter into the lower drawer for subsequent use.
Another problem with respect to the construction of bird cages is that many species of birds chew wood. One of the most popular household birds, the parakeet, can easily chew through wood. Though wooden bird cages are known in the prior art (see, e.g., U.S. Pat. No. 1,468,730 (Oster) and are desirable from a home decorating standpoint, they can only be used for limited numbers of bird species. Thus, there is a need for a bird cage that preserves the decorative beauty of wood construction, yet is suitable for species of birds that would normally destroy wooden bird cages.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
It is an object of the present invention to provide a bird cage that can be completely and thoroughly cleaned without removal of the bird or lifting of the cage.
It is a specific object of the present invention to provide a bird cage that has an upper assembly for the confinement of the bird and a lower assembly for the collection of debris. The lower assembly includes a plurality of opposed side walls, a first drawer and a second drawer. The opposed side walls define a lower drawer position and an upper drawer position within the lower assembly and additionally include support means. The lower assembly as a whole is characterized by four positions: a collection position, a first intermediate position, a second intermediate position, and a cleaning position. In the collection position, the first drawer occupies the lower drawer position and the second drawer occupies the upper drawer position. In this position, the second drawer rests upon the first drawer and is positioned to collect debris. In the first intermediate position, the second drawer occupies the lower drawer position and the first drawer is removed entirely from the lower assembly. In the second intermediate position, the first drawer occupies the upper drawer position and the second drawer occupies the lower drawer position and, in the cleaning position, the first drawer occupies the upper position while the second drawer is completely removed from the lower assembly such that the second drawer can be cleaned of accumulated debris.
The lower assembly can be easily moved from the collection position to the first intermediate position to the second intermediate position to the cleaning position and back again. During this sequence of positions, one of the drawers is always positioned to collect debris. Furthermore, both the first drawer and the second drawer may be removed from the lower assembly such that they may both be completely cleaned while confining the bird in the upper cage assembly.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide a bird cage made of wood that is suitable for housing bird species that normally chew and destroy wooden bird cages.
It is a further specific object of the present invention to provide a bird cage having an interior and an exterior, at least a portion of the interior and at least a portion of the exterior being made of wood. The portion of the interior that is wood is then protectively coated with a substance, preferably vinyl, that resists or prevents birds from chewing through the bird cage. In a most preferred form, the exterior of the bird cage made of wood is uncoated so that the decorative beauty of the wood exterior is preserved.
Further objects and embodiments of the present invention will be made evident by the following description of the preferred embodiments and the claims.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
FIG. 1 is a side perspective view of the entire bird cage according to the present invention showing the upper cage assembly and the lower cage assembly;
FIG. 2 is a side perspective view of the lower assembly;
FIG. 3 is a front perspective view of the lower assembly in the collection position;
FIG. 3A is a front cross-sectional view of the lower assembly in the collection position;
FIG. 4 is a front perspective view of the lower assembly in the first intermediate position;
FIG. 4A is a front cross-sectional view of the lower assembly in the first intermediate position;
FIG. 5 is a front perspective view of the lower assembly in the second intermediate position;
FIG. 5A is a front cross-sectional view of the lower assembly in the second intermediate position;
FIG. 6 is a front perspective view of the lower assembly in the cleaning position;
FIG. 6A is a front cross-sectional view of the lower assembly in the cleaning position;
FIG. 7 is a side perspective view of a protectively coated wood corner piece; and
FIG. 8 is a side perspective view of a protectively coated wood horizontal support slat or a vertical bar.
DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
Referring to FIG. 1, the bird cage of the present invention includes an upper cage assembly 1 comprising side walls 3 and top 5. The upper cage assembly 1 serves as the primary confinement area for the bird or other small animal and includes a door 9 for insertion or removal of the bird or animal. The integrity of the confinement area is completed by the lower assembly 7, which is attached to and forms the bottom of the upper cage assembly 1. The entire bird cage may be attached to a support stand (not shown) so that the bird cage is free standing. However, other means for displaying the cage are also appropriate. The bird cage of this embodiment may be made of any suitable material.
Referring to FIGS. 2-6A, the lower assembly 7 of the present invention includes a pair of opposed side walls 11, a back wall 13 and a bottom 15. This arrangement of the lower assembly 7 defines an upper drawer position and a lower drawer position. Within the lower assembly 7, a first drawer 17 and a second drawer 19 are slidably disposed such that either of the drawers 17 and 19 can occupy the upper drawer position or the lower drawer position. In addition, one drawer can occupy one position while the other drawer occupies the other position. Thus, the lower assembly 7 is characterized by at least four separate positions: the first collection position, the first intermediate position; a second intermediate position; and the cleaning position.
Referring now to FIGS. 3 and 3A, the lower assembly 7 is normally left in the collection position. In this position, the first drawer 17 occupies the lower drawer position while the second drawer 19 occupies the upper drawer position. Thus, the second drawer 19 is positioned to collect the debris that falls from the upper cage assembly 1. As more particularly shown in FIG. 3A, the second drawer 19 rests upon the top of the first drawer 17. In the most preferred embodiment, the upper flange 21 restrains the upward movement of the second drawer 19, such that it remains in the proper collection position. In similar fashion, the first drawer 17 is restrained in its upward movement by lower slots 23.
Referring now to FIGS. 4 and 4A, the lower assembly 7 is also characterized by a first intermediate position. In this position, the second drawer 19 is located in the lower drawer position while the first drawer 17 is removed from the lower assembly 7. While the second drawer 19 occupies the lower drawer position in the first intermediate position, it may either rest on the bottom 15 of the lower assembly or on the opposed side rails 25. Although the second drawer 19 is now in the lower drawer position, it is still positioned to collect debris settling from the upper cage assembly 1.
Referring now to FIGS. 5 and 5A, the lower assembly is also characterized by a second intermediate position wherein the first drawer 17 occupies the upper drawer position and the second drawer 19 occupies the lower drawer position. In the second intermediate position, the second drawer 19 may rest either on the bottom 15 of the lower assembly 17 or on the opposed side rails 25. The first drawer 17 may rest on the second drawer 19 or on the upper slots 27. The upward movement of the first drawer 17 may be restrained by the upper slots 27, the upper flange 21 or both. In this position, the first drawer 17 is in position to collect the debris from the upper cage assembly 1.
Referring now to FIGS. 6 and 6A, the lower assembly is also characterized by a cleaning position wherein the first drawer 17 occupies the upper drawer position and the second drawer 19 is removed from the lower assembly 7. The first drawer 17 is supported in the upper drawer position by the upper slots 27. Thus, the first drawer 17 is in position to collect debris, while the second drawer 19 is removed from the lower assembly 7 and may be cleaned.
Referring to FIGS. 3-6A, the lower assembly may be moved from its collection position to its cleaning position by the following sequence. To move from the collection position to the first intermediate position, the first drawer 17 is pulled out of the lower assembly 7. Since the second drawer 19 rested on the first drawer 17 in the collection position, the removal of the first drawer 17 causes the second drawer 19 to descend from the upper drawer position to the lower drawer position as the first drawer 17 is removed. Knob 29 is provided on the front of the first drawer 17 to aid its removal.
The lower assembly 7, now in the first intermediate position, may be easily moved to the second intermediate position by placing the first drawer 17 in the upper drawer position. The lower assembly may then be easily moved from the second intermediate position to the cleaning position by pulling the second drawer 19 out of the lower assembly 7 with the assistance of knob 31. When the second drawer 19 is removed from the lower drawer position, the first drawer 17 does not descend into the lower drawer position. Rather, the first drawer 17 is supported by the upper slots 27 and remains in the upper drawer position advantageously positioned to collect the debris from the upper cage assembly 1 while the second drawer 19 is leisurely cleaned.
Once the second drawer 19 has been cleaned, the lower assembly may be returned to its normal collection position by reversing the steps described above. Specifically, the lower assembly can be moved from its cleaning position to its second intermediate position by reinserting the second drawer 19 into the lower drawer position of the lower assembly 7. The lower assembly may then be moved from the second intermediate position to the first intermediate position by removing the first drawer 17 from the upper drawer position. Thus, the clean second drawer 19 is again in position to collect the debris from the upper cage assembly 1. To return the lower assembly to the normal collection position from the first intermediate position, it is only necessary to insert the first drawer 17 beneath the second drawer 19 such that the second drawer 19 is forced upwards from the lower drawer position into the upper drawer position. If the first drawer 17 became soiled while in the second intermediate position or the cleaning position, the first drawer 17 may be cleaned while the lower assembly 7 is positioned in the first intermediate position. Thus, the bird cage of the present invention can be completely and thoroughly cleaned of debris without the need to capture or remove the confined bird or to lift the bird cage in its entirety.
In a most preferred embodiment of the present invention as shown in FIGS. 3A, 4A, 5A and 6A, both the first drawer 17 and the second drawer 19 are outfitted with lower wheels 33 that facilitate the removal and insertion of the drawers 17 and 19 when the lower assembly 7 is moved between its four characteristic positions. These lower wheels 33 allow the drawers 17 and 19 to roll relative to the bottom 15 of the lower assembly 7 or the top of the other drawer. Also included in the most preferred embodiment are foam seals 35 located on the underside of upper flange 21. These foam seals 35 are positioned to sealably cooperate with the second drawer 19 while the lower assembly 7 is in its normal collection position, as shown in FIG. 3A. To aid in the creation of this seal, the lower wheels 33 of the first drawer 17 and the second drawer 19 may be advantageously spring biased in a downward direction. This bias tends to push the drawer 17 or 19 in the upper drawer position upward into sealing contact with foam seals 35.
Referring now to FIGS. 7 and 8, which show another embodiment of the present invention, the upper assembly 1 of the bird cage is made of wood. To prevent species of birds, such as parakeets, from chewing the wooden upper cage assembly 1, the corner pieces 37, the horizontal support slats 39, and the vertical bars 41 of the upper cage assembly 1 are protectively coated on their interiors such that the wood portions of the upper cage assembly 1 are not exposed to chewing. However, to preserve the decorative beauty of the wooden upper cage assembly 1, the exterior portions of the corner pieces 37, horizontal support slats 39, and the vertical bars 41, are not protectively coated.
As shown specifically in FIG. 7, the corner pieces 37 may be preferably fitted with vinyl sheaths 43 that are affixed to the interior portions of the corner piece 37. These vinyl sheaths may be affixed by adhesive, by notch means 45 as shown, or by any other suitable affixation means. Referring to FIG. 8, the horizontal support slats 39 and the vertical bars 41 may be similarly fitted with vinyl sheaths 43. The preferred sheath material is clear vinyl, though any substance that will prevent or retard the bird confined within the upper cage assembly 1 from chewing on or through the wooden interior of the upper cage assembly 1 is appropriate. In the case of clear vinyl, the thickness of the vinyl sheaths 43 should be at least 0.07 inches or 70 mils in thickness. The vinyl sheaths 43, of course, may be of greater thickness, most preferably not thicker than 0.1 inch or 100 mils thick. Thus, the bird cage of the present invention can retain the decorative beauty of wood construction while allowing use with species of birds that would otherwise destroy the cage.
It is to be understood that certain embodiments of the present invention have been discussed and emphasized. This is no way limits the present invention to these specific embodiments since many additional embodiments fall within the spirit and scope of the invention as hereafter claimed. | A bird cage having a lower double drawer assembly movable between four positions is disclosed. The double drawer assembly allows the lower assembly to be completely cleaned of debris without the need to confine or capture the bird. Additionally, protective coating of the interior of a wooden bird cage is disclosed. | Provide a concise summary of the essential information conveyed in the context. | [
"BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1.",
"Field of the Invention The present invention relates to bird cages.",
"Description of the Prior Art Many designs of cages are shown in the prior art for housing pet birds.",
"One problem that is common to many of these designs is that it is difficult to clean the bottom of the cage where debris inevitably collects.",
"Some bird cages are designed such that the bird must be captured and removed from the cage before the interior of the cage can be cleaned.",
"This is obviously a cumbersome process and can result in injury to the bird or escape.",
"An example of this type of cage is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 1,963,414 (Little), which discloses a removable bottom 10 positioned above the main bottom 2 of the bird cage.",
"The removable bottom 10 can be removed for cleaning while the main bottom 2 confines the birds and collects debris.",
"However, since the main bottom 2 is not itself removable, it is difficult to clean without capture of the bird.",
"Other known bird cage designs require that the entire cage be lifted in order to clean the debris from the bottom.",
"An example of such a bird cage is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,815,549 (Opmeer).",
"Opmeer discloses a bird cage having a bottom and an upper portion connected by a coupling section.",
"The coupling section contains a separator 28 that confines the birds in the upper portion of the cage and collects debris while the bottom section is removed from the cage for cleaning.",
"However, to remove the bottom section, it is necessary to lift the entire cage.",
"Thus, there is a need for a bird cage that can be completely and thoroughly cleaned without removal of the bird or lifting of the cage.",
"U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,129,786 (Sacre) and 2,983,251 (Lingis) both disclose the use of replaceable paper sheets on the bottom of bird cages for debris collection.",
"U.S. Pat. No. 3,100,474 (Schneider) discloses a commode for pets that has a removable plate member that collects debris positioned above two removable drawers.",
"The upper drawer contains a screen that strains the debris to filter the recyclable litter into the lower drawer for subsequent use.",
"Another problem with respect to the construction of bird cages is that many species of birds chew wood.",
"One of the most popular household birds, the parakeet, can easily chew through wood.",
"Though wooden bird cages are known in the prior art (see, e.g., U.S. Pat. No. 1,468,730 (Oster) and are desirable from a home decorating standpoint, they can only be used for limited numbers of bird species.",
"Thus, there is a need for a bird cage that preserves the decorative beauty of wood construction, yet is suitable for species of birds that would normally destroy wooden bird cages.",
"SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is an object of the present invention to provide a bird cage that can be completely and thoroughly cleaned without removal of the bird or lifting of the cage.",
"It is a specific object of the present invention to provide a bird cage that has an upper assembly for the confinement of the bird and a lower assembly for the collection of debris.",
"The lower assembly includes a plurality of opposed side walls, a first drawer and a second drawer.",
"The opposed side walls define a lower drawer position and an upper drawer position within the lower assembly and additionally include support means.",
"The lower assembly as a whole is characterized by four positions: a collection position, a first intermediate position, a second intermediate position, and a cleaning position.",
"In the collection position, the first drawer occupies the lower drawer position and the second drawer occupies the upper drawer position.",
"In this position, the second drawer rests upon the first drawer and is positioned to collect debris.",
"In the first intermediate position, the second drawer occupies the lower drawer position and the first drawer is removed entirely from the lower assembly.",
"In the second intermediate position, the first drawer occupies the upper drawer position and the second drawer occupies the lower drawer position and, in the cleaning position, the first drawer occupies the upper position while the second drawer is completely removed from the lower assembly such that the second drawer can be cleaned of accumulated debris.",
"The lower assembly can be easily moved from the collection position to the first intermediate position to the second intermediate position to the cleaning position and back again.",
"During this sequence of positions, one of the drawers is always positioned to collect debris.",
"Furthermore, both the first drawer and the second drawer may be removed from the lower assembly such that they may both be completely cleaned while confining the bird in the upper cage assembly.",
"It is a further object of the present invention to provide a bird cage made of wood that is suitable for housing bird species that normally chew and destroy wooden bird cages.",
"It is a further specific object of the present invention to provide a bird cage having an interior and an exterior, at least a portion of the interior and at least a portion of the exterior being made of wood.",
"The portion of the interior that is wood is then protectively coated with a substance, preferably vinyl, that resists or prevents birds from chewing through the bird cage.",
"In a most preferred form, the exterior of the bird cage made of wood is uncoated so that the decorative beauty of the wood exterior is preserved.",
"Further objects and embodiments of the present invention will be made evident by the following description of the preferred embodiments and the claims.",
"BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT FIG. 1 is a side perspective view of the entire bird cage according to the present invention showing the upper cage assembly and the lower cage assembly;",
"FIG. 2 is a side perspective view of the lower assembly;",
"FIG. 3 is a front perspective view of the lower assembly in the collection position;",
"FIG. 3A is a front cross-sectional view of the lower assembly in the collection position;",
"FIG. 4 is a front perspective view of the lower assembly in the first intermediate position;",
"FIG. 4A is a front cross-sectional view of the lower assembly in the first intermediate position;",
"FIG. 5 is a front perspective view of the lower assembly in the second intermediate position;",
"FIG. 5A is a front cross-sectional view of the lower assembly in the second intermediate position;",
"FIG. 6 is a front perspective view of the lower assembly in the cleaning position;",
"FIG. 6A is a front cross-sectional view of the lower assembly in the cleaning position;",
"FIG. 7 is a side perspective view of a protectively coated wood corner piece;",
"and FIG. 8 is a side perspective view of a protectively coated wood horizontal support slat or a vertical bar.",
"DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Referring to FIG. 1, the bird cage of the present invention includes an upper cage assembly 1 comprising side walls 3 and top 5.",
"The upper cage assembly 1 serves as the primary confinement area for the bird or other small animal and includes a door 9 for insertion or removal of the bird or animal.",
"The integrity of the confinement area is completed by the lower assembly 7, which is attached to and forms the bottom of the upper cage assembly 1.",
"The entire bird cage may be attached to a support stand (not shown) so that the bird cage is free standing.",
"However, other means for displaying the cage are also appropriate.",
"The bird cage of this embodiment may be made of any suitable material.",
"Referring to FIGS. 2-6A, the lower assembly 7 of the present invention includes a pair of opposed side walls 11, a back wall 13 and a bottom 15.",
"This arrangement of the lower assembly 7 defines an upper drawer position and a lower drawer position.",
"Within the lower assembly 7, a first drawer 17 and a second drawer 19 are slidably disposed such that either of the drawers 17 and 19 can occupy the upper drawer position or the lower drawer position.",
"In addition, one drawer can occupy one position while the other drawer occupies the other position.",
"Thus, the lower assembly 7 is characterized by at least four separate positions: the first collection position, the first intermediate position;",
"a second intermediate position;",
"and the cleaning position.",
"Referring now to FIGS. 3 and 3A, the lower assembly 7 is normally left in the collection position.",
"In this position, the first drawer 17 occupies the lower drawer position while the second drawer 19 occupies the upper drawer position.",
"Thus, the second drawer 19 is positioned to collect the debris that falls from the upper cage assembly 1.",
"As more particularly shown in FIG. 3A, the second drawer 19 rests upon the top of the first drawer 17.",
"In the most preferred embodiment, the upper flange 21 restrains the upward movement of the second drawer 19, such that it remains in the proper collection position.",
"In similar fashion, the first drawer 17 is restrained in its upward movement by lower slots 23.",
"Referring now to FIGS. 4 and 4A, the lower assembly 7 is also characterized by a first intermediate position.",
"In this position, the second drawer 19 is located in the lower drawer position while the first drawer 17 is removed from the lower assembly 7.",
"While the second drawer 19 occupies the lower drawer position in the first intermediate position, it may either rest on the bottom 15 of the lower assembly or on the opposed side rails 25.",
"Although the second drawer 19 is now in the lower drawer position, it is still positioned to collect debris settling from the upper cage assembly 1.",
"Referring now to FIGS. 5 and 5A, the lower assembly is also characterized by a second intermediate position wherein the first drawer 17 occupies the upper drawer position and the second drawer 19 occupies the lower drawer position.",
"In the second intermediate position, the second drawer 19 may rest either on the bottom 15 of the lower assembly 17 or on the opposed side rails 25.",
"The first drawer 17 may rest on the second drawer 19 or on the upper slots 27.",
"The upward movement of the first drawer 17 may be restrained by the upper slots 27, the upper flange 21 or both.",
"In this position, the first drawer 17 is in position to collect the debris from the upper cage assembly 1.",
"Referring now to FIGS. 6 and 6A, the lower assembly is also characterized by a cleaning position wherein the first drawer 17 occupies the upper drawer position and the second drawer 19 is removed from the lower assembly 7.",
"The first drawer 17 is supported in the upper drawer position by the upper slots 27.",
"Thus, the first drawer 17 is in position to collect debris, while the second drawer 19 is removed from the lower assembly 7 and may be cleaned.",
"Referring to FIGS. 3-6A, the lower assembly may be moved from its collection position to its cleaning position by the following sequence.",
"To move from the collection position to the first intermediate position, the first drawer 17 is pulled out of the lower assembly 7.",
"Since the second drawer 19 rested on the first drawer 17 in the collection position, the removal of the first drawer 17 causes the second drawer 19 to descend from the upper drawer position to the lower drawer position as the first drawer 17 is removed.",
"Knob 29 is provided on the front of the first drawer 17 to aid its removal.",
"The lower assembly 7, now in the first intermediate position, may be easily moved to the second intermediate position by placing the first drawer 17 in the upper drawer position.",
"The lower assembly may then be easily moved from the second intermediate position to the cleaning position by pulling the second drawer 19 out of the lower assembly 7 with the assistance of knob 31.",
"When the second drawer 19 is removed from the lower drawer position, the first drawer 17 does not descend into the lower drawer position.",
"Rather, the first drawer 17 is supported by the upper slots 27 and remains in the upper drawer position advantageously positioned to collect the debris from the upper cage assembly 1 while the second drawer 19 is leisurely cleaned.",
"Once the second drawer 19 has been cleaned, the lower assembly may be returned to its normal collection position by reversing the steps described above.",
"Specifically, the lower assembly can be moved from its cleaning position to its second intermediate position by reinserting the second drawer 19 into the lower drawer position of the lower assembly 7.",
"The lower assembly may then be moved from the second intermediate position to the first intermediate position by removing the first drawer 17 from the upper drawer position.",
"Thus, the clean second drawer 19 is again in position to collect the debris from the upper cage assembly 1.",
"To return the lower assembly to the normal collection position from the first intermediate position, it is only necessary to insert the first drawer 17 beneath the second drawer 19 such that the second drawer 19 is forced upwards from the lower drawer position into the upper drawer position.",
"If the first drawer 17 became soiled while in the second intermediate position or the cleaning position, the first drawer 17 may be cleaned while the lower assembly 7 is positioned in the first intermediate position.",
"Thus, the bird cage of the present invention can be completely and thoroughly cleaned of debris without the need to capture or remove the confined bird or to lift the bird cage in its entirety.",
"In a most preferred embodiment of the present invention as shown in FIGS. 3A, 4A, 5A and 6A, both the first drawer 17 and the second drawer 19 are outfitted with lower wheels 33 that facilitate the removal and insertion of the drawers 17 and 19 when the lower assembly 7 is moved between its four characteristic positions.",
"These lower wheels 33 allow the drawers 17 and 19 to roll relative to the bottom 15 of the lower assembly 7 or the top of the other drawer.",
"Also included in the most preferred embodiment are foam seals 35 located on the underside of upper flange 21.",
"These foam seals 35 are positioned to sealably cooperate with the second drawer 19 while the lower assembly 7 is in its normal collection position, as shown in FIG. 3A.",
"To aid in the creation of this seal, the lower wheels 33 of the first drawer 17 and the second drawer 19 may be advantageously spring biased in a downward direction.",
"This bias tends to push the drawer 17 or 19 in the upper drawer position upward into sealing contact with foam seals 35.",
"Referring now to FIGS. 7 and 8, which show another embodiment of the present invention, the upper assembly 1 of the bird cage is made of wood.",
"To prevent species of birds, such as parakeets, from chewing the wooden upper cage assembly 1, the corner pieces 37, the horizontal support slats 39, and the vertical bars 41 of the upper cage assembly 1 are protectively coated on their interiors such that the wood portions of the upper cage assembly 1 are not exposed to chewing.",
"However, to preserve the decorative beauty of the wooden upper cage assembly 1, the exterior portions of the corner pieces 37, horizontal support slats 39, and the vertical bars 41, are not protectively coated.",
"As shown specifically in FIG. 7, the corner pieces 37 may be preferably fitted with vinyl sheaths 43 that are affixed to the interior portions of the corner piece 37.",
"These vinyl sheaths may be affixed by adhesive, by notch means 45 as shown, or by any other suitable affixation means.",
"Referring to FIG. 8, the horizontal support slats 39 and the vertical bars 41 may be similarly fitted with vinyl sheaths 43.",
"The preferred sheath material is clear vinyl, though any substance that will prevent or retard the bird confined within the upper cage assembly 1 from chewing on or through the wooden interior of the upper cage assembly 1 is appropriate.",
"In the case of clear vinyl, the thickness of the vinyl sheaths 43 should be at least 0.07 inches or 70 mils in thickness.",
"The vinyl sheaths 43, of course, may be of greater thickness, most preferably not thicker than 0.1 inch or 100 mils thick.",
"Thus, the bird cage of the present invention can retain the decorative beauty of wood construction while allowing use with species of birds that would otherwise destroy the cage.",
"It is to be understood that certain embodiments of the present invention have been discussed and emphasized.",
"This is no way limits the present invention to these specific embodiments since many additional embodiments fall within the spirit and scope of the invention as hereafter claimed."
] |
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
This application relates to the art of thermal protectors and, more particularly, to thermal protectors of the type that exhibit a sharp increase in resistivity over a particular temperature range. Devices of this type are commonly referred to as exhibiting a positive temperature coefficient of resistance, and are commonly known as PTC devices or materials.
PTC devices can explode when subjected to a voltage runaway, and expelled particles ignite when exposed to atmospheric oxygen. The glowing particles then present a fire hazard.
It would be desirable to inhibit an exploding PTC device from expelling glowing particles into the environment.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
A thermal protector for electric circuits is encapsulated in a first layer of energy-absorbing material and a second layer of elastomeric material.
The first layer is preferably of a material which changes physical states when the normal operating temperature range of the thermal protector is exceeded.
The first layer traps particles and gases from an exploding PTC device, and also dampens the explosive force.
The second layer expands like a balloon within its elastic limit, absorbing further energy of the explosion, and preventing any materials or gases from being expelled.
The first and second layers may have a flame retardant additive and an antioxidant additive incorporated therein.
It is a principal object of the present invention to provide an improved thermal protector for electric circuits.
It is a further object of the invention to provide an improved manner of encapsulating a thermal protector.
It is also an object of the invention to provide a thermal protector that will not present a fire hazard in the event it explodes.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING
FIG. 1 is a plan view of a thermal protector constructed in accordance with the present application; and
FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional elevational view taken generally on line 2--2 of FIG. 1.
DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
Referring now to the drawing, wherein the showings are for purposes of illustrating certain preferred embodiments of the invention only, and not for purposes of limiting same, a thermal protector A includes a body 12 of a material that has a positive temperature coefficient of resistance. For purposes of this application, body 12 will be referred to as a PTC device or PTC material.
PTC material 12 can be a conductive polymer having a particulate conductive filler such as carbon black. However, the PTC material can also take other forms, including a doped ceramic such as barium titanate.
A PTC device exhibits a nonlinear change in resistance with temperature. Within a certain narrow temperature range, the electrical resistance of a PTC device jumps sharply. A PTC device may be customized to respond to either temperature conditions of the surrounding environment or to current overload conditions.
In a typical application, a PTC device is connected in series with the circuit components requiring protection. In the event of an overload condition in the system, the PTC device will reach switching temperature either by self-induced heating (I 2 R) from the current passing through it or by sensing excessive ambient temperatures. At this point, the PTC device switches into its high resistance state, and effectively blocks the flow of current. A minimal amount of current will persist (trickle current), which holds the PTC device in its high resistance state. Once the power source has been interrupted, and the abnormal condition corrected, the PTC device will return to its rated conductive state, ready to protect the system once again.
Under extreme overload conditions, such as a voltage runaway, the PTC device may explode, and expel hot particles into the environment. The expelled hot particles, such as carbon particles, ignite upon coming into contact with atmospheric oxygen. The glowing particles present a fire hazard, because they can ignite combustible materials.
In accordance with the present application, PTC device 12 is made of rounded geometry so it has no sharp corners. PTC device 12 is shown in a round disc form with opposite flat faces, and the outer periphery is smoothly curved so it merges into the opposite flat faces along smoothly curved lines. Such a geometry minimizes weak points inherent in parts having sharp corners where carbon ejection usually occurs.
Metal foil or mesh discs 14, 16 are bonded to or embedded in the opposite faces of PTC device 12. Leads 18, 20 are connected with discs 14, 16 for connecting, thermal protector A in an electric circuit.
PTC device 12 and metal discs 14, 16 are completely encapsulated in a first layer of material 24. The material for first or inner layer 24 can take many forms including, but not limited to, tar, asphalt, putty, organic chemicals such as caffeine or animal protein, thermoplastics or intumescents.
When an intumescent material is used, it may be a combination of polyhydric compounds, dehydrating agents, blowing agents, and resin binders. When exposed to high heat, the polyhydric compound (usually a polyol) reacts with the dehydrating agent (e.g., ammonium polyphosphate) to form a carbon char. At the same time, the blowing agent, such as melamine, releases large quantities of nonflammable gases, causing the char layer to expand. The resin binders, such as vinyl copolymers, epoxies, and melamine-formaldehydes, ensure that the surface layer of the foam is sufficiently intact to keep the gases from escaping.
The intumescent material can be either water reducible or solvent reducible. Both have a carbonific material to provide the char, a phosphate to serve as a catalyst to cause the char to form, a gas producer to cause the char to foam, and a resinous material to hold it all together. The carbonific is often pentaerythritol, serving as a nonresinous source, and some resinous material, such as melamine-formaldehyde, which also lets off a gas for foam forming and provides a nonburning resinous film to contain the foam. The catalyst is commonly a diammonium phosphate. Aiding in resin formation are such materials as chlorinated rubber or chlorinated paraffin, and some formulations have antimony oxide to help evolve antimony chloride, which helps extinguish flame.
A flame retardant additive, an antioxidant, or both can be mixed in the material forming first layer 24. The flame retardant additive can be a halogenated flame retardant, such as chlorinated hydrocarbon, or can be an ammonium polyphosphate. It is also possible to include a synergist, such as antimony oxide, that evolves antimony chloride. The antioxidant can be a polymerized trimethyl dihydroquinoline.
First layer 24 is preferably of a material that absorbs energy and changes physical states when the normal operating temperature range of PTC device 12 is exceeded. First layer 24 softens and melts under the excessive temperature to absorb energy. In the event PTC device 12 explodes, the soft or melted first layer traps gases and particles, and dampens the explosive force.
A second or outer layer 28 completely encapsulates first layer 24. Second layer 28 is preferably of an elastomeric material, such as silicone rubber or latex. Second layer 28 preferably has a high: tear strength, and is capable of expanding at least 3-5 times its relaxed size without rupturing. Thus, if PTC device 12 explodes, second layer 28 will expand like a balloon without rupturing, and completely contain the explosion. However, in the unlikely event a rupture does occur, any expelled particles will be surrounded by and coated with the material of first layer 24. Second layer 28 may also have incorporated therein a flame retardant additive an antioxidant, or both.
First layer 24 can be compounded to change physical states over a temperature range of approximately 90-200° C. depending upon the design of PTC device 12
PTC material 12 can be encapsulated in epoxy or other materials before encapsulation in first and second layers 24, 28.
Although the invention has been shown and described with respect to certain preferred embodiments, it is obvious that equivalent alterations and modifications will occur to others skilled in the art upon the reading and understanding of this specification. The present invention includes all such equivalent alterations and modifications, and is limited only by the scope of the claims. | A thermal protector encapsulated in an inner layer of energy-absorbing material and an outer layer of stretchable elastomeric material. The inner and outer layers inhibit an exploding thermal protector from starting a fire. | Briefly describe the main idea outlined in the provided context. | [
"BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION This application relates to the art of thermal protectors and, more particularly, to thermal protectors of the type that exhibit a sharp increase in resistivity over a particular temperature range.",
"Devices of this type are commonly referred to as exhibiting a positive temperature coefficient of resistance, and are commonly known as PTC devices or materials.",
"PTC devices can explode when subjected to a voltage runaway, and expelled particles ignite when exposed to atmospheric oxygen.",
"The glowing particles then present a fire hazard.",
"It would be desirable to inhibit an exploding PTC device from expelling glowing particles into the environment.",
"SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION A thermal protector for electric circuits is encapsulated in a first layer of energy-absorbing material and a second layer of elastomeric material.",
"The first layer is preferably of a material which changes physical states when the normal operating temperature range of the thermal protector is exceeded.",
"The first layer traps particles and gases from an exploding PTC device, and also dampens the explosive force.",
"The second layer expands like a balloon within its elastic limit, absorbing further energy of the explosion, and preventing any materials or gases from being expelled.",
"The first and second layers may have a flame retardant additive and an antioxidant additive incorporated therein.",
"It is a principal object of the present invention to provide an improved thermal protector for electric circuits.",
"It is a further object of the invention to provide an improved manner of encapsulating a thermal protector.",
"It is also an object of the invention to provide a thermal protector that will not present a fire hazard in the event it explodes.",
"BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING FIG. 1 is a plan view of a thermal protector constructed in accordance with the present application;",
"and FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional elevational view taken generally on line 2--2 of FIG. 1. DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Referring now to the drawing, wherein the showings are for purposes of illustrating certain preferred embodiments of the invention only, and not for purposes of limiting same, a thermal protector A includes a body 12 of a material that has a positive temperature coefficient of resistance.",
"For purposes of this application, body 12 will be referred to as a PTC device or PTC material.",
"PTC material 12 can be a conductive polymer having a particulate conductive filler such as carbon black.",
"However, the PTC material can also take other forms, including a doped ceramic such as barium titanate.",
"A PTC device exhibits a nonlinear change in resistance with temperature.",
"Within a certain narrow temperature range, the electrical resistance of a PTC device jumps sharply.",
"A PTC device may be customized to respond to either temperature conditions of the surrounding environment or to current overload conditions.",
"In a typical application, a PTC device is connected in series with the circuit components requiring protection.",
"In the event of an overload condition in the system, the PTC device will reach switching temperature either by self-induced heating (I 2 R) from the current passing through it or by sensing excessive ambient temperatures.",
"At this point, the PTC device switches into its high resistance state, and effectively blocks the flow of current.",
"A minimal amount of current will persist (trickle current), which holds the PTC device in its high resistance state.",
"Once the power source has been interrupted, and the abnormal condition corrected, the PTC device will return to its rated conductive state, ready to protect the system once again.",
"Under extreme overload conditions, such as a voltage runaway, the PTC device may explode, and expel hot particles into the environment.",
"The expelled hot particles, such as carbon particles, ignite upon coming into contact with atmospheric oxygen.",
"The glowing particles present a fire hazard, because they can ignite combustible materials.",
"In accordance with the present application, PTC device 12 is made of rounded geometry so it has no sharp corners.",
"PTC device 12 is shown in a round disc form with opposite flat faces, and the outer periphery is smoothly curved so it merges into the opposite flat faces along smoothly curved lines.",
"Such a geometry minimizes weak points inherent in parts having sharp corners where carbon ejection usually occurs.",
"Metal foil or mesh discs 14, 16 are bonded to or embedded in the opposite faces of PTC device 12.",
"Leads 18, 20 are connected with discs 14, 16 for connecting, thermal protector A in an electric circuit.",
"PTC device 12 and metal discs 14, 16 are completely encapsulated in a first layer of material 24.",
"The material for first or inner layer 24 can take many forms including, but not limited to, tar, asphalt, putty, organic chemicals such as caffeine or animal protein, thermoplastics or intumescents.",
"When an intumescent material is used, it may be a combination of polyhydric compounds, dehydrating agents, blowing agents, and resin binders.",
"When exposed to high heat, the polyhydric compound (usually a polyol) reacts with the dehydrating agent (e.g., ammonium polyphosphate) to form a carbon char.",
"At the same time, the blowing agent, such as melamine, releases large quantities of nonflammable gases, causing the char layer to expand.",
"The resin binders, such as vinyl copolymers, epoxies, and melamine-formaldehydes, ensure that the surface layer of the foam is sufficiently intact to keep the gases from escaping.",
"The intumescent material can be either water reducible or solvent reducible.",
"Both have a carbonific material to provide the char, a phosphate to serve as a catalyst to cause the char to form, a gas producer to cause the char to foam, and a resinous material to hold it all together.",
"The carbonific is often pentaerythritol, serving as a nonresinous source, and some resinous material, such as melamine-formaldehyde, which also lets off a gas for foam forming and provides a nonburning resinous film to contain the foam.",
"The catalyst is commonly a diammonium phosphate.",
"Aiding in resin formation are such materials as chlorinated rubber or chlorinated paraffin, and some formulations have antimony oxide to help evolve antimony chloride, which helps extinguish flame.",
"A flame retardant additive, an antioxidant, or both can be mixed in the material forming first layer 24.",
"The flame retardant additive can be a halogenated flame retardant, such as chlorinated hydrocarbon, or can be an ammonium polyphosphate.",
"It is also possible to include a synergist, such as antimony oxide, that evolves antimony chloride.",
"The antioxidant can be a polymerized trimethyl dihydroquinoline.",
"First layer 24 is preferably of a material that absorbs energy and changes physical states when the normal operating temperature range of PTC device 12 is exceeded.",
"First layer 24 softens and melts under the excessive temperature to absorb energy.",
"In the event PTC device 12 explodes, the soft or melted first layer traps gases and particles, and dampens the explosive force.",
"A second or outer layer 28 completely encapsulates first layer 24.",
"Second layer 28 is preferably of an elastomeric material, such as silicone rubber or latex.",
"Second layer 28 preferably has a high: tear strength, and is capable of expanding at least 3-5 times its relaxed size without rupturing.",
"Thus, if PTC device 12 explodes, second layer 28 will expand like a balloon without rupturing, and completely contain the explosion.",
"However, in the unlikely event a rupture does occur, any expelled particles will be surrounded by and coated with the material of first layer 24.",
"Second layer 28 may also have incorporated therein a flame retardant additive an antioxidant, or both.",
"First layer 24 can be compounded to change physical states over a temperature range of approximately 90-200° C. depending upon the design of PTC device 12 PTC material 12 can be encapsulated in epoxy or other materials before encapsulation in first and second layers 24, 28.",
"Although the invention has been shown and described with respect to certain preferred embodiments, it is obvious that equivalent alterations and modifications will occur to others skilled in the art upon the reading and understanding of this specification.",
"The present invention includes all such equivalent alterations and modifications, and is limited only by the scope of the claims."
] |
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
[0001] The present invention relates to methods, devices, and systems treating skin, and in certain embodiments the invention relates to methods, devices, and systems for stimulating the production of collagen in the skin.
BACKGROUND
[0002] A primary component of the human skin is collagen, which is a fibrous protein that is secreted by fibroblast cells. Collagen exists in an extracellular matrix (ECM) which is part of the dermis of the human skin. There are several types of collagen, of which Type-I and Type-III collagen being predominant in the skin. The ECM is a meshwork of long collagen helical structures, as well as other macromolecules. The ECM attaches to cells using proteins called integrins. Integrins are also responsible for cell signaling.
[0003] In aged humans fibroblast cells are less active than in young humans, because the rate of collagen replacement is slower than the rate at which collagen degenerates. Thus portions of the ECM are lost through age which shows as aging skin. External factors also shape ECM. Facial muscles distort the ECM over time creating indentations called wrinkles. Expansion of the skin by pregnancy creates striae, or stretch marks. Nicotine is a known factor in the breakdown of integrin. Fibroblast cells which have their integrin bonds severed from the ECM may generate collagen which is not properly attached to the ECM.
[0004] New collagen will be formed by fibroblast cells when an injury occurs to the ECM. Devices have been created to purposely injure the ECM in order to produce new collagen. Examples of which are found in US patent applications US 2005-0251118 A1, US 2006-0189964 A1, and US 2005-0251117 A1. Many of the devices in some part use laser light, ultrasound, and radio frequency energy sources. Heating skin above 65° C. will denature the collagen and cause new growth, but it can also cause pain and burning. The new collagen will also result in a non uniform texture of the skin as is typical of new collagen growth occurring from wounds.
[0005] Additionally when a material is stretched beyond its elastic limit, it will break. The relationship between the amount of force required to elastically stretch an object and the increase in length of the object is called the Young's Modulus (E). In the elastic range, E is a constant for some materials, for others E is variable. As the object approaches its elastic limit, its E begins to decrease rapidly implying that an incremental increase in the force applied produces a much larger increasing the length of the object.
[0006] For most materials, E is temperature dependent. More importantly, however, is the amount of stretching required before reaching a material's elastic limit is temperature dependent. The lower the temperature, the less stretching is required before reaching the object's elastic limit.
[0007] Moreover, when an object is close to or at its elastic limit due to stretching, it is more sensitive to any vibration or other stimulation. More sensitive means the object is more likely to break if it is subject to vibration or other stimulation when it is close to or at its elastic limit.
[0008] If an object has been cooled and stretched close to its elastic limit is subjected to rapid temperature rise, it also is more likely to fracture than if it is allowed to increase in temperature slowly, which is called thermal shock.
[0009] Many of the devices mentioned above in some part use suction to capture a part of the tissue and apply an energy treatment to the captured tissue. The devices above do not incorporate an electronically regulated method to repetitively treat a volume of skin. Past devices also do not incorporate cooling and heating of tissue in order to effect the E of collagen.
SUMMARY OF THE DESCRIPTION
[0010] Methods, systems, and devices to treat a region of skin are described. According to one aspect of the inventions, and embodiment of a method for treating skin includes sealing a region of skin and drawing it into a device using negative pressure which causes the region of skin to undergo mechanical strain. A subsequent positive pressure causes the region of skin to be pushed out of the device. The region of skin undergoes, in one embodiment, a series of negative and positive pressures, where the series is characterized by an electronically regulated duty cycle. An electronic controller coupled to the device may regulate the duty cycle. Heat may be applied to the region of skin. A DC field may be applied to the region of skin. The application of pressure may be preformed by a device designed to specifically match a specific portion of the human body in order to treat the skin of that portion. A system including a device, pressure regulators, and an electronic controller may be used.
[0011] According to one aspect of the invention a portion of tissue is cooled to affect the modulus of elasticity of collagen which resides inside the portion of tissue. The portion of tissue may be stretched before or a after cooling to break the collagen. Energy and rapid heating may be applied to the cooled portion of tissue. The tissue may be additionally stretched or held in a state of constant stretching after cooling until the collagen breaks.
DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0012] The present invention is illustrated by way of example and not limitation in the figures of the accompanying drawings in which like references indicate similar elements.
[0013] FIG. 1 shows a system diagram for the stimulation of collagen.
[0014] FIG. 2A shows a chart which illustrates the duty cycle operation of a device used to stimulate the production of collagen.
[0015] FIG. 2B shows a chart which illustrates the duty cycle operation of a device used to stimulate the production of collagen.
[0016] FIG. 2C shows a chart which illustrates the duty cycle operation of a device used to stimulate the production of collagen.
[0017] FIG. 3 shows a cross section of a device used to stimulate the production of collagen on a volume of human skin.
[0018] FIGS. 4A and 4B show, in front and side views respectively, a device used to stimulate the production of collagen mounted on a human forehead.
[0019] FIGS. 5A and 5B show, in front and side views respectively, a device used to stimulate the production of collagen mounted on a human head adjacent to the eyes.
[0020] FIGS. 6A and 6B show, in front and side views respectively, a device used to stimulate the production of collagen mounted on a human head adjacent to the mouth.
[0021] FIG. 7 shows a device used to stimulate the production of collagen mounted on a human mid-section.
[0022] FIGS. 5A and 8B show a cross section of human tissue in a normal state and being stretched, respectively.
[0023] FIG. 9 shows a stress-strain curve in tension, of collagen in a normal state and a cooled state.
[0024] FIG. 10 shows a cross section of a hand piece device used to apply suction to, and to cool a portion of tissue.
[0025] FIGS. 11A-11C show flow charts for methods to treat a portion of tissue.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0026] Various embodiments and aspects of the inventions will be described with reference to details discussed below, and the accompanying drawings will illustrate the various embodiments. The following description and drawings are illustrative of the invention and are not to be construed as limiting the invention. Numerous specific details are described to provide a through understanding of various embodiments of the present invention. However, in certain instances, well-known or conventional details are not described in order to provide a concise discussion of embodiments of the present inventions.
[0027] FIG. 1 shows a system for stimulating the production of collagen, according to an embodiment of the invention. The system includes a device 100 which applies positive (e.g. pressures slightly above normal atmospheric or higher pressures) and negative pressure (e.g. pressures below atmospheric pressure such as a partial vacuum) to a portion of skin on a patient, a controller 102 , a positive pressure source 104 , and a negative pressure source 106 . The controller 102 regulates the application of pressure by monitoring a pressure sensor 108 and electronically controlled regulator mechanisms 110 which may be valves. The device forms a sealed internal volume when placed against the skin of a patient.
[0028] Placing negative (e.g. a pressure less than atmosphere up to 13 psi or 93 kPa or 700 torr) and positive pressures (e.g. up to 15 psi or 106 kPa or 800 torr) on the skin causes the ECM to stretch and distort, which in turn causes the fibroblast cells to flatten and distort. Mechanical forces on collagen may break collagen which in turn stimulates fibroblasts to generate new collagen. Mechanical forces on fibroblast cells also cause the increased production of epidermal growth factor (EGF) and collagen production, and subsequent attachment of the collagen to the ECM. Mechanical forces also cause the fibroblast cells to migrate along the ECM, causing new growth in different areas of the ECM. For example repetitive pressure treatments at wrinkled, or depressed areas of the skin will cause new growth into the wrinkles areas resulting in a natural, younger appearance.
[0029] The device 100 may include a heater 112 controlled by the controller 102 . Heating the ECM enhances the growth of new collagen. In general the temperature used would be the temperature the human body experiences while counteracting viruses or infections. The device 100 may include a DC electric field generator (not shown) connected by an electric conduit to the controller 102 , and controlled by the controller 102 . The DC electric field generator may include electrodes which are positioned in the device 100 so that they are sufficiently close to the skin to apply a DC electric field to the skin when the device 100 forms a seal and a vacuum over the skin. A DC field will cause the integrins to polarize and subsequently fibroblast cells will move in the direction of the DC field causing new collagen growth in different areas of the ECM.
[0030] Positive and negative pressures are applied at the device 100 in sequential turns electronically controlled by the controller 102 . The positive pressure required is pressure above atmospheric pressure large enough to detect a good seal against the skin while at the same time not forcing the device off the patient, approximately 1-3 psi or 7-21 kPa above atmospheric pressure. The negative pressure required is pressure below atmospheric pressure enough pressure to draw a volume of skin into the device and affect the fibroblast cells and ECM, approximately 3 psi or 20 kPa below atmospheric pressure. A volume of skin may be drawn in the device for as little as a few seconds or less (e.g. 0.05 seconds) to as long as an hour.
[0031] FIG. 2A shows an example of the operation of the device 100 by an electronically regulated duty cycle, controlled by the controller 102 . A positive pressure time period T 1 and a negative pressure period T 2 is shown on a graph of pressure vs. time, with the horizontal time axis being at atmospheric pressure. The ratio of T 1 to T 2 is called the duty cycle D, or D=T 1 /T 2 . The time interval between positive pressure and negative pressure, or pulse, may be as shown as about 0.05 seconds; similarly the time interval between negative and positive pressures may be as short as 0.05 seconds. It has been found that a pulse between 100 and 400 milliseconds provides good results. Shorter pulses (e.g. 200 msec or less) are preferred but such short pulses may not be easily achievable in a technical sense. The time interval between positive pressure time periods and negative pressure time periods may be varied or constant. The duty cycle as shown in FIG. 2A is 1. The duty cycle may be equal to 1, greater than 1, or less than 1, and electronically controlled by the controller. The value of the duty cycle in FIG. 2A remains constant over time, as the duty cycle between T 1 /T 2 and T 3 /T 4 are equal. The value of duty cycles may also increase, decrease, or remain steady over time. FIG. 2A shows no transition slope between pressure peaks, however the operation of the device 100 may have slopes between pressure peaks.
[0032] FIG. 2B shows another example of the operation of the device 100 by an electronically regulated duty cycle, controlled by the controller 102 . T 1 is a larger value than T 2 , resulting in a duty cycle with a value greater than 1. The value of the duty cycle over time is decreasing as T 1 /T 2 is greater than T 3 /T 4 .
[0033] FIG. 2C shows another example of the operation of the device 100 by an electronically regulated duty cycle, controlled by the controller 102 . T 1 is smaller than T 2 , resulting in a duty cycle with a value less than 1. The value of the duty cycle over time is increasing as T 1 /T 2 is less than T 3 /T 4 .
[0034] FIG. 3 shows a volume of skin 300 being drawn in to a device 302 . The device 302 includes a body with an outer surface 304 , an inner surface 306 , and a sealing surface 308 . Negative pressure causes the volume of skin 300 to be drawn into the inner surface 306 . Positive pressure releases the volume of skin 300 . The sealing surface 308 may be fully engaged around the volume of skin 300 to ensure negative and positive pressure is maintained. A pressure chamber 310 communicates with the inner surface 306 to provide pressure to the volume of skin 300 . The inner surface 306 may be heated to provide heat to the volume of skin 300 .
[0035] In use a positive pressure is applied to the volume of skin 300 to detect a proper seal at the sealing surface 308 , while the device 302 is firmly applied against the skin. For example, air may be injected into the pressure chamber 310 to create a pressure slightly above atmospheric pressure as the device 302 is firmly applied against the skin; a pressure sensor may detect this increased pressure and automatically begin the treatment procedure. When a proper seal is detected the device switches from applying a positive pressure to a negative pressure to draw the volume of skin 300 into the device 302 . The volume of skin is both stretched and compressed when drawn into the device 302 , which applies forces to the ECM. A sequence of further positive and negative pressures may then be applied to the skin. A final positive pressure may be used to release the volume of skin 300 .
[0036] FIGS. 4A and 48 show a device 400 which is contoured to fit against the curvature and shape of a human forehead. Wrinkles develop on human foreheads as a result of years of frowning. Frowning causes the musculature on the forehead to contract forming temporary lines. Frowning combined with loss of collagen causes permanent lines on the forehead to form. The device 400 operates as the devices described above. The device incorporates a head strap 402 which allows greater positive pressures to be applied without ejection of the device 400 . Conduits supplying power and pressure to the device 400 may be incorporated into the head strap 402 .
[0037] FIG. 5A and 5B show a device 500 which is contoured to fit against the curvature and shape of a human head such that pressure devices 502 contact securely in the regions next to the eyes. Wrinkles, or crow's feet as they are commonly known, develop adjacent to the eye region as a result of years of squinting. Squinting causes the musculature adjacent to the eyes to contract forming temporary lines. Squinting combined with loss of collagen causes permanent lines adjacent to the eye region to form. The device 500 operates as the devices described above to cause new growth of collagen in the wrinkled region. The device incorporates a head strap 502 which allows proper positioning and greater positive pressures to be applied without ejection of the device 500 . Conduits supplying power and pressure to the device 500 may be incorporated into the head strap 502 .
[0038] FIGS. 6A and 6B show a device 600 which is contoured to fit against the curvature and shape of a human head such that pressure devices 602 contact securely in the regions next to the mouth. Wrinkles, or “laugh lines” as they are commonly known, develop adjacent to the mouth region as a result of years of smiling. Smiling causes the musculature adjacent to the mouth to contract, forming temporary lines. Smiling combined with loss of collagen causes permanent lines adjacent to the mouth region to form. The device 600 operates as the devices described above to cause new growth of collagen in the wrinkled region. The device incorporates a head strap 602 which allows proper positioning and greater positive pressures to be applied without ejection of the device 600 . Conduits supplying power and pressure to the device 600 may be incorporated into the head strap 602 .
[0039] FIG. 7 shows a device 700 contoured to fit a human mid-section, or stomach. Stretch marks often occur in the stomach region as a result of pregnancy. Stretch marks are overstretched regions in the dermis layer of the skin, where tissue has been torn from rapid body growth. The device 700 operates as the devices described above to cause new growth of collagen in the stretch marked region. The device incorporates a strap 702 which allows proper positioning and greater positive pressures to be applied without ejection of the device 700 . Conduits supplying power and pressure to the device 700 may be incorporated into the strap 702 .
Cooling and Heating to Affect the Modulus of Elasticity of Tissue
[0040] FIG. 8A shows a cross section of human tissue located near the skin. The tissue 800 includes the ECM. The ECM is includes all connective tissue in the body which is non-cellular. The ECM composed primarily of water, proteins and carbohydrates. On the macromolecular level the ECM includes proteins such as collagen 802 and elastin 804 . Collagen 802 provides the ECM tensile strength while elastin 804 provides elastic recoil. Also shown fibroblasts 806 , a type of cell which creates precursors for maintenance of the ECM. Fibroblasts are responsible for the creation of new collagen.
[0041] FIG. 5B shows the cross section as in FIG. 8A being stretched. As shown the tissue 800 is being stretched to such a degree that the collagen 802 breaks. When the collagen 802 breaks the fibroblasts 806 create new collagen 802 which results in more youthful looking skin.
[0042] FIG. 9 shows a typical stress-strain diagram for a collagen fiber. Biological tissue does not react to strain as a typical mechanical material would (e.g. does not obey Hooke's law), as a non-linear curve up to the yield point is shown. Curve 902 shows the yield stress of collagen under normal conditions. Stress-Strain curve 902 shows a non-linear tensile curve portion preceding yield point A, and thus the Young's modulus (E) varies up until the yield point. The E of collagen has been experimentally found to range from 2-7 CPa. Curve 904 shows the yield stress of collagen under a cooled condition, as shown the E of collagen and the yield point are altered from the normal condition. Thus under a cooled condition, less strain and stress are required to break a collagen fiber.
[0043] The optimum temperature to cool tissue to may be experimentally determined. Individual collagen fibrils have been experimentally tested using X-ray diffraction and atomic force microscopy techniques. These tests may be replicated by testing the samples at temperatures lower than human body temperature (37° C.) until a significant difference in the stress strain curve is achieved. Care should be taken to not use cold temperatures at time intervals long enough to cause tissue death or frostbite. For example, tissue may be exposed to a temperature of 5° C. for 5 seconds to cause the desired effect on collagen.
[0044] Cooling may be performed by applying a liquid to the tissue and allowing the liquid to evaporate, thereby chilling the tissue. A liquid (e.g. water, ethyl alcohol, or a combination of the two) is applied to the surface of the tissue, and a subsequent negative pressure is applied to evaporate the liquid and cause a cooling effect on the tissue. Methods, devices, and materials which describe cooling the skin by liquid evaporation are described in commonly assigned U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/024,340, published as US 2005-0251118A1, which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety.
[0045] FIG. 10 shows a cross section of a device 1000 which cools the skin through conduction. The device 1000 includes a body 1010 and a cooling plate 1020 . Suction ports 1030 function to draw the skin into the device cavity 1040 , and into contact with the cooling plate. Alternatively cooled gas may be injected into the suction ports 1030 prior to applying to suction, to cool the skin. The cooling plate 1020 may be constructed from a highly conductive metal such as aluminum or copper. The cooling plate 1020 may be coated with a lubricious coating such as Teflon, to prevent tissue sticking. The cooling plate 1020 is kept cool by a cooling chamber 1050 , which includes an inlet port 1060 and an outlet port 1070 to circulate a liquid (e.g. chilled water, low pressure liquid refrigerant). Additionally energy such as laser light, ultrasound, radio frequency energy, and heat may be applied to tissue through elements not shown and described in this disclosure. The application of suction and energy may also be pulsed as described in this disclosure.
[0046] FIG. 11A shows a flow chart for a method for treating a portion of tissue with devices described herein. At module 1100 tissue is initially stretched, which may be performed mechanically or through suction or pressure. At module 1102 the stretched tissue is cooled which changes the mechanical properties of collagen within the tissue, which allows less required stretching to fracture the collagen fibers. The method may then proceed to module 1104 or 1106 . In module 1104 the stretching of the tissue is maintained from module 1100 until the elastic limit of the collagen is exceeded. Alternatively in module 1106 the stretching of the tissue is increased until the elastic limit of the collagen is exceeded. Additionally the tissue may be exposed to sonic or ultrasonic vibration after or during cooling. The collagen will be more sensitive to vibration. Additionally the tissue may be rapidly heated after it has been cooled to induce thermal shock, and thus making the collagen more likely to fracture.
[0047] FIG. 11B shows a flow chart for a method for treating a portion of tissue with devices described herein. At module 1108 tissue is initially cooled which changes the mechanical properties of collagen within the tissue, which allows less required stretching to fracture the collagen fibers. At module 1110 the cooled tissue is stretched, which may be performed mechanically or through suction or pressure. The method may then proceed to module 1112 or 1114 . In module 1112 the stretching of the tissue is maintained from module 1110 until the elastic limit of the collagen is exceeded. Alternatively in module 1114 the stretching of the tissue is increased until the elastic limit of the collagen is exceeded. Additionally the tissue may be heated or subjected to vibration as described above.
[0048] FIG. 11C shows a flow chart shows a flow chart for a method treating a portion of tissue with devices described herein. In module 1116 a portion of tissue is simultaneously cooled and stretched. The method the proceeds to module 1118 or 1120 . In module 1118 the stretching of the tissue is maintained from module 1116 until the elastic limit of the collagen is exceeded. Alternatively in module 1120 the stretching of the tissue is increased until the elastic limit of the collagen is exceeded. Additionally the tissue may be heated or subjected to vibration as described above.
[0049] In the foregoing specification, the invention has been described with reference to specific exemplary embodiments thereof. It will be evident that various modifications may be made thereto without departing from the broader spirit and scope of the invention as set forth in the following claims. The specification and drawings are, accordingly, to be regarded in an illustrative sense rather than a restrictive sense. | Methods, systems, and devices to treat a region of skin; the treatment may be used to stimulate the production of collagen. The region of skin undergoes a series of negative and positive pressures, where the series is characterized by an electronically regulated duty cycle. The region of skin may also be cooled to affect the modulus of elasticity of collagen inside the skin. | Condense the core contents of the given document. | [
"FIELD OF THE INVENTION [0001] The present invention relates to methods, devices, and systems treating skin, and in certain embodiments the invention relates to methods, devices, and systems for stimulating the production of collagen in the skin.",
"BACKGROUND [0002] A primary component of the human skin is collagen, which is a fibrous protein that is secreted by fibroblast cells.",
"Collagen exists in an extracellular matrix (ECM) which is part of the dermis of the human skin.",
"There are several types of collagen, of which Type-I and Type-III collagen being predominant in the skin.",
"The ECM is a meshwork of long collagen helical structures, as well as other macromolecules.",
"The ECM attaches to cells using proteins called integrins.",
"Integrins are also responsible for cell signaling.",
"[0003] In aged humans fibroblast cells are less active than in young humans, because the rate of collagen replacement is slower than the rate at which collagen degenerates.",
"Thus portions of the ECM are lost through age which shows as aging skin.",
"External factors also shape ECM.",
"Facial muscles distort the ECM over time creating indentations called wrinkles.",
"Expansion of the skin by pregnancy creates striae, or stretch marks.",
"Nicotine is a known factor in the breakdown of integrin.",
"Fibroblast cells which have their integrin bonds severed from the ECM may generate collagen which is not properly attached to the ECM.",
"[0004] New collagen will be formed by fibroblast cells when an injury occurs to the ECM.",
"Devices have been created to purposely injure the ECM in order to produce new collagen.",
"Examples of which are found in US patent applications US 2005-0251118 A1, US 2006-0189964 A1, and US 2005-0251117 A1.",
"Many of the devices in some part use laser light, ultrasound, and radio frequency energy sources.",
"Heating skin above 65° C. will denature the collagen and cause new growth, but it can also cause pain and burning.",
"The new collagen will also result in a non uniform texture of the skin as is typical of new collagen growth occurring from wounds.",
"[0005] Additionally when a material is stretched beyond its elastic limit, it will break.",
"The relationship between the amount of force required to elastically stretch an object and the increase in length of the object is called the Young's Modulus (E).",
"In the elastic range, E is a constant for some materials, for others E is variable.",
"As the object approaches its elastic limit, its E begins to decrease rapidly implying that an incremental increase in the force applied produces a much larger increasing the length of the object.",
"[0006] For most materials, E is temperature dependent.",
"More importantly, however, is the amount of stretching required before reaching a material's elastic limit is temperature dependent.",
"The lower the temperature, the less stretching is required before reaching the object's elastic limit.",
"[0007] Moreover, when an object is close to or at its elastic limit due to stretching, it is more sensitive to any vibration or other stimulation.",
"More sensitive means the object is more likely to break if it is subject to vibration or other stimulation when it is close to or at its elastic limit.",
"[0008] If an object has been cooled and stretched close to its elastic limit is subjected to rapid temperature rise, it also is more likely to fracture than if it is allowed to increase in temperature slowly, which is called thermal shock.",
"[0009] Many of the devices mentioned above in some part use suction to capture a part of the tissue and apply an energy treatment to the captured tissue.",
"The devices above do not incorporate an electronically regulated method to repetitively treat a volume of skin.",
"Past devices also do not incorporate cooling and heating of tissue in order to effect the E of collagen.",
"SUMMARY OF THE DESCRIPTION [0010] Methods, systems, and devices to treat a region of skin are described.",
"According to one aspect of the inventions, and embodiment of a method for treating skin includes sealing a region of skin and drawing it into a device using negative pressure which causes the region of skin to undergo mechanical strain.",
"A subsequent positive pressure causes the region of skin to be pushed out of the device.",
"The region of skin undergoes, in one embodiment, a series of negative and positive pressures, where the series is characterized by an electronically regulated duty cycle.",
"An electronic controller coupled to the device may regulate the duty cycle.",
"Heat may be applied to the region of skin.",
"A DC field may be applied to the region of skin.",
"The application of pressure may be preformed by a device designed to specifically match a specific portion of the human body in order to treat the skin of that portion.",
"A system including a device, pressure regulators, and an electronic controller may be used.",
"[0011] According to one aspect of the invention a portion of tissue is cooled to affect the modulus of elasticity of collagen which resides inside the portion of tissue.",
"The portion of tissue may be stretched before or a after cooling to break the collagen.",
"Energy and rapid heating may be applied to the cooled portion of tissue.",
"The tissue may be additionally stretched or held in a state of constant stretching after cooling until the collagen breaks.",
"DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS [0012] The present invention is illustrated by way of example and not limitation in the figures of the accompanying drawings in which like references indicate similar elements.",
"[0013] FIG. 1 shows a system diagram for the stimulation of collagen.",
"[0014] FIG. 2A shows a chart which illustrates the duty cycle operation of a device used to stimulate the production of collagen.",
"[0015] FIG. 2B shows a chart which illustrates the duty cycle operation of a device used to stimulate the production of collagen.",
"[0016] FIG. 2C shows a chart which illustrates the duty cycle operation of a device used to stimulate the production of collagen.",
"[0017] FIG. 3 shows a cross section of a device used to stimulate the production of collagen on a volume of human skin.",
"[0018] FIGS. 4A and 4B show, in front and side views respectively, a device used to stimulate the production of collagen mounted on a human forehead.",
"[0019] FIGS. 5A and 5B show, in front and side views respectively, a device used to stimulate the production of collagen mounted on a human head adjacent to the eyes.",
"[0020] FIGS. 6A and 6B show, in front and side views respectively, a device used to stimulate the production of collagen mounted on a human head adjacent to the mouth.",
"[0021] FIG. 7 shows a device used to stimulate the production of collagen mounted on a human mid-section.",
"[0022] FIGS. 5A and 8B show a cross section of human tissue in a normal state and being stretched, respectively.",
"[0023] FIG. 9 shows a stress-strain curve in tension, of collagen in a normal state and a cooled state.",
"[0024] FIG. 10 shows a cross section of a hand piece device used to apply suction to, and to cool a portion of tissue.",
"[0025] FIGS. 11A-11C show flow charts for methods to treat a portion of tissue.",
"DETAILED DESCRIPTION [0026] Various embodiments and aspects of the inventions will be described with reference to details discussed below, and the accompanying drawings will illustrate the various embodiments.",
"The following description and drawings are illustrative of the invention and are not to be construed as limiting the invention.",
"Numerous specific details are described to provide a through understanding of various embodiments of the present invention.",
"However, in certain instances, well-known or conventional details are not described in order to provide a concise discussion of embodiments of the present inventions.",
"[0027] FIG. 1 shows a system for stimulating the production of collagen, according to an embodiment of the invention.",
"The system includes a device 100 which applies positive (e.g. pressures slightly above normal atmospheric or higher pressures) and negative pressure (e.g. pressures below atmospheric pressure such as a partial vacuum) to a portion of skin on a patient, a controller 102 , a positive pressure source 104 , and a negative pressure source 106 .",
"The controller 102 regulates the application of pressure by monitoring a pressure sensor 108 and electronically controlled regulator mechanisms 110 which may be valves.",
"The device forms a sealed internal volume when placed against the skin of a patient.",
"[0028] Placing negative (e.g. a pressure less than atmosphere up to 13 psi or 93 kPa or 700 torr) and positive pressures (e.g. up to 15 psi or 106 kPa or 800 torr) on the skin causes the ECM to stretch and distort, which in turn causes the fibroblast cells to flatten and distort.",
"Mechanical forces on collagen may break collagen which in turn stimulates fibroblasts to generate new collagen.",
"Mechanical forces on fibroblast cells also cause the increased production of epidermal growth factor (EGF) and collagen production, and subsequent attachment of the collagen to the ECM.",
"Mechanical forces also cause the fibroblast cells to migrate along the ECM, causing new growth in different areas of the ECM.",
"For example repetitive pressure treatments at wrinkled, or depressed areas of the skin will cause new growth into the wrinkles areas resulting in a natural, younger appearance.",
"[0029] The device 100 may include a heater 112 controlled by the controller 102 .",
"Heating the ECM enhances the growth of new collagen.",
"In general the temperature used would be the temperature the human body experiences while counteracting viruses or infections.",
"The device 100 may include a DC electric field generator (not shown) connected by an electric conduit to the controller 102 , and controlled by the controller 102 .",
"The DC electric field generator may include electrodes which are positioned in the device 100 so that they are sufficiently close to the skin to apply a DC electric field to the skin when the device 100 forms a seal and a vacuum over the skin.",
"A DC field will cause the integrins to polarize and subsequently fibroblast cells will move in the direction of the DC field causing new collagen growth in different areas of the ECM.",
"[0030] Positive and negative pressures are applied at the device 100 in sequential turns electronically controlled by the controller 102 .",
"The positive pressure required is pressure above atmospheric pressure large enough to detect a good seal against the skin while at the same time not forcing the device off the patient, approximately 1-3 psi or 7-21 kPa above atmospheric pressure.",
"The negative pressure required is pressure below atmospheric pressure enough pressure to draw a volume of skin into the device and affect the fibroblast cells and ECM, approximately 3 psi or 20 kPa below atmospheric pressure.",
"A volume of skin may be drawn in the device for as little as a few seconds or less (e.g. 0.05 seconds) to as long as an hour.",
"[0031] FIG. 2A shows an example of the operation of the device 100 by an electronically regulated duty cycle, controlled by the controller 102 .",
"A positive pressure time period T 1 and a negative pressure period T 2 is shown on a graph of pressure vs.",
"time, with the horizontal time axis being at atmospheric pressure.",
"The ratio of T 1 to T 2 is called the duty cycle D, or D=T 1 /T 2 .",
"The time interval between positive pressure and negative pressure, or pulse, may be as shown as about 0.05 seconds;",
"similarly the time interval between negative and positive pressures may be as short as 0.05 seconds.",
"It has been found that a pulse between 100 and 400 milliseconds provides good results.",
"Shorter pulses (e.g. 200 msec or less) are preferred but such short pulses may not be easily achievable in a technical sense.",
"The time interval between positive pressure time periods and negative pressure time periods may be varied or constant.",
"The duty cycle as shown in FIG. 2A is 1.",
"The duty cycle may be equal to 1, greater than 1, or less than 1, and electronically controlled by the controller.",
"The value of the duty cycle in FIG. 2A remains constant over time, as the duty cycle between T 1 /T 2 and T 3 /T 4 are equal.",
"The value of duty cycles may also increase, decrease, or remain steady over time.",
"FIG. 2A shows no transition slope between pressure peaks, however the operation of the device 100 may have slopes between pressure peaks.",
"[0032] FIG. 2B shows another example of the operation of the device 100 by an electronically regulated duty cycle, controlled by the controller 102 .",
"T 1 is a larger value than T 2 , resulting in a duty cycle with a value greater than 1.",
"The value of the duty cycle over time is decreasing as T 1 /T 2 is greater than T 3 /T 4 .",
"[0033] FIG. 2C shows another example of the operation of the device 100 by an electronically regulated duty cycle, controlled by the controller 102 .",
"T 1 is smaller than T 2 , resulting in a duty cycle with a value less than 1.",
"The value of the duty cycle over time is increasing as T 1 /T 2 is less than T 3 /T 4 .",
"[0034] FIG. 3 shows a volume of skin 300 being drawn in to a device 302 .",
"The device 302 includes a body with an outer surface 304 , an inner surface 306 , and a sealing surface 308 .",
"Negative pressure causes the volume of skin 300 to be drawn into the inner surface 306 .",
"Positive pressure releases the volume of skin 300 .",
"The sealing surface 308 may be fully engaged around the volume of skin 300 to ensure negative and positive pressure is maintained.",
"A pressure chamber 310 communicates with the inner surface 306 to provide pressure to the volume of skin 300 .",
"The inner surface 306 may be heated to provide heat to the volume of skin 300 .",
"[0035] In use a positive pressure is applied to the volume of skin 300 to detect a proper seal at the sealing surface 308 , while the device 302 is firmly applied against the skin.",
"For example, air may be injected into the pressure chamber 310 to create a pressure slightly above atmospheric pressure as the device 302 is firmly applied against the skin;",
"a pressure sensor may detect this increased pressure and automatically begin the treatment procedure.",
"When a proper seal is detected the device switches from applying a positive pressure to a negative pressure to draw the volume of skin 300 into the device 302 .",
"The volume of skin is both stretched and compressed when drawn into the device 302 , which applies forces to the ECM.",
"A sequence of further positive and negative pressures may then be applied to the skin.",
"A final positive pressure may be used to release the volume of skin 300 .",
"[0036] FIGS. 4A and 48 show a device 400 which is contoured to fit against the curvature and shape of a human forehead.",
"Wrinkles develop on human foreheads as a result of years of frowning.",
"Frowning causes the musculature on the forehead to contract forming temporary lines.",
"Frowning combined with loss of collagen causes permanent lines on the forehead to form.",
"The device 400 operates as the devices described above.",
"The device incorporates a head strap 402 which allows greater positive pressures to be applied without ejection of the device 400 .",
"Conduits supplying power and pressure to the device 400 may be incorporated into the head strap 402 .",
"[0037] FIG. 5A and 5B show a device 500 which is contoured to fit against the curvature and shape of a human head such that pressure devices 502 contact securely in the regions next to the eyes.",
"Wrinkles, or crow's feet as they are commonly known, develop adjacent to the eye region as a result of years of squinting.",
"Squinting causes the musculature adjacent to the eyes to contract forming temporary lines.",
"Squinting combined with loss of collagen causes permanent lines adjacent to the eye region to form.",
"The device 500 operates as the devices described above to cause new growth of collagen in the wrinkled region.",
"The device incorporates a head strap 502 which allows proper positioning and greater positive pressures to be applied without ejection of the device 500 .",
"Conduits supplying power and pressure to the device 500 may be incorporated into the head strap 502 .",
"[0038] FIGS. 6A and 6B show a device 600 which is contoured to fit against the curvature and shape of a human head such that pressure devices 602 contact securely in the regions next to the mouth.",
"Wrinkles, or “laugh lines”",
"as they are commonly known, develop adjacent to the mouth region as a result of years of smiling.",
"Smiling causes the musculature adjacent to the mouth to contract, forming temporary lines.",
"Smiling combined with loss of collagen causes permanent lines adjacent to the mouth region to form.",
"The device 600 operates as the devices described above to cause new growth of collagen in the wrinkled region.",
"The device incorporates a head strap 602 which allows proper positioning and greater positive pressures to be applied without ejection of the device 600 .",
"Conduits supplying power and pressure to the device 600 may be incorporated into the head strap 602 .",
"[0039] FIG. 7 shows a device 700 contoured to fit a human mid-section, or stomach.",
"Stretch marks often occur in the stomach region as a result of pregnancy.",
"Stretch marks are overstretched regions in the dermis layer of the skin, where tissue has been torn from rapid body growth.",
"The device 700 operates as the devices described above to cause new growth of collagen in the stretch marked region.",
"The device incorporates a strap 702 which allows proper positioning and greater positive pressures to be applied without ejection of the device 700 .",
"Conduits supplying power and pressure to the device 700 may be incorporated into the strap 702 .",
"Cooling and Heating to Affect the Modulus of Elasticity of Tissue [0040] FIG. 8A shows a cross section of human tissue located near the skin.",
"The tissue 800 includes the ECM.",
"The ECM is includes all connective tissue in the body which is non-cellular.",
"The ECM composed primarily of water, proteins and carbohydrates.",
"On the macromolecular level the ECM includes proteins such as collagen 802 and elastin 804 .",
"Collagen 802 provides the ECM tensile strength while elastin 804 provides elastic recoil.",
"Also shown fibroblasts 806 , a type of cell which creates precursors for maintenance of the ECM.",
"Fibroblasts are responsible for the creation of new collagen.",
"[0041] FIG. 5B shows the cross section as in FIG. 8A being stretched.",
"As shown the tissue 800 is being stretched to such a degree that the collagen 802 breaks.",
"When the collagen 802 breaks the fibroblasts 806 create new collagen 802 which results in more youthful looking skin.",
"[0042] FIG. 9 shows a typical stress-strain diagram for a collagen fiber.",
"Biological tissue does not react to strain as a typical mechanical material would (e.g. does not obey Hooke's law), as a non-linear curve up to the yield point is shown.",
"Curve 902 shows the yield stress of collagen under normal conditions.",
"Stress-Strain curve 902 shows a non-linear tensile curve portion preceding yield point A, and thus the Young's modulus (E) varies up until the yield point.",
"The E of collagen has been experimentally found to range from 2-7 CPa.",
"Curve 904 shows the yield stress of collagen under a cooled condition, as shown the E of collagen and the yield point are altered from the normal condition.",
"Thus under a cooled condition, less strain and stress are required to break a collagen fiber.",
"[0043] The optimum temperature to cool tissue to may be experimentally determined.",
"Individual collagen fibrils have been experimentally tested using X-ray diffraction and atomic force microscopy techniques.",
"These tests may be replicated by testing the samples at temperatures lower than human body temperature (37° C.) until a significant difference in the stress strain curve is achieved.",
"Care should be taken to not use cold temperatures at time intervals long enough to cause tissue death or frostbite.",
"For example, tissue may be exposed to a temperature of 5° C. for 5 seconds to cause the desired effect on collagen.",
"[0044] Cooling may be performed by applying a liquid to the tissue and allowing the liquid to evaporate, thereby chilling the tissue.",
"A liquid (e.g. water, ethyl alcohol, or a combination of the two) is applied to the surface of the tissue, and a subsequent negative pressure is applied to evaporate the liquid and cause a cooling effect on the tissue.",
"Methods, devices, and materials which describe cooling the skin by liquid evaporation are described in commonly assigned U.S. patent application Ser.",
"No. 11/024,340, published as US 2005-0251118A1, which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety.",
"[0045] FIG. 10 shows a cross section of a device 1000 which cools the skin through conduction.",
"The device 1000 includes a body 1010 and a cooling plate 1020 .",
"Suction ports 1030 function to draw the skin into the device cavity 1040 , and into contact with the cooling plate.",
"Alternatively cooled gas may be injected into the suction ports 1030 prior to applying to suction, to cool the skin.",
"The cooling plate 1020 may be constructed from a highly conductive metal such as aluminum or copper.",
"The cooling plate 1020 may be coated with a lubricious coating such as Teflon, to prevent tissue sticking.",
"The cooling plate 1020 is kept cool by a cooling chamber 1050 , which includes an inlet port 1060 and an outlet port 1070 to circulate a liquid (e.g. chilled water, low pressure liquid refrigerant).",
"Additionally energy such as laser light, ultrasound, radio frequency energy, and heat may be applied to tissue through elements not shown and described in this disclosure.",
"The application of suction and energy may also be pulsed as described in this disclosure.",
"[0046] FIG. 11A shows a flow chart for a method for treating a portion of tissue with devices described herein.",
"At module 1100 tissue is initially stretched, which may be performed mechanically or through suction or pressure.",
"At module 1102 the stretched tissue is cooled which changes the mechanical properties of collagen within the tissue, which allows less required stretching to fracture the collagen fibers.",
"The method may then proceed to module 1104 or 1106 .",
"In module 1104 the stretching of the tissue is maintained from module 1100 until the elastic limit of the collagen is exceeded.",
"Alternatively in module 1106 the stretching of the tissue is increased until the elastic limit of the collagen is exceeded.",
"Additionally the tissue may be exposed to sonic or ultrasonic vibration after or during cooling.",
"The collagen will be more sensitive to vibration.",
"Additionally the tissue may be rapidly heated after it has been cooled to induce thermal shock, and thus making the collagen more likely to fracture.",
"[0047] FIG. 11B shows a flow chart for a method for treating a portion of tissue with devices described herein.",
"At module 1108 tissue is initially cooled which changes the mechanical properties of collagen within the tissue, which allows less required stretching to fracture the collagen fibers.",
"At module 1110 the cooled tissue is stretched, which may be performed mechanically or through suction or pressure.",
"The method may then proceed to module 1112 or 1114 .",
"In module 1112 the stretching of the tissue is maintained from module 1110 until the elastic limit of the collagen is exceeded.",
"Alternatively in module 1114 the stretching of the tissue is increased until the elastic limit of the collagen is exceeded.",
"Additionally the tissue may be heated or subjected to vibration as described above.",
"[0048] FIG. 11C shows a flow chart shows a flow chart for a method treating a portion of tissue with devices described herein.",
"In module 1116 a portion of tissue is simultaneously cooled and stretched.",
"The method the proceeds to module 1118 or 1120 .",
"In module 1118 the stretching of the tissue is maintained from module 1116 until the elastic limit of the collagen is exceeded.",
"Alternatively in module 1120 the stretching of the tissue is increased until the elastic limit of the collagen is exceeded.",
"Additionally the tissue may be heated or subjected to vibration as described above.",
"[0049] In the foregoing specification, the invention has been described with reference to specific exemplary embodiments thereof.",
"It will be evident that various modifications may be made thereto without departing from the broader spirit and scope of the invention as set forth in the following claims.",
"The specification and drawings are, accordingly, to be regarded in an illustrative sense rather than a restrictive sense."
] |
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] This is a continuation-in-part application of pending prior application Ser. No. 12/052,054 filed on Mar. 20, 2008 (now U.S. Pat. No. 8,679,522), which is a continuation of application Ser. No. 11/084,707 filed on Mar. 17, 2005 (now U.S. Pat. No. 7,351,425), which is a continuation of prior application Ser. No. 10/646,503 filed on Aug. 21, 2003 (now U.S. Pat. No. 6,869,614), which is a continuation of application Ser. No. 10/316,700 filed on Dec. 10, 2002 (now U.S. Pat. No. 6,652,839), which is a continuation of application Ser. No. 09/664,630 filed on Sep. 19, 2000 (now U.S. Pat. No. 6,491,540) and claims priority from U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 60/154,972 filed on Sep. 20, 1999. The entire disclosure of the prior applications are considered to be part of the disclosure of the accompanying application and are hereby incorporated by reference.
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
[0002] The present invention is directed to functional gums, suckers (e.g., lollipops) and lozenges, and more particularly, to a gum and/or sucker and/or lozenge that has at least an exterior and an interior component, having distinct metabolic and functional characteristics that correspond with the ingredients contained therein.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0003] Throughout the ages, human beings have attempted to attain and maintain particular body morphologies, and in particular, have attempted to control their weight so as to conform with then-fashionable mores. During the recent past, a preference for less massive morphologies has been in vogue and a populous genetically ill-equipped to conform with such weight characteristics is bombarded with images of svelte figures in both male and female forms.
[0004] The desire of individuals to lose weight and specifically, to lose fatty tissue, has become nearly an obsession in the United States and many other countries. Any simple and safe method toward achieving a slim figure is in great demand. Methods for losing weight include hundreds of advised diets, machines and methods for exercise, various psychiatric techniques involving alteration in mental attitudes, and a variety of surgical techniques. Liposuction has created an entirely new surgical cosmetic industry, but carries a small but significant risk and often leaves the patient with an unsightly cosmetic result due to the inflammatory reaction surrounding where the fatty tissue has been removed by a technique which produces a severe tissue reaction.
[0005] Obesity is a serious public health hazard, second in importance only to tobacco. Approximately ⅓ of Americans are seriously overweight according to life insurance data. In approximately 12 million Americans, obesity significantly contributes toward the cause and complications of serious disease. Such conditions include heart and lung disease, many types of cancer, diabetes, high blood pressure, and peripheral arterial disease. This is in addition to how obesity becomes a cosmetic problem. Being overly fat limits both length of life and its quality.
[0006] A multi-billion dollar industry has developed in an effort to control weight. The many varied and expensive techniques employed speak to the relative ineffectiveness of the many techniques that have been tried to get rid of excess fat.
[0007] Obesity has recently been recognized as a public health hazard of epidemic proportions by the World Health Organization. One of three Americans between the ages of 20-74 are obese (Body Mass Index>30 Kg/m 2 body surface). This amounts to 58 million people. The number of obese adults has increased dramatically. In 1980 25% of US adults were obese. The equivalent figure was 33% in 1990. In Europe the equivalent figure is about 40%.
[0008] Obesity significantly contributes to the dangers of other diseases in approximately half of those who exceed the threshold description of obesity. For example, 19% of the cost of management of heart disease can be ascribed to obesity. Obesity is also recognized as a co-morbid factor for obese patients suffering from degenerative arthritis, peripheral vascular disease, and many forms of pulmonary disease such as emphysema. The expenditure for products, goods, and services in the management of obesity is estimated to be $ 33 billion per year. This is 3%-4% of total health care expenditure per year and exceeds that expended for AIDS and cancer.
[0009] Obesity is such a prevalent, important and distressing problem that its many methods for suggested management are too well known to deserve more than listing. They include diets that exclude fats and high caloric elements, food supplements, appetite suppressants, exercise machines and regimes, biofeedback and other psychotherapeutic techniques, and a variety of operative techniques. Operations include a number of methods for decreasing the capacity the stomach, gastric by-pass operations, methods to shorten the small intestinal absorption surface, excision of the unwanted fat (lipectomy) and techniques of liposuction. Liposuction is performed approximately 51,000 times each year in the US. The maximum amount of fat that can safely be removed is approximately 2 Kg. Being an operative technique for removing fat, in this case by suction, it inevitably excites an inflammatory response at the operative site, which results not only in post operative inflammation but in subsequent uneven and unsightly scarring beneath the skin where the fat has been removed.
[0010] Incorporated by reference in its entirety are the following U.S. patents directed generally to chewing gum compositions, methods and apparatus for making chewing gum, and in particular, methods for enabling one of skill in the art to produce soft-centered chewing gums as contemplated by the present invention. The novelty of the present invention, however, should be understood as being distinguished from such prior art references and such incorporation by reference is only provided for enabling support of the numerous ways in which the particular novel product can be manufactured. The U.S. patents incorporated by reference are as follows: U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,922,347; 5,916,606; 5,912,030; 5,900,230; 5,885,630; 5,866,179; 5,858,423; 5,846,557; 5,834,002; 5,827,526; 5,824,291; 5,736,175; 4,156,740; 5,498,429; 4,466,983; 4,157,402; 5,569,477; 5,125,819; 5,248,508; 4,975,288; 4,792,453; 4,980,178; 4,683,138; 5,087,460; 4,292,329; 4,642,235; 4,316,915; 4,513,012; 4,250,196; 5,431,929; and 4,647,450.
[0011] Weight control systems and methods have improved over the years. Indeed, the ancient Romans believed that the vomitorium was penance for their uncontrollable feasting and drinking during long celebrations for their various deities. Modem methods of weight control including arduous and sometimes bizarre workout routines and machines are no less peculiar in modern times. Moreover, with the advent of liposuction, stomach stapling, etc., there appears to be no bounds beyond which humans will go to attain desired physical characteristics as such relate to their weight. The effect of such weight norms has created a $60 billion a year market for diet and weight control products. It is estimated that nearly half of all American women, and a quarter of all men, are on a diet at any given time. As is well known, however, most diets, studies have shown, do not work for nine out of ten people who, after suffering through such diets, quickly regain their weight and often exceed their previous body mass. Such an unfortunate volley of feasting and dieting leads not only to physical harm due to increased rates of diabetes, arterial sclerosis, and other physical health problems, but also to an often devastating decreased estimation of a person's self-worth.
[0012] There is thus a long felt but unsolved need for an effective, inexpensive and easy way in which to provide health conscious individuals with diet products to assist in achieving desired weight loss.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0013] In one embodiment, the present invention is directed to a method and product which provides functional components such as, herbal, medicinal and/or vitamin substances for various applications (e.g., weight control substances) to an individual other than through the consumption of pills, suppositories, diet beverages and/or tasteless and low caloric foodstuffs. In one embodiment, the present invention is directed to a particular gum product having at its center a composition different from the surrounding gum and having distinct functional and metabolic characteristics. For example, various metabolism increasing components can be provided in the interior of a gum in a liquid or semi-liquid form while the gum itself can be of a traditional gum composition and/or may incorporate various other desirable metabolic increasing components to supplement and/or coact with components contained in the liquid center of the gum. Indeed, in one particular embodiment of the present invention, time release capsules may be provided suspended in a liquid medium inside a gum enclosure.
[0014] The present discussion pertains principally to a diet control gum/lozenge/lollipop, but the present invention is not so limited and includes one or more combinations of ingredients as set forth, for example, in Tables I and II below, which may be useful in numerous and varied applications. For illustration purposes only, however, the following discusses weight loss applications of the present invention. In one embodiment, chewing of the gum-based product releases the interior liquid substance, thus providing a product and a method desirable by weight conscious individuals who do not wish to publicly announce or disclose their dietary desires. In a preferred embodiment, the substance contained within the gum (e.g. the interior liquid substance) would have as a principal characteristic the capability of increasing a user's caloric burn rate (e.g. by increasing a person's metabolism, adjusting/regulating hormonal activity in an individual, providing fiber to increase a person's feelings of satiety).
[0015] In a particular embodiment of the present invention, a gum is utilized having liquid interior components surrounded by the dense gum, for example, the interior having a density less than 10% as dense as the exterior gum, more preferably at least about 15% less dense, and more preferably, at least about 35% less dense than the surrounding gum. The interior liquid components can be herbal, organic, natural, chemical and/or hormonal in nature, and may be selected dependent upon their individual and synergistic characteristics, with the objective being to increase a person's metabolism in order to achieve a higher caloric bum rate and/or to decrease the desire for additional food (e.g. generate a feeling of satiety or fullness). It is within the scope of the present invention to incorporate various known diet control substances in either the gum material itself and/or in the liquid interior material encompassed by the gum material. In a preferred embodiment, however, the surrounding gum material is comprised of traditional gum flavors and compositions and the interior liquid and/or semi-liquid (e.g. gel) components of the present invention comprise diet regulating substances.
[0016] Yet another embodiment of the present invention relates to a hard candy substance (e.g. primarily comprising a natural sugar and corn syrup base) often referred to as a “sucker” or “lollipop.” The interior of the sucker or lollipop, however, contains a less rigid, soft and/or liquid or semi-liquid component. The enclosed material of the lollipop includes metabolic enhancers for weight and caloric control.
[0017] In still another embodiment, a lozenge can be manufactured having a denser exterior and a less dense interior, where either the interior or exterior of the lozenge, or both, contain diet controlling substances. Preferably, diet controlling substances are positioned within the interior of such lozenges so as to facilitate the enjoyment by an individual of consuming the lozenge without the possible unpleasant and/or undesirable taste characteristics of various dietary components within the center of the lozenge.
[0018] It will be understood that one purpose of certain embodiments of the present invention is to increase metabolic efficiency and to burn calories in an individual. Herbal additives may be incorporated into such products to aid in the body's ability to digest food and/or to block absorption of fat molecules into the system. For example, chitosan compositions can be utilized either in the interior and/or exterior of the gum, lollipop and lozenge embodiments desired above and hereafter. In addition to chitosan, other fiber-like components, vitamins and minerals (e.g., especially calcium compositions to treat osteoporosis) can be incorporated into the present invention to provide desired feelings of satiety or fullness to an individual using such products and/or to treat various vitamin and/or mineral deficiencies.
[0019] While the present invention is primarily directed to administering diet control substances to individuals, it should be understood that other medicinal and/or nutritional and/or biological components can be administered to animals in general (companion pets, livestock, etc.) but preferably humans. Indeed, the present inventor believes that the administration of medicinal compounds to young children can be greatly facilitated by use of the present invention given that children are more apt to take medicine in the for of a lollipop, lozenge or gum, particularly if the taste and flavor and textural characteristics of such candy products are preserved and effective amounts of desired components are delivered to such individuals when consuming such products.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0020] FIG. 1 represents one embodiment of the invention depicting both a gum-based outer shell and a liquid or syrup center, both consisting of all or some ingredients listed in Table I or Table II.
[0021] FIG. 2 represents another embodiment of the present invention in a lollipop form.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
[0022] The following table contains a list of possible components that may be incorporated into the center of the gum, lollipop and lozenge aspects of the present invention:
[0000]
TABLE I
Dexatrim
Diuretics
Chitosan
Antacids
Oatmeal fiber
Antibiotics
Vitamins
Herbal components
Mineral supplements
Stimulants
Medicinal components
Metabolic enhancers
Lipid substances (HDLs)
Chemotherapeutic agents
[0023] The following U.S. issued patents are also incorporated herein by reference: U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,474,989 by Hasimoto et al., 5,747,475 by Norquist et al., 5,830,883 by Block et al., 5,880,109 by Nakamura et al., 4,963,367 by Ecanow, 4,738,850 by Thakur et al., 5,846,952 by Vournakis et al., and 4,223,023 by Furda. It will therefore be appreciated by one of skill in the art that various compositions, formulations, masking agents (e.g., to “mask” unpleasant flavors and/or textures and/or mouth feel characteristics of vitamins, medicinal compounds, minerals, etc.) and binders can be combined with the present structure of the present invention to achieve various desired purposes. For example, controlled release formulations are encompassed by the present invention as are the preparation and use of various different carrier vehicles useful for medicinally administering compositions to animals, time release formulations, compositions having desirable solubility and dissolution rates, and the incorporation into the present invention of food additives such as vitamins, pharmaceutical preparations and other compounds, specifically those that reduce the absorption of lipids such a chitosan.
[0024] Both the gum with liquid-type fillers and the sucker with a gum-based center can be comprised of one or more of the following: xanthan, guar, locust bean gum, karaya, gum tragacanth, carrageenans, alginates, gum arabic, corn syrup, sugar, starches, gum bases. While multiple recipes exist, most candy substances can also be made from natural and herbal substitutes listed in Table II. The cavities that are extruded in both the gum and the lollipop can be made with one or more cavities that can be filled with multiple bio-enhancing and weight management substances, compiling all or some of the properties in Table II. The combination of them will achieve various results. Example: Guarana and malluang and chitosan will create energy and a feeling of “fullness” for the consumer;
[0025] chromium picolinate (RE. 33, 988) and ginseng and ginger will allow the user to burn calories more efficiently).
[0000]
TABLE II
Siberian Ginseng
Vitamin E
Green Tea
Zinc
Casgara Sagrada
Mahuang
Apple Pectin
Astragalus
Dandelion
Guarana
Chickweek
Bee Pollen
Gymnema Sylvestre
Chromium Picolinate
Licorice
Bluegreen Algae
Bladderwrack
Royal Jelly
Ginger
Damiana
Magnesium
Lecithin
Sarsaparilla
Gotu Kola
Golden Seal
Nettles
Chitosan
[0026] The amounts of all or some of these ingredients can vary, preferably being present in an amount between no less than about 0.05 mg. The size of the gum exterior can be made of a size less than 4.5 grams to more than 18.4 grams with the cavity center being able to accommodate a volume between .5 mg to more than 5 grams. The lollipop can be a total size of less than .65 oz. with the cavity center being a volume of no more than .42 oz. and no less than 4.5 grams, to a size larger than 1.35 oz. with a cavity center being of at least 19 grams.
[0027] In one particular embodiment, the invention is directed to a beverage, so-called a Bloody Mary beverage, that includes the following: in a 12 fluid once serving: up to but not exceeding 9.9% alcohol (by volume); no fat; up to 1200 mg of sodium; 3 grams of protein; Vitamin C, Vitamin A, calcium, potassium and iron. In a preferred embodiment the beverage includes water, tomato concentrate, natural grain spirits, high fructose corn syrup, aloe vera juice, sodium chloride, vinegar, citric acid, taurine, pectin, ascorbic acid, and citrus aurantium extract. In still other embodiments, the beverage includes the following: fresh horseradish, tomato juice, Tabasco, worcestershire sauce, celery salt, and one of amontillado; cream sherry, and pure cane sugar. In yet another embodiment, the present invention includes a beverage consisting of: water; a tomato concentrate having a tomato soluble solids content of about 24% to about 36% by weight, ethyl alcohol, Vitamin C, Vitamin A, calcium, potassium, iron, water, high fructose corn syrup, aloe vera juice, sodium chloride, vinegar, citric acid; taurine, pectin, ascorbic acid, and citrus aurantium extract, horseradish, worcestershire sauce, and celery salt. Certain other embodiments are directed to a Bloody Mary beverage that has the benefits of an energy drink, and include at least the following: tomato juice containing lycopene, Ginger, Honey, taurine and caffeine. By way of providing additional background, context, and to further satisfy the written description requirements of 35 U.S.C. §112, the following references are incorporated by reference in their entireties: U.S. Patent Publication No. 20130115329 to Savant, et al. and U.S. Pat. No. 8,202,561 to Livaich. One of skill in the art will further appreciate that the beverage ingredients of the above can also be incorporated into the chewing gum and lollipop embodiments as further described herein.
[0028] While various embodiments of the present invention have been described in detail, it is apparent that further modifications and adaptations of the invention will occur to those skilled in the art. However, it is to be expressly understood that such modifications and adaptations are within the spirit and scope of the present invention. | A chewing gum with a liquid-fill composition and a surrounding gum region, with one or both containing active ingredients, such as herbal, medicinal and/or mineral elements or combinations thereof, present in an amount of at least about 0.05 mg. | Briefly summarize the main idea's components and working principles as described in the context. | [
"CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS [0001] This is a continuation-in-part application of pending prior application Ser.",
"No. 12/052,054 filed on Mar. 20, 2008 (now U.S. Pat. No. 8,679,522), which is a continuation of application Ser.",
"No. 11/084,707 filed on Mar. 17, 2005 (now U.S. Pat. No. 7,351,425), which is a continuation of prior application Ser.",
"No. 10/646,503 filed on Aug. 21, 2003 (now U.S. Pat. No. 6,869,614), which is a continuation of application Ser.",
"No. 10/316,700 filed on Dec. 10, 2002 (now U.S. Pat. No. 6,652,839), which is a continuation of application Ser.",
"No. 09/664,630 filed on Sep. 19, 2000 (now U.S. Pat. No. 6,491,540) and claims priority from U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 60/154,972 filed on Sep. 20, 1999.",
"The entire disclosure of the prior applications are considered to be part of the disclosure of the accompanying application and are hereby incorporated by reference.",
"FIELD OF THE INVENTION [0002] The present invention is directed to functional gums, suckers (e.g., lollipops) and lozenges, and more particularly, to a gum and/or sucker and/or lozenge that has at least an exterior and an interior component, having distinct metabolic and functional characteristics that correspond with the ingredients contained therein.",
"BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION [0003] Throughout the ages, human beings have attempted to attain and maintain particular body morphologies, and in particular, have attempted to control their weight so as to conform with then-fashionable mores.",
"During the recent past, a preference for less massive morphologies has been in vogue and a populous genetically ill-equipped to conform with such weight characteristics is bombarded with images of svelte figures in both male and female forms.",
"[0004] The desire of individuals to lose weight and specifically, to lose fatty tissue, has become nearly an obsession in the United States and many other countries.",
"Any simple and safe method toward achieving a slim figure is in great demand.",
"Methods for losing weight include hundreds of advised diets, machines and methods for exercise, various psychiatric techniques involving alteration in mental attitudes, and a variety of surgical techniques.",
"Liposuction has created an entirely new surgical cosmetic industry, but carries a small but significant risk and often leaves the patient with an unsightly cosmetic result due to the inflammatory reaction surrounding where the fatty tissue has been removed by a technique which produces a severe tissue reaction.",
"[0005] Obesity is a serious public health hazard, second in importance only to tobacco.",
"Approximately ⅓ of Americans are seriously overweight according to life insurance data.",
"In approximately 12 million Americans, obesity significantly contributes toward the cause and complications of serious disease.",
"Such conditions include heart and lung disease, many types of cancer, diabetes, high blood pressure, and peripheral arterial disease.",
"This is in addition to how obesity becomes a cosmetic problem.",
"Being overly fat limits both length of life and its quality.",
"[0006] A multi-billion dollar industry has developed in an effort to control weight.",
"The many varied and expensive techniques employed speak to the relative ineffectiveness of the many techniques that have been tried to get rid of excess fat.",
"[0007] Obesity has recently been recognized as a public health hazard of epidemic proportions by the World Health Organization.",
"One of three Americans between the ages of 20-74 are obese (Body Mass Index>30 Kg/m 2 body surface).",
"This amounts to 58 million people.",
"The number of obese adults has increased dramatically.",
"In 1980 25% of US adults were obese.",
"The equivalent figure was 33% in 1990.",
"In Europe the equivalent figure is about 40%.",
"[0008] Obesity significantly contributes to the dangers of other diseases in approximately half of those who exceed the threshold description of obesity.",
"For example, 19% of the cost of management of heart disease can be ascribed to obesity.",
"Obesity is also recognized as a co-morbid factor for obese patients suffering from degenerative arthritis, peripheral vascular disease, and many forms of pulmonary disease such as emphysema.",
"The expenditure for products, goods, and services in the management of obesity is estimated to be $ 33 billion per year.",
"This is 3%-4% of total health care expenditure per year and exceeds that expended for AIDS and cancer.",
"[0009] Obesity is such a prevalent, important and distressing problem that its many methods for suggested management are too well known to deserve more than listing.",
"They include diets that exclude fats and high caloric elements, food supplements, appetite suppressants, exercise machines and regimes, biofeedback and other psychotherapeutic techniques, and a variety of operative techniques.",
"Operations include a number of methods for decreasing the capacity the stomach, gastric by-pass operations, methods to shorten the small intestinal absorption surface, excision of the unwanted fat (lipectomy) and techniques of liposuction.",
"Liposuction is performed approximately 51,000 times each year in the US.",
"The maximum amount of fat that can safely be removed is approximately 2 Kg.",
"Being an operative technique for removing fat, in this case by suction, it inevitably excites an inflammatory response at the operative site, which results not only in post operative inflammation but in subsequent uneven and unsightly scarring beneath the skin where the fat has been removed.",
"[0010] Incorporated by reference in its entirety are the following U.S. patents directed generally to chewing gum compositions, methods and apparatus for making chewing gum, and in particular, methods for enabling one of skill in the art to produce soft-centered chewing gums as contemplated by the present invention.",
"The novelty of the present invention, however, should be understood as being distinguished from such prior art references and such incorporation by reference is only provided for enabling support of the numerous ways in which the particular novel product can be manufactured.",
"The U.S. patents incorporated by reference are as follows: U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,922,347;",
"5,916,606;",
"5,912,030;",
"5,900,230;",
"5,885,630;",
"5,866,179;",
"5,858,423;",
"5,846,557;",
"5,834,002;",
"5,827,526;",
"5,824,291;",
"5,736,175;",
"4,156,740;",
"5,498,429;",
"4,466,983;",
"4,157,402;",
"5,569,477;",
"5,125,819;",
"5,248,508;",
"4,975,288;",
"4,792,453;",
"4,980,178;",
"4,683,138;",
"5,087,460;",
"4,292,329;",
"4,642,235;",
"4,316,915;",
"4,513,012;",
"4,250,196;",
"5,431,929;",
"and 4,647,450.",
"[0011] Weight control systems and methods have improved over the years.",
"Indeed, the ancient Romans believed that the vomitorium was penance for their uncontrollable feasting and drinking during long celebrations for their various deities.",
"Modem methods of weight control including arduous and sometimes bizarre workout routines and machines are no less peculiar in modern times.",
"Moreover, with the advent of liposuction, stomach stapling, etc.",
", there appears to be no bounds beyond which humans will go to attain desired physical characteristics as such relate to their weight.",
"The effect of such weight norms has created a $60 billion a year market for diet and weight control products.",
"It is estimated that nearly half of all American women, and a quarter of all men, are on a diet at any given time.",
"As is well known, however, most diets, studies have shown, do not work for nine out of ten people who, after suffering through such diets, quickly regain their weight and often exceed their previous body mass.",
"Such an unfortunate volley of feasting and dieting leads not only to physical harm due to increased rates of diabetes, arterial sclerosis, and other physical health problems, but also to an often devastating decreased estimation of a person's self-worth.",
"[0012] There is thus a long felt but unsolved need for an effective, inexpensive and easy way in which to provide health conscious individuals with diet products to assist in achieving desired weight loss.",
"SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION [0013] In one embodiment, the present invention is directed to a method and product which provides functional components such as, herbal, medicinal and/or vitamin substances for various applications (e.g., weight control substances) to an individual other than through the consumption of pills, suppositories, diet beverages and/or tasteless and low caloric foodstuffs.",
"In one embodiment, the present invention is directed to a particular gum product having at its center a composition different from the surrounding gum and having distinct functional and metabolic characteristics.",
"For example, various metabolism increasing components can be provided in the interior of a gum in a liquid or semi-liquid form while the gum itself can be of a traditional gum composition and/or may incorporate various other desirable metabolic increasing components to supplement and/or coact with components contained in the liquid center of the gum.",
"Indeed, in one particular embodiment of the present invention, time release capsules may be provided suspended in a liquid medium inside a gum enclosure.",
"[0014] The present discussion pertains principally to a diet control gum/lozenge/lollipop, but the present invention is not so limited and includes one or more combinations of ingredients as set forth, for example, in Tables I and II below, which may be useful in numerous and varied applications.",
"For illustration purposes only, however, the following discusses weight loss applications of the present invention.",
"In one embodiment, chewing of the gum-based product releases the interior liquid substance, thus providing a product and a method desirable by weight conscious individuals who do not wish to publicly announce or disclose their dietary desires.",
"In a preferred embodiment, the substance contained within the gum (e.g. the interior liquid substance) would have as a principal characteristic the capability of increasing a user's caloric burn rate (e.g. by increasing a person's metabolism, adjusting/regulating hormonal activity in an individual, providing fiber to increase a person's feelings of satiety).",
"[0015] In a particular embodiment of the present invention, a gum is utilized having liquid interior components surrounded by the dense gum, for example, the interior having a density less than 10% as dense as the exterior gum, more preferably at least about 15% less dense, and more preferably, at least about 35% less dense than the surrounding gum.",
"The interior liquid components can be herbal, organic, natural, chemical and/or hormonal in nature, and may be selected dependent upon their individual and synergistic characteristics, with the objective being to increase a person's metabolism in order to achieve a higher caloric bum rate and/or to decrease the desire for additional food (e.g. generate a feeling of satiety or fullness).",
"It is within the scope of the present invention to incorporate various known diet control substances in either the gum material itself and/or in the liquid interior material encompassed by the gum material.",
"In a preferred embodiment, however, the surrounding gum material is comprised of traditional gum flavors and compositions and the interior liquid and/or semi-liquid (e.g. gel) components of the present invention comprise diet regulating substances.",
"[0016] Yet another embodiment of the present invention relates to a hard candy substance (e.g. primarily comprising a natural sugar and corn syrup base) often referred to as a “sucker”",
"or “lollipop.”",
"The interior of the sucker or lollipop, however, contains a less rigid, soft and/or liquid or semi-liquid component.",
"The enclosed material of the lollipop includes metabolic enhancers for weight and caloric control.",
"[0017] In still another embodiment, a lozenge can be manufactured having a denser exterior and a less dense interior, where either the interior or exterior of the lozenge, or both, contain diet controlling substances.",
"Preferably, diet controlling substances are positioned within the interior of such lozenges so as to facilitate the enjoyment by an individual of consuming the lozenge without the possible unpleasant and/or undesirable taste characteristics of various dietary components within the center of the lozenge.",
"[0018] It will be understood that one purpose of certain embodiments of the present invention is to increase metabolic efficiency and to burn calories in an individual.",
"Herbal additives may be incorporated into such products to aid in the body's ability to digest food and/or to block absorption of fat molecules into the system.",
"For example, chitosan compositions can be utilized either in the interior and/or exterior of the gum, lollipop and lozenge embodiments desired above and hereafter.",
"In addition to chitosan, other fiber-like components, vitamins and minerals (e.g., especially calcium compositions to treat osteoporosis) can be incorporated into the present invention to provide desired feelings of satiety or fullness to an individual using such products and/or to treat various vitamin and/or mineral deficiencies.",
"[0019] While the present invention is primarily directed to administering diet control substances to individuals, it should be understood that other medicinal and/or nutritional and/or biological components can be administered to animals in general (companion pets, livestock, etc.) but preferably humans.",
"Indeed, the present inventor believes that the administration of medicinal compounds to young children can be greatly facilitated by use of the present invention given that children are more apt to take medicine in the for of a lollipop, lozenge or gum, particularly if the taste and flavor and textural characteristics of such candy products are preserved and effective amounts of desired components are delivered to such individuals when consuming such products.",
"BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS [0020] FIG. 1 represents one embodiment of the invention depicting both a gum-based outer shell and a liquid or syrup center, both consisting of all or some ingredients listed in Table I or Table II.",
"[0021] FIG. 2 represents another embodiment of the present invention in a lollipop form.",
"DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT [0022] The following table contains a list of possible components that may be incorporated into the center of the gum, lollipop and lozenge aspects of the present invention: [0000] TABLE I Dexatrim Diuretics Chitosan Antacids Oatmeal fiber Antibiotics Vitamins Herbal components Mineral supplements Stimulants Medicinal components Metabolic enhancers Lipid substances (HDLs) Chemotherapeutic agents [0023] The following U.S. issued patents are also incorporated herein by reference: U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,474,989 by Hasimoto et al.",
", 5,747,475 by Norquist et al.",
", 5,830,883 by Block et al.",
", 5,880,109 by Nakamura et al.",
", 4,963,367 by Ecanow, 4,738,850 by Thakur et al.",
", 5,846,952 by Vournakis et al.",
", and 4,223,023 by Furda.",
"It will therefore be appreciated by one of skill in the art that various compositions, formulations, masking agents (e.g., to “mask”",
"unpleasant flavors and/or textures and/or mouth feel characteristics of vitamins, medicinal compounds, minerals, etc.) and binders can be combined with the present structure of the present invention to achieve various desired purposes.",
"For example, controlled release formulations are encompassed by the present invention as are the preparation and use of various different carrier vehicles useful for medicinally administering compositions to animals, time release formulations, compositions having desirable solubility and dissolution rates, and the incorporation into the present invention of food additives such as vitamins, pharmaceutical preparations and other compounds, specifically those that reduce the absorption of lipids such a chitosan.",
"[0024] Both the gum with liquid-type fillers and the sucker with a gum-based center can be comprised of one or more of the following: xanthan, guar, locust bean gum, karaya, gum tragacanth, carrageenans, alginates, gum arabic, corn syrup, sugar, starches, gum bases.",
"While multiple recipes exist, most candy substances can also be made from natural and herbal substitutes listed in Table II.",
"The cavities that are extruded in both the gum and the lollipop can be made with one or more cavities that can be filled with multiple bio-enhancing and weight management substances, compiling all or some of the properties in Table II.",
"The combination of them will achieve various results.",
"Example: Guarana and malluang and chitosan will create energy and a feeling of “fullness”",
"for the consumer;",
"[0025] chromium picolinate (RE.",
"33, 988) and ginseng and ginger will allow the user to burn calories more efficiently).",
"[0000] TABLE II Siberian Ginseng Vitamin E Green Tea Zinc Casgara Sagrada Mahuang Apple Pectin Astragalus Dandelion Guarana Chickweek Bee Pollen Gymnema Sylvestre Chromium Picolinate Licorice Bluegreen Algae Bladderwrack Royal Jelly Ginger Damiana Magnesium Lecithin Sarsaparilla Gotu Kola Golden Seal Nettles Chitosan [0026] The amounts of all or some of these ingredients can vary, preferably being present in an amount between no less than about 0.05 mg.",
"The size of the gum exterior can be made of a size less than 4.5 grams to more than 18.4 grams with the cavity center being able to accommodate a volume between [.",
"].5 mg to more than 5 grams.",
"The lollipop can be a total size of less than [.",
"].65 oz.",
"with the cavity center being a volume of no more than [.",
"].42 oz.",
"and no less than 4.5 grams, to a size larger than 1.35 oz.",
"with a cavity center being of at least 19 grams.",
"[0027] In one particular embodiment, the invention is directed to a beverage, so-called a Bloody Mary beverage, that includes the following: in a 12 fluid once serving: up to but not exceeding 9.9% alcohol (by volume);",
"no fat;",
"up to 1200 mg of sodium;",
"3 grams of protein;",
"Vitamin C, Vitamin A, calcium, potassium and iron.",
"In a preferred embodiment the beverage includes water, tomato concentrate, natural grain spirits, high fructose corn syrup, aloe vera juice, sodium chloride, vinegar, citric acid, taurine, pectin, ascorbic acid, and citrus aurantium extract.",
"In still other embodiments, the beverage includes the following: fresh horseradish, tomato juice, Tabasco, worcestershire sauce, celery salt, and one of amontillado;",
"cream sherry, and pure cane sugar.",
"In yet another embodiment, the present invention includes a beverage consisting of: water;",
"a tomato concentrate having a tomato soluble solids content of about 24% to about 36% by weight, ethyl alcohol, Vitamin C, Vitamin A, calcium, potassium, iron, water, high fructose corn syrup, aloe vera juice, sodium chloride, vinegar, citric acid;",
"taurine, pectin, ascorbic acid, and citrus aurantium extract, horseradish, worcestershire sauce, and celery salt.",
"Certain other embodiments are directed to a Bloody Mary beverage that has the benefits of an energy drink, and include at least the following: tomato juice containing lycopene, Ginger, Honey, taurine and caffeine.",
"By way of providing additional background, context, and to further satisfy the written description requirements of 35 U.S.C. §112, the following references are incorporated by reference in their entireties: U.S. Patent Publication No. 20130115329 to Savant, et al.",
"and U.S. Pat. No. 8,202,561 to Livaich.",
"One of skill in the art will further appreciate that the beverage ingredients of the above can also be incorporated into the chewing gum and lollipop embodiments as further described herein.",
"[0028] While various embodiments of the present invention have been described in detail, it is apparent that further modifications and adaptations of the invention will occur to those skilled in the art.",
"However, it is to be expressly understood that such modifications and adaptations are within the spirit and scope of the present invention."
] |
RELATED APPLICATIONS
The present invention claims priority from PCT Patent Application No. PCT/GB2009/051606, which was filed 26 Nov. 2009.
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
This invention relates to systems, methods and computer program code for identifying sounds, and to related applications of such techniques.
BACKGROUND TO THE INVENTION
Basic sound identification systems are known but there is a need for improved techniques. Background prior art can be found in: US2006/227237; WO99/56214; WO2008/016360; U.S. Pat. No. 5,276,629; Goldmann, R (2006), “Extracting High level semantics by means of speech audio and image primitives in surveillance”; Gonzalez, L (2006), “Enhancing video surveillance with audio events”; and Mitchell, C. J (2007), “Aligning Music Genre Taxonomies”, PhD Thesis, Anglia Ruskin University.
For further use merely in understanding the present invention, the following disclosures are referred to:
International patent application PCT/GB2008/001679, Data Processing Apparatus, published 20.11.2008, Ipsotek Ltd.; WO2006/075352 A, Valentino Franco et al., Surveillance method and surveillance device operating with said method, published 20.07.2006; US patent application US2006/22737 A, IBM; International patent application WO2008/016360 A, IBM; US patent application US2003/088411 A1, Motorola Inc.; and US patent application US2002/135485, Arakawi Kaoru.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
According to a first aspect of the invention there is therefore provided a digital sound identification system, the system comprising: non-volatile memory for storing a Markov model; stored program memory storing processor control code; a sound data input; a processor coupled to said sound data input, to said working memory, and to said stored program memory for executing said processor control code, and wherein said processor control code comprises code to: input, from said sound data input, first sample sound data for a first sound to be identified, said first sample sound data defining first sample frequency domain data, said first sample frequency domain data defining an energy of said first sample in a plurality of frequency ranges; generate a first set of mean and variance values for at least a first Markov model of said first sample sound from said first sample frequency domain data; store said first Markov model in said non-volatile memory; input interference sound data defining interference frequency domain data; adjust said mean and variance values of said first Markov model using said interference frequency domain data; input third sound data defining third sound frequency domain data; determine a probability of said third sound frequency domain data fitting at least said first Markov model; and output sound identification data dependent on said probability.
The mean and variance data for the Markov model is generated from frequency domain data. In some embodiments the system inputs sound data in the time domain, for example, from an analogue-to-digital converter, and then converts this to the frequency domain. Additionally or alternatively however the system may operate on compressed sound data, for example MP3 data which is already encoded into frequency domain information. This may involve sub-band scanning as described in relation to further aspect below.
Where a time-to-frequency conversion is performed, in embodiments this may employ a series of time-to-frequency conversions, for example fast fourier transforms, operating on successive, preferably overlapping time frames or windows, for example, 20 milliseconds windows with a 10 millisecond overlap. These perform a transform into a plurality of frequency ranges or bands, for example, quarter octave sub-band decomposition over a range which depends upon the sound(s) to be identified, for example, over a range of approximately 1-10 KHz. Optionally, following the time-frequency transformation a normalisation step may be performed to reduce effective changes in amplitude of the input signal. In embodiments an optional statistical decomposition may also be applied prior to generating the mean and variance values for the Markov model, in particular to simplify the modelled features. This statistical decomposition may comprise, for example, a principal component analysis (PCA) or independent component analysis (ICA). This is particularly helpful where poor quality microphones are being employed and/or complex sounds are being identified.
In embodiments the Markov model comprises a continuous hidden Markov model described by a plurality of states and transitions, with associated probabilities for the transitions between the states. This representation is resilient to changes in audio sampling rate, the use of compression, and input of relatively poor quality sound data. In embodiments of the system the second sample sound data, defining second sample frequency domain data, may be employed to generate a second set of mean and variance values for a second Markov model, and interference sound data (which may be different to the interference sound data for the first Markov model) may be employed to update this second model. In this way a plurality of different Markov models may be defined each corresponding to a sound to be identified, and then the input (third) sound data may, effectively, be fitted to each of the stored Markov models to identify the most closely matching model. In embodiments the mean and covariance values may be expressed and processed in the form of a covariance matrix.
The interference sound data may comprise, for example, typical background sound to the sound to be identified; this will in general depend upon the sound to be identified. For example, in an application to identify when a person is becoming aggressive, for example in a hospital accident and emergency facility, typical background noise of such a facility may be employed as the interference sound data. Alternatively, in an application to detect when a car window has been smashed in a car park (when the sound to be identified may comprise the sound of the breaking window and/or a car alarm) the interference sound data may comprise, for example, car engine or traffic noise. In general the interference sound data may comprise either or both of general background noise for the sound to be identified and one or more specific expected interfering sounds, for example, in an outdoor location an emergency vehicle siren. In a straightforward implementation the mean and variance values determined from the interference sound sample, more particularly from frequency domain data for the interference sound sample, may simply be subtracted from the mean and variance values from the first or each sample sound.
In embodiments of the system a state of the Markov model is defined by a set of frequency ranges or bands comprising the frequency ranges or bands defined by the frequency domain data. Each state may be represented by one or more (gaussian) distributions, each distribution being characterised by a mean and a variance value. The system may include a user interface to enable a user, for example at system setup, to define one or both of a number of states of the model, and a number of gaussian distributions employed per state.
Broadly speaking an input sample sound is processed by decomposition into frequency bands, and optionally de-correlated, for example, using PCA/ICA, and then this data is compared to each Markov model to generate log likelihood ratio (LLR) data for the input sound to be identified. A (hard) confidence threshold may then be employed to determine whether or not a sound has been identified; if a “fit” is detected to two or more stored Markov models then preferably the system picks the most probable. As the skilled person will understand a sound is “fitted” to a model by effectively comparing the sound to be identified with expected frequency domain data predicted by the Markov model. False positives are reduced by correcting/updating means and variances in the model based on interference (which includes background) noise.
Therefore according to a related aspect the invention provides a method of identifying a sound, the method comprising: configuring a Markov model using a sample of the sound; inputting a sample of background or interfering sound for a said sound to be identified; adjusting said Markov model to reduce false positive identification by using said sample of background or interfering sound to adjust mean and variance parameters characterising probability distributions associated with states of said Markov model; and using said adjusted Markov model to identify a said sound by comparing a sound to be identified with said adjusted model to determine a probability of said sound to be identified fitting said model by comparing said sound to be identified with expected frequency domain data predicted by said Markov model.
The invention also provides a method of producing a Markov model of a sound to be identified, comprising: configuring a Markov model using a sample of the sound; inputting a sample of background or interfering sound for a said sound to be identified; and adjusting said Markov model to reduce false positive identification by using said sample of background or interfering sound to adjust mean and variance parameters characterising probability distributions associated with states of said Markov model.
The invention in a complementary aspect provides a system for identifying a sound, the system comprising: means for configuring a Markov model using a sample of the sound; means for inputting a sample of background or interfering sound for a said sound to be identified; means for adjusting said Markov model to reduce false positive identification by using said sample of background or interfering sound to adjust mean and variance parameters characterising probability distributions associated with states of said Markov model; and means for using said adjusted Markov model to identify a said sound by comparing a sound to be identified with said adjusted model to determine a probability of said sound to be identified fitting said model by comparing said sound to be identified with expected frequency domain data predicted by said Markov model.
The invention further provides a sound amplification or transmission system, the system comprising: a sound input to input a sound; a sound identification system to identify whether said sound fits a model; and an amplifier or transmitter to selectively amply or transmit said sound responsive to said identification.
Preferably the model comprises a Markov model generated as described above, although depending on the application correction for interfering noise may not be needed.
One preferred application is in a baby monitor or alarm in which the volume of the baby monitor is adjusted when specific sounds are identified, especially relatively quiet sounds as compared with the baby crying. Such sounds may include, for example, cessation of breathing and/or choking (and thus the “sound” to be identified may, in embodiments, be an absence of an expected sound). In implementations of such a system a delay is included between the sound input and the amplified and/or transmitted sound, albeit only a relatively short delay, to enable a sound to be identified and hence the volume or amplitude of the identified sound to be adjusted.
In another application a Markov model, in particular, as described above, is employed in a security system including a least one camera, to enable the camera to be controlled or moved responsive to identification of a particular type of sound, for example, breaking glass, a car alarm, or a gunshot.
Thus in a further aspect there is provided a security camera system having at least one controllable camera, at least one microphone to capture sound, and including a sound identification system to identify whether said sound fits a Markov model, the system further comprising a camera controller to move said camera responsive to identification of a sound with a greater than a threshold probability of fitting said Markov model.
In an embodiment of such a security camera system, or any other embodiment of the aspects described herein using at least one camera, detection of specific sounds may result in several practical triggers into a system such as an existing CCTV system. These may include any one or more of the following:
automated moving or zooming of cameras to make the source of the sound more evident to operators, e.g., CCTV security operators, for example a car alarm happening out of a camera's field of view and the camera being moved so the operator can monitor the situation; triggering audible or visual alerts to security personal which could include showing in text on a monitor the sound the system has detected or an audible alarm; automatic playback of recorded audio and/or video within which the sound was detected in, e.g., automatically play a predetermined duration, e.g., 10 seconds, of audio and/or video comprising a recording of someone being aggressive in the middle; pre and post recording of audio around the sound for use by security personal as evidence; use in combination with video analytic alerts such as a panic detection (lots of people running and lots of screaming is equivalent to panic); and playing back audible or visual warnings near the location the sound was detected.
In some preferred embodiments the microphone employed is incorporated within one or more cameras of the system. Such microphones are generally of poor quality but in embodiments the improved sound identification techniques we employ enables poor quality input data to be employed whilst nonetheless accurately identifying one or more sounds. In response a camera can be, for example, caused to perform a pan movement or swiveled towards the audio (in the latter case it is preferable to employ two or more cameras/microphones to triangulate the source of the identified noise).
In a further related aspect there is provided a phone network having a plurality of phones coupled to an exchange or network controller, each of said phones having a microphone to listen to a local sound, the phone network including a sound identification system to identify whether said sound fits a model, the system further comprising a controller to enable and disable said microphones of said phones as input to said sound identification system for monitoring sounds in locations of said phones.
Broadly speaking in embodiments a set of phones connected to a PBX (private branch exchange) may be employed as a distributed break-in/intruder detection system by controlling the phones to enable their respective microphones to detect sound when a building is unoccupied. A sound identification system, in particular, as described above, may then be employed to identify sounds characteristic of an intruder, and to provide an alarm or alert either locally or remotely.
In a further aspect there is provide an aid for providing in-home assistance, the aid having a microphone to capture sound, and a sound identification system to identify whether said sound fits a model, and a controller coupled to said sound identification system to identify a sound designating a request for aid and to instigate a communication to a helper in response to said identification.
An aid as described above has particular applications in a system of the type employing a central in-house controller with a communication link, typically via a phone line, to enable a user, typically an elderly person, carrying a mobile unit with an alert button, to call for help from a friend, neighbour, relative or health care worker by pressing the button. Typically the mobile unit is provided on a lanyard, and may often be taken off. A sound identification system, in particular of the type described above, may be incorporated into the base unit to detect one or more trigger words or sounds, for example, claps or a cry for help, and then to alert a helper. In this way the base unit may provide backup in the event that the mobile unit has been removed or accidentally forgotten.
The skilled person will recognise that in embodiments of the above described sound identification system one or more Markov models may be generated and corrected for background noise/interference prior to being used in a target application. Thus the target application system need not include code to set up and configure the system.
Thus in a further aspect the invention provides a digital sound identification system, the system comprising: non-volatile memory for storing a Markov model; stored program memory storing processor control code; a sound data input; a processor coupled to said-sound data input, to said working memory, and to said stored program memory for executing said processor control code and wherein said processor control code comprises code to: input sound data defining sound frequency domain data; determine a probability of said sound frequency domain data fitting at least said first Markov model; and output sound identification data dependent on said probability.
The skilled person will also recognise that in some applications correction of the Markov model for interference may not be required.
Thus the invention still further provides a digital sound identification system, the system comprising: non-volatile memory for storing a Markov model; stored program memory storing processor control code; a sound data input; a processor coupled to said-sound data input, to said working memory, and to said stored program memory for executing said processor control code and wherein said processor control code comprises code to: input first sample sound data for a first sound to be identified from said sound data input, said first sample sound data defining first sample frequency domain data, said first sample frequency domain data defining an energy of said first sample in a plurality of frequency ranges; generate a first set of mean and variance values for at least a first Markov model of said first sample sound from said first sample frequency domain data; store said first Markov model in said non-volatile memory; input third sound data defining third sound frequency domain data; determine a probability of said third sound frequency domain data fitting at least said first Markov model; and output sound identification data dependent on said probability; wherein said sound data comprises compressed sound data representing a sound in said frequency domain.
The invention also provides processor control code to implement the above-described systems and methods, in particular on a data carrier such as a disk, CD- or DVD-ROM, programmed memory such as read-only memory (Firmware). Code (and/or data) to implement embodiments of the invention may comprise source, object or executable code in a conventional programming language (interpreted or compiled) such as C, or assembly code, code for setting up or controlling an ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit) or FPGA (Field Programmable Gate Array), or code for a hardware description language such as Verilog (Trade Mark) or VHDL (Very high speed integrated circuit Hardware Description Language). As the skilled person will appreciate such code and/or data may be distributed between a plurality of coupled components in communication with one another.
The invention further provides a data carrier storing one or more Markov models with means and variances generated and updated to compensate for background/interference as described above.
Aspects and embodiments of the system, methods and code we describe may be used for non-audible sound signals, in particular infrasound and ultrasound, and references to sound in this specification are not limited to audible sound.
According to a still further aspect of the invention there is provide a digital sound identification system comprising: non-volatile memory (alternatively referred to as working memory throughout this specification regarding aspects and embodiments) for storing a sound model (e.g., a Markov model); stored program memory storing processor control code; a sound data input; a processor coupled to said sound data input, to said non-volatile memory, and to said stored program memory for executing said processor control code, and wherein said processor control code comprises code to: input a compressed audio data stream, said compressed audio data stream comprising a sequence of blocks of compressed audio data, said block comprising a set of coefficients for an audio frame, said coefficients defining audio energies in a plurality of frequency bands of said audio frame; process said coefficients to recognise one or more patterns in said coefficients to identify a sound; and output sound identification data responsive to said pattern recognition processing.
There are several practical considerations when trying to detect sounds from compressed audio formats in a robust and scalable manner. In any embodiment wherein the sound stream may be uncompressed to PCM (pulse code modulated) format and then passed to a classification system, the first stage of an audio analysis system may be to perform a frequency analysis on the incoming uncompressed PCM audio data. However, the recently compressed form of the audio may contain a detailed frequency description of the audio, for example where the audio is stored as part of a lossy compression system. By directly utilising this frequency information in the compressed form, i.e., sub-band scanning in an embodiment of the above still further aspect, a considerable computational saving may be achieved by not uncompressing and then frequency analysing the audio. This may mean a sound can be detected with a significantly lower computational requirement. Further advantageously, this may make the application of a sound detection system more scalable and enable it to operate on devices with limited computational power which other techniques could not operate on.
There may further be provided the digital sound identification system wherein said coefficients comprise discrete cosine transform (DCT) or modified DCT coefficients.
There may further be provided the digital sound identification system wherein said compressed audio data stream is an MPEG standard data stream, in particular an MPEG 4 standard data stream.
There may further be provided the digital sound identification system wherein said pattern recognition processing comprises processing using a Markov model adapted to a said sound to be identified.
In embodiments of this aspect of the invention processing of the compressed audio data stream facilitates rapid sound identification and scalability to (parallel) processing of a plurality of data streams. In some preferred embodiments the compressed audio data stream is an MPEG standard data stream, for example an MPEG 1 layer 3 audio stream or an MPEG 2 AAC (advanced audio codec) layer data stream. In preferred embodiments the data stream is in an MPEG 4 wrapper. Thus, as the skilled person will appreciate, the data stream may comprise interleaved blocks of video and audio data, the audio data blocks being processed as described above. In embodiments an audio data block provides data for a frame of audio, for example a 20 microsecond frame, and comprises a data summary part defining energies for each of a relatively broad set of frequency bands, followed by a set of DCT (discrete cosine transform) coefficients, in particular MDCT (modified DCT) coefficients. In some preferred embodiments the pattern recognition processing is performed on the (M) DCT coefficients. The skilled person will appreciate, however, that alternative forms of compressed audio data may be employed, for example wavelet-based compression (using wavelets as basis functions). In preferred embodiments of the technique the compression employed is lossy rather than lossless. As previously described, preferred embodiments of the pattern recognition processing employ a Markov model adapted to the sound to be identified.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
These and other aspects of the invention will now be further described, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying figures in which:
FIGS. 1 a and 1 b illustrate the system setup to generate the Markov models.
FIG. 2 illustrates how the Markov models can be generated from an example of compressed data.
FIGS. 3 a and 3 b illustrate a system setup to use generated Markov models for sound identification.
FIG. 4 shows how to update a Markov model being used as part of the sound identification system.
FIG. 5 shows an example of a preferred embodiment of the system in a CCTV system.
FIGS. 6 a and 6 b show an example of a preferred embodiment of the system in a baby monitor system.
FIGS. 7 a and 7 b show an example of a preferred embodiment of the system in an in-home assistance system.
FIGS. 8 a and 8 b show an example of a preferred embodiment of the system in an office phone PBX system.
It is noted that each reference in the drawings to “¼ Oct Frequency Bands” may alternatively be “Subband frequency collection”.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
FIGS. 1-8 illustrates the system and various preferred embodiments of the system. Referring to FIG. 1 , this shows the main system flow diagram and related equations for generating the Markov models.
FIG. 1 is split into two sections ( FIGS. 1 a , 1 b ) that describe the two main parts of the system. The parameters of the models are generated by passing many examples of the same type of sound into the system. The two main parts are now defined, as well as their related maths. The left part ( FIG. 1 a ) is interchangeable with the data that can be obtained from a compressed audio format's spectral coefficients. The advantage of this is to improve executable time and improve system scalability.
Referring now to FIG. 2 , this shows a system diagram of a typical audio compression system working with a sound identification system. Thus FIG. 2 shows an example of this system working with a generic mpeg audio compression stream or file. The frame analyser is used to obtain the frequency coefficients stored in a frame of compressed audio in this example the frequency components are stored in modified discrete cosine transforms MDCT from a set of pre-filtered PCM audio data. These frequency coefficients can then be mapped onto grouped frequency bands defined in the left part of FIG. 1 ( FIG. 1 a ) whereby the main system takes over the operation.
The complementary, but parallel, system for uncompressed spectral decomposition will now be described. In Figure 1 a are definitions of the various components of the spectral decomposition where W is the window, l is the number of the frame and H is the advance of the window (hop-size) in samples (although there are many window types the Hanning window
w ( n ) = 0.5 - 0.5 cos ( 2 n π M )
is used here as a good general purpose window. A time-frequency matrix is then constructed X LK , and a normalisation applied to this time-frequency matrix. This take the form of a L 2 norm where r l is the L 2 norm gain value, {circumflex over (x)} lk is the unit spectral vector, K is the number of spectral coefficients and L is the frame count.
To illustrate further in practical terms the time-frequency matrix for a 44.1 KHz signal might be a 1024 point FFT with a 512 overlap. This is approximately a 20 milliseconds window with 10 millisecond overlap. The resulting 512 frequency bins are then grouped into sub bands, or example quarter-octave ranging between 62.5 to 8000 Hz giving 30 sub-bands, listed below are the lower limits of the frequency bands:
0,62.5,74.32544469,88.38834765,105.1120519,125,148.6508894,176.7766953, 210.2241038,250,297.3017788,353.5533906,420.4482076,500,594.6035575,70 7.1067812,840.8964153,1000,1189.207115,1414.213562,1681.792831,2000,23 78.41423,2828.427125,3363.585661,4000,4756.82846,5656.854249,6727.1713 22,8000
A lookup table is used to map from the compressed or uncompressed frequency bands to the new sub-band representation bands. For the sample rate and STFT size example given the array might comprise of a (Bin size÷2)×6 array for each sampling-rate/bin number pair supported. The rows correspond to the bin number (centre)—STFT size or number of frequency coefficients. The first two columns determine the lower and upper quarter octave bin index numbers. The following four columns determine the proportion of the bins magnitude that should be placed in the corresponding quarter octave bin starting from the lower quarter octave defined in the first column to the upper quarter octave bin defined in the second column. e.g. if the bin overlaps two quarter octave ranges the 3 and 4 columns will have proportional values that sum to 1 and the 5 and 6 columns will have zeros. If a bin overlaps more than one sub-band more columns will have proportional magnitude values. This example models the critical bands in the human auditory system. This reduced time/frequency representation is then processed by the normalisation method outlined. This process is repeated for all frames incrementally moving the frame position by a hop size of 10 ms. The overlapping window (hop size not equal to window size) improves the time-resolution of the system. This is taken as an adequate representation of the frequencies of the signal which can be used to summarise the perceptual characteristics of the sound. The normalisation stage then takes each frame in the sub-band decomposition and divides by the square root of the average power in each sub-band. The average is calculated as the total power in all frequency bands divided by the number of frequency bands. This normalised time frequency matrix is the passed to the next section of the system where its mean, variances and transitions can be generated to fully characterise the sound's frequency distribution and temporal trends. The next stage of the sound characterisation requires further definitions. A continuous hidden Markov model is used to obtain the mean, variance and transitions needed for the model. A Markov model can be completely characterised by λ=(A,B,Π) where A is the state transition probability matrix, B is the observation probability matrix and Π is the state initialisation probability matrix. In more formal terms:
A═└a ij ┘where a ij ≡P ( q t+1 ═S j |q t ═S i )
B═└b j ( m )┘where b j ( m )≡ P ( O t ═v m |q t ═S j )
Π═[π i ]where π i ≡P ( q l ═S i )
Where q is the state value, O is the observation value. In FIG. 1 b the system needs to generate the state transition probability matrix, a state in our model is actually the frequency distribution characterised by a set of mean and variance data however the format definitions for this will be introduced later. Generating the model parameters is a matter of maximising the probability of an observation sequence. The Baum-Welch algorithm is an expectation maximisation procedure that has been used for doing just that. It is an iterative algorithm where each iteration is made up of two parts, the expectation ε t (i,j) and the maximisation γ t (i). In the expectation part, ε t (i,j) and γ t (i), are computed given λ, the current model values, and then in the maximisation λis step recalculated. These two steps alternate until convergence occurs. It has been shown that during this alternation process, P(O|λ) never decreases. Assume indicator variables Z i t as
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Gaussian mixture models can be used to represent the continuous frequency values, and expectation maximisation equations can then be derived for the component parameters (with suitable regularisation to keep the number of parameters in check) and the mixture proportions. Assume a scalar continuous frequency value, O t ε with a normal distribution
p ( O t |q t ═S j ,λ)≠ N (μ j ,σ j 2 )
This implies that in state S j , the frequency distribution is drawn from a normal distribution with mean μ j and variance σ j 2 . The maximisation step equation is then
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The use of Gaussians enables the characterisation of the time-frequency matrix's features. In the case of a single Gaussian per state, they become the states. The transition matrix of the hidden Markov model can be obtained using the Baum-Welch algorithm to characterise how the frequency distribution of the signal change over time.
The Gaussians can be initialised using K-Means with the starting points for the clusters being a random frequency distribution chosen from sample data.
FIGS. 3 a and 3 b show the main system flow diagram and related supporting equations for classification of new sound. Thus FIG. 3 explains the systems operations for classifying new input and adapting for changes in the acoustic conditions - interference. The first part ( FIG. 3 a ) operates the same as previously explained. After this previously explained part of the system a forward algorithm can be used to determine the most likely state path of an observation sequence and produce a probability in terms of a log likelihood that can be used to classify and incoming signal. The forward and backward procedures can be used to obtain this value from the previously calculated model parameters. In fact only the forward part is needed. The forward variable α t (i) is defined as the probability of observing the partial sequence {O 1 . . . O t }until time t and being in S i at time t , given the model λ.
α t ( i )≡ P ( O 1 . . . O t ,q t ═S i |λ)
This can be calculated by accumulating results and has two steps, initialisation and recursion as seen in FIG. 3 b . α t(i) explains the first t observations and ends in state S i . This is multiplied by the probability a ij of moving to state S j , and because there are N possible previous states, there is a need to sum over all such possible previous S i . The term b j (O t+1 ) is then the probability of generating the next observation, frequency distribution, while in state S j at time t+1. With these variables it is then straightforward to calculate the probability of a frequency distribution sequence.
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Computing α t (i) has order O(N 2 T) and avoids complexity issues of calculating the probability of the sequence. The models will operate in many different acoustic conditions and as it is practically restrictive to present examples that are representative of all the acoustic conditions the system will come in contact with, internal adjustment of the models will be performed to enable the system to operate in all these different acoustic conditions. In FIG. 3 b this is shown as the background box. Many different methods can be used for this update. A simplistic illustrative method is listed in FIG. 4 , which illustrates adjusting Markov models for different acoustic conditions.
FIG. 4 takes an average value for the sub-bands, in this case the quarter octave frequency values for the last T number of seconds these averages are added to the model values to update the internal model of the sound in that acoustic environment.
FIG. 5 shows a system operation diagram for CCTV camera system, more particularly a typical system set-up for the CCTV system. This may comprise a compressed feed coming from a camera, which contains the coefficients which can be extracted using a frame analyser. This data is sent to a processor with the pre-derived model parameters with the output and a set of threshold values are used for classifying a set of audio inputs. This is then used to switch various cameras information to be displayed or drawn attention to by an alert.
Referring now to FIGS. 6 a and 6 b these show system operation in use with a Baby monitor amplitude control. A system like the one described or similar in its ability to identify sounds can be used as an amplitude control input or light control input for drawing attention to sounds that would otherwise be lost. For example sounds that are quiet and would otherwise be missed, such as breathing difficulties, coeing or chocking can be detected and used to control the playback volume. This would function like a normal baby monitor but have the additional feature of drawing attention to itself when sounds of concern are detected or not detected.
FIGS. 7 a and 7 b show system operation in use with a home care help system. A sound recognition system like the one described or similar can be used as a home alert use in substitution of a panic button to detect calls for help trigged by specific input, for example 3 hand claps or 3 shoe bangs on the floor. This would operate by a repeated pattern being detected followed by a pause where by the system would confirm it had detected the pattern and ask for confirmation. Once the pattern had been reconfirmed the system would send a alert to a operator or message to another individual.
FIGS. 8 a and 8 b show system operation in the use with an office phone system. A sound recognition system similar to the one described can be used to turn an office or home telephone network into an intruder detection system where a microphone is installed in the base of the phone for means of hand free communication and the microphone can be activated remotely based on a timer. This timer would activate the phones microphone at certain times e.g. night times and then detect sounds synonymous with break-ins, for example windows breaking or general movement. An alert is then triggered and sent to a camera system to point camera at that location, a message to an operator, control system to turn on lights or message to operator or security guard.
No doubt many other effective alternatives will occur to the skilled person. It will be understood that the invention is not limited to the described embodiments and encompasses modifications apparent to those skilled in the art lying within the spirit and scope of the claims appended hereto. | A digital sound identification system for storing a Markov model is disclosed. A processor is coupled to a sound data input, working memory, and a stored program memory for executing processor control code to input sound data for a sound to be identified. The sample sound data defines a sample frequency domain data energy in a range of frequency. Mean and variance values for a Markov model of the sample sound are generated. The Markov model is stored in the non-volatile memory. Interference sound data defining interference frequency domain data is inputted. The mean and variance values of the Markov model using the interference frequency domain data are adjusted. Sound data defining other sound frequency domain data are inputted. A probability of the other sound frequency domain data fitting the Markov model is determined. Finally, sound identification data dependent on the probability is outputted. | Analyze the document's illustrations and descriptions to summarize the main idea's core structure and function. | [
"RELATED APPLICATIONS The present invention claims priority from PCT Patent Application No. PCT/GB2009/051606, which was filed 26 Nov. 2009.",
"FIELD OF THE INVENTION This invention relates to systems, methods and computer program code for identifying sounds, and to related applications of such techniques.",
"BACKGROUND TO THE INVENTION Basic sound identification systems are known but there is a need for improved techniques.",
"Background prior art can be found in: US2006/227237;",
"WO99/56214;",
"WO2008/016360;",
"U.S. Pat. No. 5,276,629;",
"Goldmann, R (2006), “Extracting High level semantics by means of speech audio and image primitives in surveillance”;",
"Gonzalez, L (2006), “Enhancing video surveillance with audio events”;",
"and Mitchell, C. J (2007), “Aligning Music Genre Taxonomies”, PhD Thesis, Anglia Ruskin University.",
"For further use merely in understanding the present invention, the following disclosures are referred to: International patent application PCT/GB2008/001679, Data Processing Apparatus, published 20.11.2008, Ipsotek Ltd.;",
"WO2006/075352 A, Valentino Franco et al.",
", Surveillance method and surveillance device operating with said method, published 20.07.2006;",
"US patent application US2006/22737 A, IBM;",
"International patent application WO2008/016360 A, IBM;",
"US patent application US2003/088411 A1, Motorola Inc.;",
"and US patent application US2002/135485, Arakawi Kaoru.",
"SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION According to a first aspect of the invention there is therefore provided a digital sound identification system, the system comprising: non-volatile memory for storing a Markov model;",
"stored program memory storing processor control code;",
"a sound data input;",
"a processor coupled to said sound data input, to said working memory, and to said stored program memory for executing said processor control code, and wherein said processor control code comprises code to: input, from said sound data input, first sample sound data for a first sound to be identified, said first sample sound data defining first sample frequency domain data, said first sample frequency domain data defining an energy of said first sample in a plurality of frequency ranges;",
"generate a first set of mean and variance values for at least a first Markov model of said first sample sound from said first sample frequency domain data;",
"store said first Markov model in said non-volatile memory;",
"input interference sound data defining interference frequency domain data;",
"adjust said mean and variance values of said first Markov model using said interference frequency domain data;",
"input third sound data defining third sound frequency domain data;",
"determine a probability of said third sound frequency domain data fitting at least said first Markov model;",
"and output sound identification data dependent on said probability.",
"The mean and variance data for the Markov model is generated from frequency domain data.",
"In some embodiments the system inputs sound data in the time domain, for example, from an analogue-to-digital converter, and then converts this to the frequency domain.",
"Additionally or alternatively however the system may operate on compressed sound data, for example MP3 data which is already encoded into frequency domain information.",
"This may involve sub-band scanning as described in relation to further aspect below.",
"Where a time-to-frequency conversion is performed, in embodiments this may employ a series of time-to-frequency conversions, for example fast fourier transforms, operating on successive, preferably overlapping time frames or windows, for example, 20 milliseconds windows with a 10 millisecond overlap.",
"These perform a transform into a plurality of frequency ranges or bands, for example, quarter octave sub-band decomposition over a range which depends upon the sound(s) to be identified, for example, over a range of approximately 1-10 KHz.",
"Optionally, following the time-frequency transformation a normalisation step may be performed to reduce effective changes in amplitude of the input signal.",
"In embodiments an optional statistical decomposition may also be applied prior to generating the mean and variance values for the Markov model, in particular to simplify the modelled features.",
"This statistical decomposition may comprise, for example, a principal component analysis (PCA) or independent component analysis (ICA).",
"This is particularly helpful where poor quality microphones are being employed and/or complex sounds are being identified.",
"In embodiments the Markov model comprises a continuous hidden Markov model described by a plurality of states and transitions, with associated probabilities for the transitions between the states.",
"This representation is resilient to changes in audio sampling rate, the use of compression, and input of relatively poor quality sound data.",
"In embodiments of the system the second sample sound data, defining second sample frequency domain data, may be employed to generate a second set of mean and variance values for a second Markov model, and interference sound data (which may be different to the interference sound data for the first Markov model) may be employed to update this second model.",
"In this way a plurality of different Markov models may be defined each corresponding to a sound to be identified, and then the input (third) sound data may, effectively, be fitted to each of the stored Markov models to identify the most closely matching model.",
"In embodiments the mean and covariance values may be expressed and processed in the form of a covariance matrix.",
"The interference sound data may comprise, for example, typical background sound to the sound to be identified;",
"this will in general depend upon the sound to be identified.",
"For example, in an application to identify when a person is becoming aggressive, for example in a hospital accident and emergency facility, typical background noise of such a facility may be employed as the interference sound data.",
"Alternatively, in an application to detect when a car window has been smashed in a car park (when the sound to be identified may comprise the sound of the breaking window and/or a car alarm) the interference sound data may comprise, for example, car engine or traffic noise.",
"In general the interference sound data may comprise either or both of general background noise for the sound to be identified and one or more specific expected interfering sounds, for example, in an outdoor location an emergency vehicle siren.",
"In a straightforward implementation the mean and variance values determined from the interference sound sample, more particularly from frequency domain data for the interference sound sample, may simply be subtracted from the mean and variance values from the first or each sample sound.",
"In embodiments of the system a state of the Markov model is defined by a set of frequency ranges or bands comprising the frequency ranges or bands defined by the frequency domain data.",
"Each state may be represented by one or more (gaussian) distributions, each distribution being characterised by a mean and a variance value.",
"The system may include a user interface to enable a user, for example at system setup, to define one or both of a number of states of the model, and a number of gaussian distributions employed per state.",
"Broadly speaking an input sample sound is processed by decomposition into frequency bands, and optionally de-correlated, for example, using PCA/ICA, and then this data is compared to each Markov model to generate log likelihood ratio (LLR) data for the input sound to be identified.",
"A (hard) confidence threshold may then be employed to determine whether or not a sound has been identified;",
"if a “fit”",
"is detected to two or more stored Markov models then preferably the system picks the most probable.",
"As the skilled person will understand a sound is “fitted”",
"to a model by effectively comparing the sound to be identified with expected frequency domain data predicted by the Markov model.",
"False positives are reduced by correcting/updating means and variances in the model based on interference (which includes background) noise.",
"Therefore according to a related aspect the invention provides a method of identifying a sound, the method comprising: configuring a Markov model using a sample of the sound;",
"inputting a sample of background or interfering sound for a said sound to be identified;",
"adjusting said Markov model to reduce false positive identification by using said sample of background or interfering sound to adjust mean and variance parameters characterising probability distributions associated with states of said Markov model;",
"and using said adjusted Markov model to identify a said sound by comparing a sound to be identified with said adjusted model to determine a probability of said sound to be identified fitting said model by comparing said sound to be identified with expected frequency domain data predicted by said Markov model.",
"The invention also provides a method of producing a Markov model of a sound to be identified, comprising: configuring a Markov model using a sample of the sound;",
"inputting a sample of background or interfering sound for a said sound to be identified;",
"and adjusting said Markov model to reduce false positive identification by using said sample of background or interfering sound to adjust mean and variance parameters characterising probability distributions associated with states of said Markov model.",
"The invention in a complementary aspect provides a system for identifying a sound, the system comprising: means for configuring a Markov model using a sample of the sound;",
"means for inputting a sample of background or interfering sound for a said sound to be identified;",
"means for adjusting said Markov model to reduce false positive identification by using said sample of background or interfering sound to adjust mean and variance parameters characterising probability distributions associated with states of said Markov model;",
"and means for using said adjusted Markov model to identify a said sound by comparing a sound to be identified with said adjusted model to determine a probability of said sound to be identified fitting said model by comparing said sound to be identified with expected frequency domain data predicted by said Markov model.",
"The invention further provides a sound amplification or transmission system, the system comprising: a sound input to input a sound;",
"a sound identification system to identify whether said sound fits a model;",
"and an amplifier or transmitter to selectively amply or transmit said sound responsive to said identification.",
"Preferably the model comprises a Markov model generated as described above, although depending on the application correction for interfering noise may not be needed.",
"One preferred application is in a baby monitor or alarm in which the volume of the baby monitor is adjusted when specific sounds are identified, especially relatively quiet sounds as compared with the baby crying.",
"Such sounds may include, for example, cessation of breathing and/or choking (and thus the “sound”",
"to be identified may, in embodiments, be an absence of an expected sound).",
"In implementations of such a system a delay is included between the sound input and the amplified and/or transmitted sound, albeit only a relatively short delay, to enable a sound to be identified and hence the volume or amplitude of the identified sound to be adjusted.",
"In another application a Markov model, in particular, as described above, is employed in a security system including a least one camera, to enable the camera to be controlled or moved responsive to identification of a particular type of sound, for example, breaking glass, a car alarm, or a gunshot.",
"Thus in a further aspect there is provided a security camera system having at least one controllable camera, at least one microphone to capture sound, and including a sound identification system to identify whether said sound fits a Markov model, the system further comprising a camera controller to move said camera responsive to identification of a sound with a greater than a threshold probability of fitting said Markov model.",
"In an embodiment of such a security camera system, or any other embodiment of the aspects described herein using at least one camera, detection of specific sounds may result in several practical triggers into a system such as an existing CCTV system.",
"These may include any one or more of the following: automated moving or zooming of cameras to make the source of the sound more evident to operators, e.g., CCTV security operators, for example a car alarm happening out of a camera's field of view and the camera being moved so the operator can monitor the situation;",
"triggering audible or visual alerts to security personal which could include showing in text on a monitor the sound the system has detected or an audible alarm;",
"automatic playback of recorded audio and/or video within which the sound was detected in, e.g., automatically play a predetermined duration, e.g., 10 seconds, of audio and/or video comprising a recording of someone being aggressive in the middle;",
"pre and post recording of audio around the sound for use by security personal as evidence;",
"use in combination with video analytic alerts such as a panic detection (lots of people running and lots of screaming is equivalent to panic);",
"and playing back audible or visual warnings near the location the sound was detected.",
"In some preferred embodiments the microphone employed is incorporated within one or more cameras of the system.",
"Such microphones are generally of poor quality but in embodiments the improved sound identification techniques we employ enables poor quality input data to be employed whilst nonetheless accurately identifying one or more sounds.",
"In response a camera can be, for example, caused to perform a pan movement or swiveled towards the audio (in the latter case it is preferable to employ two or more cameras/microphones to triangulate the source of the identified noise).",
"In a further related aspect there is provided a phone network having a plurality of phones coupled to an exchange or network controller, each of said phones having a microphone to listen to a local sound, the phone network including a sound identification system to identify whether said sound fits a model, the system further comprising a controller to enable and disable said microphones of said phones as input to said sound identification system for monitoring sounds in locations of said phones.",
"Broadly speaking in embodiments a set of phones connected to a PBX (private branch exchange) may be employed as a distributed break-in/intruder detection system by controlling the phones to enable their respective microphones to detect sound when a building is unoccupied.",
"A sound identification system, in particular, as described above, may then be employed to identify sounds characteristic of an intruder, and to provide an alarm or alert either locally or remotely.",
"In a further aspect there is provide an aid for providing in-home assistance, the aid having a microphone to capture sound, and a sound identification system to identify whether said sound fits a model, and a controller coupled to said sound identification system to identify a sound designating a request for aid and to instigate a communication to a helper in response to said identification.",
"An aid as described above has particular applications in a system of the type employing a central in-house controller with a communication link, typically via a phone line, to enable a user, typically an elderly person, carrying a mobile unit with an alert button, to call for help from a friend, neighbour, relative or health care worker by pressing the button.",
"Typically the mobile unit is provided on a lanyard, and may often be taken off.",
"A sound identification system, in particular of the type described above, may be incorporated into the base unit to detect one or more trigger words or sounds, for example, claps or a cry for help, and then to alert a helper.",
"In this way the base unit may provide backup in the event that the mobile unit has been removed or accidentally forgotten.",
"The skilled person will recognise that in embodiments of the above described sound identification system one or more Markov models may be generated and corrected for background noise/interference prior to being used in a target application.",
"Thus the target application system need not include code to set up and configure the system.",
"Thus in a further aspect the invention provides a digital sound identification system, the system comprising: non-volatile memory for storing a Markov model;",
"stored program memory storing processor control code;",
"a sound data input;",
"a processor coupled to said-sound data input, to said working memory, and to said stored program memory for executing said processor control code and wherein said processor control code comprises code to: input sound data defining sound frequency domain data;",
"determine a probability of said sound frequency domain data fitting at least said first Markov model;",
"and output sound identification data dependent on said probability.",
"The skilled person will also recognise that in some applications correction of the Markov model for interference may not be required.",
"Thus the invention still further provides a digital sound identification system, the system comprising: non-volatile memory for storing a Markov model;",
"stored program memory storing processor control code;",
"a sound data input;",
"a processor coupled to said-sound data input, to said working memory, and to said stored program memory for executing said processor control code and wherein said processor control code comprises code to: input first sample sound data for a first sound to be identified from said sound data input, said first sample sound data defining first sample frequency domain data, said first sample frequency domain data defining an energy of said first sample in a plurality of frequency ranges;",
"generate a first set of mean and variance values for at least a first Markov model of said first sample sound from said first sample frequency domain data;",
"store said first Markov model in said non-volatile memory;",
"input third sound data defining third sound frequency domain data;",
"determine a probability of said third sound frequency domain data fitting at least said first Markov model;",
"and output sound identification data dependent on said probability;",
"wherein said sound data comprises compressed sound data representing a sound in said frequency domain.",
"The invention also provides processor control code to implement the above-described systems and methods, in particular on a data carrier such as a disk, CD- or DVD-ROM, programmed memory such as read-only memory (Firmware).",
"Code (and/or data) to implement embodiments of the invention may comprise source, object or executable code in a conventional programming language (interpreted or compiled) such as C, or assembly code, code for setting up or controlling an ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit) or FPGA (Field Programmable Gate Array), or code for a hardware description language such as Verilog (Trade Mark) or VHDL (Very high speed integrated circuit Hardware Description Language).",
"As the skilled person will appreciate such code and/or data may be distributed between a plurality of coupled components in communication with one another.",
"The invention further provides a data carrier storing one or more Markov models with means and variances generated and updated to compensate for background/interference as described above.",
"Aspects and embodiments of the system, methods and code we describe may be used for non-audible sound signals, in particular infrasound and ultrasound, and references to sound in this specification are not limited to audible sound.",
"According to a still further aspect of the invention there is provide a digital sound identification system comprising: non-volatile memory (alternatively referred to as working memory throughout this specification regarding aspects and embodiments) for storing a sound model (e.g., a Markov model);",
"stored program memory storing processor control code;",
"a sound data input;",
"a processor coupled to said sound data input, to said non-volatile memory, and to said stored program memory for executing said processor control code, and wherein said processor control code comprises code to: input a compressed audio data stream, said compressed audio data stream comprising a sequence of blocks of compressed audio data, said block comprising a set of coefficients for an audio frame, said coefficients defining audio energies in a plurality of frequency bands of said audio frame;",
"process said coefficients to recognise one or more patterns in said coefficients to identify a sound;",
"and output sound identification data responsive to said pattern recognition processing.",
"There are several practical considerations when trying to detect sounds from compressed audio formats in a robust and scalable manner.",
"In any embodiment wherein the sound stream may be uncompressed to PCM (pulse code modulated) format and then passed to a classification system, the first stage of an audio analysis system may be to perform a frequency analysis on the incoming uncompressed PCM audio data.",
"However, the recently compressed form of the audio may contain a detailed frequency description of the audio, for example where the audio is stored as part of a lossy compression system.",
"By directly utilising this frequency information in the compressed form, i.e., sub-band scanning in an embodiment of the above still further aspect, a considerable computational saving may be achieved by not uncompressing and then frequency analysing the audio.",
"This may mean a sound can be detected with a significantly lower computational requirement.",
"Further advantageously, this may make the application of a sound detection system more scalable and enable it to operate on devices with limited computational power which other techniques could not operate on.",
"There may further be provided the digital sound identification system wherein said coefficients comprise discrete cosine transform (DCT) or modified DCT coefficients.",
"There may further be provided the digital sound identification system wherein said compressed audio data stream is an MPEG standard data stream, in particular an MPEG 4 standard data stream.",
"There may further be provided the digital sound identification system wherein said pattern recognition processing comprises processing using a Markov model adapted to a said sound to be identified.",
"In embodiments of this aspect of the invention processing of the compressed audio data stream facilitates rapid sound identification and scalability to (parallel) processing of a plurality of data streams.",
"In some preferred embodiments the compressed audio data stream is an MPEG standard data stream, for example an MPEG 1 layer 3 audio stream or an MPEG 2 AAC (advanced audio codec) layer data stream.",
"In preferred embodiments the data stream is in an MPEG 4 wrapper.",
"Thus, as the skilled person will appreciate, the data stream may comprise interleaved blocks of video and audio data, the audio data blocks being processed as described above.",
"In embodiments an audio data block provides data for a frame of audio, for example a 20 microsecond frame, and comprises a data summary part defining energies for each of a relatively broad set of frequency bands, followed by a set of DCT (discrete cosine transform) coefficients, in particular MDCT (modified DCT) coefficients.",
"In some preferred embodiments the pattern recognition processing is performed on the (M) DCT coefficients.",
"The skilled person will appreciate, however, that alternative forms of compressed audio data may be employed, for example wavelet-based compression (using wavelets as basis functions).",
"In preferred embodiments of the technique the compression employed is lossy rather than lossless.",
"As previously described, preferred embodiments of the pattern recognition processing employ a Markov model adapted to the sound to be identified.",
"BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS These and other aspects of the invention will now be further described, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying figures in which: FIGS. 1 a and 1 b illustrate the system setup to generate the Markov models.",
"FIG. 2 illustrates how the Markov models can be generated from an example of compressed data.",
"FIGS. 3 a and 3 b illustrate a system setup to use generated Markov models for sound identification.",
"FIG. 4 shows how to update a Markov model being used as part of the sound identification system.",
"FIG. 5 shows an example of a preferred embodiment of the system in a CCTV system.",
"FIGS. 6 a and 6 b show an example of a preferred embodiment of the system in a baby monitor system.",
"FIGS. 7 a and 7 b show an example of a preferred embodiment of the system in an in-home assistance system.",
"FIGS. 8 a and 8 b show an example of a preferred embodiment of the system in an office phone PBX system.",
"It is noted that each reference in the drawings to “¼ Oct Frequency Bands”",
"may alternatively be “Subband frequency collection.”",
"DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS FIGS. 1-8 illustrates the system and various preferred embodiments of the system.",
"Referring to FIG. 1 , this shows the main system flow diagram and related equations for generating the Markov models.",
"FIG. 1 is split into two sections ( FIGS. 1 a , 1 b ) that describe the two main parts of the system.",
"The parameters of the models are generated by passing many examples of the same type of sound into the system.",
"The two main parts are now defined, as well as their related maths.",
"The left part ( FIG. 1 a ) is interchangeable with the data that can be obtained from a compressed audio format's spectral coefficients.",
"The advantage of this is to improve executable time and improve system scalability.",
"Referring now to FIG. 2 , this shows a system diagram of a typical audio compression system working with a sound identification system.",
"Thus FIG. 2 shows an example of this system working with a generic mpeg audio compression stream or file.",
"The frame analyser is used to obtain the frequency coefficients stored in a frame of compressed audio in this example the frequency components are stored in modified discrete cosine transforms MDCT from a set of pre-filtered PCM audio data.",
"These frequency coefficients can then be mapped onto grouped frequency bands defined in the left part of FIG. 1 ( FIG. 1 a ) whereby the main system takes over the operation.",
"The complementary, but parallel, system for uncompressed spectral decomposition will now be described.",
"In Figure 1 a are definitions of the various components of the spectral decomposition where W is the window, l is the number of the frame and H is the advance of the window (hop-size) in samples (although there are many window types the Hanning window w ( n ) = 0.5 - 0.5 cos ( 2 n π M ) is used here as a good general purpose window.",
"A time-frequency matrix is then constructed X LK , and a normalisation applied to this time-frequency matrix.",
"This take the form of a L 2 norm where r l is the L 2 norm gain value, {circumflex over (x)} lk is the unit spectral vector, K is the number of spectral coefficients and L is the frame count.",
"To illustrate further in practical terms the time-frequency matrix for a 44.1 KHz signal might be a 1024 point FFT with a 512 overlap.",
"This is approximately a 20 milliseconds window with 10 millisecond overlap.",
"The resulting 512 frequency bins are then grouped into sub bands, or example quarter-octave ranging between 62.5 to 8000 Hz giving 30 sub-bands, listed below are the lower limits of the frequency bands: 0,62.5,74.32544469,88.38834765,105.1120519,125,148.6508894,176.7766953, 210.2241038,250,297.3017788,353.5533906,420.4482076,500,594.6035575,70 7.1067812,840.8964153,1000,1189.207115,1414.213562,1681.792831,2000,23 78.41423,2828.427125,3363.585661,4000,4756.82846,5656.854249,6727.1713 22,8000 A lookup table is used to map from the compressed or uncompressed frequency bands to the new sub-band representation bands.",
"For the sample rate and STFT size example given the array might comprise of a (Bin size÷2)×6 array for each sampling-rate/bin number pair supported.",
"The rows correspond to the bin number (centre)—STFT size or number of frequency coefficients.",
"The first two columns determine the lower and upper quarter octave bin index numbers.",
"The following four columns determine the proportion of the bins magnitude that should be placed in the corresponding quarter octave bin starting from the lower quarter octave defined in the first column to the upper quarter octave bin defined in the second column.",
"e.g. if the bin overlaps two quarter octave ranges the 3 and 4 columns will have proportional values that sum to 1 and the 5 and 6 columns will have zeros.",
"If a bin overlaps more than one sub-band more columns will have proportional magnitude values.",
"This example models the critical bands in the human auditory system.",
"This reduced time/frequency representation is then processed by the normalisation method outlined.",
"This process is repeated for all frames incrementally moving the frame position by a hop size of 10 ms.",
"The overlapping window (hop size not equal to window size) improves the time-resolution of the system.",
"This is taken as an adequate representation of the frequencies of the signal which can be used to summarise the perceptual characteristics of the sound.",
"The normalisation stage then takes each frame in the sub-band decomposition and divides by the square root of the average power in each sub-band.",
"The average is calculated as the total power in all frequency bands divided by the number of frequency bands.",
"This normalised time frequency matrix is the passed to the next section of the system where its mean, variances and transitions can be generated to fully characterise the sound's frequency distribution and temporal trends.",
"The next stage of the sound characterisation requires further definitions.",
"A continuous hidden Markov model is used to obtain the mean, variance and transitions needed for the model.",
"A Markov model can be completely characterised by λ=(A,B,Π) where A is the state transition probability matrix, B is the observation probability matrix and Π is the state initialisation probability matrix.",
"In more formal terms: A═└a ij ┘where a ij ≡P ( q t+1 ═S j |q t ═S i ) B═└b j ( m )┘where b j ( m )≡ P ( O t ═v m |q t ═S j ) Π═[π i ]where π i ≡P ( q l ═S i ) Where q is the state value, O is the observation value.",
"In FIG. 1 b the system needs to generate the state transition probability matrix, a state in our model is actually the frequency distribution characterised by a set of mean and variance data however the format definitions for this will be introduced later.",
"Generating the model parameters is a matter of maximising the probability of an observation sequence.",
"The Baum-Welch algorithm is an expectation maximisation procedure that has been used for doing just that.",
"It is an iterative algorithm where each iteration is made up of two parts, the expectation ε t (i,j) and the maximisation γ t (i).",
"In the expectation part, ε t (i,j) and γ t (i), are computed given λ, the current model values, and then in the maximisation λis step recalculated.",
"These two steps alternate until convergence occurs.",
"It has been shown that during this alternation process, P(O|λ) never decreases.",
"Assume indicator variables Z i t as Expectation ɛ t ( i , j ) = α t ( i ) a ij b j ( O t + 1 ) β t + 1 ( j ) ∑ k ∑ l α ( k ) a kl b l ( O t + 1 ) β t + 1 ( l ) γ t ( i ) = ∑ j = 1 N ɛ t ( i , j ) E [ z i t ] = γ t ( i ) and [ z ij t ] = ɛ t ( i , j ) z i t = { 1 if q t = S i 0 otherwise z ij t = { 1 if q t = S i and q t + 1 = S j 0 otherwise Maximisation a ^ ij = ∑ k = 1 K ∑ t = 1 T k - 1 ɛ t k ( i , j ) ∑ k = 1 K ∑ t = 1 T k - 1 γ t k ( i ) b ^ j ( m ) = ∑ k = 1 K ∑ t = 1 T k - 1 γ t k ( j ) 1 ( O t k = v m ) ∑ k = 1 K ∑ t = 1 T k - 1 γ t k ( j ) π ^ = ∑ K = 1 K γ 1 k ( i ) K Gaussian mixture models can be used to represent the continuous frequency values, and expectation maximisation equations can then be derived for the component parameters (with suitable regularisation to keep the number of parameters in check) and the mixture proportions.",
"Assume a scalar continuous frequency value, O t ε with a normal distribution p ( O t |q t ═S j ,λ)≠ N (μ j ,σ j 2 ) This implies that in state S j , the frequency distribution is drawn from a normal distribution with mean μ j and variance σ j 2 .",
"The maximisation step equation is then μ ^ j = ∑ t γ t ( j ) O t ∑ t γ t ( j ) σ ^ j 2 = ∑ t γ t ( j ) ( O t - 1 - μ ^ j ) 2 ∑ t γ t ( j ) The use of Gaussians enables the characterisation of the time-frequency matrix's features.",
"In the case of a single Gaussian per state, they become the states.",
"The transition matrix of the hidden Markov model can be obtained using the Baum-Welch algorithm to characterise how the frequency distribution of the signal change over time.",
"The Gaussians can be initialised using K-Means with the starting points for the clusters being a random frequency distribution chosen from sample data.",
"FIGS. 3 a and 3 b show the main system flow diagram and related supporting equations for classification of new sound.",
"Thus FIG. 3 explains the systems operations for classifying new input and adapting for changes in the acoustic conditions - interference.",
"The first part ( FIG. 3 a ) operates the same as previously explained.",
"After this previously explained part of the system a forward algorithm can be used to determine the most likely state path of an observation sequence and produce a probability in terms of a log likelihood that can be used to classify and incoming signal.",
"The forward and backward procedures can be used to obtain this value from the previously calculated model parameters.",
"In fact only the forward part is needed.",
"The forward variable α t (i) is defined as the probability of observing the partial sequence {O 1 .",
"O t }until time t and being in S i at time t , given the model λ.",
"α t ( i )≡ P ( O 1 .",
"O t ,q t ═S i |λ) This can be calculated by accumulating results and has two steps, initialisation and recursion as seen in FIG. 3 b .",
"α t(i) explains the first t observations and ends in state S i .",
"This is multiplied by the probability a ij of moving to state S j , and because there are N possible previous states, there is a need to sum over all such possible previous S i .",
"The term b j (O t+1 ) is then the probability of generating the next observation, frequency distribution, while in state S j at time t+1.",
"With these variables it is then straightforward to calculate the probability of a frequency distribution sequence.",
"P ( O ❘ λ ) + ∑ i = 1 N α T ( i ) Computing α t (i) has order O(N 2 T) and avoids complexity issues of calculating the probability of the sequence.",
"The models will operate in many different acoustic conditions and as it is practically restrictive to present examples that are representative of all the acoustic conditions the system will come in contact with, internal adjustment of the models will be performed to enable the system to operate in all these different acoustic conditions.",
"In FIG. 3 b this is shown as the background box.",
"Many different methods can be used for this update.",
"A simplistic illustrative method is listed in FIG. 4 , which illustrates adjusting Markov models for different acoustic conditions.",
"FIG. 4 takes an average value for the sub-bands, in this case the quarter octave frequency values for the last T number of seconds these averages are added to the model values to update the internal model of the sound in that acoustic environment.",
"FIG. 5 shows a system operation diagram for CCTV camera system, more particularly a typical system set-up for the CCTV system.",
"This may comprise a compressed feed coming from a camera, which contains the coefficients which can be extracted using a frame analyser.",
"This data is sent to a processor with the pre-derived model parameters with the output and a set of threshold values are used for classifying a set of audio inputs.",
"This is then used to switch various cameras information to be displayed or drawn attention to by an alert.",
"Referring now to FIGS. 6 a and 6 b these show system operation in use with a Baby monitor amplitude control.",
"A system like the one described or similar in its ability to identify sounds can be used as an amplitude control input or light control input for drawing attention to sounds that would otherwise be lost.",
"For example sounds that are quiet and would otherwise be missed, such as breathing difficulties, coeing or chocking can be detected and used to control the playback volume.",
"This would function like a normal baby monitor but have the additional feature of drawing attention to itself when sounds of concern are detected or not detected.",
"FIGS. 7 a and 7 b show system operation in use with a home care help system.",
"A sound recognition system like the one described or similar can be used as a home alert use in substitution of a panic button to detect calls for help trigged by specific input, for example 3 hand claps or 3 shoe bangs on the floor.",
"This would operate by a repeated pattern being detected followed by a pause where by the system would confirm it had detected the pattern and ask for confirmation.",
"Once the pattern had been reconfirmed the system would send a alert to a operator or message to another individual.",
"FIGS. 8 a and 8 b show system operation in the use with an office phone system.",
"A sound recognition system similar to the one described can be used to turn an office or home telephone network into an intruder detection system where a microphone is installed in the base of the phone for means of hand free communication and the microphone can be activated remotely based on a timer.",
"This timer would activate the phones microphone at certain times e.g. night times and then detect sounds synonymous with break-ins, for example windows breaking or general movement.",
"An alert is then triggered and sent to a camera system to point camera at that location, a message to an operator, control system to turn on lights or message to operator or security guard.",
"No doubt many other effective alternatives will occur to the skilled person.",
"It will be understood that the invention is not limited to the described embodiments and encompasses modifications apparent to those skilled in the art lying within the spirit and scope of the claims appended hereto."
] |
TECHNICAL FIELD
The invention relates generally to pyrotechnic inflator devices for use with motor vehicle passenger passive restraint assemblies and, more particularly, to a modularized linear bilateral gas generator device capable of supplying a passenger air bag with at least two zones of differential pressure during inflation thereof.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Thousands of people are killed or injured annually in automobile accidents wherein the vehicle driver and/or passengers are thrown forward as a result of the initial, i.e., primary, collision so as to impact against solid surfaces within the interior of the vehicle. As a result, passive restraint systems adapted for use with such vehicles have been developed for the purpose of reducing or eliminating these injuries and/or deaths.
One system which has been extensively investigated senses rapid vehicle deceleration, such as that which occurs upon a primary impact between an automobile and, for example, another vehicle. Upon receipt of a signal from the sensor, the system initiates inflation of an expandable passive restraint prior to the occurrence of any secondary collision between these individuals and the interior of the car. This restraint is interposed between the interior surface of the automobile and one or more occupants of the vehicle. The airbag restraint must therefore be inflated within milliseconds of the primary impact in order to ensure that the vehicle occupants' forward motion is arrested before injury occurs due to the secondary collisions against the adjacent solid interior surfaces.
Moreover, it is additionally desirable to ensure deflation of the restraining device as soon as the force of a crash is expended, so that the occupant(s) do not thereafter become trapped within the vehicle subsequent to the collision. In order to meet such criteria, specifications have been established whereby the expandable bag should be sufficiently inflated to restrain a vehicle occupant in about 30-60 milliseconds after initiation, with substantial deflation occurring after about 100 milliseconds.
Normally, such systems are activated by an inertial sensor switch responsive to the primary crash impact. The activation of this switch, in turn, results in the flow of a volume of gas sufficient to inflate a collapsed bag into a protective position in front of the driver or passenger. The inflating gas may be supplied from a source of compressed air or other compressed gas, such as that which is disclosed in Chute, U.S. Pat. No. 3,411,808 and Wissing et al., U.S. Pat. No. 3,413,013, and a number of other patents in the crash restraint field. Numerous other prior art patents (e.g., U.S. Pat. No. 3,880,447 to Thorn et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 4,068,862 to Ishi et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 4,711,466 to Breed; and U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,547,342; 4,561,675 and 4,722,551 to Adams et al.), disclose a system wherein the bag is inflated by igniting a pyrotechnic propellant composition and directing the gaseous combustion products produced thereby directly into the bag.
The first technique discussed above for inflating an air bag, i.e., utilizing a volume of compressed gas, requires a reservoir of such gas stored at a very high pressure, which may be discharged into the bag as soon as an impact is sensed by the inertial sensor switch. In order to ensure a sufficient volume of gas for inflating a motor vehicle air bag, however, a relatively large reservoir, at pressures of 3000 psi or more, is required. Moreover, to open the feed valve in the very short time interval required for ensuring the safety of the vehicle occupants, explosive arrangements are normally employed for bursting a diaphragm or cutting through a structural portion of the reservoir. As may be imagined, such explosive arrangements have significant inherent safety problems, such as the production of shrapnel by the explosion, as well as a propensity to promote hearing damage among the vehicle occupants due to the relatively high sound level reached within the passenger compartment as a result of the explosion. The psychological effect upon the vehicle occupants of having such explosives on board the automobile also cannot be ignored.
The gas bottle, i.e., reservoir, technique for inflating an air bag also suffers from a further disadvantage in that the gas pressure is highest at the commencement of bag deployment and decreases as a function of time as the gas in the storage reservoir is depleted. Moreover, the pressure/time history of such pressurized gas inflator devices is difficult if not impossible to control at reasonable cost and reliability.
In addition, the adiabatic cooling of the gas, as it expands from a storage condition of elevated pressure to the nearly ambient pressure of the inflatable bag, reduces the effective volume of the gas available for inflating the bag. This cooling effect thus requires the manufacturer of the device to provide a total gas storage volume significantly greater than that which would be required if the gas was initially stored at an elevated temperature. Furthermore, a minor leak can result in all of the gas being lost during the extended interim period that the passenger restraint system must remain in the automobile prior to any crash.
The second technique discussed above, employing a pyrotechnic gas generator, i.e., inflator device (these terms are used interchangably herein), utilizes a rapidly burning solid propellant composition stored within the inflator for producing a substantial volume of a hot gaseous product, which is then directed into an inflatable airbag. Some compositions are available which produce a sufficiently low temperature combustion gas such that the gas may be fed substantially directly into the bag without danger to the vehicle's occupants. Other systems produce a high temperature combustion product, requiring means for cooling the gas before it is introduced into the bag.
Many forms of gas generators or inflators utilizing combustible solid fuel gas generating compositions for the inflation of crash protection, i.e., "air bag", restraints, are known in the prior art. Commonly encountered features among such devices utilized for this purpose include: (1) an outer metal housing, e.g., of steel or aluminum, (2) a gas generant composition located within the housing, (3) means to ignite the gas generant responsive to a signal received from a sensor positioned at a location removed from the inflator, and (4) means to filter and to cool the gas, positioned between the propellant composition and a plurality of gas discharge ports or orifices defined by the generator housing.
Such pyrotechnic gas generators must be capable of withstanding enormous thermal and mechanical stresses for a short period during the gas generation process. Thus, most inflators that have been and are currently being used with automobile air bag devices are commonly fabricated using heavy gauge steel for the casing and other structural housing components, with these components being joined together by, for example, threaded screws, roll crimping or welding. The recent emphasis on weight reduction for the purpose of fuel conservation in motorized vehicles has, however, created a need and a demand for a lighter weight inflation system. One example of such a system is illustrated in U.S. Pat. No. 4,547,342 to Adams et al. disclosing an aluminum driver's side inflator unit.
Moreover, as is well understood by those practicing in this art, pyrotechnic inflators such as those described above may be fabricated and/or adapted in a variety of different configurations depending upon the particular response characteristics required for the intended application. One particularly important consideration in this regard is as to whether the inflator unit is to be mounted upon the steering wheel, in order to restrain the vehicle operator, or whether it is intended to protect, for example, the front seat passengers. In the latter case, the device is normally installed within the vehicle's dashboard. A different set of requirements must be met depending upon which mode of use is intended.
An inflator unit intended for installation on the driver's side, e.g., within the steering assembly, of an automobile must be smaller in size than a passenger side unit to enable it to fit within the steering wheel. It must additionally generate a gaseous combustion product up to two times faster than a passenger side unit due to the minimal separation between the driver and the steering wheel in comparison to the available space between the body of a passenger within the vehicle and the vehicle's dashboard. Moreover, a passenger side inflator device is required to produce up to four times as much gas as a driver's side inflator to completely inflate the correspondingly larger passenger side air bag. This increase in bag size is necessitated due to the relatively larger volume of space within the vehicle in which the passenger may be found, as opposed to the driver who is "locked" into a position behind the steering wheel. Numerous examples of such passenger side inflator devices are known in the prior art, such as that which is disclosed, for example, in U.S. Pat. No. 4,005,876 to Jorgensen et al.
An important additional consideration which must be addressed when designing a passenger side inflator device for installation within a motor vehicle is the presence of small children, either seated upon the lap of an adult passenger or located in a standing position between the dashboard of the vehicle and the front seat. In either case, it has been recognized that such children are liable to an increased risk of injury, notwithstanding the presence of an inflatable passive restraint device, due to the minimal degree of separation between the child's body and the air bag. This leads to a relative increase in the speed with which such children impact upon the passenger side air bag, thus greatly increasing their risk of injury in the event of a collision. Applicant is not aware of any apparatus or methodology available at present which is designed to prevent such injuries and/or deaths suffered by young children positioned within the vehicle as described above.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
It is thus an object of the present invention to provide a motor vehicle passive safety device adapted for increased protection of minor passengers positioned either upon the lap of an adult passenger or standing on the floor of the vehicle between the front seat and the dashboard.
It is a further object of the invention to provide a pyrotechnic inflator device configured for installation within a motor vehicle dashboard and adapted for operative association with an inflatable passive restraint safety device as described above.
It is a still further object of the invention to provide a linear bilateral inflator device having two combustion chambers, one at each end of the inflator, joined at a central ignition zone, wherein one combustion chamber is capable of generating gas at a pressure substantially different from that provided by the other combustion chamber.
The subject inflator is thus capable of providing an inflatable passenger side air bag with gaseous combustion products introduced into different zones thereof at a variety of differing pressures In this manner, there may be provided an air bag portion of a passenger passive safety device which, upon inflation, is softer at the bottom, i.e., in the zone where a small child, positioned as described above, would be expected to impact, than at the top, which is where an adult seated on the passenger side of the front seat would make contact.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a passenger side pyrotechnic inflator device constructed of a durable, lightweight material, such as aluminum, titanium or certain stainless steels (e.g., 201 or 304 stainless steel) in order to reduce the weight of the device in comparison to models currently produced utilizing relatively heavy steel components.
The present invention thus comprises a modularized linear inflator device having a cylindrical combustion chamber positioned in a horizontal plane at both terminal ends, wherein these chambers are adapted for providing a sufficient volume of a gaseous combustion product to substantially inflate a motor vehicle passenger passive restraint within 30-60 milliseconds after an initial collision involving the vehicle. A T-shaped central portion of the inflator, located between the combustion chambers and forming a zone of attachment therefor, provides support for the combustion chambers and, in addition, houses ignition means for initiating combustion of the main propellant charge located within the combustion chambers. The lower leg of this central support is configured as a tubular extension projecting substantially perpendicularly to the longitudinal axis of the horizontally disposed combustion chambers.
In one embodiment of the invention, this extension may be joined, by means of a fitting, for example, to a conduit routed through either the firewall or the floorboards of the vehicle in order to permit a reciprocal gas flow into and out of the air bag through the inflator upon actuation of the inflator.
In the present invention, the entire inflator is completely enclosed within the passenger air bag. This arrangement eliminates the need for fasteners in attaching the bag to the inflator Bag retention is thus accomplished by providing a bead at the mouth of the bag which is simply trapped in place between the inflator and the base plate of the module.
One embodiment of the present invention includes the use of differing amounts of propellant within each of the combustion chambers in order to vary the amount of gaseous product produced. Alternately, two different propellant compositions, capable of generating differing amounts of gaseous combustion products, may also be utilized in equal or differing amounts within the combustion chambers.
The chamber generating the larger volume of gas may thus be oriented within the bag so as to direct its gas flow towards the upper portion thereof, where an adult passenger would be expected to make contact. Conversely, the remaining chamber, adapted by means of its different or lower propellant load to generate a comparatively reduced amount of gaseous product in comparison to the first chamber, is aligned so as to direct the flow of gas produced thereby to the lower portion of the bag. This arrangement thus provides a softer cushion in the zone wherein a child, seated either upon the lap of an adult passenger, or standing on the floor between the dashboard and the front seat, would be expected to strike the bag, thus reducing if not eliminating the chance for serious injury and/or death to such minor passengers in the event of a collision.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG. 1 is a side elevation view of a portion of a motor vehicle dashboard having installed therein a modularized passenger passive restraint assembly utilizing the bilateral linear inflator of the present invention;
FIG. 2 is a sectional view taken along the line 2--2 in FIG. 1;
FIG. 3 is a sectional view taken along the line 3--3 in FIG. 2;
FIG. 4 is a sectional view taken along the line 4--4 in FIG. 2;
FIG. 4a is a sectional view taken along the line 4a--4a in FIG. 4; and
FIG. 5 is a sectional view taken along the line 5--5 in FIG. 3.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
Turning initially to FIG. 1 there is illustrated passenger passive restraint module assembly 10 installed within the dashboard of a motorized vehicle, e.g., an automobile. For convenience in describing the present invention, the following description is provided with regard to the installation of the subject inflator module 10 within an automobile. The invention should not, however, be considered as being limited to use with automobiles alone. Additional applications conceived by the applicant include the use of the subject inflator module in a variety of motorized vehicles such as trucks, buses, vans and even water and air-borne craft, such as boats and airplanes.
Module 10 includes, besides the inflator itself, base plate 14 which has an open end and a closed end and conduit member 18 joined by fitting 24 to a tubular extension 22 projecting substantially perpendicularly from inflator 20. Tubular extension 22, which is described below in greater detail, houses the ignition means relied upon to initiate combustion of the propellant (see, e.g., FIGS. 2, 3 and 5).
Conduit 18 is preferably passed through an aperture in the firewall or floor of the vehicle to permit the gaseous combustion products produced by the inflator to be dumped out of the passenger compartment and into the external atmosphere surrounding the vehicle. Alternatively, conduit 18 may be omitted entirely, as a result of which the gaseous contents of inflatable air bag 26 are, upon deflation of the bag subsequent to a collision, expelled back through inflator 20 and out through tubular portion 22 thereof into the passenger compartment of the vehicle.
The open end of base plate 14 is closed by cover member 12, connected at hinge 16 to vehicle dashboard 19 and forming a pivotable door thereon. Upon actuation of the inflator, cover member 12, which is not connected in any manner to module 10, is pushed upwardly against an inner surface of windshield 17 by passenger air bag 26 in order to permit the expansion and deployment of the air bag. This arrangement facilitates the installation and alignment of module 10 within dashboard 19.
Turning now to FIG. 2, an interior view of module assembly 10 is provided, including a sectional view taken through applicant's inflator device 20. One unique feature of the present invention concerns the process by which base plate 14 is joined to inflator 20 at tubular extension 22. This connection is made through the use of a process known as "magnaforming", which process is disclosed, for example, in U.S. Pat. No. 2,976,907 to Harvey et al. (the "'907 patent"), incorporated herein by reference. The magnaforming process is well known in the prior art, although not for applications such as those disclosed herein.
In utilizing a magnaforming process such as that described in the '907 patent, a variable magnetic field is created adjacent the workpiece, e.g., in the area where skirt portion 30 of base plate 14 overlaps tubular extension 22 of inflator 20. Subsequently, one or more force impulses set up by the magnetic field are directed against skirt 30 which, prior to this operation, initially extends substantially parallel to outer wall 22a of tubular extension 22. Wall 22a is provided with an annular groove 22b extending substantially around the entire outer circumference of tubular extension 22. The effect of the force impulses is to cause a portion of skirt 30 to flow into groove 22b so as to create a bonding compression seal between mounting plate 14 and tubular extension 22, thus locking together inflator 20 and base plate 14.
Applicant has determined that the best results are obtained with the subject magnaforming technique when the temper of the metal of which the components are formed is as high as possible without being such that the metal cracks during the magnaforming process due to excessive brittleness. This ensures that applicant's device can be constructed of lightweight materials (e.g., 201 or 304 stainless steel, aluminum, or titanium) while still maintaining a sufficient degree of structural strength to withstand the forces generated within the unit during the combustion of the propellant. This is an important feature of the present invention since it is generally understood by those in the art that a reduction in vehicle weight is translatable into improved gas mileage for the vehicle.
As illustrated in FIG. 2, linear inflator 20 is provided with two cylindrical combustion chambers 32, 34, bilaterally arranged in a horizontal, i.e., linear, plane at the outer terminal ends of the inflator. A central T-shaped portion 33, located between combustion chambers 32, 34 and comprising tubular extension 22, which projects substantially perpendicularly to the said chambers, serves to support the combustion chambers. This central T-shaped support 33 also houses the ignition means for initiating combustion of main propellant charge 40 within tubular extension 22. The preferred ignition means is an electrically activated squib device 36, containing a small charge of a combustible material. Squib 36 is normally connected via electrical leads 38 to at least one remote sensing device (not shown), of a type well known in the art, located in, for example, the front bumper or side fender of the vehicle. Thus, activation of squib 36 is designed to simultaneously ignite propellant 40 stored within both combustion chambers 32, 34.
Propellant 40 may be supplied in a variety of physical forms. It may, for example, be stored within inflator 20 as a powder, or alternately, in the form of a number of tablets, ranging in size from an aspirin tablet to approximately that of an Alka-Seltzer®. Although either arrangement will work equally well, the latter, i.e., tablet, form is preferred because of the ease with which such tablets may be handled in comparison to the use of bulky and cumbersome powders. Moreover, in order to prevent propellant 40 from leaking out of combustion chambers 32, 34 prior to ignition, propellant 40 is enclosed within an outer packaging or wrapping 42. The material forming this packaging or wrapping 42 may be selected from a variety of inexpensive plastic wraps and metal foils, with the latter being preferred for use in the present invention. Not only does packaging 42 ensure that propellant 40 stays within combustion chambers 32, 34, but it also prevents the propellant from coming into contact with moisture from the surrounding environment which may negatively affect the inflator's combustion capabilities due to caking or agglomeration of the propellant particles.
A variety of compositions, well known to those of ordinary skill in the art, may be utilized as propellants for inflator 20 described herein. Applicant prefers for use in the presently disclosed inflator the various compositions described in U.S. Pat. No. 3,895,098 to John F. Pietz, issued July 15, 1975 and reissued as U.S. Pat. No. Re. 32,584 on Jan. 26, 1988 and entitled METHOD AND COMPOSITION FOR GENERATING NITROGEN GAS. The fastest burning (and therefore preferred) propellant compositions are those propellants taught by the subject patent which comprise a mixture of sodium azide and copper oxide.
Alternately, compositions substituting nickel and iron oxidizers may be utilized, but these generants, although capable of a slightly higher effective gas output than the CuO/NaN 3 mixture described above, often require the addition of an ammonium perchlorate burn rate enhancer to reach their full potential, as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,604,151 issued on May 8, 1986 to Knowlton et al., entitled METHOD AND COMPOSITION FOR GENERATING NITROGEN GAS INCLUDING AMMONIUM PERCHLORATE CATALYST. A large number of different generant compositions are operable within applicant's inflator device 20, however, and the present invention should not be limited solely to the use of the compositions disclosed above.
In a further alternate embodiment of the present invention, the propellant may be molded or extruded into a single porous grain conforming to the volume and the shape of combustion chambers 32, 34. An important feature to consider with the use of such a porous propellant grain, however, is to ensure that the grain is formed having a sufficient degree of porosity to provide a sufficient volume of gas to inflate an air bag within, for example, the 30-60 millisecond period described above. Such a porous propellant grain is disclosed and claimed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,758,287 to John F. Pietz entitled POROUS PROPELLANT GRAIN AND METHOD OF MAKING SAME.
An important additional feature of the present invention is the ability of inflator 20 to operate with a comparatively reduced amount of propellant 40 in one combustion chamber, e.g., 32, with a proportionately larger amount of either the same or a different propellant in the remaining combustion chamber, i.e., 34. Upon installation of module 10 in vehicle dashboard 19, inflator 20 may be aligned such that the gaseous combustion products from chamber 32 (having the relatively reduced amount of propellant) are directed to the lower portion of passenger air bag 26, where a child is most likely to impact upon the bag in the event of a collision involving the automobile, whereas the remaining combustion chamber, (i.e., 34) containing a comparatively greater amount of propellant, is aligned so as to direct the gas produced thereby to the middle and upper portions of the bag. Thus, these areas become comparatively firmer and are therefore able to absorb an adult's relatively greater weight during a collision.
The gases and molten particulates produced as a result of the ignition and subsequent combustion of propellant 40 exit cylindrically shaped combustion chambers 32, 34 through a first set of diffuser ports 44 which provide fluid communication between the combustion zone, i.e., where propellant 40 is located, and filtration zone 46 (illustrated in a representational view in FIG. 2) which anularly surrounds the combustion zone. Filtration zone 46 comprises a number of anularly disposed layers of wire mesh screen and inert inorganic spacer pads, described below in detail with reference to FIG. 4a. Thus, filtration zone 46 serves a two-fold purpose: (1) the removal of a substantial majority of molten particulates from the gas stream so that they do not enter and impact directly upon the inner surface of bag 26, thus possibly burning through the fabric of the bag with potentially disastrous consequences for the vehicle occupants and, (2) as a heat sink to cool the gas to a temperature approaching ambient such that, in the improbable event of a bag failure, the vehicle occupants are prevented from contact with the dangerously hot gases produced by the combustion of propellant 40.
As represented by curved arrows A in FIG. 2, the gases expelled from the combustion zone within each of combustion chambers 32, 34 exits these zones at an angle of substantially 180° from a second set of diffuser ports 48 communicating with the interior of bag 26. This arrangement forces the gas to take a circuitous clockwise or counter clockwise route (as shown by arrows A) around the inner arcuate surface of each cylindrical combustion chamber, 32, 34, before exiting inflator 20 through ports 48, thus making the most effective use of the heat sink capacity of filtration zone 46 while also providing the maximum possible degree of filtration.
To seal the outer ends of inflator 20, end caps 50 are inserted into the open outer ends of combustion chambers 32, 34. Caps 50 are preferably U-shaped and stamped from a lightweight material, e.g., aluminum, in order to minimize their weight and therefor the weight of inflator 20. To maintain end caps 50 in position when inflator 20 is pressurized during operation, outer cylindrical walls 32a and 34a of the corresponding combustion chambers are magnaformed into an annular groove 52 extending entirely around the outer periphery of each cap 50. In addition, along the inner end of both chambers 32 and 34, i.e., adjacent T-shaped support 33 containing squib 36, walls 32a, 34a are magnaformed into a second set of corresponding grooves 54 formed within the head of the "T" in order to place chambers 32, 34 in operative association with squib 36.
An additional novel feature of the invention concerns the fact that inflator 20 is entirely enclosed within bag 26. This arrangement eliminates the need for cumbersome fasteners for attaching bag 26 to inflator 20 or to base plate 14. Bag retention is thus accomplished by providing bead 56 within the mouth of bag 26 and then simply trapping the bead in place between base plate 14 and cylindrical walls 32a, 34a defining, respectively, combustion chambers 32, 34 when plate 14 is magnaformed onto tubular extension 22.
Turning now to FIG. 3, there is illustrated a rear plan view through tubular extension 22 of the means for supporting squib 36 within inflator 20. As may be discerned from the illustration, squib 36 is seated within an aperture defined by cross member 58 which bisects tubular extension 22. In one embodiment of the invention, the aperture and the squib base may be provided with corresponding male and female threads with squib 36 thus being screwed into the aperture. Alternately, in a different embodiment, squib 36 is "potted" within the aperture with the use of an epoxy composition. In the preferred embodiment, squib 36 is simply crimped into place within the aperture, thus obviating the need for threads or adhesives. Electrical leads 38 extend below member 58 as shown and are remotely connected, as noted above, to means for sensing a sudden deceleration and/or collision involving the vehicle.
Member 58 defines corresponding gas passages 60 adapted to permit a reciprocal fluid flow into and out of air bag 26 through inflator 20. This supplemental volume of gas, which is drawn into bag 26 by the aspirating effect created due to high velocity gases exiting inflator 20 through ports 48, especially angled ports 48a, b (see, e.g., FIG. 2), serves to speed the inflation of the bag and to further cool the gases supplied by the combustion of propellant 40.
In addition, during deflation of bag 26, any toxic material present within airbag 26 may be directed back through the inflator through passages 60 and out of the vehicle through conduit 18. This arrangement thus avoids following the commonly utilized technique of venting these gases through a vent hole in the fabric of bag 26 into the interior of the passenger compartment.
FIG. 4 is provided to more clearly display the flow path of the gases within inflator 20, previously discussed with regard to FIG. 2. These gases (represented by the arrows) flow arcuately through filtration zone 46 (illustrated in a representational view) in both clockwise and counterclockwise paths and eventually exit into air bag 26. As illustrated with respect to one representative combustion chamber (i.e., 32), the gas produced by the combustion of propellant 40 exits the combustion zone of chamber 32 through a first set diffuser ports 44 which are perforated through wall 62 defining the said combustion zone. Wall 62 is simply trapped in place without any requirement that it be mechanically attached to the inflator housing. Upon exiting first diffuser ports 44, the hot gas, containing molten particulates, enters filtration zone 46 wherein it is deflected from outer cylindrical unperforated wall 32a forming the inflator housing. As a result of this arrangement, the gas is forced to travel 180° in an arcuate path around the inner surface of the combustion chamber, whereupon it flows into bag 26 through a second set of diffuser ports 48. Thus, the gas is both cooled and filtered as it passes through filtration zone 46, described below in further detail.
FIG. 4a provides a partial sectional view through filtration zone 46 of FIG. 4 and illustrates the preferred filtration arrangement located within each combustion chamber 32, 34. Applicant recognizes that a number of variations are possible with regard to the filtering arrangement utilized in the present invention and should therefore not be restricted to the use of the preferred structure described herein. As may be seen from the illustration, the core, i.e., the inner portion of filtration zone 46 is comprised of a number (preferably 5) of concentric layers 64 of a metal screen material, preferably of 28 mesh size, with the innermost layer positioned directly over and adjacent the first set of diffuser ports 44.
Extending circumferentially outwardly of screens 64 is a sandwich 66 comprised of several layers of metal screen 66a with alternating layers of an inert, inorganic ceramic fiber pad 66b formed from a mixture of alumina oxide and silica oxide. Pads 66b are sold under the trade name FiberFrax® by Sohio Carborundum, Inc. of Niagara Falls, N.Y., a division of the Standard Oil Corporation. Ceramic pads 66b, being more dense than the 28 mesh screen, trap even the finest particulates traveling within the gas flow. Finally, a double layer of 28 mesh screen 68, located adjacent the inner arcuate surface of cylindrical wall 32a forming the housing of combustion chamber 32, abuts against the inner aspect of the second set of diffuser ports 48 to serve as a final check on the expulsion of unwanted particulate matter present within the gas. As noted above, the filtration arrangement is reproduced in the other combustion chamber 34 as well.
FIG. 5 generally illustrates the gas passage arrangement described above with regard to FIG. 3, except that FIG. 5 represents a sectional view taken along the vertical axis of tubular extension 22 in FIG. 3. Since the structure is unchanged between those two figures, i.e., only the perspective is different, the structural components comprising this aspect of the invention have been designated with the same identification number in both figures. The solid arrows represent the reciprocal flow of gas into and out of bag 26.
While it is apparent that the invention herein disclosed is well calculated to fulfill the objectives stated above, it will be appreciated that numerous modifications and embodiments may be devised by those skilled in the art, and it is intended that the appended claims cover all such modifications and embodiments as fall within the true spirit and scope of the present invention. | A linear bilateral inflator module in which the inflator component of the module has two opposed cylindrical combustion chambers mounted in a horizontal plane at either end of the inflator. These chambers are joined to and supported by a central T-shaped inflator housing containing an ignitor for initiating combustion of the propellant within the inflator. The lower leg of this central section is configured as a tubular extension which may optionally be joined to a separate conduit member adapted for permitting a reciprocal fluid flow into and out of the air bag through the inflator. The extension also serves as a point of attachment for an outer surrounding base plate assembly. A bead, located within the mouth portion of the air bag, is trapped between the inflator and the base plate during formation of the structural seal between these components such that the inflator is completely enclosed within the bag. The inflator is adapted to provide differing amounts of a gaseous combustion product from each of the combustion chambers by varying the amount or type of propellant stored therein. This arrangement permits the development within the air bag component of the module of two different inflation zones. | Summarize the patent document, focusing on the invention's functionality and advantages. | [
"TECHNICAL FIELD The invention relates generally to pyrotechnic inflator devices for use with motor vehicle passenger passive restraint assemblies and, more particularly, to a modularized linear bilateral gas generator device capable of supplying a passenger air bag with at least two zones of differential pressure during inflation thereof.",
"BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Thousands of people are killed or injured annually in automobile accidents wherein the vehicle driver and/or passengers are thrown forward as a result of the initial, i.e., primary, collision so as to impact against solid surfaces within the interior of the vehicle.",
"As a result, passive restraint systems adapted for use with such vehicles have been developed for the purpose of reducing or eliminating these injuries and/or deaths.",
"One system which has been extensively investigated senses rapid vehicle deceleration, such as that which occurs upon a primary impact between an automobile and, for example, another vehicle.",
"Upon receipt of a signal from the sensor, the system initiates inflation of an expandable passive restraint prior to the occurrence of any secondary collision between these individuals and the interior of the car.",
"This restraint is interposed between the interior surface of the automobile and one or more occupants of the vehicle.",
"The airbag restraint must therefore be inflated within milliseconds of the primary impact in order to ensure that the vehicle occupants'",
"forward motion is arrested before injury occurs due to the secondary collisions against the adjacent solid interior surfaces.",
"Moreover, it is additionally desirable to ensure deflation of the restraining device as soon as the force of a crash is expended, so that the occupant(s) do not thereafter become trapped within the vehicle subsequent to the collision.",
"In order to meet such criteria, specifications have been established whereby the expandable bag should be sufficiently inflated to restrain a vehicle occupant in about 30-60 milliseconds after initiation, with substantial deflation occurring after about 100 milliseconds.",
"Normally, such systems are activated by an inertial sensor switch responsive to the primary crash impact.",
"The activation of this switch, in turn, results in the flow of a volume of gas sufficient to inflate a collapsed bag into a protective position in front of the driver or passenger.",
"The inflating gas may be supplied from a source of compressed air or other compressed gas, such as that which is disclosed in Chute, U.S. Pat. No. 3,411,808 and Wissing et al.",
", U.S. Pat. No. 3,413,013, and a number of other patents in the crash restraint field.",
"Numerous other prior art patents (e.g., U.S. Pat. No. 3,880,447 to Thorn et al.",
"U.S. Pat. No. 4,068,862 to Ishi et al.",
"U.S. Pat. No. 4,711,466 to Breed;",
"and U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,547,342;",
"4,561,675 and 4,722,551 to Adams et al.), disclose a system wherein the bag is inflated by igniting a pyrotechnic propellant composition and directing the gaseous combustion products produced thereby directly into the bag.",
"The first technique discussed above for inflating an air bag, i.e., utilizing a volume of compressed gas, requires a reservoir of such gas stored at a very high pressure, which may be discharged into the bag as soon as an impact is sensed by the inertial sensor switch.",
"In order to ensure a sufficient volume of gas for inflating a motor vehicle air bag, however, a relatively large reservoir, at pressures of 3000 psi or more, is required.",
"Moreover, to open the feed valve in the very short time interval required for ensuring the safety of the vehicle occupants, explosive arrangements are normally employed for bursting a diaphragm or cutting through a structural portion of the reservoir.",
"As may be imagined, such explosive arrangements have significant inherent safety problems, such as the production of shrapnel by the explosion, as well as a propensity to promote hearing damage among the vehicle occupants due to the relatively high sound level reached within the passenger compartment as a result of the explosion.",
"The psychological effect upon the vehicle occupants of having such explosives on board the automobile also cannot be ignored.",
"The gas bottle, i.e., reservoir, technique for inflating an air bag also suffers from a further disadvantage in that the gas pressure is highest at the commencement of bag deployment and decreases as a function of time as the gas in the storage reservoir is depleted.",
"Moreover, the pressure/time history of such pressurized gas inflator devices is difficult if not impossible to control at reasonable cost and reliability.",
"In addition, the adiabatic cooling of the gas, as it expands from a storage condition of elevated pressure to the nearly ambient pressure of the inflatable bag, reduces the effective volume of the gas available for inflating the bag.",
"This cooling effect thus requires the manufacturer of the device to provide a total gas storage volume significantly greater than that which would be required if the gas was initially stored at an elevated temperature.",
"Furthermore, a minor leak can result in all of the gas being lost during the extended interim period that the passenger restraint system must remain in the automobile prior to any crash.",
"The second technique discussed above, employing a pyrotechnic gas generator, i.e., inflator device (these terms are used interchangably herein), utilizes a rapidly burning solid propellant composition stored within the inflator for producing a substantial volume of a hot gaseous product, which is then directed into an inflatable airbag.",
"Some compositions are available which produce a sufficiently low temperature combustion gas such that the gas may be fed substantially directly into the bag without danger to the vehicle's occupants.",
"Other systems produce a high temperature combustion product, requiring means for cooling the gas before it is introduced into the bag.",
"Many forms of gas generators or inflators utilizing combustible solid fuel gas generating compositions for the inflation of crash protection, i.e., "air bag", restraints, are known in the prior art.",
"Commonly encountered features among such devices utilized for this purpose include: (1) an outer metal housing, e.g., of steel or aluminum, (2) a gas generant composition located within the housing, (3) means to ignite the gas generant responsive to a signal received from a sensor positioned at a location removed from the inflator, and (4) means to filter and to cool the gas, positioned between the propellant composition and a plurality of gas discharge ports or orifices defined by the generator housing.",
"Such pyrotechnic gas generators must be capable of withstanding enormous thermal and mechanical stresses for a short period during the gas generation process.",
"Thus, most inflators that have been and are currently being used with automobile air bag devices are commonly fabricated using heavy gauge steel for the casing and other structural housing components, with these components being joined together by, for example, threaded screws, roll crimping or welding.",
"The recent emphasis on weight reduction for the purpose of fuel conservation in motorized vehicles has, however, created a need and a demand for a lighter weight inflation system.",
"One example of such a system is illustrated in U.S. Pat. No. 4,547,342 to Adams et al.",
"disclosing an aluminum driver's side inflator unit.",
"Moreover, as is well understood by those practicing in this art, pyrotechnic inflators such as those described above may be fabricated and/or adapted in a variety of different configurations depending upon the particular response characteristics required for the intended application.",
"One particularly important consideration in this regard is as to whether the inflator unit is to be mounted upon the steering wheel, in order to restrain the vehicle operator, or whether it is intended to protect, for example, the front seat passengers.",
"In the latter case, the device is normally installed within the vehicle's dashboard.",
"A different set of requirements must be met depending upon which mode of use is intended.",
"An inflator unit intended for installation on the driver's side, e.g., within the steering assembly, of an automobile must be smaller in size than a passenger side unit to enable it to fit within the steering wheel.",
"It must additionally generate a gaseous combustion product up to two times faster than a passenger side unit due to the minimal separation between the driver and the steering wheel in comparison to the available space between the body of a passenger within the vehicle and the vehicle's dashboard.",
"Moreover, a passenger side inflator device is required to produce up to four times as much gas as a driver's side inflator to completely inflate the correspondingly larger passenger side air bag.",
"This increase in bag size is necessitated due to the relatively larger volume of space within the vehicle in which the passenger may be found, as opposed to the driver who is "locked"",
"into a position behind the steering wheel.",
"Numerous examples of such passenger side inflator devices are known in the prior art, such as that which is disclosed, for example, in U.S. Pat. No. 4,005,876 to Jorgensen et al.",
"An important additional consideration which must be addressed when designing a passenger side inflator device for installation within a motor vehicle is the presence of small children, either seated upon the lap of an adult passenger or located in a standing position between the dashboard of the vehicle and the front seat.",
"In either case, it has been recognized that such children are liable to an increased risk of injury, notwithstanding the presence of an inflatable passive restraint device, due to the minimal degree of separation between the child's body and the air bag.",
"This leads to a relative increase in the speed with which such children impact upon the passenger side air bag, thus greatly increasing their risk of injury in the event of a collision.",
"Applicant is not aware of any apparatus or methodology available at present which is designed to prevent such injuries and/or deaths suffered by young children positioned within the vehicle as described above.",
"SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is thus an object of the present invention to provide a motor vehicle passive safety device adapted for increased protection of minor passengers positioned either upon the lap of an adult passenger or standing on the floor of the vehicle between the front seat and the dashboard.",
"It is a further object of the invention to provide a pyrotechnic inflator device configured for installation within a motor vehicle dashboard and adapted for operative association with an inflatable passive restraint safety device as described above.",
"It is a still further object of the invention to provide a linear bilateral inflator device having two combustion chambers, one at each end of the inflator, joined at a central ignition zone, wherein one combustion chamber is capable of generating gas at a pressure substantially different from that provided by the other combustion chamber.",
"The subject inflator is thus capable of providing an inflatable passenger side air bag with gaseous combustion products introduced into different zones thereof at a variety of differing pressures In this manner, there may be provided an air bag portion of a passenger passive safety device which, upon inflation, is softer at the bottom, i.e., in the zone where a small child, positioned as described above, would be expected to impact, than at the top, which is where an adult seated on the passenger side of the front seat would make contact.",
"It is another object of the present invention to provide a passenger side pyrotechnic inflator device constructed of a durable, lightweight material, such as aluminum, titanium or certain stainless steels (e.g., 201 or 304 stainless steel) in order to reduce the weight of the device in comparison to models currently produced utilizing relatively heavy steel components.",
"The present invention thus comprises a modularized linear inflator device having a cylindrical combustion chamber positioned in a horizontal plane at both terminal ends, wherein these chambers are adapted for providing a sufficient volume of a gaseous combustion product to substantially inflate a motor vehicle passenger passive restraint within 30-60 milliseconds after an initial collision involving the vehicle.",
"A T-shaped central portion of the inflator, located between the combustion chambers and forming a zone of attachment therefor, provides support for the combustion chambers and, in addition, houses ignition means for initiating combustion of the main propellant charge located within the combustion chambers.",
"The lower leg of this central support is configured as a tubular extension projecting substantially perpendicularly to the longitudinal axis of the horizontally disposed combustion chambers.",
"In one embodiment of the invention, this extension may be joined, by means of a fitting, for example, to a conduit routed through either the firewall or the floorboards of the vehicle in order to permit a reciprocal gas flow into and out of the air bag through the inflator upon actuation of the inflator.",
"In the present invention, the entire inflator is completely enclosed within the passenger air bag.",
"This arrangement eliminates the need for fasteners in attaching the bag to the inflator Bag retention is thus accomplished by providing a bead at the mouth of the bag which is simply trapped in place between the inflator and the base plate of the module.",
"One embodiment of the present invention includes the use of differing amounts of propellant within each of the combustion chambers in order to vary the amount of gaseous product produced.",
"Alternately, two different propellant compositions, capable of generating differing amounts of gaseous combustion products, may also be utilized in equal or differing amounts within the combustion chambers.",
"The chamber generating the larger volume of gas may thus be oriented within the bag so as to direct its gas flow towards the upper portion thereof, where an adult passenger would be expected to make contact.",
"Conversely, the remaining chamber, adapted by means of its different or lower propellant load to generate a comparatively reduced amount of gaseous product in comparison to the first chamber, is aligned so as to direct the flow of gas produced thereby to the lower portion of the bag.",
"This arrangement thus provides a softer cushion in the zone wherein a child, seated either upon the lap of an adult passenger, or standing on the floor between the dashboard and the front seat, would be expected to strike the bag, thus reducing if not eliminating the chance for serious injury and/or death to such minor passengers in the event of a collision.",
"BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a side elevation view of a portion of a motor vehicle dashboard having installed therein a modularized passenger passive restraint assembly utilizing the bilateral linear inflator of the present invention;",
"FIG. 2 is a sectional view taken along the line 2--2 in FIG. 1;",
"FIG. 3 is a sectional view taken along the line 3--3 in FIG. 2;",
"FIG. 4 is a sectional view taken along the line 4--4 in FIG. 2;",
"FIG. 4a is a sectional view taken along the line 4a--4a in FIG. 4;",
"and FIG. 5 is a sectional view taken along the line 5--5 in FIG. 3. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Turning initially to FIG. 1 there is illustrated passenger passive restraint module assembly 10 installed within the dashboard of a motorized vehicle, e.g., an automobile.",
"For convenience in describing the present invention, the following description is provided with regard to the installation of the subject inflator module 10 within an automobile.",
"The invention should not, however, be considered as being limited to use with automobiles alone.",
"Additional applications conceived by the applicant include the use of the subject inflator module in a variety of motorized vehicles such as trucks, buses, vans and even water and air-borne craft, such as boats and airplanes.",
"Module 10 includes, besides the inflator itself, base plate 14 which has an open end and a closed end and conduit member 18 joined by fitting 24 to a tubular extension 22 projecting substantially perpendicularly from inflator 20.",
"Tubular extension 22, which is described below in greater detail, houses the ignition means relied upon to initiate combustion of the propellant (see, e.g., FIGS. 2, 3 and 5).",
"Conduit 18 is preferably passed through an aperture in the firewall or floor of the vehicle to permit the gaseous combustion products produced by the inflator to be dumped out of the passenger compartment and into the external atmosphere surrounding the vehicle.",
"Alternatively, conduit 18 may be omitted entirely, as a result of which the gaseous contents of inflatable air bag 26 are, upon deflation of the bag subsequent to a collision, expelled back through inflator 20 and out through tubular portion 22 thereof into the passenger compartment of the vehicle.",
"The open end of base plate 14 is closed by cover member 12, connected at hinge 16 to vehicle dashboard 19 and forming a pivotable door thereon.",
"Upon actuation of the inflator, cover member 12, which is not connected in any manner to module 10, is pushed upwardly against an inner surface of windshield 17 by passenger air bag 26 in order to permit the expansion and deployment of the air bag.",
"This arrangement facilitates the installation and alignment of module 10 within dashboard 19.",
"Turning now to FIG. 2, an interior view of module assembly 10 is provided, including a sectional view taken through applicant's inflator device 20.",
"One unique feature of the present invention concerns the process by which base plate 14 is joined to inflator 20 at tubular extension 22.",
"This connection is made through the use of a process known as "magnaforming", which process is disclosed, for example, in U.S. Pat. No. 2,976,907 to Harvey et al.",
"(the "'907 patent"), incorporated herein by reference.",
"The magnaforming process is well known in the prior art, although not for applications such as those disclosed herein.",
"In utilizing a magnaforming process such as that described in the '907 patent, a variable magnetic field is created adjacent the workpiece, e.g., in the area where skirt portion 30 of base plate 14 overlaps tubular extension 22 of inflator 20.",
"Subsequently, one or more force impulses set up by the magnetic field are directed against skirt 30 which, prior to this operation, initially extends substantially parallel to outer wall 22a of tubular extension 22.",
"Wall 22a is provided with an annular groove 22b extending substantially around the entire outer circumference of tubular extension 22.",
"The effect of the force impulses is to cause a portion of skirt 30 to flow into groove 22b so as to create a bonding compression seal between mounting plate 14 and tubular extension 22, thus locking together inflator 20 and base plate 14.",
"Applicant has determined that the best results are obtained with the subject magnaforming technique when the temper of the metal of which the components are formed is as high as possible without being such that the metal cracks during the magnaforming process due to excessive brittleness.",
"This ensures that applicant's device can be constructed of lightweight materials (e.g., 201 or 304 stainless steel, aluminum, or titanium) while still maintaining a sufficient degree of structural strength to withstand the forces generated within the unit during the combustion of the propellant.",
"This is an important feature of the present invention since it is generally understood by those in the art that a reduction in vehicle weight is translatable into improved gas mileage for the vehicle.",
"As illustrated in FIG. 2, linear inflator 20 is provided with two cylindrical combustion chambers 32, 34, bilaterally arranged in a horizontal, i.e., linear, plane at the outer terminal ends of the inflator.",
"A central T-shaped portion 33, located between combustion chambers 32, 34 and comprising tubular extension 22, which projects substantially perpendicularly to the said chambers, serves to support the combustion chambers.",
"This central T-shaped support 33 also houses the ignition means for initiating combustion of main propellant charge 40 within tubular extension 22.",
"The preferred ignition means is an electrically activated squib device 36, containing a small charge of a combustible material.",
"Squib 36 is normally connected via electrical leads 38 to at least one remote sensing device (not shown), of a type well known in the art, located in, for example, the front bumper or side fender of the vehicle.",
"Thus, activation of squib 36 is designed to simultaneously ignite propellant 40 stored within both combustion chambers 32, 34.",
"Propellant 40 may be supplied in a variety of physical forms.",
"It may, for example, be stored within inflator 20 as a powder, or alternately, in the form of a number of tablets, ranging in size from an aspirin tablet to approximately that of an Alka-Seltzer®.",
"Although either arrangement will work equally well, the latter, i.e., tablet, form is preferred because of the ease with which such tablets may be handled in comparison to the use of bulky and cumbersome powders.",
"Moreover, in order to prevent propellant 40 from leaking out of combustion chambers 32, 34 prior to ignition, propellant 40 is enclosed within an outer packaging or wrapping 42.",
"The material forming this packaging or wrapping 42 may be selected from a variety of inexpensive plastic wraps and metal foils, with the latter being preferred for use in the present invention.",
"Not only does packaging 42 ensure that propellant 40 stays within combustion chambers 32, 34, but it also prevents the propellant from coming into contact with moisture from the surrounding environment which may negatively affect the inflator's combustion capabilities due to caking or agglomeration of the propellant particles.",
"A variety of compositions, well known to those of ordinary skill in the art, may be utilized as propellants for inflator 20 described herein.",
"Applicant prefers for use in the presently disclosed inflator the various compositions described in U.S. Pat. No. 3,895,098 to John F. Pietz, issued July 15, 1975 and reissued as U.S. Pat. No. Re.",
"32,584 on Jan. 26, 1988 and entitled METHOD AND COMPOSITION FOR GENERATING NITROGEN GAS.",
"The fastest burning (and therefore preferred) propellant compositions are those propellants taught by the subject patent which comprise a mixture of sodium azide and copper oxide.",
"Alternately, compositions substituting nickel and iron oxidizers may be utilized, but these generants, although capable of a slightly higher effective gas output than the CuO/NaN 3 mixture described above, often require the addition of an ammonium perchlorate burn rate enhancer to reach their full potential, as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,604,151 issued on May 8, 1986 to Knowlton et al.",
", entitled METHOD AND COMPOSITION FOR GENERATING NITROGEN GAS INCLUDING AMMONIUM PERCHLORATE CATALYST.",
"A large number of different generant compositions are operable within applicant's inflator device 20, however, and the present invention should not be limited solely to the use of the compositions disclosed above.",
"In a further alternate embodiment of the present invention, the propellant may be molded or extruded into a single porous grain conforming to the volume and the shape of combustion chambers 32, 34.",
"An important feature to consider with the use of such a porous propellant grain, however, is to ensure that the grain is formed having a sufficient degree of porosity to provide a sufficient volume of gas to inflate an air bag within, for example, the 30-60 millisecond period described above.",
"Such a porous propellant grain is disclosed and claimed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,758,287 to John F. Pietz entitled POROUS PROPELLANT GRAIN AND METHOD OF MAKING SAME.",
"An important additional feature of the present invention is the ability of inflator 20 to operate with a comparatively reduced amount of propellant 40 in one combustion chamber, e.g., 32, with a proportionately larger amount of either the same or a different propellant in the remaining combustion chamber, i.e., 34.",
"Upon installation of module 10 in vehicle dashboard 19, inflator 20 may be aligned such that the gaseous combustion products from chamber 32 (having the relatively reduced amount of propellant) are directed to the lower portion of passenger air bag 26, where a child is most likely to impact upon the bag in the event of a collision involving the automobile, whereas the remaining combustion chamber, (i.e., 34) containing a comparatively greater amount of propellant, is aligned so as to direct the gas produced thereby to the middle and upper portions of the bag.",
"Thus, these areas become comparatively firmer and are therefore able to absorb an adult's relatively greater weight during a collision.",
"The gases and molten particulates produced as a result of the ignition and subsequent combustion of propellant 40 exit cylindrically shaped combustion chambers 32, 34 through a first set of diffuser ports 44 which provide fluid communication between the combustion zone, i.e., where propellant 40 is located, and filtration zone 46 (illustrated in a representational view in FIG. 2) which anularly surrounds the combustion zone.",
"Filtration zone 46 comprises a number of anularly disposed layers of wire mesh screen and inert inorganic spacer pads, described below in detail with reference to FIG. 4a.",
"Thus, filtration zone 46 serves a two-fold purpose: (1) the removal of a substantial majority of molten particulates from the gas stream so that they do not enter and impact directly upon the inner surface of bag 26, thus possibly burning through the fabric of the bag with potentially disastrous consequences for the vehicle occupants and, (2) as a heat sink to cool the gas to a temperature approaching ambient such that, in the improbable event of a bag failure, the vehicle occupants are prevented from contact with the dangerously hot gases produced by the combustion of propellant 40.",
"As represented by curved arrows A in FIG. 2, the gases expelled from the combustion zone within each of combustion chambers 32, 34 exits these zones at an angle of substantially 180° from a second set of diffuser ports 48 communicating with the interior of bag 26.",
"This arrangement forces the gas to take a circuitous clockwise or counter clockwise route (as shown by arrows A) around the inner arcuate surface of each cylindrical combustion chamber, 32, 34, before exiting inflator 20 through ports 48, thus making the most effective use of the heat sink capacity of filtration zone 46 while also providing the maximum possible degree of filtration.",
"To seal the outer ends of inflator 20, end caps 50 are inserted into the open outer ends of combustion chambers 32, 34.",
"Caps 50 are preferably U-shaped and stamped from a lightweight material, e.g., aluminum, in order to minimize their weight and therefor the weight of inflator 20.",
"To maintain end caps 50 in position when inflator 20 is pressurized during operation, outer cylindrical walls 32a and 34a of the corresponding combustion chambers are magnaformed into an annular groove 52 extending entirely around the outer periphery of each cap 50.",
"In addition, along the inner end of both chambers 32 and 34, i.e., adjacent T-shaped support 33 containing squib 36, walls 32a, 34a are magnaformed into a second set of corresponding grooves 54 formed within the head of the "T"",
"in order to place chambers 32, 34 in operative association with squib 36.",
"An additional novel feature of the invention concerns the fact that inflator 20 is entirely enclosed within bag 26.",
"This arrangement eliminates the need for cumbersome fasteners for attaching bag 26 to inflator 20 or to base plate 14.",
"Bag retention is thus accomplished by providing bead 56 within the mouth of bag 26 and then simply trapping the bead in place between base plate 14 and cylindrical walls 32a, 34a defining, respectively, combustion chambers 32, 34 when plate 14 is magnaformed onto tubular extension 22.",
"Turning now to FIG. 3, there is illustrated a rear plan view through tubular extension 22 of the means for supporting squib 36 within inflator 20.",
"As may be discerned from the illustration, squib 36 is seated within an aperture defined by cross member 58 which bisects tubular extension 22.",
"In one embodiment of the invention, the aperture and the squib base may be provided with corresponding male and female threads with squib 36 thus being screwed into the aperture.",
"Alternately, in a different embodiment, squib 36 is "potted"",
"within the aperture with the use of an epoxy composition.",
"In the preferred embodiment, squib 36 is simply crimped into place within the aperture, thus obviating the need for threads or adhesives.",
"Electrical leads 38 extend below member 58 as shown and are remotely connected, as noted above, to means for sensing a sudden deceleration and/or collision involving the vehicle.",
"Member 58 defines corresponding gas passages 60 adapted to permit a reciprocal fluid flow into and out of air bag 26 through inflator 20.",
"This supplemental volume of gas, which is drawn into bag 26 by the aspirating effect created due to high velocity gases exiting inflator 20 through ports 48, especially angled ports 48a, b (see, e.g., FIG. 2), serves to speed the inflation of the bag and to further cool the gases supplied by the combustion of propellant 40.",
"In addition, during deflation of bag 26, any toxic material present within airbag 26 may be directed back through the inflator through passages 60 and out of the vehicle through conduit 18.",
"This arrangement thus avoids following the commonly utilized technique of venting these gases through a vent hole in the fabric of bag 26 into the interior of the passenger compartment.",
"FIG. 4 is provided to more clearly display the flow path of the gases within inflator 20, previously discussed with regard to FIG. 2. These gases (represented by the arrows) flow arcuately through filtration zone 46 (illustrated in a representational view) in both clockwise and counterclockwise paths and eventually exit into air bag 26.",
"As illustrated with respect to one representative combustion chamber (i.e., 32), the gas produced by the combustion of propellant 40 exits the combustion zone of chamber 32 through a first set diffuser ports 44 which are perforated through wall 62 defining the said combustion zone.",
"Wall 62 is simply trapped in place without any requirement that it be mechanically attached to the inflator housing.",
"Upon exiting first diffuser ports 44, the hot gas, containing molten particulates, enters filtration zone 46 wherein it is deflected from outer cylindrical unperforated wall 32a forming the inflator housing.",
"As a result of this arrangement, the gas is forced to travel 180° in an arcuate path around the inner surface of the combustion chamber, whereupon it flows into bag 26 through a second set of diffuser ports 48.",
"Thus, the gas is both cooled and filtered as it passes through filtration zone 46, described below in further detail.",
"FIG. 4a provides a partial sectional view through filtration zone 46 of FIG. 4 and illustrates the preferred filtration arrangement located within each combustion chamber 32, 34.",
"Applicant recognizes that a number of variations are possible with regard to the filtering arrangement utilized in the present invention and should therefore not be restricted to the use of the preferred structure described herein.",
"As may be seen from the illustration, the core, i.e., the inner portion of filtration zone 46 is comprised of a number (preferably 5) of concentric layers 64 of a metal screen material, preferably of 28 mesh size, with the innermost layer positioned directly over and adjacent the first set of diffuser ports 44.",
"Extending circumferentially outwardly of screens 64 is a sandwich 66 comprised of several layers of metal screen 66a with alternating layers of an inert, inorganic ceramic fiber pad 66b formed from a mixture of alumina oxide and silica oxide.",
"Pads 66b are sold under the trade name FiberFrax® by Sohio Carborundum, Inc. of Niagara Falls, N.Y., a division of the Standard Oil Corporation.",
"Ceramic pads 66b, being more dense than the 28 mesh screen, trap even the finest particulates traveling within the gas flow.",
"Finally, a double layer of 28 mesh screen 68, located adjacent the inner arcuate surface of cylindrical wall 32a forming the housing of combustion chamber 32, abuts against the inner aspect of the second set of diffuser ports 48 to serve as a final check on the expulsion of unwanted particulate matter present within the gas.",
"As noted above, the filtration arrangement is reproduced in the other combustion chamber 34 as well.",
"FIG. 5 generally illustrates the gas passage arrangement described above with regard to FIG. 3, except that FIG. 5 represents a sectional view taken along the vertical axis of tubular extension 22 in FIG. 3. Since the structure is unchanged between those two figures, i.e., only the perspective is different, the structural components comprising this aspect of the invention have been designated with the same identification number in both figures.",
"The solid arrows represent the reciprocal flow of gas into and out of bag 26.",
"While it is apparent that the invention herein disclosed is well calculated to fulfill the objectives stated above, it will be appreciated that numerous modifications and embodiments may be devised by those skilled in the art, and it is intended that the appended claims cover all such modifications and embodiments as fall within the true spirit and scope of the present invention."
] |
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION
[0001] The present application is a continuation of U.S. application Ser. No. 12/327,104 filed on Dec. 3, 2008, which is incorporated by reference herein in its entirety.
TECHNICAL FIELD
[0002] The embodiments of the present disclosure generally relate to hand tools and more particularly relate to sensing a property of an object in the vicinity of a hand tool and displaying the property in one or more output modes.
BACKGROUND
[0003] As opposed to open surgery in which a surgeon cuts a relatively large incision in the skin of a patient for accessing internal organs, minimally invasive surgical procedures are performed by making relatively small incisions and then inserting tools through the incisions to access the organs. Minimally invasive surgery usually results in shorter hospitalization times, reduced therapy requirements, less pain, less scarring, and fewer complications.
[0004] During minimally invasive surgery, the surgeon can introduce a miniature camera through an incision. The camera transmits images to a visual display, allowing the surgeon to see the internal organs and tissues and to see the effect of other minimally invasive tools on the organs and tissues. In this way, the surgeon is able to perform laparoscopic surgery, dissection, cauterization, endoscopy, telesurgery, etc. Compared to open surgery, however, minimally invasive surgery can present limitations regarding the surgeon's ability to see and feel the patient's organs and tissues.
SUMMARY
[0005] The present disclosure describes a number of embodiments of systems and methods for managing how sensed signals are provided to an operator of a tool, which includes a sensor for sensing the signals. In one embodiment, for example, a method for managing signals includes allowing an operator to manipulate a tool having a plurality of output mechanisms mounted thereon. The method also includes sensing a property of an object located near or adjacent to a distal portion of the tool and processing the sensed property to obtain one or more output signals. The method also includes applying the one or more output signals to one or more of the output mechanisms.
[0006] The embodiments described in the present disclosure may include additional features and advantages, which may not necessarily be expressly disclosed herein but will be apparent to one of ordinary skill in the art upon examination of the following detailed description and accompanying drawings. It is intended that these additional features and advantages be included and encompassed within the present disclosure.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0007] The components of the following figures are illustrated to emphasize the general principles of the present disclosure and are not necessarily drawn to scale. Reference characters designating corresponding components are repeated as necessary throughout the figures for the sake of consistency and clarity.
[0008] FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating a side view of a surgical tool according to one embodiment.
[0009] FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating a rear perspective view of a surgical tool having a level meter mounted thereon, according to one embodiment.
[0010] FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating a rear perspective view of a surgical tool having an LCD screen mounted thereon, according to one embodiment.
[0011] FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating a side view of a surgical tool having a device for providing visual and haptic output to an operator, according to one embodiment.
[0012] FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating a side view of a surgical tool having a rotary device, according to one embodiment.
[0013] FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating a side view of a surgical tool having haptic actuating devices formed in the handle thereof, according to one embodiment.
[0014] FIG. 7 is a block diagram of a system for communicating sensed properties to an operator, according to one embodiment.
[0015] FIG. 8 is a flow diagram illustrating a method for controlling signals sensed by a sensor mounted on a tool, according to one embodiment.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0016] Although minimally invasive surgical procedures involving small incisions include many advantages over open surgery, minimally invasive surgery can still create challenges to a surgeon. For example, the surgeon must typically rely on a camera to view the patient's internal organs and see how the movement and operation of the tools affects the organs. To enhance the surgeon's experience, feedback can be provided to the surgeon to communicate information about how the body of the patient reacts to the tools. According to the teaching of the present disclosure, output can be provided to the surgeon in multiple ways, e.g., visually, audibly, tactilely, etc. Information regarding the status of feedback devices can also be provided to the surgeon as well.
[0017] The present disclosure describes embodiments that include any type of tools that can be manipulated by an operator. More particularly, the tools described in the present disclosure include a handle portion that mechanically controls a distal portion of the tool. Mounted on the distal portion are one or more sensors configured to sense a parameter of an object that interacts with the tool. The sensed signals can be processed to obtain stimulation signals designed to be provided to one or more output mechanisms, such as, for example, haptic actuation devices, vibrotactile feedback devices, kinesthetic feedback devices, visual displays, speakers or other audio devices, etc.
[0018] Although many of the examples described in the embodiments of the present disclosure relate to surgical tools, such as minimally invasive surgical tools, it should be understood that the present disclosure also encompasses other types of tools as well. In addition, although many of examples herein relate to surgical patients and how the organs and tissues of the patient interact with the surgical tools, it should also be understood that the present disclosure may also refer to other objects that are intended to interact with or react to the operations of the respective tools. Other features and advantages will be apparent to one of ordinary skill in the art upon reading and understanding the general principles of the present disclosure and are intended to be included herein.
[0019] FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating an embodiment of a surgical tool 10 . In this diagram, surgical tool 10 is shown as a laparoscopic tool, which is configured to be inserted through a small incision in the abdomen of a patient. Surgical tool 10 in this embodiment includes a handle 12 , a shaft 14 , and a distal portion 16 . Shaft 14 is designed to connect handle 12 to distal portion 16 and to communicate mechanical actions of handle 12 to distal portion 16 . Shaft 14 is further designed to communicate electrical signals from distal portion 16 back to handle 12 as explained in more detail below.
[0020] According to the embodiment of FIG. 1 , distal portion 16 includes a tip 18 and a sensing device 20 formed on tip 18 . As shown, tip 18 is a grasper. However, it should be understood that distal portion 16 may include any suitable type of tip having any suitable functionality. Also, in other alternative embodiments, sensing device 20 may be connected to any part of distal portion 16 or even other parts of tip 18 . According to some examples of the embodiment of FIG. 1 , shaft 14 may be about 20 cm to 30 cm in length and tip 18 may be about 10 mm to 15 mm in length.
[0021] According to the embodiment of FIG. 1 , handle portion 12 of surgical tool 10 further includes one or more buttons 22 . Buttons 22 can be configured using any suitable mechanism for allowing an operator to control the nature of the feedback that is provided to the operator. Buttons 22 may include devices for allowing certain levels to be adjusted or certain selections to be made regarding the output presented to the operator. In some embodiments, buttons 22 may be configured as switches, such as momentary toggle switches, allowing an operator to select different ways in which sensor information is mapped or provided to respective output devices. Buttons 22 can be implemented as a rocker switch or as a one-dimensional control surface.
[0022] Handle portion 12 also includes a processing device 24 , haptic actuator 26 , and a speaker 28 , which are shown through a cut out in handle portion 12 . Processing device 24 , haptic actuator 26 , and speaker 28 can be mounted on a printed circuit board (not shown), which includes circuitry for electrically coupling the components. The circuitry on the printed circuit board may include any suitable amplification and attenuation type circuitry, power sources for providing and regulating power to each component, and other circuitry for proper operation of processing device 24 and other components as would be understood by one of ordinary skill in the art. In some embodiments, haptic actuator 26 can be implemented as an inertial actuator to provide vibrotactile feedback to the operator. Haptic actuator 26 may include an eccentric rotating mass (“ERM”) actuator, linear resonant actuator (“LRA”), piezoelectric actuator, shape memory alloy, electro-active polymer, or other suitable type of actuating device.
[0023] In this embodiment of FIG. 1 , handle portion 12 also supports a level meter 30 . As illustrated, level meter 30 is mounted on a back section of handle portion 12 , which is designed for normal conformity with the operator's thumb. Level meter 30 may be a visual feedback device to show certain levels that can be adjusted by the operator. For example, by using buttons 22 , the operator can generally adjust how signals sensed by sensing device 20 are processed and presented to the operator. According to one function of buttons 22 , the operator can enable or disable one or more output mechanisms by controlling whether or not output signals based on the sensed signals are provided to the respective output devices. Another function of buttons 22 includes the ability to enable one or more output mechanisms. According to FIG. 1 , the output mechanisms can include at least haptic actuator 26 , speaker 28 , and level meter 30 . In this regard, the operator can control if and how sensed signals are presented in a visual, auditory, and/or haptic fashion.
[0024] The different output mechanisms may be used to cooperatively communicate a single property. In some embodiments, however, they can represent distinct components of the processed sensor signals or other parameters. In some cases, one or more of the output mechanisms may be configured to provide both sensor signal information and adjustment level information, depending on the particular application.
[0025] Furthermore, buttons 22 can be used to adjust the level, intensity, or amplitude at which the output mechanisms provide the respective output. For example, the operator may wish to disable haptic actuator 26 , but enable speaker 28 and have its volume turned down low.
[0026] By manipulating handle 12 , an operator can insert distal portion 16 into the abdomen of the patient and control tip 18 of distal portion 16 . When distal portion 16 is inserted, the surgeon can further manipulate handle 12 to control the location and orientation of tip 18 such that sensing device 20 is able to contact certain regions of the patient. Sensing device 20 may include one or more sensors each configured to measure or test any desired parameter of the patient, such as pulse, for example. In some embodiments in which sensing device 20 does not necessarily need to contact a particular region of the patient, tip 18 can be controlled to position sensing device 20 to accomplish certain contactless sensing functions.
[0027] Sensing device 20 can be configured to sense any suitable property of the object under test. For instance, sensing device 20 can be configured as pressure sensors using resistive or capacitive pressure sensing technologies. Alternatively, sensing device 20 can include strain gauges, piezoelectric sensors, stiffness sensors, etc. As strain gauges, sensing device 20 can provide additional information about contact force to finely tune a generally coarse measurement of force. As piezoelectric sensors, sensing devices 20 can generate ultrasound signals that reflect off portions of the object. In this case, echo signals can be detected by sensing device 20 to determine the location of objects. Sensing device 20 can also be configured as stiffness sensors that can detect nodules, e.g., tumors, or other stiff regions.
[0028] The features illustrated and described with respect to FIG. 1 may also be incorporated within the embodiments shown with respect to FIGS. 2-6 as described below. However, for the sake of brevity, many features shown in some drawings may not be shown in other drawings. Also, the description of similar elements in different drawings is not repeated. It should be appreciated, however, that although one or more embodiments may not include features described with respect to other embodiments, some or all of the features may still be included therein as would be recognized from an understanding of the present disclosure.
[0029] FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an embodiment of a surgical tool 40 from a rear perspective. In this diagram, only a handle portion 42 and a part of a shaft 44 are shown of surgical tool 40 , which may further include other features, such as a sensing device at a distal end. On a back region of handle portion 42 , surgical tool 40 in this embodiment includes a level meter 46 . Level meter 46 may include the same functionality as level meter 30 shown in FIG. 1 . Level meter 46 can be configured to display any type of visual information to the operator. In particular, level meter 46 may be designed, for example, to display values, levels, and/or percentages of properties of the object being sensed by a distal sensor.
[0030] Level meter 46 may be an interactive control surface allowing the user to adjust the properties of the output mechanisms. Level meter 46 can receive touch information from the user to make adjustments. Also, level meter 46 can display status information of one or more output mechanisms mounted on surgical tool 40 . In this regard, the status information can include whether a respective output mechanism is enable or disabled, the level of intensity, strength, or magnitude of the signal supplied to the respective output mechanism, or other parameters of the respective output mechanisms. Regarding parameters with respect to visual display devices, for example, certain picture quality parameters can be adjusted. Regarding parameters with respect to audio devices, for example, frequency, fade time, and other auditory parameters can be adjusted. Regarding parameters with respect to haptic actuating devices, for example, frequency, intensity, and other various haptic parameters can be adjusted.
[0031] FIG. 3 is a diagram showing an embodiment of a surgical tool 50 from a rear perspective view. In this diagram, only a handle portion 52 and a part of a shaft 54 are shown of surgical tool 50 , which may include other features, such as a sensing device at a distal end thereof. On a back region of handle portion 52 , surgical tool in this embodiment includes a liquid crystal display (LCD) screen 56 . LCD screen 56 may be used to display visual information regarding the object sensed at a distal end of surgical tool 50 . In some embodiments, the sensor at the distal end may contain a camera or other type of image capture device. In this case, images can be presented on LCD screen 56 to assist the surgeon to position the tool as needed. LCD screen 56 may also be configured to show ultrasound, x-ray, or other types of radiation-based image information.
[0032] LCD screen 56 can include a touchscreen, which can be configured to present information, e.g., visual information, to the operator. Also, the touchscreen can also be configured to sense when the operator presses certain portions of the touchscreen. In this way, the touchscreen can act as a touchable user interface with graphical presentation capabilities. In some embodiments, LCD screen 56 may be designed with a surface that changes shape or size based on signals being sensed. For example, the surface of LCD screen 56 may be able to adjust its topology to provide an indication of the topology or other feature of the object being sensed.
[0033] LCD screen 56 can include supplemental information, which may depend on the context of the particular surgical procedure being performed. Information may include, for example, pre-operative information, intra-operative information, radiology information, etc. LCD screen 56 may include a graphical user device that enables the surgeon to select different feedback profiles, adjust sensor behavior, modify supplemental information, etc.
[0034] LCD screen 56 may also include a control slider device 58 , which can be designed to allow the operator to make adjustments to the image or contour information provided on LCD screen 56 . In other embodiments, control slider device 58 may instead be configured using other types of control devices, such as buttons, switches, etc., for controlling image information.
[0035] FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an embodiment of a surgical tool 60 from a side view. This embodiment and other embodiments illustrated herein are particularly implemented for right-handed surgeons. It should be understood, however, that a reversed or mirror-image implementation can be obtained for use by left-handed surgeons. In this diagram, only a handle portion 62 and part of a shaft 64 are shown of surgical tool 60 , which may include other features, such as a sensing device at a distal portion thereof. In this embodiment, handle portion 62 supports a display device 66 . Display device 66 may be configured to provide any type of indication of properties of the object under test. For example, various properties can be sensed by one or more distal sensors or can result from different algorithmic applications during processing of sensed signals.
[0036] In the embodiment of FIG. 4 , display device 66 provides information about pulse, lumen, and stiffness of the object. For example, pulse indication refers to a pulse of a blood vessel of a patient when this vital statistic is measured. The lumen indication refers to the presence or absence of a hollow tissue structure (lumen) such as a ureter, bile duct, or the like. The stiffness indication refers to the stiffness of an organ or tissues in contact with a sensor at the distal end of surgical tool 60 .
[0037] Display device 66 can provide indication of particular parameters by the use of bar indicators 68 , where the length of the bar of each respective bar indicator 68 represents an intensity or level of the respective parameter. Bar indicators 68 of display device 66 can be configured to provide output information both visually and haptically. For example, since display device 66 is positioned on the side of handle portion 62 , the operator may be able to look at the side of surgical tool 60 during use to see display device 66 . In addition, the index finger of the operator can be placed on the surface of display device 66 to haptically sense display device 66 . In this respect, bar indicator 68 includes any suitable haptic output device, shape changing device, etc., to communicate the particular information to the operator using the sense of touch. Therefore, the operator can feel the length of bar indicators 68 to receive the needed feedback signals as needed, even without visually observing display device 66 .
[0038] FIG. 5 is a diagram showing an embodiment of a surgical tool 70 from a side view. In this diagram, only a handle portion 72 and part of a shaft 74 are shown of surgical tool 70 , which may include other features, such as a sensing device at a distal portion thereof. Handle portion 72 , according to this embodiment, includes, among other things, a rotary device 76 , which can be used as a “roll” control device. Rotary device 76 is connected to shaft 74 and, when rotated by operator, is configured to rotate shaft 74 about its axis. Likewise, a sensor connected to a distal portion of surgical tool 70 rotates in response to rotation of rotary device 76 . In this way, the operator can control the positioning of the sensor to pick up various signals from different sensed regions of the patient.
[0039] In this embodiment, vibrotactile, haptic, kinesthetic, and/or resistive feedback can be incorporated into rotary device 76 to indicate directly certain information through rotary device 76 itself. According to one example, a vibrotactile actuator may vibrate rotary device 76 at an amplitude based on the stiffness of the region of the patient being sensed. In another example, a sensor can be mounted on a perpendicular face of the shaft axis or distal end and oriented toward the side. Using the roll control, the sensor sweeps around the axis to observe the surrounding tissue and identify vasculature, tumor masses, etc., using visual sensor, stiffness sensor, or other suitable sensors.
[0040] FIG. 6 is a diagram showing an embodiment of a surgical tool 80 from a side view. In this diagram, only a handle portion 82 and part of a shaft 84 are shown of surgical tool 80 , which may include other features, such as a sensing device at a distal portion thereof. In this embodiment, surgical tool 80 includes haptic actuating devices 86 incorporated in the handle portion 82 for providing haptic effects to the fingers and thumb of a hand of the surgeon. Haptic actuating devices 86 may be configured to provide feedback signals based on signals sensed at the distal portion of surgical tool 80 . Haptic actuating devices 86 may include ERM actuators, LRAs, shape memory alloys, electromagnetic motors, electro-active polymers that deform in response to signals, mechanism for changing stiffness, vibrotactile actuators, inertial actuators, piezoelectric actuators, etc. In one example, a grasping characteristic can be used to convey contact force, pressure, etc., on haptic actuating devices 86 .
[0041] Haptic actuating devices 86 may be able to sense pressure applied by the user. In response to the pressure, haptic actuating devices 86 may be configured to provide an alert that the user may be squeezing handle portion 82 too hard or too soft. Haptic actuating devices 86 may also be configured to communicate sensed information to the user.
[0042] FIG. 7 is a block diagram illustrating an embodiment of a system 94 for controlling how sensed signals are provided to an operator. In this embodiment, system 94 includes one or more sensors 96 , a processing device 98 , one or more haptic actuators 100 , one or more visual displays 102 , and one or more audio devices 104 . Sensor 96 may be positioned on a portion of a tool, e.g., a distal end of a tool used for probing an object. Sensor 96 is configured to include any type of sensing mechanisms to sense any suitable characteristic of the object.
[0043] The sensed information from each of the one or more sensors 96 is communicated to processing device 98 , which is configured to process the information according to specific algorithms and operator selections. Processing device 98 , for example, may correspond to processing device 24 shown in FIG. 1 . Depending on the type of sensing mechanisms of sensors 96 and the type of properties being measured, the algorithms of processing device 98 can determine various characteristics of the object. Processing device 98 also takes into account operator input regarding enabling or disabling one or more output mechanisms, adjusting of levels of the one or more output mechanisms, etc. Processing device 98 may then communicate the processed information to one or more of haptic actuator 100 , visual display 102 , and audio device 104 according to which ones of these output mechanisms are enabled and how they are controlled to provide their respective outputs. Haptic actuator 100 , visual display 102 , and audio device 104 represent the output mechanisms that are designed to present the sensor information to the operator.
[0044] Processing device 98 may be a general-purpose or specific-purpose processor or microcontroller for processing the signals detected by sensor 96 . In some embodiments, processing device 98 may include a plurality of processors for performing different functions with respect to system 94 . In some embodiments, processing device 98 may be associated with a memory device (not shown) for storing data and/or instructions. In this regard, the memory may include one or more internally fixed storage units, removable storage units, and/or remotely accessible storage units, and the various storage units may include any combination of volatile memory and non-volatile memory. Logical instructions, commands, and/or code can be implemented in software, firmware, or both, and stored in memory. In this respect, the logic code may be implemented as one or more computer programs that can be executed by processing device 34 .
[0045] In other embodiments, logical instructions, commands, and/or code can be implemented in hardware and incorporated in processing device 98 using discrete logic circuitry, an application specific integrated circuit (“ASIC”), a programmable gate array (“PGA”), a field programmable gate array (“FPGA”), etc., or any combination thereof. In yet other embodiments, logical instructions, commands, and/or code can be implemented in both hardware in processing device 98 and software/firmware stored in the memory.
[0046] Each output device represented by haptic actuator 100 , visual display 102 , and audio device 104 may include one or more of the respective output devices in any suitable form for providing haptic, visual, or audio outputs to the operator. Also, some output devices may be capable of providing multiple modes of communication in any combination. The output mechanisms may include any number of feedback mechanisms in any number of modes for providing any type of visual, audible, and/or tactile output to the operator. In the embodiments regarding surgical tools, the output mechanisms may be set up to provide feedback to the surgeon according to the surgeon's preferences. With feedback tailored to the surgeon's desires, the tool can provide feedback to supplement the operator experience for better operation and performance.
[0047] FIG. 8 is a flow diagram of an embodiment of a method of operation of a tool having multiple modes of feedback. As indicated in block 110 , an operator is allowed to manipulate a tool according to a normal use of the tool. For example, the operator may manipulate a handle, buttons, or other feature on the tool to control a functional portion of the tool. The controlled portion may be a portion that is positioned on an opposite end of the tool from the handle. The controlled portion can be probed around to contact an object being tested or to be placed in proximity to the object being tested, depending on the particular type of parameter being measured.
[0048] As indicated in block 112 , one or more properties of an object are sensed at a distal end of the tool. Particularly, the property or properties may be sensed by one or more sensing devices. The sensors may be positioned on or near the controlled portion of the tool. According to block 114 , the sensed properties are processed to obtain output signals. Based on the properties sensed and the types of output mechanisms incorporated in tool, output signals can be obtained for each particular output mechanism.
[0049] As indicated in block 116 , operator selected settings are retrieved. In particular, the settings are selected to define how the output mechanisms are to be used in response to sensed signal. For example, the operator selected settings may include whether each respective output mechanism is enable or disabled, or turned on or off. Also, the settings may include level adjustment for factors associated with the different types of modes of communication, such as a haptic mode, visual mode, auditory mode, etc.
[0050] As indicated in block 118 , the output signals are provided to the one or more output mechanisms. Thus, the sensed signals are communicated to the operator in one or more different output modes, depending on the modes selected by the operator. The outputs may be haptic outputs, vibrotactile effect outputs, visual outputs, auditory outputs, or any combination of these or other outputs.
[0051] It should be understood that the routines, steps, processes, or operations described herein may represent any module or code sequence that can be implemented in software or firmware. In this regard, these modules and code sequences can include commands or instructions for executing the specific logical routines, steps, processes, or operations within physical components. It should further be understood that two or more of the routines, steps, processes, and/or operations described herein may be executed substantially simultaneously or in a different order than explicitly described, as would be understood by one of ordinary skill in the art.
[0052] The embodiments described herein represent a number of possible implementations and examples and are not intended necessarily to limit the present disclosure to any specific embodiments. Instead, various modifications can be made to these embodiments as would be understood by one of ordinary skill in the art. Any such modifications are intended to be included within the spirit and scope of the present disclosure and protected by the following claims. | Disclosed herein are systems and methods for managing how signals, which are sensed on a tool, are presented to an operator of the tool. According to one example of a method for managing signals, the method comprises allowing an operator to manipulate a tool having a plurality of output mechanisms mounted thereon. The method also includes sensing a property of an object located near or adjacent to a distal portion of the tool and processing the sensed property to obtain one or more output signals. Furthermore, the method includes applying the one or more output signals to one or more of the output mechanisms. | Briefly outline the background technology and the problem the invention aims to solve. | [
"CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION [0001] The present application is a continuation of U.S. application Ser.",
"No. 12/327,104 filed on Dec. 3, 2008, which is incorporated by reference herein in its entirety.",
"TECHNICAL FIELD [0002] The embodiments of the present disclosure generally relate to hand tools and more particularly relate to sensing a property of an object in the vicinity of a hand tool and displaying the property in one or more output modes.",
"BACKGROUND [0003] As opposed to open surgery in which a surgeon cuts a relatively large incision in the skin of a patient for accessing internal organs, minimally invasive surgical procedures are performed by making relatively small incisions and then inserting tools through the incisions to access the organs.",
"Minimally invasive surgery usually results in shorter hospitalization times, reduced therapy requirements, less pain, less scarring, and fewer complications.",
"[0004] During minimally invasive surgery, the surgeon can introduce a miniature camera through an incision.",
"The camera transmits images to a visual display, allowing the surgeon to see the internal organs and tissues and to see the effect of other minimally invasive tools on the organs and tissues.",
"In this way, the surgeon is able to perform laparoscopic surgery, dissection, cauterization, endoscopy, telesurgery, etc.",
"Compared to open surgery, however, minimally invasive surgery can present limitations regarding the surgeon's ability to see and feel the patient's organs and tissues.",
"SUMMARY [0005] The present disclosure describes a number of embodiments of systems and methods for managing how sensed signals are provided to an operator of a tool, which includes a sensor for sensing the signals.",
"In one embodiment, for example, a method for managing signals includes allowing an operator to manipulate a tool having a plurality of output mechanisms mounted thereon.",
"The method also includes sensing a property of an object located near or adjacent to a distal portion of the tool and processing the sensed property to obtain one or more output signals.",
"The method also includes applying the one or more output signals to one or more of the output mechanisms.",
"[0006] The embodiments described in the present disclosure may include additional features and advantages, which may not necessarily be expressly disclosed herein but will be apparent to one of ordinary skill in the art upon examination of the following detailed description and accompanying drawings.",
"It is intended that these additional features and advantages be included and encompassed within the present disclosure.",
"BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS [0007] The components of the following figures are illustrated to emphasize the general principles of the present disclosure and are not necessarily drawn to scale.",
"Reference characters designating corresponding components are repeated as necessary throughout the figures for the sake of consistency and clarity.",
"[0008] FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating a side view of a surgical tool according to one embodiment.",
"[0009] FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating a rear perspective view of a surgical tool having a level meter mounted thereon, according to one embodiment.",
"[0010] FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating a rear perspective view of a surgical tool having an LCD screen mounted thereon, according to one embodiment.",
"[0011] FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating a side view of a surgical tool having a device for providing visual and haptic output to an operator, according to one embodiment.",
"[0012] FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating a side view of a surgical tool having a rotary device, according to one embodiment.",
"[0013] FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating a side view of a surgical tool having haptic actuating devices formed in the handle thereof, according to one embodiment.",
"[0014] FIG. 7 is a block diagram of a system for communicating sensed properties to an operator, according to one embodiment.",
"[0015] FIG. 8 is a flow diagram illustrating a method for controlling signals sensed by a sensor mounted on a tool, according to one embodiment.",
"DETAILED DESCRIPTION [0016] Although minimally invasive surgical procedures involving small incisions include many advantages over open surgery, minimally invasive surgery can still create challenges to a surgeon.",
"For example, the surgeon must typically rely on a camera to view the patient's internal organs and see how the movement and operation of the tools affects the organs.",
"To enhance the surgeon's experience, feedback can be provided to the surgeon to communicate information about how the body of the patient reacts to the tools.",
"According to the teaching of the present disclosure, output can be provided to the surgeon in multiple ways, e.g., visually, audibly, tactilely, etc.",
"Information regarding the status of feedback devices can also be provided to the surgeon as well.",
"[0017] The present disclosure describes embodiments that include any type of tools that can be manipulated by an operator.",
"More particularly, the tools described in the present disclosure include a handle portion that mechanically controls a distal portion of the tool.",
"Mounted on the distal portion are one or more sensors configured to sense a parameter of an object that interacts with the tool.",
"The sensed signals can be processed to obtain stimulation signals designed to be provided to one or more output mechanisms, such as, for example, haptic actuation devices, vibrotactile feedback devices, kinesthetic feedback devices, visual displays, speakers or other audio devices, etc.",
"[0018] Although many of the examples described in the embodiments of the present disclosure relate to surgical tools, such as minimally invasive surgical tools, it should be understood that the present disclosure also encompasses other types of tools as well.",
"In addition, although many of examples herein relate to surgical patients and how the organs and tissues of the patient interact with the surgical tools, it should also be understood that the present disclosure may also refer to other objects that are intended to interact with or react to the operations of the respective tools.",
"Other features and advantages will be apparent to one of ordinary skill in the art upon reading and understanding the general principles of the present disclosure and are intended to be included herein.",
"[0019] FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating an embodiment of a surgical tool 10 .",
"In this diagram, surgical tool 10 is shown as a laparoscopic tool, which is configured to be inserted through a small incision in the abdomen of a patient.",
"Surgical tool 10 in this embodiment includes a handle 12 , a shaft 14 , and a distal portion 16 .",
"Shaft 14 is designed to connect handle 12 to distal portion 16 and to communicate mechanical actions of handle 12 to distal portion 16 .",
"Shaft 14 is further designed to communicate electrical signals from distal portion 16 back to handle 12 as explained in more detail below.",
"[0020] According to the embodiment of FIG. 1 , distal portion 16 includes a tip 18 and a sensing device 20 formed on tip 18 .",
"As shown, tip 18 is a grasper.",
"However, it should be understood that distal portion 16 may include any suitable type of tip having any suitable functionality.",
"Also, in other alternative embodiments, sensing device 20 may be connected to any part of distal portion 16 or even other parts of tip 18 .",
"According to some examples of the embodiment of FIG. 1 , shaft 14 may be about 20 cm to 30 cm in length and tip 18 may be about 10 mm to 15 mm in length.",
"[0021] According to the embodiment of FIG. 1 , handle portion 12 of surgical tool 10 further includes one or more buttons 22 .",
"Buttons 22 can be configured using any suitable mechanism for allowing an operator to control the nature of the feedback that is provided to the operator.",
"Buttons 22 may include devices for allowing certain levels to be adjusted or certain selections to be made regarding the output presented to the operator.",
"In some embodiments, buttons 22 may be configured as switches, such as momentary toggle switches, allowing an operator to select different ways in which sensor information is mapped or provided to respective output devices.",
"Buttons 22 can be implemented as a rocker switch or as a one-dimensional control surface.",
"[0022] Handle portion 12 also includes a processing device 24 , haptic actuator 26 , and a speaker 28 , which are shown through a cut out in handle portion 12 .",
"Processing device 24 , haptic actuator 26 , and speaker 28 can be mounted on a printed circuit board (not shown), which includes circuitry for electrically coupling the components.",
"The circuitry on the printed circuit board may include any suitable amplification and attenuation type circuitry, power sources for providing and regulating power to each component, and other circuitry for proper operation of processing device 24 and other components as would be understood by one of ordinary skill in the art.",
"In some embodiments, haptic actuator 26 can be implemented as an inertial actuator to provide vibrotactile feedback to the operator.",
"Haptic actuator 26 may include an eccentric rotating mass (“ERM”) actuator, linear resonant actuator (“LRA”), piezoelectric actuator, shape memory alloy, electro-active polymer, or other suitable type of actuating device.",
"[0023] In this embodiment of FIG. 1 , handle portion 12 also supports a level meter 30 .",
"As illustrated, level meter 30 is mounted on a back section of handle portion 12 , which is designed for normal conformity with the operator's thumb.",
"Level meter 30 may be a visual feedback device to show certain levels that can be adjusted by the operator.",
"For example, by using buttons 22 , the operator can generally adjust how signals sensed by sensing device 20 are processed and presented to the operator.",
"According to one function of buttons 22 , the operator can enable or disable one or more output mechanisms by controlling whether or not output signals based on the sensed signals are provided to the respective output devices.",
"Another function of buttons 22 includes the ability to enable one or more output mechanisms.",
"According to FIG. 1 , the output mechanisms can include at least haptic actuator 26 , speaker 28 , and level meter 30 .",
"In this regard, the operator can control if and how sensed signals are presented in a visual, auditory, and/or haptic fashion.",
"[0024] The different output mechanisms may be used to cooperatively communicate a single property.",
"In some embodiments, however, they can represent distinct components of the processed sensor signals or other parameters.",
"In some cases, one or more of the output mechanisms may be configured to provide both sensor signal information and adjustment level information, depending on the particular application.",
"[0025] Furthermore, buttons 22 can be used to adjust the level, intensity, or amplitude at which the output mechanisms provide the respective output.",
"For example, the operator may wish to disable haptic actuator 26 , but enable speaker 28 and have its volume turned down low.",
"[0026] By manipulating handle 12 , an operator can insert distal portion 16 into the abdomen of the patient and control tip 18 of distal portion 16 .",
"When distal portion 16 is inserted, the surgeon can further manipulate handle 12 to control the location and orientation of tip 18 such that sensing device 20 is able to contact certain regions of the patient.",
"Sensing device 20 may include one or more sensors each configured to measure or test any desired parameter of the patient, such as pulse, for example.",
"In some embodiments in which sensing device 20 does not necessarily need to contact a particular region of the patient, tip 18 can be controlled to position sensing device 20 to accomplish certain contactless sensing functions.",
"[0027] Sensing device 20 can be configured to sense any suitable property of the object under test.",
"For instance, sensing device 20 can be configured as pressure sensors using resistive or capacitive pressure sensing technologies.",
"Alternatively, sensing device 20 can include strain gauges, piezoelectric sensors, stiffness sensors, etc.",
"As strain gauges, sensing device 20 can provide additional information about contact force to finely tune a generally coarse measurement of force.",
"As piezoelectric sensors, sensing devices 20 can generate ultrasound signals that reflect off portions of the object.",
"In this case, echo signals can be detected by sensing device 20 to determine the location of objects.",
"Sensing device 20 can also be configured as stiffness sensors that can detect nodules, e.g., tumors, or other stiff regions.",
"[0028] The features illustrated and described with respect to FIG. 1 may also be incorporated within the embodiments shown with respect to FIGS. 2-6 as described below.",
"However, for the sake of brevity, many features shown in some drawings may not be shown in other drawings.",
"Also, the description of similar elements in different drawings is not repeated.",
"It should be appreciated, however, that although one or more embodiments may not include features described with respect to other embodiments, some or all of the features may still be included therein as would be recognized from an understanding of the present disclosure.",
"[0029] FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an embodiment of a surgical tool 40 from a rear perspective.",
"In this diagram, only a handle portion 42 and a part of a shaft 44 are shown of surgical tool 40 , which may further include other features, such as a sensing device at a distal end.",
"On a back region of handle portion 42 , surgical tool 40 in this embodiment includes a level meter 46 .",
"Level meter 46 may include the same functionality as level meter 30 shown in FIG. 1 .",
"Level meter 46 can be configured to display any type of visual information to the operator.",
"In particular, level meter 46 may be designed, for example, to display values, levels, and/or percentages of properties of the object being sensed by a distal sensor.",
"[0030] Level meter 46 may be an interactive control surface allowing the user to adjust the properties of the output mechanisms.",
"Level meter 46 can receive touch information from the user to make adjustments.",
"Also, level meter 46 can display status information of one or more output mechanisms mounted on surgical tool 40 .",
"In this regard, the status information can include whether a respective output mechanism is enable or disabled, the level of intensity, strength, or magnitude of the signal supplied to the respective output mechanism, or other parameters of the respective output mechanisms.",
"Regarding parameters with respect to visual display devices, for example, certain picture quality parameters can be adjusted.",
"Regarding parameters with respect to audio devices, for example, frequency, fade time, and other auditory parameters can be adjusted.",
"Regarding parameters with respect to haptic actuating devices, for example, frequency, intensity, and other various haptic parameters can be adjusted.",
"[0031] FIG. 3 is a diagram showing an embodiment of a surgical tool 50 from a rear perspective view.",
"In this diagram, only a handle portion 52 and a part of a shaft 54 are shown of surgical tool 50 , which may include other features, such as a sensing device at a distal end thereof.",
"On a back region of handle portion 52 , surgical tool in this embodiment includes a liquid crystal display (LCD) screen 56 .",
"LCD screen 56 may be used to display visual information regarding the object sensed at a distal end of surgical tool 50 .",
"In some embodiments, the sensor at the distal end may contain a camera or other type of image capture device.",
"In this case, images can be presented on LCD screen 56 to assist the surgeon to position the tool as needed.",
"LCD screen 56 may also be configured to show ultrasound, x-ray, or other types of radiation-based image information.",
"[0032] LCD screen 56 can include a touchscreen, which can be configured to present information, e.g., visual information, to the operator.",
"Also, the touchscreen can also be configured to sense when the operator presses certain portions of the touchscreen.",
"In this way, the touchscreen can act as a touchable user interface with graphical presentation capabilities.",
"In some embodiments, LCD screen 56 may be designed with a surface that changes shape or size based on signals being sensed.",
"For example, the surface of LCD screen 56 may be able to adjust its topology to provide an indication of the topology or other feature of the object being sensed.",
"[0033] LCD screen 56 can include supplemental information, which may depend on the context of the particular surgical procedure being performed.",
"Information may include, for example, pre-operative information, intra-operative information, radiology information, etc.",
"LCD screen 56 may include a graphical user device that enables the surgeon to select different feedback profiles, adjust sensor behavior, modify supplemental information, etc.",
"[0034] LCD screen 56 may also include a control slider device 58 , which can be designed to allow the operator to make adjustments to the image or contour information provided on LCD screen 56 .",
"In other embodiments, control slider device 58 may instead be configured using other types of control devices, such as buttons, switches, etc.",
", for controlling image information.",
"[0035] FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an embodiment of a surgical tool 60 from a side view.",
"This embodiment and other embodiments illustrated herein are particularly implemented for right-handed surgeons.",
"It should be understood, however, that a reversed or mirror-image implementation can be obtained for use by left-handed surgeons.",
"In this diagram, only a handle portion 62 and part of a shaft 64 are shown of surgical tool 60 , which may include other features, such as a sensing device at a distal portion thereof.",
"In this embodiment, handle portion 62 supports a display device 66 .",
"Display device 66 may be configured to provide any type of indication of properties of the object under test.",
"For example, various properties can be sensed by one or more distal sensors or can result from different algorithmic applications during processing of sensed signals.",
"[0036] In the embodiment of FIG. 4 , display device 66 provides information about pulse, lumen, and stiffness of the object.",
"For example, pulse indication refers to a pulse of a blood vessel of a patient when this vital statistic is measured.",
"The lumen indication refers to the presence or absence of a hollow tissue structure (lumen) such as a ureter, bile duct, or the like.",
"The stiffness indication refers to the stiffness of an organ or tissues in contact with a sensor at the distal end of surgical tool 60 .",
"[0037] Display device 66 can provide indication of particular parameters by the use of bar indicators 68 , where the length of the bar of each respective bar indicator 68 represents an intensity or level of the respective parameter.",
"Bar indicators 68 of display device 66 can be configured to provide output information both visually and haptically.",
"For example, since display device 66 is positioned on the side of handle portion 62 , the operator may be able to look at the side of surgical tool 60 during use to see display device 66 .",
"In addition, the index finger of the operator can be placed on the surface of display device 66 to haptically sense display device 66 .",
"In this respect, bar indicator 68 includes any suitable haptic output device, shape changing device, etc.",
", to communicate the particular information to the operator using the sense of touch.",
"Therefore, the operator can feel the length of bar indicators 68 to receive the needed feedback signals as needed, even without visually observing display device 66 .",
"[0038] FIG. 5 is a diagram showing an embodiment of a surgical tool 70 from a side view.",
"In this diagram, only a handle portion 72 and part of a shaft 74 are shown of surgical tool 70 , which may include other features, such as a sensing device at a distal portion thereof.",
"Handle portion 72 , according to this embodiment, includes, among other things, a rotary device 76 , which can be used as a “roll”",
"control device.",
"Rotary device 76 is connected to shaft 74 and, when rotated by operator, is configured to rotate shaft 74 about its axis.",
"Likewise, a sensor connected to a distal portion of surgical tool 70 rotates in response to rotation of rotary device 76 .",
"In this way, the operator can control the positioning of the sensor to pick up various signals from different sensed regions of the patient.",
"[0039] In this embodiment, vibrotactile, haptic, kinesthetic, and/or resistive feedback can be incorporated into rotary device 76 to indicate directly certain information through rotary device 76 itself.",
"According to one example, a vibrotactile actuator may vibrate rotary device 76 at an amplitude based on the stiffness of the region of the patient being sensed.",
"In another example, a sensor can be mounted on a perpendicular face of the shaft axis or distal end and oriented toward the side.",
"Using the roll control, the sensor sweeps around the axis to observe the surrounding tissue and identify vasculature, tumor masses, etc.",
", using visual sensor, stiffness sensor, or other suitable sensors.",
"[0040] FIG. 6 is a diagram showing an embodiment of a surgical tool 80 from a side view.",
"In this diagram, only a handle portion 82 and part of a shaft 84 are shown of surgical tool 80 , which may include other features, such as a sensing device at a distal portion thereof.",
"In this embodiment, surgical tool 80 includes haptic actuating devices 86 incorporated in the handle portion 82 for providing haptic effects to the fingers and thumb of a hand of the surgeon.",
"Haptic actuating devices 86 may be configured to provide feedback signals based on signals sensed at the distal portion of surgical tool 80 .",
"Haptic actuating devices 86 may include ERM actuators, LRAs, shape memory alloys, electromagnetic motors, electro-active polymers that deform in response to signals, mechanism for changing stiffness, vibrotactile actuators, inertial actuators, piezoelectric actuators, etc.",
"In one example, a grasping characteristic can be used to convey contact force, pressure, etc.",
", on haptic actuating devices 86 .",
"[0041] Haptic actuating devices 86 may be able to sense pressure applied by the user.",
"In response to the pressure, haptic actuating devices 86 may be configured to provide an alert that the user may be squeezing handle portion 82 too hard or too soft.",
"Haptic actuating devices 86 may also be configured to communicate sensed information to the user.",
"[0042] FIG. 7 is a block diagram illustrating an embodiment of a system 94 for controlling how sensed signals are provided to an operator.",
"In this embodiment, system 94 includes one or more sensors 96 , a processing device 98 , one or more haptic actuators 100 , one or more visual displays 102 , and one or more audio devices 104 .",
"Sensor 96 may be positioned on a portion of a tool, e.g., a distal end of a tool used for probing an object.",
"Sensor 96 is configured to include any type of sensing mechanisms to sense any suitable characteristic of the object.",
"[0043] The sensed information from each of the one or more sensors 96 is communicated to processing device 98 , which is configured to process the information according to specific algorithms and operator selections.",
"Processing device 98 , for example, may correspond to processing device 24 shown in FIG. 1 .",
"Depending on the type of sensing mechanisms of sensors 96 and the type of properties being measured, the algorithms of processing device 98 can determine various characteristics of the object.",
"Processing device 98 also takes into account operator input regarding enabling or disabling one or more output mechanisms, adjusting of levels of the one or more output mechanisms, etc.",
"Processing device 98 may then communicate the processed information to one or more of haptic actuator 100 , visual display 102 , and audio device 104 according to which ones of these output mechanisms are enabled and how they are controlled to provide their respective outputs.",
"Haptic actuator 100 , visual display 102 , and audio device 104 represent the output mechanisms that are designed to present the sensor information to the operator.",
"[0044] Processing device 98 may be a general-purpose or specific-purpose processor or microcontroller for processing the signals detected by sensor 96 .",
"In some embodiments, processing device 98 may include a plurality of processors for performing different functions with respect to system 94 .",
"In some embodiments, processing device 98 may be associated with a memory device (not shown) for storing data and/or instructions.",
"In this regard, the memory may include one or more internally fixed storage units, removable storage units, and/or remotely accessible storage units, and the various storage units may include any combination of volatile memory and non-volatile memory.",
"Logical instructions, commands, and/or code can be implemented in software, firmware, or both, and stored in memory.",
"In this respect, the logic code may be implemented as one or more computer programs that can be executed by processing device 34 .",
"[0045] In other embodiments, logical instructions, commands, and/or code can be implemented in hardware and incorporated in processing device 98 using discrete logic circuitry, an application specific integrated circuit (“ASIC”), a programmable gate array (“PGA”), a field programmable gate array (“FPGA”), etc.",
", or any combination thereof.",
"In yet other embodiments, logical instructions, commands, and/or code can be implemented in both hardware in processing device 98 and software/firmware stored in the memory.",
"[0046] Each output device represented by haptic actuator 100 , visual display 102 , and audio device 104 may include one or more of the respective output devices in any suitable form for providing haptic, visual, or audio outputs to the operator.",
"Also, some output devices may be capable of providing multiple modes of communication in any combination.",
"The output mechanisms may include any number of feedback mechanisms in any number of modes for providing any type of visual, audible, and/or tactile output to the operator.",
"In the embodiments regarding surgical tools, the output mechanisms may be set up to provide feedback to the surgeon according to the surgeon's preferences.",
"With feedback tailored to the surgeon's desires, the tool can provide feedback to supplement the operator experience for better operation and performance.",
"[0047] FIG. 8 is a flow diagram of an embodiment of a method of operation of a tool having multiple modes of feedback.",
"As indicated in block 110 , an operator is allowed to manipulate a tool according to a normal use of the tool.",
"For example, the operator may manipulate a handle, buttons, or other feature on the tool to control a functional portion of the tool.",
"The controlled portion may be a portion that is positioned on an opposite end of the tool from the handle.",
"The controlled portion can be probed around to contact an object being tested or to be placed in proximity to the object being tested, depending on the particular type of parameter being measured.",
"[0048] As indicated in block 112 , one or more properties of an object are sensed at a distal end of the tool.",
"Particularly, the property or properties may be sensed by one or more sensing devices.",
"The sensors may be positioned on or near the controlled portion of the tool.",
"According to block 114 , the sensed properties are processed to obtain output signals.",
"Based on the properties sensed and the types of output mechanisms incorporated in tool, output signals can be obtained for each particular output mechanism.",
"[0049] As indicated in block 116 , operator selected settings are retrieved.",
"In particular, the settings are selected to define how the output mechanisms are to be used in response to sensed signal.",
"For example, the operator selected settings may include whether each respective output mechanism is enable or disabled, or turned on or off.",
"Also, the settings may include level adjustment for factors associated with the different types of modes of communication, such as a haptic mode, visual mode, auditory mode, etc.",
"[0050] As indicated in block 118 , the output signals are provided to the one or more output mechanisms.",
"Thus, the sensed signals are communicated to the operator in one or more different output modes, depending on the modes selected by the operator.",
"The outputs may be haptic outputs, vibrotactile effect outputs, visual outputs, auditory outputs, or any combination of these or other outputs.",
"[0051] It should be understood that the routines, steps, processes, or operations described herein may represent any module or code sequence that can be implemented in software or firmware.",
"In this regard, these modules and code sequences can include commands or instructions for executing the specific logical routines, steps, processes, or operations within physical components.",
"It should further be understood that two or more of the routines, steps, processes, and/or operations described herein may be executed substantially simultaneously or in a different order than explicitly described, as would be understood by one of ordinary skill in the art.",
"[0052] The embodiments described herein represent a number of possible implementations and examples and are not intended necessarily to limit the present disclosure to any specific embodiments.",
"Instead, various modifications can be made to these embodiments as would be understood by one of ordinary skill in the art.",
"Any such modifications are intended to be included within the spirit and scope of the present disclosure and protected by the following claims."
] |
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
This application claims priority of provisional application Ser. No. 60/709,411, filed Aug. 18, 2005.
TECHNICAL FIELD
This invention relates to a medical device and more particularly to a stent graft for mounting onto a deployment device for endovascular introduction.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
This invention will be particularly discussed in relation to stent grafts for placement into the thoracoabdominal aorta for the treatment of aneurysms and more specifically in relation to juxtarenal placement. The invention, however, is not so restricted and may be applied to stent grafts for placement in any lumen of the human or animal body.
The segment of aorta between the celiac and renal arteries is the best endowed with adventitial elastin, the most stable, and the last to dilate. Aneurysms of this area are associated with aneurysms of less stable areas in the descending thoracic aorta, infrarenal aorta, or both. Surgical repair of the thoracoabdominal aorta often involves wide exposure through long, multi-cavity incisions, followed by periods of visceral ischemia. Despite advances in surgical technique and perioperative care, the mortality and morbidity rates remain high, especially in patients who are old, sick, or have already undergone open surgical repair of an adjacent segment of the aorta. In such cases, an endovascular alternative would be welcome, yet endovascular methods of thoracoabdominal and pararenal aortic repair have been slow to develop. The challenge has been to exclude the aortic aneurysm while maintaining flow to its visceral branches.
It is roughly 4 years since two distinctly different approaches to this problem were reported. The two devices were: a bifurcated abdominal aortic stent-graft with fenestrations for the renal and superior mesenteric arteries, and a thoracoabdominal stent-graft with branches for the celiac, superior mesenteric and renal arteries. In recent years, the distinctions between fenestrated and multi-branched stent-grafts have been blurred by the emergence of many hybrid devices with features such as Nitinol ringed fenestrations, externally cuffed fenestrations, internally cuffed fenestrations, external spiral cuffs and axially-oriented cuffs or branches, both external and internal. Each element has advantages and disadvantages, and each combination has a different role, as described below.
There now exists a family of devices, which share several key features. In each of them, a barbed uncovered Z-stent anchors the proximal end, and a single proximal orifice attaches to a non-dilated segment of aorta (or previously inserted prosthesis). They all distribute blood through multiple branches, cuffs or holes (fenestrations), and they have series of Z-stents and Nitinol rings, providing support from one end of the stent-graft to the other.
In cases of juxtarenal AAA, the rim of non-dilated infrarenal aorta is too short for secure hemostatic implantation of an unfenestrated stent-graft. There is only enough room in the neck for the proximal end of the proximal stent; the rest of this covered stent expands into the aneurysm, assuming a conical shape. Under these circumstances, there is insufficient apposition between the stent-graft and the aorta to achieve a reliable seal. Properly positioned fenestrations (holes) provide a route for flow through the stent-graft into the renal arteries, thereby allowing the proximal end of the stent-graft to be placed higher in the non-dilated pararenal aorta where it assumes a cylindrical shape. The dual goals of renal perfusion and aneurysm exclusion are achieved only when the fenestration is positioned precisely over the renal orifices, and the outer surface of the stent-graft around the fenestration is brought into close apposition with the inner surface of the aorta around the renal orifice. Typical fenestrated technique uses a bridging catheter, sheath or balloon to guide each fenestration to the corresponding renal orifice, and a bridging stent to hold it there. Stent-graft deployment has five main stages: extrusion of the half-open stent-graft, trans-graft renal artery catheterization, complete stent-graft expansion, renal stenting, and completion of the aortic exclusion with bifurcated extension into the iliac arteries.
The three forms of fenestration in common use are the large fenestration, the scallop and the small fenestration. A large fenestration is used only when the target artery is well away from the aneurysm. No bridging stent is required, or even feasible, since one or more stent struts cross the orifice of a large fenestration. A scallop is essentially a large open-topped fenestration. In many cases, the presence of a scallop for the superior mesenteric artery allows sufficient separation (>15 mm) between proximal margin of the stent-graft and the middle of the renal orifices. Small fenestrations are commonly placed over both renal arteries, and held there by bridging stents. Stent struts cannot cross the orifice of a small fenestration. Small fenestrations are therefore confined to the lower halves of the triangular spaces between adjacent stent-struts.
Localized juxtarenal aneurysms or pseudoaneurysms require no more than a single cylindrical fenestrated stent-graft, but most cases of infrarenal aneurysm extend to the aortic bifurcation and require bilateral iliac outflow through a bifurcated stent-graft. The combination of a fenestrated proximal component with a bifurcated distal component is called a composite stent graft. Dividing the stent-graft into two components separates the two halves of the procedure. The operator need not be concerned about the position or orientation of the bifurcation while inserting the fenestrated proximal component, or about the position and location of the fenestrations while inserting the bifurcated distal component. The composite arrangement also separates the fenestrated proximal component from the large caudally directed hemodynamic forces that act mainly upon the bifurcation of the distal component. A small amount of slippage between the two is preferable to any proximal component migration, where even a few millimeters of movement would occlude both renal arteries. Indeed, the low rate of renal artery loss is testimony to the accuracy of stent-graft deployment and the stability of stent-graft attachment.
The positioning of the fenestration is therefore very important to avoid renal occlusion.
Positioning is further complicated because the diameter of a stent graft is deliberately made larger than the diameter into which it is to be placed to allow for accurate sealing against the vessel wall, possible errors in sizing and subsequent relaxation of the vessel wall. Hence, once released a stent graft with self expanding stents will take up apposition against the vessel wall and it will be difficult if not impossible to reposition it.
It is to the ability to position after initial release of a stent graft from a deployment device that the present invention is directed or at least to provide a practitioner with a useful alternative.
Throughout this specification the term distal with respect to a portion of the aorta, a deployment device or a prosthesis is the end of the aorta, deployment device or prosthesis further away in the direction of blood flow away from the heart and the term proximal means the portion of the aorta, deployment device or end of the prosthesis nearer to the heart. When applied to other vessels similar terms such as caudal and cranial should be understood.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
In one form therefor the invention is said to reside in a method of reducing the diameter of the stent graft during deployment comprising the step applying temporary diameter reducing ties to at least a portion of the stent graft.
In a further form the invention comprises a temporary diameter reduction constraint arrangement for a stent graft, the stent graft comprising a biocompatible graft material tube of a selected diameter and a plurality of self expanding stents fastened thereto, the constraint arrangement comprising at least one release wire extending longitudinally along the graft material tube and stitched thereinto and at least one circumferential thread engaged around the release wire and a portion of the stent graft circumferentially spaced a selected distance away from the release wire and drawn tight and tied to reduce the circumference and hence the overall diameter of the stent graft.
Preferably the circumferential thread extends circumferentially in each direction from the release wire.
The stents are preferably zig-zag stents comprising struts and bends therebetween and the engagement of the flexible thread into the graft material includes the engagement of the thread around a strut of the self expanding stent. Preferably the engagement of the threads with the respective struts is intermediate the ends of the struts.
The selected distance can for instance be reduced by from 50 to 75%.
There can be two release wires and a circumferential thread extending circumferentially in each direction from each of the release wires at a plurality of positions along the release wires to hold the stent graft at a reduced diameter of the stent graft along the length of the stent graft. Preferably the positions along the length of the release wires corresponds with a middle portion of the struts of the self expanding stents along the length of the stent graft.
In a further form the invention comprises a method of temporarily reducing the diameter of at least a portion of a self expanding stent graft, the stent graft comprising a tubular body of a biocompatible graft material and a plurality of self expanding stents, the method comprising the steps of;
a) stitching a release wire longitudinally along the stent graft;
b) looping a first flexible thread around the release wire and extending the first flexible thread laterally around the circumference of the stent graft to a position a selected distance from the release wire;
c) engaging the first flexible thread into the graft material, and
d) drawing the ends of the thread together and tying ends of the thread, whereby the selected distance is reduced thereby temporarily reducing the overall diameter of the stent graft.
The method can further comprise the steps of;
e) passing a second flexible thread around the release wire and extending the second flexible thread laterally around the circumference of the stent graft in the opposite direction to the first flexible thread to a position a selected distance from the release wire;
f) engaging the second flexible thread into the graft material, and
g) drawing the ends of the second thread together and tying ends of the thread, whereby the selected distance is reduced thereby reducing the overall diameter of the stent graft.
The method can further comprise the alternative steps of;
e) passing a second flexible thread around the first flexible thread and extending the second flexible thread laterally around the circumference of the stent graft in the opposite direction to the first flexible thread to a position a selected distance from the release wire;
h) engaging the second flexible thread into the graft material, and
i) drawing the ends of the second thread together and tying ends of the thread, whereby the selected distance is reduced thereby temporarily reducing the overall diameter of the stent graft.
The method can further comprise the steps of;
j) stitching a second release wire longitudinally along the stent graft parallel to and spaced apart from the first release wire;
k) looping a third flexible thread around the second release wire and extending the third flexible thread laterally around the circumference of the stent graft to a position a selected distance from the second release wire;
l) engaging the third flexible thread into the graft material, and
m) drawing the ends of the thread together and tying ends of the thread,
n) passing a fourth flexible thread around the around the third flexible thread and extending the fourth flexible thread laterally around the circumference of the stent graft in the opposite direction to the third flexible thread to a position a selected distance from the second release wire;
o) engaging the fourth flexible thread into the graft material, and
p) drawing the ends of the fourth thread together and tying ends of the thread,
whereby the selected distance is reduced thereby temporarily reducing the overall diameter of the stent graft.
The method can further comprise applying a plurality of flexible threads in each circumferential direction from each release wire at a plurality of positions along the release wires to temporarily reduce the diameter of the stent graft along the length of the stent graft. Preferably the engagement of the threads with the respective struts of the stent grafts is intermediate the ends of the struts.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING
This then generally describes the invention but to assist with understanding reference will now be made to the accompanying drawings which show preferred embodiments of the invention.
In the drawings:
FIG. 1 shows a schematic view of an aneurysed aorta with a bifurcated and fenestrated stent graft deployed into it;
FIGS. 2A and 2B show schematically how one arrangement of a diameter reducing ties are applied to a stent graft;
FIGS. 3A and 3B show an alternative embodiment of diameter reducing ties intended for use with a stent graft; and
FIGS. 4A, 4B and 4C show a stent graft in various stages of application and release of double diameter reducing ties on a stent graft.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
Now looking more closely at the drawings and in particular FIG. 1 it can be seen that there is schematically shown an aorta 2 extending down to an aortic bifurcation at 3 and into two iliac arteries 5 and 7 . An aneurysm 9 defined by a bulge in the aorta wall 11 extends from near to the aortic bifurcation 3 nearly to the renal arteries 13 and 15 . There is insufficient non-aneurysed length of the aorta distally of the renal arteries and hence to place a stent graft to bypass the aneurysm it is necessary to place some of the stent graft proximally of the renal arteries.
This embodiment of the invention is discussed in relation to a bifurcated stent graft having a longer leg for extending into one iliac artery and a shorter leg into which a leg extension may be deployed for the contralateral iliac artery but the invention is not so limited and may also be used for a composite stent graft in which the fenestrations are in a proximal tubular portion of the composite stent graft and if necessary a further bifurcated portion of stent graft is used to extend down to the iliac arteries.
The stent graft 20 has a bifurcation 24 and a long leg 27 extending down iliac artery 7 and a short leg 26 directed towards iliac artery 5 . A leg extension 28 is connected into the short leg 26 and extends down the iliac artery 5 . The stent graft 20 has a proximal internal stent 36 and a plurality of external stents 38 along the length of its tubular body. At the renal arteries 13 and 15 there are fenestrations 30 and 32 respectively for allowing access to the renal arteries and it is to the placement of these renal fenestrations on the stent graft so that they match up with the renal arteries when the stent graft is deployed into the aorta that the present invention is directed. Methods of deployment of such a stent graft are described in PCT Patent Publication Number WO98/53761 entitled “A Prosthesis and a Method of Deploying a Prosthesis”. These features and other features disclosed in PCT Patent Publication Number No. WO98/53761 could be used with the present invention and the disclosure of PCT Patent Publication Number No. WO98/53761 is herewith incorporated in its entirety into this specification.
Although the renal arteries in FIG. 1 are depicted as extending laterally either side of the aorta, in fact the position of the renal arteries is very variable and are sometimes closer together towards the anterior surface of the aorta and can be positioned more or less apart longitudinally.
FIGS. 2A and 2B show schematically one embodiment of diameter reducing tie according to the present invention. In this drawing the graft material of a stent graft is not shown and only a portion of a self expanding stent is shown stretched out flat.
As can be seen in FIG. 2A , a self expanding stent 70 which would extend around the tubular body of a stent graft and be stitched to the stent graft is shown. A release wire 72 is stitched longitudinally along the stent graft as can be seen in more detail in FIG. 4A with a stitch 72 a of the release wire being exposed to the outside of the stent graft in the region of the self expanding stent 70 .
A first suture thread 74 of a flexible material is passed around the release wire 72 and extended out to one side of the release wire over the struts 76 of the stent graft to pass over three struts and to be looped around a fourth strut and into the graft material. The suture thread 74 is then pulled tight and knotted as shown in FIG. 2B with a knot 78 so that the struts between the release wire 72 and the knot 78 are pulled closer together against the resilient force of the self expanding stent.
A similar action is carried out to the other side of the release wire with a second suture thread 80 of a flexible material. In this case the thread 80 can either pass around the release wire 72 or is passed underneath the two strands of the thread 74 and over the release wire 72 and then it can be passed over three struts and then looped around a fourth strut and into the graft material and pulled tight and knotted at 82 .
The reduction in distance between the release wire 72 and the knot 78 may be from 50 to 75 percent. For instance if the distance x in FIG. 2A is 15 millimeters around the circumference of the stent graft from the release wire 72 to the strut at which the knot 78 is placed then this can be reduced to 5 millimeters as shown by the dimension y in FIG. 2B . With two diameter reducing ties, one to each side of the release wire 72 , therefore a total circumference reduction of 20 millimeters can be achieved which will change the diameter of a 36 millimeter stent graft to approximately 28 millimeters. This can be less than the diameter of the aorta in that region which means that the stent graft will still be manoeuvrable within the aorta while still mounted onto the deployment device but partially freed by the withdrawal of a containing sheath.
Where a greater amount of diameter reduction is desirable double diameter reducing ties may be used as depicted in FIGS. 3A and 3B .
In this embodiment two release wires 90 and 92 are used parallel to each other and spaced apart by 6 or 7 struts of a self expanding stent 91 . The two release wires 90 and 92 are stitched longitudinally along the stent graft as can be seen in more detail in FIG. 4A with stitches 90 a and 92 a being exposed to the outside of the stent graft in the region of the self expanding stent 91 . A first suture 93 extends from one side of the release wire 90 and a second suture 94 extends to the other side of the release wire 90 and they are knotted off at 95 and 96 . Similarly sutures 97 and 98 are extended either side of the release wire 92 and are knotted off at 99 and 100 . Generally the knots 96 and 99 go on either side of the same strut.
By using these double diameter reducing ties for instance a reduction in circumference of up to 40 millimeters may be obtained for a 36 millimeter diameter stent graft which will give a final diameter of approximately 24 millimeters. Once again with this reduction in diameter movement of the stent graft for final positioning can be easily achieved.
FIGS. 4A, 4B and 4C show a stent graft with various stages of fitting and release of diameter reducing ties.
FIG. 4A shows a more proximal portion of a composite stent graft for mounting into the aorta. The stent graft includes a tubular body 120 with an internal zigzag self expanding stent 122 at its proximal end and an exposed proximally extending stent 124 mounted to the proximal end of the tubular body 120 . Further external self expanding stents 126 are supplied along the length of the body towards the distal end 128 . It will be noted the tubular body 120 tapers at 130 so that it is a first selected diameter at the proximal end and a slightly smaller diameter further down the length of the tubular body.
This embodiment of the invention will be discussed particularly in relation to installation of double diameter reducing ties.
The first stage is the placement of release wires 132 and 134 which extend longitudinally along the tubular body and are stitched in and out of the tubular body. Stitches can be seen on the exterior of the tubular body in regions coinciding with the intermediate region of the struts of each of the exposed stents. In the region designated as 130 for instance a suture is placed around the release wire and extended across about three struts of the zigzag stent 126 to strut 136 where it is passed around the strut 136 and into the graft material of the tubular body 120 and pulled tight as shown at 138 in FIG. 4B . Similarly a suture 140 extended from the other direction from the release wire 132 for about three struts passed around a strut and into the graft material of the tubular body 120 and then pulled tight.
A similar extension of sutures in each direction from release wire 134 are installed to compress the other side. The suture 142 which extends back towards the release wire 132 is joined to the same strut 136 as the suture 138 . The suture 144 extends in the opposite direction from the release wire 134 .
This process is repeated with the other exposed stents 126 and the internal stent 122 . In the case of the internal stent 122 the sutures are inserted through the material of the tubular body 120 to go around the stents where they are knotted but otherwise remain outside of the tubular body. This gives the result as shown in FIG. 4B where the diameter of the stent graft is considerably reduced. Diameter reducing ties may be either placed along the entire length of the stent graft so that the stent graft remains manoeuvrable after its partial release as discussed above or can be confined to only the parts of the stent graft that are larger in diameter than the vessel lumen into which it is to be placed.
FIG. 4B shows the stent graft mounted onto a deployment device with a pusher catheter 150 at one end and a nose cone capsule 152 into which the proximally extending stent 124 is received at the other end. At this stage a containing sheath has been withdrawn onto the pusher catheter so that the stent graft has partially expanded under the influence of self expanding stents but complete expansion has been prevented by the diameter reducing ties 138 , 140 , 142 and 144 .
FIG. 4C shows the stent graft still mounted onto the deployment device so that the exposed stent 124 is still received in the capsule 152 but the release wires 132 and 134 have been withdrawn so that the diameter reducing ties are released. It will be noted that the sutures 140 , 138 , 142 , and 144 remain on the outside of the stent graft. This is not a problem as they do not interfere with blood flow and may assist with adhesion of the stent graft onto the wall of the aorta.
In an alternative arrangement where space permits two sets of double diameter reducing ties may be used with one set of double diameter reducing ties and trigger wire placed anterior to the renal arteries and another set of double diameter reducing ties and trigger wire placed posterior to the renal arteries.
Throughout this specification various indications have been given as to the scope of this invention but the invention is not limited to any one of these but may reside in two or more of these combined together. The examples are given for illustration only and not for limitation.
Throughout this specification and the claims that follow unless the context requires otherwise, the words ‘comprise’ and ‘include’ and variations such as ‘comprising’ and ‘including’ will be understood to imply the inclusion of a stated integer or group of integers but not the exclusion of any other integer or group of integers. | A method of assembling of a stent graft ( 20 ) including temporarily diameter reduction arrangements to enable partial release of a stent graft to assist with positioning before complete release. The diameter reduction arrangement includes a release wire ( 72 ) and flexible threads ( 74, 80 ) extending to struts ( 76 ) of a self expanding stent ( 70 ) either side of the release wire and being pulled tight. Removal of the release wire enables full expansion of the self expanding stent. | Summarize the information, clearly outlining the challenges and proposed solutions. | [
"CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS This application claims priority of provisional application Ser.",
"No. 60/709,411, filed Aug. 18, 2005.",
"TECHNICAL FIELD This invention relates to a medical device and more particularly to a stent graft for mounting onto a deployment device for endovascular introduction.",
"BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION This invention will be particularly discussed in relation to stent grafts for placement into the thoracoabdominal aorta for the treatment of aneurysms and more specifically in relation to juxtarenal placement.",
"The invention, however, is not so restricted and may be applied to stent grafts for placement in any lumen of the human or animal body.",
"The segment of aorta between the celiac and renal arteries is the best endowed with adventitial elastin, the most stable, and the last to dilate.",
"Aneurysms of this area are associated with aneurysms of less stable areas in the descending thoracic aorta, infrarenal aorta, or both.",
"Surgical repair of the thoracoabdominal aorta often involves wide exposure through long, multi-cavity incisions, followed by periods of visceral ischemia.",
"Despite advances in surgical technique and perioperative care, the mortality and morbidity rates remain high, especially in patients who are old, sick, or have already undergone open surgical repair of an adjacent segment of the aorta.",
"In such cases, an endovascular alternative would be welcome, yet endovascular methods of thoracoabdominal and pararenal aortic repair have been slow to develop.",
"The challenge has been to exclude the aortic aneurysm while maintaining flow to its visceral branches.",
"It is roughly 4 years since two distinctly different approaches to this problem were reported.",
"The two devices were: a bifurcated abdominal aortic stent-graft with fenestrations for the renal and superior mesenteric arteries, and a thoracoabdominal stent-graft with branches for the celiac, superior mesenteric and renal arteries.",
"In recent years, the distinctions between fenestrated and multi-branched stent-grafts have been blurred by the emergence of many hybrid devices with features such as Nitinol ringed fenestrations, externally cuffed fenestrations, internally cuffed fenestrations, external spiral cuffs and axially-oriented cuffs or branches, both external and internal.",
"Each element has advantages and disadvantages, and each combination has a different role, as described below.",
"There now exists a family of devices, which share several key features.",
"In each of them, a barbed uncovered Z-stent anchors the proximal end, and a single proximal orifice attaches to a non-dilated segment of aorta (or previously inserted prosthesis).",
"They all distribute blood through multiple branches, cuffs or holes (fenestrations), and they have series of Z-stents and Nitinol rings, providing support from one end of the stent-graft to the other.",
"In cases of juxtarenal AAA, the rim of non-dilated infrarenal aorta is too short for secure hemostatic implantation of an unfenestrated stent-graft.",
"There is only enough room in the neck for the proximal end of the proximal stent;",
"the rest of this covered stent expands into the aneurysm, assuming a conical shape.",
"Under these circumstances, there is insufficient apposition between the stent-graft and the aorta to achieve a reliable seal.",
"Properly positioned fenestrations (holes) provide a route for flow through the stent-graft into the renal arteries, thereby allowing the proximal end of the stent-graft to be placed higher in the non-dilated pararenal aorta where it assumes a cylindrical shape.",
"The dual goals of renal perfusion and aneurysm exclusion are achieved only when the fenestration is positioned precisely over the renal orifices, and the outer surface of the stent-graft around the fenestration is brought into close apposition with the inner surface of the aorta around the renal orifice.",
"Typical fenestrated technique uses a bridging catheter, sheath or balloon to guide each fenestration to the corresponding renal orifice, and a bridging stent to hold it there.",
"Stent-graft deployment has five main stages: extrusion of the half-open stent-graft, trans-graft renal artery catheterization, complete stent-graft expansion, renal stenting, and completion of the aortic exclusion with bifurcated extension into the iliac arteries.",
"The three forms of fenestration in common use are the large fenestration, the scallop and the small fenestration.",
"A large fenestration is used only when the target artery is well away from the aneurysm.",
"No bridging stent is required, or even feasible, since one or more stent struts cross the orifice of a large fenestration.",
"A scallop is essentially a large open-topped fenestration.",
"In many cases, the presence of a scallop for the superior mesenteric artery allows sufficient separation (>15 mm) between proximal margin of the stent-graft and the middle of the renal orifices.",
"Small fenestrations are commonly placed over both renal arteries, and held there by bridging stents.",
"Stent struts cannot cross the orifice of a small fenestration.",
"Small fenestrations are therefore confined to the lower halves of the triangular spaces between adjacent stent-struts.",
"Localized juxtarenal aneurysms or pseudoaneurysms require no more than a single cylindrical fenestrated stent-graft, but most cases of infrarenal aneurysm extend to the aortic bifurcation and require bilateral iliac outflow through a bifurcated stent-graft.",
"The combination of a fenestrated proximal component with a bifurcated distal component is called a composite stent graft.",
"Dividing the stent-graft into two components separates the two halves of the procedure.",
"The operator need not be concerned about the position or orientation of the bifurcation while inserting the fenestrated proximal component, or about the position and location of the fenestrations while inserting the bifurcated distal component.",
"The composite arrangement also separates the fenestrated proximal component from the large caudally directed hemodynamic forces that act mainly upon the bifurcation of the distal component.",
"A small amount of slippage between the two is preferable to any proximal component migration, where even a few millimeters of movement would occlude both renal arteries.",
"Indeed, the low rate of renal artery loss is testimony to the accuracy of stent-graft deployment and the stability of stent-graft attachment.",
"The positioning of the fenestration is therefore very important to avoid renal occlusion.",
"Positioning is further complicated because the diameter of a stent graft is deliberately made larger than the diameter into which it is to be placed to allow for accurate sealing against the vessel wall, possible errors in sizing and subsequent relaxation of the vessel wall.",
"Hence, once released a stent graft with self expanding stents will take up apposition against the vessel wall and it will be difficult if not impossible to reposition it.",
"It is to the ability to position after initial release of a stent graft from a deployment device that the present invention is directed or at least to provide a practitioner with a useful alternative.",
"Throughout this specification the term distal with respect to a portion of the aorta, a deployment device or a prosthesis is the end of the aorta, deployment device or prosthesis further away in the direction of blood flow away from the heart and the term proximal means the portion of the aorta, deployment device or end of the prosthesis nearer to the heart.",
"When applied to other vessels similar terms such as caudal and cranial should be understood.",
"SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In one form therefor the invention is said to reside in a method of reducing the diameter of the stent graft during deployment comprising the step applying temporary diameter reducing ties to at least a portion of the stent graft.",
"In a further form the invention comprises a temporary diameter reduction constraint arrangement for a stent graft, the stent graft comprising a biocompatible graft material tube of a selected diameter and a plurality of self expanding stents fastened thereto, the constraint arrangement comprising at least one release wire extending longitudinally along the graft material tube and stitched thereinto and at least one circumferential thread engaged around the release wire and a portion of the stent graft circumferentially spaced a selected distance away from the release wire and drawn tight and tied to reduce the circumference and hence the overall diameter of the stent graft.",
"Preferably the circumferential thread extends circumferentially in each direction from the release wire.",
"The stents are preferably zig-zag stents comprising struts and bends therebetween and the engagement of the flexible thread into the graft material includes the engagement of the thread around a strut of the self expanding stent.",
"Preferably the engagement of the threads with the respective struts is intermediate the ends of the struts.",
"The selected distance can for instance be reduced by from 50 to 75%.",
"There can be two release wires and a circumferential thread extending circumferentially in each direction from each of the release wires at a plurality of positions along the release wires to hold the stent graft at a reduced diameter of the stent graft along the length of the stent graft.",
"Preferably the positions along the length of the release wires corresponds with a middle portion of the struts of the self expanding stents along the length of the stent graft.",
"In a further form the invention comprises a method of temporarily reducing the diameter of at least a portion of a self expanding stent graft, the stent graft comprising a tubular body of a biocompatible graft material and a plurality of self expanding stents, the method comprising the steps of;",
"a) stitching a release wire longitudinally along the stent graft;",
"b) looping a first flexible thread around the release wire and extending the first flexible thread laterally around the circumference of the stent graft to a position a selected distance from the release wire;",
"c) engaging the first flexible thread into the graft material, and d) drawing the ends of the thread together and tying ends of the thread, whereby the selected distance is reduced thereby temporarily reducing the overall diameter of the stent graft.",
"The method can further comprise the steps of;",
"e) passing a second flexible thread around the release wire and extending the second flexible thread laterally around the circumference of the stent graft in the opposite direction to the first flexible thread to a position a selected distance from the release wire;",
"f) engaging the second flexible thread into the graft material, and g) drawing the ends of the second thread together and tying ends of the thread, whereby the selected distance is reduced thereby reducing the overall diameter of the stent graft.",
"The method can further comprise the alternative steps of;",
"e) passing a second flexible thread around the first flexible thread and extending the second flexible thread laterally around the circumference of the stent graft in the opposite direction to the first flexible thread to a position a selected distance from the release wire;",
"h) engaging the second flexible thread into the graft material, and i) drawing the ends of the second thread together and tying ends of the thread, whereby the selected distance is reduced thereby temporarily reducing the overall diameter of the stent graft.",
"The method can further comprise the steps of;",
"j) stitching a second release wire longitudinally along the stent graft parallel to and spaced apart from the first release wire;",
"k) looping a third flexible thread around the second release wire and extending the third flexible thread laterally around the circumference of the stent graft to a position a selected distance from the second release wire;",
"l) engaging the third flexible thread into the graft material, and m) drawing the ends of the thread together and tying ends of the thread, n) passing a fourth flexible thread around the around the third flexible thread and extending the fourth flexible thread laterally around the circumference of the stent graft in the opposite direction to the third flexible thread to a position a selected distance from the second release wire;",
"o) engaging the fourth flexible thread into the graft material, and p) drawing the ends of the fourth thread together and tying ends of the thread, whereby the selected distance is reduced thereby temporarily reducing the overall diameter of the stent graft.",
"The method can further comprise applying a plurality of flexible threads in each circumferential direction from each release wire at a plurality of positions along the release wires to temporarily reduce the diameter of the stent graft along the length of the stent graft.",
"Preferably the engagement of the threads with the respective struts of the stent grafts is intermediate the ends of the struts.",
"BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING This then generally describes the invention but to assist with understanding reference will now be made to the accompanying drawings which show preferred embodiments of the invention.",
"In the drawings: FIG. 1 shows a schematic view of an aneurysed aorta with a bifurcated and fenestrated stent graft deployed into it;",
"FIGS. 2A and 2B show schematically how one arrangement of a diameter reducing ties are applied to a stent graft;",
"FIGS. 3A and 3B show an alternative embodiment of diameter reducing ties intended for use with a stent graft;",
"and FIGS. 4A, 4B and 4C show a stent graft in various stages of application and release of double diameter reducing ties on a stent graft.",
"DETAILED DESCRIPTION Now looking more closely at the drawings and in particular FIG. 1 it can be seen that there is schematically shown an aorta 2 extending down to an aortic bifurcation at 3 and into two iliac arteries 5 and 7 .",
"An aneurysm 9 defined by a bulge in the aorta wall 11 extends from near to the aortic bifurcation 3 nearly to the renal arteries 13 and 15 .",
"There is insufficient non-aneurysed length of the aorta distally of the renal arteries and hence to place a stent graft to bypass the aneurysm it is necessary to place some of the stent graft proximally of the renal arteries.",
"This embodiment of the invention is discussed in relation to a bifurcated stent graft having a longer leg for extending into one iliac artery and a shorter leg into which a leg extension may be deployed for the contralateral iliac artery but the invention is not so limited and may also be used for a composite stent graft in which the fenestrations are in a proximal tubular portion of the composite stent graft and if necessary a further bifurcated portion of stent graft is used to extend down to the iliac arteries.",
"The stent graft 20 has a bifurcation 24 and a long leg 27 extending down iliac artery 7 and a short leg 26 directed towards iliac artery 5 .",
"A leg extension 28 is connected into the short leg 26 and extends down the iliac artery 5 .",
"The stent graft 20 has a proximal internal stent 36 and a plurality of external stents 38 along the length of its tubular body.",
"At the renal arteries 13 and 15 there are fenestrations 30 and 32 respectively for allowing access to the renal arteries and it is to the placement of these renal fenestrations on the stent graft so that they match up with the renal arteries when the stent graft is deployed into the aorta that the present invention is directed.",
"Methods of deployment of such a stent graft are described in PCT Patent Publication Number WO98/53761 entitled “A Prosthesis and a Method of Deploying a Prosthesis.”",
"These features and other features disclosed in PCT Patent Publication Number No. WO98/53761 could be used with the present invention and the disclosure of PCT Patent Publication Number No. WO98/53761 is herewith incorporated in its entirety into this specification.",
"Although the renal arteries in FIG. 1 are depicted as extending laterally either side of the aorta, in fact the position of the renal arteries is very variable and are sometimes closer together towards the anterior surface of the aorta and can be positioned more or less apart longitudinally.",
"FIGS. 2A and 2B show schematically one embodiment of diameter reducing tie according to the present invention.",
"In this drawing the graft material of a stent graft is not shown and only a portion of a self expanding stent is shown stretched out flat.",
"As can be seen in FIG. 2A , a self expanding stent 70 which would extend around the tubular body of a stent graft and be stitched to the stent graft is shown.",
"A release wire 72 is stitched longitudinally along the stent graft as can be seen in more detail in FIG. 4A with a stitch 72 a of the release wire being exposed to the outside of the stent graft in the region of the self expanding stent 70 .",
"A first suture thread 74 of a flexible material is passed around the release wire 72 and extended out to one side of the release wire over the struts 76 of the stent graft to pass over three struts and to be looped around a fourth strut and into the graft material.",
"The suture thread 74 is then pulled tight and knotted as shown in FIG. 2B with a knot 78 so that the struts between the release wire 72 and the knot 78 are pulled closer together against the resilient force of the self expanding stent.",
"A similar action is carried out to the other side of the release wire with a second suture thread 80 of a flexible material.",
"In this case the thread 80 can either pass around the release wire 72 or is passed underneath the two strands of the thread 74 and over the release wire 72 and then it can be passed over three struts and then looped around a fourth strut and into the graft material and pulled tight and knotted at 82 .",
"The reduction in distance between the release wire 72 and the knot 78 may be from 50 to 75 percent.",
"For instance if the distance x in FIG. 2A is 15 millimeters around the circumference of the stent graft from the release wire 72 to the strut at which the knot 78 is placed then this can be reduced to 5 millimeters as shown by the dimension y in FIG. 2B .",
"With two diameter reducing ties, one to each side of the release wire 72 , therefore a total circumference reduction of 20 millimeters can be achieved which will change the diameter of a 36 millimeter stent graft to approximately 28 millimeters.",
"This can be less than the diameter of the aorta in that region which means that the stent graft will still be manoeuvrable within the aorta while still mounted onto the deployment device but partially freed by the withdrawal of a containing sheath.",
"Where a greater amount of diameter reduction is desirable double diameter reducing ties may be used as depicted in FIGS. 3A and 3B .",
"In this embodiment two release wires 90 and 92 are used parallel to each other and spaced apart by 6 or 7 struts of a self expanding stent 91 .",
"The two release wires 90 and 92 are stitched longitudinally along the stent graft as can be seen in more detail in FIG. 4A with stitches 90 a and 92 a being exposed to the outside of the stent graft in the region of the self expanding stent 91 .",
"A first suture 93 extends from one side of the release wire 90 and a second suture 94 extends to the other side of the release wire 90 and they are knotted off at 95 and 96 .",
"Similarly sutures 97 and 98 are extended either side of the release wire 92 and are knotted off at 99 and 100 .",
"Generally the knots 96 and 99 go on either side of the same strut.",
"By using these double diameter reducing ties for instance a reduction in circumference of up to 40 millimeters may be obtained for a 36 millimeter diameter stent graft which will give a final diameter of approximately 24 millimeters.",
"Once again with this reduction in diameter movement of the stent graft for final positioning can be easily achieved.",
"FIGS. 4A, 4B and 4C show a stent graft with various stages of fitting and release of diameter reducing ties.",
"FIG. 4A shows a more proximal portion of a composite stent graft for mounting into the aorta.",
"The stent graft includes a tubular body 120 with an internal zigzag self expanding stent 122 at its proximal end and an exposed proximally extending stent 124 mounted to the proximal end of the tubular body 120 .",
"Further external self expanding stents 126 are supplied along the length of the body towards the distal end 128 .",
"It will be noted the tubular body 120 tapers at 130 so that it is a first selected diameter at the proximal end and a slightly smaller diameter further down the length of the tubular body.",
"This embodiment of the invention will be discussed particularly in relation to installation of double diameter reducing ties.",
"The first stage is the placement of release wires 132 and 134 which extend longitudinally along the tubular body and are stitched in and out of the tubular body.",
"Stitches can be seen on the exterior of the tubular body in regions coinciding with the intermediate region of the struts of each of the exposed stents.",
"In the region designated as 130 for instance a suture is placed around the release wire and extended across about three struts of the zigzag stent 126 to strut 136 where it is passed around the strut 136 and into the graft material of the tubular body 120 and pulled tight as shown at 138 in FIG. 4B .",
"Similarly a suture 140 extended from the other direction from the release wire 132 for about three struts passed around a strut and into the graft material of the tubular body 120 and then pulled tight.",
"A similar extension of sutures in each direction from release wire 134 are installed to compress the other side.",
"The suture 142 which extends back towards the release wire 132 is joined to the same strut 136 as the suture 138 .",
"The suture 144 extends in the opposite direction from the release wire 134 .",
"This process is repeated with the other exposed stents 126 and the internal stent 122 .",
"In the case of the internal stent 122 the sutures are inserted through the material of the tubular body 120 to go around the stents where they are knotted but otherwise remain outside of the tubular body.",
"This gives the result as shown in FIG. 4B where the diameter of the stent graft is considerably reduced.",
"Diameter reducing ties may be either placed along the entire length of the stent graft so that the stent graft remains manoeuvrable after its partial release as discussed above or can be confined to only the parts of the stent graft that are larger in diameter than the vessel lumen into which it is to be placed.",
"FIG. 4B shows the stent graft mounted onto a deployment device with a pusher catheter 150 at one end and a nose cone capsule 152 into which the proximally extending stent 124 is received at the other end.",
"At this stage a containing sheath has been withdrawn onto the pusher catheter so that the stent graft has partially expanded under the influence of self expanding stents but complete expansion has been prevented by the diameter reducing ties 138 , 140 , 142 and 144 .",
"FIG. 4C shows the stent graft still mounted onto the deployment device so that the exposed stent 124 is still received in the capsule 152 but the release wires 132 and 134 have been withdrawn so that the diameter reducing ties are released.",
"It will be noted that the sutures 140 , 138 , 142 , and 144 remain on the outside of the stent graft.",
"This is not a problem as they do not interfere with blood flow and may assist with adhesion of the stent graft onto the wall of the aorta.",
"In an alternative arrangement where space permits two sets of double diameter reducing ties may be used with one set of double diameter reducing ties and trigger wire placed anterior to the renal arteries and another set of double diameter reducing ties and trigger wire placed posterior to the renal arteries.",
"Throughout this specification various indications have been given as to the scope of this invention but the invention is not limited to any one of these but may reside in two or more of these combined together.",
"The examples are given for illustration only and not for limitation.",
"Throughout this specification and the claims that follow unless the context requires otherwise, the words ‘comprise’ and ‘include’ and variations such as ‘comprising’ and ‘including’ will be understood to imply the inclusion of a stated integer or group of integers but not the exclusion of any other integer or group of integers."
] |
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
This application is a division of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/892,524 filed Jul. 15, 2004, and now issued as U.S. Pat. No. 7,195,070, which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety.
BACKGROUND
1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to oil and gas well production technology. More particularly, it relates to the in situ treatment of fluids produced by an artificial lift oil well to inhibit the formation of scale inside and outside of production tubing, pumps, valves, and the like and to reduce the amount of solids that enter the pump.
2. Description of the Related Art
A typical oil well produces not only oil, but also gas and water, often in significant quantity. The fluids often transport solids, such as sand, as well as other potentially damaging fluids and gases, from the reservoir into the production tubing and casing, and up the production tubing to the surface. Equipment on the surface may be used to separate these production components. The oil is recovered; the gas, depending on its composition, may be filtered, treated and piped to a collection facility or flared off; the water may be re-injected into another formation or, in the case of offshore production platforms, treated to prevent environmental contamination and then discharged overboard; and the solids are separated and disposed of.
The oil and water produced by oil and gas wells often contains significant quantities of dissolved minerals. Frequently, the water is saturated with these minerals—i.e., the water contains the maximum concentration of the dissolved minerals possible at a given temperature and pressure. Changes in temperature and/or pressure which occur as the fluid is pumped from the production zone through the well to the treatment equipment on the surface can cause the minerals to come out of solution (“precipitate”) and become deposited on the interior and exterior surfaces of the production tubing, pumps, valves, chokes and other equipment. The deposit is known as “scale” and it can significantly reduce the diameter and hence the capacity of production tubing. In extreme cases, the pipe or tubing can become completely obstructed, shutting down production. Even in less severe cases, where the fluid is not saturated, scale can build up on the interior and exterior of any exposed surface.
Certain dissolved minerals in water are known as “hardness ions” —divalent cations that include calcium (Ca +2 ), magnesium (Mg +2 ) and ferrous (Fe +1 ) ions. Hardness ions develop from dissolved minerals, bicarbonate, carbonate, sulfate and chloride. Heating water containing bicarbonate salts can cause the precipitation of a calcium carbonate solid. Raising the pH can allow the Mg +2 and Fe +2 ions to precipitate as Fe(OH) 2 and Mg(OH) 2 . Excess sodium carbonate can precipitate Ca +2 as CaCO 3 .
Precipitation is the formation of an insoluble material in a solution. Precipitation may occur by a chemical reaction of two or more ions in solution or by changing the temperature of a saturated solution. There are many examples of this important phenomenon in drilling fluids. Precipitation occurs in the reaction between calcium cations and carbonate anions to form insoluble calcium carbonate: Ca+2+CO3−2→CaCO3.
Scale is a mineral salt deposit or coating formed on the surface of metal, rock or other material. Scale may be caused by a precipitation resulting from a chemical reaction with the surface on which it forms, precipitation caused by chemical reactions, a change in pressure or temperature, or a change in the composition of a solution. The term “scale” is also applied to a corrosion product. Typical scales are calcium carbonate, calcium sulfate, barium sulfate, strontium sulfate, iron sulfide, iron oxides, iron carbonate, the various silicates and phosphates and oxides, or any of a number of compounds insoluble or slightly soluble in water.
Scale may be deposited on wellbore tubulars, down hole equipment, and related components as the saturation of produced water is affected by changing temperature and pressure conditions in the production conduit. In severe conditions, scale creates a significant restriction, or even a plug, in the production tubing. Scale build-up in the artificial lift pump can lead to failure of the pump due to blocked flow passages and broken shafts. Scale removal is a common well-intervention operation. A wide range of mechanical, chemical and scale inhibitor treatment options are available to effect scale removal.
Scale can also occur in tubing, the gravel pack, the perforations or the formation itself. Scale deposition occurs when the solution equilibrium of the water is disturbed by pressure and temperature changes, dissolved gases or incompatibility between mixing waters. Scale deposits are the most common and most troublesome damage problems in the oil field and can occur in both production and injection wells.
All waters used in well operations can be potential sources of scale, including water used in waterflood operations and filtrate from completion, workover or treating fluids. Therefore, reduction of scale deposition is directly related to reducing the amount of bad water that is produced.
Carbonate scale is usually granular and sometimes very porous. A carbonate scale can be easily identified by dropping it in a solution of hydrochloric acid where bubbles of carbon dioxide will be observed effervescing from the surface of the scale. Sulphate scales are harder and more dense. A sulphate deposit is brittle and does not effervesce when dropped in acid. Silica scales resemble porcelain—they are very brittle, not soluble in acid, but dissolve slowly in alkali.
Scale removal is a common well-intervention operation involving a wide variety of mechanical scale-inhibitor treatments and chemical options. Mechanical removal may be done by means of a pig or by abrasive jetting that cuts scale but leaves the tubing intact. Scale-inhibition treatments involve squeezing a chemical inhibitor into a water-producing zone for subsequent commingling with produced fluids, preventing further scale precipitation. Chemical removal is performed with different solvents according to the type of scale:
Carbonate scales such as calcium carbonate or calcite [CaCO 3 ] can be readily dissolved with hydrochloric acid [HCl] at temperatures less than 250° F. [121° C.]. Sulfate scales such as gypsum [CaSO 4 .2H 2 O] or anhydrite [CaSO 4 ] can be readily dissolved using ethylenediamine tetraacetic acid (EDTA). The dissolution of barytine [BaSO 4 ] or strontianite [SrSO 4 ] is much more difficult. Chloride scales such as sodium chloride [NaCl] are easily dissolved with fresh water or weak acidic solutions, including HCl or acetic acid. Iron scales such as iron sulfide [FeS] or iron oxide [Fe 2 O 3 ] can be dissolved using HCl with sequestering or reducing agents to avoid precipitation of by-products, for example iron hydroxides and elemental sulfur. Silica scales such as crystallized deposits of chalcedony or amorphous opal normally associated with steamflood projects can be dissolved with hydrofluoric acid [HF].
Calcium scales such as calcium sulfate, calcium carbonate and calcium oxalate are insoluble in water. However, all three are soluble in a Sodium Bisulfate acid solution. Calcium scale can be removed with an acid wash using a 5-15% solution of Sodium Bisulfate (SBS). SBS can also be used during a shut down to remove scale by re-circulating it throughout areas of the process where needed. The concentration of SBS solutions and the re-circulation time depend on the amount of scale that needs to be removed. SBS can be a substitute for sulfamic acid in calcium scale removal situations.
Zinc sulfide (ZnS) is another one of the oil field scales that plagues production. Although it does not seem to be common, according to field experience and published literature, it causes a significant flow/production problem when it does occur, just as all other scales adversely affect wells. Other scales, such as barium sulfate and strontium sulfate, also cause production problems but are much harder than ZnS.
Although chemical solvents have been used on these harder scales, the results are often disappointing. While mechanical scale removal has been used successfully on barium and strontium sulfate scales with excellent success, it had not been used on ZnS scale. It was conceivable that the softer scale may not respond to the same process that removed harder scales.
In certain cases, scale may be an environmental or health hazard. The State of Louisiana, Department of Environmental Quality has issued a notification concerning a potential health hazard associated with handling pipe used in oil and gas production that may be contaminated with radioactive scale from naturally-occurring radioactive materials (NORM). The concern is the possible inhalation and/or ingestion of scale particles contaminated with radium-226 and possibly other radioactive material that may become airborne during welding, cutting or reaming pipe that contains radioactive scale. The State of Louisiana is using the term Technologically Enhanced Natural Radiation (TENR) for this material that is a subset of the NORM group.
An inhibitor is a chemical agent added to a fluid system to retard or prevent an undesirable reaction that occurs within the fluid or with the materials present in the surrounding environment. A range of inhibitors is commonly used in the production and servicing of oil and gas wells, such as corrosion inhibitors used in acidizing treatments to prevent damage to wellbore components and inhibitors used during production to control the effect of hydrogen sulfide [H 2 S]
A scale inhibitor is a chemical agent added to a fluid system to retard or prevent an undesirable reaction that occurs within the fluid or with the materials present in the surrounding environment. A range of inhibitors is commonly used in the production and servicing of oil and gas wells, such as corrosion inhibitors used in acidizing treatments to prevent damage to wellbore components and inhibitors used during production to control the effect of hydrogen sulfide [H 2 S]
A sequestering agent (or chelation agent) is a chemical whose molecular structure can envelop and hold a certain type of ion in a stable and soluble complex. Divalent cations, such as hardness ions, form stable and soluble complex structures with several types of sequestering chemicals. When held inside the complex, the ions have a limited ability to react with other ions, clays or polymers. Ethylenediamine tetraacetic acid (EDTA) is a well-known sequestering agent for the hardness ions, such as Ca +2 , and is the reagent solution used in the hardness test protocol published by API. Polyphosphates can also sequester hardness ions. Sequestering is not the same as precipitation because sequestering does not form a solid. For calcium carbonate deposits, glycolic and citric acids and ammonium salts and blends incorporating EDTA are used as chelants.
A scale-inhibitor squeeze is a type of inhibition treatment used to control or prevent scale deposition. In a scale-inhibitor squeeze, the inhibitor is pumped into a water-producing zone. The inhibitor is attached to the formation matrix by chemical adsorption or by temperature-activated precipitation and returns with the produced fluid at sufficiently high concentrations to avoid scale precipitation. Some chemicals used in scale-inhibitor squeezes are phosphonated carboxylic acids or various polymers.
Some scale-inhibitor systems integrate scale inhibitors and fracture treatments into one step, which guarantees that the entire well is treated with scale inhibitor. In this type of treatment, a high-efficiency scale inhibitor is pumped into the matrix surrounding the fracture face during leakoff. It adsorbs to the matrix during pumping until the fracture begins to produce water. As water passes through the inhibitor-adsorbed zone, it dissolves sufficient inhibitor to prevent scale deposition. The inhibitor is better placed than in a conventional scale-inhibitor squeeze, which reduces the re-treatment cost and improves production.
Some well treatment systems continuously inject the treating chemical in the well using a metering pump. The chemicals are either injected below the pump using a capillary line or injected into the well annulus. When chemicals are injected into the well annulus the chemicals build up in the well bore until the pump pulls them down the wellbore and into the pump intake.
Due to the time that it takes for the chemicals to reach the pump, changes in chemical mix or injection rates are very slow to affect the fluids entering the pump. If the pump intake is above the electric motor in an Electric Submersible Pump, ESP installation, the chemicals do not protect the motor or the casing below the pump intake.
In capillary injection systems, the location of the chemical injection can be determined when the system is installed by terminating the capillary tube below the pump intake/motor combination in an ESP completion. The capillary injection tube provides continuous treatment of the fluids and the time delay for adjustments to the blend of chemicals and/or treatment rate can be minimized.
Sand produced with the fluids can cause damage to pumping systems. Abrasion resistant pumps with engineered ceramic bearings and coated flow passages have been developed to improve pump life in wells that produce sand, but sand will eventually wear out even these special sand-tolerant pumps.
One practice for removing sand from the fluid is by installing a liquid and sand separator between the casing perforations and the pump intake. These systems deposit the separated sand into the well's rat hole or into tubing hung from the bottom of the separator as a trap. Wilson discloses a means for removal of sand separated with a downhole sand separator in U.S. Pat. No. 6,216,788.
Gravel packing is a sand-control method used to prevent the production of formation sand. It involves the placement of selected gravel across the production interval to prevent the production of formation fines or sand. Any gap or interruption in the pack coverage may permit undesirable sand or fines to enter the producing system.
In gravel pack operations, a steel screen is placed in the wellbore and the surrounding annulus is then packed with prepared gravel of a specific size that is designed to prevent the passage of formation sand. The primary objective is to stabilize the formation while causing minimal impairment to well productivity.
Wire-wrapped screen is one type of screen used in sand control applications to support the gravel pack. The profiled wire is wrapped and welded in place on a perforated liner. Wire-wrapped screen is available in a range of sizes and specifications, including outside diameter, material type and the geometry and dimension of the screen slots. The space between each wire wrap must be small enough to retain the gravel placed behind the screen, yet minimize any restriction of production.
A sand filter as described by Stanley in U.S. Pat. No. 4,977,958 is used to filter the sand out of the fluid prior to entering the pump intake. This style of intake filter has been installed in numerous wells and is effective for removal of solids, but once the filter is full of sand, fluid flow through the filter is restricted and a large pressure drop occurs. As the pressure drop increases, the rate of sand accumulation increases causing the rate of pressure drop to increase until eventually the fluid flow across the filter ceases. When fluid flow to the pump ceases, the pump will cavitate and eventually fail.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
A fluid conditioning system is installed between the well perforations and the intake of a pump used to effect artificial lift. The fluid conditioning system is an apparatus that provides scale inhibitors and/or other chemical treatments into the production stream. The production stream may also be filtered by the apparatus prior to the production stream's introduction into the pump. In some embodiments, the fluid conditioning system may be a part of the production stream filter wherein the filtering material is comprised of a porous medium that contains and supports the treatment chemical. In other embodiments, the chemical treatment may be accomplished by the gradual dissolution of the unsupported solid phase chemical itself. The treating chemical may be recharged or replenished by various downhole reservoirs or feeding means. In yet other embodiments, the chemical treatment may be replenished from the surface by means of a capillary tube. In certain other embodiments, the apparatus may be retrievable from the surface by means of a wireline or coil tubing thereby permitting recharge or replenishment of the chemical in the apparatus on an as-needed or periodic basis. The filtration apparatus may incorporate a by-pass valve that allows fluid to by-pass the filter as sand or other particulate matter fills up or blocks the filter.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING FIGURES
FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view of an artificial lift pump equipped with an intake screen having a single-layer treatment space.
FIG. 2 is a typical flow curve for a by-pass valve.
FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view of an artificial lift pump equipped with an intake screen having at least two annular treatment spaces.
FIG. 4 depicts the apparatus of FIG. 3 additionally equipped with a packer, shear sub and cross-over sub.
FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view of the intake screen portion of the apparatus shown in FIG. 4 taken along line V-V.
FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view of an artificial lift pump equipped with a multiple layer intake screen having capillary tube recharge means.
FIG. 7 is an alternative embodiment of the apparatus shown in FIG. 6 which includes means for distributed recharge of the treatment chemicals.
FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional view of an artificial lift pump equipped with a dual-layer intake screen equipped with a downhole replenishment means for solid-phase chemicals.
FIG. 9 is an alternative embodiment of the apparatus shown in FIG. 8 which has means downhole replenishment of both solid-phase and liquid-phase chemicals.
FIG. 10 is a cross-sectional view of an artificial lift pump that has a dual-layer intake screen equipped with a downhole replenishment means for liquid-phase chemicals.
FIG. 11 is a cross-sectional view of an alternative embodiment of the apparatus shown in FIG. 10 .
FIGS. 12A and 12B are cross-sectional views of production tubing having capillary tubing incorporated within their wall structure.
FIG. 13 is a cross-sectional view of an artificial lift pump equipped with a wireline (or slickline) retrievable, chemical treatment intake screen.
FIG. 14 is an alternative embodiment of the apparatus shown in FIG. 13 that further comprises an extension of the shroud around the pump and intake sections.
FIG. 15 is a cross-sectional view of a shaft-driven artificial lift pump equipped with a chemical treatment intake screen situated between the pump and its driving motor.
FIG. 16 is a cross-sectional view of an alternative embodiment of the apparatus of FIG. 15 wherein the screen is located within the interior portion of the intake filter.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
Advances in electric motor technology have made Electric Submersible Pumps (ESPs) an increasingly popular method of providing artificial lift for oil wells. Operating in the harsh conditions of the downhole environment, an ESP must be protected from ingesting corrosive, abrasive, or any other detrimental substance in the production fluids in order to provide a Mean Time Between Failure (MTBF) that justifies its use on an economic basis. In addition, treating the production fluids while downhole minimizes the potential hazards involved in bringing the production fluids to the surface while the production fluids may contain any detrimental substance. Moreover, scale build-up in production tubing and pump chambers must also be controlled in order to decrease the number of well interventions or workovers needed during the useful life of an oil well.
The present invention is a novel apparatus and method which combines the functions of preventing fines or sand from entering the pump with the introduction of a scale inhibitor or other chemical treatments into the production stream prior to entering the pump. In an alternative embodiment the production stream may be treated for environmental hazards after entering the pump.
Referring now to FIG. 1 , artificial lift system 10 includes pump 100 attached at its outlet end to production tubing 12 and at its inlet to inlet connector 14 which is in fluid communication with filter assembly 16 . Filter assembly 16 is preferably designed such that wellbore fluid will pass from the exterior 21 of external tubular 22 through external tubular 22 through any medium 30 through internal tubular 24 and into the central passage 28 of internal tubular 24 . Artificial lift system 10 may be generally circular in cross section and sized to fit within the production casing of a well [not shown]. In some embodiments, pump 100 may be an ESP that receives electrical power from the surface via an electrical cable within the well bore [not shown].
Filter assembly 16 comprises top plate 18 and bottom plate 20 . Top plate 18 allows internal tubular 24 to pass through its center portion and may be joined to inlet connector 14 in a fluid tight manner. Top plate 18 and bottom plate 20 are connected by an external tubular 22 and by an internal tubular 24 . The external tubular 22 may be a screen or other type of porous structure that allows a desired wellbore fluid to pass from one side of the tubular to the other while restraining the passage of undesired wellbore fluids or solids. The internal tubular 24 may be a screen or other type of porous structure that allows a desired wellbore fluid to pass from one side of the tubular to the other while restraining the passage of undesired wellbore fluids or solids. Together, external tubular 22 and internal tubular 24 define annular space 32 which may be used to contain medium 30 [partially shown in FIG. 1 for clarity].
Should the filter assembly 16 become at least partially clogged with solid or other matter that may be present in the wellbore such that wellbore fluid can no longer pass through the filter assembly 16 and reach the artificial lift system 10 then the artificial lift system 10 may be severely damaged. Such damage may result from such causes as pump cavitation. In cases where the wellbore fluid is used to cool the artificial lift system's motor, a partially clogged filter assembly may reduce the flow of cooling wellbore fluid to the extent that motor overheating may also occur. In order to prevent such damage to the artificial lift system, a by-pass valve 132 may be installed. Typically, although not always, the bottom plate 20 may have an opening through its center that allows fluid to pass directly from the well-bore into the central passage 28 of the internal tubular 24 . A by-pass valve 132 is located in the opening through the bottom plate 20 . The by-pass valve 132 may be a ball valve, a spring-loaded valve, a poppet valve, a shear assembly, rupture disc, or any other type of valve that may be activated to relieve differential pressure. In some embodiments when the pressure drop across the screen equals the by-pass setting, the by-pass valve 132 partially opens and wellbore fluid is allowed to by-pass the filter assembly 16 . As fluid by-passes the filter assembly 16 , the flow rate through the filter is reduced; thus, the pressure drop is reduced for the matter-packed filter. With the by-pass valve 132 partially open, a portion of the wellbore fluid flows into the central passage 28 through the filter assembly and a portion flows into the central passage 28 through the by-pass valve 132 . The proportions of wellbore fluid that pass through the filter assembly 16 and the by-pass valve 132 can be represented by Q (total flow)=Qf (flow through filter assembly)+Qb (by-pass flow). As time passes, Qf will be reduced as more wellbore matter packs into the filter assembly 16 and the P (pressure) drop increases for a given flow rate thus causing Qb to increase. A typical flow curve is illustrated in FIG. 2 . As the pressure drop across the filter assembly 16 increases, a larger fraction of the total flow passes through the bypass valve 132 . Those skilled in the art will appreciate that different bypass valve designs will exhibit different flow curves. In an alternative embodiment, where a by-pass valve 132 is provided, the by-pass valve 132 could open just prior to the point at which wellbore fluid flow is reduced to the level that damage to the artificial lift system is predicted to occur. In addition, activation of the bypass valve should alert the operator on the surface that the filter assembly 16 might require service. Such service may be in the form of removal of the entire artificial lift system and filter assembly, reverse operation of the artificial lift system, or back-flushing fluid through the system from the surface so as to force out matter that may have accumulated in the filter assembly.
External tubular 22 may be any porous material with sufficient corrosion resistance and structural strength to withstand the torque, well obstructions, tension loading, compression loading, pressure differentials or any other conditions that may be encountered during insertion in the production casing and operation of the artificial lift system. In certain embodiments, external tubular 22 may be a wire mesh screen. In other embodiments, external tubular 22 may be a wire-wound screen. Stainless steels are a particularly preferred screen material owing to their mechanical strength and corrosion resistance. The screen may comprise a mechanical support for providing structural integrity. The screen may be selected to provide the desired opening size to exclude the sand and/or fines encountered in a particular well environment.
Internal tubular 24 may also be a screen or, in other embodiments, may comprise a pipe having openings or perforations 26 . Openings 26 may also be size-selected for a particular application. Openings 26 may comprise holes or slots in the wall of internal tubular 24 . Internal tubular 24 defines central passage 28 that is in fluid communication with inlet connector 14 of pump 100 .
Annular space 32 may be occupied by medium 30 which may be a porous medium such as pumice—a highly-porous igneous rock, usually containing 67 to 75% SiO 2 and 10 to 20% Al 2 O 3 . Potassium, sodium and calcium are generally present. Pumice has a glassy texture. It is insoluble in water and not attacked by acids. It is commercially available in lump or powdered form (coarse, medium and fine).
Medium 30 , when impregnated with a chemical agent, may be used to perform at least two functions: 1) mechanical filtration; and, 2) treatment of the fluid(s) flowing into the inlet of pump 100 with the chemical agent. The mechanical filtration function excludes sand, fines, and other wellbore matter, including highly viscous fluids that are not blocked by external tubular 22 . The extent of this mechanical filtration is determined, at least in part, by the particle size and packing density of medium 30 . Accordingly, the composition of medium 30 , its particle size and its loading within annular space 32 may be optimized for various well conditions.
The size and configuration of openings 26 in internal tubular 24 may be optimally chosen to exclude medium 30 while providing the minimum restriction to flow of the production fluids. Alternatively, the size and configuration of openings 26 in internal tubular 24 may be chosen to provide another level of wellbore fluid filtration, where even smaller particles of matter are excluded from the central passage 28 .
Top plate 18 and/or bottom plate 20 may be removable to facilitate charging filter assembly with medium 30 .
In some embodiments, medium 30 may be the chemical agent in a solid form that slowly dissolves in the production fluids. In such embodiments, the physical filtering function of medium 30 dissipates over time and hence external tubular 22 and internal tubular 24 should be selected to provide sufficient sand, fines, or other matter exclusion to adequately protect pump 100 .
Referring now to FIG. 3 , artificial lift system 10 includes pump 100 attached at its outlet end to production tubing 12 and at its inlet to inlet connector 14 which is in fluid communication with filter assembly 116 . Filter assembly 116 includes one or more intermediate tubulars 25 [only a single intermediate tubular is shown for clarity] and thus filter assembly 116 has at least two annular spaces, 32 and 33 . It will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that multiple intermediate walls may be incorporated into filter assembly 116 and thus multiple annular spaces may be defined within the apparatus. Each annular space may be used to contain a different medium to provide various functions—e.g., graduated mechanical filtration and/or treatment with different chemical agents. Intermediate wall 25 may comprise a screen, perforated tubular, or other type of porous material. The screen mesh or perforation size may be selected to substantially prevent medium 30 from entering annular space 32 . Filter assembly 116 is preferably designed such that wellbore fluid will pass from the exterior 21 of external tubular 22 through external tubular 22 through any medium 30 through any intermediate tubulars 25 through any additional medium 31 through internal tubular 24 and into the central passage 28 of internal tubular 24 . Artificial lift system 10 may be generally circular in cross section and sized to fit within the production casing of a well [not shown]. In some embodiments, pump 100 may be an ESP that receives electrical power from the surface via an electrical cable within the well bore [not shown].
Filter assembly 116 comprises top plate 18 and bottom plate 20 . Top plate 18 allows internal tubular 24 to pass through its center portion and may be joined to inlet connector 14 in a fluid tight manner. Top plate 18 and bottom plate 20 are connected by an external tubular 22 and by an internal tubular 24 . The external tubular 22 may be a screen or other type of porous structure that allows a desired wellbore fluid to pass from one side of the tubular to the other while restraining the passage of undesired wellbore fluids or solids. The internal tubular 24 may be a screen or other type of porous structure that allows a desired wellbore fluid to pass from one side of the tubular to the other while restraining the passage of undesired wellbore fluids or solids. Additionally, shown in FIG. 3 , there may be one or more intermediate tubulars 25 that may also comprise a screen or other type of porous structure that allows a desired wellbore fluid to pass from one side of the tubular to the other while restraining the passage of undesired wellbore fluids or solids. Together, external tubular 22 , intermediate tubular 25 , and internal tubular 24 define at least two annular spaces 32 and 33 that may be used to contain at least two media 30 and 31 [partially shown for clarity]. Additionally, while not shown, should at least two intermediate tubulars 25 be used, any number of annular spaces may be created between external tubular 22 and internal tubular 24 . The additional annular spaces may be used to contain a plurality of differentiated media.
Should the filter assembly 116 (including any intermediate tubulars or media contained in the additional annular spaces created by the intermediate tubulars) become at least partially clogged with solid or other matter that may be present in the wellbore such that wellbore fluid can no longer pass through the filter assembly 116 and reach the artificial lift system 10 , the artificial lift system 10 may be severely damaged. Such damage may result from pump cavitation. In cases where the wellbore fluid is used to cool the artificial lift system's motor a partially clogged filter assembly may reduce the flow of cooling wellbore fluid to the point where motor overheating may also occur. In order to prevent such damage to the pump, motor or drive system a by-pass valve 134 may be installed. Typically, although not always, in the bottom plate 20 . The by-pass valve 134 may be a ball valve, a spring-loaded valve, a poppet valve, a shear assembly, or any other type of valve that may be activated if a sufficient differential pressure is determined to exist. When the pressure drop across the screen equals the by-pass setting, the by-pass valve 134 partially opens and wellbore fluid is allowed to by-pass the filter assembly 116 . As fluid by-passes the filter assembly 116 , the flow rate through the filter is reduced; thus, the pressure drop is reduced for the sand-packed filter. With the by-pass valve 134 partially open, a portion of the wellbore fluid is flowing into the central passage 28 through the filter assembly and a portion is flowing into the central passage 28 through the by-pass valve 134 . The proportions of wellbore fluid that are passing through the filter assembly 116 and the by-pass valve 134 can be represented by Q (total flow)=Qf (flow through filter assembly)+Qb (by-pass flow). As time passes, Qf will be reduced as more wellbore matter packs into the filter assembly 116 and the P (pressure) drop increases for a given flow rate thus causing Qb to increase. A typical flow curve is illustrated in FIG. 2 . As the pressure drop across the filter assembly 116 increases, a larger fraction of the total flow passes through the by-pass valve 134 . Those skilled in the art will appreciate that different bypass valve designs will exhibit different flow curves. In an alternative embodiment where a by-pass valve 134 is provided, the by-pass valve 134 could be opened just prior to the point at which wellbore fluid flow is reduced to the level that is predicted to damage the artificial lift system. In addition, activation of the bypass valve could alert the operator on the surface that the filter assembly 116 might require service. Such service may comprise removal of the entire artificial lift system and filter assembly, reverse operation of the artificial lift system, or back-flushing fluid through the system from the surface so as to force out matter that may have accumulated in the filter assembly.
External tubular 22 may be any porous material, including metals, composites or plastics with sufficient corrosion resistance and structural strength to withstand the torque, well obstructions, tension loading, compression loading, pressure differentials or any other conditions that may be encountered during insertion in the production casing and operation of the artificial lift system. In certain embodiments, external tubular 22 may be a wire mesh screen. In other embodiments, external tubular 22 may be a wire-wound screen. Stainless steels are a particularly preferred screen material owing to their mechanical strength and corrosion resistance. The screen may comprise a mechanical support for providing structural integrity. The screen may be selected to provide the desired opening size to exclude the sand and/or fines encountered in a particular well environment.
The at least one intermediate tubulars 25 and internal tubular 24 may also be a screen or, in other embodiments, may comprise a pipe having openings or perforations 26 . Openings 26 may also be size-selected for a particular application. Openings 26 may comprise holes or slots in the wall of internal tubular 24 . Internal tubular 24 defines at least one central passage 28 that is in fluid communication with inlet connector 14 of pump 100 .
The at least two annular spaces 32 and 33 may be occupied by the at least two media 30 and 31 which may be a porous medium such as pumice—a highly-porous igneous rock, usually containing 67 to 75% SiO 2 and 10 to 20% Al 2 O 3 . Potassium, sodium and calcium are generally present. Pumice has a glassy texture. It is insoluble in water and not attacked by acids. It is commercially available in lump or powdered form (coarse, medium and fine).
Media 30 and 31 , when impregnated with a chemical agent, may be used to perform at least two functions: 1) mechanical filtration; and, 2) treatment of the fluid(s) flowing into the inlet of pump 100 with the chemical agent. The mechanical filtration function excludes sand and fines that are not blocked by external tubular 22 . The extent of this mechanical filtration is determined, at least in part, by the particle size and packing density of the media 30 and 31 . Accordingly, the composition of media 30 and 31 , its particle size and its loading within the annular spaces 32 and 33 may be optimized for various well conditions.
The size and configuration of the openings in the intermediate tubulars 25 and in internal tubular 24 may be optimally chosen to exclude the media 30 and 31 while providing the minimum restriction to flow of the production fluids.
Top plate 18 and/or bottom plate 20 may be removable to facilitate charging filter assembly with at least media 30 and 31 .
In some embodiments, media 30 and 31 may be chemical agents in a solid form that slowly dissolves in the production fluids. In such embodiments, the physical filtering function of the media 30 and 31 dissipates over time and hence external tubular 22 and internal tubular 24 should be selected to provide sufficient sand and/or fines exclusion to adequately protect pump 100 .
FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view of filter assembly 116 taken perpendicular to its major axis. Screen 22 , at least one intermediate wall 25 and central conduit 24 can be seen to define at least two annular spaces 32 and 33 . In use, central passage 28 is in fluid communication with the inlet of pump 100 via inlet connector 14 .
Additional downhole components may be included in order to facilitate the use and recovery of the apparatus. The embodiment of the invention shown in FIG. 4 includes filter assembly 300 , packer 302 , crossover subassembly 304 , shear sub 306 , and artificial lift system 308 . The shear subassembly 304 is intended to allow the artificial lift system 308 to be removed without removing the packer 302 , crossover subassembly 304 , and the filter assembly 300 in those instances when the packer 302 is unable to be removed from the wellbore due to sand accumulations or any other cause. The conditions where the packer 302 , crossover subassembly 304 , and filter assembly 300 may become stuck in the wellbore usually occur at the end of the filter assembly 300 's life cycle when the bypass valve 132 has opened and sand is passing through the assembly. Some of this sand may settle on top of the packer making it difficult to remove from the well. In such cases, the artificial lift system 308 may be separated from the sheer sub 306 and removed from the wellbore. The packer 302 may then be milled out of the bore and any remaining equipment fished from the well.
One preferred scale inhibitor is phosphoric acid (also known as orthophosphoric acid), a colorless, odorless liquid or transparent, crystalline solid, depending on concentration and temperature. The pure acid (100% strength) is in the form of crystals that melt at about 42° C. and lose ½ mole of water at 213° C. to form pyrophosphoric acid.
The scale inhibitor may be a phosphate salt—a group of salts formed by neutralization of phosphorous or phosphoric acid with a base, such as NaOH or KOH. Orthophosphates are phosphoric acid (H 3 PO 4 ) salts, where 1, 2 or 3 of the hydrogen ions are neutralized. Neutralization with NaOH gives three sodium orthophosphates: (a) monosodium phosphate (MSP), (b) disodium phosphate (DSP) or (c) trisodium phosphate (TSP). Their solutions are buffers in the 4.6 to 12 pH range. All will precipitate hardness ions such as calcium.
By utilizing this method the wellbore fluid may be treated downhole with other chemicals as well including inhibitors such as corrosion inhibitors, emulsion breakers, surfactants, chemicals to prevent the deposition of paraffin, hydrogen sulfide scavengers.
It will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that each chemical agent in media 30 and/or 31 will become depleted in use as production fluids flow over media 30 and/or 31 dissolving or desorbing the chemical agent. If the chemical agent is a liquid at the temperatures and pressures existing in the downhole environment, filter assembly 116 may be equipped with a capillary tube recharge means as illustrated in FIG. 6 .
FIG. 6 depicts the multi-layer embodiment of FIG. 3 with the addition of capillary tubes 136 and 138 that are in fluid communication with annular spaces 32 and 33 , respectively, via openings 36 in top plate 18 . When the concentration of chemical agents in the production fluid(s) falls to an ineffective level, porous media 30 and/or 31 may be recharged by providing chemical agents into annular spaces 32 and 33 via capillary tubes 136 and/or 138 from the surface. The chemical agent may be moved through the capillary tubes 136 and/or 138 , by gravity, pumping from the surface, pumping from downhole, gas pressure, pumping from a reservoir or any other method of moving a gas, liquid, fine solid, or solid in liquid suspension through a relatively long tube. Once the chemical agent is brought into contact with the medium the chemical agent is absorbed into porous medium 30 (and/or 31 ), recharging it. In an alternative embodiment shown in FIG. 7 , the capillary tubes 236 and 238 pass through openings 36 in the top plate 18 so as to disperse the recharging chemicals along the length of the annuli 32 and 33 through perforations 240 in the capillary tubes 236 and 238 .
As shown in the transverse, cross-sectional view of FIG. 12A , capillary tube(s) 35 may be formed in wall 38 of production tubing 12 . Alternatively, as illustrated in FIG. 12B , capillary tubes may be contained within notches 37 in wall 38 of production tubing 12 . Bands or straps [not shown] at intervals along the production tubing may be used to retain capillary tube(s) within notches 37 . Chemical agent that may be in liquid, gas, or solid powder form or combinations thereof, may be introduced into filter assembly 116 by means of wall capillary tube 35 , thereby avoiding the addition of separate capillary tubes such as 136 and 138 to the apparatus, which may be more susceptible to mechanical damage within the well bore. The chemical agent employed may be the reaction product of two or more reactants. If, for example, the chemical agent were hazardous to handle, it could be produced in situ by introducing the reactants that form the agent by means of separate wall capillary tubes 35 . Similarly, binary or ternary chemical agents could be created in situ with the relative amount of each component selected depending on operating conditions. Additionally, if the chemical agent is heat activated, the line carrying the specific chemical could be routed through cooling passages in the artificial lift system [not shown] where the excess heat from the artificial lift system could heat the chemical to at least the desired temperature. Thus, the chemical could be heated while serving as a coolant for the artificial lift system.
If the chemical agent is a solid-phase material that dissolves in the production fluid(s), downhole replenishment of the chemical agent supply may be accomplished with the apparatus shown in longitudinal cross section in FIG. 8 . In the particular embodiment illustrated, the dual-layer filter assembly of FIG. 3 is modified by the addition of extension 40 comprising outer wall 41 , intermediate wall 44 and top plate 43 Outer wall 41 , intermediate wall 44 , top plate 43 , and the inner wall may be impervious to production fluids and assembled in a fluid tight manner. Annular space 42 of extension 40 defined by outer wall 41 , inner wall 44 , top plate 43 and the inner wall is an extensions of annular space 33 . Annular space 42 may therefore function as a supply hopper for the chemical agent exposed to the production fluids in annular space 33 of filter assembly 116 . As the solid phase chemical agent is dissolved from annular space 33 , fresh chemical agent from annular space 42 will fall into annular spaces 33 under the influence of gravity.
FIG. 9 illustrates an alternative embodiment having separate annular hoppers for replenishing the chemical agents in annular spaces 32 and 33 . Inner tubular 14 , the artificial lift system housing 100 , and the production tubular 12 form an inner wall. Outer wall 41 , intermediate wall 44 , top plate 43 , and the inner wall may be impervious to production fluids and assembled in a fluid tight manner. Annular spaces 42 and 142 of extension 40 defined by outer wall 41 , inner wall 44 , top plate 43 and the inner wall are extensions of annular spaces 32 and 33 . Annular spaces 42 and 142 may therefore function as supply hoppers for each chemical agent exposed to the production fluids in annular spaces 32 or 33 of filter assembly 116 . As the solid phase chemical agent is dissolved from annular spaces 32 and 33 , fresh chemical agent from annular space 42 and 142 will fall into annular spaces 32 and 33 under the influence of gravity. Such an apparatus may employ chemical agents having different phases. For example hopper 142 may contain a liquid agent while hopper 42 contains a solid chemical treatment agent.
In this way, the useful life of the filter assembly with the treating chemicals may be extended. Since oil and gas wells may be thousands of feet deep, there is typically ample volume in the annular space between the production casing and the production tubing to accommodate an extension 40 of significant capacity. The length of extension 40 is limited only by the availability of annular space between the production tubing and the casing. In alternative embodiments the extension 40 or even a separate hopper assembly [not shown] could be refilled by using a capillary or feed tube system. In another embodiment the extension 40 could be attached to the filter assembly as a separate hopper that could be refilled by retrieving the hopper. One means for retrieving the hopper could be by using a wireline.
If the chemical agent is a liquid-phase material, a downhole reservoir of the agent may be provided and utilized by means of the apparatus shown in longitudinal cross section in FIG. 10 . While a single-layer filter may be utilized, in the particular embodiment illustrated, filter assembly 116 is the at least dual-layer type shown in FIG. 3 . Chemical agent reservoir 60 is adapted to be located in the annular space between the production tubing and the production casing. Reservoir 60 may be connected to supply conduit 62 via coupling 64 . Coupling 64 may be a quick-connect type of coupling that permits reservoir 60 to be wireline retrievable for refilling at the surface. Supply conduit 62 provides a fluid connection between reservoir 60 and annular space 33 of filter assembly 116 via valve or metering means 66 . The flow of liquid phase chemical agent from reservoir 60 to the filter assembly 16 may be regulated by time and/or volume by valve/metering means 66 . Valve 66 could be adjusted by sending a signal down the ESP cable or with an I-wire. Valve 66 may also comprise a metering pump which may, in certain embodiments, be electrically or hydraulically powered. The pump discharge pressure could also be utilized to adjust the valve or operate the hydraulic metering pump. When the pump is turned off the drop in discharge pressure could shut the valve and stop the flow of chemicals. Within annular space 33 , a distribution means may be provided for distributing the chemical agent in a desired pattern throughout the medium 30 . The distribution means may be a fluid conduit having a plurality of orifices sized to provide a desired delivery rate of the chemical agent to medium 30 . Reservoir 60 may be pressurized by a compressed gas in the head space above the chemical agent. Alternatively, the chemical agent may be contained within an elastomeric bladder contained within reservoir 60 and the surrounding space pressurized to provide a supply of chemical agent under pressure. In yet other embodiments, reservoir 60 may be provided with pressure equalization means to permit gravity flow of chemical agent from reservoir 60 to annular space 33 .
FIG. 11 depicts one alternative embodiment of the invention illustrated in FIG. 10 wherein annular space 400 within well casing 404 above packer 402 replaces reservoir 60 . In certain embodiments, packer 402 may be a cup packer. A chemical treatment agent (which may be a liquid-phase substance) may be inserted into annular space 400 before, during or after installation of artificial lift pump 406 .
FIG. 13 depicts an embodiment of the invention wherein filter assembly 116 is positioned above pump 100 . This configuration permits filter assembly 116 to be wireline retrievable from the surface for maintenance and/or recharging of chemical agent without necessarily removing the artificial lift system. In the particular embodiment illustrated, pump 100 is shaft-driven from motor 84 through motor seal 82 and concentric inlet 80 . Filter assembly 16 comprises removable upper section 89 and lower section 88 that form a fluid-tight connection around motor seal 82 . In alternative embodiments, lower section 88 may encompass motor 84 or may seal to motor 84 . The arrows in FIG. 13 depict the direction of production fluid flow from the surrounding formation, into filter assembly 116 where sand and fines are mechanically filtered out and the fluid(s) are treated with chemical agent which dissolves or desorbs from medium 30 in annular space 32 . The fluid then flows downward (under the influence of the pressure differential created by pump 100 ) through annular space 81 and into pump intake 80 where it enters pump 100 and is lifted to the surface via production tubing 12 .
FIG. 14 depicts another embodiment of the invention wherein filter assembly 202 is positioned above pump 100 . In the configuration depicted filter assembly 202 includes one or more intermediate tubulars 204 [only a single intermediate tubular is shown for clarity] and thus filter assembly 202 has at least two annular spaces, 206 and 208 . It will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that multiple intermediate walls may be incorporated into filter assembly 202 and thus multiple annular spaces may be defined within the apparatus. Each annular space may be used to contain a different medium to provide various functions—e.g., graduated mechanical filtration and/or treatment with different chemical agents. Intermediate wall 204 may comprise a screen, perforated tubular, or other type of porous material. Filter bottom plate 212 is non-porous so as to force fluid that enters the outermost, as fluid flows into the filter assembly from the exterior, of multiple annular spaces 208 to enter into the innermost of any number of subsequent annular spaces 206 . It is understood that any additional annular spaces between the outermost annular space 208 and innermost annular space 206 would most preferably have a non-porous bottom plate to force fluid into enter into any number of subsequent annular spaces. filter assembly 202 is preferably designed such that wellbore fluid will pass from the exterior 216 of external tubular 218 through external tubular 218 through any medium 220 through any intermediate tubulars 204 through any additional medium 210 through artificial lift assembly intake 224 and into the central passage 28 of internal tubular 24 . This configuration permits filter assembly 202 to be wireline retrievable from the surface for maintenance and/or recharging of chemical agent without necessarily removing the artificial lift system.
In some instances, gas that may be present in the wellbore fluid may damage the artificial lift system 230 by causing the pump to cavitate, run at excessive speed, or repeatedly load and unload the artificial lift system. The embodiment depicted in FIG. 14 also allows for gas/fluid separation before the fluid enters the artificial lift assembly 230 in well conditions where the wellbore fluid has a significant amount of gas present by shrouding the artificial lift system intake and forcing the wellbore fluid to reverse direction thus causing a low pressure condition above the pump where entrained gas will be removed from the fluid. By removing the gas above the pump, the gas will rise up and away from the artificial lift system intake 224 . In the particular embodiment illustrated, pump 232 is shaft-driven from motor 236 through motor seal 234 and artificial lift system intake 224 . Filter assembly 202 comprises removable upper section 240 and lower section 242 that form a fluid-tight connection around motor seal 234 . Upper section 240 may be releasably joined to lower section 242 by connector 203 . In alternative embodiments, lower section 242 may encompass motor 236 , in which case the fluid flow may also provide cooling for the motor or may seal to motor 236 . The arrows in FIG. 14 depict the direction of production fluid flow from the surrounding formation into filter assembly 202 where sand and fines are mechanically filtered out and the fluid(s) are treated with chemical agent which dissolves or desorbs from the at least one medium 220 in annular space 208 . The fluid then flows downward under the influence of the pressure differential created by pump 232 through annular space 246 and into artificial lift system intake 224 where it enters pump 232 and is lifted to the surface via production tubing 226 .
Yet another embodiment of the invention is shown in longitudinal cross section in FIG. 15 . In this embodiment, filter assembly 16 is situated between pump 100 and pump motor 84 . Pump 100 is driven by pump motor 84 by means of shaft 90 , which may be exposed to the production fluids. The filter assembly 16 is connected to the motor seal 82 . The embodiment illustrated in FIG. 15 may include a head unit 94 which contains at least one relief valve 96 . The relief valve 96 may be configured to open at a pre-selected differential pressure to prevent pump 100 from cavitating or otherwise being damaged if filter 16 becomes blocked. The apparatus may also be equipped with signaling means for alerting operators that the bypass valves 96 have opened and the filter assembly should be retrieved and serviced.
FIG. 16 is an alternative to the embodiment shown in FIG. 15 . In this embodiment, screen 22 is in the interior of the filter apparatus and forms the wall of central conduit 102 . Outer wall 104 and screen 22 are in a spaced apart relationship so that at least one annulus 252 is created. At least one medium 250 resides in that at least one annulus 252 to allow for treatment of the wellbore fluid before the wellbore fluid enters into the artificial lift system 254 . Outer wall 104 comprises openings 26 that may be relatively large compared to the effective openings in screen 22 . In this embodiment, relatively more sand and fines may enter the filter assembly through openings 26 so that screen 22 is the final barrier to such contaminates prior to entry of the production fluid(s) into central conduit 102 and lift system 254 .
While the present invention has been described with respect to a limited number of embodiments, those skilled in the art will appreciate numerous modifications and variations therefrom. It is intended that the appended claims cover all such modifications and variations as fall within the true spirit and scope of the invention. | A fluid conditioning system designed to be installed between the well perforation and the intake of a pump used to effect artificial lift is used to filter and chemically treat production fluids. The fluid conditioning system is an apparatus that provides scale inhibitors and/or other chemical treatments into the production stream. In some embodiments, the fluid conditioning system may be a part of the production stream filter wherein the filtering material is comprised of a porous medium that contains and supports the treatment chemical. In other embodiments, the chemical treatment may be accomplished by the gradual dissolution of a solid phase chemical. The treating chemical may be recharged or replenished by various downhole reservoirs or feeding means. In yet other embodiments, the treating chemical may be replenished from the surface by means of a capillary tube. In certain other embodiments, the apparatus may be retrievable from the surface thereby permitting recharge or replenishment of the chemical in the apparatus on an as-needed basis. The filtration apparatus may incorporate a bypass valve that allows fluid to by-pass the filter as sand or other particulate matter fills up or blocks the filter. | Identify the most important claim in the given context and summarize it | [
"CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS This application is a division of U.S. patent application Ser.",
"No. 10/892,524 filed Jul. 15, 2004, and now issued as U.S. Pat. No. 7,195,070, which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety.",
"BACKGROUND 1.",
"Field of the Invention This invention relates to oil and gas well production technology.",
"More particularly, it relates to the in situ treatment of fluids produced by an artificial lift oil well to inhibit the formation of scale inside and outside of production tubing, pumps, valves, and the like and to reduce the amount of solids that enter the pump.",
"Description of the Related Art A typical oil well produces not only oil, but also gas and water, often in significant quantity.",
"The fluids often transport solids, such as sand, as well as other potentially damaging fluids and gases, from the reservoir into the production tubing and casing, and up the production tubing to the surface.",
"Equipment on the surface may be used to separate these production components.",
"The oil is recovered;",
"the gas, depending on its composition, may be filtered, treated and piped to a collection facility or flared off;",
"the water may be re-injected into another formation or, in the case of offshore production platforms, treated to prevent environmental contamination and then discharged overboard;",
"and the solids are separated and disposed of.",
"The oil and water produced by oil and gas wells often contains significant quantities of dissolved minerals.",
"Frequently, the water is saturated with these minerals—i.e., the water contains the maximum concentration of the dissolved minerals possible at a given temperature and pressure.",
"Changes in temperature and/or pressure which occur as the fluid is pumped from the production zone through the well to the treatment equipment on the surface can cause the minerals to come out of solution (“precipitate”) and become deposited on the interior and exterior surfaces of the production tubing, pumps, valves, chokes and other equipment.",
"The deposit is known as “scale”",
"and it can significantly reduce the diameter and hence the capacity of production tubing.",
"In extreme cases, the pipe or tubing can become completely obstructed, shutting down production.",
"Even in less severe cases, where the fluid is not saturated, scale can build up on the interior and exterior of any exposed surface.",
"Certain dissolved minerals in water are known as “hardness ions”",
"—divalent cations that include calcium (Ca +2 ), magnesium (Mg +2 ) and ferrous (Fe +1 ) ions.",
"Hardness ions develop from dissolved minerals, bicarbonate, carbonate, sulfate and chloride.",
"Heating water containing bicarbonate salts can cause the precipitation of a calcium carbonate solid.",
"Raising the pH can allow the Mg +2 and Fe +2 ions to precipitate as Fe(OH) 2 and Mg(OH) 2 .",
"Excess sodium carbonate can precipitate Ca +2 as CaCO 3 .",
"Precipitation is the formation of an insoluble material in a solution.",
"Precipitation may occur by a chemical reaction of two or more ions in solution or by changing the temperature of a saturated solution.",
"There are many examples of this important phenomenon in drilling fluids.",
"Precipitation occurs in the reaction between calcium cations and carbonate anions to form insoluble calcium carbonate: Ca+2+CO3−2→CaCO3.",
"Scale is a mineral salt deposit or coating formed on the surface of metal, rock or other material.",
"Scale may be caused by a precipitation resulting from a chemical reaction with the surface on which it forms, precipitation caused by chemical reactions, a change in pressure or temperature, or a change in the composition of a solution.",
"The term “scale”",
"is also applied to a corrosion product.",
"Typical scales are calcium carbonate, calcium sulfate, barium sulfate, strontium sulfate, iron sulfide, iron oxides, iron carbonate, the various silicates and phosphates and oxides, or any of a number of compounds insoluble or slightly soluble in water.",
"Scale may be deposited on wellbore tubulars, down hole equipment, and related components as the saturation of produced water is affected by changing temperature and pressure conditions in the production conduit.",
"In severe conditions, scale creates a significant restriction, or even a plug, in the production tubing.",
"Scale build-up in the artificial lift pump can lead to failure of the pump due to blocked flow passages and broken shafts.",
"Scale removal is a common well-intervention operation.",
"A wide range of mechanical, chemical and scale inhibitor treatment options are available to effect scale removal.",
"Scale can also occur in tubing, the gravel pack, the perforations or the formation itself.",
"Scale deposition occurs when the solution equilibrium of the water is disturbed by pressure and temperature changes, dissolved gases or incompatibility between mixing waters.",
"Scale deposits are the most common and most troublesome damage problems in the oil field and can occur in both production and injection wells.",
"All waters used in well operations can be potential sources of scale, including water used in waterflood operations and filtrate from completion, workover or treating fluids.",
"Therefore, reduction of scale deposition is directly related to reducing the amount of bad water that is produced.",
"Carbonate scale is usually granular and sometimes very porous.",
"A carbonate scale can be easily identified by dropping it in a solution of hydrochloric acid where bubbles of carbon dioxide will be observed effervescing from the surface of the scale.",
"Sulphate scales are harder and more dense.",
"A sulphate deposit is brittle and does not effervesce when dropped in acid.",
"Silica scales resemble porcelain—they are very brittle, not soluble in acid, but dissolve slowly in alkali.",
"Scale removal is a common well-intervention operation involving a wide variety of mechanical scale-inhibitor treatments and chemical options.",
"Mechanical removal may be done by means of a pig or by abrasive jetting that cuts scale but leaves the tubing intact.",
"Scale-inhibition treatments involve squeezing a chemical inhibitor into a water-producing zone for subsequent commingling with produced fluids, preventing further scale precipitation.",
"Chemical removal is performed with different solvents according to the type of scale: Carbonate scales such as calcium carbonate or calcite [CaCO 3 ] can be readily dissolved with hydrochloric acid [HCl] at temperatures less than 250° F. [121° C.].",
"Sulfate scales such as gypsum [CaSO 4 [.",
"].2H 2 O] or anhydrite [CaSO 4 ] can be readily dissolved using ethylenediamine tetraacetic acid (EDTA).",
"The dissolution of barytine [BaSO 4 ] or strontianite [SrSO 4 ] is much more difficult.",
"Chloride scales such as sodium chloride [NaCl] are easily dissolved with fresh water or weak acidic solutions, including HCl or acetic acid.",
"Iron scales such as iron sulfide [FeS] or iron oxide [Fe 2 O 3 ] can be dissolved using HCl with sequestering or reducing agents to avoid precipitation of by-products, for example iron hydroxides and elemental sulfur.",
"Silica scales such as crystallized deposits of chalcedony or amorphous opal normally associated with steamflood projects can be dissolved with hydrofluoric acid [HF].",
"Calcium scales such as calcium sulfate, calcium carbonate and calcium oxalate are insoluble in water.",
"However, all three are soluble in a Sodium Bisulfate acid solution.",
"Calcium scale can be removed with an acid wash using a 5-15% solution of Sodium Bisulfate (SBS).",
"SBS can also be used during a shut down to remove scale by re-circulating it throughout areas of the process where needed.",
"The concentration of SBS solutions and the re-circulation time depend on the amount of scale that needs to be removed.",
"SBS can be a substitute for sulfamic acid in calcium scale removal situations.",
"Zinc sulfide (ZnS) is another one of the oil field scales that plagues production.",
"Although it does not seem to be common, according to field experience and published literature, it causes a significant flow/production problem when it does occur, just as all other scales adversely affect wells.",
"Other scales, such as barium sulfate and strontium sulfate, also cause production problems but are much harder than ZnS.",
"Although chemical solvents have been used on these harder scales, the results are often disappointing.",
"While mechanical scale removal has been used successfully on barium and strontium sulfate scales with excellent success, it had not been used on ZnS scale.",
"It was conceivable that the softer scale may not respond to the same process that removed harder scales.",
"In certain cases, scale may be an environmental or health hazard.",
"The State of Louisiana, Department of Environmental Quality has issued a notification concerning a potential health hazard associated with handling pipe used in oil and gas production that may be contaminated with radioactive scale from naturally-occurring radioactive materials (NORM).",
"The concern is the possible inhalation and/or ingestion of scale particles contaminated with radium-226 and possibly other radioactive material that may become airborne during welding, cutting or reaming pipe that contains radioactive scale.",
"The State of Louisiana is using the term Technologically Enhanced Natural Radiation (TENR) for this material that is a subset of the NORM group.",
"An inhibitor is a chemical agent added to a fluid system to retard or prevent an undesirable reaction that occurs within the fluid or with the materials present in the surrounding environment.",
"A range of inhibitors is commonly used in the production and servicing of oil and gas wells, such as corrosion inhibitors used in acidizing treatments to prevent damage to wellbore components and inhibitors used during production to control the effect of hydrogen sulfide [H 2 S] A scale inhibitor is a chemical agent added to a fluid system to retard or prevent an undesirable reaction that occurs within the fluid or with the materials present in the surrounding environment.",
"A range of inhibitors is commonly used in the production and servicing of oil and gas wells, such as corrosion inhibitors used in acidizing treatments to prevent damage to wellbore components and inhibitors used during production to control the effect of hydrogen sulfide [H 2 S] A sequestering agent (or chelation agent) is a chemical whose molecular structure can envelop and hold a certain type of ion in a stable and soluble complex.",
"Divalent cations, such as hardness ions, form stable and soluble complex structures with several types of sequestering chemicals.",
"When held inside the complex, the ions have a limited ability to react with other ions, clays or polymers.",
"Ethylenediamine tetraacetic acid (EDTA) is a well-known sequestering agent for the hardness ions, such as Ca +2 , and is the reagent solution used in the hardness test protocol published by API.",
"Polyphosphates can also sequester hardness ions.",
"Sequestering is not the same as precipitation because sequestering does not form a solid.",
"For calcium carbonate deposits, glycolic and citric acids and ammonium salts and blends incorporating EDTA are used as chelants.",
"A scale-inhibitor squeeze is a type of inhibition treatment used to control or prevent scale deposition.",
"In a scale-inhibitor squeeze, the inhibitor is pumped into a water-producing zone.",
"The inhibitor is attached to the formation matrix by chemical adsorption or by temperature-activated precipitation and returns with the produced fluid at sufficiently high concentrations to avoid scale precipitation.",
"Some chemicals used in scale-inhibitor squeezes are phosphonated carboxylic acids or various polymers.",
"Some scale-inhibitor systems integrate scale inhibitors and fracture treatments into one step, which guarantees that the entire well is treated with scale inhibitor.",
"In this type of treatment, a high-efficiency scale inhibitor is pumped into the matrix surrounding the fracture face during leakoff.",
"It adsorbs to the matrix during pumping until the fracture begins to produce water.",
"As water passes through the inhibitor-adsorbed zone, it dissolves sufficient inhibitor to prevent scale deposition.",
"The inhibitor is better placed than in a conventional scale-inhibitor squeeze, which reduces the re-treatment cost and improves production.",
"Some well treatment systems continuously inject the treating chemical in the well using a metering pump.",
"The chemicals are either injected below the pump using a capillary line or injected into the well annulus.",
"When chemicals are injected into the well annulus the chemicals build up in the well bore until the pump pulls them down the wellbore and into the pump intake.",
"Due to the time that it takes for the chemicals to reach the pump, changes in chemical mix or injection rates are very slow to affect the fluids entering the pump.",
"If the pump intake is above the electric motor in an Electric Submersible Pump, ESP installation, the chemicals do not protect the motor or the casing below the pump intake.",
"In capillary injection systems, the location of the chemical injection can be determined when the system is installed by terminating the capillary tube below the pump intake/motor combination in an ESP completion.",
"The capillary injection tube provides continuous treatment of the fluids and the time delay for adjustments to the blend of chemicals and/or treatment rate can be minimized.",
"Sand produced with the fluids can cause damage to pumping systems.",
"Abrasion resistant pumps with engineered ceramic bearings and coated flow passages have been developed to improve pump life in wells that produce sand, but sand will eventually wear out even these special sand-tolerant pumps.",
"One practice for removing sand from the fluid is by installing a liquid and sand separator between the casing perforations and the pump intake.",
"These systems deposit the separated sand into the well's rat hole or into tubing hung from the bottom of the separator as a trap.",
"Wilson discloses a means for removal of sand separated with a downhole sand separator in U.S. Pat. No. 6,216,788.",
"Gravel packing is a sand-control method used to prevent the production of formation sand.",
"It involves the placement of selected gravel across the production interval to prevent the production of formation fines or sand.",
"Any gap or interruption in the pack coverage may permit undesirable sand or fines to enter the producing system.",
"In gravel pack operations, a steel screen is placed in the wellbore and the surrounding annulus is then packed with prepared gravel of a specific size that is designed to prevent the passage of formation sand.",
"The primary objective is to stabilize the formation while causing minimal impairment to well productivity.",
"Wire-wrapped screen is one type of screen used in sand control applications to support the gravel pack.",
"The profiled wire is wrapped and welded in place on a perforated liner.",
"Wire-wrapped screen is available in a range of sizes and specifications, including outside diameter, material type and the geometry and dimension of the screen slots.",
"The space between each wire wrap must be small enough to retain the gravel placed behind the screen, yet minimize any restriction of production.",
"A sand filter as described by Stanley in U.S. Pat. No. 4,977,958 is used to filter the sand out of the fluid prior to entering the pump intake.",
"This style of intake filter has been installed in numerous wells and is effective for removal of solids, but once the filter is full of sand, fluid flow through the filter is restricted and a large pressure drop occurs.",
"As the pressure drop increases, the rate of sand accumulation increases causing the rate of pressure drop to increase until eventually the fluid flow across the filter ceases.",
"When fluid flow to the pump ceases, the pump will cavitate and eventually fail.",
"SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION A fluid conditioning system is installed between the well perforations and the intake of a pump used to effect artificial lift.",
"The fluid conditioning system is an apparatus that provides scale inhibitors and/or other chemical treatments into the production stream.",
"The production stream may also be filtered by the apparatus prior to the production stream's introduction into the pump.",
"In some embodiments, the fluid conditioning system may be a part of the production stream filter wherein the filtering material is comprised of a porous medium that contains and supports the treatment chemical.",
"In other embodiments, the chemical treatment may be accomplished by the gradual dissolution of the unsupported solid phase chemical itself.",
"The treating chemical may be recharged or replenished by various downhole reservoirs or feeding means.",
"In yet other embodiments, the chemical treatment may be replenished from the surface by means of a capillary tube.",
"In certain other embodiments, the apparatus may be retrievable from the surface by means of a wireline or coil tubing thereby permitting recharge or replenishment of the chemical in the apparatus on an as-needed or periodic basis.",
"The filtration apparatus may incorporate a by-pass valve that allows fluid to by-pass the filter as sand or other particulate matter fills up or blocks the filter.",
"BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING FIGURES FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view of an artificial lift pump equipped with an intake screen having a single-layer treatment space.",
"FIG. 2 is a typical flow curve for a by-pass valve.",
"FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view of an artificial lift pump equipped with an intake screen having at least two annular treatment spaces.",
"FIG. 4 depicts the apparatus of FIG. 3 additionally equipped with a packer, shear sub and cross-over sub.",
"FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view of the intake screen portion of the apparatus shown in FIG. 4 taken along line V-V.",
"FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view of an artificial lift pump equipped with a multiple layer intake screen having capillary tube recharge means.",
"FIG. 7 is an alternative embodiment of the apparatus shown in FIG. 6 which includes means for distributed recharge of the treatment chemicals.",
"FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional view of an artificial lift pump equipped with a dual-layer intake screen equipped with a downhole replenishment means for solid-phase chemicals.",
"FIG. 9 is an alternative embodiment of the apparatus shown in FIG. 8 which has means downhole replenishment of both solid-phase and liquid-phase chemicals.",
"FIG. 10 is a cross-sectional view of an artificial lift pump that has a dual-layer intake screen equipped with a downhole replenishment means for liquid-phase chemicals.",
"FIG. 11 is a cross-sectional view of an alternative embodiment of the apparatus shown in FIG. 10 .",
"FIGS. 12A and 12B are cross-sectional views of production tubing having capillary tubing incorporated within their wall structure.",
"FIG. 13 is a cross-sectional view of an artificial lift pump equipped with a wireline (or slickline) retrievable, chemical treatment intake screen.",
"FIG. 14 is an alternative embodiment of the apparatus shown in FIG. 13 that further comprises an extension of the shroud around the pump and intake sections.",
"FIG. 15 is a cross-sectional view of a shaft-driven artificial lift pump equipped with a chemical treatment intake screen situated between the pump and its driving motor.",
"FIG. 16 is a cross-sectional view of an alternative embodiment of the apparatus of FIG. 15 wherein the screen is located within the interior portion of the intake filter.",
"DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION Advances in electric motor technology have made Electric Submersible Pumps (ESPs) an increasingly popular method of providing artificial lift for oil wells.",
"Operating in the harsh conditions of the downhole environment, an ESP must be protected from ingesting corrosive, abrasive, or any other detrimental substance in the production fluids in order to provide a Mean Time Between Failure (MTBF) that justifies its use on an economic basis.",
"In addition, treating the production fluids while downhole minimizes the potential hazards involved in bringing the production fluids to the surface while the production fluids may contain any detrimental substance.",
"Moreover, scale build-up in production tubing and pump chambers must also be controlled in order to decrease the number of well interventions or workovers needed during the useful life of an oil well.",
"The present invention is a novel apparatus and method which combines the functions of preventing fines or sand from entering the pump with the introduction of a scale inhibitor or other chemical treatments into the production stream prior to entering the pump.",
"In an alternative embodiment the production stream may be treated for environmental hazards after entering the pump.",
"Referring now to FIG. 1 , artificial lift system 10 includes pump 100 attached at its outlet end to production tubing 12 and at its inlet to inlet connector 14 which is in fluid communication with filter assembly 16 .",
"Filter assembly 16 is preferably designed such that wellbore fluid will pass from the exterior 21 of external tubular 22 through external tubular 22 through any medium 30 through internal tubular 24 and into the central passage 28 of internal tubular 24 .",
"Artificial lift system 10 may be generally circular in cross section and sized to fit within the production casing of a well [not shown].",
"In some embodiments, pump 100 may be an ESP that receives electrical power from the surface via an electrical cable within the well bore [not shown].",
"Filter assembly 16 comprises top plate 18 and bottom plate 20 .",
"Top plate 18 allows internal tubular 24 to pass through its center portion and may be joined to inlet connector 14 in a fluid tight manner.",
"Top plate 18 and bottom plate 20 are connected by an external tubular 22 and by an internal tubular 24 .",
"The external tubular 22 may be a screen or other type of porous structure that allows a desired wellbore fluid to pass from one side of the tubular to the other while restraining the passage of undesired wellbore fluids or solids.",
"The internal tubular 24 may be a screen or other type of porous structure that allows a desired wellbore fluid to pass from one side of the tubular to the other while restraining the passage of undesired wellbore fluids or solids.",
"Together, external tubular 22 and internal tubular 24 define annular space 32 which may be used to contain medium 30 [partially shown in FIG. 1 for clarity].",
"Should the filter assembly 16 become at least partially clogged with solid or other matter that may be present in the wellbore such that wellbore fluid can no longer pass through the filter assembly 16 and reach the artificial lift system 10 then the artificial lift system 10 may be severely damaged.",
"Such damage may result from such causes as pump cavitation.",
"In cases where the wellbore fluid is used to cool the artificial lift system's motor, a partially clogged filter assembly may reduce the flow of cooling wellbore fluid to the extent that motor overheating may also occur.",
"In order to prevent such damage to the artificial lift system, a by-pass valve 132 may be installed.",
"Typically, although not always, the bottom plate 20 may have an opening through its center that allows fluid to pass directly from the well-bore into the central passage 28 of the internal tubular 24 .",
"A by-pass valve 132 is located in the opening through the bottom plate 20 .",
"The by-pass valve 132 may be a ball valve, a spring-loaded valve, a poppet valve, a shear assembly, rupture disc, or any other type of valve that may be activated to relieve differential pressure.",
"In some embodiments when the pressure drop across the screen equals the by-pass setting, the by-pass valve 132 partially opens and wellbore fluid is allowed to by-pass the filter assembly 16 .",
"As fluid by-passes the filter assembly 16 , the flow rate through the filter is reduced;",
"thus, the pressure drop is reduced for the matter-packed filter.",
"With the by-pass valve 132 partially open, a portion of the wellbore fluid flows into the central passage 28 through the filter assembly and a portion flows into the central passage 28 through the by-pass valve 132 .",
"The proportions of wellbore fluid that pass through the filter assembly 16 and the by-pass valve 132 can be represented by Q (total flow)=Qf (flow through filter assembly)+Qb (by-pass flow).",
"As time passes, Qf will be reduced as more wellbore matter packs into the filter assembly 16 and the P (pressure) drop increases for a given flow rate thus causing Qb to increase.",
"A typical flow curve is illustrated in FIG. 2 .",
"As the pressure drop across the filter assembly 16 increases, a larger fraction of the total flow passes through the bypass valve 132 .",
"Those skilled in the art will appreciate that different bypass valve designs will exhibit different flow curves.",
"In an alternative embodiment, where a by-pass valve 132 is provided, the by-pass valve 132 could open just prior to the point at which wellbore fluid flow is reduced to the level that damage to the artificial lift system is predicted to occur.",
"In addition, activation of the bypass valve should alert the operator on the surface that the filter assembly 16 might require service.",
"Such service may be in the form of removal of the entire artificial lift system and filter assembly, reverse operation of the artificial lift system, or back-flushing fluid through the system from the surface so as to force out matter that may have accumulated in the filter assembly.",
"External tubular 22 may be any porous material with sufficient corrosion resistance and structural strength to withstand the torque, well obstructions, tension loading, compression loading, pressure differentials or any other conditions that may be encountered during insertion in the production casing and operation of the artificial lift system.",
"In certain embodiments, external tubular 22 may be a wire mesh screen.",
"In other embodiments, external tubular 22 may be a wire-wound screen.",
"Stainless steels are a particularly preferred screen material owing to their mechanical strength and corrosion resistance.",
"The screen may comprise a mechanical support for providing structural integrity.",
"The screen may be selected to provide the desired opening size to exclude the sand and/or fines encountered in a particular well environment.",
"Internal tubular 24 may also be a screen or, in other embodiments, may comprise a pipe having openings or perforations 26 .",
"Openings 26 may also be size-selected for a particular application.",
"Openings 26 may comprise holes or slots in the wall of internal tubular 24 .",
"Internal tubular 24 defines central passage 28 that is in fluid communication with inlet connector 14 of pump 100 .",
"Annular space 32 may be occupied by medium 30 which may be a porous medium such as pumice—a highly-porous igneous rock, usually containing 67 to 75% SiO 2 and 10 to 20% Al 2 O 3 .",
"Potassium, sodium and calcium are generally present.",
"Pumice has a glassy texture.",
"It is insoluble in water and not attacked by acids.",
"It is commercially available in lump or powdered form (coarse, medium and fine).",
"Medium 30 , when impregnated with a chemical agent, may be used to perform at least two functions: 1) mechanical filtration;",
"and, 2) treatment of the fluid(s) flowing into the inlet of pump 100 with the chemical agent.",
"The mechanical filtration function excludes sand, fines, and other wellbore matter, including highly viscous fluids that are not blocked by external tubular 22 .",
"The extent of this mechanical filtration is determined, at least in part, by the particle size and packing density of medium 30 .",
"Accordingly, the composition of medium 30 , its particle size and its loading within annular space 32 may be optimized for various well conditions.",
"The size and configuration of openings 26 in internal tubular 24 may be optimally chosen to exclude medium 30 while providing the minimum restriction to flow of the production fluids.",
"Alternatively, the size and configuration of openings 26 in internal tubular 24 may be chosen to provide another level of wellbore fluid filtration, where even smaller particles of matter are excluded from the central passage 28 .",
"Top plate 18 and/or bottom plate 20 may be removable to facilitate charging filter assembly with medium 30 .",
"In some embodiments, medium 30 may be the chemical agent in a solid form that slowly dissolves in the production fluids.",
"In such embodiments, the physical filtering function of medium 30 dissipates over time and hence external tubular 22 and internal tubular 24 should be selected to provide sufficient sand, fines, or other matter exclusion to adequately protect pump 100 .",
"Referring now to FIG. 3 , artificial lift system 10 includes pump 100 attached at its outlet end to production tubing 12 and at its inlet to inlet connector 14 which is in fluid communication with filter assembly 116 .",
"Filter assembly 116 includes one or more intermediate tubulars 25 [only a single intermediate tubular is shown for clarity] and thus filter assembly 116 has at least two annular spaces, 32 and 33 .",
"It will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that multiple intermediate walls may be incorporated into filter assembly 116 and thus multiple annular spaces may be defined within the apparatus.",
"Each annular space may be used to contain a different medium to provide various functions—e.g., graduated mechanical filtration and/or treatment with different chemical agents.",
"Intermediate wall 25 may comprise a screen, perforated tubular, or other type of porous material.",
"The screen mesh or perforation size may be selected to substantially prevent medium 30 from entering annular space 32 .",
"Filter assembly 116 is preferably designed such that wellbore fluid will pass from the exterior 21 of external tubular 22 through external tubular 22 through any medium 30 through any intermediate tubulars 25 through any additional medium 31 through internal tubular 24 and into the central passage 28 of internal tubular 24 .",
"Artificial lift system 10 may be generally circular in cross section and sized to fit within the production casing of a well [not shown].",
"In some embodiments, pump 100 may be an ESP that receives electrical power from the surface via an electrical cable within the well bore [not shown].",
"Filter assembly 116 comprises top plate 18 and bottom plate 20 .",
"Top plate 18 allows internal tubular 24 to pass through its center portion and may be joined to inlet connector 14 in a fluid tight manner.",
"Top plate 18 and bottom plate 20 are connected by an external tubular 22 and by an internal tubular 24 .",
"The external tubular 22 may be a screen or other type of porous structure that allows a desired wellbore fluid to pass from one side of the tubular to the other while restraining the passage of undesired wellbore fluids or solids.",
"The internal tubular 24 may be a screen or other type of porous structure that allows a desired wellbore fluid to pass from one side of the tubular to the other while restraining the passage of undesired wellbore fluids or solids.",
"Additionally, shown in FIG. 3 , there may be one or more intermediate tubulars 25 that may also comprise a screen or other type of porous structure that allows a desired wellbore fluid to pass from one side of the tubular to the other while restraining the passage of undesired wellbore fluids or solids.",
"Together, external tubular 22 , intermediate tubular 25 , and internal tubular 24 define at least two annular spaces 32 and 33 that may be used to contain at least two media 30 and 31 [partially shown for clarity].",
"Additionally, while not shown, should at least two intermediate tubulars 25 be used, any number of annular spaces may be created between external tubular 22 and internal tubular 24 .",
"The additional annular spaces may be used to contain a plurality of differentiated media.",
"Should the filter assembly 116 (including any intermediate tubulars or media contained in the additional annular spaces created by the intermediate tubulars) become at least partially clogged with solid or other matter that may be present in the wellbore such that wellbore fluid can no longer pass through the filter assembly 116 and reach the artificial lift system 10 , the artificial lift system 10 may be severely damaged.",
"Such damage may result from pump cavitation.",
"In cases where the wellbore fluid is used to cool the artificial lift system's motor a partially clogged filter assembly may reduce the flow of cooling wellbore fluid to the point where motor overheating may also occur.",
"In order to prevent such damage to the pump, motor or drive system a by-pass valve 134 may be installed.",
"Typically, although not always, in the bottom plate 20 .",
"The by-pass valve 134 may be a ball valve, a spring-loaded valve, a poppet valve, a shear assembly, or any other type of valve that may be activated if a sufficient differential pressure is determined to exist.",
"When the pressure drop across the screen equals the by-pass setting, the by-pass valve 134 partially opens and wellbore fluid is allowed to by-pass the filter assembly 116 .",
"As fluid by-passes the filter assembly 116 , the flow rate through the filter is reduced;",
"thus, the pressure drop is reduced for the sand-packed filter.",
"With the by-pass valve 134 partially open, a portion of the wellbore fluid is flowing into the central passage 28 through the filter assembly and a portion is flowing into the central passage 28 through the by-pass valve 134 .",
"The proportions of wellbore fluid that are passing through the filter assembly 116 and the by-pass valve 134 can be represented by Q (total flow)=Qf (flow through filter assembly)+Qb (by-pass flow).",
"As time passes, Qf will be reduced as more wellbore matter packs into the filter assembly 116 and the P (pressure) drop increases for a given flow rate thus causing Qb to increase.",
"A typical flow curve is illustrated in FIG. 2 .",
"As the pressure drop across the filter assembly 116 increases, a larger fraction of the total flow passes through the by-pass valve 134 .",
"Those skilled in the art will appreciate that different bypass valve designs will exhibit different flow curves.",
"In an alternative embodiment where a by-pass valve 134 is provided, the by-pass valve 134 could be opened just prior to the point at which wellbore fluid flow is reduced to the level that is predicted to damage the artificial lift system.",
"In addition, activation of the bypass valve could alert the operator on the surface that the filter assembly 116 might require service.",
"Such service may comprise removal of the entire artificial lift system and filter assembly, reverse operation of the artificial lift system, or back-flushing fluid through the system from the surface so as to force out matter that may have accumulated in the filter assembly.",
"External tubular 22 may be any porous material, including metals, composites or plastics with sufficient corrosion resistance and structural strength to withstand the torque, well obstructions, tension loading, compression loading, pressure differentials or any other conditions that may be encountered during insertion in the production casing and operation of the artificial lift system.",
"In certain embodiments, external tubular 22 may be a wire mesh screen.",
"In other embodiments, external tubular 22 may be a wire-wound screen.",
"Stainless steels are a particularly preferred screen material owing to their mechanical strength and corrosion resistance.",
"The screen may comprise a mechanical support for providing structural integrity.",
"The screen may be selected to provide the desired opening size to exclude the sand and/or fines encountered in a particular well environment.",
"The at least one intermediate tubulars 25 and internal tubular 24 may also be a screen or, in other embodiments, may comprise a pipe having openings or perforations 26 .",
"Openings 26 may also be size-selected for a particular application.",
"Openings 26 may comprise holes or slots in the wall of internal tubular 24 .",
"Internal tubular 24 defines at least one central passage 28 that is in fluid communication with inlet connector 14 of pump 100 .",
"The at least two annular spaces 32 and 33 may be occupied by the at least two media 30 and 31 which may be a porous medium such as pumice—a highly-porous igneous rock, usually containing 67 to 75% SiO 2 and 10 to 20% Al 2 O 3 .",
"Potassium, sodium and calcium are generally present.",
"Pumice has a glassy texture.",
"It is insoluble in water and not attacked by acids.",
"It is commercially available in lump or powdered form (coarse, medium and fine).",
"Media 30 and 31 , when impregnated with a chemical agent, may be used to perform at least two functions: 1) mechanical filtration;",
"and, 2) treatment of the fluid(s) flowing into the inlet of pump 100 with the chemical agent.",
"The mechanical filtration function excludes sand and fines that are not blocked by external tubular 22 .",
"The extent of this mechanical filtration is determined, at least in part, by the particle size and packing density of the media 30 and 31 .",
"Accordingly, the composition of media 30 and 31 , its particle size and its loading within the annular spaces 32 and 33 may be optimized for various well conditions.",
"The size and configuration of the openings in the intermediate tubulars 25 and in internal tubular 24 may be optimally chosen to exclude the media 30 and 31 while providing the minimum restriction to flow of the production fluids.",
"Top plate 18 and/or bottom plate 20 may be removable to facilitate charging filter assembly with at least media 30 and 31 .",
"In some embodiments, media 30 and 31 may be chemical agents in a solid form that slowly dissolves in the production fluids.",
"In such embodiments, the physical filtering function of the media 30 and 31 dissipates over time and hence external tubular 22 and internal tubular 24 should be selected to provide sufficient sand and/or fines exclusion to adequately protect pump 100 .",
"FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view of filter assembly 116 taken perpendicular to its major axis.",
"Screen 22 , at least one intermediate wall 25 and central conduit 24 can be seen to define at least two annular spaces 32 and 33 .",
"In use, central passage 28 is in fluid communication with the inlet of pump 100 via inlet connector 14 .",
"Additional downhole components may be included in order to facilitate the use and recovery of the apparatus.",
"The embodiment of the invention shown in FIG. 4 includes filter assembly 300 , packer 302 , crossover subassembly 304 , shear sub 306 , and artificial lift system 308 .",
"The shear subassembly 304 is intended to allow the artificial lift system 308 to be removed without removing the packer 302 , crossover subassembly 304 , and the filter assembly 300 in those instances when the packer 302 is unable to be removed from the wellbore due to sand accumulations or any other cause.",
"The conditions where the packer 302 , crossover subassembly 304 , and filter assembly 300 may become stuck in the wellbore usually occur at the end of the filter assembly 300 's life cycle when the bypass valve 132 has opened and sand is passing through the assembly.",
"Some of this sand may settle on top of the packer making it difficult to remove from the well.",
"In such cases, the artificial lift system 308 may be separated from the sheer sub 306 and removed from the wellbore.",
"The packer 302 may then be milled out of the bore and any remaining equipment fished from the well.",
"One preferred scale inhibitor is phosphoric acid (also known as orthophosphoric acid), a colorless, odorless liquid or transparent, crystalline solid, depending on concentration and temperature.",
"The pure acid (100% strength) is in the form of crystals that melt at about 42° C. and lose ½ mole of water at 213° C. to form pyrophosphoric acid.",
"The scale inhibitor may be a phosphate salt—a group of salts formed by neutralization of phosphorous or phosphoric acid with a base, such as NaOH or KOH.",
"Orthophosphates are phosphoric acid (H 3 PO 4 ) salts, where 1, 2 or 3 of the hydrogen ions are neutralized.",
"Neutralization with NaOH gives three sodium orthophosphates: (a) monosodium phosphate (MSP), (b) disodium phosphate (DSP) or (c) trisodium phosphate (TSP).",
"Their solutions are buffers in the 4.6 to 12 pH range.",
"All will precipitate hardness ions such as calcium.",
"By utilizing this method the wellbore fluid may be treated downhole with other chemicals as well including inhibitors such as corrosion inhibitors, emulsion breakers, surfactants, chemicals to prevent the deposition of paraffin, hydrogen sulfide scavengers.",
"It will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that each chemical agent in media 30 and/or 31 will become depleted in use as production fluids flow over media 30 and/or 31 dissolving or desorbing the chemical agent.",
"If the chemical agent is a liquid at the temperatures and pressures existing in the downhole environment, filter assembly 116 may be equipped with a capillary tube recharge means as illustrated in FIG. 6 .",
"FIG. 6 depicts the multi-layer embodiment of FIG. 3 with the addition of capillary tubes 136 and 138 that are in fluid communication with annular spaces 32 and 33 , respectively, via openings 36 in top plate 18 .",
"When the concentration of chemical agents in the production fluid(s) falls to an ineffective level, porous media 30 and/or 31 may be recharged by providing chemical agents into annular spaces 32 and 33 via capillary tubes 136 and/or 138 from the surface.",
"The chemical agent may be moved through the capillary tubes 136 and/or 138 , by gravity, pumping from the surface, pumping from downhole, gas pressure, pumping from a reservoir or any other method of moving a gas, liquid, fine solid, or solid in liquid suspension through a relatively long tube.",
"Once the chemical agent is brought into contact with the medium the chemical agent is absorbed into porous medium 30 (and/or 31 ), recharging it.",
"In an alternative embodiment shown in FIG. 7 , the capillary tubes 236 and 238 pass through openings 36 in the top plate 18 so as to disperse the recharging chemicals along the length of the annuli 32 and 33 through perforations 240 in the capillary tubes 236 and 238 .",
"As shown in the transverse, cross-sectional view of FIG. 12A , capillary tube(s) 35 may be formed in wall 38 of production tubing 12 .",
"Alternatively, as illustrated in FIG. 12B , capillary tubes may be contained within notches 37 in wall 38 of production tubing 12 .",
"Bands or straps [not shown] at intervals along the production tubing may be used to retain capillary tube(s) within notches 37 .",
"Chemical agent that may be in liquid, gas, or solid powder form or combinations thereof, may be introduced into filter assembly 116 by means of wall capillary tube 35 , thereby avoiding the addition of separate capillary tubes such as 136 and 138 to the apparatus, which may be more susceptible to mechanical damage within the well bore.",
"The chemical agent employed may be the reaction product of two or more reactants.",
"If, for example, the chemical agent were hazardous to handle, it could be produced in situ by introducing the reactants that form the agent by means of separate wall capillary tubes 35 .",
"Similarly, binary or ternary chemical agents could be created in situ with the relative amount of each component selected depending on operating conditions.",
"Additionally, if the chemical agent is heat activated, the line carrying the specific chemical could be routed through cooling passages in the artificial lift system [not shown] where the excess heat from the artificial lift system could heat the chemical to at least the desired temperature.",
"Thus, the chemical could be heated while serving as a coolant for the artificial lift system.",
"If the chemical agent is a solid-phase material that dissolves in the production fluid(s), downhole replenishment of the chemical agent supply may be accomplished with the apparatus shown in longitudinal cross section in FIG. 8 .",
"In the particular embodiment illustrated, the dual-layer filter assembly of FIG. 3 is modified by the addition of extension 40 comprising outer wall 41 , intermediate wall 44 and top plate 43 Outer wall 41 , intermediate wall 44 , top plate 43 , and the inner wall may be impervious to production fluids and assembled in a fluid tight manner.",
"Annular space 42 of extension 40 defined by outer wall 41 , inner wall 44 , top plate 43 and the inner wall is an extensions of annular space 33 .",
"Annular space 42 may therefore function as a supply hopper for the chemical agent exposed to the production fluids in annular space 33 of filter assembly 116 .",
"As the solid phase chemical agent is dissolved from annular space 33 , fresh chemical agent from annular space 42 will fall into annular spaces 33 under the influence of gravity.",
"FIG. 9 illustrates an alternative embodiment having separate annular hoppers for replenishing the chemical agents in annular spaces 32 and 33 .",
"Inner tubular 14 , the artificial lift system housing 100 , and the production tubular 12 form an inner wall.",
"Outer wall 41 , intermediate wall 44 , top plate 43 , and the inner wall may be impervious to production fluids and assembled in a fluid tight manner.",
"Annular spaces 42 and 142 of extension 40 defined by outer wall 41 , inner wall 44 , top plate 43 and the inner wall are extensions of annular spaces 32 and 33 .",
"Annular spaces 42 and 142 may therefore function as supply hoppers for each chemical agent exposed to the production fluids in annular spaces 32 or 33 of filter assembly 116 .",
"As the solid phase chemical agent is dissolved from annular spaces 32 and 33 , fresh chemical agent from annular space 42 and 142 will fall into annular spaces 32 and 33 under the influence of gravity.",
"Such an apparatus may employ chemical agents having different phases.",
"For example hopper 142 may contain a liquid agent while hopper 42 contains a solid chemical treatment agent.",
"In this way, the useful life of the filter assembly with the treating chemicals may be extended.",
"Since oil and gas wells may be thousands of feet deep, there is typically ample volume in the annular space between the production casing and the production tubing to accommodate an extension 40 of significant capacity.",
"The length of extension 40 is limited only by the availability of annular space between the production tubing and the casing.",
"In alternative embodiments the extension 40 or even a separate hopper assembly [not shown] could be refilled by using a capillary or feed tube system.",
"In another embodiment the extension 40 could be attached to the filter assembly as a separate hopper that could be refilled by retrieving the hopper.",
"One means for retrieving the hopper could be by using a wireline.",
"If the chemical agent is a liquid-phase material, a downhole reservoir of the agent may be provided and utilized by means of the apparatus shown in longitudinal cross section in FIG. 10 .",
"While a single-layer filter may be utilized, in the particular embodiment illustrated, filter assembly 116 is the at least dual-layer type shown in FIG. 3 .",
"Chemical agent reservoir 60 is adapted to be located in the annular space between the production tubing and the production casing.",
"Reservoir 60 may be connected to supply conduit 62 via coupling 64 .",
"Coupling 64 may be a quick-connect type of coupling that permits reservoir 60 to be wireline retrievable for refilling at the surface.",
"Supply conduit 62 provides a fluid connection between reservoir 60 and annular space 33 of filter assembly 116 via valve or metering means 66 .",
"The flow of liquid phase chemical agent from reservoir 60 to the filter assembly 16 may be regulated by time and/or volume by valve/metering means 66 .",
"Valve 66 could be adjusted by sending a signal down the ESP cable or with an I-wire.",
"Valve 66 may also comprise a metering pump which may, in certain embodiments, be electrically or hydraulically powered.",
"The pump discharge pressure could also be utilized to adjust the valve or operate the hydraulic metering pump.",
"When the pump is turned off the drop in discharge pressure could shut the valve and stop the flow of chemicals.",
"Within annular space 33 , a distribution means may be provided for distributing the chemical agent in a desired pattern throughout the medium 30 .",
"The distribution means may be a fluid conduit having a plurality of orifices sized to provide a desired delivery rate of the chemical agent to medium 30 .",
"Reservoir 60 may be pressurized by a compressed gas in the head space above the chemical agent.",
"Alternatively, the chemical agent may be contained within an elastomeric bladder contained within reservoir 60 and the surrounding space pressurized to provide a supply of chemical agent under pressure.",
"In yet other embodiments, reservoir 60 may be provided with pressure equalization means to permit gravity flow of chemical agent from reservoir 60 to annular space 33 .",
"FIG. 11 depicts one alternative embodiment of the invention illustrated in FIG. 10 wherein annular space 400 within well casing 404 above packer 402 replaces reservoir 60 .",
"In certain embodiments, packer 402 may be a cup packer.",
"A chemical treatment agent (which may be a liquid-phase substance) may be inserted into annular space 400 before, during or after installation of artificial lift pump 406 .",
"FIG. 13 depicts an embodiment of the invention wherein filter assembly 116 is positioned above pump 100 .",
"This configuration permits filter assembly 116 to be wireline retrievable from the surface for maintenance and/or recharging of chemical agent without necessarily removing the artificial lift system.",
"In the particular embodiment illustrated, pump 100 is shaft-driven from motor 84 through motor seal 82 and concentric inlet 80 .",
"Filter assembly 16 comprises removable upper section 89 and lower section 88 that form a fluid-tight connection around motor seal 82 .",
"In alternative embodiments, lower section 88 may encompass motor 84 or may seal to motor 84 .",
"The arrows in FIG. 13 depict the direction of production fluid flow from the surrounding formation, into filter assembly 116 where sand and fines are mechanically filtered out and the fluid(s) are treated with chemical agent which dissolves or desorbs from medium 30 in annular space 32 .",
"The fluid then flows downward (under the influence of the pressure differential created by pump 100 ) through annular space 81 and into pump intake 80 where it enters pump 100 and is lifted to the surface via production tubing 12 .",
"FIG. 14 depicts another embodiment of the invention wherein filter assembly 202 is positioned above pump 100 .",
"In the configuration depicted filter assembly 202 includes one or more intermediate tubulars 204 [only a single intermediate tubular is shown for clarity] and thus filter assembly 202 has at least two annular spaces, 206 and 208 .",
"It will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that multiple intermediate walls may be incorporated into filter assembly 202 and thus multiple annular spaces may be defined within the apparatus.",
"Each annular space may be used to contain a different medium to provide various functions—e.g., graduated mechanical filtration and/or treatment with different chemical agents.",
"Intermediate wall 204 may comprise a screen, perforated tubular, or other type of porous material.",
"Filter bottom plate 212 is non-porous so as to force fluid that enters the outermost, as fluid flows into the filter assembly from the exterior, of multiple annular spaces 208 to enter into the innermost of any number of subsequent annular spaces 206 .",
"It is understood that any additional annular spaces between the outermost annular space 208 and innermost annular space 206 would most preferably have a non-porous bottom plate to force fluid into enter into any number of subsequent annular spaces.",
"filter assembly 202 is preferably designed such that wellbore fluid will pass from the exterior 216 of external tubular 218 through external tubular 218 through any medium 220 through any intermediate tubulars 204 through any additional medium 210 through artificial lift assembly intake 224 and into the central passage 28 of internal tubular 24 .",
"This configuration permits filter assembly 202 to be wireline retrievable from the surface for maintenance and/or recharging of chemical agent without necessarily removing the artificial lift system.",
"In some instances, gas that may be present in the wellbore fluid may damage the artificial lift system 230 by causing the pump to cavitate, run at excessive speed, or repeatedly load and unload the artificial lift system.",
"The embodiment depicted in FIG. 14 also allows for gas/fluid separation before the fluid enters the artificial lift assembly 230 in well conditions where the wellbore fluid has a significant amount of gas present by shrouding the artificial lift system intake and forcing the wellbore fluid to reverse direction thus causing a low pressure condition above the pump where entrained gas will be removed from the fluid.",
"By removing the gas above the pump, the gas will rise up and away from the artificial lift system intake 224 .",
"In the particular embodiment illustrated, pump 232 is shaft-driven from motor 236 through motor seal 234 and artificial lift system intake 224 .",
"Filter assembly 202 comprises removable upper section 240 and lower section 242 that form a fluid-tight connection around motor seal 234 .",
"Upper section 240 may be releasably joined to lower section 242 by connector 203 .",
"In alternative embodiments, lower section 242 may encompass motor 236 , in which case the fluid flow may also provide cooling for the motor or may seal to motor 236 .",
"The arrows in FIG. 14 depict the direction of production fluid flow from the surrounding formation into filter assembly 202 where sand and fines are mechanically filtered out and the fluid(s) are treated with chemical agent which dissolves or desorbs from the at least one medium 220 in annular space 208 .",
"The fluid then flows downward under the influence of the pressure differential created by pump 232 through annular space 246 and into artificial lift system intake 224 where it enters pump 232 and is lifted to the surface via production tubing 226 .",
"Yet another embodiment of the invention is shown in longitudinal cross section in FIG. 15 .",
"In this embodiment, filter assembly 16 is situated between pump 100 and pump motor 84 .",
"Pump 100 is driven by pump motor 84 by means of shaft 90 , which may be exposed to the production fluids.",
"The filter assembly 16 is connected to the motor seal 82 .",
"The embodiment illustrated in FIG. 15 may include a head unit 94 which contains at least one relief valve 96 .",
"The relief valve 96 may be configured to open at a pre-selected differential pressure to prevent pump 100 from cavitating or otherwise being damaged if filter 16 becomes blocked.",
"The apparatus may also be equipped with signaling means for alerting operators that the bypass valves 96 have opened and the filter assembly should be retrieved and serviced.",
"FIG. 16 is an alternative to the embodiment shown in FIG. 15 .",
"In this embodiment, screen 22 is in the interior of the filter apparatus and forms the wall of central conduit 102 .",
"Outer wall 104 and screen 22 are in a spaced apart relationship so that at least one annulus 252 is created.",
"At least one medium 250 resides in that at least one annulus 252 to allow for treatment of the wellbore fluid before the wellbore fluid enters into the artificial lift system 254 .",
"Outer wall 104 comprises openings 26 that may be relatively large compared to the effective openings in screen 22 .",
"In this embodiment, relatively more sand and fines may enter the filter assembly through openings 26 so that screen 22 is the final barrier to such contaminates prior to entry of the production fluid(s) into central conduit 102 and lift system 254 .",
"While the present invention has been described with respect to a limited number of embodiments, those skilled in the art will appreciate numerous modifications and variations therefrom.",
"It is intended that the appended claims cover all such modifications and variations as fall within the true spirit and scope of the invention."
] |
This is a divisional application of U.S. Ser. No. 885,884 filed July 15, 1986, U.S. Pat. No. 4,784,911, a continuation of U.S. Ser. No. 653,279 filed Sept. 24, 1984, now abandoned.
TECHNICAL FIELD
This invention pertains to an improved multi-colored plastic shell especially suitable for use in automobile trim components, computer housings, furniture and, more particularly, to three-dimensional multi-colored plastic shells and method for processing plastic powder to form such articles to have a three-dimensional multi-colored effect.
BACKGROUND ART
The automotive industry has turned to the use of interior trim components such as door panels comprising a polyvinyl chloride part. See, for example, the trim components disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,123,403. The acceptance of such components has been because inter alia this type of construction permits a wide latitude in styling and color, and grain effects which are most desired, particularly in the interior design of automobiles.
The current state of the art includes a pre-formed grained vinyl shell made from dry thermoplastic powder particles which are applied to a heated shell mold from a distribution means to form a continuous monochromatic one-piece shell.
In order to enhance the interior decor of an automobile, interior door panels and other parts have been prepared which include two separate plastic shell sections formed from different colored plastic joined at a connection joint.
The use of multi-colored plastic is also known in the manufacture of colored filaments. Such manufacture includes use of a compartmented spinning head for making two-colored yarn as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,049,397 issued Aug. 14, 1962 for Process of Making Space-Dyed Yarn.
Multiple-colored thermoplastic floor materials and a method of making same are set forth in U.S. Pat. No. 3,383,442 issued May 14, 1968. Plastic ornaments are made from plastic pellets of different color by methods set forth in U.S. Pat. No. 4,275,028 issued June 23, 1981.
The aforesaid products and methods for manufacture of such products are not directed to a product or process for manufacturing a three-dimensional multi-colored plastic part.
STATEMENT OF INVENTION AND ADVANTAGES
In accordance with the present invention, a three-dimensional multi-colored part of thermoplastic powder material includes a thin layer of several pigmented particles of two or more colors with a pre-selected contrasting color ratio, fringe zone blending and particle translucence that produces a three-dimensional, thread like, textile, suede or other effect at the surface of the part. The part is made by mixing two or more quantities of thermoplastic particles, each pigmented with a different color. The mixed particles are cast on a heated textured mold to produce material flow that causes color-blended fused fringe zones of the particles followed by a cooling step to produce a part of two or more color tones simulating textile, suede or other textures in a plastic part.
An open-ended charge box means is filled with a predetermined quantity of different color powder particles having a predetermined color ratio. The loaded, open-ended charge box means is clamped to an open-ended mold to form a closed system. The closed system is rotated so that the charge box releases the multi-colored thermoplastic powder particles to flow evenly across the open end of the mold by gravity to be cast against heated surfaces of the mold; the cast particles are melted on the heated surface to form layers of individual particles of different pigmentation with particle fringe zone blending The particles are then fused to form stacked, heat flowed, fringe-blended, particles with a predetermined translucence to simulate a textile, suede or other appearance.
The method for forming cloth-simulated material from thermoplastic powder material includes mixing two or more colors of pigmented particles of a contrasting color ratio; casting the particles on a heated mold to form a thin wall plastic part of stacked, heat-flowed, fringe-blended particles and returning excess powder material from the mold into the powder box; and uniformly fusing the plastic particles to form a plastic part which simulates cloth.
In another method a cloth textured mold surface is used to further enhance the cloth simulation.
The molded part of the invention is a single-piece plastic part formed from cast thermoplastic powder particles of two or more pigments joined or fused at particle fringe zones and with reflective properties and a selective translucence layered to produce a three-dimensional multi-colored effect, simulating textile, or cloth constructed of colored thread material.
In one combination, a variety of colored particles of polyvinylchloride (PVC) vinyl and cloth texturing grooves on an electroform mold are used to produce an appearance in a cast vinyl part which simulates the appearance of a textile. Because of the variety of color particles, 1, 2, 3, 4 or more, a non-uniform, non-solid appearance, is given to the solid sheet or shell of cast vinyl. The color particles can be blended in any ratio or color combination desired. The textile texture on the electroform as well is not limited, except for the concept of patterning to duplicate the textile. In general, the particles are uniformly mixed. In the cast part, the colors do not blend totally, but keep their discreteness. To the observer, the particles give the appearance of cloth, especially because of their random tendency to line up along a single line or thread of the mold groove in a single color. This thread-like burst of a single color gives the solid plastic its textile-like appearance. The simulated textile colors are especially like the appearance of wool or tweed. Particles of a smaller size present to the naked eye a uniform blend effect. Particles of a larger size tend to produce a spotty effect.
Other advantages and a more complete understanding of the invention will be apparent to those skilled in the art from the succeeding detailed description of the invention and the accompanying drawings thereof.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG. 1 is a diagrammatically shown sectional view of a mold component of the inventive apparatus;
FIG. 2 is a diagrammatically shown sectional view of a powder box of the invention sealed to the mold of FIG. 1 in a pre-dump position;
FIG. 3 is a sectional view like FIG. 2 showing the powder box and mold in a powder dump application orientation;
FIG. 4 is a fragmentary, enlarged sectional view of a textured electroform having the stacked, flowed and color fringe-blended/fused particles of a three-dimensional multi-color plastic part of the present invention cast thereon;
FIG. 5 is a fragmentary, enlarged sectional view of a smooth surface electroform or other mold having the stacked, flowed and color-blended fused fringe zone particles of a three-dimensional multi-colored plastic part of the present invention cast thereon;
FIG. 6 is a fragmentary, enlarged plan view of the plastic part showing the random line effect produced by the particles in the three-dimensional multi-colored plastic part formed on the mold surface of FIG. 4; and
FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line 7--7 of FIG. 6.
FIG. 8 is an enlarged cross-sectional and top view of FIG. 7; FIG. 8A and FIG. 8B are side views, all showing the observed three-dimensional multi-colors due to particle transparency.
FIG. 9 is an enlargement of the pigmented particle cross-section.
FIGS. 10 and 10A show particles of various colors and transparencies and their relevant light transmission effects.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
The process and article of the present invention will be with reference to the production of plastic thin-walled shells for a typical automotive part such as an interior door panel, consoles and instrument panels. The term "three-dimensional multi-colored plastic part", for purposes of the specification, is defined as a part formed of stacked, thermoplastic particles of controlled size and contrasting color ratio of different pigmentation to simulate a textile constructed from threads/yarns of varying color.
The term textile shall be used in its broadest sense to be synonymous with the terms fabric and cloth. Textile shall be defined as anything made from fibers, threads, or yarns or raw materials that have been woven, knitted, plaited, braided, felted, non-woven, needled, sprayed, spun-bonded or entangled.
The term "pigmented particle" shall mean a small diameter (in the order of 60 to 400 microns) particle of thermoplastic material.
Referring to FIGS. 1-3, a powder molding process line is schematically shown as including selectively heated mold 10. A powder box 12 is operated between raised and lowered positions with respect to the mold 10 by suitable handling equipment, one type of which is specifically set forth in co-pending U.S. Ser. No. 500,760 filed June 3, 1983 for Mold Loading Method and Apparatus.
The box 12 further includes an upper open end 14 which is configured to cover the planar extent of an opening 16 to mold 10.
Clamp means 18 join and seal the powder charge box 12 to mold 10 when the box 12 is elevated to the position shown in FIG. 2, hereinafter referred to as the "mold-up" position.
As a result, the interior of box 12 and the interior of mold 10 form a closed system having a charge of thermoplastic material in the box 12.
In accordance with the present invention, the box contains a charge of pigmented particles of a different color and randomly mixed to produce a contrasting color ratio.
The next process step includes concurrent rotation of the closed system about axis 20 defined by trunnions means of the type set forth in co-pending U.S. Ser. No. 500,760 through 360° relative to the FIG. 2 position.
At FIG. 3, a casting step of the process takes place wherein pigmented particles are distributed evenly throughout the mold opening 16. A resultant even layered build-up of plastic powder occurs on pre-heated surface 22 of the mold 10. The inverted mold position shown in FIG. 3 will hereinafter be referred to as the "mold-down" position.
Following the fill step, the joined mold 10 and charge box 12 are rotated 180° so that the mold 10 is located vertically above the box 12 in the mold-up position.
An air-jet system of the type shown in the co-pending U.S. Ser. No. 500,760 may be used to dislodge excess powder from the walls of the mold so that the dislodged material will flow by gravity return to the interior of the box for collection and reuse in the system.
Additional processes such as fluidized bed, powder spray, impeller shower, electrostatics and air blow can be used to coat the mold with pigmented particles.
A powder fuse cycle is then carried out in accordance with known practice wherein the cast pigmented particles are completely fused into a thin-walled part. Before the fuse cycle, the charge box is unclamped from the inverted mold 10 and the box 12 is returned to a powder make-up position. Thereafter the mold 10 (with the powder cast to the surface) is heated further to fuse the powder, then is cooled and rotated into a strip position corresponding to the mold-down position.
Once the pigmented particles are cast and adhered to the heated mold surface the system is rotated back to the position shown in FIG. 2. Excess powder returns and the powder box is removed. The mold 10 remains in its mold-up position during a cure stage. Make-up pigmented particles of appropriate contrasting color ratio are directed to the box 12 prior to the next operating cycle.
The pigmented particles are thermoplastic. The mixture of pigmented thermoplastic particles used in the process must be fused to produce the finished plastic part. Prior to the fusion, the heated mold will cause each layered pigmented particle to enter a gel or liquidus stage so that each pigmented particle flows to form a fringe zone which color blends with adjacent particles. Prior to the gel stage the particles abut at point contacts to form voids between the particles as shown at reference numeral 25 in FIGS. 2 and 3. A diagrammatic representation of a void 25 is also designated in case 6 of FIG. 10. The gel and fusion of the particles produce fused fringe zones 30 and fused fringe zones 32, 34. The resultant product is shown in FIGS. 8, 8A and 8B as a solid layer of material without voids. The fused fringe zones 30, 32 and 34 bound a discrete core 35 in each of the individual particles 50. Such discrete cores have desired contracting characteristics because each pigmented particle maintains its central or original color concentration.
The fringe zone color blended/fused effect results in a surface appearance of a textile texture and avoids a spotted appearance.
The pigmented particles of different color have a predetermined color ratio, the purpose of which is to establish a resultant color effect based on the selected ratios of initial colors of pigmented particles.
As shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, the pigmented particles are either cast on a heated mold with a textured surface 24 which has fiber patterns formed thereon or on a smooth surface 26 or any other texture such as leather grain. In both cases the fusion produces a resultant solid part 27 as shown in FIGS. 6 and 7.
Color designing three-dimensional multi-colored plastic parts involves establishing a balance between the primary solid color and the remaining minor colors. One selection of pigmented particles was composed of: 60% dark blue, 20% light blue and 20% intense yellow. A dark blue colored background might be expected, but the sample resulted in an overall green background appearance. Under 3D microscope magnification at 10-40× power, it is apparent that the green coloring is produced by discrete translucent yellow particles randomly positioned above blue particles to give a green effect. Photo micrographs at 128× show the stacked particles in cross section somewhat as shown in FIGS. 8A and 8B.
Example three-dimensional multi-colored mixtures by weight are:
Blue: 72% dark blue, 18% white, 10% black
Camel: 80% camel, 10% red, 10% black
Red: 80% red, 10% yellow, 10% black
When these mixtures are cast onto cloth-textured molds they simulate a cloth appearance. The blue three-dimensional multi-colored samples resemble a denim fabric, camel three-dimensional multi-colored samples resemble a tweed fabric and the red multi-colored samples resemble a rag wool. If a primary color is chosen which is very dark, such as brown, then the secondary colors become subtle highlights. The contrast of the secondary colors against the primary color becomes most predominant when a light primary color is chosen.
Adding more grooves to form threads and fibers in the mold pattern produces a better textile effect. The particle size preferably is smaller than the thread size groove width in the surface 24. The particle size does not have to be as small as the fiber size, but in a basket weave pattern it is smaller than the thread pattern groove width in surface 24. In a denim cloth texture plastic part rows of threads rise above the general surface. By random order, reflection, or transparency, particles of the same color appear to align with the raised threads 24a,24b of many of the ridges on the surface 24 as shown in FIG. 6 at 24c,24d. The eye is conditioned to expect this observation in cloth and therefore replicates it in three-dimensional multi-colored plastic parts formed by the present invention.
The number of colors of pigmented particles in the mixture and the color ratios will vary, dependent upon the effect desired.
Two colors may be used to get three-dimensional multi-colored plastic parts The translucency of the particles gives various shades, easily seen under a 3D microscope. Two colors will make three plus shades of the combinations. Three colors are selected to produce more than a common mix of two colors.
In some cases a major background color and a secondary color are combined with a hued color which is a shade variation of the major and secondary colors. The unique three-dimensional multi-colored effect on a thermoplastic part is a function of the following:
1. The varying degrees of light transmittancy of individual particles
(a) from transparent to opaque surface effects as shown in cases 1-3 of FIG. 10 wherein arrow 37 represents a light ray.
(b) dependent on specific surface pigments for a color; i.e., a red may be either transparent, translucent or opaque.
2. Color-blended fringed fused zones shown at 30,32 and 34 in FIGS. 8, 8A and 8B have varying degrees of transmittancy and color depending on the pigmentation of adjacent particles.
3. The random three-dimensional stacking of varying color and transparency particles which determines how far one is able to see into a surface and what predominant color blends are seen as shown in cases 4-6 of FIG. 10.
4. The particle translucency allows some light to scatter through the peaks 36 of a textured surface 38 of the part thereby adding to the three-dimensional effect and depth of the solid top surface shown in FIG. 8B.
FIG. 10 and FIG. 10A illustrate the full range of light effects to produce the three-dimensional multi-colored effect FIG. 9 shows an individual particle 50. It includes a porous resin core 52 of 250-350 micron size particles of plasticizer-saturated transparent material An outer layer of pigment particles 54 includes submicron particles in a liquid carrier (dried). Some of the pigment is absorbed as a die or stain in the layer 54. The layer is opaque to transparent. The layer 54 has transparent drying resin particles 56 of submicron size distributed over the outer surface of layer 54 Submicron particles 58 of filler/dryer are also on the surface and tend to be translucent. As can be seen from the cross section of FIG. 9, the layer 54 is formed continuously to cover the outer circumference of core 52.
The size and blending of such pigmented thermoplastic particles against the hot mold surface changes the original particle shape and give a short fissure or thread image. The degree of particle shaping is controlled by process conditions. The exposed particles on the back side of the part are much more defined than those against the grained surface of the mold. The fused particles are generally more transparent on the mold side than on the open air side. The eye may be registering discrete particles as fibers.
A particle size of 180 microns is similar to a thread diameter of 0.007 inches. A mold may be textured to simulate a textile constructed in a left-hand twill of thread count 60-75 warp ends per inch and 35-45 filling picks per inch of thread diameter of 0.007 inches. When a 72% dark blue, 18% white, 10% black compound of pigmented particles is cast on the mold, a sample results which simulates a "denim" texture, recognized by an intricate, intrinsic design simulating closely interwoven elements resembling the structure formed by the threads of a fabric.
In all cases, the color blending effects are integrated throughout the plastic part thickness This is important in products that have a surface which will experience abrasion with service such as: instrument panels, armrests, window edges, headrests, steering wheel columns, consoles, etc.
Since the three-dimensional multi-colored thermoplastic allows many surface colors on the plastic part, an application of a paint or stain to a textured three-dimensional multi-color surface which is then wiped off will simulate cloth and wood textures better than when a solid colored surface is used.
In the three-dimensional multi-colored formula, it may be possible to add a "fabric fragrance" to the compound.
Fused particle shape can be controlled by process parameters such as heat, time and rotation rate. Fused particle shape can be varied from round to elongated to a total blend.
A three-dimensional multi-color plastic part has two effects on textured surfaces: (1) on a coarse texture, where one would expect to have shadows, the texture is enhanced; (2) on shallow textures (little shadowing) the texture is subdued and less apparent than if solid colored pigmented particles were used.
The synergism between three-dimensional multi-colored pigmented particles and the previously described denim texture or other cloth simulated textures appears to reside in part in the psychological recognition process. Two of the most obvious influences on the recognition process are the frequency and recency with which an input has been encountered in the past to replicate prior experiences.
One way in which frequency seems to facilitate recognition is by establishing higher level memory representations that can be matched to the input. The more often a pattern is experienced, the more likely it can be matched as a single unit against a memory representation.
In most cases of recognition, familiarity and identification merge into a single subjective experience. Often recognition is an automatic process but, in some cases, there is a conscious search of memory to generate plausible candidate representations to compare to the perceptual input.
The visual input of blue three-dimensional multicolored pigmented particles cast onto a "denim" texture mold most closely resembles an actual thread-constructed denim fabric.
The Gestalt principles of perception include:
(a) Good continuation: elements that look alike tend to be grouped together, and
(b) Closure: we literally fill in a piece of the representation that is not provided by the sensory input.
These principles may be used to explain the perception that when viewing a sample of three-dimensional multicolored pigmented particles cast onto a mold with a flat-woven texture, we "see" threads of a single color for specific lengths throughout the sample In reality, the particles are random.
While the invention has been particularly shown and described with respect to preferred embodiments, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that various changes in form and detail may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. | A process for molding plastic parts includes the steps of providing two or more colors of pigmented powder particles of thermoplastic material; casting the particles against a heated surface to form non-patterned layers of particles with voids therebetween; heating the layers to form color blended fused fringe zones between the particles which fill the voids to form a solid, multi-colored, three-dimensional article while each particle retains its discrete particle core which maintains each particle's central or original color concentration and which cores have discernible light transmissive properties. | Summarize the key points of the given patent document. | [
"This is a divisional application of U.S. Ser.",
"No. 885,884 filed July 15, 1986, U.S. Pat. No. 4,784,911, a continuation of U.S. Ser.",
"No. 653,279 filed Sept.",
"24, 1984, now abandoned.",
"TECHNICAL FIELD This invention pertains to an improved multi-colored plastic shell especially suitable for use in automobile trim components, computer housings, furniture and, more particularly, to three-dimensional multi-colored plastic shells and method for processing plastic powder to form such articles to have a three-dimensional multi-colored effect.",
"BACKGROUND ART The automotive industry has turned to the use of interior trim components such as door panels comprising a polyvinyl chloride part.",
"See, for example, the trim components disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,123,403.",
"The acceptance of such components has been because inter alia this type of construction permits a wide latitude in styling and color, and grain effects which are most desired, particularly in the interior design of automobiles.",
"The current state of the art includes a pre-formed grained vinyl shell made from dry thermoplastic powder particles which are applied to a heated shell mold from a distribution means to form a continuous monochromatic one-piece shell.",
"In order to enhance the interior decor of an automobile, interior door panels and other parts have been prepared which include two separate plastic shell sections formed from different colored plastic joined at a connection joint.",
"The use of multi-colored plastic is also known in the manufacture of colored filaments.",
"Such manufacture includes use of a compartmented spinning head for making two-colored yarn as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,049,397 issued Aug. 14, 1962 for Process of Making Space-Dyed Yarn.",
"Multiple-colored thermoplastic floor materials and a method of making same are set forth in U.S. Pat. No. 3,383,442 issued May 14, 1968.",
"Plastic ornaments are made from plastic pellets of different color by methods set forth in U.S. Pat. No. 4,275,028 issued June 23, 1981.",
"The aforesaid products and methods for manufacture of such products are not directed to a product or process for manufacturing a three-dimensional multi-colored plastic part.",
"STATEMENT OF INVENTION AND ADVANTAGES In accordance with the present invention, a three-dimensional multi-colored part of thermoplastic powder material includes a thin layer of several pigmented particles of two or more colors with a pre-selected contrasting color ratio, fringe zone blending and particle translucence that produces a three-dimensional, thread like, textile, suede or other effect at the surface of the part.",
"The part is made by mixing two or more quantities of thermoplastic particles, each pigmented with a different color.",
"The mixed particles are cast on a heated textured mold to produce material flow that causes color-blended fused fringe zones of the particles followed by a cooling step to produce a part of two or more color tones simulating textile, suede or other textures in a plastic part.",
"An open-ended charge box means is filled with a predetermined quantity of different color powder particles having a predetermined color ratio.",
"The loaded, open-ended charge box means is clamped to an open-ended mold to form a closed system.",
"The closed system is rotated so that the charge box releases the multi-colored thermoplastic powder particles to flow evenly across the open end of the mold by gravity to be cast against heated surfaces of the mold;",
"the cast particles are melted on the heated surface to form layers of individual particles of different pigmentation with particle fringe zone blending The particles are then fused to form stacked, heat flowed, fringe-blended, particles with a predetermined translucence to simulate a textile, suede or other appearance.",
"The method for forming cloth-simulated material from thermoplastic powder material includes mixing two or more colors of pigmented particles of a contrasting color ratio;",
"casting the particles on a heated mold to form a thin wall plastic part of stacked, heat-flowed, fringe-blended particles and returning excess powder material from the mold into the powder box;",
"and uniformly fusing the plastic particles to form a plastic part which simulates cloth.",
"In another method a cloth textured mold surface is used to further enhance the cloth simulation.",
"The molded part of the invention is a single-piece plastic part formed from cast thermoplastic powder particles of two or more pigments joined or fused at particle fringe zones and with reflective properties and a selective translucence layered to produce a three-dimensional multi-colored effect, simulating textile, or cloth constructed of colored thread material.",
"In one combination, a variety of colored particles of polyvinylchloride (PVC) vinyl and cloth texturing grooves on an electroform mold are used to produce an appearance in a cast vinyl part which simulates the appearance of a textile.",
"Because of the variety of color particles, 1, 2, 3, 4 or more, a non-uniform, non-solid appearance, is given to the solid sheet or shell of cast vinyl.",
"The color particles can be blended in any ratio or color combination desired.",
"The textile texture on the electroform as well is not limited, except for the concept of patterning to duplicate the textile.",
"In general, the particles are uniformly mixed.",
"In the cast part, the colors do not blend totally, but keep their discreteness.",
"To the observer, the particles give the appearance of cloth, especially because of their random tendency to line up along a single line or thread of the mold groove in a single color.",
"This thread-like burst of a single color gives the solid plastic its textile-like appearance.",
"The simulated textile colors are especially like the appearance of wool or tweed.",
"Particles of a smaller size present to the naked eye a uniform blend effect.",
"Particles of a larger size tend to produce a spotty effect.",
"Other advantages and a more complete understanding of the invention will be apparent to those skilled in the art from the succeeding detailed description of the invention and the accompanying drawings thereof.",
"BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a diagrammatically shown sectional view of a mold component of the inventive apparatus;",
"FIG. 2 is a diagrammatically shown sectional view of a powder box of the invention sealed to the mold of FIG. 1 in a pre-dump position;",
"FIG. 3 is a sectional view like FIG. 2 showing the powder box and mold in a powder dump application orientation;",
"FIG. 4 is a fragmentary, enlarged sectional view of a textured electroform having the stacked, flowed and color fringe-blended/fused particles of a three-dimensional multi-color plastic part of the present invention cast thereon;",
"FIG. 5 is a fragmentary, enlarged sectional view of a smooth surface electroform or other mold having the stacked, flowed and color-blended fused fringe zone particles of a three-dimensional multi-colored plastic part of the present invention cast thereon;",
"FIG. 6 is a fragmentary, enlarged plan view of the plastic part showing the random line effect produced by the particles in the three-dimensional multi-colored plastic part formed on the mold surface of FIG. 4;",
"and FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line 7--7 of FIG. 6. FIG. 8 is an enlarged cross-sectional and top view of FIG. 7;",
"FIG. 8A and FIG. 8B are side views, all showing the observed three-dimensional multi-colors due to particle transparency.",
"FIG. 9 is an enlargement of the pigmented particle cross-section.",
"FIGS. 10 and 10A show particles of various colors and transparencies and their relevant light transmission effects.",
"DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The process and article of the present invention will be with reference to the production of plastic thin-walled shells for a typical automotive part such as an interior door panel, consoles and instrument panels.",
"The term "three-dimensional multi-colored plastic part", for purposes of the specification, is defined as a part formed of stacked, thermoplastic particles of controlled size and contrasting color ratio of different pigmentation to simulate a textile constructed from threads/yarns of varying color.",
"The term textile shall be used in its broadest sense to be synonymous with the terms fabric and cloth.",
"Textile shall be defined as anything made from fibers, threads, or yarns or raw materials that have been woven, knitted, plaited, braided, felted, non-woven, needled, sprayed, spun-bonded or entangled.",
"The term "pigmented particle"",
"shall mean a small diameter (in the order of 60 to 400 microns) particle of thermoplastic material.",
"Referring to FIGS. 1-3, a powder molding process line is schematically shown as including selectively heated mold 10.",
"A powder box 12 is operated between raised and lowered positions with respect to the mold 10 by suitable handling equipment, one type of which is specifically set forth in co-pending U.S. Ser.",
"No. 500,760 filed June 3, 1983 for Mold Loading Method and Apparatus.",
"The box 12 further includes an upper open end 14 which is configured to cover the planar extent of an opening 16 to mold 10.",
"Clamp means 18 join and seal the powder charge box 12 to mold 10 when the box 12 is elevated to the position shown in FIG. 2, hereinafter referred to as the "mold-up"",
"position.",
"As a result, the interior of box 12 and the interior of mold 10 form a closed system having a charge of thermoplastic material in the box 12.",
"In accordance with the present invention, the box contains a charge of pigmented particles of a different color and randomly mixed to produce a contrasting color ratio.",
"The next process step includes concurrent rotation of the closed system about axis 20 defined by trunnions means of the type set forth in co-pending U.S. Ser.",
"No. 500,760 through 360° relative to the FIG. 2 position.",
"At FIG. 3, a casting step of the process takes place wherein pigmented particles are distributed evenly throughout the mold opening 16.",
"A resultant even layered build-up of plastic powder occurs on pre-heated surface 22 of the mold 10.",
"The inverted mold position shown in FIG. 3 will hereinafter be referred to as the "mold-down"",
"position.",
"Following the fill step, the joined mold 10 and charge box 12 are rotated 180° so that the mold 10 is located vertically above the box 12 in the mold-up position.",
"An air-jet system of the type shown in the co-pending U.S. Ser.",
"No. 500,760 may be used to dislodge excess powder from the walls of the mold so that the dislodged material will flow by gravity return to the interior of the box for collection and reuse in the system.",
"Additional processes such as fluidized bed, powder spray, impeller shower, electrostatics and air blow can be used to coat the mold with pigmented particles.",
"A powder fuse cycle is then carried out in accordance with known practice wherein the cast pigmented particles are completely fused into a thin-walled part.",
"Before the fuse cycle, the charge box is unclamped from the inverted mold 10 and the box 12 is returned to a powder make-up position.",
"Thereafter the mold 10 (with the powder cast to the surface) is heated further to fuse the powder, then is cooled and rotated into a strip position corresponding to the mold-down position.",
"Once the pigmented particles are cast and adhered to the heated mold surface the system is rotated back to the position shown in FIG. 2. Excess powder returns and the powder box is removed.",
"The mold 10 remains in its mold-up position during a cure stage.",
"Make-up pigmented particles of appropriate contrasting color ratio are directed to the box 12 prior to the next operating cycle.",
"The pigmented particles are thermoplastic.",
"The mixture of pigmented thermoplastic particles used in the process must be fused to produce the finished plastic part.",
"Prior to the fusion, the heated mold will cause each layered pigmented particle to enter a gel or liquidus stage so that each pigmented particle flows to form a fringe zone which color blends with adjacent particles.",
"Prior to the gel stage the particles abut at point contacts to form voids between the particles as shown at reference numeral 25 in FIGS. 2 and 3.",
"A diagrammatic representation of a void 25 is also designated in case 6 of FIG. 10.",
"The gel and fusion of the particles produce fused fringe zones 30 and fused fringe zones 32, 34.",
"The resultant product is shown in FIGS. 8, 8A and 8B as a solid layer of material without voids.",
"The fused fringe zones 30, 32 and 34 bound a discrete core 35 in each of the individual particles 50.",
"Such discrete cores have desired contracting characteristics because each pigmented particle maintains its central or original color concentration.",
"The fringe zone color blended/fused effect results in a surface appearance of a textile texture and avoids a spotted appearance.",
"The pigmented particles of different color have a predetermined color ratio, the purpose of which is to establish a resultant color effect based on the selected ratios of initial colors of pigmented particles.",
"As shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, the pigmented particles are either cast on a heated mold with a textured surface 24 which has fiber patterns formed thereon or on a smooth surface 26 or any other texture such as leather grain.",
"In both cases the fusion produces a resultant solid part 27 as shown in FIGS. 6 and 7.",
"Color designing three-dimensional multi-colored plastic parts involves establishing a balance between the primary solid color and the remaining minor colors.",
"One selection of pigmented particles was composed of: 60% dark blue, 20% light blue and 20% intense yellow.",
"A dark blue colored background might be expected, but the sample resulted in an overall green background appearance.",
"Under 3D microscope magnification at 10-40× power, it is apparent that the green coloring is produced by discrete translucent yellow particles randomly positioned above blue particles to give a green effect.",
"Photo micrographs at 128× show the stacked particles in cross section somewhat as shown in FIGS. 8A and 8B.",
"Example three-dimensional multi-colored mixtures by weight are: Blue: 72% dark blue, 18% white, 10% black Camel: 80% camel, 10% red, 10% black Red: 80% red, 10% yellow, 10% black When these mixtures are cast onto cloth-textured molds they simulate a cloth appearance.",
"The blue three-dimensional multi-colored samples resemble a denim fabric, camel three-dimensional multi-colored samples resemble a tweed fabric and the red multi-colored samples resemble a rag wool.",
"If a primary color is chosen which is very dark, such as brown, then the secondary colors become subtle highlights.",
"The contrast of the secondary colors against the primary color becomes most predominant when a light primary color is chosen.",
"Adding more grooves to form threads and fibers in the mold pattern produces a better textile effect.",
"The particle size preferably is smaller than the thread size groove width in the surface 24.",
"The particle size does not have to be as small as the fiber size, but in a basket weave pattern it is smaller than the thread pattern groove width in surface 24.",
"In a denim cloth texture plastic part rows of threads rise above the general surface.",
"By random order, reflection, or transparency, particles of the same color appear to align with the raised threads 24a,24b of many of the ridges on the surface 24 as shown in FIG. 6 at 24c,24d.",
"The eye is conditioned to expect this observation in cloth and therefore replicates it in three-dimensional multi-colored plastic parts formed by the present invention.",
"The number of colors of pigmented particles in the mixture and the color ratios will vary, dependent upon the effect desired.",
"Two colors may be used to get three-dimensional multi-colored plastic parts The translucency of the particles gives various shades, easily seen under a 3D microscope.",
"Two colors will make three plus shades of the combinations.",
"Three colors are selected to produce more than a common mix of two colors.",
"In some cases a major background color and a secondary color are combined with a hued color which is a shade variation of the major and secondary colors.",
"The unique three-dimensional multi-colored effect on a thermoplastic part is a function of the following: 1.",
"The varying degrees of light transmittancy of individual particles (a) from transparent to opaque surface effects as shown in cases 1-3 of FIG. 10 wherein arrow 37 represents a light ray.",
"(b) dependent on specific surface pigments for a color;",
"i.e., a red may be either transparent, translucent or opaque.",
"Color-blended fringed fused zones shown at 30,32 and 34 in FIGS. 8, 8A and 8B have varying degrees of transmittancy and color depending on the pigmentation of adjacent particles.",
"The random three-dimensional stacking of varying color and transparency particles which determines how far one is able to see into a surface and what predominant color blends are seen as shown in cases 4-6 of FIG. 10.",
"The particle translucency allows some light to scatter through the peaks 36 of a textured surface 38 of the part thereby adding to the three-dimensional effect and depth of the solid top surface shown in FIG. 8B.",
"FIG. 10 and FIG. 10A illustrate the full range of light effects to produce the three-dimensional multi-colored effect FIG. 9 shows an individual particle 50.",
"It includes a porous resin core 52 of 250-350 micron size particles of plasticizer-saturated transparent material An outer layer of pigment particles 54 includes submicron particles in a liquid carrier (dried).",
"Some of the pigment is absorbed as a die or stain in the layer 54.",
"The layer is opaque to transparent.",
"The layer 54 has transparent drying resin particles 56 of submicron size distributed over the outer surface of layer 54 Submicron particles 58 of filler/dryer are also on the surface and tend to be translucent.",
"As can be seen from the cross section of FIG. 9, the layer 54 is formed continuously to cover the outer circumference of core 52.",
"The size and blending of such pigmented thermoplastic particles against the hot mold surface changes the original particle shape and give a short fissure or thread image.",
"The degree of particle shaping is controlled by process conditions.",
"The exposed particles on the back side of the part are much more defined than those against the grained surface of the mold.",
"The fused particles are generally more transparent on the mold side than on the open air side.",
"The eye may be registering discrete particles as fibers.",
"A particle size of 180 microns is similar to a thread diameter of 0.007 inches.",
"A mold may be textured to simulate a textile constructed in a left-hand twill of thread count 60-75 warp ends per inch and 35-45 filling picks per inch of thread diameter of 0.007 inches.",
"When a 72% dark blue, 18% white, 10% black compound of pigmented particles is cast on the mold, a sample results which simulates a "denim"",
"texture, recognized by an intricate, intrinsic design simulating closely interwoven elements resembling the structure formed by the threads of a fabric.",
"In all cases, the color blending effects are integrated throughout the plastic part thickness This is important in products that have a surface which will experience abrasion with service such as: instrument panels, armrests, window edges, headrests, steering wheel columns, consoles, etc.",
"Since the three-dimensional multi-colored thermoplastic allows many surface colors on the plastic part, an application of a paint or stain to a textured three-dimensional multi-color surface which is then wiped off will simulate cloth and wood textures better than when a solid colored surface is used.",
"In the three-dimensional multi-colored formula, it may be possible to add a "fabric fragrance"",
"to the compound.",
"Fused particle shape can be controlled by process parameters such as heat, time and rotation rate.",
"Fused particle shape can be varied from round to elongated to a total blend.",
"A three-dimensional multi-color plastic part has two effects on textured surfaces: (1) on a coarse texture, where one would expect to have shadows, the texture is enhanced;",
"(2) on shallow textures (little shadowing) the texture is subdued and less apparent than if solid colored pigmented particles were used.",
"The synergism between three-dimensional multi-colored pigmented particles and the previously described denim texture or other cloth simulated textures appears to reside in part in the psychological recognition process.",
"Two of the most obvious influences on the recognition process are the frequency and recency with which an input has been encountered in the past to replicate prior experiences.",
"One way in which frequency seems to facilitate recognition is by establishing higher level memory representations that can be matched to the input.",
"The more often a pattern is experienced, the more likely it can be matched as a single unit against a memory representation.",
"In most cases of recognition, familiarity and identification merge into a single subjective experience.",
"Often recognition is an automatic process but, in some cases, there is a conscious search of memory to generate plausible candidate representations to compare to the perceptual input.",
"The visual input of blue three-dimensional multicolored pigmented particles cast onto a "denim"",
"texture mold most closely resembles an actual thread-constructed denim fabric.",
"The Gestalt principles of perception include: (a) Good continuation: elements that look alike tend to be grouped together, and (b) Closure: we literally fill in a piece of the representation that is not provided by the sensory input.",
"These principles may be used to explain the perception that when viewing a sample of three-dimensional multicolored pigmented particles cast onto a mold with a flat-woven texture, we "see"",
"threads of a single color for specific lengths throughout the sample In reality, the particles are random.",
"While the invention has been particularly shown and described with respect to preferred embodiments, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that various changes in form and detail may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention."
] |
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
[0001] The present invention relates to a flexible modular assembly, in particular to a flexible modular assembly comprising electronic textiles, and to a method of manufacturing the flexible modular assembly.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0002] A textile is a material comprised of a network of fibres, that can for instance be manufactured by weaving, knitting, crocheting, knotting, or pressing fibres together. For this purpose, interlocked fibres known as yarns or threads may be used.
[0003] Many types of textiles are used in our every day life. When electronic components (i.e. devices that work by controlling the flow of electrons) are integrated into a textile new application fields emerge. When the textile is an integral part of the electrical circuit comprising the electronic components, an electronic textile is obtained.
[0004] An example of an electronic component is a LED package in the form of a surface mounted device (SMD-LED), which can be attached to a textile substrate by gluing, soldering, snap button connection or stitching. The resulting light-emitting textile could open up a wide range of new interior and apparel applications, ranging from illumination to atmosphere creation to messaging.
[0005] An electronic textile is known from UK patent application GB2396252A. The known electronic textile comprises SMD-LED's which are mounted at designated positions on a textile either by hand or by using conventional equipment known from the electronics assembly industry, such as a pick-and-place apparatus. The SMD-LED's are electrically addressable via conductive tracks, which are either formed from yarns woven into the textile, or from tracks printed onto the textile.
[0006] A drawback of the known electronic textile is that once it has been made, its size is fixed. For example, an electronic textile comprising a 7×7 matrix of SMD-LED's, once made, can only make a 7×7 display system.
[0007] For applications of electronic textiles that require coverage of large areas, there is a need for larger-sized systems.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0008] In order to accommodate larger size applications, a skilled person would simply upscale the dimensions of the known textile. Such an approach, however, has the disadvantage of becoming quickly costly and difficult to pick and place components on. Since a textile is not a flat and rigid body, it is difficult to mount electronic components onto the textile in a sufficiently accurate way with a pick and place apparatus, especially for textiles with relatively large dimensions, such as, for instance, a textile with dimensions that exceed 0.5×0.5 square meter.
[0009] Furthermore, a problem found specifically with woven electronic textiles is that only certain types of electrically conductive yarns can be woven into the electronic textile. These yarns usually have a low conductance, limiting the amount of current that can flow through them. For larger woven systems, this will limit the number of electronic components that can be placed on the textile.
[0010] An assembly of interconnected PCBs can be made using a bus system. However such an assembly is bulky, inflexible, and requires a rack for the PCBs and the bus system to be housed and interconnected in a stable way. Furthermore, such an assembly is bound to a certain fixed geometry and is either not bendable and is only limited to that a certain number of PCBs can be interconnected. Additionally, ordinary PCBs are not drapeable.
[0011] It is therefore an object of the invention to provide a system for use in an electronic textile application that requires the coverage of a large area, and that does not have the above-mentioned drawbacks.
[0012] According to a first aspect of the invention, the object is realised by a flexible modular assembly, comprising a first flexible electronic module having a first set of electrical conductors, a second flexible electronic module having a second set of electrical conductors, a textile support for supporting the first flexible electronic module and the second flexible electronic module, the textile support having a third set of electrical conductors, and flexible connectors for connecting the first set of electrical conductors to the third set of electrical conductors and/or to the second set of electrical conductors.
[0013] The flexible modular assembly according to the invention is a modular textile assembly comprising flexible electronic modules that are interconnected by adhering them to a larger textile support. The flexible electronic modules can be adhered to the textile support by a number of methods including, but not limited to, lamination, stitching, embroidering, soldering, etc. Connection between these flexible electronic modules can be made either through connections at the edges of the modules, through connections made between the modules and the textile support, or through a combination of such connections.
[0014] The textile support can have electrically conductive yarns embroidered, stitched or woven into it with some pattern that allows for the supply of information (data) and/or power to contact points comprised on the individually adhered flexible electronic modules. Since the yarns do not necessarily need to be woven, high conductivity yarns can be used on the textile support, allowing for large electrical currents to be transmitted.
[0015] The connections can be made through a number of techniques such as soldering, clamping, gluing, stitching, etc. Communications between each of the individual flexible electronic modules can occur through the use of intelligent driver systems located in each flexible electronic module.
[0016] The flexible connectors for connecting the first set of electrical conductors to the third set of electrical conductors and/or to the second set of electrical conductors can be double-sided metal contacts, glue, stitching means, embroidering means or clamping means or any combination thereof. Examples of suitable stitching means and embroidering means are electrically conductive, with or without an insulative outer layer.
[0017] In a first embodiment of the flexible modular assembly according to the invention, the flexible connectors include a strain relief structure placed at a connection point. The flexible connectors may also include an electrically conductive flexible mechanical clamp.
[0018] In a second embodiment of the flexible modular assembly according to the invention, the first flexible electronic module and/or the second flexible electronic module is an electronic textiles.
[0019] In a third embodiment of the flexible modular assembly according to the invention, the first flexible electronic module and/or the second flexible electronic module is a flex foil.
[0020] The textile support may accommodate a driver PCB on one of its sides. The driver PCB may be located on a side of the textile support facing the first flexible electronic module. The driver PCB may alternatively be located on a side of the textile support opposite the side facing the first flexible electronic module.
[0021] In a fourth embodiment of the flexible modular assembly according to the invention, the third set of electrical conductors forms a network for supplying power and data signals to the first flexible electronic module and to the second flexible electronic module.
[0022] The first flexible electronic module and the second flexible electronic module may be of a different shape or a like shape, such as a rectangular, a square, or a triangle. The first flexible electronic module and the second flexible electronic module may have a similar component arrangement attached thereto. The component arrangement may comprise electronic components such as light emitting diodes.
[0023] According to a second aspect of the present invention, the object is realised by a method for manufacturing a flexible modular assembly comprising the steps of providing a first flexible electronic modules and a second flexible electronic module, arranging the first flexible electronic modules and the second flexible electronic module onto a textile support comprising a set of electrical conductors, and connecting the first flexible electronic module and the second flexible electronic module to the set of electrical conductors on the textile support through flexible connectors to interconnect the first flexible electronic module and the second flexible electronic module.
[0024] These and other aspect of the invention will be apparent from and elucidated with reference to the embodiments described hereinafter.
[0025] Generally, all terms used in the claims are to be interpreted according to their ordinary meaning in the technical field, unless explicitly defined otherwise herein. All references to “a/an/the/said [element, device, component, means, step, etc]” are to be interpreted openly as referring to at least one instance of said element, device, component, means, step, etc., unless explicitly stated otherwise. The steps of any method disclosed herein do not have to be performed in the exact order disclosed, unless explicitly stated.
[0026] By the term “strain relief structure” is understood rubber or plastic moulding over a connection point such as it is common with standard electronic cable connectors.
[0027] By the term “flexible mechanical clamp” is to be understood a mechanical connection that can bend back and forth without breaking such as a clamp that has hinges at its connection point so that it can move back and forth, or is encapsulated in a flexible material so that can move freely.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0028] Other features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following detailed description of a presently preferred embodiment, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:
[0029] FIG. 1 shows an embodiment of a flexible electronic module,
[0030] FIG. 2 shows an embodiment of four interconnected flexible electronic modules,
[0031] FIG. 3 shows an embodiment of a flexible electronic module,
[0032] FIG. 4 shows an embodiment of data communication between nine flexible electronic modules.
[0033] FIG. 5 shows an embodiment of four flexible electronic modules connected to a support, and
[0034] FIG. 6 shows an embodiment of four flexible electronic modules connected to one another and to a support.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
[0035] The present invention will now be described more fully hereinafter with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which certain embodiments of the invention are shown. This invention may, however, be embodied in many different forms and should not be construed as limited to the embodiments set forth herein; rather, these embodiments are provided by way of example so that this disclosure will be thorough and complete, and will fully convey the scope of the invention to those skilled in the art. Like numbers refer to like elements throughout.
[0036] In general for FIGS. 1 , 2 , 3 , 5 and 6 the reference numeral 140 , though here shown referring to the contact pad, is intended to mean that the flexible electronic modules 110 , 111 , 120 and 121 can be adhered to the textile support 130 by a number of flexible connectors made by, for example, lamination, stitching, embroidering, soldering, gluing, clamping, double sided metal contacts, or any combination thereof. Stitching means and embroidering means may each be a flexible conductor such as an electrically conductive yarn, with or without an electrically insulative outer layer. The flexible connectors 140 may further include a strain relief structure placed at a connection point making the connection stronger to prevent that two electronic modules are pulled away from one another. In order to further strengthen the connection between modules 110 , 111 , 120 and 121 and the connection to the textile support 130 the flexible connectors 140 may additionally include a flexible mechanical clamp that is either conductive or non-conductive.
[0037] A schematic drawing in one embodiment of the present invention is shown in FIG. 1 , showing a flexible electronic module. FIG. 1 shows the outline of a flexible electronic module implemented as a flex foil tile 110 that consists of a 7×7 LED matrix with interconnection points on all 4 sides. The drawing also shows the locations of the LEDs 122 and the gaps 124 in the flex-foil tile 110 which are needed to improve the foil's 110 flexibility and bendability.
[0038] The flex foil 110 in FIG. 1 may be applied as a basic building block, e.g. to build a matrix, which matrix is larger than the 7×7 LED matrix. The flex foil can for example be a sheet of thin material that can be flexed multiple times without plastically deforming FIG. 2 shows an embodiment of a flexible modular assembly comprising four flexible electronic modules in the form of flex foil tiles. Clearly this set-up could be further extended in all directions using any suitable interconnection method. As an example interconnection between the flexible electronic modules (tiles) 110 , 120 , 111 and 121 in FIG. 2 must be made such that the connection is extremely robust. In order to achieve this, a number of solutions used in flex foil technologies can be used such as epoxy, mechanical snapping (i.e. crimp flex), or some combination thereof. Since the flexible electronic module 110 , e.g. as a foil, is being used in an electronic textile application, this further increases the connection robustness through lamination of the foils 110 , 120 , 111 and 121 backside to a larger textile support 130 , e.g. as a supporting conductive textile. Thus the supporting conductive textile has an area, which is greater than each of the respective areas of the electronic tiles 110 , 120 , 111 and 121 and has also an area which is greater than the sums of the areas for the four electronic tiles 110 , 120 , 111 and 121 .
[0039] In order to improve the connectivity of the interconnection points further, the points may need to be connected by double sided metal contacts with holes in order to facilitate flow of epoxy between foils 110 , 120 , 111 and 121 and also in order to increase the electrical contact area, whereby the possible current density increases. The latter is of particular importance for the building of large systems.
[0040] FIG. 3 shows a further embodiment of a flexible electronic module. The interconnection points may be placed at the mid-points of the edges 141 , 142 , 143 and 144 of the flexible electronic module 110 in order to make them more uniform in appearance and possibly, making them even easier to assemble in the factory. Many of the interconnection points will have connections that run through the foil 110 at all locations. Thus, when such foils are tiled together, they form a continuous grid. Examples of such interconnection points are ground, power, clock, and global data. In order to increase throughput any interconnection point, such as the ground, the power, the clock or the global data may be implemented twice on the flexible electronic module 110 .
[0041] However, some connectors or interconnection points may not be global, such as those pertaining to input and/or output data. Data sent through one of these connections must be processed by for example onboard electronics.
[0042] This onboard electronics may make up an intelligent interconnection system to the flexible electronic modules. A purpose of such an intelligent interconnection system may be to distribute image data throughout the flexible electronic modules, which may be implemented as display tiles.
[0043] The interconnection system can be built in three ways: (1) preconfigured, (2) user configured, or (3) a mixed system.
[0044] With a preconfigured system, each flexible electronic module (tile) is given a serial address during manufacturing. An external image controller is also preconfigured to know how many flexible electronic modules (tiles) are in the system and what address corresponds to each flexible electronic module (tile).
[0045] With a user-configured system, each flexible electronic module has a dynamic serial address that configures itself when the system starts up. The flexible electronic modules (e.g. foils) communicate back to the controller to inform it how big the array is and what addresses correspond to each foil. Such a system, though more complex than the preconfigured system, is more generic, and allows for cheaper mass production (since the configuration step of each tile and controller is removed) and also allows for simple up scaling of existing systems.
[0046] With a mixed system, either the flexible electronic modules are pre-programmed with addresses, or controller boxes are configured to only handle systems that consist of certain sizes. Such an option may have cost and system stability advantages over the other two options.
[0047] All three systems described above use the same method for displaying data on the flexible electronic modules. Data is sent to a controller, which then outputs it to the flexible electronic modules, for example to flex foils. The controller's communication lines, along with the overall systems power lines which come from the controller, are then connected to one or more flexible electronic modules, e.g. to tiles in the matrix. When sending an image, the first thing that occurs is that the controller receives the image data. This can be done in many different ways (i.e. Bluetooth, SMS, USB, etc.). When an image is loaded to the controller, it is broken up into a number of 7×7 grids that correspond to the known size of the flex-foil array, i.e. how the flexible electronic modules are connected to define the array. These broken images are coded into a serial scheme and given an address that corresponds to the flexible electronic module in the system that must display the image. This coded image is then sent through the controller data line to the input flexible electronic module or flexible electronic modules, e.g. foil or foils, respectively which can then broadcast the coded image to the rest of the flexible electronic modules in the system. FIG. 4 shows schematically this process. Thus in the following an embodiment illustrates how the aforementioned flexible electronic modules communicate.
[0048] FIG. 4 shows an embodiment of data communication between nine flexible electronic modules. The figure shows schematically data communication between nine flexible electronic modules, for example 9 flex-foils, each referenced with 110 . Each flex foil has a unique address. The controller takes the original image and breaks it, i.e. the controller deconstructs it into 9 quadrants with 7×7 pixels in each quadrant.
[0049] Deconstructed data is then encoded into data packets that have a unique address, which corresponds to the foil in the matrix that must display that encoded image. The controller then sends these data packets out for each of the addresses in the system. The foils receive their respective data packets and their drivers output the encoded data. The total constructed image from all of the foils will then form the original image that was loaded in the controller.
[0050] Using the data communication method described, it is possible to create structures of almost any size without the need of complex interconnects. Since there may be only one type of flexible electronic modules, for example a tile is used, this tile can be produced, reproduced and tested cheaply. The system can easily be modified to have tiles with any number of lighting elements, for example LEDs, as long as the tile is configured to be of a shape that connects to a similar-shaped tile, for example the tiles are each of a different shape or of a like shape such as rectangular shape, a square, or a triangle.
[0051] Further, the data communication method supports any number of interconnection points, as long as they fit on the tile. The data communication method also supports interconnection points that need a defined data direction (data-out->data-in), as well as global data flow, thus the method introduces inherent redundancy in bigger tiling systems as the signals can arrive through different tiles. It improves mechanical robustness as the system is built up of small, identical tiles that are interconnected by flexible interconnects.
[0052] The method decreases system cost as it is possible to adjust the size of the system tile to an optimal size. This system tile can than be produced in high quantities.
[0053] In the following two figures, the four flexible electronic modules are respectively denoted 110 , 120 , 111 and 121 and are connected to a larger textile support 130 .
[0054] FIG. 5 shows four flexible electronic modules connected to each other at their corners and mounted to the textile support 130 . The textile support 130 has communication lines, which also connect to the modules in order to improve reliability.
[0055] It is possible to connect the smaller flexible electronic modules 110 , 120 , 111 and 121 together by adhering them to a larger textile support 130 . The flexible electronic modules 110 , 120 , 111 and 121 can be adhered to the textile support 130 by a number of methods including, but not limited to, lamination, stitching, embroidering, and soldering. Connection between these four smaller flexible electronic modules 110 , 120 , 111 and 121 can also be made through flexible connectors 140 at the edges of the modules 110 , 120 , 111 and 121 .
[0056] FIG. 6 shows an embodiment of four flexible electronic modules connected to one another and to the textile support 130 . Connection between the modules 110 , 120 , 111 and 121 can be made through connectors 140 made between the modules 110 , 120 , 111 and 121 and the textile support 130 , for example between opposite facing sides and/or edges thereof. Further, or alternatively, connections between the modules 110 , 120 , 111 and 121 can be made through connections made between the modules 110 , 120 , 111 and 121 and the textile support 130 through a combination of connections 140 made at the edges or opposite sides of the flexible electronic modules 110 , 120 , 111 and 121 , and through connections 140 to the textile support 130 , e.g. via a driver PCB on the textile support 130 to one or more of the smaller modules 110 , 120 , 111 and 121 .
[0057] In FIG. 6 the electronic modules 110 , 120 , 111 and 121 are foils that are electrically attached together and also to the textile substrate 130 . The textile substrate 130 may consist of a plurality of communication lines. The foils 110 , 120 , 111 and 121 can be mounted to the textile support 130 such that the electrical connection points between foils 110 , 120 , 111 and 121 are also aligned and mounted to the communication lines of the textile support 130 in order to improve electrical contact stability of the assembly 100 .
[0058] In another embodiment, a flex-foil system is designed in order to be able to interface directly with the textile support 130 . In such an embodiment, the textile support 130 must contain a plurality of communication lines. The foils 110 , 120 , 111 and 121 are not connected directly to each other, but are instead only connected to the textile support 130 . The foils 110 , 120 , 111 and 121 are aligned to connect to the communication lines, such that these lines form an electrical connection between the foils 110 , 120 , 111 and 121 .
[0059] In another embodiment, an electronic textile, with a driver PCB for driving a certain number of LEDs, is designed in order to be able to interface with other electronic textiles. The electronic textiles 110 , 120 , 111 and 121 can then be electrically attached together and also attached to the textile support 130 . The textile support 130 may consist of a plurality of communication lines. The electronic textiles 110 , 120 , 111 and 121 can be mounted to the textile support 130 such that the electrical connection points between electronic textiles 110 , 120 , 111 and 121 are also aligned and mounted to the textile support 130 by means of communication lines in order to improve electrical contact stability of the system 100 .
[0060] In another embodiment, an electronic textile, with a driver PCB for driving a certain number of LEDs, is designed in order to be able to interface directly with the textile support 130 . In such an embodiment, the textile support 130 must contain a plurality of communication lines. The electronic textiles 110 , 120 , 111 and 121 are not connected directly to each other, but are instead only connected to the textile support 130 . The electronic textiles 110 , 120 , 111 and 121 are aligned to connect to the communication lines. The communication lines may define a number of buses, such that these buses form an electrical connection between the foils 110 , 120 , 111 and 121 .
[0061] In another embodiment, driver PCBs are attached to the textile support 130 , which also includes communication lines. Electronic textile or foil substrates 110 , 120 , 111 and 121 are then attached to this textile support 130 accordingly. The driver PCBs can be placed on either the same side that the electronic textiles 110 , 120 , 111 and 121 are mounted to, or placed on the opposite side.
[0062] In any of the aforementioned embodiments, the flexible electronic modules may be made as electronic textile(s). An electronic textile is obtained when an electronic component (i.e. a device that works by controlling the flow of electrons) is integrated into a textile so that the textile is an integral part of the electrical circuit comprising the electronic component.
[0063] Although the present invention has been described in connection with particular embodiments thereof, it is to be understood that various modifications, alterations and adaptations may be made by those skilled in the art without departing from the claimed scope, for example following the spirit of the invention the two flexible electronic modules 110 and 120 may be extended to an unlimited number of flexible electronic modules or modular tiles resulting in flexible modular assemblies comprising a textile support that exceed 1×1, 2×2, etc square meters. Such modular textile assemblies provided with LEDs may be applied to illuminate relative large areas, e.g. in a sports arena or as backlit to a billboard. | The present invention relates to a flexible modular assembly ( 100 ) comprising at least two flexible electronic modules ( 110 and 111 ) supported by a textile support ( 130 ). The two flexible electronic modules and the textile support each comprise a set of electrical conductors. The flexible modular assembly further comprises flexible connectors ( 140 ) for interconnecting two sets of electrical conductors. The flexible modular assembly of the invention is a modular textile assembly for use in large-area applications of electronic textiles. | Briefly summarize the invention's components and working principles as described in the document. | [
"FIELD OF THE INVENTION [0001] The present invention relates to a flexible modular assembly, in particular to a flexible modular assembly comprising electronic textiles, and to a method of manufacturing the flexible modular assembly.",
"BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION [0002] A textile is a material comprised of a network of fibres, that can for instance be manufactured by weaving, knitting, crocheting, knotting, or pressing fibres together.",
"For this purpose, interlocked fibres known as yarns or threads may be used.",
"[0003] Many types of textiles are used in our every day life.",
"When electronic components (i.e. devices that work by controlling the flow of electrons) are integrated into a textile new application fields emerge.",
"When the textile is an integral part of the electrical circuit comprising the electronic components, an electronic textile is obtained.",
"[0004] An example of an electronic component is a LED package in the form of a surface mounted device (SMD-LED), which can be attached to a textile substrate by gluing, soldering, snap button connection or stitching.",
"The resulting light-emitting textile could open up a wide range of new interior and apparel applications, ranging from illumination to atmosphere creation to messaging.",
"[0005] An electronic textile is known from UK patent application GB2396252A.",
"The known electronic textile comprises SMD-LED's which are mounted at designated positions on a textile either by hand or by using conventional equipment known from the electronics assembly industry, such as a pick-and-place apparatus.",
"The SMD-LED's are electrically addressable via conductive tracks, which are either formed from yarns woven into the textile, or from tracks printed onto the textile.",
"[0006] A drawback of the known electronic textile is that once it has been made, its size is fixed.",
"For example, an electronic textile comprising a 7×7 matrix of SMD-LED's, once made, can only make a 7×7 display system.",
"[0007] For applications of electronic textiles that require coverage of large areas, there is a need for larger-sized systems.",
"SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION [0008] In order to accommodate larger size applications, a skilled person would simply upscale the dimensions of the known textile.",
"Such an approach, however, has the disadvantage of becoming quickly costly and difficult to pick and place components on.",
"Since a textile is not a flat and rigid body, it is difficult to mount electronic components onto the textile in a sufficiently accurate way with a pick and place apparatus, especially for textiles with relatively large dimensions, such as, for instance, a textile with dimensions that exceed 0.5×0.5 square meter.",
"[0009] Furthermore, a problem found specifically with woven electronic textiles is that only certain types of electrically conductive yarns can be woven into the electronic textile.",
"These yarns usually have a low conductance, limiting the amount of current that can flow through them.",
"For larger woven systems, this will limit the number of electronic components that can be placed on the textile.",
"[0010] An assembly of interconnected PCBs can be made using a bus system.",
"However such an assembly is bulky, inflexible, and requires a rack for the PCBs and the bus system to be housed and interconnected in a stable way.",
"Furthermore, such an assembly is bound to a certain fixed geometry and is either not bendable and is only limited to that a certain number of PCBs can be interconnected.",
"Additionally, ordinary PCBs are not drapeable.",
"[0011] It is therefore an object of the invention to provide a system for use in an electronic textile application that requires the coverage of a large area, and that does not have the above-mentioned drawbacks.",
"[0012] According to a first aspect of the invention, the object is realised by a flexible modular assembly, comprising a first flexible electronic module having a first set of electrical conductors, a second flexible electronic module having a second set of electrical conductors, a textile support for supporting the first flexible electronic module and the second flexible electronic module, the textile support having a third set of electrical conductors, and flexible connectors for connecting the first set of electrical conductors to the third set of electrical conductors and/or to the second set of electrical conductors.",
"[0013] The flexible modular assembly according to the invention is a modular textile assembly comprising flexible electronic modules that are interconnected by adhering them to a larger textile support.",
"The flexible electronic modules can be adhered to the textile support by a number of methods including, but not limited to, lamination, stitching, embroidering, soldering, etc.",
"Connection between these flexible electronic modules can be made either through connections at the edges of the modules, through connections made between the modules and the textile support, or through a combination of such connections.",
"[0014] The textile support can have electrically conductive yarns embroidered, stitched or woven into it with some pattern that allows for the supply of information (data) and/or power to contact points comprised on the individually adhered flexible electronic modules.",
"Since the yarns do not necessarily need to be woven, high conductivity yarns can be used on the textile support, allowing for large electrical currents to be transmitted.",
"[0015] The connections can be made through a number of techniques such as soldering, clamping, gluing, stitching, etc.",
"Communications between each of the individual flexible electronic modules can occur through the use of intelligent driver systems located in each flexible electronic module.",
"[0016] The flexible connectors for connecting the first set of electrical conductors to the third set of electrical conductors and/or to the second set of electrical conductors can be double-sided metal contacts, glue, stitching means, embroidering means or clamping means or any combination thereof.",
"Examples of suitable stitching means and embroidering means are electrically conductive, with or without an insulative outer layer.",
"[0017] In a first embodiment of the flexible modular assembly according to the invention, the flexible connectors include a strain relief structure placed at a connection point.",
"The flexible connectors may also include an electrically conductive flexible mechanical clamp.",
"[0018] In a second embodiment of the flexible modular assembly according to the invention, the first flexible electronic module and/or the second flexible electronic module is an electronic textiles.",
"[0019] In a third embodiment of the flexible modular assembly according to the invention, the first flexible electronic module and/or the second flexible electronic module is a flex foil.",
"[0020] The textile support may accommodate a driver PCB on one of its sides.",
"The driver PCB may be located on a side of the textile support facing the first flexible electronic module.",
"The driver PCB may alternatively be located on a side of the textile support opposite the side facing the first flexible electronic module.",
"[0021] In a fourth embodiment of the flexible modular assembly according to the invention, the third set of electrical conductors forms a network for supplying power and data signals to the first flexible electronic module and to the second flexible electronic module.",
"[0022] The first flexible electronic module and the second flexible electronic module may be of a different shape or a like shape, such as a rectangular, a square, or a triangle.",
"The first flexible electronic module and the second flexible electronic module may have a similar component arrangement attached thereto.",
"The component arrangement may comprise electronic components such as light emitting diodes.",
"[0023] According to a second aspect of the present invention, the object is realised by a method for manufacturing a flexible modular assembly comprising the steps of providing a first flexible electronic modules and a second flexible electronic module, arranging the first flexible electronic modules and the second flexible electronic module onto a textile support comprising a set of electrical conductors, and connecting the first flexible electronic module and the second flexible electronic module to the set of electrical conductors on the textile support through flexible connectors to interconnect the first flexible electronic module and the second flexible electronic module.",
"[0024] These and other aspect of the invention will be apparent from and elucidated with reference to the embodiments described hereinafter.",
"[0025] Generally, all terms used in the claims are to be interpreted according to their ordinary meaning in the technical field, unless explicitly defined otherwise herein.",
"All references to “a/an/the/said [element, device, component, means, step, etc]”",
"are to be interpreted openly as referring to at least one instance of said element, device, component, means, step, etc.",
", unless explicitly stated otherwise.",
"The steps of any method disclosed herein do not have to be performed in the exact order disclosed, unless explicitly stated.",
"[0026] By the term “strain relief structure”",
"is understood rubber or plastic moulding over a connection point such as it is common with standard electronic cable connectors.",
"[0027] By the term “flexible mechanical clamp”",
"is to be understood a mechanical connection that can bend back and forth without breaking such as a clamp that has hinges at its connection point so that it can move back and forth, or is encapsulated in a flexible material so that can move freely.",
"BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS [0028] Other features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following detailed description of a presently preferred embodiment, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: [0029] FIG. 1 shows an embodiment of a flexible electronic module, [0030] FIG. 2 shows an embodiment of four interconnected flexible electronic modules, [0031] FIG. 3 shows an embodiment of a flexible electronic module, [0032] FIG. 4 shows an embodiment of data communication between nine flexible electronic modules.",
"[0033] FIG. 5 shows an embodiment of four flexible electronic modules connected to a support, and [0034] FIG. 6 shows an embodiment of four flexible electronic modules connected to one another and to a support.",
"DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [0035] The present invention will now be described more fully hereinafter with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which certain embodiments of the invention are shown.",
"This invention may, however, be embodied in many different forms and should not be construed as limited to the embodiments set forth herein;",
"rather, these embodiments are provided by way of example so that this disclosure will be thorough and complete, and will fully convey the scope of the invention to those skilled in the art.",
"Like numbers refer to like elements throughout.",
"[0036] In general for FIGS. 1 , 2 , 3 , 5 and 6 the reference numeral 140 , though here shown referring to the contact pad, is intended to mean that the flexible electronic modules 110 , 111 , 120 and 121 can be adhered to the textile support 130 by a number of flexible connectors made by, for example, lamination, stitching, embroidering, soldering, gluing, clamping, double sided metal contacts, or any combination thereof.",
"Stitching means and embroidering means may each be a flexible conductor such as an electrically conductive yarn, with or without an electrically insulative outer layer.",
"The flexible connectors 140 may further include a strain relief structure placed at a connection point making the connection stronger to prevent that two electronic modules are pulled away from one another.",
"In order to further strengthen the connection between modules 110 , 111 , 120 and 121 and the connection to the textile support 130 the flexible connectors 140 may additionally include a flexible mechanical clamp that is either conductive or non-conductive.",
"[0037] A schematic drawing in one embodiment of the present invention is shown in FIG. 1 , showing a flexible electronic module.",
"FIG. 1 shows the outline of a flexible electronic module implemented as a flex foil tile 110 that consists of a 7×7 LED matrix with interconnection points on all 4 sides.",
"The drawing also shows the locations of the LEDs 122 and the gaps 124 in the flex-foil tile 110 which are needed to improve the foil's 110 flexibility and bendability.",
"[0038] The flex foil 110 in FIG. 1 may be applied as a basic building block, e.g. to build a matrix, which matrix is larger than the 7×7 LED matrix.",
"The flex foil can for example be a sheet of thin material that can be flexed multiple times without plastically deforming FIG. 2 shows an embodiment of a flexible modular assembly comprising four flexible electronic modules in the form of flex foil tiles.",
"Clearly this set-up could be further extended in all directions using any suitable interconnection method.",
"As an example interconnection between the flexible electronic modules (tiles) 110 , 120 , 111 and 121 in FIG. 2 must be made such that the connection is extremely robust.",
"In order to achieve this, a number of solutions used in flex foil technologies can be used such as epoxy, mechanical snapping (i.e. crimp flex), or some combination thereof.",
"Since the flexible electronic module 110 , e.g. as a foil, is being used in an electronic textile application, this further increases the connection robustness through lamination of the foils 110 , 120 , 111 and 121 backside to a larger textile support 130 , e.g. as a supporting conductive textile.",
"Thus the supporting conductive textile has an area, which is greater than each of the respective areas of the electronic tiles 110 , 120 , 111 and 121 and has also an area which is greater than the sums of the areas for the four electronic tiles 110 , 120 , 111 and 121 .",
"[0039] In order to improve the connectivity of the interconnection points further, the points may need to be connected by double sided metal contacts with holes in order to facilitate flow of epoxy between foils 110 , 120 , 111 and 121 and also in order to increase the electrical contact area, whereby the possible current density increases.",
"The latter is of particular importance for the building of large systems.",
"[0040] FIG. 3 shows a further embodiment of a flexible electronic module.",
"The interconnection points may be placed at the mid-points of the edges 141 , 142 , 143 and 144 of the flexible electronic module 110 in order to make them more uniform in appearance and possibly, making them even easier to assemble in the factory.",
"Many of the interconnection points will have connections that run through the foil 110 at all locations.",
"Thus, when such foils are tiled together, they form a continuous grid.",
"Examples of such interconnection points are ground, power, clock, and global data.",
"In order to increase throughput any interconnection point, such as the ground, the power, the clock or the global data may be implemented twice on the flexible electronic module 110 .",
"[0041] However, some connectors or interconnection points may not be global, such as those pertaining to input and/or output data.",
"Data sent through one of these connections must be processed by for example onboard electronics.",
"[0042] This onboard electronics may make up an intelligent interconnection system to the flexible electronic modules.",
"A purpose of such an intelligent interconnection system may be to distribute image data throughout the flexible electronic modules, which may be implemented as display tiles.",
"[0043] The interconnection system can be built in three ways: (1) preconfigured, (2) user configured, or (3) a mixed system.",
"[0044] With a preconfigured system, each flexible electronic module (tile) is given a serial address during manufacturing.",
"An external image controller is also preconfigured to know how many flexible electronic modules (tiles) are in the system and what address corresponds to each flexible electronic module (tile).",
"[0045] With a user-configured system, each flexible electronic module has a dynamic serial address that configures itself when the system starts up.",
"The flexible electronic modules (e.g. foils) communicate back to the controller to inform it how big the array is and what addresses correspond to each foil.",
"Such a system, though more complex than the preconfigured system, is more generic, and allows for cheaper mass production (since the configuration step of each tile and controller is removed) and also allows for simple up scaling of existing systems.",
"[0046] With a mixed system, either the flexible electronic modules are pre-programmed with addresses, or controller boxes are configured to only handle systems that consist of certain sizes.",
"Such an option may have cost and system stability advantages over the other two options.",
"[0047] All three systems described above use the same method for displaying data on the flexible electronic modules.",
"Data is sent to a controller, which then outputs it to the flexible electronic modules, for example to flex foils.",
"The controller's communication lines, along with the overall systems power lines which come from the controller, are then connected to one or more flexible electronic modules, e.g. to tiles in the matrix.",
"When sending an image, the first thing that occurs is that the controller receives the image data.",
"This can be done in many different ways (i.e. Bluetooth, SMS, USB, etc.).",
"When an image is loaded to the controller, it is broken up into a number of 7×7 grids that correspond to the known size of the flex-foil array, i.e. how the flexible electronic modules are connected to define the array.",
"These broken images are coded into a serial scheme and given an address that corresponds to the flexible electronic module in the system that must display the image.",
"This coded image is then sent through the controller data line to the input flexible electronic module or flexible electronic modules, e.g. foil or foils, respectively which can then broadcast the coded image to the rest of the flexible electronic modules in the system.",
"FIG. 4 shows schematically this process.",
"Thus in the following an embodiment illustrates how the aforementioned flexible electronic modules communicate.",
"[0048] FIG. 4 shows an embodiment of data communication between nine flexible electronic modules.",
"The figure shows schematically data communication between nine flexible electronic modules, for example 9 flex-foils, each referenced with 110 .",
"Each flex foil has a unique address.",
"The controller takes the original image and breaks it, i.e. the controller deconstructs it into 9 quadrants with 7×7 pixels in each quadrant.",
"[0049] Deconstructed data is then encoded into data packets that have a unique address, which corresponds to the foil in the matrix that must display that encoded image.",
"The controller then sends these data packets out for each of the addresses in the system.",
"The foils receive their respective data packets and their drivers output the encoded data.",
"The total constructed image from all of the foils will then form the original image that was loaded in the controller.",
"[0050] Using the data communication method described, it is possible to create structures of almost any size without the need of complex interconnects.",
"Since there may be only one type of flexible electronic modules, for example a tile is used, this tile can be produced, reproduced and tested cheaply.",
"The system can easily be modified to have tiles with any number of lighting elements, for example LEDs, as long as the tile is configured to be of a shape that connects to a similar-shaped tile, for example the tiles are each of a different shape or of a like shape such as rectangular shape, a square, or a triangle.",
"[0051] Further, the data communication method supports any number of interconnection points, as long as they fit on the tile.",
"The data communication method also supports interconnection points that need a defined data direction (data-out->data-in), as well as global data flow, thus the method introduces inherent redundancy in bigger tiling systems as the signals can arrive through different tiles.",
"It improves mechanical robustness as the system is built up of small, identical tiles that are interconnected by flexible interconnects.",
"[0052] The method decreases system cost as it is possible to adjust the size of the system tile to an optimal size.",
"This system tile can than be produced in high quantities.",
"[0053] In the following two figures, the four flexible electronic modules are respectively denoted 110 , 120 , 111 and 121 and are connected to a larger textile support 130 .",
"[0054] FIG. 5 shows four flexible electronic modules connected to each other at their corners and mounted to the textile support 130 .",
"The textile support 130 has communication lines, which also connect to the modules in order to improve reliability.",
"[0055] It is possible to connect the smaller flexible electronic modules 110 , 120 , 111 and 121 together by adhering them to a larger textile support 130 .",
"The flexible electronic modules 110 , 120 , 111 and 121 can be adhered to the textile support 130 by a number of methods including, but not limited to, lamination, stitching, embroidering, and soldering.",
"Connection between these four smaller flexible electronic modules 110 , 120 , 111 and 121 can also be made through flexible connectors 140 at the edges of the modules 110 , 120 , 111 and 121 .",
"[0056] FIG. 6 shows an embodiment of four flexible electronic modules connected to one another and to the textile support 130 .",
"Connection between the modules 110 , 120 , 111 and 121 can be made through connectors 140 made between the modules 110 , 120 , 111 and 121 and the textile support 130 , for example between opposite facing sides and/or edges thereof.",
"Further, or alternatively, connections between the modules 110 , 120 , 111 and 121 can be made through connections made between the modules 110 , 120 , 111 and 121 and the textile support 130 through a combination of connections 140 made at the edges or opposite sides of the flexible electronic modules 110 , 120 , 111 and 121 , and through connections 140 to the textile support 130 , e.g. via a driver PCB on the textile support 130 to one or more of the smaller modules 110 , 120 , 111 and 121 .",
"[0057] In FIG. 6 the electronic modules 110 , 120 , 111 and 121 are foils that are electrically attached together and also to the textile substrate 130 .",
"The textile substrate 130 may consist of a plurality of communication lines.",
"The foils 110 , 120 , 111 and 121 can be mounted to the textile support 130 such that the electrical connection points between foils 110 , 120 , 111 and 121 are also aligned and mounted to the communication lines of the textile support 130 in order to improve electrical contact stability of the assembly 100 .",
"[0058] In another embodiment, a flex-foil system is designed in order to be able to interface directly with the textile support 130 .",
"In such an embodiment, the textile support 130 must contain a plurality of communication lines.",
"The foils 110 , 120 , 111 and 121 are not connected directly to each other, but are instead only connected to the textile support 130 .",
"The foils 110 , 120 , 111 and 121 are aligned to connect to the communication lines, such that these lines form an electrical connection between the foils 110 , 120 , 111 and 121 .",
"[0059] In another embodiment, an electronic textile, with a driver PCB for driving a certain number of LEDs, is designed in order to be able to interface with other electronic textiles.",
"The electronic textiles 110 , 120 , 111 and 121 can then be electrically attached together and also attached to the textile support 130 .",
"The textile support 130 may consist of a plurality of communication lines.",
"The electronic textiles 110 , 120 , 111 and 121 can be mounted to the textile support 130 such that the electrical connection points between electronic textiles 110 , 120 , 111 and 121 are also aligned and mounted to the textile support 130 by means of communication lines in order to improve electrical contact stability of the system 100 .",
"[0060] In another embodiment, an electronic textile, with a driver PCB for driving a certain number of LEDs, is designed in order to be able to interface directly with the textile support 130 .",
"In such an embodiment, the textile support 130 must contain a plurality of communication lines.",
"The electronic textiles 110 , 120 , 111 and 121 are not connected directly to each other, but are instead only connected to the textile support 130 .",
"The electronic textiles 110 , 120 , 111 and 121 are aligned to connect to the communication lines.",
"The communication lines may define a number of buses, such that these buses form an electrical connection between the foils 110 , 120 , 111 and 121 .",
"[0061] In another embodiment, driver PCBs are attached to the textile support 130 , which also includes communication lines.",
"Electronic textile or foil substrates 110 , 120 , 111 and 121 are then attached to this textile support 130 accordingly.",
"The driver PCBs can be placed on either the same side that the electronic textiles 110 , 120 , 111 and 121 are mounted to, or placed on the opposite side.",
"[0062] In any of the aforementioned embodiments, the flexible electronic modules may be made as electronic textile(s).",
"An electronic textile is obtained when an electronic component (i.e. a device that works by controlling the flow of electrons) is integrated into a textile so that the textile is an integral part of the electrical circuit comprising the electronic component.",
"[0063] Although the present invention has been described in connection with particular embodiments thereof, it is to be understood that various modifications, alterations and adaptations may be made by those skilled in the art without departing from the claimed scope, for example following the spirit of the invention the two flexible electronic modules 110 and 120 may be extended to an unlimited number of flexible electronic modules or modular tiles resulting in flexible modular assemblies comprising a textile support that exceed 1×1, 2×2, etc square meters.",
"Such modular textile assemblies provided with LEDs may be applied to illuminate relative large areas, e.g. in a sports arena or as backlit to a billboard."
] |
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
This application claims the benefit of South Korean Application No. 10-2014-0104464, filed on Aug. 12, 2014, and South Korean Application No. 10-2015-0099600, filed on Jul. 14, 2015, both of which are incorporated by reference in their entireties.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a composition for detecting the undifferentiated human pluripotent stem cells comprising an agent useful for measuring the level of Desmoglein 2 (Dsg2) mRNA or the protein thereof, a kit for detecting the undifferentiated human pluripotent stem cells comprising the said composition, a method for detecting the undifferentiated human pluripotent stem cells containing the step of measuring the level of Desmoglein 2 mRNA or the protein thereof, a method for evaluating the differentiation of human pluripotent stem cells and thereafter for separating the undifferentiated human pluripotent stem cells, a method for reducing the undifferentiated status of human pluripotent stem cells by inhibiting the expression or activation of Desmoglein 2, and a monoclonal antibody conjugating specifically to human Desmoglein 2.
2. Description of the Related Art
Stem cell is the cell that has a potential for unlimited proliferation as remains undifferentiated status and is capable of being differentiated into a specific cell with a unique function and shape once certain environment and conditions are given. Human pluripotent stem cell is a self-renewal cell in a certain in vitro culture condition. Owing to its characteristics of being differentiated into almost every cell forming a living subject, it has been an important target of study not only to understand basic knowledge on the development, differentiation, and growth of a subject but also to develop an agent for cell therapy which is believed to be a fundamental treatment method for the damage or injury of a subject or for various diseases, to screen a various novel drug candidates and their medicinal effects, to disclose a cause of disease, and to develop a treatment method, etc.
One of the pluripotent stem cells, embryonic stem cell, unlike the differentiated cell arrested in the cell cycle, can produce the same cell as itself by cell division, which is called self-renewal. Embryonic stem cell displays pluripotency that is the ability to be differentiated into almost every functional cell in human body under a certain environment or stimulus. So, it is expected to induce the differentiation of the embryonic stem cell into a specific target cell when a specific cell or organ is damaged by accident or disease. Accordingly, the treatment method using the embryonic stem cell rises as a fundamental treatment method for various incurable diseases.
Human induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSC) is also one of those pluripotent stem cells, that induces pluripotency of the cell that has been finished with differentiation so as to make the cell to be re-differentiated again. This stem cell also has the self-renewal ability like embryonic stem cell, indicating that this stem cell can also be able to be differentiated into almost every kind of cell. According to the reports made so far, human induced pluripotent stem cell has similar characteristics in gene expression and differentiation capability to pluripotent embryonic stem cell (Takahashi, K et al., Cell, 131:861-872, 2007).
To obtain the cells differentiated from human pluripotent stem cells, human pluripotent stem cells are first induced to be differentiated into a specific type of cells; and then the differentiated cells are conjugated with surface markers for recognition; and then the recognized cells are separated by FACS (Fluorescent Activated Cells Sorter) (Fukuda, H et al., Stem Cells (2006) (24.3: 763-771)), or the differentiated cells are labeled with antibody and then the labeled cells are separated by MACS (Magnetic Activated Cell Sorting) (David, R et al., Stem Cells (2005) (23.4: 77-82)). MACS is known to outperform FACS since it can eliminate the risk of cell exposure on laser necessary for FACS.
In the method for obtaining the differentiated cells, either the cell separation is performed by FACS or by MACS, the possibility of mixed-existence with undifferentiated pluripotent stem cells is not completely excluded, suggesting that both methods are limited in separating the differentiated cells alone with 100% purity. That is, the differentiated cells originated from pluripotent stem cells might be mixed with the undifferentiated cells, and there might be a risk of the undifferentiated pluripotent stem cells to cause a tumor called teratoma, which has been a continuous issue in the development of cell therapy products. Therefore, it is requested to develop a novel method to eliminate selectively the undifferentiated cells having the risk of causing teratoma alone with leaving the differentiated cells.
Recently, Oct-4, Nanog and Sox-2, which are involved in self-renewal and pluripotency, have been used as intracellular markers for the separation of human pluripotent stem cells. TRA-1-60, TRA-1-81, SSEA3, and SSEA4 antibodies have been used as cell surface markers, however the most of molecules recognized by these antibodies have carbohydrate epitope or have the functions that are not necessary for self-renewal or pluripotency of human pluripotent stem cell (Badcock, et al., Cancer Res. 59:4715-4719, 1999; Kannagi et al., EMBO. J. 2:2355-2361, 1983; Brimble et al., Stem Cells. 25:54-62, 2007). Therefore, it is necessary to develop cell surface markers that are expressed in human pluripotent stem cells in order to study or separate the undifferentiated human pluripotent stem cells. Likewise, a novel agent that can recognize specifically human pluripotent stem cells and accordingly can be used efficiently to eliminate the undifferentiated human pluripotent stem cells during cell therapy is highly requested.
Under these circumstances, the present inventors tried to develop a novel method and technique to detect and separate specifically the undifferentiated human pluripotent stem cells. As a result, the inventors identified Desmoglein 2 which is specifically expressed in the undifferentiated human pluripotent stem cells and thereafter prepared an agent that can be conjugated specifically to the undifferentiated pluripotent stem cells, and further confirmed that the detection and separation of the undifferentiated human pluripotent stem cells could be achieved by this method by using the agent, leading to the completion of this invention.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
It is an object of the present invention to provide a composition for detecting the undifferentiated human pluripotent stem cells comprising an agent for measuring the level of Desmoglein 2 (Dsg 2) mRNA or the protein thereof.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a method for detecting the undifferentiated human pluripotent stem cells containing the step of measuring the level of Desmoglein 2 mRNA or the protein thereof in the separated human pluripotent stem cells.
It is also an object of the present invention to provide a method for evaluating the differentiation of human pluripotent stem cells containing the step of measuring the level of Desmoglein 2 mRNA or the protein thereof in the separated human pluripotent stem cells.
It is further an object of the present invention to provide a method for separating the undifferentiated human pluripotent stem cells comprising the following steps:
(a) reacting human pluripotent stem cells with an agent specifically binding to Desmoglein 2 protein; and
(b) separating the human pluripotent stem cells that has been conjugated with the said agent.
It is also an object of the present invention to provide a method for reducing the undifferentiated status of human pluripotent stem cells containing the step of treating an agent that can reduce the expression or activation of Desmoglein 2 to the separated human pluripotent stem cells.
It is also an object of the present invention to provide a monoclonal antibody that is specifically binding to Desmoglein 2.
It is also an object of the present invention to provide a polynucleotide encoding the said monoclonal antibody, an expression vector containing the polynucleotide, and a transformant harboring the said expression vector.
It is also an object of the present invention to provide a method for eliminating the undifferentiated human pluripotent stem cells containing the step of reacting human pluripotent stem cells with an agent that is specifically binding to Desmoglein 2 protein.
To achieve the above objects, the present invention provides a composition for detecting the undifferentiated human pluripotent stem cells comprising an agent for measuring the level of Desmoglein 2 (Dsg 2) mRNA or the protein thereof. Particularly, the agent included in the composition is to measure the level of Dsg2 protein expressed on cell surface.
In this invention, the term “human pluripotent stem cell” indicates the cell that has self-renewal capacity and thus is capable of being differentiated into almost every kind of cells forming a living body, which includes embryonic stem cell and induced pluripotent stem cell.
The “human pluripotent stem cell” can include the undifferentiated human embryonic stem cell existing in early embryonic blastocyst or epiblast and the differentiated human cell such as human induced pluripotent stem cell that has been reversely differentiated to have pluripotency from germ cell, somatic cell, or precursor cell, but not always limited thereto.
In this invention, the term “Desmoglein 2 (Dsg2) protein” is a kind of Desmoglein protein which is a transmembrane glycoprotein existing in desmosome. Desmoglein protein has three kinds of molecules, which are Dsg1, Dsg2, and Dsg3. Dsg1 and Dsg3 are mainly expressed in stratified epithelium, and are known as the molecules targeting pemphigus, a kind of autoimmune skin disease. Dsg2 is known as a marker molecule of desmosome, but it is not confirmed yet whether or not Dsg2 can be used as a marker molecule of the undifferentiated human pluripotent stem cell.
In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, it was confirmed that the antibody prepared in this invention (named 6-1) was conjugated to the undifferentiated human embryonic stem cells ( FIG. 2 ). To investigate the antigen to which the antibody of the present invention could be bound, the antibody conjugated protein was separated by immunoprecipitation and identified by mass spectrometry. As a result, it was confirmed that the protein conjugated with the antibody 6-1 was Desmoglein 2 ( FIG. 4 ). It was also confirmed that Desmoglein 2 was expressed in the undifferentiated human pluripotent stem cells like other undifferentiation markers Nanog, Oct4, and Sox2, but was down-regulated in differentiated embryoid body (EB) ( FIG. 10 ). The inventors confirmed from the above results that Desmoglein 2 protein was a marker expressed on the surface of the undifferentiated human pluripotent stem cells and the undifferentiated human pluripotent stem cells could be separated by using the Desmoglein 2 specific antibody.
Particularly, the agent for measuring the level of Desmoglein 2 mRNA can contain a set of primers or probe that specifically binds to the said gene.
In this invention, the term “primer” indicates a single-stranded oligonucleotide that can be used as a start point of template-directed DNA synthesis under proper conditions (4 different nucleoside triphosphates and polymerase) in an appropriate buffer. The preferable length of the primer depends on temperature and can vary according to a purpose of use, but generally the length of 15˜30 nucleotide long is preferred. The sequence of the primer does not necessarily contain a perfectly complementary sequence to a part of the template sequence and such complementarity that allows the primer to be hybridized with the template and therefore allows the primer to carry its own function would be enough.
Therefore, the “primer set” of the present invention does not have to have completely homologous sequence with the nucleotide sequence of Desmoglein 2, the template, and only needs such complementarity that is enough to let the primer be hybridized and work therein. So, the primer sequence of the invention can contain RNA sequence. The primer can be designed by those in the art by referring the nucleotide sequence of the template polynucleotide sequence. For example, the primer can be designed by the primer design program such as PRIMER 3, VectorNTI, etc. The primer can be hybridized or annealed to a part of the template to form double-stranded structure.
In this invention, the “probe” can be a polynucleotide, the polynucleotide complement, the polynucleotide fragment, or the polynucleotide fragment complement. The probe can also be a material for being hybridized with the homologous DNA included in the sample, which is DNA, RNA, cDNA, or mRNA, and if it is DNA, it can be an oligomer. The probe can contain the repeated sequence in the nucleotide sequence 85% at highest, and preferably 70%, and more preferably 50%, and most preferably 40% herein. The size of the probe can be the total length of the above gene, or when an oligomer is used as the probe, its preferable length is 20˜200 bp and more preferably 20˜100 bp. When cDNA or RNA is used as the probe, its preferable length is 30˜150 bp, but not always limited thereto, and the length and the material can be selected according to the purpose of use.
The probe can contain a detectable marker. The detectable maker can be any chemical moiety that is traced by any means known to those in the art. The detectable marker can be any moiety that can be detected by spectroscopy, photochemistry, or any biochemical, immunochemical, or chemical method. The method for labeling the nucleic acid probe is properly selected by considering the type and the location of marker, and the type of probe. The marker is exemplified by enzyme, enzyme substrate, radio-isotope, fluorescent dye, chromophores, chemiluminescent label, electrochemical luminescent label, ligand having a specific binding partner, and other markers capable of increasing, modifying, or reducing the detection signal strength by reacting to a target.
Particularly, the probe of the invention can be Desmoglein2 gene, the fragment of Desmoglein 2 gene, nucleic acid originated from the said Desmoglein 2 gene, or the fragment of the nucleic acid that can display any change in the expression in the undifferentiated human pluripotent stem cells and the differentiated cells as well, and at this time, the nucleic acid can be DNA or RNA.
The agent that is used to measure the protein level above can be an antibody specific to the said protein. The antibody specifically binding to Desmoglein2 protein is one or more antibodies selected from the group consisting of monoclonal antibody, chimeric antibody, humanized antibody, and human monoclonal antibody. At this time, the antibody can be a full length antibody or an antibody fragment. The antibody fragment herein can be Fab, F(ab′), F(ab′)2 or Fv, but not always limited thereto. The antibody useful for measuring the level of Desmoglein2 protein can be the antibody 6-1 of the present invention, but not always limited thereto.
The term “protein level” in this invention indicates the level of protein that is expressed from gene in cells. Observing the protein level can overcome the limit of the study targeting mRNA with which the direct relation between the protein and mRNA in cells might not be disclosed. In this invention, the detection of the undifferentiated human pluripotent stem cell could be easily accomplished by observing the expression level of Desmoglein 2 protein.
The term “antibody” in this invention indicates an antigen specific protein molecule. Considering the purpose of the invention, the antibody herein indicates the antibody binding specifically to Desmoglein2 protein, the marker protein, which can include a monoclonal antibody, a polyclonal antibody, and a recombinant antibody. As explained hereinbefore, a full length antibody and an antibody fragment can also be included.
The monoclonal antibody can be prepared by the conventional well-known method using hybridoma (Kohler and Milstein (1976) European journal of Immunology 6:511-519) or using phage antibody library (Clarkson et al, Nature, 352:624-628, 1991; Marks et al, J. Mol. Biol., 222:58, 1-597, 1991). In general, hybridoma cells secreting monoclonal antibody can be made by fusion of cancer cell line with the immune cells obtained from an immunologically appropriate host animal, such as the mouse injected with an antigen protein. The fusion of such two different cell groups can be performed by the method well-informed to those in the art by using polyethyleneglycol and the antibody producing cells can be proliferated by the standard culture method. Subcloning is performed by limited dilution to obtain a uniform cell group. Then, the hybridoma cells that can produce antigen specific antibody are mass-cultured in vitro or in vivo.
It is easily understood by those in the art that the monoclonal antibody of the invention can be easily converted into chimeric antibody, humanized antibody, and human monoclonal antibody whose immunogenicity has been reduced in order for such monoclonal antibody to adapt to human body. The chimeric antibody, humanized antibody, and human monoclonal antibody are easily constructed from the monoclonal antibody of the invention by the well-known method, for example by transplanting the variable region of the monoclonal antibody of the invention, particularly complementarity determining region (CDR) or selectivity determining residue (SDR) of CDR into human antibody. These variants are also included in the scope of the present invention.
The polyclonal antibody can be prepared by the method well-informed to those in the art, for example by the following steps: injecting the said protein antigen into an animal; and obtaining the serum containing the antibody by blood-work. The polyclonal antibody can be produced from any random host animal including goat, rabbit, sheep, monkey, horse, pig, cow, and dog, etc.
Further, the antibody of the present invention can be either the complete full length antibody comprising two full length light chains and two full length heavy chains or the functional fragment of the antibody molecule. The functional fragment of the antibody molecule indicates the fragment that has at least antigen-binding capacity, which is exemplified by Fab, F(ab′), F(ab′) 2 and Fv.
To measure the expression level of Desmoglein2 in the undifferentiated human pluripotent stem cells by using the said antibody, any method that is useful for measuring the production of antigen-antibody complex after treating the said antibody can be used without limitation.
The said “antigen-antibody complex” herein indicates the complex wherein Desmoglein 2 protein is conjugated with the antibody specific thereto. The antigen-antibody complex can be quantified by measuring the size of the detection label signal.
For example, the antigen-antibody complex can be quantified by Western blotting, ELISA (enzyme linked immunosorbent assay), immunoprecipitation assay, complement fixation assay, flowcytometry, or the method using protein chip, but not limited thereto.
In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, in order to produce the undifferentiated human pluripotent stem cell specific monoclonal antibody, the human pluripotent stem cell line H9 was treated with collagenase IV to inactivate the said stem cells. Then, the inactivated stem cells were intraperitoneally injected into the Balb/c mouse, leading to the immunization. The spleen cells obtained from the mouse were fused with NS1 myeloma cell line to obtain hybridoma, from which monoclonal antibody 6-1 was separated and purified. The binding capacity of the antibody to human pluripotent stem cell was investigated ( FIG. 2A ). As a result, the antibody was confirmed to bind neither to mouse embryonic stem cells (J1) nor to mouse embryonic fibroblasts (MEF) ( FIG. 2B ).
Particularly, the antibody can contain the heavy chain variable region (V H ) comprising (i) the complementarity-determining region (referred as “CDR” hereinafter) 1 represented by SEQ. ID. NO: 60, the heavy chain CDR2 represented by SEQ. ID. NO: 61, and the heavy chain CDR3 represented by SEQ. ID. NO: 62; and the light chain variable region (V L ) comprising the light chain CDR1 represented by SEQ. ID. NO: 64, the light chain CDR2 represented by SEQ. ID. NO: 65, and the light chain CDR3 represented by SEQ. ID. NO: 66. More particularly, the antibody can contain the heavy chain variable region represented by SEQ. ID. NO: 59 and the light chain variable region represented by SEQ. ID. NO: 63, but not always limited thereto. In this invention, the antibody comprising the heavy chain variable region represented by SEQ. ID. NO: 59 and the light chain variable region represented by SEQ. ID. NO: 63 was named the antibody ‘6-1’. As described hereinabove, the antibody can be the full length antibody or the fragment of the antibody, but not always limited thereto.
In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the present inventors analyzed the nucleic acid sequence and amino acid sequence of the monoclonal antibody 6-1 secreted from the hybridoma prepared by the inventors in order to analyze the sequences of CDR1, CDR2, and CDR3 of the heavy chain variable region and the sequences of CDR1, CDR2, and CDR3 of the light chain variable region ( FIG. 7 and FIG. 8 ).
As stated in scientific references, one or two CDRs can be omitted for antibody binding (Padlan et al., FASEB Journal 9: 133-139 (1995); Vajdos et al., Journal of Molecular Biology, vol. 320, pp. 415-428 (2002); Iwahashi et al., Mol. Immunol. 36:1079-1091, (1999); Tamura et al, Journal of Immunology, 164:1432-1441 (2000)). So, one or more CDR residues can be replaced in the said antibody or one or more CDRs can be omitted from the antibody. In fact, such replacement or exclusion is not limited as long as the Desmoglein2 protein binding capacity of the antibody remains.
The present invention also provides a kit for detecting the undifferentiated human pluripotent stem cells comprising the above composition.
The kit of the present invention can contain not only an agent that can measure the expression level of Desmoglein 2 protein in the undifferentiated human pluripotent stem cells but also one or more compositions, solutions, or devices appropriate for the analysis of the expression level. For example, the kit can contain a substrate, a proper buffer, a detection marker labeled secondary antibody, and a chromogenic substrate for the immunological detection of an antibody.
In addition, the kit can be used for Western blotting, ELISA (enzyme linked immunosorbent assay), immunoprecipitation assay, complement fixation assay, flowcytometry, or protein chip assay. At this time, the kit can additionally contain any additional composition or device to meet the requirement of each analysis method above. The detection of the undifferentiated human pluripotent stem cells can be achieved by comparing the production of antigen-antibody complex through the above methods.
The present invention also provides a method for detecting the undifferentiated human pluripotent stem cells containing the step of measuring the level of Desmoglein 2 mRNA or the protein thereof in the separated human pluripotent stem cells. Particularly, the measurement of the level of Desmoglein 2 protein of human pluripotent stem cells can be achieved by using the Desmoglein2 protein specific antibody.
The antibody was the same as described above. More particularly, the antibody can contain the heavy chain variable region (V H ) comprising the complementarity-determining region represented by SEQ. ID. NO: 59; and the light chain variable region (V L ) comprising the amino acid sequence represented by SEQ. ID. NO: 63. The detection of the undifferentiated human pluripotent stem cells can be achieved by measuring the level of Desmoglein2 protein by using the said antibody.
The present invention also provides a method for separating the undifferentiated human pluripotent stem cells comprising the following steps:
(a) reacting human pluripotent stem cells with an agent specifically binding to Desmoglein 2 protein; and
(b) separating the human pluripotent stem cells that has been conjugated with the said agent.
In the above method, the step of separating the human pluripotent stem cells can be achieved by flowcytometry, but not always limited thereto, and any conventional method well accepted by those in the art can be used.
In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the inventors confirmed Desmoglein 2 as a marker that can be expressed specifically in the undifferentiated human pluripotent stem cells ( FIGS. 3 ˜ 5 ). The inventors further confirmed that the detection and separation of the undifferentiated human pluripotent stem cells could be succeeded by using the binding activity between Desmoglein 2 and the monoclonal antibody 6-1.
The present invention also provides a method for evaluating the differentiation of human pluripotent stem cells containing the step of measuring the level of Desmoglein 2 mRNA or the protein thereof in the separated human pluripotent stem cells. Particularly, the measurement of the level of Desmoglein 2 protein in the human pluripotent stem cells can be achieved by using the Desmoglein2 protein specific antibody or the antibody fragment binding thereto.
The antibody was the same as described above. More particularly, the antibody can contain the heavy chain variable region (V H ) comprising the amino acid sequence represented by SEQ. ID. NO: 59; and the light chain variable region (V L ) comprising the amino acid sequence represented by SEQ. ID. NO: 63.
In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the sequence of the monoclonal antibody 6-1 that was specifically bound to Desmoglein2 was analyzed ( FIG. 7 and FIG. 8 ). As a result, AP positive reaction was only confirmed in the colony distributed with those cells expressing Desmoglein2 ( FIG. 11C ), and the expressions of the undifferentiation markers Nanog, Oct4, and Sox2 were also confirmed ( FIG. 11D ). So, the differentiation of human pluripotent stem cells could be confirmed by measuring the expression level of Desmoglein 2.
The present invention also provides a method for reducing the undifferentiated status of human pluripotent stem cells containing the step of treating an agent that can reduce the expression or activation of Desmoglein 2 to the separated human pluripotent stem cells.
In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, shDsg2 was treated to the human pluripotent stem cells to inhibit the expression of Desmoglein 2. At this time, changes in the undifferentiated status of human pluripotent stem cells were observed and AP positive reaction was weakened ( FIG. 12B ). In the meantime, the expression of a pluripotency marker was reduced in Desmoglein 2 knock-down human pluripotent stem cells but at the same time the expression of a differentiation marker was increased. Also, p21, the cell cycle inhibitor, was increased ( FIG. 12D ). Therefore, it was confirmed that the undifferentiation status of human pluripotent stem cells was reduced when Desmoglein 2 was inhibited.
The agent that can reduce the expression or activation of Desmoglein 2 mRNA above can be an oligonucleotide inhibiting the expression of Desmoglein2 mRNA or an antibody inhibiting the activation of Desmoglein 2 protein, or a fragment of the said antibody, and further an antisense oligonucleotide, a siRNA oligonucleotide, an antibody, a single-stranded variable region fragment, a peptide, an aptamer, a low molecular compound, or a natural extract, but not always limited thereto.
Particularly, the said agent can be the antisense oligonucleotide or the siRNA oligonucleotide that can specifically bind to Desmoglein 2 mRNA, but not always limited thereto.
In this invention, the term “antisense oligonucleotide” indicates DNA or RNA containing the oligonucleotide sequence complementary to a specific mRNA or a derivative thereof, which acts to inhibit the translation of mRNA into protein by binding to the complementary sequence of mRNA. The antisense sequence against Desmoglein 2 is complementary to Desmoglein 2 mRNA and can be DNA or RNA sequence that can bind to Desmoglein 2 mRNA, which is able to inhibit the translation of Desmoglein 2 mRNA, translocation into cytoplasm, maturation, or other essential activities of biological functions.
Modification is allowed in the said antisense oligonucleotide to increase the effect thereof, for example one or more nucleotides, sugars, or backbones can be modified (De Mesmaeker et al., Curr Opin Struct Biol., 5(3):343-55(1995)). The oligonucleotide backbone can be modified by phosphorothioate, phosphotriester, methyl phosphonate, single-stranded alkyl, cycloalkyl, single-stranded heteroatomic, and heterocyclic intersugar linkages. The antisense oligonucleotide can also contain one or more substituted sugar moieties. The antisense oligonucleotide can contain a modified nucleotide, which is exemplified by hypoxanthine, 6-methyladenine, 5-me pyrimidine (particularly 5-methylcytosine), 5-hydroxymethylcytosine (HMC), glycosyl HMC, gentobiosyl HMC, 2-aminoadenine, 2-thiouracil, 2-thiothymine, 5-bromouracil, 5-hydroxymethyluracil, 8-azaguanine, 7-deazaguanine, N6 (6-aminohexyl)adenine, and 2,6-diaminopurine.
The antisense oligonucleotide of the present invention can be chemically conjugated with one or more moieties or conjugates in order to improve the activity and cell adsorbability of the antisense oligonucleotide. The said moieties are exemplified by such fat-soluble moieties as cholesterol moiety, cholesteryl moiety, cholic acid, thioether, thiocholesterol, aliphatic chain, phospholipid, polyamine, polyethylene glycol chain, adamantane acetate, palmityl moiety, octadecylamine, and hexylamino-carbonyl-oxycholesterol moiety, but not always limited thereto. The method for preparing the oligonucleotide containing such fat-soluble moiety is well known to those in the art (U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,138,045, 5,218,105, and 5,459,255). The modified oligonucleotide has increased stability to nuclease and increased binding affinity to the target mRNA.
The antisense oligonucleotide can be synthesized in vitro by the conventional method and then introduced into a living body or it can be synthesized in vivo. To synthesize the antisense oligonucleotide in vitro, RNA polymerase I is used. To synthesize the antisense RNA in vivo, the antisense RNA is transcribed by using a vector whose origin of MCS is on the opposite direction. It is preferred for such antisense RNA to contain translation stop codon in the sequence so as not to continue the translation into the peptide sequence.
The antisense oligonucleotide usable in this invention can be designed by referring the human Desmoglein2 mRNA sequence informed to those in the art. For example, the antisense oligonucleotide can be designed with the complementary sequence to human Desmoglein 2 mRNA CDS (coding sequence), the complementary sequence to starting codon and the surrounding sequence thereof, the complementary sequence to 5′-UTR, and the complementary sequence to 3′-UTR.
In this invention, the term “siRNA” indicates an oligonucleotide molecule mediating RNA interruption or gene silencing. Since siRNA can inhibit the expression of a target gene, it can be useful for efficient gene knock-down or gene therapy. The said siRNA was first found in plants, insects, fruit flies, and parasites. It is now applied to study on mammal cells.
The siRNA used in this invention can have the double-stranded structure wherein the sense strand that is the corresponding sequence to Desmoglein 2 mRNA is located on the opposite side of the antisense strand that is the complementary sequence to Desmoglein 2 mRNA, or can have the single-stranded structure which comprises the self-complementary sense and antisense strand.
The siRNA herein is not limited to the authentic, complete paring of double-stranded RNA region (a pair of RNAs) but also includes unpaired RNA region by mismatch (the corresponding sequence is not complementary) or bulge (chain on one side is left without being conjugated with matching nucleotides). Particularly, the siRNA that is complementary to the sequence in human Desmoglein 2 ORF start codon area can be constructed, which is of 10˜100 nucleotides in length, preferably 15˜80 nucleotides, and more preferably 20˜70 nucleotides.
The siRNA terminal structure can be either blunt or cohesive. As long as the terminal structure can inhibit the expression of Desmoglein 2 gene via the effect of RNA interference (RNAi), the structure is not limited either to blunt or to cohesive. And the cohesive terminal structure can be either 3′-end protruding structure or 5′-end protruding structure.
The siRNA molecule of the present invention can have the insertion with a short nucleotide sequence (for example approximately 5˜15 nt) in between the self-complementary sense and the antisense strand. At this time, the siRNA molecule formed by the expression of the nucleotide sequence can have the hairpin structure by intramolecular hybridization and as a result, the stem-and-loop structure is formed. This stem-and-loop structure is processed in vitro or in vivo to produce the active siRNA molecule that can mediate RNAi.
In this invention, the Desmoglein 2 activity inhibitor can be a Desmoglein 2 specific antibody, an antigen binding fragment of the Desmoglein 2 specific antibody, a peptide, an aptamer, a low molecular compound, or a natural extract, but not always limited thereto. The antibody or its antigen binding fragment is described hereinbefore.
In this invention, the term “peptide” indicates a linear or circular, preferably a linear molecule that is formed by the peptide bond among the amino acid residues. The peptide of the present invention can be prepared by the well informed chemical synthesis method, particularly by solid-phase synthesis techniques.
The peptide that can inhibit the activity of Desmoglein 2 by binding specifically to Desmoglein 2 can be prepared by the conventional method well informed to those in the art, for example by phage display. The peptide is composed of 4˜40 amino acid residues, preferably 5˜30, more preferably 5˜20, and most preferably 8˜15 amino acid residues, but not always limited thereto.
The stability of the peptide of the present invention could be improved by modifying amino acid residues. For example, one or more amino acid residues of the amino acid sequence of the peptide, particularly Gly residue, acetyl group, fluorenyl methoxy carbonyl group, formyl group, palmitoyl, myristyl group, stearyl group, or polyethyleneglycol (PEG) can be conjugated in N-terminal, and more particularly Gly residue can be conjugated in order to increase the stability of the peptide.
In this invention, the term “aptamer” indicates an oligonucleotide molecule having the binding activity to a certain target molecule. The said aptamer can inhibit protein activity by binding the certain target molecule, specifically via three-dimensional binding with the target protein. The aptamer of the present invention can be RNA, DNA, modified oligonucleotide, or a mixture thereof, and can be in the form of a linear chain or a ring.
The length of the aptamer of the invention is not limited, and is generally 15˜200 nucleotide long. However, the aptamer is suggested to be composed of up to 100 nucleotides, preferably up to 80 nucleotides, and more preferably up to 60 nucleotides, and most preferably up to 45 nucleotides.
The aptamer of the present invention can have the modification of sugar residue (for example, ribose) of each nucleotide in order to increase the binding capacity, stability, and drug delivery capability, etc. The modified region can be 2′, 3′, and/or 4′ site of the sugar residue, and the modification is the replacement of oxygen atom in that site with another atom. The modification is exemplified by fluorination, O-alkylation (for example, O-methylation, O-ethylation), O-allylation, S-alkylation (for example, S-methylation, S-ethylation), S-allylation, and amination (for example, —NH). Such modification of the sugar residue can be performed by the conventional method well known to those in the art (for example, Sproat et al., Nucle. Acid. Res. 1991 19, 733-738; Cotton et al., Nucl. Acid. Res. 1991 19, 2629-2635).
To increase the binding capacity of the aptamer of the invention, an oligonucleotide base (for example, purine, pyrimidine) can be modified (for example, chemically substituted). This modification is exemplified by 5-pyrimidine modification, 6- and/or 8-purine modification, exocyclic amine modification, 4-thiouridine substitution, and 5-bromo or 5-iodouracil substitution.
Also, the phosphate group in the aptamer of the invention can be modified to make the aptamer have resistance against nuclease and hydrolysis. For example, P(O)O group can be substituted with any of P(O)S (thioate), P(S)S (dithioate), P(O)NR 2 (amidate), P(O)R, R(O)OR′, CO or CH 2 (formacetal) or 3′-amine (—NH—CH 2 —CH 2 —). At this time, each R or R′ is independently H or substituted or non-substituted alkyl (methyl or ethyl). The linkage herein is exemplified by —O—, —N— or —S—. SO, the said modified group can be connected to the neighboring nucleotide by one of these linkages.
The modification herein also includes 3′ and 5′-modification such as capping. The modification can also be achieved by adding such materials as polyethyleneglycol, amino acid, peptide, inverted dT, oligonucleotide, nucleoside, Myristoyl, Lithocolic-oleyl, Docosanyl, Lauroyl, Stearoyl, Palmitoyl, Oleoyl, Linoleoyl, other lipids, steroid, cholesterol, caffeine, vitamin, pigment, fluorescein, anticancer agent, toxin, enzyme, isotope, and biotin to the terminal. Such modification is explained in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,660,985 and 5,756,703.
The present invention also provides a monoclonal antibody composed of the heavy chain variable region (V H ) comprising (i) the complementarity-determining region (referred as “CDR” hereinafter) 1 represented by SEQ. ID. NO: 60, the heavy chain CDR2 represented by SEQ. ID. NO: 61, and the heavy chain CDR3 represented by SEQ. ID. NO: 62; and the light chain variable region (V L ) comprising the light chain CDR1 represented by SEQ. ID. NO: 64, the light chain CDR2 represented by SEQ. ID. NO: 65, and the light chain CDR3 represented by SEQ. ID. NO: 66.
In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the inventors confirmed that the protein which the monoclonal antibody 6-1 recognized and bound to was Desmoglein 2 ( FIG. 4 and FIG. 5 ), and performed FACS to investigate the differentiated human pluripotent stem cells by using the antibody 6-1. As a result, it was confirmed that the expression of the human pluripotent stem cell undifferentiation marker SSEA3 was reduced and at the same time the expression of Dsg2 recognized by the antibody 6-1 was also rapidly decreased ( FIG. 9A ). When retinoic acid that was the material to induce differentiation was treated thereto, the binding capacity of the antibody 6-1 was reduced in the differentiated cells ( FIG. 9C ). Therefore, it was confirmed that Desmoglein 2 which was recognized by the monoclonal antibody 6-1 constructed in this invention was expressed specifically in the undifferentiated human pluripotent stem cells and the detection or separation of the undifferentiated human pluripotent stem cells expressing Desmoglein 2 was accomplished by recognizing thereof.
The present invention also provides a polynucleotide encoding the said monoclonal antibody, an expression vector comprising the said polynucleotide, and a transformant containing the said expression vector.
The said monoclonal antibody is as explained hereinbefore.
The polynucleotide encoding the monoclonal antibody is not limited as long as the polynucleotide can encode the monoclonal antibody composed of the heavy chain variable region (V H ) comprising (i) the complementarity-determining region (referred as “CDR” hereinafter) 1 represented by SEQ. ID. NO: 60, the heavy chain CDR2 represented by SEQ. ID. NO: 61, and the heavy chain CDR3 represented by SEQ. ID. NO: 62; and the light chain variable region (V L ) comprising the light chain CDR1 represented by SEQ. ID. NO: 64, the light chain CDR2 represented by SEQ. ID. NO: 65, and the light chain CDR3 represented by SEQ. ID. NO: 66. For example, the polynucleotide represented by SEQ. ID. NO: 67 that encodes the heavy chain variable region and the polynucleotide represented by SEQ. ID. NO: 68 that encodes the light chain variable region can be used, but not always limited thereto. In addition, considering the codon degeneracy or the preference of codon to be expressed in a host living subject to express the polynucleotide in the host, various modifications or transformations are allowed as long as they do not cause any change in the amino acid sequence of the polypeptide.
The expression vector containing the polynucleotide encoding the monoclonal antibody provided in this invention is not limited, and can be any expression vector that can duplicate and/or express the said polynucleotide in prokaryotic or eukaryotic cells including mammal cells (for example, cells of human, monkey, rabbit, rat, hamster, mouse, etc.), plant cells, yeast cells, insect cells, or bacteria cells (for example, E. coli , etc). Preferably, this expression vector is operably linked to a proper promoter in order to express the said nucleotide in host cells and at this time it can contain at least one of selection markers. For example, the expression vector can be phage, plasmid, cosmid, mini-chromosome, virus, or retrovirus comprising the polynucleotide.
The expression vector comprising the polynucleotide encoding the human monoclonal antibody can be the expression vector containing each polynucleotide respectively encoding the human monoclonal antibody heavy chain or light chain, or can be the expression vector comprising both polynucleotides encoding the heavy chain and light chain.
The transformant introduced with the expression vector of the invention is not limited, and can be exemplified by bacteria cells transformed by the insertion of this expression vector such as E. coli, streptomyces , and Salmonella typhimurium ; yeast cells; fungal cells such as Pichia pasteris ; insect cells such as drosophila cells and Spodoptera frugiperda Sf9 cells; animal cells such as CHO (Chinese hamster ovary) cells, SP2/0 (mouse myeloma) cells, human lymphoblastoid cells, COS cells, NSO (mouse myeloma) cells, 293T cells, bow melanoma cells, HT-1080 cells, BHK (baby hamster kidney) cells, HEK (human embryonic kidney) cells, and PERC.6 (human retinal cells); and plant cells.
In this invention, the term “introduction” indicates the method to deliver the vector containing the polynucleotide encoding the monoclonal antibody into a host cell. Such introduction can be performed by various methods well known to those in the art, which are exemplified by calcium phosphate-DNA co-precipitation, DEAE-dextran-mediated transfection, polybrene-mediated transformation, electroporation, microinjection, liposome fusion, lipofectamine-mediated method, and protoplast fusion. Also, the transfection indicates the means to deliver a target material into a cell by using virus particles via infection. In addition, the vector can be introduced into a host cell by gene bombardment. In this invention, the term “introduction” can be used alike as the term “transformation”.
The present invention also provides a method for eliminating the undifferentiated human pluripotent stem cells containing the step of reacting human pluripotent stem cells with an agent that is specifically binding to Desmoglein 2 protein. Particularly, the agent that specifically binds to Desmoglein 2 protein is as described hereinbefore, and the step of eliminating is to eliminate the pluripotent stem cells that remain undifferentiated in the differentiated cells finished with the differentiation from pluripotent stem cells by using the antibody, which can be achieved by the conventional method well informed to those in the art. So, the method of the invention is effective in eliminating the undifferentiated human pluripotent stem cells.
The analysis of the difference among the undifferentiated human embryonic stem cells, mouse embryonic stem cells, and mouse feeder cells is possibly made by using the monoclonal antibody of the present invention. So, the monoclonal antibody of the invention can be effectively used for the separation of human embryonic stem cells.
It has not been completely confirmed yet that Desmoglein 2 protein is expressed in the surface of the undifferentiated human pluripotent stem cells. So, the present inventors first separated the undifferentiated human pluripotent stem cells with high purity by using the corresponding antibody. In particular, the present invention provides a method for detecting, identifying, and separating the undifferentiated human pluripotent stem cells by using the monoclonal antibody 6-1 constructed in this invention. The present invention thus provides the functional cells which are fully differentiated and have no undifferentiated human pluripotent stem cells remaining therein by using the antibody of the invention in order to use these functional cells efficiently for cell therapy.
Particularly in this invention, the undifferentiated human pluripotent stem cells can be selectively detected, separated, and eliminated via antigen-antibody complex reaction by using the Desmoglein 2 specific antibody or the antibody fragment containing its antigen binding site.
Herein, the term “antigen-antibody complex reaction” can be accomplished by immunohisto staining, radio-immuno assay (RIA), enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), Western blotting), immunoprecipitation assay, immunodiffusion assay, complement fixation assay, flowcytometry, and protein chip assay, but not always limited thereto.
ADVANTAGEOUS EFFECT
The monoclonal antibody of the present invention binds to Desmoglein 2 expressed in the undifferentiated human pluripotent stem cells, so that it can be used not only for the identification and separation of the undifferentiated human pluripotent stem cells but also for eliminating the undifferentiated human pluripotent stem cells from the differentiated cells in cell therapy.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
The application of the preferred embodiments of the present invention is best understood with reference to the accompanying drawings, wherein:
FIGS. 1A-1C are a set of photographs illustrating the undifferentiated status of the cultured human pluripotent stem cells.
FIG. 1A (picture 1, left side) presents the result of optical microscope observation of the cultured human pluripotent stem cells.
FIG. 1A (picture 2, right side) presents the expression of alkaline phosphatase, observed by using alkaline phosphatase (AP) staining kit.
FIG. 1B presents the result of flowcytometry of the cultured undifferentiated human pluripotent stem cells fluorescence-stained with antibodies against of SSEA1, SSEA3, and SSEA4.
FIG. 1C presents the expressions of Nanog, Oct4, and Sox2 genes in the cultured human pluripotent stem cells.
FIGS. 2A-2C illustrate the binding of the monoclonal antibody 6-1 onto the surface of human pluripotent stem cells.
FIG. 2A is a graph illustrating the binding of the antibody 6-1 on the human embryonic stem cells H1 and H9, and induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSC), confirmed by fluorescence staining (The blue line indicates the result of using the antibody 6-1 and the red background indicates the case of using the secondary antibody alone.).
FIG. 2B illustrates that the monoclonal antibody 6-1 did not bind to the mouse embryonic stem cell line J1 or the mouse embryonic fibroblast cell line MEF. Anti-SSEA1 is the antibody that does not bind to human pluripotent stem cells but bind to mouse embryonic stem cells.
FIG. 2C illustrates that the antibody 6-1 binding site is the same as each antibody against the human pluripotent stem cell markers EpiCAm, TRA-1-60, and TRA-1-81 binding site on the surface of the human pluripotent stem cell line H9.
FIG. 3 presents the result of immunoprecipitation with the molecule binding to the antibody 6-1, wherein the surface of human pluripotent stem cell line H9 was biotinylated and the protein precipitated by immunoprecipitation using the antibody 6-1 was detected by Western blotting.
FIG. 4A illustrates that the peptide fragment obtained from the immunoprecipitated protein which was separated on 10% SDS-PAGE and cut off using trypsin was 37% homologous with human Dsg2, confirmed by Q-TOP.
FIG. 4B illustrates the overlapping area between the fragment (red letter) and Dsg2 amino acid sequence (black letter), suggesting that the antigen which the antibody 6-1 can recognize is Dsg2 (Desmoglein 2).
FIG. 5 illustrates that the antibody 6-1 binds to Dsg2, confirmed by Western blotting. H9 cell extract proceeded to immunoprecipitation with the antibody 6-1, and then the precipitate was separated on 10% SDS-PAGE, followed by Western blotting using the informed 6D8 antibody and streptavidin-HRP.
FIG. 6 presents the amplified DNA used for the sequencing of the heavy chain and the light chain variable regions of the monoclonal antibody 6-1. Herein, HC indicates the heavy chain region and LC indicates the light chain region.
FIG. 7 presents the nucleotide sequence and the amino acid sequence of the heavy chain variable region (V H ) of the monoclonal antibody 6-1 along with CDR (Complementarity Determining Region) and the sites of the major amino acid residues binding to antigen. CDR is presented as bold.
FIG. 8 presents the nucleotide sequence and the amino acid sequence of the light chain variable region (V L ) of the monoclonal antibody 6-1 along with CDR (Complementarity Determining Region) and the sites of the major amino acid residues binding to antigen. CDR is presented as bold.
FIG. 9A presents that the binding capacities of the undifferentiation marker SSEA3 and the antibody 6-1 were decreased when human pluripotent stem cells were differentiated into embryoid body, confirmed by FACS.
FIG. 9B presents that the expression of Dsg2 was reduced like the expressions of the undifferentiation markers Nanog, Oct4, and Sox 2 when human pluripotent stem cells were differentiated, confirmed by RT-PCR.
FIG. 9C presents that the binding capacity of the antibody 6-1 to embryonic stem cells was reduced in the presence of retinoic acid that could induce the differentiation of human pluripotent stem cells, confirmed by FACS.
FIG. 9D presents that the expression of Dsg2 was reduced like the expressions of the undifferentiation markers Nanog, Oct4, and Sox 2 in the presence of retinoic acid, confirmed by RT-PCR.
FIG. 10 presents the result of RT-PCR which investigated the expression patterns of the pluripotency related transcription factors (Nanog, Oct4, and Sox2), the 3 germ layer markers Pax6 (ectoderm), CD34 (mesoderm), and AFP (endoderm), and Dsg2 both when human pluripotent stem cells were not differentiated yet and when the cells were differentiated into embryoid body.
FIG. 11A presents the result of flow cytometry wherein the cultured human pluripotent stem cell line H9 was conjugated with the antibody 6-1 and then the antibody conjugated cells and the antibody non-conjugated cells were separated by flow cytometry.
FIG. 11B illustrates that colony was formed only in the group distributed with the cell line expressing Dsg2.
FIG. 11C illustrates that AP positive response was confirmed only in the group distributed with the cell line expressing Dsg2.
FIG. 11D presents that the expressions of the undifferentiation markers Nanog, Oct4, and Sox2 were confirmed in the cell line expressing Dsg2, confirmed by Western blotting.
FIGS. 12A-12D present that Dsg2 was the essential factor for maintaining the undifferentiation condition of human pluripotent stem cells.
FIG. 12A presents that the expression of Dsg2 was reduced when Dsg2 was knocked-down with shRNA, confirmed by real-time PCR and Western blotting.
FIG. 12B illustrates the shape and AP positive response in the Dsg2 knocked-down human pluripotent stem cells in the undifferentiation culture condition.
FIG. 12C illustrates the decrease of the expressions of some of the transcription factors necessary for maintaining undifferentiation condition and the increase of the expressions of the endoderm, mesoderm, and ectoderm marker genes in the Dsg2 knocked-down human pluripotent stem cells.
FIG. 12D presents that the expressions of the undifferentiation markers Oct4, Sox2, Nanog, and c-Myc were reduced in the Dsg2 knocked-down human pluripotent stem cells and the expression of the cell cycle positive regulator Cyclin D1 was reduced but the expression of the cell cycle negative regulator p21 was increased in the Dsg2 knocked-down human pluripotent stem cells, confirmed by Western blotting.
DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
Practical and presently preferred embodiments of the present invention are illustrative as shown in the following Examples.
However, it will be appreciated that those skilled in the art, on consideration of this disclosure, may make modifications and improvements within the spirit and scope of the present invention.
Example 1: Human Pluripotent Stem Cell Culture and Confirmation of the Undifferentiation Status Thereof
<1-1> Culture of Human Pluripotent Stem Cells
To construct a novel monoclonal antibody that can recognize human embryonic stem cells specifically, the human embryonic stem cell lines H1 and H9, and the induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSC) line were distributed from National Institute of Health (NIH, USA) and ATCC. The cells were cultured in DMEM (Dulbecco's modified Eagle's medium)/F12 (Gibco, Rockville, Md., USA) supplemented with 20% Knockout SR (Gibco), 0.1 mM β-mercaptoethanol (Sigma, St Luis, Mo., USA), 2 mM glutamine (Gibco), 0.1 mM non-essential amino acid (Gibco), 100 U/ml penicillin G (Sigma), 100 μg/ml streptomycin (Sigma), and 5 ng/ml bFGF (Gibco Invitrogen), followed by sub-culture every 5˜7 days.
Particularly, a tissue culture plate (Nunc) was coated with 0.1% gelatin solution at 37° C. for 30 minutes. MEF (mouse embryonic fibroblast, Korea Research Institute of Bioscience and Biotechnology) irradiated with gamma-ray at 3000 rad was inoculated therein at the density of 1.6×10 4 /cm 2 . The irradiated MEF was the cell that did not grow but supported the growth of human embryonic stem cells. The human embryonic stem cell tissue that had been culture for 5˜7 days was treated with 1 mg/ml of collagenase IV (Gibco) at 37° C. for 1 hour, and then the stem cell tissue was cut in an appropriate size. The prepared sections were loaded in the MEF tissue culture plate. The culture medium was replaced from 48 hours every day in the course of culture.
<1-2> Confirmation of the Undifferentiation Status of the Cultured Human Pluripotent Stem Cells
To investigate whether or not the human pluripotent stem cells cultured for 6˜7 days by the method described in Example <1-1> could remain as undifferentiated, the cells were stained by using alkaline phosphatase (AP) staining kit (Sigma). As a result, it was confirmed that AP was expressed in the cells, suggesting that the cells were still as undifferentiated ( FIG. 1A-2 ).
The cultured cells were fluorescence-stained with SSEA (stage specific embryonic antigen), followed by flow cytometry. As a result, it was confirmed that the cells were negative to SSEA1 that was not the undifferentiation marker but were positive to SSEA3 and SSEA4 which were the undifferentiation markers, suggesting that the cells were still as undifferentiated ( FIG. 1B ). To investigate whether or not Oct 4 gene that was not expressed in mouse embryonic stem cells would be expressed in human pluripotent stem cells, RT-PCR was performed with Nanog, Oct4, and Sox2 specific primers. Also, RT-PCR for RNA quantification was performed with hGAPDH and mActin primers. The sequences of those primers are presented in Table 1.
TABLE 1
SEQ.
Primer name
Sequence
ID. NO:
Nanog
Forward
TGCCTCACACGGAGACTGTC
1
Reverse
TGCTATTCTTCGGCCAGTTG
2
Oct4
Forward
CGACCATCTGCCGCTTTGAG
3
Reverse
CCCCCTGTCCCCCATTCCTA
4
Sox2
Forward
TACCTCTTCCTCCCACTCCA
5
Reverse
ACTCTCCTCTTTTGCACCCC
6
Dsg2
Forward
AGGTATGGCCAAGGAAGCCACGA
7
Reverse
ATAGCGCCTGTGGCCCCTGTAA
8
Pax6
Forward
AACAGACACAGCCCTCACAAACA
9
Reverse
CGGGAACTTGAACTGGAACTGAC
10
CD34
Forward
TGAAGCCTAGCCTGTCACCT
11
Reverse
CGCACAGCTGGAGGTCTTAT
12
AFP
Forward
CCATGTACATGAGCACTGTTG
13
Reverse
CTCCAATAACTCCTGGTATCC
14
hGAPDH
Forward
ACCACAGTCCATGCCATCAC
15
Reverse
TCCACCACCCTGTTGCTGTA
16
mActin
Forward
AGGCCCAGAGCAAGAGAGG
17
Reverse
TACATGGCTGGGGTGTTGAA
18
After the PCR, the PCR product was electrophoresed on 1.5% agarose gel and as a result, the expressions of Oct4, Nanog, and Sox 2 genes were confirmed, suggesting that the cells still remained as undifferentiated ( FIG. 1C ). In FIG. 1 , MEF indicates mouse embryonic stem cells, and H9, H1, and iPSC are human pluripotent stem cells.
Then hybridoma was constructed by immunizing mouse with the undifferentiated human pluripotent stem cells.
Example 2: Construction of Mouse Hybridoma
The human pluripotent stem cells (H9) cultured by the method described in Example <1-1> was separated by treating with collagenase IV. Approximately 2×10 6 cells were suspended in 100 μl of PBS, which were then irradiated with γ-ray to inactivate the stem cells. The cells were then intraperitoneally injected in Balb/c mouse. The injection was repeated three times every three weeks and lastly performed 3 days before cell fusion.
To collect feeder cells, 20 ml of DMEM (GIBCO) was filled in the peritoneum of a health mouse one day before cell fusion. DMEM was then absorbed out from the mouse, by which peritoneal cells were collected. The collected cells proceeded to centrifugation. Also, normal spleen was pulverized, from which cells were extracted. These two types of cells were mixed, to which 20% FBS was added. The mixed cells were distributed in a 96-well plate at the density of 10 5 cells/well, followed by culture in a 37° C. CO 2 incubator. NS1 myeloma cell line (TIB-18™, ATCC, USA) which would be fused with spleen cells two weeks after were cultured in RPMI1640 (GIBCO) supplemented with 10% FBS for 2 weeks before cell fusion.
The spleen was extracted from the mouse immunized with the human pluripotent stem cells and then washed well with RPMI1640 (GIBCO). The spleen was pulverized on Petri dish by using a glass rod and the cell suspension was left in a 15 ml tube for a while. When debris were precipitated, the supernatant was transferred into a new tube. NS1 was obtained by centrifugation and resuspended in 10 ml of RPMI 1640. The numbers of NS1 and the spleen cells were counted. 10 7 NS1 and 10 8 spleen cells were mixed in a 50 ml tube, followed by centrifugation at 200×g for 5 minutes. After eliminating the supernatant, the precipitate was left in a beaker filled with water at 37° C. for 2 minutes. The tube was tapped lightly to make the cells soft and was shaken in 37° C. water, during which 1 ml of PEG solution (GIBCO) was added thereto for 1 minute. Centrifugation was performed at 100×g for 2 minutes, to which 5 ml of RPMI1640 was slowly added for 3 minutes. 5 ml of RPMI1640 was slowly added thereto again for 2 minutes, followed by centrifugation at 200×g to recover the cells. The collected cells were resuspended carefully in 30 ml of normal medium (RPMI1640+20% FBS). The cells were left in a 37° C. CO 2 incubator for 30 minutes and then distributed in a 96-well plate where MEF cells (feeder cells that had been cultured in advance) were layered, at the density of 10 5 cells/well (70 μl per well), followed by culture in a 37° C. CO 2 incubator. On the next day, 70 μl of HAT was added to each well of the plate. The cells were cultured in HAT medium at least for 2 weeks, during which colony formation was observed every three days.
To select the clone expressing the antibody, sandwich ELISA (Enzyme Linked Immunosorbent Assay) was performed. 100 μl of the hybridoma culture medium was added to the plate coated with 2 μg/ml of IgG or IgM antibody, followed by reaction at 37° C. for 1 hour. Again, the cells were added with HRP (horseradish peroxidase, Sigma) conjugated anti-mouse IgG or IgM (1/5,000), followed by reaction for 1 hour. The plate was washed with phosphate buffer containing 0.05% tween 20, to which substrate solution containing OPD (Sigma) and H 2 O 2 was added. Then, OD 492 was measured, leading to the selection of the clones producing the antibody.
Example 3: Separation of the Monoclonal Antibody Binding to Human Pluripotent Stem Cells
<3-1> Selection of the Hybridoma Clone Producing the Monoclonal Antibody which Binds to Human Pluripotent Stem Cells
Among those clones prepared in Example 2, the hybridoma clone which secreted the antibody comparatively stably was selected and the binding capacity to human pluripotent stem cells was investigated. Particularly, the cultured human pluripotent stem cells were separated by using collagenase IV. The cells were treated with cell separation buffer (GIBCO) for 20 minutes at 37° C., leading to the separation of the cells as single cells. The cells were passed through 40 μm strainer, and 2×10 5 cells proceeded to flow cytometry. The human pluripotent stem cells prepared as single cells were suspended in PBA (1% BSA was dissolved in PBS), followed by reaction with the antibody supernatant at 4° C. for 30 minutes. Centrifugation was performed at 4° C. at 1200 rpm for 5 minutes and 100 μl of the supernatant was eliminated. The anti-mouse Ig-FITC (BD) was diluted (1:200). The cells were reacted with the diluted anti-mouse Ig-FITC at 4° C. for 30 minutes, and then washed with PBA twice. Propidium iodide (PI) negative cells were selected for the investigation of binding capacity of the cells to human pluripotent stem cells by using FACS caliber.
As a result, various hybridomas secreting the antibody binding to human pluripotent stem cells were selected and sub-cultured, during which subcloning was performed as well. At last, the hybridoma that secreted the antibody 6-1 and had kept the specificity to human pluripotent stem cells with maintaining the stability was selected.
The selected hybridoma secreting the antibody 6-1 was named ‘hybridoma 6-1’
<3-2> Purification of Monoclonal Antibody
The antibody 6-1 was purified from the hybridoma 6-1 selected in Example <3-1>.
Particularly, in order to purify the antibody 6-1, 1×10 7 hybridoma cells dissolved in 0.5 ml of PBS was intraperitoneally injected in Balb/c mouse inoculated with 0.5 ml of pristane a week earlier. 10˜14 days after the injection, ascites was extracted by using a syringe. The ascites proceeded to centrifugation and the supernatant was collected. 1 ml of PBS was added to 1 ml of the extracted ascites to dilute, resulting in 2 ml of ascites. 1 nM EDTA and 0.02% NaN 3 were added to the ascites, which was then filtered with 0.22 μm filter. The antibody conjugation was induced by using protein G-sepharose column at 4° C. for 2 hours while rotating the solution. Then, the column was raised straight and the wall of the column was washed with washing buffer (0.5 M NaCl, 0.1 M Tris, pH 8.0) by using a serum separator. The column was connected with a peristatic pump to wash the column fully. After washing the column, the antibody was eluted by using 0.2 M glycin-HCL (pH 2.7). The eluent was buffered in a tube containing 1 M Tris (pH 9.0). Then, dialysis was performed in PBS (pH 7.4) 4 times, and the resultant antibody was stored at −20° C.
Example 4: Binding Capacity of the Antibody 6.1 to Undifferentiated Human Pluripotent Stem Cells
To investigate the binding capacity of the antibody 6-1 purified in Example <3-2> to human pluripotent stem cells, fluorescence staining was performed by the same manner as described in Example <3-1> ( FIG. 2A ). Three kinds of pluripotent stem cells (H1, H9, and iPSC) were used herein. The red background indicates the case of using the secondary antibody alone. SSEA1 is the antibody that did not bind to human pluripotent stem cells, and SSEA3 and SSEA4 are the antibodies that bind to human pluripotent stem cells which are the undifferentiation makers. In FIG. 2A , the blue line illustrates the fluorescence staining of human pluripotent stem cells with the monoclonal antibody 6-1, wherein the antibody 6-1 bound to all of those three kinds of human pluripotent stem cells.
Mouse embryonic stem cells (J1) (Li. et al., Cell, 69:906-915, 1992) and mouse embryonic fibroblasts (MEF) were cultured in DMEM (GIBCO) supplemented with 10% FBS, followed by separation with collagenase IV. To investigate the binding capacity of the antibody 6-1 to the mouse embryonic stem cells (J1) and the mouse embryonic fibroblasts (MEF) by the same manner as described in the above, flow cytometry was performed along with fluorescence staining. As a result, it was confirmed that the antibody 6-1 did not bind to J1 or MEF ( FIG. 2 b ).
When the antibodies against the undifferentiated human pluripotent stem cell surface markers EpiCAM, Tra-1-60, and Tra-1-81 were added to H9, the embryonic stem cells, together with the antibody 6-1 and when fluorescence staining was performed with that, each of the antibody was co-localized with the antibody 6-1 on the cell surface ( FIG. 2C ). From the above results, as shown in FIG. 2 , it was confirmed that the antibody 6-1 bound to the undifferentiated human embryonic stem cells.
Example 5: Separation and Identification of the Antigen Binding to the Antibody 6-1
<5-1> Separation of the Antigen Binding to the Antibody 6-1 by Immunoprecipitation
To separate the human pluripotent stem cell surface marker that can be recognized by the monoclonal antibody 6-1, the cultured human pluripotent stem cells (H9) were washed with PBS, followed by biotinylation with EZ-Link Sulfo-NHS-LC-Biotin (Pierce, Rockford, Ill.). The cells were lysed in lysis buffer (25 mM Tris-HCl, pH 7.5, 250 mM NaCl, 5 mM EDTA, 1% Nonidet P-40, 2 g/ml aprotinin, 100 g/ml phenylmethylsulfonyl fluoride, 5 g/ml leupeptin) at 4° C. for 20 minutes, and the nuclei were eliminated by centrifugation. The protein concentration was determined by using BCA (bicinchoninic acid) protein assay kit (Pierce). The protein non-specifically binding to protein G plus-sepharose was reacted with 20 μl of protein G plus-sepharose at 4° C. for 2 hours, followed by centrifugation to obtained the supernatant. The obtained supernatant was reacted with approximately 1 mg of the antibody at 4° C. for 12 hours, to which 20 μl of protein G plus-sepharose was added again, followed by reaction at 4° C. for 2 hours. Then, centrifugation was performed and the precipitate was recovered. The recovered precipitate was washed with the cell lysate at least 10 times, and the remaining protein was separated by 10% SDS-PAGE. The protein proceeded to Western blotting on nitrocellulose membrane. The nitrocellulose membrane was reacted in PBST (PBS+0.1% Tween 20) containing 5% skim milk for 1 hour and then washed with PBST at least twice, followed by reaction with streptavidin-HRP (horseradish peroxidase) conjugate (1:1,500, Amersham Biosciences) for 1 hour. After washing the membrane with PBST 5 times, the color development was induced with ECL detection reagent (Amersham Biosciences). As a result, it was confirmed that the monoclonal antibody 6-1 bound to the protein having the molecular weight of 165 kDa or 100 kDa ( FIG. 3 ).
<5-2> Separation and Identification of the Antigen Binding to the Antibody 6-1
To collect the protein conjugated with the antibody 6-1, the cell lysate obtained from 1×10 8 H9 cells proceeded to immunoprecipitation by the same manner as described in Example <5-1>. 10% SDS-PAGE was performed and the gel was stained with Coomassie G250 (BIO-RAD). The SDS gel harboring the protein immunoprecipitated by the monoclonal antibody 6-1 was stained with Coomassie G250 (BIO-RAD) according to the manufacturer's protocol. The region that contained the protein was cut out and washed with 30% methanol for 5 minutes, which was then shattered. The gel fragments were reacted in 30% methanol until the stained color was completely gone. The gel fragments were dehydrated with 100% acetonitrile for 10 minutes, and then completely dried in a vacuum centrifuge for 30 minutes. The gel fragments were added with 300 ng trypsin (Promega) and 50 mM ammonium bicarbonate solution, followed by reaction at 37° C. for 16 hours to cut the protein out. The peptide cut out therefrom was extracted with 100 μl of 50 mM ammonium bicarbonate three times, which was then dried in a vacuum centrifuge. The peptide mixture was analyzed by ESI Q-TOF MS/MS (electrospray quadrupole time of flight tandem mass spectrometry) in Q-TOF micro (MicroMass). As a result, the protein recognized by the antibody 6-1 was identified as Desmoglein 2 ( FIG. 4 ). In FIG. 4 , the region marked by red color indicates the amino acid sequence identified by Q-TOF.
To confirm whether or not the antibody 6-1 would bind to Dsg2 identified above, immunoprecipitation was performed with the H9 cell extract by using the antibody 6-1. The obtained precipitate proceeded to 10% SDS-PAGE, followed by Western blotting. The immunoprecipitated protein was detected by ESL by using the monoclonal antibody 6D8 (Hycult Biotechnology) well known as the antibody against Dsg2 as the primary antibody and also using Streptavidin-HRP. As a result, it was confirmed that the Dsg2 protein immunoprecipitated by the antibody 6D8 was conjugated to the antibody 6-1 ( FIG. 5 ). This result indicates that the target antigen of the antibody 6-1 was Dsg2.
Example 6: Analysis of the Nucleic Acid and Amino Acid Sequence of the Monoclonal Antibody 6-1
<6-1> Cloning of the Monoclonal Antibody 6-1 Gene
1×10 8 of actively growing hybridoma 6-1 cells were collected by centrifugation, which were then washed with cold PBS. 1 ml of TRIzol (Ambion, USA) was added thereto, and the mixture was well-mixed by shaking. The mixture was reacted at room temperature for 5 minutes, to which 200 μl of chloroform was added. After shaking the mixture enough, centrifugation was performed at 4° C. at 12,000×g, for 10 minutes to obtain supernatant. Isopropanol was added thereto at the same volume to the obtained supernatant, followed by mixing for 15 seconds. The mixture stood at room temperature for 10 minutes, followed by centrifugation at 12,000×g for 10 minutes to precipitate RNA. Then, the supernatant was eliminated and the pellet was left.
1 ml of 75% ethanol was added thereto. The mixture was stirred enough to let the pellet fall off from the tube and RNA was washed and the RNA pellet was collected by centrifugation performed at 4° C. at 12,000×g for 5 minutes. The remaining solvent was eliminated by using a 200 μl tip, and the RNA precipitate was dried in the air. An appropriate amount of nuclease-free water was added thereto, followed by culture in a 56° C. heat block for 5 minutes. After the pellet was completely dissolved, RNA was quantified by measuring A260 with spectrometer.
To synthesize the complementary DNA template, 2 μg of total RNA was conjugated with dNTP oligo primer via reaction at 65° C. for 5 minutes in a thermal cycler (TAKARA, Japan) by using First-Strand cDNA Synthesis kit (Invitrogen, USA). As a result, the oligo primer conjugated RNA template was obtained, to which a necessary cofactor such as reverse transcriptase and MgCl 2 was added. Then, DNA template was synthesized at 50° C. for 50 minutes.
For cloning of the DNA template, the well known PCR primer was used with modification (Wang, et al J. Immunol. Methods 233, 167-177, 2000).
For cloning of heavy chain, 10 pmole of each oligonucleotide [IgG1 constant region PCR primer 5′-ATA GAC AGA TGG GGG TGT CGT TTT GGC-3′ (SEQ. ID. NO: 51), heavy chain variable region N-terminal primers 5′MH1 5′-SAR GTN MAG CTG SAG SAG TC-3′ (SEQ. ID. NO: 52) and 5′MH2 5′-SAR GTN MAG CTG SAG SAG TCW GG-3′ (SEQ. ID. NO: 53)] was mixed with 50 μl of total reaction mixture, to which Takara Ex Taq (TAKARA, Japan) and reaction buffer were added, resulting in the preparation of reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction mixture.
For cloning of light chain, each oligonucleotide [kappa chain constant region primer 5′-GGA TAC TAC AGT TGG TGC AGC ATC-3′ (SEQ. ID. NO: 54), kappa chain variable region N-terminal primers 5′MK 5′-GAY ATT GTG MTS ACM CAR WCT MCA-3′ (SEQ. ID. NO: 55), 5′-GAC ATT GTG CTG ACC CAA TCT CCA GCT TCT-3′ (SEQ. ID. NO: 56) and 5′-GAC ATT CAG CTG ACC CAG TCT CCA-3′ (SEQ. ID. NO: 57)] was prepared likewise. Among these primers corresponding to the variable region N-terminal, S stands for G or C, R stands for A or G, N stands for A, C, G, or T, M stands for A or C, W stands for A or T, and Y stands for T or C. The reaction mixtures for heavy chain and light chain prepared above were mixed, followed by reaction at 94° C. for 1 minute, at 45° C. for 1 minute, and at 72° C. for 2 minutes (30 cycles).
As a result, a band in approximately 380 bp which was presumed to be the DNA fragment corresponding to the heavy chain constant region was observed in the site of the combination of SEQ. ID. NO: 51, NO: 52 or NO: 53 ( FIG. 6 , HC #1 and #2) and another band in approximately 350 bp which was presumed to be the DNA fragment corresponding to the light chain constant region was observed in the site of the combination of SEQ. ID. NO: 54, NO: 55 or NO: 57 ( FIG. 6 , LC #1 and #3).
<6-2> Cloning and Sequence Analysis of the Monoclonal Antibody 6-1 Gene
For cloning of the antibody 6-1 gene amplified in Example <6-1>, the PCR product was first electrophoresed on 1% agarose gel. Then, DNA fragments corresponding to 380 bp and 350 bp were separated by using PrimePrep Gel Purification Kit (GeNet Bio, Korea).
Each of the separated DNA fragment was amplified by using Ex Taq in Example <6-1> for TA cloning and the reaction product was confirmed to have adenine nucleotide bound to 3′-end for TA cloning. So, the separated fragment could be inserted in the pCR2.1-TOPO vector using TOPO cloning kit (Invitrogen, USA) without any additional treatment with another enzyme. The recombinant plasmid was transfected in E. coli DH5α, which was cultured in a 37° C. incubator for 14 hours. 5 colonies were selected randomly among the confirmed E. coli colonies, which were cultured in 5 ml of LB medium supplemented with 50 μg/ml of ampicillin overnight. The plasmid DNA was separated by using DNA miniprep kit (Intron, Korea). To investigate whether or not the clone had the corresponding DNA, the restriction enzyme site of the vector 5′, 3′ away from the insertion target area was cut and electrophoresed on 1% agarose gel. The recombinant plasmid containing the fragment was analyzed based on M13 reverse primer (5′-CAG GAA ACA GCT ATG AC-3′, SEQ. ID. NO: 58) which was the primer for pCR2.1-TOPO vector sequencing. The sequence analysis was requested to Solgent (Korea). The nucleotide sequence of each heavy chain and light chain cDNA was converted into amino acids and the arrangement of each amino acid was analyzed by using Kabat database (Johnson G. and Wu, T. T. Nucleic Acids Res. 29: 205-206, 2001). The results are shown in FIG. 7 and FIG. 8 .
The numbers over the nucleotide sequences of FIG. 7 and FIG. 8 were determined by Kabat numbering. From the result of the amino acid sequencing, it was confirmed that these immune genes had the antibody structure specific residues and arrangement ( FIG. 7 and FIG. 8 ). Particularly, among various groups of immunoglobulins, the heavy chain of the antibody 6-1 belonged to subgroup I and the light chain belonged to subgroup I as well.
It was also confirmed that the CDR residue of heavy chain variable region that could recognize the antigen corresponded to #26˜#35 of CDR1, #50˜#66 of CDR2, #99˜#107 of CDR 3, while the CDR residue of light chain variable region that could recognize the antigen corresponded to #24˜#31 of CDR1, #49˜#56 of CDR2, and #88˜#96 of CDR3.
Also, disulfide bond necessary for the structure was mediated by cysteine #22 and #96 of the heavy chain variable region and cysteine #23 and #87 of the light chain variable region. Therefore, the above result confirmed that the heavy chain and light chain genes were functional.
Example 7: Investigation of the Expression of Dsg2 on the Surface of the Undifferentiated Human Pluripotent Stem Cell
Human pluripotent stem cells were separated by using collagenase as the above and the separated human pluripotent stem cell mass was carefully transferred on the bacteria plate so as not to be broken, followed by culture for 4, 8, and 12 days in EB medium [Dulbecco's modified Eagle's medium (DMEM)/F12 (Gibco) supplemented with 20% FBS (fetal bovine serum, Hyclone), 0.1 mM (β-mercaptoethanol (Sigma), 2 mM glutamine (Gibco), 0.1 mM non-essential amino acid (Gibco), 100 U/ml penicillin G (Sigma), and 100 μg/ml streptomycin (Sigma)] until embryoid body was formed. The culture medium and the plate were replaced every day. The human pluripotent stem cells differentiated by EB proceeded to FACS by the same manner as described in Example <3-1> by using the antibody 6-1. As a result, the expression of Dsg2 recognized by the antibody 6-1 was rapidly reduced just like the expression of SSEA3, the human pluripotent stem cell undifferentiation marker ( FIG. 9A ). The down-regulation of Dsg2 over the time was also confirmed by RT-PCR, like other undifferentiation markers Nanog, OCt4, and Sox2 ( FIG. 9B ).
Human pluripotent stem cells have such characteristics as being differentiated in the presence of retinoic acid, which means the stem cells lose the undifferentiation tendency when treated with retinoic acid (Henderson, et al., Stem Cells 20:329-337, 2002). So, the embryoid body cultured for 5 days was transferred onto the culture dish coated with gelatin, which was treated or not treated with 10 −5 M retinoic acid for 16 days. Then, the cells were collected and analyzed by FACS by the same manner as described in Example <3-1> by using the said antibody ( FIG. 9C ). As a result, it was confirmed that the binding capacity of the antibody 6-1 was reduced in the differentiated human pluripotent stem cells. This result indicates that Dsg2 recognized superficially by the antibody 6-1 was specifically expressed in the undifferentiated human pluripotent stem cells.
As shown in FIG. 9D , RT-PCR confirmed that the Dsg2 expression was reduced in the cells treated with retinoic acid like the expressions of such undifferentiation markers as Nanog, Oct4, and Sox2.
Further, RT-PCR was performed to investigate the expression patterns of the pluripotency related transcription factors (Nanog, Oct4, and Sox2), the three germ layer markers Pax6 (ectoderm), CD34 (mesoderm), and AFP (endoderm), and Dsg2 in the cultured undifferentiated human pluripotent stem cells and in the differentiated embryoid body. To perform RT-PCR, RNA was extracted from the embryoid body (EB; 3, 6, and 9 days) induced from H9 and H1 cells and each cell line by using TriZol reagent. 1 μg of the extracted RNA was used for the synthesis of cDNA using RT-PCR kit (SuperScript™ III first-strand synthesis system for RT-PCR, Invitrogen). The undifferentiation transcription marker primers and the differentiation marker primers listed in Table 1 were used as primers for RT-PCR. As a result, Dsg2 was expressed in the undifferentiated human pluripotent stem cells as equally as Nanog, Oct4, and Sox2, but was down-regulated in the differentiated embryoid body (EB) ( FIG. 10 ). This result indicates that Dsg2 was the undifferentiation marker of the human pluripotent stem cells.
Example 8: Separation of the Undifferentiated Human Pluripotent Stem Cells by Using the Antibody 6-1
To investigate whether or not the antibody 6-1 would be useful for the separation of the undifferentiated human pluripotent stem cells, the cultured human pluripotent stem cell line H9 was conjugated with the antibody 6-1, followed by FACS using BD FACSCalibur cell sorter to separate the antibody conjugated cells ( FIG. 11A , P3) and the antibody non-conjugated cells ( FIG. 11A , P4). To examine the colony formation by pluripotency of the undifferentiated human pluripotent stem cells, a certain amount of cells were distributed in a 96-well plate (Falcon) coated with matrigel (BD), followed by observation. As a result, the colony formation was confirmed only in the P3 cell group expressing Dsg2 ( FIG. 11B ). AP staining confirmed that the AP stained colonies were formed more in the group expressing Dsg2 than in the group not expressing Dsg2 ( FIG. 11C ).
To investigate the expression of the undifferentiation marker of each cell line separated according to the expression of Dsg2, the expressions of Oct4, Sox2, and Nanog were measured by Western blotting. As a result, the expressions of Oct4, Sox2, and Nanog were confirmed in the cells expressing Dsg2 ( FIG. 11D ). Therefore, it was confirmed that Dsg2 protein could be used as a marker for the separation of the undifferentiated human pluripotent stem cells.
Example 9: Effect of Dsg2 on Maintaining the Undifferentiation Condition of Human Pluripotent Stem Cells
To investigate the effect of Dsg2 on maintaining the undifferentiation condition of human pluripotent stem cells, shDsg2 mediated lentivirus was constructed and then infected H9 cells, followed by real-time PCR and Western blotting.
As a result, Dsg2 was down-regulated in the Dsg2 knocked-down H9 cells (shDsg2), compared with the non-treated cells and the scrambled cells having no specific target ( FIG. 12A ). The cell line prepared by the same manner as described in Example <1-1> was cultured in the undifferentiated human pluripotent stem cell culture condition for 5˜7 days. As a result, when compared with the scrambled cells, shDsg2 cells displayed some differentiated cells in the middle of the colony, confirmed by AP staining as well ( FIG. 12B ).
RT-PCR was performed with the primers useful for the confirmation of the expressions of the undifferentiation markers and the three germ layer markers in mRNA obtained from three types of cells (normal, scramble, and shDsg2). The sequences of these primers used for PCR are presented in Table 2.
TABLE 2
SEQ.
ID.
Primer name
Sequence
NO:
Klf4
Forward
TGTGATTACGCGGGCTGCGG
19
Reverse
GGCGGTGCCCCGTGTGTTTA
20
c-Myc
Forward
CCCAGGTCCTCGGACACCGA
21
Reverse
TGCTCCTCTGCTTGGACGGACA
22
UTF1
Forward
ACCAGCTGCTGACCTTGA
23
Reverse
CTGGAGAGGGGAGACTGG
24
GDF3
Forward
TGGTGACTCTCAACCCTGAT
25
Reverse
ATGGTCAGTGAGAAGGGACA
26
Rex1
Forward
CAGATCCTAAACAGCTCGCAGAAT
27
Reverse
GCGTACGCAAATTAAAGTCCAGA
28
DNMT3B
Forward
TGCTGCTCACAGGGCCCGATACTTC
29
Reverse
TCCTTTCGAGCTCAGTGCACCACAAAAC
30
GFAP
Forward
CCTCTCCCTGGCTCGAATG
31
Reverse
GGAAGCGAACCTTCTCGATGTA
32
NCAM1
Forward
ACGGAGGAGGAGAGGACCCCA
33
Reverse
CGTTCTCCTTTGTCTGTGTGGCG
34
NEUROD1
Forward
GCAGCGCTGGAGCCCTTCTTC
35
Reverse
GATCCGTGGCTTTGGGCCC
36
HAND1
Forward
TCCCTTTTCCGCTTGCTCTC
37
Reverse
CATCGCCTACCTGATGGACG
38
IGF2
Forward
CCCCAGATACCCCGTGGGCA
39
Reverse
GGCGGGGTCTTGGGTGGGTA
40
COL2A1
Forward
GGAGATCCGGGCAGAGGGCA
41
Reverse
CCGAATTCCTGCTCGGGCCC
42
VIM
Forward
GAGAACTTTGCCGTTGAAGC
43
Reverse
TCCAGCAGCTTCCTGTAGGT
44
LEF1
Forward
CGGACACGAGGTGGCCAGAC
45
Reverse
ACCGCATGGGATGGCTGCAC
46
INS
Forward
AAGCGTGGCATTGTGGAAC
47
Reverse
GGCTTTATTCCATCTCTCTCGG
48
HGF
Forward
GCATCAAATGTCAGCCCTGG
49
Reverse
CAACGCTGACATGGAATTCC
50
The PCR product was electrophoresed on 1% agarose gel. As a result, the expressions of the essential transcription factors for the undifferentiated human pluripotent stem cells such as UTF1 and GDF3 were reduced. On the other hand, the expressions of the genes playing an important role in the development of ectoderm, mesoderm, and endoderm were increased ( FIG. 12C ).
To investigate the difference in the expression of the undifferentiation marker between the scrambled cells and the shDsg2 cells, Western blotting was performed with Oct4, Sox2, Nanog, and c-Myc. As a result, the expressions of Oct4, Sox2, Nanog, and c-Myc were reduced in the shDsg2 cells. The down-regulation of Cyclin D1, a key factor for cell cycle and the up-regulation of p21 functioning to arrest cell cycle were also confirmed ( FIG. 12D ). Therefore, it was confirmed that the expression of Dsg2 played an important role in maintaining the undifferentiation status of human pluripotent stem cells.
Those skilled in the art will appreciate that the conceptions and specific embodiments disclosed in the foregoing description may be readily utilized as a basis for modifying or designing other embodiments for carrying out the same purposes of the present invention. Those skilled in the art will also appreciate that such equivalent embodiments do not depart from the spirit and scope of the invention as set forth in the appended Claims. | The present invention relates to a composition for detecting the undifferentiated human pluripotent stem cells comprising an agent useful for measuring the level of Desmoglein 2 (Dsg 2) mRNA or the protein thereof, a kit for detecting the undifferentiated human pluripotent stem cells comprising the said composition, a method for detecting the undifferentiated human pluripotent stem cells containing the step of measuring the level of Desmoglein 2 mRNA or the protein thereof, a method for evaluating the differentiation of human pluripotent stem cells and thereafter for separating the undifferentiated human pluripotent stem cells, a method for reducing the undifferentiated status of human pluripotent stem cells by inhibiting the expression or activation of Desmoglein 2, and a monoclonal antibody binding specifically to human Desmoglein 2. | Condense the core contents of the given document. | [
"CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS This application claims the benefit of South Korean Application No. 10-2014-0104464, filed on Aug. 12, 2014, and South Korean Application No. 10-2015-0099600, filed on Jul. 14, 2015, both of which are incorporated by reference in their entireties.",
"BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1.",
"Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a composition for detecting the undifferentiated human pluripotent stem cells comprising an agent useful for measuring the level of Desmoglein 2 (Dsg2) mRNA or the protein thereof, a kit for detecting the undifferentiated human pluripotent stem cells comprising the said composition, a method for detecting the undifferentiated human pluripotent stem cells containing the step of measuring the level of Desmoglein 2 mRNA or the protein thereof, a method for evaluating the differentiation of human pluripotent stem cells and thereafter for separating the undifferentiated human pluripotent stem cells, a method for reducing the undifferentiated status of human pluripotent stem cells by inhibiting the expression or activation of Desmoglein 2, and a monoclonal antibody conjugating specifically to human Desmoglein 2.",
"Description of the Related Art Stem cell is the cell that has a potential for unlimited proliferation as remains undifferentiated status and is capable of being differentiated into a specific cell with a unique function and shape once certain environment and conditions are given.",
"Human pluripotent stem cell is a self-renewal cell in a certain in vitro culture condition.",
"Owing to its characteristics of being differentiated into almost every cell forming a living subject, it has been an important target of study not only to understand basic knowledge on the development, differentiation, and growth of a subject but also to develop an agent for cell therapy which is believed to be a fundamental treatment method for the damage or injury of a subject or for various diseases, to screen a various novel drug candidates and their medicinal effects, to disclose a cause of disease, and to develop a treatment method, etc.",
"One of the pluripotent stem cells, embryonic stem cell, unlike the differentiated cell arrested in the cell cycle, can produce the same cell as itself by cell division, which is called self-renewal.",
"Embryonic stem cell displays pluripotency that is the ability to be differentiated into almost every functional cell in human body under a certain environment or stimulus.",
"So, it is expected to induce the differentiation of the embryonic stem cell into a specific target cell when a specific cell or organ is damaged by accident or disease.",
"Accordingly, the treatment method using the embryonic stem cell rises as a fundamental treatment method for various incurable diseases.",
"Human induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSC) is also one of those pluripotent stem cells, that induces pluripotency of the cell that has been finished with differentiation so as to make the cell to be re-differentiated again.",
"This stem cell also has the self-renewal ability like embryonic stem cell, indicating that this stem cell can also be able to be differentiated into almost every kind of cell.",
"According to the reports made so far, human induced pluripotent stem cell has similar characteristics in gene expression and differentiation capability to pluripotent embryonic stem cell (Takahashi, K et al.",
", Cell, 131:861-872, 2007).",
"To obtain the cells differentiated from human pluripotent stem cells, human pluripotent stem cells are first induced to be differentiated into a specific type of cells;",
"and then the differentiated cells are conjugated with surface markers for recognition;",
"and then the recognized cells are separated by FACS (Fluorescent Activated Cells Sorter) (Fukuda, H et al.",
", Stem Cells (2006) (24.3: 763-771)), or the differentiated cells are labeled with antibody and then the labeled cells are separated by MACS (Magnetic Activated Cell Sorting) (David, R et al.",
", Stem Cells (2005) (23.4: 77-82)).",
"MACS is known to outperform FACS since it can eliminate the risk of cell exposure on laser necessary for FACS.",
"In the method for obtaining the differentiated cells, either the cell separation is performed by FACS or by MACS, the possibility of mixed-existence with undifferentiated pluripotent stem cells is not completely excluded, suggesting that both methods are limited in separating the differentiated cells alone with 100% purity.",
"That is, the differentiated cells originated from pluripotent stem cells might be mixed with the undifferentiated cells, and there might be a risk of the undifferentiated pluripotent stem cells to cause a tumor called teratoma, which has been a continuous issue in the development of cell therapy products.",
"Therefore, it is requested to develop a novel method to eliminate selectively the undifferentiated cells having the risk of causing teratoma alone with leaving the differentiated cells.",
"Recently, Oct-4, Nanog and Sox-2, which are involved in self-renewal and pluripotency, have been used as intracellular markers for the separation of human pluripotent stem cells.",
"TRA-1-60, TRA-1-81, SSEA3, and SSEA4 antibodies have been used as cell surface markers, however the most of molecules recognized by these antibodies have carbohydrate epitope or have the functions that are not necessary for self-renewal or pluripotency of human pluripotent stem cell (Badcock, et al.",
", Cancer Res.",
"59:4715-4719, 1999;",
"Kannagi et al.",
", EMBO.",
"J. 2:2355-2361, 1983;",
"Brimble et al.",
", Stem Cells.",
"25:54-62, 2007).",
"Therefore, it is necessary to develop cell surface markers that are expressed in human pluripotent stem cells in order to study or separate the undifferentiated human pluripotent stem cells.",
"Likewise, a novel agent that can recognize specifically human pluripotent stem cells and accordingly can be used efficiently to eliminate the undifferentiated human pluripotent stem cells during cell therapy is highly requested.",
"Under these circumstances, the present inventors tried to develop a novel method and technique to detect and separate specifically the undifferentiated human pluripotent stem cells.",
"As a result, the inventors identified Desmoglein 2 which is specifically expressed in the undifferentiated human pluripotent stem cells and thereafter prepared an agent that can be conjugated specifically to the undifferentiated pluripotent stem cells, and further confirmed that the detection and separation of the undifferentiated human pluripotent stem cells could be achieved by this method by using the agent, leading to the completion of this invention.",
"SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is an object of the present invention to provide a composition for detecting the undifferentiated human pluripotent stem cells comprising an agent for measuring the level of Desmoglein 2 (Dsg 2) mRNA or the protein thereof.",
"It is another object of the present invention to provide a method for detecting the undifferentiated human pluripotent stem cells containing the step of measuring the level of Desmoglein 2 mRNA or the protein thereof in the separated human pluripotent stem cells.",
"It is also an object of the present invention to provide a method for evaluating the differentiation of human pluripotent stem cells containing the step of measuring the level of Desmoglein 2 mRNA or the protein thereof in the separated human pluripotent stem cells.",
"It is further an object of the present invention to provide a method for separating the undifferentiated human pluripotent stem cells comprising the following steps: (a) reacting human pluripotent stem cells with an agent specifically binding to Desmoglein 2 protein;",
"and (b) separating the human pluripotent stem cells that has been conjugated with the said agent.",
"It is also an object of the present invention to provide a method for reducing the undifferentiated status of human pluripotent stem cells containing the step of treating an agent that can reduce the expression or activation of Desmoglein 2 to the separated human pluripotent stem cells.",
"It is also an object of the present invention to provide a monoclonal antibody that is specifically binding to Desmoglein 2.",
"It is also an object of the present invention to provide a polynucleotide encoding the said monoclonal antibody, an expression vector containing the polynucleotide, and a transformant harboring the said expression vector.",
"It is also an object of the present invention to provide a method for eliminating the undifferentiated human pluripotent stem cells containing the step of reacting human pluripotent stem cells with an agent that is specifically binding to Desmoglein 2 protein.",
"To achieve the above objects, the present invention provides a composition for detecting the undifferentiated human pluripotent stem cells comprising an agent for measuring the level of Desmoglein 2 (Dsg 2) mRNA or the protein thereof.",
"Particularly, the agent included in the composition is to measure the level of Dsg2 protein expressed on cell surface.",
"In this invention, the term “human pluripotent stem cell”",
"indicates the cell that has self-renewal capacity and thus is capable of being differentiated into almost every kind of cells forming a living body, which includes embryonic stem cell and induced pluripotent stem cell.",
"The “human pluripotent stem cell”",
"can include the undifferentiated human embryonic stem cell existing in early embryonic blastocyst or epiblast and the differentiated human cell such as human induced pluripotent stem cell that has been reversely differentiated to have pluripotency from germ cell, somatic cell, or precursor cell, but not always limited thereto.",
"In this invention, the term “Desmoglein 2 (Dsg2) protein”",
"is a kind of Desmoglein protein which is a transmembrane glycoprotein existing in desmosome.",
"Desmoglein protein has three kinds of molecules, which are Dsg1, Dsg2, and Dsg3.",
"Dsg1 and Dsg3 are mainly expressed in stratified epithelium, and are known as the molecules targeting pemphigus, a kind of autoimmune skin disease.",
"Dsg2 is known as a marker molecule of desmosome, but it is not confirmed yet whether or not Dsg2 can be used as a marker molecule of the undifferentiated human pluripotent stem cell.",
"In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, it was confirmed that the antibody prepared in this invention (named 6-1) was conjugated to the undifferentiated human embryonic stem cells ( FIG. 2 ).",
"To investigate the antigen to which the antibody of the present invention could be bound, the antibody conjugated protein was separated by immunoprecipitation and identified by mass spectrometry.",
"As a result, it was confirmed that the protein conjugated with the antibody 6-1 was Desmoglein 2 ( FIG. 4 ).",
"It was also confirmed that Desmoglein 2 was expressed in the undifferentiated human pluripotent stem cells like other undifferentiation markers Nanog, Oct4, and Sox2, but was down-regulated in differentiated embryoid body (EB) ( FIG. 10 ).",
"The inventors confirmed from the above results that Desmoglein 2 protein was a marker expressed on the surface of the undifferentiated human pluripotent stem cells and the undifferentiated human pluripotent stem cells could be separated by using the Desmoglein 2 specific antibody.",
"Particularly, the agent for measuring the level of Desmoglein 2 mRNA can contain a set of primers or probe that specifically binds to the said gene.",
"In this invention, the term “primer”",
"indicates a single-stranded oligonucleotide that can be used as a start point of template-directed DNA synthesis under proper conditions (4 different nucleoside triphosphates and polymerase) in an appropriate buffer.",
"The preferable length of the primer depends on temperature and can vary according to a purpose of use, but generally the length of 15˜30 nucleotide long is preferred.",
"The sequence of the primer does not necessarily contain a perfectly complementary sequence to a part of the template sequence and such complementarity that allows the primer to be hybridized with the template and therefore allows the primer to carry its own function would be enough.",
"Therefore, the “primer set”",
"of the present invention does not have to have completely homologous sequence with the nucleotide sequence of Desmoglein 2, the template, and only needs such complementarity that is enough to let the primer be hybridized and work therein.",
"So, the primer sequence of the invention can contain RNA sequence.",
"The primer can be designed by those in the art by referring the nucleotide sequence of the template polynucleotide sequence.",
"For example, the primer can be designed by the primer design program such as PRIMER 3, VectorNTI, etc.",
"The primer can be hybridized or annealed to a part of the template to form double-stranded structure.",
"In this invention, the “probe”",
"can be a polynucleotide, the polynucleotide complement, the polynucleotide fragment, or the polynucleotide fragment complement.",
"The probe can also be a material for being hybridized with the homologous DNA included in the sample, which is DNA, RNA, cDNA, or mRNA, and if it is DNA, it can be an oligomer.",
"The probe can contain the repeated sequence in the nucleotide sequence 85% at highest, and preferably 70%, and more preferably 50%, and most preferably 40% herein.",
"The size of the probe can be the total length of the above gene, or when an oligomer is used as the probe, its preferable length is 20˜200 bp and more preferably 20˜100 bp.",
"When cDNA or RNA is used as the probe, its preferable length is 30˜150 bp, but not always limited thereto, and the length and the material can be selected according to the purpose of use.",
"The probe can contain a detectable marker.",
"The detectable maker can be any chemical moiety that is traced by any means known to those in the art.",
"The detectable marker can be any moiety that can be detected by spectroscopy, photochemistry, or any biochemical, immunochemical, or chemical method.",
"The method for labeling the nucleic acid probe is properly selected by considering the type and the location of marker, and the type of probe.",
"The marker is exemplified by enzyme, enzyme substrate, radio-isotope, fluorescent dye, chromophores, chemiluminescent label, electrochemical luminescent label, ligand having a specific binding partner, and other markers capable of increasing, modifying, or reducing the detection signal strength by reacting to a target.",
"Particularly, the probe of the invention can be Desmoglein2 gene, the fragment of Desmoglein 2 gene, nucleic acid originated from the said Desmoglein 2 gene, or the fragment of the nucleic acid that can display any change in the expression in the undifferentiated human pluripotent stem cells and the differentiated cells as well, and at this time, the nucleic acid can be DNA or RNA.",
"The agent that is used to measure the protein level above can be an antibody specific to the said protein.",
"The antibody specifically binding to Desmoglein2 protein is one or more antibodies selected from the group consisting of monoclonal antibody, chimeric antibody, humanized antibody, and human monoclonal antibody.",
"At this time, the antibody can be a full length antibody or an antibody fragment.",
"The antibody fragment herein can be Fab, F(ab′), F(ab′)2 or Fv, but not always limited thereto.",
"The antibody useful for measuring the level of Desmoglein2 protein can be the antibody 6-1 of the present invention, but not always limited thereto.",
"The term “protein level”",
"in this invention indicates the level of protein that is expressed from gene in cells.",
"Observing the protein level can overcome the limit of the study targeting mRNA with which the direct relation between the protein and mRNA in cells might not be disclosed.",
"In this invention, the detection of the undifferentiated human pluripotent stem cell could be easily accomplished by observing the expression level of Desmoglein 2 protein.",
"The term “antibody”",
"in this invention indicates an antigen specific protein molecule.",
"Considering the purpose of the invention, the antibody herein indicates the antibody binding specifically to Desmoglein2 protein, the marker protein, which can include a monoclonal antibody, a polyclonal antibody, and a recombinant antibody.",
"As explained hereinbefore, a full length antibody and an antibody fragment can also be included.",
"The monoclonal antibody can be prepared by the conventional well-known method using hybridoma (Kohler and Milstein (1976) European journal of Immunology 6:511-519) or using phage antibody library (Clarkson et al, Nature, 352:624-628, 1991;",
"Marks et al, J. Mol.",
"Biol.",
", 222:58, 1-597, 1991).",
"In general, hybridoma cells secreting monoclonal antibody can be made by fusion of cancer cell line with the immune cells obtained from an immunologically appropriate host animal, such as the mouse injected with an antigen protein.",
"The fusion of such two different cell groups can be performed by the method well-informed to those in the art by using polyethyleneglycol and the antibody producing cells can be proliferated by the standard culture method.",
"Subcloning is performed by limited dilution to obtain a uniform cell group.",
"Then, the hybridoma cells that can produce antigen specific antibody are mass-cultured in vitro or in vivo.",
"It is easily understood by those in the art that the monoclonal antibody of the invention can be easily converted into chimeric antibody, humanized antibody, and human monoclonal antibody whose immunogenicity has been reduced in order for such monoclonal antibody to adapt to human body.",
"The chimeric antibody, humanized antibody, and human monoclonal antibody are easily constructed from the monoclonal antibody of the invention by the well-known method, for example by transplanting the variable region of the monoclonal antibody of the invention, particularly complementarity determining region (CDR) or selectivity determining residue (SDR) of CDR into human antibody.",
"These variants are also included in the scope of the present invention.",
"The polyclonal antibody can be prepared by the method well-informed to those in the art, for example by the following steps: injecting the said protein antigen into an animal;",
"and obtaining the serum containing the antibody by blood-work.",
"The polyclonal antibody can be produced from any random host animal including goat, rabbit, sheep, monkey, horse, pig, cow, and dog, etc.",
"Further, the antibody of the present invention can be either the complete full length antibody comprising two full length light chains and two full length heavy chains or the functional fragment of the antibody molecule.",
"The functional fragment of the antibody molecule indicates the fragment that has at least antigen-binding capacity, which is exemplified by Fab, F(ab′), F(ab′) 2 and Fv.",
"To measure the expression level of Desmoglein2 in the undifferentiated human pluripotent stem cells by using the said antibody, any method that is useful for measuring the production of antigen-antibody complex after treating the said antibody can be used without limitation.",
"The said “antigen-antibody complex”",
"herein indicates the complex wherein Desmoglein 2 protein is conjugated with the antibody specific thereto.",
"The antigen-antibody complex can be quantified by measuring the size of the detection label signal.",
"For example, the antigen-antibody complex can be quantified by Western blotting, ELISA (enzyme linked immunosorbent assay), immunoprecipitation assay, complement fixation assay, flowcytometry, or the method using protein chip, but not limited thereto.",
"In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, in order to produce the undifferentiated human pluripotent stem cell specific monoclonal antibody, the human pluripotent stem cell line H9 was treated with collagenase IV to inactivate the said stem cells.",
"Then, the inactivated stem cells were intraperitoneally injected into the Balb/c mouse, leading to the immunization.",
"The spleen cells obtained from the mouse were fused with NS1 myeloma cell line to obtain hybridoma, from which monoclonal antibody 6-1 was separated and purified.",
"The binding capacity of the antibody to human pluripotent stem cell was investigated ( FIG. 2A ).",
"As a result, the antibody was confirmed to bind neither to mouse embryonic stem cells (J1) nor to mouse embryonic fibroblasts (MEF) ( FIG. 2B ).",
"Particularly, the antibody can contain the heavy chain variable region (V H ) comprising (i) the complementarity-determining region (referred as “CDR”",
"hereinafter) 1 represented by SEQ.",
"ID.",
"NO: 60, the heavy chain CDR2 represented by SEQ.",
"ID.",
"NO: 61, and the heavy chain CDR3 represented by SEQ.",
"ID.",
"NO: 62;",
"and the light chain variable region (V L ) comprising the light chain CDR1 represented by SEQ.",
"ID.",
"NO: 64, the light chain CDR2 represented by SEQ.",
"ID.",
"NO: 65, and the light chain CDR3 represented by SEQ.",
"ID.",
"NO: 66.",
"More particularly, the antibody can contain the heavy chain variable region represented by SEQ.",
"ID.",
"NO: 59 and the light chain variable region represented by SEQ.",
"ID.",
"NO: 63, but not always limited thereto.",
"In this invention, the antibody comprising the heavy chain variable region represented by SEQ.",
"ID.",
"NO: 59 and the light chain variable region represented by SEQ.",
"ID.",
"NO: 63 was named the antibody ‘6-1’.",
"As described hereinabove, the antibody can be the full length antibody or the fragment of the antibody, but not always limited thereto.",
"In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the present inventors analyzed the nucleic acid sequence and amino acid sequence of the monoclonal antibody 6-1 secreted from the hybridoma prepared by the inventors in order to analyze the sequences of CDR1, CDR2, and CDR3 of the heavy chain variable region and the sequences of CDR1, CDR2, and CDR3 of the light chain variable region ( FIG. 7 and FIG. 8 ).",
"As stated in scientific references, one or two CDRs can be omitted for antibody binding (Padlan et al.",
", FASEB Journal 9: 133-139 (1995);",
"Vajdos et al.",
", Journal of Molecular Biology, vol.",
"320, pp. 415-428 (2002);",
"Iwahashi et al.",
", Mol.",
"Immunol.",
"36:1079-1091, (1999);",
"Tamura et al, Journal of Immunology, 164:1432-1441 (2000)).",
"So, one or more CDR residues can be replaced in the said antibody or one or more CDRs can be omitted from the antibody.",
"In fact, such replacement or exclusion is not limited as long as the Desmoglein2 protein binding capacity of the antibody remains.",
"The present invention also provides a kit for detecting the undifferentiated human pluripotent stem cells comprising the above composition.",
"The kit of the present invention can contain not only an agent that can measure the expression level of Desmoglein 2 protein in the undifferentiated human pluripotent stem cells but also one or more compositions, solutions, or devices appropriate for the analysis of the expression level.",
"For example, the kit can contain a substrate, a proper buffer, a detection marker labeled secondary antibody, and a chromogenic substrate for the immunological detection of an antibody.",
"In addition, the kit can be used for Western blotting, ELISA (enzyme linked immunosorbent assay), immunoprecipitation assay, complement fixation assay, flowcytometry, or protein chip assay.",
"At this time, the kit can additionally contain any additional composition or device to meet the requirement of each analysis method above.",
"The detection of the undifferentiated human pluripotent stem cells can be achieved by comparing the production of antigen-antibody complex through the above methods.",
"The present invention also provides a method for detecting the undifferentiated human pluripotent stem cells containing the step of measuring the level of Desmoglein 2 mRNA or the protein thereof in the separated human pluripotent stem cells.",
"Particularly, the measurement of the level of Desmoglein 2 protein of human pluripotent stem cells can be achieved by using the Desmoglein2 protein specific antibody.",
"The antibody was the same as described above.",
"More particularly, the antibody can contain the heavy chain variable region (V H ) comprising the complementarity-determining region represented by SEQ.",
"ID.",
"NO: 59;",
"and the light chain variable region (V L ) comprising the amino acid sequence represented by SEQ.",
"ID.",
"NO: 63.",
"The detection of the undifferentiated human pluripotent stem cells can be achieved by measuring the level of Desmoglein2 protein by using the said antibody.",
"The present invention also provides a method for separating the undifferentiated human pluripotent stem cells comprising the following steps: (a) reacting human pluripotent stem cells with an agent specifically binding to Desmoglein 2 protein;",
"and (b) separating the human pluripotent stem cells that has been conjugated with the said agent.",
"In the above method, the step of separating the human pluripotent stem cells can be achieved by flowcytometry, but not always limited thereto, and any conventional method well accepted by those in the art can be used.",
"In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the inventors confirmed Desmoglein 2 as a marker that can be expressed specifically in the undifferentiated human pluripotent stem cells ( FIGS. 3 ˜ 5 ).",
"The inventors further confirmed that the detection and separation of the undifferentiated human pluripotent stem cells could be succeeded by using the binding activity between Desmoglein 2 and the monoclonal antibody 6-1.",
"The present invention also provides a method for evaluating the differentiation of human pluripotent stem cells containing the step of measuring the level of Desmoglein 2 mRNA or the protein thereof in the separated human pluripotent stem cells.",
"Particularly, the measurement of the level of Desmoglein 2 protein in the human pluripotent stem cells can be achieved by using the Desmoglein2 protein specific antibody or the antibody fragment binding thereto.",
"The antibody was the same as described above.",
"More particularly, the antibody can contain the heavy chain variable region (V H ) comprising the amino acid sequence represented by SEQ.",
"ID.",
"NO: 59;",
"and the light chain variable region (V L ) comprising the amino acid sequence represented by SEQ.",
"ID.",
"NO: 63.",
"In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the sequence of the monoclonal antibody 6-1 that was specifically bound to Desmoglein2 was analyzed ( FIG. 7 and FIG. 8 ).",
"As a result, AP positive reaction was only confirmed in the colony distributed with those cells expressing Desmoglein2 ( FIG. 11C ), and the expressions of the undifferentiation markers Nanog, Oct4, and Sox2 were also confirmed ( FIG. 11D ).",
"So, the differentiation of human pluripotent stem cells could be confirmed by measuring the expression level of Desmoglein 2.",
"The present invention also provides a method for reducing the undifferentiated status of human pluripotent stem cells containing the step of treating an agent that can reduce the expression or activation of Desmoglein 2 to the separated human pluripotent stem cells.",
"In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, shDsg2 was treated to the human pluripotent stem cells to inhibit the expression of Desmoglein 2.",
"At this time, changes in the undifferentiated status of human pluripotent stem cells were observed and AP positive reaction was weakened ( FIG. 12B ).",
"In the meantime, the expression of a pluripotency marker was reduced in Desmoglein 2 knock-down human pluripotent stem cells but at the same time the expression of a differentiation marker was increased.",
"Also, p21, the cell cycle inhibitor, was increased ( FIG. 12D ).",
"Therefore, it was confirmed that the undifferentiation status of human pluripotent stem cells was reduced when Desmoglein 2 was inhibited.",
"The agent that can reduce the expression or activation of Desmoglein 2 mRNA above can be an oligonucleotide inhibiting the expression of Desmoglein2 mRNA or an antibody inhibiting the activation of Desmoglein 2 protein, or a fragment of the said antibody, and further an antisense oligonucleotide, a siRNA oligonucleotide, an antibody, a single-stranded variable region fragment, a peptide, an aptamer, a low molecular compound, or a natural extract, but not always limited thereto.",
"Particularly, the said agent can be the antisense oligonucleotide or the siRNA oligonucleotide that can specifically bind to Desmoglein 2 mRNA, but not always limited thereto.",
"In this invention, the term “antisense oligonucleotide”",
"indicates DNA or RNA containing the oligonucleotide sequence complementary to a specific mRNA or a derivative thereof, which acts to inhibit the translation of mRNA into protein by binding to the complementary sequence of mRNA.",
"The antisense sequence against Desmoglein 2 is complementary to Desmoglein 2 mRNA and can be DNA or RNA sequence that can bind to Desmoglein 2 mRNA, which is able to inhibit the translation of Desmoglein 2 mRNA, translocation into cytoplasm, maturation, or other essential activities of biological functions.",
"Modification is allowed in the said antisense oligonucleotide to increase the effect thereof, for example one or more nucleotides, sugars, or backbones can be modified (De Mesmaeker et al.",
", Curr Opin Struct Biol.",
", 5(3):343-55(1995)).",
"The oligonucleotide backbone can be modified by phosphorothioate, phosphotriester, methyl phosphonate, single-stranded alkyl, cycloalkyl, single-stranded heteroatomic, and heterocyclic intersugar linkages.",
"The antisense oligonucleotide can also contain one or more substituted sugar moieties.",
"The antisense oligonucleotide can contain a modified nucleotide, which is exemplified by hypoxanthine, 6-methyladenine, 5-me pyrimidine (particularly 5-methylcytosine), 5-hydroxymethylcytosine (HMC), glycosyl HMC, gentobiosyl HMC, 2-aminoadenine, 2-thiouracil, 2-thiothymine, 5-bromouracil, 5-hydroxymethyluracil, 8-azaguanine, 7-deazaguanine, N6 (6-aminohexyl)adenine, and 2,6-diaminopurine.",
"The antisense oligonucleotide of the present invention can be chemically conjugated with one or more moieties or conjugates in order to improve the activity and cell adsorbability of the antisense oligonucleotide.",
"The said moieties are exemplified by such fat-soluble moieties as cholesterol moiety, cholesteryl moiety, cholic acid, thioether, thiocholesterol, aliphatic chain, phospholipid, polyamine, polyethylene glycol chain, adamantane acetate, palmityl moiety, octadecylamine, and hexylamino-carbonyl-oxycholesterol moiety, but not always limited thereto.",
"The method for preparing the oligonucleotide containing such fat-soluble moiety is well known to those in the art (U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,138,045, 5,218,105, and 5,459,255).",
"The modified oligonucleotide has increased stability to nuclease and increased binding affinity to the target mRNA.",
"The antisense oligonucleotide can be synthesized in vitro by the conventional method and then introduced into a living body or it can be synthesized in vivo.",
"To synthesize the antisense oligonucleotide in vitro, RNA polymerase I is used.",
"To synthesize the antisense RNA in vivo, the antisense RNA is transcribed by using a vector whose origin of MCS is on the opposite direction.",
"It is preferred for such antisense RNA to contain translation stop codon in the sequence so as not to continue the translation into the peptide sequence.",
"The antisense oligonucleotide usable in this invention can be designed by referring the human Desmoglein2 mRNA sequence informed to those in the art.",
"For example, the antisense oligonucleotide can be designed with the complementary sequence to human Desmoglein 2 mRNA CDS (coding sequence), the complementary sequence to starting codon and the surrounding sequence thereof, the complementary sequence to 5′-UTR, and the complementary sequence to 3′-UTR.",
"In this invention, the term “siRNA”",
"indicates an oligonucleotide molecule mediating RNA interruption or gene silencing.",
"Since siRNA can inhibit the expression of a target gene, it can be useful for efficient gene knock-down or gene therapy.",
"The said siRNA was first found in plants, insects, fruit flies, and parasites.",
"It is now applied to study on mammal cells.",
"The siRNA used in this invention can have the double-stranded structure wherein the sense strand that is the corresponding sequence to Desmoglein 2 mRNA is located on the opposite side of the antisense strand that is the complementary sequence to Desmoglein 2 mRNA, or can have the single-stranded structure which comprises the self-complementary sense and antisense strand.",
"The siRNA herein is not limited to the authentic, complete paring of double-stranded RNA region (a pair of RNAs) but also includes unpaired RNA region by mismatch (the corresponding sequence is not complementary) or bulge (chain on one side is left without being conjugated with matching nucleotides).",
"Particularly, the siRNA that is complementary to the sequence in human Desmoglein 2 ORF start codon area can be constructed, which is of 10˜100 nucleotides in length, preferably 15˜80 nucleotides, and more preferably 20˜70 nucleotides.",
"The siRNA terminal structure can be either blunt or cohesive.",
"As long as the terminal structure can inhibit the expression of Desmoglein 2 gene via the effect of RNA interference (RNAi), the structure is not limited either to blunt or to cohesive.",
"And the cohesive terminal structure can be either 3′-end protruding structure or 5′-end protruding structure.",
"The siRNA molecule of the present invention can have the insertion with a short nucleotide sequence (for example approximately 5˜15 nt) in between the self-complementary sense and the antisense strand.",
"At this time, the siRNA molecule formed by the expression of the nucleotide sequence can have the hairpin structure by intramolecular hybridization and as a result, the stem-and-loop structure is formed.",
"This stem-and-loop structure is processed in vitro or in vivo to produce the active siRNA molecule that can mediate RNAi.",
"In this invention, the Desmoglein 2 activity inhibitor can be a Desmoglein 2 specific antibody, an antigen binding fragment of the Desmoglein 2 specific antibody, a peptide, an aptamer, a low molecular compound, or a natural extract, but not always limited thereto.",
"The antibody or its antigen binding fragment is described hereinbefore.",
"In this invention, the term “peptide”",
"indicates a linear or circular, preferably a linear molecule that is formed by the peptide bond among the amino acid residues.",
"The peptide of the present invention can be prepared by the well informed chemical synthesis method, particularly by solid-phase synthesis techniques.",
"The peptide that can inhibit the activity of Desmoglein 2 by binding specifically to Desmoglein 2 can be prepared by the conventional method well informed to those in the art, for example by phage display.",
"The peptide is composed of 4˜40 amino acid residues, preferably 5˜30, more preferably 5˜20, and most preferably 8˜15 amino acid residues, but not always limited thereto.",
"The stability of the peptide of the present invention could be improved by modifying amino acid residues.",
"For example, one or more amino acid residues of the amino acid sequence of the peptide, particularly Gly residue, acetyl group, fluorenyl methoxy carbonyl group, formyl group, palmitoyl, myristyl group, stearyl group, or polyethyleneglycol (PEG) can be conjugated in N-terminal, and more particularly Gly residue can be conjugated in order to increase the stability of the peptide.",
"In this invention, the term “aptamer”",
"indicates an oligonucleotide molecule having the binding activity to a certain target molecule.",
"The said aptamer can inhibit protein activity by binding the certain target molecule, specifically via three-dimensional binding with the target protein.",
"The aptamer of the present invention can be RNA, DNA, modified oligonucleotide, or a mixture thereof, and can be in the form of a linear chain or a ring.",
"The length of the aptamer of the invention is not limited, and is generally 15˜200 nucleotide long.",
"However, the aptamer is suggested to be composed of up to 100 nucleotides, preferably up to 80 nucleotides, and more preferably up to 60 nucleotides, and most preferably up to 45 nucleotides.",
"The aptamer of the present invention can have the modification of sugar residue (for example, ribose) of each nucleotide in order to increase the binding capacity, stability, and drug delivery capability, etc.",
"The modified region can be 2′, 3′, and/or 4′ site of the sugar residue, and the modification is the replacement of oxygen atom in that site with another atom.",
"The modification is exemplified by fluorination, O-alkylation (for example, O-methylation, O-ethylation), O-allylation, S-alkylation (for example, S-methylation, S-ethylation), S-allylation, and amination (for example, —NH).",
"Such modification of the sugar residue can be performed by the conventional method well known to those in the art (for example, Sproat et al.",
", Nucle.",
"Acid.",
"Res.",
"1991 19, 733-738;",
"Cotton et al.",
", Nucl.",
"Acid.",
"Res.",
"1991 19, 2629-2635).",
"To increase the binding capacity of the aptamer of the invention, an oligonucleotide base (for example, purine, pyrimidine) can be modified (for example, chemically substituted).",
"This modification is exemplified by 5-pyrimidine modification, 6- and/or 8-purine modification, exocyclic amine modification, 4-thiouridine substitution, and 5-bromo or 5-iodouracil substitution.",
"Also, the phosphate group in the aptamer of the invention can be modified to make the aptamer have resistance against nuclease and hydrolysis.",
"For example, P(O)O group can be substituted with any of P(O)S (thioate), P(S)S (dithioate), P(O)NR 2 (amidate), P(O)R, R(O)OR′, CO or CH 2 (formacetal) or 3′-amine (—NH—CH 2 —CH 2 —).",
"At this time, each R or R′ is independently H or substituted or non-substituted alkyl (methyl or ethyl).",
"The linkage herein is exemplified by —O—, —N— or —S—.",
"SO, the said modified group can be connected to the neighboring nucleotide by one of these linkages.",
"The modification herein also includes 3′ and 5′-modification such as capping.",
"The modification can also be achieved by adding such materials as polyethyleneglycol, amino acid, peptide, inverted dT, oligonucleotide, nucleoside, Myristoyl, Lithocolic-oleyl, Docosanyl, Lauroyl, Stearoyl, Palmitoyl, Oleoyl, Linoleoyl, other lipids, steroid, cholesterol, caffeine, vitamin, pigment, fluorescein, anticancer agent, toxin, enzyme, isotope, and biotin to the terminal.",
"Such modification is explained in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,660,985 and 5,756,703.",
"The present invention also provides a monoclonal antibody composed of the heavy chain variable region (V H ) comprising (i) the complementarity-determining region (referred as “CDR”",
"hereinafter) 1 represented by SEQ.",
"ID.",
"NO: 60, the heavy chain CDR2 represented by SEQ.",
"ID.",
"NO: 61, and the heavy chain CDR3 represented by SEQ.",
"ID.",
"NO: 62;",
"and the light chain variable region (V L ) comprising the light chain CDR1 represented by SEQ.",
"ID.",
"NO: 64, the light chain CDR2 represented by SEQ.",
"ID.",
"NO: 65, and the light chain CDR3 represented by SEQ.",
"ID.",
"NO: 66.",
"In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the inventors confirmed that the protein which the monoclonal antibody 6-1 recognized and bound to was Desmoglein 2 ( FIG. 4 and FIG. 5 ), and performed FACS to investigate the differentiated human pluripotent stem cells by using the antibody 6-1.",
"As a result, it was confirmed that the expression of the human pluripotent stem cell undifferentiation marker SSEA3 was reduced and at the same time the expression of Dsg2 recognized by the antibody 6-1 was also rapidly decreased ( FIG. 9A ).",
"When retinoic acid that was the material to induce differentiation was treated thereto, the binding capacity of the antibody 6-1 was reduced in the differentiated cells ( FIG. 9C ).",
"Therefore, it was confirmed that Desmoglein 2 which was recognized by the monoclonal antibody 6-1 constructed in this invention was expressed specifically in the undifferentiated human pluripotent stem cells and the detection or separation of the undifferentiated human pluripotent stem cells expressing Desmoglein 2 was accomplished by recognizing thereof.",
"The present invention also provides a polynucleotide encoding the said monoclonal antibody, an expression vector comprising the said polynucleotide, and a transformant containing the said expression vector.",
"The said monoclonal antibody is as explained hereinbefore.",
"The polynucleotide encoding the monoclonal antibody is not limited as long as the polynucleotide can encode the monoclonal antibody composed of the heavy chain variable region (V H ) comprising (i) the complementarity-determining region (referred as “CDR”",
"hereinafter) 1 represented by SEQ.",
"ID.",
"NO: 60, the heavy chain CDR2 represented by SEQ.",
"ID.",
"NO: 61, and the heavy chain CDR3 represented by SEQ.",
"ID.",
"NO: 62;",
"and the light chain variable region (V L ) comprising the light chain CDR1 represented by SEQ.",
"ID.",
"NO: 64, the light chain CDR2 represented by SEQ.",
"ID.",
"NO: 65, and the light chain CDR3 represented by SEQ.",
"ID.",
"NO: 66.",
"For example, the polynucleotide represented by SEQ.",
"ID.",
"NO: 67 that encodes the heavy chain variable region and the polynucleotide represented by SEQ.",
"ID.",
"NO: 68 that encodes the light chain variable region can be used, but not always limited thereto.",
"In addition, considering the codon degeneracy or the preference of codon to be expressed in a host living subject to express the polynucleotide in the host, various modifications or transformations are allowed as long as they do not cause any change in the amino acid sequence of the polypeptide.",
"The expression vector containing the polynucleotide encoding the monoclonal antibody provided in this invention is not limited, and can be any expression vector that can duplicate and/or express the said polynucleotide in prokaryotic or eukaryotic cells including mammal cells (for example, cells of human, monkey, rabbit, rat, hamster, mouse, etc.), plant cells, yeast cells, insect cells, or bacteria cells (for example, E. coli , etc).",
"Preferably, this expression vector is operably linked to a proper promoter in order to express the said nucleotide in host cells and at this time it can contain at least one of selection markers.",
"For example, the expression vector can be phage, plasmid, cosmid, mini-chromosome, virus, or retrovirus comprising the polynucleotide.",
"The expression vector comprising the polynucleotide encoding the human monoclonal antibody can be the expression vector containing each polynucleotide respectively encoding the human monoclonal antibody heavy chain or light chain, or can be the expression vector comprising both polynucleotides encoding the heavy chain and light chain.",
"The transformant introduced with the expression vector of the invention is not limited, and can be exemplified by bacteria cells transformed by the insertion of this expression vector such as E. coli, streptomyces , and Salmonella typhimurium ;",
"yeast cells;",
"fungal cells such as Pichia pasteris ;",
"insect cells such as drosophila cells and Spodoptera frugiperda Sf9 cells;",
"animal cells such as CHO (Chinese hamster ovary) cells, SP2/0 (mouse myeloma) cells, human lymphoblastoid cells, COS cells, NSO (mouse myeloma) cells, 293T cells, bow melanoma cells, HT-1080 cells, BHK (baby hamster kidney) cells, HEK (human embryonic kidney) cells, and PERC[.",
"].6 (human retinal cells);",
"and plant cells.",
"In this invention, the term “introduction”",
"indicates the method to deliver the vector containing the polynucleotide encoding the monoclonal antibody into a host cell.",
"Such introduction can be performed by various methods well known to those in the art, which are exemplified by calcium phosphate-DNA co-precipitation, DEAE-dextran-mediated transfection, polybrene-mediated transformation, electroporation, microinjection, liposome fusion, lipofectamine-mediated method, and protoplast fusion.",
"Also, the transfection indicates the means to deliver a target material into a cell by using virus particles via infection.",
"In addition, the vector can be introduced into a host cell by gene bombardment.",
"In this invention, the term “introduction”",
"can be used alike as the term “transformation.”",
"The present invention also provides a method for eliminating the undifferentiated human pluripotent stem cells containing the step of reacting human pluripotent stem cells with an agent that is specifically binding to Desmoglein 2 protein.",
"Particularly, the agent that specifically binds to Desmoglein 2 protein is as described hereinbefore, and the step of eliminating is to eliminate the pluripotent stem cells that remain undifferentiated in the differentiated cells finished with the differentiation from pluripotent stem cells by using the antibody, which can be achieved by the conventional method well informed to those in the art.",
"So, the method of the invention is effective in eliminating the undifferentiated human pluripotent stem cells.",
"The analysis of the difference among the undifferentiated human embryonic stem cells, mouse embryonic stem cells, and mouse feeder cells is possibly made by using the monoclonal antibody of the present invention.",
"So, the monoclonal antibody of the invention can be effectively used for the separation of human embryonic stem cells.",
"It has not been completely confirmed yet that Desmoglein 2 protein is expressed in the surface of the undifferentiated human pluripotent stem cells.",
"So, the present inventors first separated the undifferentiated human pluripotent stem cells with high purity by using the corresponding antibody.",
"In particular, the present invention provides a method for detecting, identifying, and separating the undifferentiated human pluripotent stem cells by using the monoclonal antibody 6-1 constructed in this invention.",
"The present invention thus provides the functional cells which are fully differentiated and have no undifferentiated human pluripotent stem cells remaining therein by using the antibody of the invention in order to use these functional cells efficiently for cell therapy.",
"Particularly in this invention, the undifferentiated human pluripotent stem cells can be selectively detected, separated, and eliminated via antigen-antibody complex reaction by using the Desmoglein 2 specific antibody or the antibody fragment containing its antigen binding site.",
"Herein, the term “antigen-antibody complex reaction”",
"can be accomplished by immunohisto staining, radio-immuno assay (RIA), enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), Western blotting), immunoprecipitation assay, immunodiffusion assay, complement fixation assay, flowcytometry, and protein chip assay, but not always limited thereto.",
"ADVANTAGEOUS EFFECT The monoclonal antibody of the present invention binds to Desmoglein 2 expressed in the undifferentiated human pluripotent stem cells, so that it can be used not only for the identification and separation of the undifferentiated human pluripotent stem cells but also for eliminating the undifferentiated human pluripotent stem cells from the differentiated cells in cell therapy.",
"BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS The application of the preferred embodiments of the present invention is best understood with reference to the accompanying drawings, wherein: FIGS. 1A-1C are a set of photographs illustrating the undifferentiated status of the cultured human pluripotent stem cells.",
"FIG. 1A (picture 1, left side) presents the result of optical microscope observation of the cultured human pluripotent stem cells.",
"FIG. 1A (picture 2, right side) presents the expression of alkaline phosphatase, observed by using alkaline phosphatase (AP) staining kit.",
"FIG. 1B presents the result of flowcytometry of the cultured undifferentiated human pluripotent stem cells fluorescence-stained with antibodies against of SSEA1, SSEA3, and SSEA4.",
"FIG. 1C presents the expressions of Nanog, Oct4, and Sox2 genes in the cultured human pluripotent stem cells.",
"FIGS. 2A-2C illustrate the binding of the monoclonal antibody 6-1 onto the surface of human pluripotent stem cells.",
"FIG. 2A is a graph illustrating the binding of the antibody 6-1 on the human embryonic stem cells H1 and H9, and induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSC), confirmed by fluorescence staining (The blue line indicates the result of using the antibody 6-1 and the red background indicates the case of using the secondary antibody alone.).",
"FIG. 2B illustrates that the monoclonal antibody 6-1 did not bind to the mouse embryonic stem cell line J1 or the mouse embryonic fibroblast cell line MEF.",
"Anti-SSEA1 is the antibody that does not bind to human pluripotent stem cells but bind to mouse embryonic stem cells.",
"FIG. 2C illustrates that the antibody 6-1 binding site is the same as each antibody against the human pluripotent stem cell markers EpiCAm, TRA-1-60, and TRA-1-81 binding site on the surface of the human pluripotent stem cell line H9.",
"FIG. 3 presents the result of immunoprecipitation with the molecule binding to the antibody 6-1, wherein the surface of human pluripotent stem cell line H9 was biotinylated and the protein precipitated by immunoprecipitation using the antibody 6-1 was detected by Western blotting.",
"FIG. 4A illustrates that the peptide fragment obtained from the immunoprecipitated protein which was separated on 10% SDS-PAGE and cut off using trypsin was 37% homologous with human Dsg2, confirmed by Q-TOP.",
"FIG. 4B illustrates the overlapping area between the fragment (red letter) and Dsg2 amino acid sequence (black letter), suggesting that the antigen which the antibody 6-1 can recognize is Dsg2 (Desmoglein 2).",
"FIG. 5 illustrates that the antibody 6-1 binds to Dsg2, confirmed by Western blotting.",
"H9 cell extract proceeded to immunoprecipitation with the antibody 6-1, and then the precipitate was separated on 10% SDS-PAGE, followed by Western blotting using the informed 6D8 antibody and streptavidin-HRP.",
"FIG. 6 presents the amplified DNA used for the sequencing of the heavy chain and the light chain variable regions of the monoclonal antibody 6-1.",
"Herein, HC indicates the heavy chain region and LC indicates the light chain region.",
"FIG. 7 presents the nucleotide sequence and the amino acid sequence of the heavy chain variable region (V H ) of the monoclonal antibody 6-1 along with CDR (Complementarity Determining Region) and the sites of the major amino acid residues binding to antigen.",
"CDR is presented as bold.",
"FIG. 8 presents the nucleotide sequence and the amino acid sequence of the light chain variable region (V L ) of the monoclonal antibody 6-1 along with CDR (Complementarity Determining Region) and the sites of the major amino acid residues binding to antigen.",
"CDR is presented as bold.",
"FIG. 9A presents that the binding capacities of the undifferentiation marker SSEA3 and the antibody 6-1 were decreased when human pluripotent stem cells were differentiated into embryoid body, confirmed by FACS.",
"FIG. 9B presents that the expression of Dsg2 was reduced like the expressions of the undifferentiation markers Nanog, Oct4, and Sox 2 when human pluripotent stem cells were differentiated, confirmed by RT-PCR.",
"FIG. 9C presents that the binding capacity of the antibody 6-1 to embryonic stem cells was reduced in the presence of retinoic acid that could induce the differentiation of human pluripotent stem cells, confirmed by FACS.",
"FIG. 9D presents that the expression of Dsg2 was reduced like the expressions of the undifferentiation markers Nanog, Oct4, and Sox 2 in the presence of retinoic acid, confirmed by RT-PCR.",
"FIG. 10 presents the result of RT-PCR which investigated the expression patterns of the pluripotency related transcription factors (Nanog, Oct4, and Sox2), the 3 germ layer markers Pax6 (ectoderm), CD34 (mesoderm), and AFP (endoderm), and Dsg2 both when human pluripotent stem cells were not differentiated yet and when the cells were differentiated into embryoid body.",
"FIG. 11A presents the result of flow cytometry wherein the cultured human pluripotent stem cell line H9 was conjugated with the antibody 6-1 and then the antibody conjugated cells and the antibody non-conjugated cells were separated by flow cytometry.",
"FIG. 11B illustrates that colony was formed only in the group distributed with the cell line expressing Dsg2.",
"FIG. 11C illustrates that AP positive response was confirmed only in the group distributed with the cell line expressing Dsg2.",
"FIG. 11D presents that the expressions of the undifferentiation markers Nanog, Oct4, and Sox2 were confirmed in the cell line expressing Dsg2, confirmed by Western blotting.",
"FIGS. 12A-12D present that Dsg2 was the essential factor for maintaining the undifferentiation condition of human pluripotent stem cells.",
"FIG. 12A presents that the expression of Dsg2 was reduced when Dsg2 was knocked-down with shRNA, confirmed by real-time PCR and Western blotting.",
"FIG. 12B illustrates the shape and AP positive response in the Dsg2 knocked-down human pluripotent stem cells in the undifferentiation culture condition.",
"FIG. 12C illustrates the decrease of the expressions of some of the transcription factors necessary for maintaining undifferentiation condition and the increase of the expressions of the endoderm, mesoderm, and ectoderm marker genes in the Dsg2 knocked-down human pluripotent stem cells.",
"FIG. 12D presents that the expressions of the undifferentiation markers Oct4, Sox2, Nanog, and c-Myc were reduced in the Dsg2 knocked-down human pluripotent stem cells and the expression of the cell cycle positive regulator Cyclin D1 was reduced but the expression of the cell cycle negative regulator p21 was increased in the Dsg2 knocked-down human pluripotent stem cells, confirmed by Western blotting.",
"DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Practical and presently preferred embodiments of the present invention are illustrative as shown in the following Examples.",
"However, it will be appreciated that those skilled in the art, on consideration of this disclosure, may make modifications and improvements within the spirit and scope of the present invention.",
"Example 1: Human Pluripotent Stem Cell Culture and Confirmation of the Undifferentiation Status Thereof <1-1>",
"Culture of Human Pluripotent Stem Cells To construct a novel monoclonal antibody that can recognize human embryonic stem cells specifically, the human embryonic stem cell lines H1 and H9, and the induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSC) line were distributed from National Institute of Health (NIH, USA) and ATCC.",
"The cells were cultured in DMEM (Dulbecco's modified Eagle's medium)/F12 (Gibco, Rockville, Md.",
", USA) supplemented with 20% Knockout SR (Gibco), 0.1 mM β-mercaptoethanol (Sigma, St Luis, Mo.",
", USA), 2 mM glutamine (Gibco), 0.1 mM non-essential amino acid (Gibco), 100 U/ml penicillin G (Sigma), 100 μg/ml streptomycin (Sigma), and 5 ng/ml bFGF (Gibco Invitrogen), followed by sub-culture every 5˜7 days.",
"Particularly, a tissue culture plate (Nunc) was coated with 0.1% gelatin solution at 37° C. for 30 minutes.",
"MEF (mouse embryonic fibroblast, Korea Research Institute of Bioscience and Biotechnology) irradiated with gamma-ray at 3000 rad was inoculated therein at the density of 1.6×10 4 /cm 2 .",
"The irradiated MEF was the cell that did not grow but supported the growth of human embryonic stem cells.",
"The human embryonic stem cell tissue that had been culture for 5˜7 days was treated with 1 mg/ml of collagenase IV (Gibco) at 37° C. for 1 hour, and then the stem cell tissue was cut in an appropriate size.",
"The prepared sections were loaded in the MEF tissue culture plate.",
"The culture medium was replaced from 48 hours every day in the course of culture.",
"<1-2>",
"Confirmation of the Undifferentiation Status of the Cultured Human Pluripotent Stem Cells To investigate whether or not the human pluripotent stem cells cultured for 6˜7 days by the method described in Example <1-1>",
"could remain as undifferentiated, the cells were stained by using alkaline phosphatase (AP) staining kit (Sigma).",
"As a result, it was confirmed that AP was expressed in the cells, suggesting that the cells were still as undifferentiated ( FIG. 1A-2 ).",
"The cultured cells were fluorescence-stained with SSEA (stage specific embryonic antigen), followed by flow cytometry.",
"As a result, it was confirmed that the cells were negative to SSEA1 that was not the undifferentiation marker but were positive to SSEA3 and SSEA4 which were the undifferentiation markers, suggesting that the cells were still as undifferentiated ( FIG. 1B ).",
"To investigate whether or not Oct 4 gene that was not expressed in mouse embryonic stem cells would be expressed in human pluripotent stem cells, RT-PCR was performed with Nanog, Oct4, and Sox2 specific primers.",
"Also, RT-PCR for RNA quantification was performed with hGAPDH and mActin primers.",
"The sequences of those primers are presented in Table 1.",
"TABLE 1 SEQ.",
"Primer name Sequence ID.",
"NO: Nanog Forward TGCCTCACACGGAGACTGTC 1 Reverse TGCTATTCTTCGGCCAGTTG 2 Oct4 Forward CGACCATCTGCCGCTTTGAG 3 Reverse CCCCCTGTCCCCCATTCCTA 4 Sox2 Forward TACCTCTTCCTCCCACTCCA 5 Reverse ACTCTCCTCTTTTGCACCCC 6 Dsg2 Forward AGGTATGGCCAAGGAAGCCACGA 7 Reverse ATAGCGCCTGTGGCCCCTGTAA 8 Pax6 Forward AACAGACACAGCCCTCACAAACA 9 Reverse CGGGAACTTGAACTGGAACTGAC 10 CD34 Forward TGAAGCCTAGCCTGTCACCT 11 Reverse CGCACAGCTGGAGGTCTTAT 12 AFP Forward CCATGTACATGAGCACTGTTG 13 Reverse CTCCAATAACTCCTGGTATCC 14 hGAPDH Forward ACCACAGTCCATGCCATCAC 15 Reverse TCCACCACCCTGTTGCTGTA 16 mActin Forward AGGCCCAGAGCAAGAGAGG 17 Reverse TACATGGCTGGGGTGTTGAA 18 After the PCR, the PCR product was electrophoresed on 1.5% agarose gel and as a result, the expressions of Oct4, Nanog, and Sox 2 genes were confirmed, suggesting that the cells still remained as undifferentiated ( FIG. 1C ).",
"In FIG. 1 , MEF indicates mouse embryonic stem cells, and H9, H1, and iPSC are human pluripotent stem cells.",
"Then hybridoma was constructed by immunizing mouse with the undifferentiated human pluripotent stem cells.",
"Example 2: Construction of Mouse Hybridoma The human pluripotent stem cells (H9) cultured by the method described in Example <1-1>",
"was separated by treating with collagenase IV.",
"Approximately 2×10 6 cells were suspended in 100 μl of PBS, which were then irradiated with γ-ray to inactivate the stem cells.",
"The cells were then intraperitoneally injected in Balb/c mouse.",
"The injection was repeated three times every three weeks and lastly performed 3 days before cell fusion.",
"To collect feeder cells, 20 ml of DMEM (GIBCO) was filled in the peritoneum of a health mouse one day before cell fusion.",
"DMEM was then absorbed out from the mouse, by which peritoneal cells were collected.",
"The collected cells proceeded to centrifugation.",
"Also, normal spleen was pulverized, from which cells were extracted.",
"These two types of cells were mixed, to which 20% FBS was added.",
"The mixed cells were distributed in a 96-well plate at the density of 10 5 cells/well, followed by culture in a 37° C. CO 2 incubator.",
"NS1 myeloma cell line (TIB-18™, ATCC, USA) which would be fused with spleen cells two weeks after were cultured in RPMI1640 (GIBCO) supplemented with 10% FBS for 2 weeks before cell fusion.",
"The spleen was extracted from the mouse immunized with the human pluripotent stem cells and then washed well with RPMI1640 (GIBCO).",
"The spleen was pulverized on Petri dish by using a glass rod and the cell suspension was left in a 15 ml tube for a while.",
"When debris were precipitated, the supernatant was transferred into a new tube.",
"NS1 was obtained by centrifugation and resuspended in 10 ml of RPMI 1640.",
"The numbers of NS1 and the spleen cells were counted.",
"10 7 NS1 and 10 8 spleen cells were mixed in a 50 ml tube, followed by centrifugation at 200×g for 5 minutes.",
"After eliminating the supernatant, the precipitate was left in a beaker filled with water at 37° C. for 2 minutes.",
"The tube was tapped lightly to make the cells soft and was shaken in 37° C. water, during which 1 ml of PEG solution (GIBCO) was added thereto for 1 minute.",
"Centrifugation was performed at 100×g for 2 minutes, to which 5 ml of RPMI1640 was slowly added for 3 minutes.",
"5 ml of RPMI1640 was slowly added thereto again for 2 minutes, followed by centrifugation at 200×g to recover the cells.",
"The collected cells were resuspended carefully in 30 ml of normal medium (RPMI1640+20% FBS).",
"The cells were left in a 37° C. CO 2 incubator for 30 minutes and then distributed in a 96-well plate where MEF cells (feeder cells that had been cultured in advance) were layered, at the density of 10 5 cells/well (70 μl per well), followed by culture in a 37° C. CO 2 incubator.",
"On the next day, 70 μl of HAT was added to each well of the plate.",
"The cells were cultured in HAT medium at least for 2 weeks, during which colony formation was observed every three days.",
"To select the clone expressing the antibody, sandwich ELISA (Enzyme Linked Immunosorbent Assay) was performed.",
"100 μl of the hybridoma culture medium was added to the plate coated with 2 μg/ml of IgG or IgM antibody, followed by reaction at 37° C. for 1 hour.",
"Again, the cells were added with HRP (horseradish peroxidase, Sigma) conjugated anti-mouse IgG or IgM (1/5,000), followed by reaction for 1 hour.",
"The plate was washed with phosphate buffer containing 0.05% tween 20, to which substrate solution containing OPD (Sigma) and H 2 O 2 was added.",
"Then, OD 492 was measured, leading to the selection of the clones producing the antibody.",
"Example 3: Separation of the Monoclonal Antibody Binding to Human Pluripotent Stem Cells <3-1>",
"Selection of the Hybridoma Clone Producing the Monoclonal Antibody which Binds to Human Pluripotent Stem Cells Among those clones prepared in Example 2, the hybridoma clone which secreted the antibody comparatively stably was selected and the binding capacity to human pluripotent stem cells was investigated.",
"Particularly, the cultured human pluripotent stem cells were separated by using collagenase IV.",
"The cells were treated with cell separation buffer (GIBCO) for 20 minutes at 37° C., leading to the separation of the cells as single cells.",
"The cells were passed through 40 μm strainer, and 2×10 5 cells proceeded to flow cytometry.",
"The human pluripotent stem cells prepared as single cells were suspended in PBA (1% BSA was dissolved in PBS), followed by reaction with the antibody supernatant at 4° C. for 30 minutes.",
"Centrifugation was performed at 4° C. at 1200 rpm for 5 minutes and 100 μl of the supernatant was eliminated.",
"The anti-mouse Ig-FITC (BD) was diluted (1:200).",
"The cells were reacted with the diluted anti-mouse Ig-FITC at 4° C. for 30 minutes, and then washed with PBA twice.",
"Propidium iodide (PI) negative cells were selected for the investigation of binding capacity of the cells to human pluripotent stem cells by using FACS caliber.",
"As a result, various hybridomas secreting the antibody binding to human pluripotent stem cells were selected and sub-cultured, during which subcloning was performed as well.",
"At last, the hybridoma that secreted the antibody 6-1 and had kept the specificity to human pluripotent stem cells with maintaining the stability was selected.",
"The selected hybridoma secreting the antibody 6-1 was named ‘hybridoma 6-1’ <3-2>",
"Purification of Monoclonal Antibody The antibody 6-1 was purified from the hybridoma 6-1 selected in Example <3-1>.",
"Particularly, in order to purify the antibody 6-1, 1×10 7 hybridoma cells dissolved in 0.5 ml of PBS was intraperitoneally injected in Balb/c mouse inoculated with 0.5 ml of pristane a week earlier.",
"10˜14 days after the injection, ascites was extracted by using a syringe.",
"The ascites proceeded to centrifugation and the supernatant was collected.",
"1 ml of PBS was added to 1 ml of the extracted ascites to dilute, resulting in 2 ml of ascites.",
"1 nM EDTA and 0.02% NaN 3 were added to the ascites, which was then filtered with 0.22 μm filter.",
"The antibody conjugation was induced by using protein G-sepharose column at 4° C. for 2 hours while rotating the solution.",
"Then, the column was raised straight and the wall of the column was washed with washing buffer (0.5 M NaCl, 0.1 M Tris, pH 8.0) by using a serum separator.",
"The column was connected with a peristatic pump to wash the column fully.",
"After washing the column, the antibody was eluted by using 0.2 M glycin-HCL (pH 2.7).",
"The eluent was buffered in a tube containing 1 M Tris (pH 9.0).",
"Then, dialysis was performed in PBS (pH 7.4) 4 times, and the resultant antibody was stored at −20° C. Example 4: Binding Capacity of the Antibody 6.1 to Undifferentiated Human Pluripotent Stem Cells To investigate the binding capacity of the antibody 6-1 purified in Example <3-2>",
"to human pluripotent stem cells, fluorescence staining was performed by the same manner as described in Example <3-1>",
"( FIG. 2A ).",
"Three kinds of pluripotent stem cells (H1, H9, and iPSC) were used herein.",
"The red background indicates the case of using the secondary antibody alone.",
"SSEA1 is the antibody that did not bind to human pluripotent stem cells, and SSEA3 and SSEA4 are the antibodies that bind to human pluripotent stem cells which are the undifferentiation makers.",
"In FIG. 2A , the blue line illustrates the fluorescence staining of human pluripotent stem cells with the monoclonal antibody 6-1, wherein the antibody 6-1 bound to all of those three kinds of human pluripotent stem cells.",
"Mouse embryonic stem cells (J1) (Li.",
"et al.",
", Cell, 69:906-915, 1992) and mouse embryonic fibroblasts (MEF) were cultured in DMEM (GIBCO) supplemented with 10% FBS, followed by separation with collagenase IV.",
"To investigate the binding capacity of the antibody 6-1 to the mouse embryonic stem cells (J1) and the mouse embryonic fibroblasts (MEF) by the same manner as described in the above, flow cytometry was performed along with fluorescence staining.",
"As a result, it was confirmed that the antibody 6-1 did not bind to J1 or MEF ( FIG. 2 b ).",
"When the antibodies against the undifferentiated human pluripotent stem cell surface markers EpiCAM, Tra-1-60, and Tra-1-81 were added to H9, the embryonic stem cells, together with the antibody 6-1 and when fluorescence staining was performed with that, each of the antibody was co-localized with the antibody 6-1 on the cell surface ( FIG. 2C ).",
"From the above results, as shown in FIG. 2 , it was confirmed that the antibody 6-1 bound to the undifferentiated human embryonic stem cells.",
"Example 5: Separation and Identification of the Antigen Binding to the Antibody 6-1 <5-1>",
"Separation of the Antigen Binding to the Antibody 6-1 by Immunoprecipitation To separate the human pluripotent stem cell surface marker that can be recognized by the monoclonal antibody 6-1, the cultured human pluripotent stem cells (H9) were washed with PBS, followed by biotinylation with EZ-Link Sulfo-NHS-LC-Biotin (Pierce, Rockford, Ill.).",
"The cells were lysed in lysis buffer (25 mM Tris-HCl, pH 7.5, 250 mM NaCl, 5 mM EDTA, 1% Nonidet P-40, 2 g/ml aprotinin, 100 g/ml phenylmethylsulfonyl fluoride, 5 g/ml leupeptin) at 4° C. for 20 minutes, and the nuclei were eliminated by centrifugation.",
"The protein concentration was determined by using BCA (bicinchoninic acid) protein assay kit (Pierce).",
"The protein non-specifically binding to protein G plus-sepharose was reacted with 20 μl of protein G plus-sepharose at 4° C. for 2 hours, followed by centrifugation to obtained the supernatant.",
"The obtained supernatant was reacted with approximately 1 mg of the antibody at 4° C. for 12 hours, to which 20 μl of protein G plus-sepharose was added again, followed by reaction at 4° C. for 2 hours.",
"Then, centrifugation was performed and the precipitate was recovered.",
"The recovered precipitate was washed with the cell lysate at least 10 times, and the remaining protein was separated by 10% SDS-PAGE.",
"The protein proceeded to Western blotting on nitrocellulose membrane.",
"The nitrocellulose membrane was reacted in PBST (PBS+0.1% Tween 20) containing 5% skim milk for 1 hour and then washed with PBST at least twice, followed by reaction with streptavidin-HRP (horseradish peroxidase) conjugate (1:1,500, Amersham Biosciences) for 1 hour.",
"After washing the membrane with PBST 5 times, the color development was induced with ECL detection reagent (Amersham Biosciences).",
"As a result, it was confirmed that the monoclonal antibody 6-1 bound to the protein having the molecular weight of 165 kDa or 100 kDa ( FIG. 3 ).",
"<5-2>",
"Separation and Identification of the Antigen Binding to the Antibody 6-1 To collect the protein conjugated with the antibody 6-1, the cell lysate obtained from 1×10 8 H9 cells proceeded to immunoprecipitation by the same manner as described in Example <5-1>.",
"10% SDS-PAGE was performed and the gel was stained with Coomassie G250 (BIO-RAD).",
"The SDS gel harboring the protein immunoprecipitated by the monoclonal antibody 6-1 was stained with Coomassie G250 (BIO-RAD) according to the manufacturer's protocol.",
"The region that contained the protein was cut out and washed with 30% methanol for 5 minutes, which was then shattered.",
"The gel fragments were reacted in 30% methanol until the stained color was completely gone.",
"The gel fragments were dehydrated with 100% acetonitrile for 10 minutes, and then completely dried in a vacuum centrifuge for 30 minutes.",
"The gel fragments were added with 300 ng trypsin (Promega) and 50 mM ammonium bicarbonate solution, followed by reaction at 37° C. for 16 hours to cut the protein out.",
"The peptide cut out therefrom was extracted with 100 μl of 50 mM ammonium bicarbonate three times, which was then dried in a vacuum centrifuge.",
"The peptide mixture was analyzed by ESI Q-TOF MS/MS (electrospray quadrupole time of flight tandem mass spectrometry) in Q-TOF micro (MicroMass).",
"As a result, the protein recognized by the antibody 6-1 was identified as Desmoglein 2 ( FIG. 4 ).",
"In FIG. 4 , the region marked by red color indicates the amino acid sequence identified by Q-TOF.",
"To confirm whether or not the antibody 6-1 would bind to Dsg2 identified above, immunoprecipitation was performed with the H9 cell extract by using the antibody 6-1.",
"The obtained precipitate proceeded to 10% SDS-PAGE, followed by Western blotting.",
"The immunoprecipitated protein was detected by ESL by using the monoclonal antibody 6D8 (Hycult Biotechnology) well known as the antibody against Dsg2 as the primary antibody and also using Streptavidin-HRP.",
"As a result, it was confirmed that the Dsg2 protein immunoprecipitated by the antibody 6D8 was conjugated to the antibody 6-1 ( FIG. 5 ).",
"This result indicates that the target antigen of the antibody 6-1 was Dsg2.",
"Example 6: Analysis of the Nucleic Acid and Amino Acid Sequence of the Monoclonal Antibody 6-1 <6-1>",
"Cloning of the Monoclonal Antibody 6-1 Gene 1×10 8 of actively growing hybridoma 6-1 cells were collected by centrifugation, which were then washed with cold PBS.",
"1 ml of TRIzol (Ambion, USA) was added thereto, and the mixture was well-mixed by shaking.",
"The mixture was reacted at room temperature for 5 minutes, to which 200 μl of chloroform was added.",
"After shaking the mixture enough, centrifugation was performed at 4° C. at 12,000×g, for 10 minutes to obtain supernatant.",
"Isopropanol was added thereto at the same volume to the obtained supernatant, followed by mixing for 15 seconds.",
"The mixture stood at room temperature for 10 minutes, followed by centrifugation at 12,000×g for 10 minutes to precipitate RNA.",
"Then, the supernatant was eliminated and the pellet was left.",
"1 ml of 75% ethanol was added thereto.",
"The mixture was stirred enough to let the pellet fall off from the tube and RNA was washed and the RNA pellet was collected by centrifugation performed at 4° C. at 12,000×g for 5 minutes.",
"The remaining solvent was eliminated by using a 200 μl tip, and the RNA precipitate was dried in the air.",
"An appropriate amount of nuclease-free water was added thereto, followed by culture in a 56° C. heat block for 5 minutes.",
"After the pellet was completely dissolved, RNA was quantified by measuring A260 with spectrometer.",
"To synthesize the complementary DNA template, 2 μg of total RNA was conjugated with dNTP oligo primer via reaction at 65° C. for 5 minutes in a thermal cycler (TAKARA, Japan) by using First-Strand cDNA Synthesis kit (Invitrogen, USA).",
"As a result, the oligo primer conjugated RNA template was obtained, to which a necessary cofactor such as reverse transcriptase and MgCl 2 was added.",
"Then, DNA template was synthesized at 50° C. for 50 minutes.",
"For cloning of the DNA template, the well known PCR primer was used with modification (Wang, et al J. Immunol.",
"Methods 233, 167-177, 2000).",
"For cloning of heavy chain, 10 pmole of each oligonucleotide [IgG1 constant region PCR primer 5′-ATA GAC AGA TGG GGG TGT CGT TTT GGC-3′ (SEQ.",
"ID.",
"NO: 51), heavy chain variable region N-terminal primers 5′MH1 5′-SAR GTN MAG CTG SAG SAG TC-3′ (SEQ.",
"ID.",
"NO: 52) and 5′MH2 5′-SAR GTN MAG CTG SAG SAG TCW GG-3′ (SEQ.",
"ID.",
"NO: 53)] was mixed with 50 μl of total reaction mixture, to which Takara Ex Taq (TAKARA, Japan) and reaction buffer were added, resulting in the preparation of reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction mixture.",
"For cloning of light chain, each oligonucleotide [kappa chain constant region primer 5′-GGA TAC TAC AGT TGG TGC AGC ATC-3′ (SEQ.",
"ID.",
"NO: 54), kappa chain variable region N-terminal primers 5′MK 5′-GAY ATT GTG MTS ACM CAR WCT MCA-3′ (SEQ.",
"ID.",
"NO: 55), 5′-GAC ATT GTG CTG ACC CAA TCT CCA GCT TCT-3′ (SEQ.",
"ID.",
"NO: 56) and 5′-GAC ATT CAG CTG ACC CAG TCT CCA-3′ (SEQ.",
"ID.",
"NO: 57)] was prepared likewise.",
"Among these primers corresponding to the variable region N-terminal, S stands for G or C, R stands for A or G, N stands for A, C, G, or T, M stands for A or C, W stands for A or T, and Y stands for T or C. The reaction mixtures for heavy chain and light chain prepared above were mixed, followed by reaction at 94° C. for 1 minute, at 45° C. for 1 minute, and at 72° C. for 2 minutes (30 cycles).",
"As a result, a band in approximately 380 bp which was presumed to be the DNA fragment corresponding to the heavy chain constant region was observed in the site of the combination of SEQ.",
"ID.",
"NO: 51, NO: 52 or NO: 53 ( FIG. 6 , HC #1 and #2) and another band in approximately 350 bp which was presumed to be the DNA fragment corresponding to the light chain constant region was observed in the site of the combination of SEQ.",
"ID.",
"NO: 54, NO: 55 or NO: 57 ( FIG. 6 , LC #1 and #3).",
"<6-2>",
"Cloning and Sequence Analysis of the Monoclonal Antibody 6-1 Gene For cloning of the antibody 6-1 gene amplified in Example <6-1>, the PCR product was first electrophoresed on 1% agarose gel.",
"Then, DNA fragments corresponding to 380 bp and 350 bp were separated by using PrimePrep Gel Purification Kit (GeNet Bio, Korea).",
"Each of the separated DNA fragment was amplified by using Ex Taq in Example <6-1>",
"for TA cloning and the reaction product was confirmed to have adenine nucleotide bound to 3′-end for TA cloning.",
"So, the separated fragment could be inserted in the pCR2.1-TOPO vector using TOPO cloning kit (Invitrogen, USA) without any additional treatment with another enzyme.",
"The recombinant plasmid was transfected in E. coli DH5α, which was cultured in a 37° C. incubator for 14 hours.",
"5 colonies were selected randomly among the confirmed E. coli colonies, which were cultured in 5 ml of LB medium supplemented with 50 μg/ml of ampicillin overnight.",
"The plasmid DNA was separated by using DNA miniprep kit (Intron, Korea).",
"To investigate whether or not the clone had the corresponding DNA, the restriction enzyme site of the vector 5′, 3′ away from the insertion target area was cut and electrophoresed on 1% agarose gel.",
"The recombinant plasmid containing the fragment was analyzed based on M13 reverse primer (5′-CAG GAA ACA GCT ATG AC-3′, SEQ.",
"ID.",
"NO: 58) which was the primer for pCR2.1-TOPO vector sequencing.",
"The sequence analysis was requested to Solgent (Korea).",
"The nucleotide sequence of each heavy chain and light chain cDNA was converted into amino acids and the arrangement of each amino acid was analyzed by using Kabat database (Johnson G. and Wu, T. T. Nucleic Acids Res.",
"29: 205-206, 2001).",
"The results are shown in FIG. 7 and FIG. 8 .",
"The numbers over the nucleotide sequences of FIG. 7 and FIG. 8 were determined by Kabat numbering.",
"From the result of the amino acid sequencing, it was confirmed that these immune genes had the antibody structure specific residues and arrangement ( FIG. 7 and FIG. 8 ).",
"Particularly, among various groups of immunoglobulins, the heavy chain of the antibody 6-1 belonged to subgroup I and the light chain belonged to subgroup I as well.",
"It was also confirmed that the CDR residue of heavy chain variable region that could recognize the antigen corresponded to #26˜#35 of CDR1, #50˜#66 of CDR2, #99˜#107 of CDR 3, while the CDR residue of light chain variable region that could recognize the antigen corresponded to #24˜#31 of CDR1, #49˜#56 of CDR2, and #88˜#96 of CDR3.",
"Also, disulfide bond necessary for the structure was mediated by cysteine #22 and #96 of the heavy chain variable region and cysteine #23 and #87 of the light chain variable region.",
"Therefore, the above result confirmed that the heavy chain and light chain genes were functional.",
"Example 7: Investigation of the Expression of Dsg2 on the Surface of the Undifferentiated Human Pluripotent Stem Cell Human pluripotent stem cells were separated by using collagenase as the above and the separated human pluripotent stem cell mass was carefully transferred on the bacteria plate so as not to be broken, followed by culture for 4, 8, and 12 days in EB medium [Dulbecco's modified Eagle's medium (DMEM)/F12 (Gibco) supplemented with 20% FBS (fetal bovine serum, Hyclone), 0.1 mM (β-mercaptoethanol (Sigma), 2 mM glutamine (Gibco), 0.1 mM non-essential amino acid (Gibco), 100 U/ml penicillin G (Sigma), and 100 μg/ml streptomycin (Sigma)] until embryoid body was formed.",
"The culture medium and the plate were replaced every day.",
"The human pluripotent stem cells differentiated by EB proceeded to FACS by the same manner as described in Example <3-1>",
"by using the antibody 6-1.",
"As a result, the expression of Dsg2 recognized by the antibody 6-1 was rapidly reduced just like the expression of SSEA3, the human pluripotent stem cell undifferentiation marker ( FIG. 9A ).",
"The down-regulation of Dsg2 over the time was also confirmed by RT-PCR, like other undifferentiation markers Nanog, OCt4, and Sox2 ( FIG. 9B ).",
"Human pluripotent stem cells have such characteristics as being differentiated in the presence of retinoic acid, which means the stem cells lose the undifferentiation tendency when treated with retinoic acid (Henderson, et al.",
", Stem Cells 20:329-337, 2002).",
"So, the embryoid body cultured for 5 days was transferred onto the culture dish coated with gelatin, which was treated or not treated with 10 −5 M retinoic acid for 16 days.",
"Then, the cells were collected and analyzed by FACS by the same manner as described in Example <3-1>",
"by using the said antibody ( FIG. 9C ).",
"As a result, it was confirmed that the binding capacity of the antibody 6-1 was reduced in the differentiated human pluripotent stem cells.",
"This result indicates that Dsg2 recognized superficially by the antibody 6-1 was specifically expressed in the undifferentiated human pluripotent stem cells.",
"As shown in FIG. 9D , RT-PCR confirmed that the Dsg2 expression was reduced in the cells treated with retinoic acid like the expressions of such undifferentiation markers as Nanog, Oct4, and Sox2.",
"Further, RT-PCR was performed to investigate the expression patterns of the pluripotency related transcription factors (Nanog, Oct4, and Sox2), the three germ layer markers Pax6 (ectoderm), CD34 (mesoderm), and AFP (endoderm), and Dsg2 in the cultured undifferentiated human pluripotent stem cells and in the differentiated embryoid body.",
"To perform RT-PCR, RNA was extracted from the embryoid body (EB;",
"3, 6, and 9 days) induced from H9 and H1 cells and each cell line by using TriZol reagent.",
"1 μg of the extracted RNA was used for the synthesis of cDNA using RT-PCR kit (SuperScript™ III first-strand synthesis system for RT-PCR, Invitrogen).",
"The undifferentiation transcription marker primers and the differentiation marker primers listed in Table 1 were used as primers for RT-PCR.",
"As a result, Dsg2 was expressed in the undifferentiated human pluripotent stem cells as equally as Nanog, Oct4, and Sox2, but was down-regulated in the differentiated embryoid body (EB) ( FIG. 10 ).",
"This result indicates that Dsg2 was the undifferentiation marker of the human pluripotent stem cells.",
"Example 8: Separation of the Undifferentiated Human Pluripotent Stem Cells by Using the Antibody 6-1 To investigate whether or not the antibody 6-1 would be useful for the separation of the undifferentiated human pluripotent stem cells, the cultured human pluripotent stem cell line H9 was conjugated with the antibody 6-1, followed by FACS using BD FACSCalibur cell sorter to separate the antibody conjugated cells ( FIG. 11A , P3) and the antibody non-conjugated cells ( FIG. 11A , P4).",
"To examine the colony formation by pluripotency of the undifferentiated human pluripotent stem cells, a certain amount of cells were distributed in a 96-well plate (Falcon) coated with matrigel (BD), followed by observation.",
"As a result, the colony formation was confirmed only in the P3 cell group expressing Dsg2 ( FIG. 11B ).",
"AP staining confirmed that the AP stained colonies were formed more in the group expressing Dsg2 than in the group not expressing Dsg2 ( FIG. 11C ).",
"To investigate the expression of the undifferentiation marker of each cell line separated according to the expression of Dsg2, the expressions of Oct4, Sox2, and Nanog were measured by Western blotting.",
"As a result, the expressions of Oct4, Sox2, and Nanog were confirmed in the cells expressing Dsg2 ( FIG. 11D ).",
"Therefore, it was confirmed that Dsg2 protein could be used as a marker for the separation of the undifferentiated human pluripotent stem cells.",
"Example 9: Effect of Dsg2 on Maintaining the Undifferentiation Condition of Human Pluripotent Stem Cells To investigate the effect of Dsg2 on maintaining the undifferentiation condition of human pluripotent stem cells, shDsg2 mediated lentivirus was constructed and then infected H9 cells, followed by real-time PCR and Western blotting.",
"As a result, Dsg2 was down-regulated in the Dsg2 knocked-down H9 cells (shDsg2), compared with the non-treated cells and the scrambled cells having no specific target ( FIG. 12A ).",
"The cell line prepared by the same manner as described in Example <1-1>",
"was cultured in the undifferentiated human pluripotent stem cell culture condition for 5˜7 days.",
"As a result, when compared with the scrambled cells, shDsg2 cells displayed some differentiated cells in the middle of the colony, confirmed by AP staining as well ( FIG. 12B ).",
"RT-PCR was performed with the primers useful for the confirmation of the expressions of the undifferentiation markers and the three germ layer markers in mRNA obtained from three types of cells (normal, scramble, and shDsg2).",
"The sequences of these primers used for PCR are presented in Table 2.",
"TABLE 2 SEQ.",
"ID.",
"Primer name Sequence NO: Klf4 Forward TGTGATTACGCGGGCTGCGG 19 Reverse GGCGGTGCCCCGTGTGTTTA 20 c-Myc Forward CCCAGGTCCTCGGACACCGA 21 Reverse TGCTCCTCTGCTTGGACGGACA 22 UTF1 Forward ACCAGCTGCTGACCTTGA 23 Reverse CTGGAGAGGGGAGACTGG 24 GDF3 Forward TGGTGACTCTCAACCCTGAT 25 Reverse ATGGTCAGTGAGAAGGGACA 26 Rex1 Forward CAGATCCTAAACAGCTCGCAGAAT 27 Reverse GCGTACGCAAATTAAAGTCCAGA 28 DNMT3B Forward TGCTGCTCACAGGGCCCGATACTTC 29 Reverse TCCTTTCGAGCTCAGTGCACCACAAAAC 30 GFAP Forward CCTCTCCCTGGCTCGAATG 31 Reverse GGAAGCGAACCTTCTCGATGTA 32 NCAM1 Forward ACGGAGGAGGAGAGGACCCCA 33 Reverse CGTTCTCCTTTGTCTGTGTGGCG 34 NEUROD1 Forward GCAGCGCTGGAGCCCTTCTTC 35 Reverse GATCCGTGGCTTTGGGCCC 36 HAND1 Forward TCCCTTTTCCGCTTGCTCTC 37 Reverse CATCGCCTACCTGATGGACG 38 IGF2 Forward CCCCAGATACCCCGTGGGCA 39 Reverse GGCGGGGTCTTGGGTGGGTA 40 COL2A1 Forward GGAGATCCGGGCAGAGGGCA 41 Reverse CCGAATTCCTGCTCGGGCCC 42 VIM Forward GAGAACTTTGCCGTTGAAGC 43 Reverse TCCAGCAGCTTCCTGTAGGT 44 LEF1 Forward CGGACACGAGGTGGCCAGAC 45 Reverse ACCGCATGGGATGGCTGCAC 46 INS Forward AAGCGTGGCATTGTGGAAC 47 Reverse GGCTTTATTCCATCTCTCTCGG 48 HGF Forward GCATCAAATGTCAGCCCTGG 49 Reverse CAACGCTGACATGGAATTCC 50 The PCR product was electrophoresed on 1% agarose gel.",
"As a result, the expressions of the essential transcription factors for the undifferentiated human pluripotent stem cells such as UTF1 and GDF3 were reduced.",
"On the other hand, the expressions of the genes playing an important role in the development of ectoderm, mesoderm, and endoderm were increased ( FIG. 12C ).",
"To investigate the difference in the expression of the undifferentiation marker between the scrambled cells and the shDsg2 cells, Western blotting was performed with Oct4, Sox2, Nanog, and c-Myc.",
"As a result, the expressions of Oct4, Sox2, Nanog, and c-Myc were reduced in the shDsg2 cells.",
"The down-regulation of Cyclin D1, a key factor for cell cycle and the up-regulation of p21 functioning to arrest cell cycle were also confirmed ( FIG. 12D ).",
"Therefore, it was confirmed that the expression of Dsg2 played an important role in maintaining the undifferentiation status of human pluripotent stem cells.",
"Those skilled in the art will appreciate that the conceptions and specific embodiments disclosed in the foregoing description may be readily utilized as a basis for modifying or designing other embodiments for carrying out the same purposes of the present invention.",
"Those skilled in the art will also appreciate that such equivalent embodiments do not depart from the spirit and scope of the invention as set forth in the appended Claims."
] |
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
Considerable research has been devoted to developing oil absorbents for cleanup of oil spills and removal of emulsified oil from waste water. Agricultural products and residues, such as kapok fiber, cotton, rice hulls, corn cob meal, bagasse fibers, and peat moss have been used for these applications, and these materials have the advantage of being inexpensive and readily available. Moreover, cellulosic products exist in fibrous form and can be easily formed into mats, pads, and nonwoven sheets. Mats and column packings for oil removal have also been prepared by mixing cellulosic fibers with synthetic fibers, e.g., polyethylene or polypropylene-polyethylene-nylon blend. Cellulosics have also been mixed with inorganic materials, such as clay, magnesium hydroxide, and alumina to give oil-absorbent compositions. This invention relates to enhancing the oil absorbencies of cellulosic materials by rendering them more hydrophobic; that is, more lipophilic.
2. Description of the Prior Art
The hydrophobicity of cellulosic materials (and thus their affinity for oil) has been increased by reaction with organic isocyanates (Holst et al., German Offen. 2,358,808) and with fatty acid derivatives, such as anhydrides (Ball et al, U.S. Pat. No. 3,770,575) and acid chlorides (Teng et al., U.S. Pat. No. 3,874,849). Also, Marx et al. (U.S. Patent No. 3,677,982) shows preparing an oil-absorbing cellulose-polystyrene composite by immersing a cellulose sponge into styrene-benzoyl peroxide and then heating the mixture to 100° C.
Coating cellulosics with hydrophobic compounds, such as paraffin wax (Peterson et al., U.S. Pat. No. 3,630,891; Matsuda et al., Japanese Kokai 77/76,285; and Orth, German Offen. 2,301,176), insoluble fatty acid salts (Aoso et al., Japanese Kokai 74/64,577), or low melting polymers, such as polyolefins (Kunitomo et al., German Offen. 2,621,961; and Saida et al., Japanese Kokai 78/04,760) is another technique used to increase the affinity of fibers for oil; some polymers (e.g., ethylene-vinyl acetate copolymer) also have been deposited onto fibers from aqueous emulsions (Sato et al., Japanese Kokai 77/89,244; and Sato et al., Japanese Kokai 77/90,486).
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
We have now discovered that cellulose-containing substrates having a suitable degree of cation exchange capacity can be modified by reaction with a fatty quaternary ammonium salt to produce products having the proper balance of hydrophilic and lipophilic properties to effectively absorb oil from oil-in-water emulsions. The necessity for this hydrophilic-lipophilic balance has not been previously recognized in the prior art. The unique products of this invention are prepared from cellulose-containing substrates which have been treated to render the fibers more hydrophobic, i.e., lipophilic, and to give the fibers enough ionic character so that they will swell and separate in an aqueous environment to provide maximum surface area for oil removal. These products are particularly useful for cleaning up oil spills and for purifying waste water emulsions.
In accordance with this discovery, it is an object of the invention to provide a practical method for purifying oil-contaminated water.
It is also an object of the invention to prepare an oil-absorbing agent from readily available cellulose-containing source materials.
Another object of the invention is to produce an oil-absorbing composition by a simple, inexpensive, and commercially attractive procedure.
Other objects and advantages of the invention will become readily apparent from the ensuing description.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
The cellulose-containing material for use in the invention can be derived from any known source, including natural lignocellulosic materials such as wood, grasses, and agricultural residues. Woody substrates include sawdust and pulp from both deciduous and coniferous species. Nonwoody substrates may be obtained from monocotyledenous plants, especially grassy species belonging to the family Gramineae. Of primary interest are agricultural residues; that is, leaf, stalk, and other portions of grain-bearing grassy plants which remain after harvesting the seed. Illustrative of such residues without limitation thereto are wheat straw, oat straw, rice straw, barley straw, rye straw, buckwheat straw, flax straw, corn stalks, corn cobs, corn husks, and the like.
It is essential that the substrate have cationic exchange properties in order to enable reaction with the fatty quaternary ammonium salt. Most of the aforementioned natural materials in the dried state inherently have sufficient exchange capacity for purposes of this invention. The ionic substituents may be appended to either the cellulose backbone itself or to some other molecular entity in the substrate (e.g., hemicellulose or lignin).
Also envisioned for use herein are certain derivatized cellulose-containing materials having a relatively low degree of substitution (D.S.); that is, a D.S. of less than about 0.1. Examples of this category are carboxymethylcellulose and carboxymethylated straw. Alternatively, the substrates may be derivatized with a polymeric carboxylic acid or a polymeric sulfonic acid. Accordingly, graft copolymers may be formed from compounds such as acrylic acid, 2-acrylamido-2-methylpropanesulfonic acid, or methyl acrylate. An amount of added acid or ester in the range of about 1-8% by weight of the final product will give a D.S. in the desired range. The acid is then converted to a sodium or potassium salt by treatment with mild alkali. The ester would, of course, have to be saponified prior to conversion to the quaternary ammonium salt.
The quaternary ammonium salt reacted with the ionic cellulose substrate is represented as follows: ##STR1## wherein R 1 , R 2 , R 3 , and R 4 are independently selected from hydrogen, straight chain or branched alkyl, alkenyl, aryl, or alkyl aryl groupings, either substituted or unsubstituted, with the proviso that at least one of the groups individually, or more than one of the groups collectively, yields a lipophilic moiety;
and wherein X is a labile anion.
Examples of quaternary ammonium salts include hexadecyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTAB), dimethyl di(hydrogenated tallow) quaternary ammonium chloride, trimethyl tallow quaternary ammonium chloride, dimethyl dicoco quaternary ammonium chloride, and monococo trimethyl quaternary ammonium chloride.
A sufficient amount of the quaternary ammonium salt is combined with the substrate in a reaction medium to impart the requisite lipophilicity to the substrate in accordance with the intended end use. The ion exchange reaction typically will not go to completion, thereby leaving a portion of the reactive sites in the acid or alkali metal salt form. The converted substrate is thereafter washed, filtered, and stored. The product may optionally be dried, but storage in a damp or wet state facilitates dispersion in the aqueous emulsion at the time of use.
The actual oil-absorbing capacity of the instant products is, of course, a function of the number of lipophilic groups on the polymer. The polymer, however, must also be sufficiently hydrophilic to permit separation and limited swelling of individual fibers. This hydrophilicity is attributed to the ionic nature of the final product and the limited D.S. If the D.S. is excessive, swelling is inhibited and the lipophilic groups are inaccessible to the oil.
The following examples are intended only to further illustrate the invention and are not intended to limit the scope of the invention which is defined by the claims.
EXAMPLE 1
Ten grams (dry weight basis) of wheat straw which had been ground through a Wiley mill with a 2-mm. screen and washed with water was combined with 56 ml. of 0.24 N sodium hydroxide and then held for 2 hours in an oven at 100° C. The reaction mass was diluted with 250 ml. of water and stirred in a Waring blender at high speed for 2 min. The solid was separated by filtration, washed with water, and stored as a moist solid. A portion of this material was tested as a control for oil absorbency. Twenty grams of this solid (4.1 g., dry weight basis) was stirred at room temperature for 2 hours with a solution of 2.5 g. of CTAB in 50 ml. of water. The product was thereafter recovered by filtration, washed with water, and with a 50:50 ethanol:water mixture. The final traces of unreacted CTAB were removed by continuous Soxhlet extraction for 24 hours with 95% ethanol. The product was then washed thoroughly with water and stored as a moist solid.
The absorbencies of both the control material and the CTAB-reacted product were measured as follows:
An emulsion was prepared by adding 200 ml. of water, 20 drops (0.5-0.6 g.) of mineral oil, and 0.1 g. of dodecylbenzene sodium sulfonate to a Waring blender and stirring at high speed for 2 min. Ten milliliters of oil emulsion and 0.50 g. (dry basis) of test material were placed in a 2-oz. screw-cap bottle and shaken periodically for 5 min. Supernatant was separated from fibrous solid by screening through a small Buchner funnel containing no filter paper. Percent transmission of the supernatant (% T) at 650 nm. was then determined in a 1-cm. ultraviolet cell. Supernatant from the ultraviolet cell was returned to the bottle, and an additional 5 ml. of oil emulsion was added. The mixture was shaken, and % T was again determined. This procedure was repeated with 5-ml. increments of emulsion until % T dropped to about 10 or less. The % T of the supernatant was plotted against the total volume of oil emulsion added to the solid. The volume of emulsion which would yield 50% T was then determined from the plot and reported in Table I, below.
EXAMPLE 2
The procedure of Example 1 was repeated except that the NaOH treatment was conducted at room temperature (25° C.) for 1 hour. The results are reported in Table I.
EXAMPLES 3-4
The procedures of Examples 1 and 2 were repeated except that water was substituted for the NaOH treatment, and in Example 4 the water treatment was continued for 64 hours. The results are reported in Table I.
EXAMPLES 5-6
The procedure of Example 1 was repeated except that oak and pine sawdust were substituted for the wheat straw. The results are reported in Table I.
EXAMPLE 7
Carboxymethylcellulose (14.7 g.; 4.0 g. dry weight basis) having a D.S. of 0.028 was blended in 200 ml. of water, and the pH was adjusted to 9 with 1 N NaOH. Into the mixture was blended 4.0 g. of CTAB, and blending was continued for 5 min. The product was recovered by filtration, washed three times with a 50:50 ethanol:water mixture, and then washed three times with water. The final traces of unreacted CTAB were removed by continuous Soxhlet extraction overnight with 95% ethanol. The product was then washed thoroughly with water and stored as a moist solid. The absorbency was determined by the procedure described in Example 1. Approximately 88 ml. of oil emulsion were absorbed before the transmittance dropped to 50%.
EXAMPLE 8
Thirty grams (dry weight basis) of bleached softwood pulp (85.8% α-cellulose, 0.06% lignin, 13.6% pentosans) was dispersed in water, filtered, and pressed as dry as possible. A solution of 20.0 g. of acrylic acid in 120 ml. of water was mixed with the pulp, and excess liquid was again removed by filtration. The wet pulp, now containing about 6 g. of monomer, was transferred to an 8-oz. screw-cap bottle, and oxygen was displaced by evacuating four times to about 50 mm. followed by repressuring with nitrogen. The reaction mass was then irradiated with cobalt-60 to 0.5 Mrad and allowed to stand for 2 hours at ambient temperature. The graft copolymer was washed several times with water and stored as a wet filter cake.
TABLE I__________________________________________________________________________ Treatment Time Ml. oil for 50%Example Substrate Washed Reagent Temp. (°C.) (hr.) transmittance__________________________________________________________________________Control (no CTAB) wheat straw + NaOH.sup.a 100 2 <<10.sup.b1 wheat straw + NaOH.sup.a 100 2 482 wheat straw + NaOH.sup.a 25 1 383 wheat straw + water 100 2 254 wheat straw + water 25 64 235 oak sawdust - NaOH.sup.a 100 2 466 pine sawdust - NaOH.sup.a 100 2 25__________________________________________________________________________ .sup.a 0.24 .sub.-- N NaOH solution. .sup.b The initial 10 ml. of oil emulsion reduced the transmittance to about 0.2%.
Weight percent poly(acrylic acid) in the graft copolymer (% add-on) was determined by dispersing 1 g. (dry weight basis) of polymer in 150 ml. of 1 N NaCl solution and then titrating with 0.1 N NaOH solution to a phenolphthalein end point.
Five grams (dry weight basis) of softwood pulp-g-poly(acrylic acid) was suspended in 200 ml. of water in a Waring blender, and the pH was adjusted to 8 with 1 N sodium hydroxide in order to convert the acidic graft copolymer to its sodium salt. Five grams of CTAB were added, and the mixture was stirred for 5 min. The product was separated by filtration and washed three times with 50:50 ethanol/water and three times with water. The polymer was then continuously extracted (Soxhlet) for 2 days with 95% ethanol. The extracted polymer (Sample 8B) was washed with water and stored as the wet filter cake. Its ability to absorb emulsified oil was determined by the procedure described in Example 1. As a basis for comparison, a control (Sample 8A) was also run in which no acrylic acid was grafted onto the pulp. The results are reported in Table II.
EXAMPLE 9
The procedure of Example 8 was repeated except that half the amount of acrylic acid was used, and the percent add-on obtained was 3.4. The results are reported in Table II.
EXAMPLE 10
The procedure of Example 8 was repeated except that 2-acrylamido-2-methylpropanesulfonic acid (AASO 3 H) was substituted for the acrylic acid. The results are given in Table II.
EXAMPLE 11
A stirred slurry of 75.0 g. (dry weight basis) of the softwood pulp used in Examples 8-10 in 3 l. of water was sparged with a slow stream of nitrogen for 1 hour at 25° C. Ten grams of methyl acrylate were added, followed after 5 min. by a solution of 5.0 g. ceric ammonium nitrate in 45 ml. 1 N nitric acid. The mixture was stirred for 2 hours at 25° C.; the polymer was then removed by filtration and resuspended in water, and pH was adjusted to 7 with sodium hydroxide solution. The graft copolymer was washed with water, and the wet filter cake was extracted several times with acetone to remove 1-2 g. of homopolymer. Extracted copolymer was then freed of acetone by water washing and stored as a wet filter cake. A portion of the material was used to determine the percent add-on.
Softwood pulp-g-poly(methyl acrylate) was converted to softwood pulp-g-poly(Na acrylate) by thoroughly mixing 6.0 g. (dry weight basis) of graft copolymer with 10 ml. of 1 N sodium hydroxide and 10 ml. of water. The resulting mixture was heated in a loosely stoppered flask in a 100° C. oven for 6 hours. The saponified polymer was washed with water until the slurry pH was 8.9, and was then stored as the wet filter cake. A portion of the graft copolymer was converted to carboxylic acid by stirring with 0.5 N HCl, filtering, and washing with water until the slurry pH was 5.4. Titration showed 5.4% poly(acrylic acid).
Eight grams (2.1 dry weight basis) of the wet filter cake was blended with 100 ml. of water, and the slurry pH was adjusted to 8 with 1 N NaOH solution. The resulting dispersion was stirred for 5 min. with 2.2 g. of CTAB. The solid was recovered by filtration and washed and extracted by the same procedure described in Example 8. The absorbency of the copolymer before saponification and CTAB reaction (Sample 11A) was compared to that after reaction (Sample 11B). The results are reported in Table II.
EXAMPLE 12
The procedure of Example 8 was repeated. The extent of reaction with CTAB was determined from Kjeldahl nitrogen analyses before and after the reaction. These values were 0.016% and 0.43%, respectively, indicating that 37% of the carboxyl groups in the graft copolymer had reacted.
It is understood that the foregoing detailed description is given merely by way of illustration and that modification and variations may be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.
TABLE II______________________________________ % Add- Ml. oil for 50%Example Monomer Initiator on transmittance______________________________________8A none cobalt-60 0 <<10.sup.a(control)8B acrylic acid cobalt-60 6.5 459 acrylic acid cobalt-60 3.4 6510 AASO.sub.3 H cobalt-60 4.1 4011A methyl acrylate.sup.b Ce.sup.+4 8 <<10.sup.a11B methyl acrylate.sup.c Ce.sup.+4 8 110______________________________________ .sup.a The initial 10 ml. of oil emulsion reduced the transmittance to 0.3% or less. .sup.b The graft copolymer was neither saponified nor reacted with CTAB. .sup.c The graft copolymer was saponified and then reacted with CTAB. | Ionic cellulose-containing substrates reacted with a fatty quaternary ammonium salt such as hexadecyltrimethylammonium bromide have the proper balance of hydrophilic and hydrophobic properties to absorb oil from oil-containing emulsions. Suitable ionic cellulose-containing substrates include agricultural residues, wood dust, acid-derivatized cellulose, and cellulose graft copolymers. These products are useful for cleaning up oil spills and for removing entrained oil from waste water. | Concisely explain the essential features and purpose of the concept presented in the passage. | [
"BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1.",
"Field of the Invention Considerable research has been devoted to developing oil absorbents for cleanup of oil spills and removal of emulsified oil from waste water.",
"Agricultural products and residues, such as kapok fiber, cotton, rice hulls, corn cob meal, bagasse fibers, and peat moss have been used for these applications, and these materials have the advantage of being inexpensive and readily available.",
"Moreover, cellulosic products exist in fibrous form and can be easily formed into mats, pads, and nonwoven sheets.",
"Mats and column packings for oil removal have also been prepared by mixing cellulosic fibers with synthetic fibers, e.g., polyethylene or polypropylene-polyethylene-nylon blend.",
"Cellulosics have also been mixed with inorganic materials, such as clay, magnesium hydroxide, and alumina to give oil-absorbent compositions.",
"This invention relates to enhancing the oil absorbencies of cellulosic materials by rendering them more hydrophobic;",
"that is, more lipophilic.",
"Description of the Prior Art The hydrophobicity of cellulosic materials (and thus their affinity for oil) has been increased by reaction with organic isocyanates (Holst et al.",
", German Offen.",
"2,358,808) and with fatty acid derivatives, such as anhydrides (Ball et al, U.S. Pat. No. 3,770,575) and acid chlorides (Teng et al.",
", U.S. Pat. No. 3,874,849).",
"Also, Marx et al.",
"(U.S. Patent No. 3,677,982) shows preparing an oil-absorbing cellulose-polystyrene composite by immersing a cellulose sponge into styrene-benzoyl peroxide and then heating the mixture to 100° C. Coating cellulosics with hydrophobic compounds, such as paraffin wax (Peterson et al.",
", U.S. Pat. No. 3,630,891;",
"Matsuda et al.",
", Japanese Kokai 77/76,285;",
"and Orth, German Offen.",
"2,301,176), insoluble fatty acid salts (Aoso et al.",
", Japanese Kokai 74/64,577), or low melting polymers, such as polyolefins (Kunitomo et al.",
", German Offen.",
"2,621,961;",
"and Saida et al.",
", Japanese Kokai 78/04,760) is another technique used to increase the affinity of fibers for oil;",
"some polymers (e.g., ethylene-vinyl acetate copolymer) also have been deposited onto fibers from aqueous emulsions (Sato et al.",
", Japanese Kokai 77/89,244;",
"and Sato et al.",
", Japanese Kokai 77/90,486).",
"SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION We have now discovered that cellulose-containing substrates having a suitable degree of cation exchange capacity can be modified by reaction with a fatty quaternary ammonium salt to produce products having the proper balance of hydrophilic and lipophilic properties to effectively absorb oil from oil-in-water emulsions.",
"The necessity for this hydrophilic-lipophilic balance has not been previously recognized in the prior art.",
"The unique products of this invention are prepared from cellulose-containing substrates which have been treated to render the fibers more hydrophobic, i.e., lipophilic, and to give the fibers enough ionic character so that they will swell and separate in an aqueous environment to provide maximum surface area for oil removal.",
"These products are particularly useful for cleaning up oil spills and for purifying waste water emulsions.",
"In accordance with this discovery, it is an object of the invention to provide a practical method for purifying oil-contaminated water.",
"It is also an object of the invention to prepare an oil-absorbing agent from readily available cellulose-containing source materials.",
"Another object of the invention is to produce an oil-absorbing composition by a simple, inexpensive, and commercially attractive procedure.",
"Other objects and advantages of the invention will become readily apparent from the ensuing description.",
"DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The cellulose-containing material for use in the invention can be derived from any known source, including natural lignocellulosic materials such as wood, grasses, and agricultural residues.",
"Woody substrates include sawdust and pulp from both deciduous and coniferous species.",
"Nonwoody substrates may be obtained from monocotyledenous plants, especially grassy species belonging to the family Gramineae.",
"Of primary interest are agricultural residues;",
"that is, leaf, stalk, and other portions of grain-bearing grassy plants which remain after harvesting the seed.",
"Illustrative of such residues without limitation thereto are wheat straw, oat straw, rice straw, barley straw, rye straw, buckwheat straw, flax straw, corn stalks, corn cobs, corn husks, and the like.",
"It is essential that the substrate have cationic exchange properties in order to enable reaction with the fatty quaternary ammonium salt.",
"Most of the aforementioned natural materials in the dried state inherently have sufficient exchange capacity for purposes of this invention.",
"The ionic substituents may be appended to either the cellulose backbone itself or to some other molecular entity in the substrate (e.g., hemicellulose or lignin).",
"Also envisioned for use herein are certain derivatized cellulose-containing materials having a relatively low degree of substitution (D.S.);",
"that is, a D.S. of less than about 0.1.",
"Examples of this category are carboxymethylcellulose and carboxymethylated straw.",
"Alternatively, the substrates may be derivatized with a polymeric carboxylic acid or a polymeric sulfonic acid.",
"Accordingly, graft copolymers may be formed from compounds such as acrylic acid, 2-acrylamido-2-methylpropanesulfonic acid, or methyl acrylate.",
"An amount of added acid or ester in the range of about 1-8% by weight of the final product will give a D.S. in the desired range.",
"The acid is then converted to a sodium or potassium salt by treatment with mild alkali.",
"The ester would, of course, have to be saponified prior to conversion to the quaternary ammonium salt.",
"The quaternary ammonium salt reacted with the ionic cellulose substrate is represented as follows: ##STR1## wherein R 1 , R 2 , R 3 , and R 4 are independently selected from hydrogen, straight chain or branched alkyl, alkenyl, aryl, or alkyl aryl groupings, either substituted or unsubstituted, with the proviso that at least one of the groups individually, or more than one of the groups collectively, yields a lipophilic moiety;",
"and wherein X is a labile anion.",
"Examples of quaternary ammonium salts include hexadecyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTAB), dimethyl di(hydrogenated tallow) quaternary ammonium chloride, trimethyl tallow quaternary ammonium chloride, dimethyl dicoco quaternary ammonium chloride, and monococo trimethyl quaternary ammonium chloride.",
"A sufficient amount of the quaternary ammonium salt is combined with the substrate in a reaction medium to impart the requisite lipophilicity to the substrate in accordance with the intended end use.",
"The ion exchange reaction typically will not go to completion, thereby leaving a portion of the reactive sites in the acid or alkali metal salt form.",
"The converted substrate is thereafter washed, filtered, and stored.",
"The product may optionally be dried, but storage in a damp or wet state facilitates dispersion in the aqueous emulsion at the time of use.",
"The actual oil-absorbing capacity of the instant products is, of course, a function of the number of lipophilic groups on the polymer.",
"The polymer, however, must also be sufficiently hydrophilic to permit separation and limited swelling of individual fibers.",
"This hydrophilicity is attributed to the ionic nature of the final product and the limited D.S. If the D.S. is excessive, swelling is inhibited and the lipophilic groups are inaccessible to the oil.",
"The following examples are intended only to further illustrate the invention and are not intended to limit the scope of the invention which is defined by the claims.",
"EXAMPLE 1 Ten grams (dry weight basis) of wheat straw which had been ground through a Wiley mill with a 2-mm.",
"screen and washed with water was combined with 56 ml.",
"of 0.24 N sodium hydroxide and then held for 2 hours in an oven at 100° C. The reaction mass was diluted with 250 ml.",
"of water and stirred in a Waring blender at high speed for 2 min.",
"The solid was separated by filtration, washed with water, and stored as a moist solid.",
"A portion of this material was tested as a control for oil absorbency.",
"Twenty grams of this solid (4.1 g., dry weight basis) was stirred at room temperature for 2 hours with a solution of 2.5 g. of CTAB in 50 ml.",
"of water.",
"The product was thereafter recovered by filtration, washed with water, and with a 50:50 ethanol:water mixture.",
"The final traces of unreacted CTAB were removed by continuous Soxhlet extraction for 24 hours with 95% ethanol.",
"The product was then washed thoroughly with water and stored as a moist solid.",
"The absorbencies of both the control material and the CTAB-reacted product were measured as follows: An emulsion was prepared by adding 200 ml.",
"of water, 20 drops (0.5-0.6 g.) of mineral oil, and 0.1 g. of dodecylbenzene sodium sulfonate to a Waring blender and stirring at high speed for 2 min.",
"Ten milliliters of oil emulsion and 0.50 g. (dry basis) of test material were placed in a 2-oz.",
"screw-cap bottle and shaken periodically for 5 min.",
"Supernatant was separated from fibrous solid by screening through a small Buchner funnel containing no filter paper.",
"Percent transmission of the supernatant (% T) at 650 nm.",
"was then determined in a 1-cm.",
"ultraviolet cell.",
"Supernatant from the ultraviolet cell was returned to the bottle, and an additional 5 ml.",
"of oil emulsion was added.",
"The mixture was shaken, and % T was again determined.",
"This procedure was repeated with 5-ml.",
"increments of emulsion until % T dropped to about 10 or less.",
"The % T of the supernatant was plotted against the total volume of oil emulsion added to the solid.",
"The volume of emulsion which would yield 50% T was then determined from the plot and reported in Table I, below.",
"EXAMPLE 2 The procedure of Example 1 was repeated except that the NaOH treatment was conducted at room temperature (25° C.) for 1 hour.",
"The results are reported in Table I. EXAMPLES 3-4 The procedures of Examples 1 and 2 were repeated except that water was substituted for the NaOH treatment, and in Example 4 the water treatment was continued for 64 hours.",
"The results are reported in Table I. EXAMPLES 5-6 The procedure of Example 1 was repeated except that oak and pine sawdust were substituted for the wheat straw.",
"The results are reported in Table I. EXAMPLE 7 Carboxymethylcellulose (14.7 g.;",
"4.0 g. dry weight basis) having a D.S. of 0.028 was blended in 200 ml.",
"of water, and the pH was adjusted to 9 with 1 N NaOH.",
"Into the mixture was blended 4.0 g. of CTAB, and blending was continued for 5 min.",
"The product was recovered by filtration, washed three times with a 50:50 ethanol:water mixture, and then washed three times with water.",
"The final traces of unreacted CTAB were removed by continuous Soxhlet extraction overnight with 95% ethanol.",
"The product was then washed thoroughly with water and stored as a moist solid.",
"The absorbency was determined by the procedure described in Example 1.",
"Approximately 88 ml.",
"of oil emulsion were absorbed before the transmittance dropped to 50%.",
"EXAMPLE 8 Thirty grams (dry weight basis) of bleached softwood pulp (85.8% α-cellulose, 0.06% lignin, 13.6% pentosans) was dispersed in water, filtered, and pressed as dry as possible.",
"A solution of 20.0 g. of acrylic acid in 120 ml.",
"of water was mixed with the pulp, and excess liquid was again removed by filtration.",
"The wet pulp, now containing about 6 g. of monomer, was transferred to an 8-oz.",
"screw-cap bottle, and oxygen was displaced by evacuating four times to about 50 mm.",
"followed by repressuring with nitrogen.",
"The reaction mass was then irradiated with cobalt-60 to 0.5 Mrad and allowed to stand for 2 hours at ambient temperature.",
"The graft copolymer was washed several times with water and stored as a wet filter cake.",
"TABLE I__________________________________________________________________________ Treatment Time Ml.",
"oil for 50%Example Substrate Washed Reagent Temp.",
"(°C.) (hr.) transmittance__________________________________________________________________________Control (no CTAB) wheat straw + NaOH.",
"sup.",
"a 100 2 <<10.",
"sup.",
"b1 wheat straw + NaOH.",
"sup.",
"a 100 2 482 wheat straw + NaOH.",
"sup.",
"a 25 1 383 wheat straw + water 100 2 254 wheat straw + water 25 64 235 oak sawdust - NaOH.",
"sup.",
"a 100 2 466 pine sawdust - NaOH.",
"sup.",
"a 100 2 25__________________________________________________________________________ .",
"sup.",
"a 0.24 .",
"sub.",
"-- N NaOH solution.",
"sup.",
"b The initial 10 ml.",
"of oil emulsion reduced the transmittance to about 0.2%.",
"Weight percent poly(acrylic acid) in the graft copolymer (% add-on) was determined by dispersing 1 g. (dry weight basis) of polymer in 150 ml.",
"of 1 N NaCl solution and then titrating with 0.1 N NaOH solution to a phenolphthalein end point.",
"Five grams (dry weight basis) of softwood pulp-g-poly(acrylic acid) was suspended in 200 ml.",
"of water in a Waring blender, and the pH was adjusted to 8 with 1 N sodium hydroxide in order to convert the acidic graft copolymer to its sodium salt.",
"Five grams of CTAB were added, and the mixture was stirred for 5 min.",
"The product was separated by filtration and washed three times with 50:50 ethanol/water and three times with water.",
"The polymer was then continuously extracted (Soxhlet) for 2 days with 95% ethanol.",
"The extracted polymer (Sample 8B) was washed with water and stored as the wet filter cake.",
"Its ability to absorb emulsified oil was determined by the procedure described in Example 1.",
"As a basis for comparison, a control (Sample 8A) was also run in which no acrylic acid was grafted onto the pulp.",
"The results are reported in Table II.",
"EXAMPLE 9 The procedure of Example 8 was repeated except that half the amount of acrylic acid was used, and the percent add-on obtained was 3.4.",
"The results are reported in Table II.",
"EXAMPLE 10 The procedure of Example 8 was repeated except that 2-acrylamido-2-methylpropanesulfonic acid (AASO 3 H) was substituted for the acrylic acid.",
"The results are given in Table II.",
"EXAMPLE 11 A stirred slurry of 75.0 g. (dry weight basis) of the softwood pulp used in Examples 8-10 in 3 l. of water was sparged with a slow stream of nitrogen for 1 hour at 25° C. Ten grams of methyl acrylate were added, followed after 5 min.",
"by a solution of 5.0 g. ceric ammonium nitrate in 45 ml.",
"1 N nitric acid.",
"The mixture was stirred for 2 hours at 25° C.;",
"the polymer was then removed by filtration and resuspended in water, and pH was adjusted to 7 with sodium hydroxide solution.",
"The graft copolymer was washed with water, and the wet filter cake was extracted several times with acetone to remove 1-2 g. of homopolymer.",
"Extracted copolymer was then freed of acetone by water washing and stored as a wet filter cake.",
"A portion of the material was used to determine the percent add-on.",
"Softwood pulp-g-poly(methyl acrylate) was converted to softwood pulp-g-poly(Na acrylate) by thoroughly mixing 6.0 g. (dry weight basis) of graft copolymer with 10 ml.",
"of 1 N sodium hydroxide and 10 ml.",
"of water.",
"The resulting mixture was heated in a loosely stoppered flask in a 100° C. oven for 6 hours.",
"The saponified polymer was washed with water until the slurry pH was 8.9, and was then stored as the wet filter cake.",
"A portion of the graft copolymer was converted to carboxylic acid by stirring with 0.5 N HCl, filtering, and washing with water until the slurry pH was 5.4.",
"Titration showed 5.4% poly(acrylic acid).",
"Eight grams (2.1 dry weight basis) of the wet filter cake was blended with 100 ml.",
"of water, and the slurry pH was adjusted to 8 with 1 N NaOH solution.",
"The resulting dispersion was stirred for 5 min.",
"with 2.2 g. of CTAB.",
"The solid was recovered by filtration and washed and extracted by the same procedure described in Example 8.",
"The absorbency of the copolymer before saponification and CTAB reaction (Sample 11A) was compared to that after reaction (Sample 11B).",
"The results are reported in Table II.",
"EXAMPLE 12 The procedure of Example 8 was repeated.",
"The extent of reaction with CTAB was determined from Kjeldahl nitrogen analyses before and after the reaction.",
"These values were 0.016% and 0.43%, respectively, indicating that 37% of the carboxyl groups in the graft copolymer had reacted.",
"It is understood that the foregoing detailed description is given merely by way of illustration and that modification and variations may be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.",
"TABLE II______________________________________ % Add- Ml.",
"oil for 50%Example Monomer Initiator on transmittance______________________________________8A none cobalt-60 0 <<10.",
"sup.",
"a(control)8B acrylic acid cobalt-60 6.5 459 acrylic acid cobalt-60 3.4 6510 AASO.",
"sub[.",
"].3 H cobalt-60 4.1 4011A methyl acrylate.",
"sup.",
"b Ce.",
"sup.",
"+4 8 <<10.",
"sup.",
"a11B methyl acrylate.",
"sup.",
"c Ce.",
"sup.",
"+4 8 110______________________________________ .",
"sup.",
"a The initial 10 ml.",
"of oil emulsion reduced the transmittance to 0.3% or less.",
"sup.",
"b The graft copolymer was neither saponified nor reacted with CTAB.",
"sup.",
"c The graft copolymer was saponified and then reacted with CTAB."
] |
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
This application is a § 371 national stage filing based on PCT/AU97/00492, filed Aug. 1, 1997, which claims priority through provisional application No. 60/024,279, filed Aug. 21, 1996 and Australian application PO 1402, filed Aug. 2, 1996.
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to nucleic acids which encode glycosyltransferase and are useful in producing cells and organs from one species which may be used for transplantation into a recipient of another species. Specifically the invention concerns production of nucleic acids which, when present in cells of a transplanted organ, result in reduced levels of antibody recognition of the transplanted organ.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The transplantation of organs is now practicable, due to major advances in surgical and other techniques. However, availability of suitable human organs for transplantation is a significant problem. Demand outstrips supply. This has caused researchers to investigate the possibility of using non-human organs for transplantation.
Xenotransplantation is the transplantation of organs from one species to a recipient of a different species. Rejection of the transplant in such cases is a particular problem, especially where the donor species is more distantly related, such as donor organs from pigs and sheep to human recipients. Vascular organs present a special difficulty because of hyperacute rejection (HAR).
HAR occurs when the complement cascade in the recipient is initiated by binding of antibodies to donor endothelial cells.
Previous attempts to prevent HAR have focused on two strategies: modifying the immune system of the host by inhibition of systemic complement formation (1,2), and antibody depletion (3,4). Both strategies have been shown to prolong xenograft survival temporarily. However, these methodologies are therapeutically unattractive in that they are clinically impractical, and would require chronic immunosuppressive treatments. Therefore, recent efforts to inhibit HAR have focused on genetically modifying the donor xenograft. One such strategy has been to achieve high-level expression of species-restricted human complement inhibitory proteins in vascularized pig organs via transgenic engineering (5-7). This strategy has proven to be useful in that it has resulted in the prolonged survival of porcine tissues following antibody and serum challenge (5,6). Although increased survival of the transgenic tissues was observed, long-term graft survival was not achieved (6). As observed in these experiments and also with systemic complement depletion, organ failure appears to be related to an acute antibody-dependent vasculitis (1,5).
In addition to strategies aimed at blocking complement activation on the vascular endothelial cell surface of the xenograft, recent attention has focused on identification of the predominant xenogeneic epitope recognised by high-titre human natural antibodies. It is now accepted that the terminal galactosyl residue, Gal-α(1,3)-Gal, is the dominant xenogeneic epitope (8-15). This epitope is absent in Old World primates and humans because the α(1,3)-galactosyltransferase (gal-transferase or GT) is non-functional in these species. DNA sequence comparison of the human gene to α(1,3)-galactosyltransferase genes from the mouse (16,17), ox (18), and pig (12) revealed that the human gene contained two frameshift mutations, resulting in a nonfunctional pseudogene (20,21). Consequently, humans and Old World primates have pre-existing high-titre antibodies directed at this Gal-α(1,3)-Gal moiety as the dominant xenogeneic epitope.
One strategy developed was effective to stably reduce the expression of the predominant Gal-α(1,3)-Gal epitope. This strategy took advantage of an intracellular competition between the gal-transferase and α(1,2)-fucosyltransferase (H-transferase) for a common acceptor substrate. The gal-transferase catalyzes the transfer of a terminal galactose moiety to an N-acetyl lactosamine acceptor substrate, resulting in the formation of the terminal Gal-α(1,3)-Gal epitope. Conversely, H-transferase catalyzes the transfer of a fucosyl residue to the N-acetyl lactosamine acceptor substrate, and generates a fucosylated N-acetyl lactosamine (H-antigen, i.e., the O blood group antigen), a glycosidic structure that is universally tolerated. Although it was reported that expression of human H-transferase transfected cells resulted in high level expression of the non-antigenic H-epitope and significantly reduced the expression of the Gal-α(1,3)-Gal xenoepitope, there are still significant levels of Gal-α(1,3)-Gal epitope present on such cells.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
In view of the foregoing, it is an object of the present invention to further reduce levels of undesirable epitopes in cells, tissues and organs which may be used in transplantation.
In work leading up to the invention the inventors surprisingly discovered that the activity of H transferase may be further increased by making a nucleic acid which encodes a H transferase catalytic domain but is anchored in the cell at a location where it is better able to compete for substrate with gal transferase. Although work by the inventors focused on a chimeric H transferase, other glycosyltransferase enzymes may also be produced in accordance with the invention.
Accordingly, in a first aspect the invention provides a nucleic acid encoding a chimeric enzyme, wherein said chimeric enzyme comprises a catalytic domain of a first glycosyltransferase and a localization signal of a second glycosyltransferase, whereby when said nucleic acid is expressed in a cell said chimeric enzyme is located in an area of the cell where it is able to compete for substrate with a second glycosyltransferase, resulting in reduced levels of a product from said second glycosyltransferase.
Preferably the nucleic acid is in an isolated form; that is the nucleic acid is at least partly purified from other nucleic acids or proteins.
Preferably the nucleic acid comprises the correct sequences for expression, more preferably for expression in a eukaryotic cell. The nucleic acid may be present on any suitable eukaryotic expression vector such as pcDNA (Invitrogen). The nucleic acid may also be present or other vehicles whether suitable for eukaryotes or not, such as plasmids, phages and the like.
Preferably the catalytic domain of the first glycosyltransferase is derived from H transferase, secretor sialyltransferase, a galactosyl sulphating enzyme or a phosphorylating enzyme.
The nucleic acid sequence encoding the catalytic domain may be derived from, or similar to a glycosyltransferase from an species. Preferably said species is a species such as human or other primate species, including Old World monkeys, or other mammals such as ungulates (for example pigs, sheep, goats, cows, horses, deer, camels) or dogs, mice, rats and rabbits. The term “similar to” means that the nucleic acid is at least partly homologous to the glycosyltransferase genes described above. The term also extends to fragments of and mutants, variants and derivatives of the catalytic domain whether naturally occurring or man made.
Preferably the localization signal is derived from a glycosyltransferase which produces glycosylation patterns which are recognised as foreign by a transplant recipient. More preferably the localization signal is derived from α(1,3) galactosyltransferase. The effect of this is to downregulate the level of Gal-α(1,3)-Gal produced in a cell when the nucleic acid is expressed by the cell.
The nucleic acid sequence encoding the localization signal may be derived from any species such as those described above. Preferably it is derived from the same species as the cell which the nucleic acid is intended to transform i.e., if pig cells are to be transformed, preferably the localization signal is derived from pig.
More preferably the nucleic acid comprises a nucleic acid sequence encoding the catalytic domain of H transferase and a nucleic acid sequence encoding a localization signal from Gal transferase. Still more preferably both nucleic acid sequences are derived from pigs. Even more preferably the nucleic acid encodes gtHT described herein.
The term “nucleic acid” refers to any nucleic acid comprising natural or synthetic purines and pyrimidines. The nucleic acid may be DNA or RNA, single or double stranded or covalently closed circular.
The term “catalytic domain” of the chimeric enzyme refers to the amino acid sequences necessary for the enzyme to function catalytically. This comprises one or more contiguous or non-contiguous amino acid sequences. Other non-catalytically active portions also may be included in the chimeric enzyme.
The term “glycosyltransferase” refers to a polypeptide with an ability to move carbohydrates from one molecule to another.
The term “derived from” means that the catalytic domain is based on, or is similar, to that of a native enzyme. The nucleic acid sequence encoding the catalytic domain is not necessarily directly derived from the native gene. The nucleic acid sequence may be made by polymerase chain reaction (PCR), constructed de novo or cloned.
The term “localization signal” refers to the amino acid sequence of a glycosyltransferase which is responsible for anchoring it in location within the cell. Generally localization signals comprise amino terminal “tails” of the enzyme. The localization signals are derived from a second glycosyltransferase, the activity of which it is desired to minimise. The localization of a catalytic domain of a first enzyme in the same area as the second glycosyltransferase means that the substrate reaching that area is likely to be acted or by the catalytic domain of the first enzyme, enabling the amount of substrate catalysed by the second enzyme to be reduced.
The term “area of the cell” refers to a region, compartment or organelle of the cell. Preferably the area of the cell is a secretory organelle such as the Golgi apparatus.
In another aspect the invention provides an isolated nucleic acid molecule encoding a localization signal of a glycosyltransferase. Preferably the signal encoded comprises an amino terminus of said molecule; more preferably it is the amino terminus of gal transferase. The gal transferase may be described from or based on a gal transferase from any mammalian species, such as those described above. Particularly preferred sequences are those derived from pig, mouse or cattle.
In another aspect the invention relates to a method of producing a nucleic acid encoding a chimeric enzyme said enzyme comprising a catalytic domain of a first glycosyltransferase and a localization signal of a second glycosyltransferase whereby when said nucleic acid is expressed in a cell said chimeric enzyme is located in an area of the cell where it is able to compete for substrate with a second glycosyltransferase said method comprising operably linking a nucleic acid sequence encoding a catalytic domain from a first glycosyltransferase to a nucleic acid sequence encoding a localization signal of a second glycosyltransferase.
The term “operably linking” means that the nucleic acid sequences are ligated such that a functional protein is able to be transcribed and translated.
Those skilled in the art will be aware of various techniques for producing the nucleic acid. Standard techniques such as those described in Sambrook et al may be employed.
Preferably the nucleic acid sequences are the preferred sequences described above.
In another aspect the invention provides a method of reducing the level of a carbohydrate exhibited on the surface of a cell, said method comprising causing a nucleic acid to be expressed in said cell wherein said nucleic acid encodes a chimeric enzyme which comprises a catalytic domain of a first glycosyltransferase and a localization signal of a second glycosyltransferase, whereby said chimeric enzyme is located in an area of the cell where it is able to compete for substrate with said second glycosyltransferase, and wherein said second glycosyltransferase is capable of producing said carbohydrate.
The term “reducing the level of a carbohydrate” refers to lowering, minimising, or in some cases, ablating the amount of carbohydrate displayed on the surface of the cell. Preferably said carbohydrate is capable of stimulating recognition of the cell as “non-self” by the immune system of an animal. The reduction of such a carbohydrate therefore renders the cell, or an organ composed of said cells, more acceptable to the immune system of a recipient animal in a transplant situation or gene therapy situation.
The term “causing a nucleic acid to be expressed” means that the nucleic acid is introduced into the cell (i.e. by transformation/transfection or other suitable means) and contains appropriate signals to allow expression in the cells.
The cell may be any suitable cell, preferably mammalian, such as that of a New World monkey, ungulate (pig, sheep, goat, cow, horse, deer, camel, etc.) or other species such as dogs.
In another aspect the invention provides a method of producing a cell from one species (the donor) which is immunologically acceptable to another species (the recipient) by reducing levels of carbohydrate on said cell which cause it to be recognised as non-self by the other species, said method comprising causing a nucleic acid to be expressed in said cell wherein and nucleic acid encodes a chimeric which comprises a catalytic domain of a first glycosyltransferase and a localization signal of a second glycosyltransferase, whereby said chimeric enzyme is located in an area of the cell where it is able to compete for substrate with said second glycosyltransferase, and wherein said second glycosyltransferase is capable of producing said carbohydrate.
The term “immunologically acceptable” refers to producing a cell, or an organ made up of numbers of the cell, which does not cause the same degree of immunological reaction in the recipient species as a native cell from the donor species. Thus the cell may cause a lessened immunological reaction, only requiring low levels of immunosuppressive therapy to maintain such a transplanted organ or no immunosuppression therapy.
The cell may be from any of the species mentioned above. Preferably the cell is from a New World primate or a pig. More preferably the cell is from a pig.
The invention extends to cells produced by the above method and also to organs comprising the cells.
The invention further extends to non-human transgenic animals harbouring the nucleic acid of the invention. Preferably the species is a human, ape or Old World monkey.
The invention also extends to the proteins produced by the nucleic acid. Preferably the proteins are in an isolated form.
In another aspect the invention provides an expression unit which expresses the nucleic acid of the invention, resulting in a cell which is immunologically acceptable to an animal having reduced levels of a carbohydrate on its surface, which carbohydrate is recognized as non-self by said species. In a preferred embodiment, the expression unit is a retroviral packaging cell, cassette, a retroviral construct or retroviral producer cell.
Preferably the species is a human, ape or Old World monkey.
The retroviral packaging cells or retroviral producer cells may be cells of any animal origin where it is desired to reduce the level of carbohydrates on its surface to make it more immunologically acceptable to a host. Such cells may be derived from mammals such as canine, rodent or ruminant species and the like.
The retroviral packaging and/or producer cells may be used in applications such as gene therapy. General methods involving use of such cells are described in PCT/US95/07554 and the references discussed therein.
The invention also extends to a method of producing a retroviral packaging cell or a retroviral producer cell having reduced levels of a carbohydrate on its surface wherein the carbohydrate is recognised as non-self by a species, comprising transforming/transfecting a retroviral packaging cell or a retroviral producer cell with the nucleic acid of the invention under conditions such that the chimeric enzyme is produced.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG. 1 Schematic diagram of normal and chimeric glycosyltransferases
The diagram shows normal glycosyltransferases porcine α(1,3)galactosyltransferase (GT) and human α(1,2)fucosyltransferase (HT), and chimeric transferases ht-GT in which the cytoplasmic domain of GT has been completely replaced by the cytoplasmic domain of HT, and gt-HT in which the cytoplasmic domain of HT has been entirely replaced by the cytoplasmic domain of GT. The protein domains depicted are cytoplasmic domain CYTO, transmembrane domain TM, stem region STEM, catalytic domain CATALYTIC. The numbers refer to the amino acid sequence of the corresponding normal transferase.
FIG. 2 Cell surface staining of COS cells transfected with normal and chimeric transferases
Cells were transfected with normal GT or HT or with chimeric transferases gt-HT or ht-GT and 48 h later were stained with FITC-labelled lectin IB4 or UEAI. Positive-staining cells were visualized and counted by fluorescence microscopy. Results are from at least three replicates and values are+/−SEM.
FIG. 3 . RNA analysis of transfected COS cells
Northern blots were performed on total RNA prepared from COS cells transfected: Mock, mock-transfected; GT, transfected with wild-type GT; GT1-6/HT, transfected with chimeric transferase gt-HT; GT1-6/HT+HT1-8/GT, co-transfected with both chimeric transferases gt-HT and ht-GT; HT1-8/GT, transfected with chimeric transferase ht-GT; HT, transfected with normal HT; GT+HT co-transfected with both normal transferases GT and HT. Blots were probed with a cDNA encoding GT (Top panel), HT (Middle panel) or g-actin (Bottom panel).
FIG. 4 . Enzyme kinetics of normal and chimeric glycosyltransferases
Lineweaver-Burk plots for α(1,3) galactosyltransferase (□) and α(1,2)fucosyltransferase (▪) to determine the apparent values for N-acetyl lactosamine. Experiments are performed in triplicate, plots shown are of mean values of enzyme activity of wild-type transferases, GT and HT, and chimeric proteins ht-GT and gt-HT in transfected COS cell extracts using phenyl-B-D Gal and N-acetyl lactosamine as acceptor substrates.
FIG. 5 . Staining of cells co-transfected with chimeric transferases
Cells were co-transfected with cDNAs encoding normal transferases GT+HT (panels A, B), with chimeric transferases gt-HT+ht-GT (panels C, D), with HT+ht-GT (panels E, F) or with GT+gt-HT (panels G, H) and 48 h later were stained with FITC-labelled lectin IB4 (panels A, C, E, G) or UEAI (panels B, D, F, H).
FIG. 6 (SEQ ID No. 1) is a representation of the nucleic acid sequence and corresponding amino acid sequence of pig secretor.
FIG. 7 (SEQ ID No. 3) is a representation of the nucleic acid sequence and corresponding amino acid sequence of pig H.
FIG. 8 Cell surface staining of pig endothelial cell line (PIEC) transfected with chimeric α(1,2)-fucosyltransferase. Cells were transfected and clones exhibiting stable integration were stained with UFEAI lectin and visualised by fluorescence microscopy.
FIG. 9 Screening of chimeric α(1,2)-fucosyltransferase transferase in mice. Mice were injected with chimeric α(1,2)-fucosyltransferase and the presence of the transferase was analysed by dot blots.
DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
The nucleic acid sequences encoding the catalytic domain of a glycosyltransferase may be any nucleic acid sequence such as those described in PCT/US95/07554, which is herein incorporated by reference, provided that it encodes a functional catalytic domain with the desired glycosyltransferase activity.
Preferred catalytic domains from glycosyltransferase include H transferase and secretor. Preferably these are based on human or porcine sequences.
The nucleic acid sequences encoding the localization signal of a second transglycosylase may be any nucleic acid sequence encoding a signal sequence such as signal sequences disclosed in P A Gleeson, R D Teasdale & J Bourke, Targeting of proteins to the Golgi apparatus. Glyconjugate J. (1994) 11: 381-394. Preferably the localization sis is specific for the Golgi apparatus, more preferably for that of the true Golgi. Still more preferably the localization signal is based on that of Gal transferase. Even more preferably the localization signal is based on porcine, murine or bovine sequences. Even more preferably the nucleic acid encodes a signal sequence with following amino acid sequence (in single letter code): MNVKGR (porcine) (SEQ ID NO. 11), MNVKGK (mouse) (SEQ ID NO. 12) or MVVKGK (bovine) (SEQ ID NO. 13).
Vectors for expression of the chimeric enzyme may be any suitable rector, including those disclosed in PCT/US95/07554.
The nucleic acid of the invention can be used to produce cells and organs with the desired glycosylation pattern by standard techniques, such as those disclosed in PCT/US95/07554. For example, embryos may be transfected by standard techniques such as microinjection of the nucleic acid in a linear form into the embryo (22). The embryos are then used to produce live animals, the organs of which may be subsequently used as donor organs for implantation.
Cells, tissues and organs suitable for use in the invention will generally be mammalian cells. Examples of suitable cells and tissues such as endothelial cells, hepatic cells, pancreatic cells and the like are provided in PCT/US95/07554.
The invention will now be described with reference to the following non-limiting Examples.
Abbreviations
The abbreviations used are bp, base pair(s); FITC, fluorescein isothiocyanate; GT, galactosyltransferase; H substance, α(1,2)fucosyl lactosamine; HT, α(1,2)fucosyltransferase; PCR, polymerase chain reaction;
Example 1 Cytoplasmic domains of glycosyltransferases play a central role in the temporal action of enzymes
Experimental Procedures
EXAMPLE 1
Plasmids—The plasmids used were prepared using standard techniques (7); pGT encodes the cDNA for the porcine α(1,3)galactosyltransferase (23), pHT encodes the cDNA for the α(1,2)fucosyltransferase (human) (25). Chimeric glycosyltransferase cDNAs were generated by polymerase chain reaction as follows: an 1105 bp product ht-GT was generated using primers corresponding to the 5′ end of ht-GT (5′-GC GGATCC ATGTGGCTCCGGAGCC ATCGTCAGGTGGTTCTGTCAATGC TGCTTG-3′) (SEQ ID NO. 5) coding for nucleotides 1-24 of HT (25) followed immediately by nucleotides 68-89 of GT (8) and containing a BamH1 site (underlined) and a primer corresponding to the 3′ end of ht-GT (5′-GC TCTAGA GCGTCAGATGTTATT TCTAACCAAATTATAC-3′) (SEQ ID NO. 6) containing complementarity to nucleotides 1102-1127 of GT with an Xbal site downstream of the translational stop site (underlined); an 1110 bp product gt-HT was generated using primers corresponding to the 5′ end of gt-HT (5′-GC GGATCC ATGAATGTCAAAGGAAGACTCTGCCTGGCCT TCCTGC-3′) (SEQ ID NO. 7) coding for nucleotides 49-67 of GT followed immediately by fnucleotides 25-43 of HT and containing a BamH1 site (underlined) and a primer corresponding to the 3′ end of gt-HT (5′-GC TCTAGA GCCTCAAGGCTTAG CCAATGTCCAGAG-3′) (SEQ ID NO. 8) containing complementarity to nucleotides 1075-1099 of HT with a Xba1 site downstream of the translational stop site (underlined). PCR products were restricted BamH1/Xba1, gel-purified and ligated into a BamH1/Xba1 digested pcDNA1 expression vector (Invitrogen) and resulted in two plasmids pht-GT (encoding the chimeric glycosyltransferase ht-GT) and pgt-HT (encoding the chimeric glycosyltransferase gt-HT) which were characterized by restriction mapping, Southern blotting and DNA sequencing.
Transfection and Serology—COS cells were maintained in Dubecco's modified Eagles Medium (DMEM) (Trace Biosciences Pty. Ltd. , Castle Hill, NSW, Australia) and were transfected (1-10 μg DNA/5×105 cells) using DEAE-Dextrau (26); 48 h later cells were examined for cell surface expression of H substance or Gal-α(1,3)-Gal using FITC-conjugated lectins: IB4 lectin isolated from Griffonia simplicifolia (Sigma, St. Louis, Mo.) detects Gal-α(1,3)-Gal (27); UEAI lectin isolated from Ulex europaeus (Sigma, St. Louis, Mo.) detects H substance (28). H substance was also detected by indirect immunofluorescence using a monoclonal antibody (mAb) specific for the H substance (ASH-1952) developed at the Austin Research Institute, using FITC-conjugated goat anti-mouse IgG (Zymed Laboratories, San Francisco, Calif.) to detect mAb binding. Fluorescence was detected by microscopy.
RNA Analyses—Cytoplasmic RNA was prepared from transfected COS cells using RNAzol (Biotecx Laboratories, Houston, Tex.), and total RNA was electrophoresed in a 1% agarose gel containing formaldehyde, the gel blotted onto a nylon membrane and probed with random primed GT or HT cDNA.
Glycosyltransferase assays—Forty-eight hours after transfection, cells were washed twice with phosphate buffered saline and lysed in 1% Triton X-100/100 mM cacodylate pH 6.5/25 mM MnCl2, at 4° C. for 30 min; lysates were centrifuged and the supernatant collected and stored at −70° C. Protein concentration was determined by the Bradford method using bovine serum allumin as standard (29). Assays for HT activity (30) were performed in 25 μl containing 3 mM [GDP- 14 C]fucose (specific activity 287 mCi/mmol, Amersham International), 5 mM ATP, 50 mM MPS pH 6.5, 20 mM MnCl2, using 2-10 μl of cell extract (approximately 15-20μg of protein) and a range of concentrations (7.5-75 mM) of the acceptor phenyl-B-D-galactoside (Sigma). Samples were incubated for 2 h at 37° C. and reactions terminated by the addition of ethanol and water. The amount of 14 C-fucose incorporated was counted after separation from unincorporated label using Sep-Pak C18 cartridges (Waters-Millipore, Millford, Mass.). GT assays (31) were performed in a volume of 25 μl using 3 mM UDP[ 3 H]-Gal (specific activity 189 mCi/mmol, Amersham International), 5 mM ATP, 100 mM cacodylate pH 6.5, 20 mM MnCl 2 and various concentrations (1-10 mM) of the acceptor N-acetyl lactosamine (Sigma). Samples were incubated for 2 h at 37° C. and the reactions terminated by the addition of ethanol and water. 3 H-Gal incorporation was counted after separation from non-incorporated UDP[ 3 H]-Gal using Dowex I anion exchange columns (BDH Ltd., Poole, UK) or Sep-Pak Accell plus QMA anion exchange cartridges (Waters-Millipore, Millford, Mass.). All assays were performed in duplicate and additional reactions were performed in the absence of added acceptor molecules, to allow for the calculation of specific incorporation of radioactivity.
Results
Expression of chimeric α(1,3)galactasyltransferase and α(1,2)fucosultransferase cDNAs
We had previously shown that when cDNAs encoding α(1,3)galactosyltransferase (GT) and α(1,2)fucosyltransferase (HT) were transfected separately they could both function efficiently leading to expression of the appropriate carbohydrates: Gal-α(1,3)-Gal for GT and H substance for HT (32). However when the cDNAs for GT and HT were transfected together, the HT appeared to “dominate” over the GT in that H substance expression was normal, but Gal-α(1,3)-Gal was reduced. We excluded trivial reasons for this effect and considered that the localization of the enzymes may be the reason. Thus, if the HT localization signal placed the enzyme in an earlier temporal compartment than GT, it would have “first use” of the N-acetyl lactosamine substrate. However, such a “first use” if it occurred, was not sufficient to adequately reduce GT. Two chimeric glycosyltransferases were constructed using PCR wherein the cytoplasmic tails of GT and RT were switched. The two chimeras constructed are shown in FIG. 1 : ht-GT which consisted of the NH 2 terminal cytoplasmic tail of HT attached to the transmembrane, stem and catalytic domain of GT; and gt-HT which consisted of the NH 2 terminal cytoplasmic tail of GT attached to the transmembrane, stem and catalytic domains of HT. The chimeric cDNAs were subcloned into the eukaryotic expression vector pcDNAI and used in transfection experiments.
The chimeric cDNAs encoding ht-GT and gt-HT were initially evaluated for their ability to induce glycosyltransferase expression in COS cells, as measured by the surface expression of the appropriate sugar using lectins. Forty-eight hours after transfection COS cells were tested by immunofluorescence for their expression of Gal-α(1,3)-Gal or H substance (Table 1 & FIG. 2 ). The staining with IB4 (lectin specific for Gal-α(1,3)-Gal) in cells expressing the chimera ht-GT (30% of cells stained positive) was indistinguishable from that of the normal GT staining (30%) (Table 1 & FIG. 2 ). Similarly the intense cell surface fluorescence seen with UEAI staining (the lectin specific for H substance) in cells each expressing gt-HT (50%) was similar to that seen in cells expressing wild-type pHT (50%) (Table 1 & FIG. 2 ). Furthermore, similar levels of mRNA expression of the glycosyltransferases GT and HT and chimeric glycosyltransferases ht-GT and gt-HT were seen in Northern blots of total RNA isolated from transfected cells (FIG. 3 ). Thus both chimeric glycosyltransferases are efficiently expressed in COS cells and are functional indeed there was no detectable difference between the chimeric and normal glycosyltransferases.
Glycosyltransferase activity in cells transfected with chimeric cDNAs encoding ht-GT and gt-HT
To determine whether switching the cytoplasmic tails of GT and HT altered the kinetics of enzyme function, we compared the enzymatic activity of the chimeric glycosyltransferases with those of the normal enzymes in COS cells after transfection of the relevant cDNAs. By making extracts from transfected COS cells and performing GT or HT enzyme assays we found that N-acetyl lactosamine was galactosylated by both GT and the chimeric enzyme ht-GT (FIG. 4 . panel A) over a the 1-5 mM range of substrate concentrations. Lineweaver-Burk plots showed that both GT and ht-GT have a similar apparent Michealis-Menten constant of Km 2.6 mM for N-acetyl lactosamine (FIG. 4 . panel B). Further HT, and the chimeric enzyme gt-HT were both able to fucosylate phenyl-B-D-galactoside over a range of concentrations (7.5-25 mM) ( FIG. 4 panel C) with a similar Km of 2.3 mM ( FIG. 4 panel D), in agreement with the reported Km of 2.4 mM for HT (25). Therefore the chimeric glycosyltransferases ht-GT and gt-HT are able to utilize N-acetyl lactosamine (ht-GT) and phenyl-B-D-galactoside (gt-HT) in the same way as the normal glycosyltransferases, thus switching the cytoplasmic domains of GT and HT does not alter the function of these glycosyltransferases and if indeed the cytoplasmic tail is the localization signal then both enzymes function as well with the GT signal as with the HT signal.
Switching Cytoplasmic Domains of GT and HT Results in a Reversal of the “Dominance” of the Glycosyltransferases
The cDNAs encoding the chimeric transferases or normal transferases were simultaneously co-transfected into COS cells and after 48 h the cells were stained with either IB4 or UEA1 lectin to detect Gal-α(1,3)-Gal and H substance respectively on the cell surface (Table 1 & FIG. 5 ). COS cells co-transfected with cDNAs for ht-GT+gt-HT ( FIG. 5 panel C) showed 30% cells staining positive with IB4 (Table 1) but no staining on cells co-transfected with cDNAs for GT+HT (3%) ( FIG. 5 panel A). Furthermore staining for H substance on the surface of ht-GT+gt-H co-transfectants gave very few cells staining positive (5%) ( FIG. 5 panel D) compared to the staining seen in cells co-transfected with cDNAs for the normal transferases GT+HT (50%) ( FIG. 5 panel B), ie. the expression of Gal-α(1,3)-Gal now dominates over that of H. Clearly, switching the cytoplasmic tails of GT and HT led to a complete reversal in the glycosylation pattern seen with the normal transferases i.e. the cytoplasmic tail sequences dictate the pattern of carbohydrate expression observed.
That exchanging the cytoplasmic tails of GT and HT reverses the dominance of the carbohydrate epitopes points to the glycosyltransferases being relocalized within the Golgi. To address this question, experiments were performed with cDNAs encoding glycosyltransferases with the same cytoplasmic tail: COS cells transfecterases with cDNAs encoding HT+ht-GT stained strongly with both UEAI (50%) and IB4 (30%) (Table 1 & FIG. 5 panels E, F) the difference in staining reflecting differences in transfection efficiency of the cDNAs. Similarly cells transfected with cDNAs encoding GT+gt-HT also stained positive with UEAI (50%) and IB4 (30%) (Table 1 & FIG. 5 panel G, H). Thus, glycosyltransferases with the same cytoplasmic tail leads to equal cell surface expression of the carbohydrate epitopes, with no “dominance” of one glycosyltransferase over the other observed, and presumably the glycosyltransferases localized at the same site appear to compete equally for the substrate.
In COS cells the levels of transcription of the cDNAs of chimeric and normal glycosyltransferases were essentially the same ( FIG. 3 ) and the immunofluorescence pattern of COS cells expressing the chimeric glycosyltransferases: ht-GT and gt-HT showed the typical staining pattern of the cell space Gal-α(1,3)-Gal and H substance respectively (Table 1 & FIG. 2 ), the pattern being indistinguishable from that of COS cells expressing normal GT and HT. Our studies showed that the Km of ht-GT for N-acetyl lactosamine was identical to the Km of GT for this substrate, similarly the Km of gt-HT for phenylBDgalactoside was approximately the same as the Km of HT for phenylbDgalactoside (FIG. 3 ). These findings indicate that the chimeric enzymes are functioning in a cytoplasmic tail-independent manner, such that the catalytic domains are entirely functional, and are in agreement with those of Henion et al (23), who showed that an NH 2 terminal truncated marmoset GT (including truncation of the cytoplasmic and transmembrane domains) maintained catalytic activity and confirmed that GT activity is indeed independent of the cytoplasmic domain sequence.
If the Golgi localization signal for GT and HT is contained entirely within the cytoplasmic domains of the enzymes, then switching the cytoplasmic tails between the two transferases should allow a reversal of the order of glycosylation. Co-transfection of COS cells with cDNA encoding the chimeric glycosyltransferases ht-GT and gt-HT caused a reversal of staining observed with the wild type glycosyltransferases (FIG. 5 ), demonstrating that the order of glycosylation has been altered by exchanging the cytoplasmic tails. Furthermore, co-transfection with CDNA encoding glycosyltransferases with the same cytoplasmic tails (i.e. HT+ht-GT and GT+gt-HT) gave rise to equal expression of both Gal-α(1,3)-Gal and H substance (FIG. 5 ). The results imply that the cytoplasmic tails of GT and HT are sufficient for the localization and retention of these two enzymes within the Golgi.
To date only twenty or so of at least one hundred predicted glycosyltransferases have been cloned and few of these have been studied with respect to their Golgi localization and retention signals (34). Studies using the elongation transferase N-acetylglucosaminyltransferase (33-37), the terminal transferases α(2,6)sialyltransferase (24-26) and β(1,4)galactosyltransferase (38-40) point to residues contained within the cytoplasmic tail, transmembrane and flanking stem regions as being critical for Golgi localization and retention. There are several examples of localization signals existing within cytoplasmic tail domains of proteins including the KDEL (SEQ ID NO: 15) and KKXX (SEQ ID NO: 16) motifs in proteins resident within the endoplasmic reticulum (41,42) the latter motif also having been identified in the cis Golgi resident protein ERGIC-53 (43) and a di-leucine containing peptide motif in the mamlose-6- phosphate receptor which directs the receptor from the trans-Golgi network to endosomes (44). These motifs are not present within the cytoplasmic tail sequences of HT or GT or in any other reported glycosyltransferase. To date a localization signal in Golgi resident glycosyltransferases has not been identified and while there is consensus that transmembrane domains are important in Golgi localization, it is apparent that this domain is not essential for the localization of all glycosyltransferases, as shown by the study of Munro (45) where replacement of the transmembrane domain of α(2,6)sialyltransferase in a hybrid protein with a poly-leucine tract resulted in normal Golgi retention. Dahdal and Colley (46) also showed that sequences in the transmembrane domain were not essential to Golgi retention. This study is the first to identify sequence requirements for the localization of α(1,2) fucosyltransferase and α(1,3) galactosyltransferase within the Golgi. It is anticipated that other glycosyltransferases will have similar localization mechanisms.
EXAMPLE 2
Use of Secretor in Construction of a Chimeric Enzyme
A construct is made using PCR and subcloning as described in Example 1, such that amino acids #1 to #6 of the pig α(1,3)-galactosyltransferase (MNVKGR) (SEQ ID NO: 14) replace amino acids #1 to #5 of the pig secretor (FIG. 6 ). Constructs are tested as described in Example 1.
EXAMPLE 3
Use of Pig H Transferase in Construction of a Chimeric Enzyme
A construct is made using PCR and subcloning as described in Example 1, such that amino acids #1 to #6 of the pig α(1,3)-galactosyltransferase (MNVKGR) (SEQ ID NO. 14) replace amino acids #1 to 8 of the pig H transferase (FIG. 7 ). Constructs are tested as described in Example 1.
EXAMPLE 4
Generation of Pig Endothelial Cells Expressing Chimeric α(1,2)Fucosyltransferase
The pig endothelial cell line PIEC expressing the chimeric α1,2fucosyltransferase was produced by lipofectamine transfection of pgtHT plasmid DNA (20 μg) and pSV2NEO (2 μg) and selecting for stable integration by growing the transfected PIEC in media containing G418 (500 μg/ml; Gibco-BRL, Gaithersburg, Md.). Fourteen independant clones were examined for cell surface expression of H substance by staining with UEA-1 lectin. >95% of cells of each of these clones were found to be positive. FIG. 8 shows a typical FACS profile obtained for these clones.
EXAMPLE 5
Production of Transgenic Mice Expressing Chimeric α(1,2)Fucosyltransferase
A NruI/NotI DNA fragment, encoding the full length chimeric α1,2fucosyltransferase, was generated utilizing the Polymerase Chain Reaction and the phHT plasmid using the primers:
5′ primer homologous to the 5′ UTR: 5′-T TCGCGA ATGAATGTCAAAGGAAGACTCTG, (SEQ ID NO. 9) in which the underlined sequence contains a unique NruI site; 3′ primer homologous to the 3′ UTR: 5′-G GCGGCCGC TCAGATGTTATTTCTAACCAAAT the underlined sequence contains a NotI site
The DNA was purified on gels, electroeluted and subcloned into a NruI/NotI cut genomic H-2Kb containing vector resulting in the plasmid clone (pH-2Kb-gtHT) encoding thee chimeric α(1,2)-fucosyltransferase gene directionally cloned into exon 1 of the murine H-2Kb gene, resulting in a transcript that commences at the H-2Kb transcriptional start site, continuing through the gtHT cDNA insert. The construct was engineered such that translation would begin at the initiation condon (ATG) of the hHT cDNA and terminate at the in-phase stop codon (TGA).
DNA was prepared for microinjection by digesting pH-2Kb-hHT with XhoI And purification of the H-2Kb-hRT DNA from vector by electrophoretic separation in agarose gels, followed by extraction with chloroform, and precipitation in ethanol to decontaminate the DNA. Injections were performed into the pronuclear membrane of (C57BL/6xSJL)F1 zygotes at concentrations between 2-5 ng/ml, and the zygotes transferred to pseudopregnant (C57BL/6xSJL)F1 females.
The presence of the transgene in the live offspring was detected by dot blotting. 5 mg of genomic DNA was transferred to nylon filters and hybridized with the insert from gtHT, using a final wash at 68° C. in 0.1xSSC/1% SDS. FIG. 9 thaws the results of testing 12 live offspring, with two mice having the transgenic construct integrated into the genome. Expression of transgenic protein is examined by estimating the amount of UEAI lectin (specific for H substance) or anti-H mAb required to haemagglutinate red blood cells from transgenic mice. Hemagglutination in this assay demonstrates transgene expression.
It will be apparent to the person skilled in the art that while the invention has been described in some detail for the purposes of clarity and understanding, various modifications and alterations to the embodiments and methods described herein may be made without departing from the scope of the inventive concept disclosed in this specification.
References cited herein are listed on the following pages, and are incorporated herein by this reference.
TABLE 1 EXPRESSION OF GAL-α(1,3)GAL AND H SUBSTANCE BY COS CELLS TRANSFECTED WITH cDNAs ENCODING NORMAL AND CHIMERIC GLYCOSYLTRANSFERASES COS cells transfected % IB4 positive % UEAI positive with cDNA encoding: cells cells GT 30 0 HT 0 50 ht − GT 30 0 gt − HT 3 50 GT + HT 3 50 ht − GT + gt − HT 33 5 GT + gt − HT 30 30 GT + ht − GT 30 0 HT + ht − GT 30 30 HT + gt − HT 0 50 Mock 0 0
Transfected COS cells were stained with FITC-labelled IB4 (lectin specific for Gal-α(1,3)Gal or UEAI (lectin specific for H substance) and positive staining cells were visualized and counted by fluorescence microscopy. Results are from at least three replicates.
References
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Chem. 266. 6991-6998 (1991). 21. Larsen, R D, Riverra-Marrero, C A, Ernst, L K, Cummings, R D & Lowe, J B. Frameshift and non sense mutations in a human genomic sequence homologous to a murine UDP-Gal:b-D-Gal 1,4-D-GlcNAcal,3-galactosyl-transferase cDNA J. Biol. Chem 265. 7055-7061 (1990). 22. Kiote, C et al. Introduction of a (1,2)-fucosyltransferase and its effect on a-Gal epitopes in transgenic pig. Xenotransplantation 3:81-86. 23. Sandrin, M. S., Dabkowski, P. L., Henning, M. M., Mouhtouris, E., and McKenzie, I. F. C. (1994) Xenotransplantation 1, 81-88 24. Cohney, S., Mouhtouris, E., McKenzie, I. F. C., and Sandrin, M. S. (1996) Immunogenetics 44(1), 76-79 25. Larsen, R. D., Ernst, L. K., Nair, R. P., and Lowe, J. B. (1990) Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 87, 6674-6678 26. Sandrin, M. S., Vaughan, H. A., Dabkowski, P. L., and McKenzie, I. F. C. (1993) Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 90, 11391-11395 27. Hayes, C. E., and Goldstein, I. J. (1974) J. Biol. Chem. 6, 1904-1914 28. Matsumoto, I., and Osowa, T. (1969) Biochim. Biophys. Acta 194, 180-189 29. Bradford, M. M. (1976) Anal. Biochem. 72, 248-254 30. Rajan, V. R., Larsen, R. D., Ajmera, S., Ernst, L. K., and Lowe, J. B. (1989) J. Biol. Chem 264, 11158-11167 31. Van der Eijnden, D. H., Blanken, W. M., Winterwarp, H., and Schiphorst, W. E. C. M. (1983) Eur. J. Biochem. 134, 523-530 32. Sdri, M. S., Fodor, W. F., Mountouris, E., Osman, N., Cohney, S. C., Rollins, S. A., Guilmette, E. R., Setter, E., Squinto, S. P., and McKenzie, I. F. C. (1995) Nature Med 1, 1261-1267 33. Henion, T. R., Macher, B. A., Anaraki, F., and Galili, U. (1994) Glycobiology 4, 193-201 34. Sahacter, H. (1994) in Molecular Glycobiology (Pukuda, M., and Hindsgaul, O., eds), pp. 83-162, Oxford University Press, Oxford 35. Burke, J., Pettitt, J. M., Schachler, H., Sarkar, M., and Gleoson, P. A. (1992) J. Biol. Chem. 267, 24433-24440 36. Tang, B. L., Wong, S. H., Low, S. H., and Hong, W. (1992) J. Biol. Chem. 267, 10122 37. 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Chem. 268, 26310-26319 | The invention relates to nucleic acids which encode glycosyltransferase and are useful in producing cells and organs from one species which may be used for transplantation into a recipient of another species. It also relates to the production of nucleic acids which, when present in cells of a transplanted organ, result in reduced levels of antibody recognition of the transplanted organ. | Provide a concise summary of the essential information conveyed in the given context. | [
"CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS This application is a § 371 national stage filing based on PCT/AU97/00492, filed Aug. 1, 1997, which claims priority through provisional application No. 60/024,279, filed Aug. 21, 1996 and Australian application PO 1402, filed Aug. 2, 1996.",
"FIELD OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to nucleic acids which encode glycosyltransferase and are useful in producing cells and organs from one species which may be used for transplantation into a recipient of another species.",
"Specifically the invention concerns production of nucleic acids which, when present in cells of a transplanted organ, result in reduced levels of antibody recognition of the transplanted organ.",
"BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION The transplantation of organs is now practicable, due to major advances in surgical and other techniques.",
"However, availability of suitable human organs for transplantation is a significant problem.",
"Demand outstrips supply.",
"This has caused researchers to investigate the possibility of using non-human organs for transplantation.",
"Xenotransplantation is the transplantation of organs from one species to a recipient of a different species.",
"Rejection of the transplant in such cases is a particular problem, especially where the donor species is more distantly related, such as donor organs from pigs and sheep to human recipients.",
"Vascular organs present a special difficulty because of hyperacute rejection (HAR).",
"HAR occurs when the complement cascade in the recipient is initiated by binding of antibodies to donor endothelial cells.",
"Previous attempts to prevent HAR have focused on two strategies: modifying the immune system of the host by inhibition of systemic complement formation (1,2), and antibody depletion (3,4).",
"Both strategies have been shown to prolong xenograft survival temporarily.",
"However, these methodologies are therapeutically unattractive in that they are clinically impractical, and would require chronic immunosuppressive treatments.",
"Therefore, recent efforts to inhibit HAR have focused on genetically modifying the donor xenograft.",
"One such strategy has been to achieve high-level expression of species-restricted human complement inhibitory proteins in vascularized pig organs via transgenic engineering (5-7).",
"This strategy has proven to be useful in that it has resulted in the prolonged survival of porcine tissues following antibody and serum challenge (5,6).",
"Although increased survival of the transgenic tissues was observed, long-term graft survival was not achieved (6).",
"As observed in these experiments and also with systemic complement depletion, organ failure appears to be related to an acute antibody-dependent vasculitis (1,5).",
"In addition to strategies aimed at blocking complement activation on the vascular endothelial cell surface of the xenograft, recent attention has focused on identification of the predominant xenogeneic epitope recognised by high-titre human natural antibodies.",
"It is now accepted that the terminal galactosyl residue, Gal-α(1,3)-Gal, is the dominant xenogeneic epitope (8-15).",
"This epitope is absent in Old World primates and humans because the α(1,3)-galactosyltransferase (gal-transferase or GT) is non-functional in these species.",
"DNA sequence comparison of the human gene to α(1,3)-galactosyltransferase genes from the mouse (16,17), ox (18), and pig (12) revealed that the human gene contained two frameshift mutations, resulting in a nonfunctional pseudogene (20,21).",
"Consequently, humans and Old World primates have pre-existing high-titre antibodies directed at this Gal-α(1,3)-Gal moiety as the dominant xenogeneic epitope.",
"One strategy developed was effective to stably reduce the expression of the predominant Gal-α(1,3)-Gal epitope.",
"This strategy took advantage of an intracellular competition between the gal-transferase and α(1,2)-fucosyltransferase (H-transferase) for a common acceptor substrate.",
"The gal-transferase catalyzes the transfer of a terminal galactose moiety to an N-acetyl lactosamine acceptor substrate, resulting in the formation of the terminal Gal-α(1,3)-Gal epitope.",
"Conversely, H-transferase catalyzes the transfer of a fucosyl residue to the N-acetyl lactosamine acceptor substrate, and generates a fucosylated N-acetyl lactosamine (H-antigen, i.e., the O blood group antigen), a glycosidic structure that is universally tolerated.",
"Although it was reported that expression of human H-transferase transfected cells resulted in high level expression of the non-antigenic H-epitope and significantly reduced the expression of the Gal-α(1,3)-Gal xenoepitope, there are still significant levels of Gal-α(1,3)-Gal epitope present on such cells.",
"SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In view of the foregoing, it is an object of the present invention to further reduce levels of undesirable epitopes in cells, tissues and organs which may be used in transplantation.",
"In work leading up to the invention the inventors surprisingly discovered that the activity of H transferase may be further increased by making a nucleic acid which encodes a H transferase catalytic domain but is anchored in the cell at a location where it is better able to compete for substrate with gal transferase.",
"Although work by the inventors focused on a chimeric H transferase, other glycosyltransferase enzymes may also be produced in accordance with the invention.",
"Accordingly, in a first aspect the invention provides a nucleic acid encoding a chimeric enzyme, wherein said chimeric enzyme comprises a catalytic domain of a first glycosyltransferase and a localization signal of a second glycosyltransferase, whereby when said nucleic acid is expressed in a cell said chimeric enzyme is located in an area of the cell where it is able to compete for substrate with a second glycosyltransferase, resulting in reduced levels of a product from said second glycosyltransferase.",
"Preferably the nucleic acid is in an isolated form;",
"that is the nucleic acid is at least partly purified from other nucleic acids or proteins.",
"Preferably the nucleic acid comprises the correct sequences for expression, more preferably for expression in a eukaryotic cell.",
"The nucleic acid may be present on any suitable eukaryotic expression vector such as pcDNA (Invitrogen).",
"The nucleic acid may also be present or other vehicles whether suitable for eukaryotes or not, such as plasmids, phages and the like.",
"Preferably the catalytic domain of the first glycosyltransferase is derived from H transferase, secretor sialyltransferase, a galactosyl sulphating enzyme or a phosphorylating enzyme.",
"The nucleic acid sequence encoding the catalytic domain may be derived from, or similar to a glycosyltransferase from an species.",
"Preferably said species is a species such as human or other primate species, including Old World monkeys, or other mammals such as ungulates (for example pigs, sheep, goats, cows, horses, deer, camels) or dogs, mice, rats and rabbits.",
"The term “similar to”",
"means that the nucleic acid is at least partly homologous to the glycosyltransferase genes described above.",
"The term also extends to fragments of and mutants, variants and derivatives of the catalytic domain whether naturally occurring or man made.",
"Preferably the localization signal is derived from a glycosyltransferase which produces glycosylation patterns which are recognised as foreign by a transplant recipient.",
"More preferably the localization signal is derived from α(1,3) galactosyltransferase.",
"The effect of this is to downregulate the level of Gal-α(1,3)-Gal produced in a cell when the nucleic acid is expressed by the cell.",
"The nucleic acid sequence encoding the localization signal may be derived from any species such as those described above.",
"Preferably it is derived from the same species as the cell which the nucleic acid is intended to transform i.e., if pig cells are to be transformed, preferably the localization signal is derived from pig.",
"More preferably the nucleic acid comprises a nucleic acid sequence encoding the catalytic domain of H transferase and a nucleic acid sequence encoding a localization signal from Gal transferase.",
"Still more preferably both nucleic acid sequences are derived from pigs.",
"Even more preferably the nucleic acid encodes gtHT described herein.",
"The term “nucleic acid”",
"refers to any nucleic acid comprising natural or synthetic purines and pyrimidines.",
"The nucleic acid may be DNA or RNA, single or double stranded or covalently closed circular.",
"The term “catalytic domain”",
"of the chimeric enzyme refers to the amino acid sequences necessary for the enzyme to function catalytically.",
"This comprises one or more contiguous or non-contiguous amino acid sequences.",
"Other non-catalytically active portions also may be included in the chimeric enzyme.",
"The term “glycosyltransferase”",
"refers to a polypeptide with an ability to move carbohydrates from one molecule to another.",
"The term “derived from”",
"means that the catalytic domain is based on, or is similar, to that of a native enzyme.",
"The nucleic acid sequence encoding the catalytic domain is not necessarily directly derived from the native gene.",
"The nucleic acid sequence may be made by polymerase chain reaction (PCR), constructed de novo or cloned.",
"The term “localization signal”",
"refers to the amino acid sequence of a glycosyltransferase which is responsible for anchoring it in location within the cell.",
"Generally localization signals comprise amino terminal “tails”",
"of the enzyme.",
"The localization signals are derived from a second glycosyltransferase, the activity of which it is desired to minimise.",
"The localization of a catalytic domain of a first enzyme in the same area as the second glycosyltransferase means that the substrate reaching that area is likely to be acted or by the catalytic domain of the first enzyme, enabling the amount of substrate catalysed by the second enzyme to be reduced.",
"The term “area of the cell”",
"refers to a region, compartment or organelle of the cell.",
"Preferably the area of the cell is a secretory organelle such as the Golgi apparatus.",
"In another aspect the invention provides an isolated nucleic acid molecule encoding a localization signal of a glycosyltransferase.",
"Preferably the signal encoded comprises an amino terminus of said molecule;",
"more preferably it is the amino terminus of gal transferase.",
"The gal transferase may be described from or based on a gal transferase from any mammalian species, such as those described above.",
"Particularly preferred sequences are those derived from pig, mouse or cattle.",
"In another aspect the invention relates to a method of producing a nucleic acid encoding a chimeric enzyme said enzyme comprising a catalytic domain of a first glycosyltransferase and a localization signal of a second glycosyltransferase whereby when said nucleic acid is expressed in a cell said chimeric enzyme is located in an area of the cell where it is able to compete for substrate with a second glycosyltransferase said method comprising operably linking a nucleic acid sequence encoding a catalytic domain from a first glycosyltransferase to a nucleic acid sequence encoding a localization signal of a second glycosyltransferase.",
"The term “operably linking”",
"means that the nucleic acid sequences are ligated such that a functional protein is able to be transcribed and translated.",
"Those skilled in the art will be aware of various techniques for producing the nucleic acid.",
"Standard techniques such as those described in Sambrook et al may be employed.",
"Preferably the nucleic acid sequences are the preferred sequences described above.",
"In another aspect the invention provides a method of reducing the level of a carbohydrate exhibited on the surface of a cell, said method comprising causing a nucleic acid to be expressed in said cell wherein said nucleic acid encodes a chimeric enzyme which comprises a catalytic domain of a first glycosyltransferase and a localization signal of a second glycosyltransferase, whereby said chimeric enzyme is located in an area of the cell where it is able to compete for substrate with said second glycosyltransferase, and wherein said second glycosyltransferase is capable of producing said carbohydrate.",
"The term “reducing the level of a carbohydrate”",
"refers to lowering, minimising, or in some cases, ablating the amount of carbohydrate displayed on the surface of the cell.",
"Preferably said carbohydrate is capable of stimulating recognition of the cell as “non-self”",
"by the immune system of an animal.",
"The reduction of such a carbohydrate therefore renders the cell, or an organ composed of said cells, more acceptable to the immune system of a recipient animal in a transplant situation or gene therapy situation.",
"The term “causing a nucleic acid to be expressed”",
"means that the nucleic acid is introduced into the cell (i.e. by transformation/transfection or other suitable means) and contains appropriate signals to allow expression in the cells.",
"The cell may be any suitable cell, preferably mammalian, such as that of a New World monkey, ungulate (pig, sheep, goat, cow, horse, deer, camel, etc.) or other species such as dogs.",
"In another aspect the invention provides a method of producing a cell from one species (the donor) which is immunologically acceptable to another species (the recipient) by reducing levels of carbohydrate on said cell which cause it to be recognised as non-self by the other species, said method comprising causing a nucleic acid to be expressed in said cell wherein and nucleic acid encodes a chimeric which comprises a catalytic domain of a first glycosyltransferase and a localization signal of a second glycosyltransferase, whereby said chimeric enzyme is located in an area of the cell where it is able to compete for substrate with said second glycosyltransferase, and wherein said second glycosyltransferase is capable of producing said carbohydrate.",
"The term “immunologically acceptable”",
"refers to producing a cell, or an organ made up of numbers of the cell, which does not cause the same degree of immunological reaction in the recipient species as a native cell from the donor species.",
"Thus the cell may cause a lessened immunological reaction, only requiring low levels of immunosuppressive therapy to maintain such a transplanted organ or no immunosuppression therapy.",
"The cell may be from any of the species mentioned above.",
"Preferably the cell is from a New World primate or a pig.",
"More preferably the cell is from a pig.",
"The invention extends to cells produced by the above method and also to organs comprising the cells.",
"The invention further extends to non-human transgenic animals harbouring the nucleic acid of the invention.",
"Preferably the species is a human, ape or Old World monkey.",
"The invention also extends to the proteins produced by the nucleic acid.",
"Preferably the proteins are in an isolated form.",
"In another aspect the invention provides an expression unit which expresses the nucleic acid of the invention, resulting in a cell which is immunologically acceptable to an animal having reduced levels of a carbohydrate on its surface, which carbohydrate is recognized as non-self by said species.",
"In a preferred embodiment, the expression unit is a retroviral packaging cell, cassette, a retroviral construct or retroviral producer cell.",
"Preferably the species is a human, ape or Old World monkey.",
"The retroviral packaging cells or retroviral producer cells may be cells of any animal origin where it is desired to reduce the level of carbohydrates on its surface to make it more immunologically acceptable to a host.",
"Such cells may be derived from mammals such as canine, rodent or ruminant species and the like.",
"The retroviral packaging and/or producer cells may be used in applications such as gene therapy.",
"General methods involving use of such cells are described in PCT/US95/07554 and the references discussed therein.",
"The invention also extends to a method of producing a retroviral packaging cell or a retroviral producer cell having reduced levels of a carbohydrate on its surface wherein the carbohydrate is recognised as non-self by a species, comprising transforming/transfecting a retroviral packaging cell or a retroviral producer cell with the nucleic acid of the invention under conditions such that the chimeric enzyme is produced.",
"BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 Schematic diagram of normal and chimeric glycosyltransferases The diagram shows normal glycosyltransferases porcine α(1,3)galactosyltransferase (GT) and human α(1,2)fucosyltransferase (HT), and chimeric transferases ht-GT in which the cytoplasmic domain of GT has been completely replaced by the cytoplasmic domain of HT, and gt-HT in which the cytoplasmic domain of HT has been entirely replaced by the cytoplasmic domain of GT.",
"The protein domains depicted are cytoplasmic domain CYTO, transmembrane domain TM, stem region STEM, catalytic domain CATALYTIC.",
"The numbers refer to the amino acid sequence of the corresponding normal transferase.",
"FIG. 2 Cell surface staining of COS cells transfected with normal and chimeric transferases Cells were transfected with normal GT or HT or with chimeric transferases gt-HT or ht-GT and 48 h later were stained with FITC-labelled lectin IB4 or UEAI.",
"Positive-staining cells were visualized and counted by fluorescence microscopy.",
"Results are from at least three replicates and values are+/−SEM.",
"FIG. 3 .",
"RNA analysis of transfected COS cells Northern blots were performed on total RNA prepared from COS cells transfected: Mock, mock-transfected;",
"GT, transfected with wild-type GT;",
"GT1-6/HT, transfected with chimeric transferase gt-HT;",
"GT1-6/HT+HT1-8/GT, co-transfected with both chimeric transferases gt-HT and ht-GT;",
"HT1-8/GT, transfected with chimeric transferase ht-GT;",
"HT, transfected with normal HT;",
"GT+HT co-transfected with both normal transferases GT and HT.",
"Blots were probed with a cDNA encoding GT (Top panel), HT (Middle panel) or g-actin (Bottom panel).",
"FIG. 4 .",
"Enzyme kinetics of normal and chimeric glycosyltransferases Lineweaver-Burk plots for α(1,3) galactosyltransferase (□) and α(1,2)fucosyltransferase (▪) to determine the apparent values for N-acetyl lactosamine.",
"Experiments are performed in triplicate, plots shown are of mean values of enzyme activity of wild-type transferases, GT and HT, and chimeric proteins ht-GT and gt-HT in transfected COS cell extracts using phenyl-B-D Gal and N-acetyl lactosamine as acceptor substrates.",
"FIG. 5 .",
"Staining of cells co-transfected with chimeric transferases Cells were co-transfected with cDNAs encoding normal transferases GT+HT (panels A, B), with chimeric transferases gt-HT+ht-GT (panels C, D), with HT+ht-GT (panels E, F) or with GT+gt-HT (panels G, H) and 48 h later were stained with FITC-labelled lectin IB4 (panels A, C, E, G) or UEAI (panels B, D, F, H).",
"FIG. 6 (SEQ ID No. 1) is a representation of the nucleic acid sequence and corresponding amino acid sequence of pig secretor.",
"FIG. 7 (SEQ ID No. 3) is a representation of the nucleic acid sequence and corresponding amino acid sequence of pig H. FIG. 8 Cell surface staining of pig endothelial cell line (PIEC) transfected with chimeric α(1,2)-fucosyltransferase.",
"Cells were transfected and clones exhibiting stable integration were stained with UFEAI lectin and visualised by fluorescence microscopy.",
"FIG. 9 Screening of chimeric α(1,2)-fucosyltransferase transferase in mice.",
"Mice were injected with chimeric α(1,2)-fucosyltransferase and the presence of the transferase was analysed by dot blots.",
"DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT The nucleic acid sequences encoding the catalytic domain of a glycosyltransferase may be any nucleic acid sequence such as those described in PCT/US95/07554, which is herein incorporated by reference, provided that it encodes a functional catalytic domain with the desired glycosyltransferase activity.",
"Preferred catalytic domains from glycosyltransferase include H transferase and secretor.",
"Preferably these are based on human or porcine sequences.",
"The nucleic acid sequences encoding the localization signal of a second transglycosylase may be any nucleic acid sequence encoding a signal sequence such as signal sequences disclosed in P A Gleeson, R D Teasdale &",
"J Bourke, Targeting of proteins to the Golgi apparatus.",
"Glyconjugate J. (1994) 11: 381-394.",
"Preferably the localization sis is specific for the Golgi apparatus, more preferably for that of the true Golgi.",
"Still more preferably the localization signal is based on that of Gal transferase.",
"Even more preferably the localization signal is based on porcine, murine or bovine sequences.",
"Even more preferably the nucleic acid encodes a signal sequence with following amino acid sequence (in single letter code): MNVKGR (porcine) (SEQ ID NO.",
"11), MNVKGK (mouse) (SEQ ID NO.",
"12) or MVVKGK (bovine) (SEQ ID NO.",
"13).",
"Vectors for expression of the chimeric enzyme may be any suitable rector, including those disclosed in PCT/US95/07554.",
"The nucleic acid of the invention can be used to produce cells and organs with the desired glycosylation pattern by standard techniques, such as those disclosed in PCT/US95/07554.",
"For example, embryos may be transfected by standard techniques such as microinjection of the nucleic acid in a linear form into the embryo (22).",
"The embryos are then used to produce live animals, the organs of which may be subsequently used as donor organs for implantation.",
"Cells, tissues and organs suitable for use in the invention will generally be mammalian cells.",
"Examples of suitable cells and tissues such as endothelial cells, hepatic cells, pancreatic cells and the like are provided in PCT/US95/07554.",
"The invention will now be described with reference to the following non-limiting Examples.",
"Abbreviations The abbreviations used are bp, base pair(s);",
"FITC, fluorescein isothiocyanate;",
"GT, galactosyltransferase;",
"H substance, α(1,2)fucosyl lactosamine;",
"HT, α(1,2)fucosyltransferase;",
"PCR, polymerase chain reaction;",
"Example 1 Cytoplasmic domains of glycosyltransferases play a central role in the temporal action of enzymes Experimental Procedures EXAMPLE 1 Plasmids—The plasmids used were prepared using standard techniques (7);",
"pGT encodes the cDNA for the porcine α(1,3)galactosyltransferase (23), pHT encodes the cDNA for the α(1,2)fucosyltransferase (human) (25).",
"Chimeric glycosyltransferase cDNAs were generated by polymerase chain reaction as follows: an 1105 bp product ht-GT was generated using primers corresponding to the 5′ end of ht-GT (5′-GC GGATCC ATGTGGCTCCGGAGCC ATCGTCAGGTGGTTCTGTCAATGC TGCTTG-3′) (SEQ ID NO.",
"5) coding for nucleotides 1-24 of HT (25) followed immediately by nucleotides 68-89 of GT (8) and containing a BamH1 site (underlined) and a primer corresponding to the 3′ end of ht-GT (5′-GC TCTAGA GCGTCAGATGTTATT TCTAACCAAATTATAC-3′) (SEQ ID NO.",
"6) containing complementarity to nucleotides 1102-1127 of GT with an Xbal site downstream of the translational stop site (underlined);",
"an 1110 bp product gt-HT was generated using primers corresponding to the 5′ end of gt-HT (5′-GC GGATCC ATGAATGTCAAAGGAAGACTCTGCCTGGCCT TCCTGC-3′) (SEQ ID NO.",
"7) coding for nucleotides 49-67 of GT followed immediately by fnucleotides 25-43 of HT and containing a BamH1 site (underlined) and a primer corresponding to the 3′ end of gt-HT (5′-GC TCTAGA GCCTCAAGGCTTAG CCAATGTCCAGAG-3′) (SEQ ID NO.",
"8) containing complementarity to nucleotides 1075-1099 of HT with a Xba1 site downstream of the translational stop site (underlined).",
"PCR products were restricted BamH1/Xba1, gel-purified and ligated into a BamH1/Xba1 digested pcDNA1 expression vector (Invitrogen) and resulted in two plasmids pht-GT (encoding the chimeric glycosyltransferase ht-GT) and pgt-HT (encoding the chimeric glycosyltransferase gt-HT) which were characterized by restriction mapping, Southern blotting and DNA sequencing.",
"Transfection and Serology—COS cells were maintained in Dubecco's modified Eagles Medium (DMEM) (Trace Biosciences Pty.",
"Ltd. , Castle Hill, NSW, Australia) and were transfected (1-10 μg DNA/5×105 cells) using DEAE-Dextrau (26);",
"48 h later cells were examined for cell surface expression of H substance or Gal-α(1,3)-Gal using FITC-conjugated lectins: IB4 lectin isolated from Griffonia simplicifolia (Sigma, St. Louis, Mo.) detects Gal-α(1,3)-Gal (27);",
"UEAI lectin isolated from Ulex europaeus (Sigma, St. Louis, Mo.) detects H substance (28).",
"H substance was also detected by indirect immunofluorescence using a monoclonal antibody (mAb) specific for the H substance (ASH-1952) developed at the Austin Research Institute, using FITC-conjugated goat anti-mouse IgG (Zymed Laboratories, San Francisco, Calif.) to detect mAb binding.",
"Fluorescence was detected by microscopy.",
"RNA Analyses—Cytoplasmic RNA was prepared from transfected COS cells using RNAzol (Biotecx Laboratories, Houston, Tex.), and total RNA was electrophoresed in a 1% agarose gel containing formaldehyde, the gel blotted onto a nylon membrane and probed with random primed GT or HT cDNA.",
"Glycosyltransferase assays—Forty-eight hours after transfection, cells were washed twice with phosphate buffered saline and lysed in 1% Triton X-100/100 mM cacodylate pH 6.5/25 mM MnCl2, at 4° C. for 30 min;",
"lysates were centrifuged and the supernatant collected and stored at −70° C. Protein concentration was determined by the Bradford method using bovine serum allumin as standard (29).",
"Assays for HT activity (30) were performed in 25 μl containing 3 mM [GDP- 14 C]fucose (specific activity 287 mCi/mmol, Amersham International), 5 mM ATP, 50 mM MPS pH 6.5, 20 mM MnCl2, using 2-10 μl of cell extract (approximately 15-20μg of protein) and a range of concentrations (7.5-75 mM) of the acceptor phenyl-B-D-galactoside (Sigma).",
"Samples were incubated for 2 h at 37° C. and reactions terminated by the addition of ethanol and water.",
"The amount of 14 C-fucose incorporated was counted after separation from unincorporated label using Sep-Pak C18 cartridges (Waters-Millipore, Millford, Mass.).",
"GT assays (31) were performed in a volume of 25 μl using 3 mM UDP[ 3 H]-Gal (specific activity 189 mCi/mmol, Amersham International), 5 mM ATP, 100 mM cacodylate pH 6.5, 20 mM MnCl 2 and various concentrations (1-10 mM) of the acceptor N-acetyl lactosamine (Sigma).",
"Samples were incubated for 2 h at 37° C. and the reactions terminated by the addition of ethanol and water.",
"3 H-Gal incorporation was counted after separation from non-incorporated UDP[ 3 H]-Gal using Dowex I anion exchange columns (BDH Ltd., Poole, UK) or Sep-Pak Accell plus QMA anion exchange cartridges (Waters-Millipore, Millford, Mass.).",
"All assays were performed in duplicate and additional reactions were performed in the absence of added acceptor molecules, to allow for the calculation of specific incorporation of radioactivity.",
"Results Expression of chimeric α(1,3)galactasyltransferase and α(1,2)fucosultransferase cDNAs We had previously shown that when cDNAs encoding α(1,3)galactosyltransferase (GT) and α(1,2)fucosyltransferase (HT) were transfected separately they could both function efficiently leading to expression of the appropriate carbohydrates: Gal-α(1,3)-Gal for GT and H substance for HT (32).",
"However when the cDNAs for GT and HT were transfected together, the HT appeared to “dominate”",
"over the GT in that H substance expression was normal, but Gal-α(1,3)-Gal was reduced.",
"We excluded trivial reasons for this effect and considered that the localization of the enzymes may be the reason.",
"Thus, if the HT localization signal placed the enzyme in an earlier temporal compartment than GT, it would have “first use”",
"of the N-acetyl lactosamine substrate.",
"However, such a “first use”",
"if it occurred, was not sufficient to adequately reduce GT.",
"Two chimeric glycosyltransferases were constructed using PCR wherein the cytoplasmic tails of GT and RT were switched.",
"The two chimeras constructed are shown in FIG. 1 : ht-GT which consisted of the NH 2 terminal cytoplasmic tail of HT attached to the transmembrane, stem and catalytic domain of GT;",
"and gt-HT which consisted of the NH 2 terminal cytoplasmic tail of GT attached to the transmembrane, stem and catalytic domains of HT.",
"The chimeric cDNAs were subcloned into the eukaryotic expression vector pcDNAI and used in transfection experiments.",
"The chimeric cDNAs encoding ht-GT and gt-HT were initially evaluated for their ability to induce glycosyltransferase expression in COS cells, as measured by the surface expression of the appropriate sugar using lectins.",
"Forty-eight hours after transfection COS cells were tested by immunofluorescence for their expression of Gal-α(1,3)-Gal or H substance (Table 1 &",
"FIG. 2 ).",
"The staining with IB4 (lectin specific for Gal-α(1,3)-Gal) in cells expressing the chimera ht-GT (30% of cells stained positive) was indistinguishable from that of the normal GT staining (30%) (Table 1 &",
"FIG. 2 ).",
"Similarly the intense cell surface fluorescence seen with UEAI staining (the lectin specific for H substance) in cells each expressing gt-HT (50%) was similar to that seen in cells expressing wild-type pHT (50%) (Table 1 &",
"FIG. 2 ).",
"Furthermore, similar levels of mRNA expression of the glycosyltransferases GT and HT and chimeric glycosyltransferases ht-GT and gt-HT were seen in Northern blots of total RNA isolated from transfected cells (FIG.",
"3 ).",
"Thus both chimeric glycosyltransferases are efficiently expressed in COS cells and are functional indeed there was no detectable difference between the chimeric and normal glycosyltransferases.",
"Glycosyltransferase activity in cells transfected with chimeric cDNAs encoding ht-GT and gt-HT To determine whether switching the cytoplasmic tails of GT and HT altered the kinetics of enzyme function, we compared the enzymatic activity of the chimeric glycosyltransferases with those of the normal enzymes in COS cells after transfection of the relevant cDNAs.",
"By making extracts from transfected COS cells and performing GT or HT enzyme assays we found that N-acetyl lactosamine was galactosylated by both GT and the chimeric enzyme ht-GT (FIG.",
"4 .",
"panel A) over a the 1-5 mM range of substrate concentrations.",
"Lineweaver-Burk plots showed that both GT and ht-GT have a similar apparent Michealis-Menten constant of Km 2.6 mM for N-acetyl lactosamine (FIG.",
"4 .",
"panel B).",
"Further HT, and the chimeric enzyme gt-HT were both able to fucosylate phenyl-B-D-galactoside over a range of concentrations (7.5-25 mM) ( FIG. 4 panel C) with a similar Km of 2.3 mM ( FIG. 4 panel D), in agreement with the reported Km of 2.4 mM for HT (25).",
"Therefore the chimeric glycosyltransferases ht-GT and gt-HT are able to utilize N-acetyl lactosamine (ht-GT) and phenyl-B-D-galactoside (gt-HT) in the same way as the normal glycosyltransferases, thus switching the cytoplasmic domains of GT and HT does not alter the function of these glycosyltransferases and if indeed the cytoplasmic tail is the localization signal then both enzymes function as well with the GT signal as with the HT signal.",
"Switching Cytoplasmic Domains of GT and HT Results in a Reversal of the “Dominance”",
"of the Glycosyltransferases The cDNAs encoding the chimeric transferases or normal transferases were simultaneously co-transfected into COS cells and after 48 h the cells were stained with either IB4 or UEA1 lectin to detect Gal-α(1,3)-Gal and H substance respectively on the cell surface (Table 1 &",
"FIG. 5 ).",
"COS cells co-transfected with cDNAs for ht-GT+gt-HT ( FIG. 5 panel C) showed 30% cells staining positive with IB4 (Table 1) but no staining on cells co-transfected with cDNAs for GT+HT (3%) ( FIG. 5 panel A).",
"Furthermore staining for H substance on the surface of ht-GT+gt-H co-transfectants gave very few cells staining positive (5%) ( FIG. 5 panel D) compared to the staining seen in cells co-transfected with cDNAs for the normal transferases GT+HT (50%) ( FIG. 5 panel B), ie.",
"the expression of Gal-α(1,3)-Gal now dominates over that of H. Clearly, switching the cytoplasmic tails of GT and HT led to a complete reversal in the glycosylation pattern seen with the normal transferases i.e. the cytoplasmic tail sequences dictate the pattern of carbohydrate expression observed.",
"That exchanging the cytoplasmic tails of GT and HT reverses the dominance of the carbohydrate epitopes points to the glycosyltransferases being relocalized within the Golgi.",
"To address this question, experiments were performed with cDNAs encoding glycosyltransferases with the same cytoplasmic tail: COS cells transfecterases with cDNAs encoding HT+ht-GT stained strongly with both UEAI (50%) and IB4 (30%) (Table 1 &",
"FIG. 5 panels E, F) the difference in staining reflecting differences in transfection efficiency of the cDNAs.",
"Similarly cells transfected with cDNAs encoding GT+gt-HT also stained positive with UEAI (50%) and IB4 (30%) (Table 1 &",
"FIG. 5 panel G, H).",
"Thus, glycosyltransferases with the same cytoplasmic tail leads to equal cell surface expression of the carbohydrate epitopes, with no “dominance”",
"of one glycosyltransferase over the other observed, and presumably the glycosyltransferases localized at the same site appear to compete equally for the substrate.",
"In COS cells the levels of transcription of the cDNAs of chimeric and normal glycosyltransferases were essentially the same ( FIG. 3 ) and the immunofluorescence pattern of COS cells expressing the chimeric glycosyltransferases: ht-GT and gt-HT showed the typical staining pattern of the cell space Gal-α(1,3)-Gal and H substance respectively (Table 1 &",
"FIG. 2 ), the pattern being indistinguishable from that of COS cells expressing normal GT and HT.",
"Our studies showed that the Km of ht-GT for N-acetyl lactosamine was identical to the Km of GT for this substrate, similarly the Km of gt-HT for phenylBDgalactoside was approximately the same as the Km of HT for phenylbDgalactoside (FIG.",
"3 ).",
"These findings indicate that the chimeric enzymes are functioning in a cytoplasmic tail-independent manner, such that the catalytic domains are entirely functional, and are in agreement with those of Henion et al (23), who showed that an NH 2 terminal truncated marmoset GT (including truncation of the cytoplasmic and transmembrane domains) maintained catalytic activity and confirmed that GT activity is indeed independent of the cytoplasmic domain sequence.",
"If the Golgi localization signal for GT and HT is contained entirely within the cytoplasmic domains of the enzymes, then switching the cytoplasmic tails between the two transferases should allow a reversal of the order of glycosylation.",
"Co-transfection of COS cells with cDNA encoding the chimeric glycosyltransferases ht-GT and gt-HT caused a reversal of staining observed with the wild type glycosyltransferases (FIG.",
"5 ), demonstrating that the order of glycosylation has been altered by exchanging the cytoplasmic tails.",
"Furthermore, co-transfection with CDNA encoding glycosyltransferases with the same cytoplasmic tails (i.e. HT+ht-GT and GT+gt-HT) gave rise to equal expression of both Gal-α(1,3)-Gal and H substance (FIG.",
"5 ).",
"The results imply that the cytoplasmic tails of GT and HT are sufficient for the localization and retention of these two enzymes within the Golgi.",
"To date only twenty or so of at least one hundred predicted glycosyltransferases have been cloned and few of these have been studied with respect to their Golgi localization and retention signals (34).",
"Studies using the elongation transferase N-acetylglucosaminyltransferase (33-37), the terminal transferases α(2,6)sialyltransferase (24-26) and β(1,4)galactosyltransferase (38-40) point to residues contained within the cytoplasmic tail, transmembrane and flanking stem regions as being critical for Golgi localization and retention.",
"There are several examples of localization signals existing within cytoplasmic tail domains of proteins including the KDEL (SEQ ID NO: 15) and KKXX (SEQ ID NO: 16) motifs in proteins resident within the endoplasmic reticulum (41,42) the latter motif also having been identified in the cis Golgi resident protein ERGIC-53 (43) and a di-leucine containing peptide motif in the mamlose-6- phosphate receptor which directs the receptor from the trans-Golgi network to endosomes (44).",
"These motifs are not present within the cytoplasmic tail sequences of HT or GT or in any other reported glycosyltransferase.",
"To date a localization signal in Golgi resident glycosyltransferases has not been identified and while there is consensus that transmembrane domains are important in Golgi localization, it is apparent that this domain is not essential for the localization of all glycosyltransferases, as shown by the study of Munro (45) where replacement of the transmembrane domain of α(2,6)sialyltransferase in a hybrid protein with a poly-leucine tract resulted in normal Golgi retention.",
"Dahdal and Colley (46) also showed that sequences in the transmembrane domain were not essential to Golgi retention.",
"This study is the first to identify sequence requirements for the localization of α(1,2) fucosyltransferase and α(1,3) galactosyltransferase within the Golgi.",
"It is anticipated that other glycosyltransferases will have similar localization mechanisms.",
"EXAMPLE 2 Use of Secretor in Construction of a Chimeric Enzyme A construct is made using PCR and subcloning as described in Example 1, such that amino acids #1 to #6 of the pig α(1,3)-galactosyltransferase (MNVKGR) (SEQ ID NO: 14) replace amino acids #1 to #5 of the pig secretor (FIG.",
"6 ).",
"Constructs are tested as described in Example 1.",
"EXAMPLE 3 Use of Pig H Transferase in Construction of a Chimeric Enzyme A construct is made using PCR and subcloning as described in Example 1, such that amino acids #1 to #6 of the pig α(1,3)-galactosyltransferase (MNVKGR) (SEQ ID NO.",
"14) replace amino acids #1 to 8 of the pig H transferase (FIG.",
"7 ).",
"Constructs are tested as described in Example 1.",
"EXAMPLE 4 Generation of Pig Endothelial Cells Expressing Chimeric α(1,2)Fucosyltransferase The pig endothelial cell line PIEC expressing the chimeric α1,2fucosyltransferase was produced by lipofectamine transfection of pgtHT plasmid DNA (20 μg) and pSV2NEO (2 μg) and selecting for stable integration by growing the transfected PIEC in media containing G418 (500 μg/ml;",
"Gibco-BRL, Gaithersburg, Md.).",
"Fourteen independant clones were examined for cell surface expression of H substance by staining with UEA-1 lectin.",
">95% of cells of each of these clones were found to be positive.",
"FIG. 8 shows a typical FACS profile obtained for these clones.",
"EXAMPLE 5 Production of Transgenic Mice Expressing Chimeric α(1,2)Fucosyltransferase A NruI/NotI DNA fragment, encoding the full length chimeric α1,2fucosyltransferase, was generated utilizing the Polymerase Chain Reaction and the phHT plasmid using the primers: 5′ primer homologous to the 5′ UTR: 5′-T TCGCGA ATGAATGTCAAAGGAAGACTCTG, (SEQ ID NO.",
"9) in which the underlined sequence contains a unique NruI site;",
"3′ primer homologous to the 3′ UTR: 5′-G GCGGCCGC TCAGATGTTATTTCTAACCAAAT the underlined sequence contains a NotI site The DNA was purified on gels, electroeluted and subcloned into a NruI/NotI cut genomic H-2Kb containing vector resulting in the plasmid clone (pH-2Kb-gtHT) encoding thee chimeric α(1,2)-fucosyltransferase gene directionally cloned into exon 1 of the murine H-2Kb gene, resulting in a transcript that commences at the H-2Kb transcriptional start site, continuing through the gtHT cDNA insert.",
"The construct was engineered such that translation would begin at the initiation condon (ATG) of the hHT cDNA and terminate at the in-phase stop codon (TGA).",
"DNA was prepared for microinjection by digesting pH-2Kb-hHT with XhoI And purification of the H-2Kb-hRT DNA from vector by electrophoretic separation in agarose gels, followed by extraction with chloroform, and precipitation in ethanol to decontaminate the DNA.",
"Injections were performed into the pronuclear membrane of (C57BL/6xSJL)F1 zygotes at concentrations between 2-5 ng/ml, and the zygotes transferred to pseudopregnant (C57BL/6xSJL)F1 females.",
"The presence of the transgene in the live offspring was detected by dot blotting.",
"5 mg of genomic DNA was transferred to nylon filters and hybridized with the insert from gtHT, using a final wash at 68° C. in 0.1xSSC/1% SDS.",
"FIG. 9 thaws the results of testing 12 live offspring, with two mice having the transgenic construct integrated into the genome.",
"Expression of transgenic protein is examined by estimating the amount of UEAI lectin (specific for H substance) or anti-H mAb required to haemagglutinate red blood cells from transgenic mice.",
"Hemagglutination in this assay demonstrates transgene expression.",
"It will be apparent to the person skilled in the art that while the invention has been described in some detail for the purposes of clarity and understanding, various modifications and alterations to the embodiments and methods described herein may be made without departing from the scope of the inventive concept disclosed in this specification.",
"References cited herein are listed on the following pages, and are incorporated herein by this reference.",
"TABLE 1 EXPRESSION OF GAL-α(1,3)GAL AND H SUBSTANCE BY COS CELLS TRANSFECTED WITH cDNAs ENCODING NORMAL AND CHIMERIC GLYCOSYLTRANSFERASES COS cells transfected % IB4 positive % UEAI positive with cDNA encoding: cells cells GT 30 0 HT 0 50 ht − GT 30 0 gt − HT 3 50 GT + HT 3 50 ht − GT + gt − HT 33 5 GT + gt − HT 30 30 GT + ht − GT 30 0 HT + ht − GT 30 30 HT + gt − HT 0 50 Mock 0 0 Transfected COS cells were stained with FITC-labelled IB4 (lectin specific for Gal-α(1,3)Gal or UEAI (lectin specific for H substance) and positive staining cells were visualized and counted by fluorescence microscopy.",
"Results are from at least three replicates.",
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] |
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] This application claims priority to French Application No. 1259422 filed Oct. 4, 2012.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0002] 1. Field of the Invention
[0003] The invention relates to a light guide for a lighting and/or signaling module, notably for a vehicle. The invention also relates to a support for such a light guide. The invention also relates to a lighting and/or signaling module comprising such a support and possibly such a guide arranged on the support.
[0004] 2. Description of the Related Art
[0005] In the field of motor vehicle lighting and signaling, it is becoming increasingly commonplace for use to be made of optical waveguides, An optical waveguide is, very schematically speaking, an elongate element of transparent material, generally in the form of a cylinder. Near one of the ends of the guide, referred to as the input face of the guide, there is (or are) one (or more) light sources, for example a small-size light source of the light-emitting diode type: the rays of light emitted by this source travel by total reflection along the length of the guide toward its opposite end referred to as the terminal face of the guide. Some of the rays of light passing along the guide will emerge via the face referred to as the front face of the guide because of the presence of reflective elements arranged on the face, opposite to the previous face, referred to as the rear face of the guide. These reflective elements consist for example of prisms, forming reflective facets.
[0006] The guide thus emits light along its entire length. It has the advantage of being able to adopt very varied geometric shapes, of being straight or curved into an arc of a circle, and of conveying a lighting surface even to somewhat inaccessible regions of the vehicle light or headlamp. It thus makes a significant contribution toward the style of the light or of the headlamp. Depending on the overall shape of the guide or even on the length thereof, it may prove difficult to attach to the light or headlamp of the vehicle, particularly when there is a need to ensure that the guide maintains a uniform appearance over the entirety of its visible length.
[0007] Patent document DE 10 2007 010 023 A1 discloses a signaling device of the flashing indicator type intended to be incorporated into an external rear-view mirror of a vehicle. It comprises a light guide consisting of two elements which are elongate in two parallel longitudinal directions and connected to one another by a central part running along the elements. Lugs for attaching the guide to a support are provided at one of the two ends thereof. The support comprises two longitudinal enclosures which are parallel and of U-shaped overall section. Each longitudinal element of the guide is housed in one of these enclosures. The guide is thus held only by its two ends, the two parallel longitudinal elements being held in their respective enclosures with their exterior surface distant from the surface of the enclosure, This way of attaching the light guide is practicable for guides of short length, and in particular for multiple guides of greater rigidity, the issue being that for simple light guides, there is a risk that such attachment may pose problems, notably problems of uncontrolled contact between the surface of the guide and that of the enclosure.
[0008] U.S. Publication No. U.S. 2005/0254253 A1, now U.S. Pat. No. 6,984,062, discloses a vehicle headlamp equipped with two circular signaling modules, each one surrounding a lighting module. Each of these signaling modules comprises a longitudinal light guide of circular overall shape. It is housed in an enclosure, likewise circular and comprising notches intended to collaborate with fixing tabs extending rearward from the rear face of the guide. These tabs are generally flexible and provided with a positive-contact surface able to collaborate with the edge of the corresponding notch of the support. The enclosure is generally circular and of generally rectangular cross section open in such a way as to be able to accept the light guide the corresponding cross section of which is likewise approximately rectangular. The closed end of the enclosure comprises a series of openings intended to let out the rays of light emitted by the light source positioned behind the light guide. This module is fairly advantageous from the standpoint of its simplicity of construction. The fixing tabs do, however, influence the transmission of light. This effect is not excessively troublesome in the module configuration described therein because the enclosure has four openings feeding the guide with light and these are distributed about its circumference. The non-uniformities caused by the fixing tabs are thus reduced. In the case of a light guide fed only via one of its ends, or even by both, this solution does generate non-uniformities that do present a problem. In addition, this type of mounting requires contact between the rear face of the guide and the surface of the enclosure. The rectangular cross section of the guide and of the enclosure also constitute a limitation which may prove penalizing for other applications.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0009] One objective of the present invention is to propose a light guide and a corresponding support which alleviates at least one of the above-mentioned disadvantages. More particularly, the objective of the present invention is to propose a light guide and a corresponding support which allows satisfactory attachment of the guide and provide satisfactorily uniform lighting along the length of the guide.
[0010] One subject of the invention is an optical light guide with a longitudinal direction and a cross section forming a closed general outline, the optical guide being made of a transparent material able to form a diopter with its environment and able to transmit and guide rays of light by multiple reflection off the diopter, the optical guide comprising a visible portion with means able to reflect transversally some of the rays passing along it so as to cause them to leave the guide; notable in that the optical guide comprises a continuous longitudinal rib on the visible portion of the guide, projecting from the general outline, the rib being intended to collaborate with a support so that the optical guide can be attached to the support.
[0011] The guide may have a plurality of ribs, for example several ribs aligned in one and the same longitudinal direction and/or several ribs distributed about the periphery of the cross section of the optical guide.
[0012] For preference, the overall outline of the cross section of the optical guide has a constant concavity over the entire outline. The overall outline disregards the rib.
[0013] According to one advantageous embodiment of the invention, the means able to reflect some of the rays transversally comprise a succession of reflective facets distributed longitudinally over a rear part of the surface of the visible portion of the optical guide, the means being able to reflect some of the rays of light passing along the guide so as to cause them to leave the optical guide through a front part of the surface, the rib being positioned on the overall outline of the optical guide in such a way as to be between the rear part and the rear part of the surface, preferably approximately mid-way between these two zones. The rib is thus ideally positioned to cause the least possible disturbance to the sets of reflections going on within the optical guide.
[0014] According to another advantageous embodiment of the invention, the rib has a quadrilateral-shaped overall section, preferably a rectangle the width and height of which are less than 10%, preferably 5%, more preferably still 3% of the mean dimension of the cross section of the element. The notably quadrilateral-shaped cross section may have rounded corners.
[0015] According to yet another advantageous embodiment of the invention, the rib is formed integrally with the optical guide, preferably by molding,
[0016] Another subject of the invention is a support for optical light guide of a lighting and/or signaling device, comprising a longitudinal enclosure able to receive the optical guide, wherein the optical guide is in accordance with the invention and the support comprises retaining means for holding the optical guide in the enclosure able to collaborate with the rib of the guide.
[0017] According to one advantageous embodiment of the invention, the retaining means comprise at least one positive-contact surface for positive contact with the rib able to hold the optical guide in the enclosure.
[0018] According to another advantageous embodiment of the invention, the retaining means comprise at least one arm, preferably a flexible one, supporting the positive-contact surface. For preference, the support comprises a series of arms distributed preferably uniformly along the longitudinal direction of the enclosure.
[0019] According to one embodiment of the invention, the arm or each arm comprises a hook and a flexible zone able to allow the hook to move as the guide is being inserted into its enclosure, each hook comprising a catching surface that catches on the rib of the light guide. According to one embodiment of the invention, this surface may be generally perpendicular to the direction in which the enclosure is open which essentially corresponds to the direction in which the guide is inserted into the enclosure. This surface thus forms a positive-contact surface for positive contact with the front surface of the rib of the guide.
[0020] According to another advantageous embodiment of the invention, at least one arm comprises a contact surface for contact with the rib of the guide as it is being inserted into the enclosure, the surface being inclined with respect to an overall direction in which the guide is inserted so as to allow the arm to move as the guide is being inserted into the enclosure so that the positive-contact surface can engage with the rib. In the embodiments in which the arm comprises a hook, it is the hook that has the inclined contact surface, thus allowing the guide to be inserted further, until the inclined surface leaves the surface of the rib and until the contact surface becomes positioned in front of the front surface of the rib, thus ensuring that the guide is retained or held in its enclosure.
[0021] According to yet another advantageous embodiment of the invention, the enclosure comprises at least one supporting surface for the guide, the supporting surface being generally opposite the retaining means for retaining the guide. For preference, the enclosure comprises a plurality of supporting surfaces distributed, preferably uniformly, along the longitudinal direction of the enclosure.
[0022] According to one embodiment, the flexible arms and the hooks apply to the guide a force that is directed toward the supporting surfaces. This elastic force ensures optimum retention of the guide in its enclosure.
[0023] According to yet another advantageous embodiment of the invention, the supporting surface for supporting the guide forms a ridge directed generally perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of the guide.
[0024] According to yet another advantageous embodiment of the invention, the enclosure has a generally U-shaped cross section the opening of which corresponds to a direction in which the light guide is inserted into the enclosure.
[0025] According to yet another advantageous embodiment of the invention, the enclosure comprises at least one bearing surface for the guide, the bearing surface being generally arranged in the bottom of the enclosure in the direction of insertion, the surface preferably forming a rib in a plane generally perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of the guide. For preference, the enclosure comprises a plurality of bearing surfaces distributed, preferably uniformly, along the longitudinal direction of the enclosure.
[0026] According to some embodiments of the invention, the thickness of the supporting and bearing surfaces is of the order of a few millimeters, preferably comprised between 0.5 mm and 5 mm, more preferably still comprised between 0.5 mm and 3 mm.
[0027] Another subject of the invention is a lighting and/or signaling module comprising a support with a longitudinal enclosure and a longitudinal light guide arranged in the enclosure of the support, wherein the support is in accordance with the invention and the guide is in accordance with the invention.
[0028] According to one advantageous embodiment of the invention, the module comprises a mask arranged opposite the visible portion of the guide and configured to mask the rib and form a window through which rays leaving the guide can propagate, the rib extending continuously over essentially the entire length of the window.
[0029] According to one advantageous embodiment of the invention, the module comprises several windows arranged adjacently along the light guide, the rib of the guide running continuously essentially over the entire length of each of the windows.
[0030] Another subject of the invention is a lighting and/or signaling device comprising a module according to the invention.
[0031] These and other objects and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the following description, the accompanying drawings and the appended claims.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE ACCOMPANYING DRAWINGS
[0032] Other features and advantages of the present invention will be better understood with the aid of the description and drawings among which:
[0033] FIG. 1 is a view in cross section of a lighting or signaling device comprising a module with a light guide and a support for the guide which are in accordance with the invention;
[0034] FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a first embodiment of a light guide according to the invention;
[0035] FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a second embodiment of a light guide according to the invention;
[0036] FIG. 4 is a front view of a section of light guide illustrating how the window in a mask and the rib line up in the longitudinal direction; and
[0037] FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the light guide support of FIG. 1 .
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
[0038] The various embodiments illustrated in the figures are deliberately simplified and schematic for the sake of the clarity of the description of the invention. In practice, the various elements that make up the invention may adopt shapes that are significantly more complicated, notably as a result of the various constraints associated with sizing.
[0039] In the description that is to follow, terms qualifying the position of certain elements, such as “above”, “below”, “front”, “rear”, “in front of”, “behind”, “horizontal”, “vertical”, “upper”, “lower”, etc. refer to the specific arrangements in the figures. However, these terms should not be interpreted in a strict and absolute sense but rather in a relative sense. Specifically, the signaling modules described therein may in practice be oriented differently without in any way departing from the invention.
[0040] Part of a lighting or signaling device 2 has been illustrated in cross section in FIG. 1 . This part comprises a signaling module according to the invention. More specifically, the lighting or signaling device 2 comprising a housing 4 and an outer lens 6 contains a signaling module essentially comprising a support 8 , a light guide 12 and a mask 10 . The light guide 12 is an element that is generally elongate in a longitudinal direction. The latter direction does not have to be rectilinear, quite the opposite, it may be curved. The light guide 12 has a cross section the overall outline of which is closed. The cross section of the light guide 12 is generally constant. Depending on the application though it may vary somewhat along the longitudinal direction of the light guide 12 . In the specific case of FIG. 1 (and of FIGS. 2 , 3 and 4 which will be described hereinafter), the cross section of the light guide 12 is of oval shape. However, it may adopt various shapes with closed contours such as notably elliptical, circular, rectangular or square shapes, or even more complex shapes still. The light guide 12 is made of a transparent material such as polycarbonate. Other materials may be used, for example polymethyl methacralate PMMA or other suitable transparent polymers.
[0041] The light guide 12 is arranged in an enclosure of the support 8 . The enclosure comprises a supporting surface 20 opposite a retaining hook 16 collaborating with a rib 14 belonging to the light guide 12 . In effect, the light guide 12 has a rib 14 running generally longitudinally along its surface so as to project from the overall outline of its cross section, The enclosure of the support 8 also comprises a bearing surface arranged in the closed end of the enclosure and intended to come into contact with a rear zone of the light guide 12 .
[0042] The mask 10 placed in front of the light guide 12 is mounted on the support 8 . It is intended to mask the support 8 and the zones in which the light guide 12 is mounted on the support 8 . It therefore comprises a window intended to let the rays of light emitted by the light guide 12 through to the zone that is to be lit or illuminated.
[0043] The light guide 12 is fed with rays of light in a conventional way from one of its ends that forms an input face. In the conventional way it comprises a series of reflective facets along the rear zone of its surface, so as to deflect rays passing along it in a transverse direction directed toward the zone that is to be lit or illuminated. These deflected rays pass through the window 24 of the mask 10 .
[0044] A first embodiment of the light guide 12 according to the invention is illustrated in FIG. 2 . The light guide 12 illustrated is rectilinear for the sake of the clarity of the description, on the understanding that it may be curved. A light source 22 such as, for example, of the light-emitting diode type, has been illustrated facing the input face of the light guide 12 . The rib 14 extends over the entire useful length of the light guide 12 , this useful length essentially corresponding at least to the length of the window in the mask, which is illustrated by the rectangle 24 . This is because, since the purpose of the rib 14 is to act as a zone for the attachment of the light guide 12 , it is important for this rib 14 to extend over most of the length of the visible zone of the light guide 12 so as to avoid generating any non-uniformity in the appearance of the visible zone when the light guide 12 is illuminated. Because of the transparent very nature of the material of the light guide 12 and because of the phenomenon of successive reflections off the diopter formed by its exterior surface with the ambient air, the rib 14 is able to guide the rays of light that pass along the light guide 12 , and potentially cause some of them to leave the light guide 12 in a direction transverse to the longitudinal direction of the light guide 12 . Such rays are caught by the mask 10 so that they are not visible from outside the lighting or signaling device 2 . A break in the rib 14 could generate a non-uniformity in the visible part of the light guide 12 . It is therefore beneficial for this rib 14 to extend continuously over most of the length of the window 24 of the mask 10 .
[0045] A second embodiment is illustrated in FIG. 3 . In a similar way to what was mentioned in respect of FIG. 2 , the light guide 120 illustrated is rectilinear for the sake of clarity, it being understood that it could be curved. A light source 22 such as, for example, of the light-emitting diode type is illustrated facing the input face of the light guide 120 . The light guide 120 comprises a series of continuous ribs 141 , 142 and 143 . A window 241 , 242 and 243 is arranged in front of each of the ribs 141 , 142 and 143 . Each of these ribs extends over at least approximately the entire length of the corresponding window, for the same reasons as were given hereinabove in relation to FIG. 2 . The various ribs 141 , 142 and 143 are preferably aligned. However, they may exhibit a certain offset without thereby generating any lack of uniformity.
[0046] In general, the rib ( 14 , 141 , 142 , 143 ) has a generally rectangular cross section so as to form a contact surface able to retain the light guide ( 12 , 120 ) in the enclosure in the support 8 . The dimensions of the cross section of the rib are of the order of 1 millimeter. The height of the rib is typically of the order of 1 mm. However, it may be comprised between 0.5 mm and 3 mm. The same is true of the width.
[0047] FIG. 4 is a front-on view of a portion of light guide 12 and of a window 24 defining the visible zone of the portion of light guide 12 . It may be seen that the window 24 has a length L and that the continuous rib 14 has a length I. For preference and contrary to what has been illustrated in FIG. 4 , the length I of the rib 14 is greater than or equal to the length L of the window and the rib 14 extends over the entire length L of the window 24 . This is because in this way, any non-uniformities that could be generated by breaks in the rib 14 are completely masked by the mask. Depending on the actual distance between the mask 10 and the light guide 12 and, more particularly, the rib 14 , it may be beneficial to have the rib 14 protrude beyond the corresponding edge of the window 24 so as to guard against any problem of non-uniformity if the module is observed from a direction that is transverse to the main direction of lighting or illumination of the module. Such protrusion could be of the order of a few millimeters.
[0048] Depending on the size and shape of the rib 14 , a break therein could have a very small influence on the uniformity of the visible part of the light guide 12 . The non-uniformity may prove to be visible only a certain distance away from the break in the rib 14 . In that case, the length I of the rib 14 may possibly be slightly shorter than the length L of the window 24 as has been illustrated in FIG. 4 . The zones of the window 24 that correspond to an absence of rib 14 have, on each side of the rib 14 , lengths l 1 et l 2. These lengths may therefore be of the order of a few millimeters.
[0049] In general, it should be noted that the window or windows formed by the mask or masks 10 are configured to have a height slightly shorter than the height of the light guide 12 and included within the height of the light guide 12 , so as to mask the guide attachment zones properly. This situation is clearly visible in FIG. 1 and in FIG. 4 . The lower and upper edges of the window or windows 24 are therefore set back from the upper and lower edges of the light guide 12 . This setback is not compulsory but preferred. It is of course dependent on the size of the light guide 12 and is of the order of a few percent of the height of the light guide 12 . For preference it is comprised between 1% and 20% of the height of the light guide 12 , more preferably between 1% and 15%, and more preferably still, between 3% and 10%.
[0050] The support 8 for the signaling module of FIG. 1 is illustrated in perspective in FIG. 5 . There, the enclosure in the overall shape of a U intended to accept the light guide 12 can be clearly seen. In order to avoid excessively large contact surfaces for the contact between the light guide 12 and the enclosure, the latter comprises a series of generally horizontal and transverse supporting surfaces 20 distributed along its longitudinal direction. Each of these supporting surfaces 20 forms a ridge on the surface of the enclosure. For preference, each of these supporting surfaces 20 is arranged facing an arm 26 and retaining hook 16 . For preference, each of these supporting surfaces 20 has a front part that is inclined so as to guide the light guide 12 and make it easier to insert into its enclosure.
[0051] Bearing surfaces 18 in the form of ribs are arranged along the closed end of the enclosure to bear the rear zone of the light guide 12 . Creating these in the form of ribs means that the contact surfaces for contact with the light guide 12 can be minimized while at the same time ensuring very stable attachment. For preference, each of these surfaces is aligned with the corresponding supporting surface 20 and/or the corresponding flexible arm 26 and hook 16 . The thickness of the supporting surfaces 20 and bearing surfaces 18 is of the order of a few millimeters, preferably comprised between 0.5 mm and 5 mm, more preferably still comprised between 0.5 mm and 3 mm.
[0052] Each flexible arm 26 comprises a hook 16 and a flexible zone able to allow the hook 16 to move as the light guide 12 is being inserted into its enclosure. Each hook 16 comprises a catching surface for catching on the rib 14 of the light guide 12 , this surface being generally perpendicular to the direction in which the enclosure is open which direction essentially corresponds to the direction in which the light guide 12 is inserted into the enclosure. This surface thus forms a positive-contact surface for positive contact with the front surface of the rib 14 of the light guide 12 . Each hook 16 also comprises a front surface that is inclined with respect to the direction in which the light guide 12 is inserted into the enclosure, this surface being intended to collaborate with the upper surface of the rib 14 of the light guide 12 . This front surface of the hook 16 is inclined so that the force of inserting the light guide 12 in the direction of insertion generates a perpendicular component directed away from the enclosure, this component allowing the arm 26 to flex and allowing the light guide 12 to be inserted further until the front surface leaves the upper surface of the rib 14 and until the contact surface is positioned in front of the front surface of the rib 14 , thus retaining the light guide 12 in its enclosure.
[0053] For preference, the flexible arms 26 and the hooks 16 apply a force to the light guide 12 that is directed toward the supporting surfaces. This elastic force ensures optimal retention of the light guide 12 in its enclosure.
[0054] It should be noted that the positive-contact surfaces for contact with the rib 14 may adopt shapes other than those illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 5 . The presence of flexible arms 26 is not compulsory. By way of example, it is in fact conceivable to provide one or more mobile elements supporting the contact surfaces, this or these mobile elements for example being able to be locked in a closed position in which the contact surfaces collaborate by engaging with the rib or ribs 14 of the light guide 12 .
[0055] The support 8 is preferably made of molded plastic, for example polyoxymethylene (or polyformaldehyde) which is a polymer also known as POM according to the ISO standard.
[0056] While the system, apparatus, process and method herein described constitute preferred embodiments of this invention, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited to this precise system, apparatus, process and method, and that changes may be made therein without departing from the scope of the invention which is defined in the appended claims. | The invention relates to a lighting and/or signaling module comprising a support, a light guide arranged in an enclosure of said support and a mask arranged on the support and extending in front of the light guide. The light guide comprises a longitudinal rib intended to collaborate by engaging with a series of hooks belonging to the support. The mask is intended to mask the mounting zones of the light guide. It comprises one or more windows intended to let through the rays of light emitted transversally by the light guide. The rib extends continuously over essentially the entire length of each of the windows. The rib allows simple, rapid and reliable attachment of the light guide to its support. The continuity of the rib among each of the windows means that the creation of any visible non-uniformity through said windows is avoided. | Summarize the information, clearly outlining the challenges and proposed solutions. | [
"CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS [0001] This application claims priority to French Application No. 1259422 filed Oct. 4, 2012.",
"BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION [0002] 1.",
"Field of the Invention [0003] The invention relates to a light guide for a lighting and/or signaling module, notably for a vehicle.",
"The invention also relates to a support for such a light guide.",
"The invention also relates to a lighting and/or signaling module comprising such a support and possibly such a guide arranged on the support.",
"[0004] 2.",
"Description of the Related Art [0005] In the field of motor vehicle lighting and signaling, it is becoming increasingly commonplace for use to be made of optical waveguides, An optical waveguide is, very schematically speaking, an elongate element of transparent material, generally in the form of a cylinder.",
"Near one of the ends of the guide, referred to as the input face of the guide, there is (or are) one (or more) light sources, for example a small-size light source of the light-emitting diode type: the rays of light emitted by this source travel by total reflection along the length of the guide toward its opposite end referred to as the terminal face of the guide.",
"Some of the rays of light passing along the guide will emerge via the face referred to as the front face of the guide because of the presence of reflective elements arranged on the face, opposite to the previous face, referred to as the rear face of the guide.",
"These reflective elements consist for example of prisms, forming reflective facets.",
"[0006] The guide thus emits light along its entire length.",
"It has the advantage of being able to adopt very varied geometric shapes, of being straight or curved into an arc of a circle, and of conveying a lighting surface even to somewhat inaccessible regions of the vehicle light or headlamp.",
"It thus makes a significant contribution toward the style of the light or of the headlamp.",
"Depending on the overall shape of the guide or even on the length thereof, it may prove difficult to attach to the light or headlamp of the vehicle, particularly when there is a need to ensure that the guide maintains a uniform appearance over the entirety of its visible length.",
"[0007] Patent document DE 10 2007 010 023 A1 discloses a signaling device of the flashing indicator type intended to be incorporated into an external rear-view mirror of a vehicle.",
"It comprises a light guide consisting of two elements which are elongate in two parallel longitudinal directions and connected to one another by a central part running along the elements.",
"Lugs for attaching the guide to a support are provided at one of the two ends thereof.",
"The support comprises two longitudinal enclosures which are parallel and of U-shaped overall section.",
"Each longitudinal element of the guide is housed in one of these enclosures.",
"The guide is thus held only by its two ends, the two parallel longitudinal elements being held in their respective enclosures with their exterior surface distant from the surface of the enclosure, This way of attaching the light guide is practicable for guides of short length, and in particular for multiple guides of greater rigidity, the issue being that for simple light guides, there is a risk that such attachment may pose problems, notably problems of uncontrolled contact between the surface of the guide and that of the enclosure.",
"[0008] U.S. Publication No. U.S. 2005/0254253 A1, now U.S. Pat. No. 6,984,062, discloses a vehicle headlamp equipped with two circular signaling modules, each one surrounding a lighting module.",
"Each of these signaling modules comprises a longitudinal light guide of circular overall shape.",
"It is housed in an enclosure, likewise circular and comprising notches intended to collaborate with fixing tabs extending rearward from the rear face of the guide.",
"These tabs are generally flexible and provided with a positive-contact surface able to collaborate with the edge of the corresponding notch of the support.",
"The enclosure is generally circular and of generally rectangular cross section open in such a way as to be able to accept the light guide the corresponding cross section of which is likewise approximately rectangular.",
"The closed end of the enclosure comprises a series of openings intended to let out the rays of light emitted by the light source positioned behind the light guide.",
"This module is fairly advantageous from the standpoint of its simplicity of construction.",
"The fixing tabs do, however, influence the transmission of light.",
"This effect is not excessively troublesome in the module configuration described therein because the enclosure has four openings feeding the guide with light and these are distributed about its circumference.",
"The non-uniformities caused by the fixing tabs are thus reduced.",
"In the case of a light guide fed only via one of its ends, or even by both, this solution does generate non-uniformities that do present a problem.",
"In addition, this type of mounting requires contact between the rear face of the guide and the surface of the enclosure.",
"The rectangular cross section of the guide and of the enclosure also constitute a limitation which may prove penalizing for other applications.",
"SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION [0009] One objective of the present invention is to propose a light guide and a corresponding support which alleviates at least one of the above-mentioned disadvantages.",
"More particularly, the objective of the present invention is to propose a light guide and a corresponding support which allows satisfactory attachment of the guide and provide satisfactorily uniform lighting along the length of the guide.",
"[0010] One subject of the invention is an optical light guide with a longitudinal direction and a cross section forming a closed general outline, the optical guide being made of a transparent material able to form a diopter with its environment and able to transmit and guide rays of light by multiple reflection off the diopter, the optical guide comprising a visible portion with means able to reflect transversally some of the rays passing along it so as to cause them to leave the guide;",
"notable in that the optical guide comprises a continuous longitudinal rib on the visible portion of the guide, projecting from the general outline, the rib being intended to collaborate with a support so that the optical guide can be attached to the support.",
"[0011] The guide may have a plurality of ribs, for example several ribs aligned in one and the same longitudinal direction and/or several ribs distributed about the periphery of the cross section of the optical guide.",
"[0012] For preference, the overall outline of the cross section of the optical guide has a constant concavity over the entire outline.",
"The overall outline disregards the rib.",
"[0013] According to one advantageous embodiment of the invention, the means able to reflect some of the rays transversally comprise a succession of reflective facets distributed longitudinally over a rear part of the surface of the visible portion of the optical guide, the means being able to reflect some of the rays of light passing along the guide so as to cause them to leave the optical guide through a front part of the surface, the rib being positioned on the overall outline of the optical guide in such a way as to be between the rear part and the rear part of the surface, preferably approximately mid-way between these two zones.",
"The rib is thus ideally positioned to cause the least possible disturbance to the sets of reflections going on within the optical guide.",
"[0014] According to another advantageous embodiment of the invention, the rib has a quadrilateral-shaped overall section, preferably a rectangle the width and height of which are less than 10%, preferably 5%, more preferably still 3% of the mean dimension of the cross section of the element.",
"The notably quadrilateral-shaped cross section may have rounded corners.",
"[0015] According to yet another advantageous embodiment of the invention, the rib is formed integrally with the optical guide, preferably by molding, [0016] Another subject of the invention is a support for optical light guide of a lighting and/or signaling device, comprising a longitudinal enclosure able to receive the optical guide, wherein the optical guide is in accordance with the invention and the support comprises retaining means for holding the optical guide in the enclosure able to collaborate with the rib of the guide.",
"[0017] According to one advantageous embodiment of the invention, the retaining means comprise at least one positive-contact surface for positive contact with the rib able to hold the optical guide in the enclosure.",
"[0018] According to another advantageous embodiment of the invention, the retaining means comprise at least one arm, preferably a flexible one, supporting the positive-contact surface.",
"For preference, the support comprises a series of arms distributed preferably uniformly along the longitudinal direction of the enclosure.",
"[0019] According to one embodiment of the invention, the arm or each arm comprises a hook and a flexible zone able to allow the hook to move as the guide is being inserted into its enclosure, each hook comprising a catching surface that catches on the rib of the light guide.",
"According to one embodiment of the invention, this surface may be generally perpendicular to the direction in which the enclosure is open which essentially corresponds to the direction in which the guide is inserted into the enclosure.",
"This surface thus forms a positive-contact surface for positive contact with the front surface of the rib of the guide.",
"[0020] According to another advantageous embodiment of the invention, at least one arm comprises a contact surface for contact with the rib of the guide as it is being inserted into the enclosure, the surface being inclined with respect to an overall direction in which the guide is inserted so as to allow the arm to move as the guide is being inserted into the enclosure so that the positive-contact surface can engage with the rib.",
"In the embodiments in which the arm comprises a hook, it is the hook that has the inclined contact surface, thus allowing the guide to be inserted further, until the inclined surface leaves the surface of the rib and until the contact surface becomes positioned in front of the front surface of the rib, thus ensuring that the guide is retained or held in its enclosure.",
"[0021] According to yet another advantageous embodiment of the invention, the enclosure comprises at least one supporting surface for the guide, the supporting surface being generally opposite the retaining means for retaining the guide.",
"For preference, the enclosure comprises a plurality of supporting surfaces distributed, preferably uniformly, along the longitudinal direction of the enclosure.",
"[0022] According to one embodiment, the flexible arms and the hooks apply to the guide a force that is directed toward the supporting surfaces.",
"This elastic force ensures optimum retention of the guide in its enclosure.",
"[0023] According to yet another advantageous embodiment of the invention, the supporting surface for supporting the guide forms a ridge directed generally perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of the guide.",
"[0024] According to yet another advantageous embodiment of the invention, the enclosure has a generally U-shaped cross section the opening of which corresponds to a direction in which the light guide is inserted into the enclosure.",
"[0025] According to yet another advantageous embodiment of the invention, the enclosure comprises at least one bearing surface for the guide, the bearing surface being generally arranged in the bottom of the enclosure in the direction of insertion, the surface preferably forming a rib in a plane generally perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of the guide.",
"For preference, the enclosure comprises a plurality of bearing surfaces distributed, preferably uniformly, along the longitudinal direction of the enclosure.",
"[0026] According to some embodiments of the invention, the thickness of the supporting and bearing surfaces is of the order of a few millimeters, preferably comprised between 0.5 mm and 5 mm, more preferably still comprised between 0.5 mm and 3 mm.",
"[0027] Another subject of the invention is a lighting and/or signaling module comprising a support with a longitudinal enclosure and a longitudinal light guide arranged in the enclosure of the support, wherein the support is in accordance with the invention and the guide is in accordance with the invention.",
"[0028] According to one advantageous embodiment of the invention, the module comprises a mask arranged opposite the visible portion of the guide and configured to mask the rib and form a window through which rays leaving the guide can propagate, the rib extending continuously over essentially the entire length of the window.",
"[0029] According to one advantageous embodiment of the invention, the module comprises several windows arranged adjacently along the light guide, the rib of the guide running continuously essentially over the entire length of each of the windows.",
"[0030] Another subject of the invention is a lighting and/or signaling device comprising a module according to the invention.",
"[0031] These and other objects and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the following description, the accompanying drawings and the appended claims.",
"BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE ACCOMPANYING DRAWINGS [0032] Other features and advantages of the present invention will be better understood with the aid of the description and drawings among which: [0033] FIG. 1 is a view in cross section of a lighting or signaling device comprising a module with a light guide and a support for the guide which are in accordance with the invention;",
"[0034] FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a first embodiment of a light guide according to the invention;",
"[0035] FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a second embodiment of a light guide according to the invention;",
"[0036] FIG. 4 is a front view of a section of light guide illustrating how the window in a mask and the rib line up in the longitudinal direction;",
"and [0037] FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the light guide support of FIG. 1 .",
"DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS [0038] The various embodiments illustrated in the figures are deliberately simplified and schematic for the sake of the clarity of the description of the invention.",
"In practice, the various elements that make up the invention may adopt shapes that are significantly more complicated, notably as a result of the various constraints associated with sizing.",
"[0039] In the description that is to follow, terms qualifying the position of certain elements, such as “above”, “below”, “front”, “rear”, “in front of”, “behind”, “horizontal”, “vertical”, “upper”, “lower”, etc.",
"refer to the specific arrangements in the figures.",
"However, these terms should not be interpreted in a strict and absolute sense but rather in a relative sense.",
"Specifically, the signaling modules described therein may in practice be oriented differently without in any way departing from the invention.",
"[0040] Part of a lighting or signaling device 2 has been illustrated in cross section in FIG. 1 .",
"This part comprises a signaling module according to the invention.",
"More specifically, the lighting or signaling device 2 comprising a housing 4 and an outer lens 6 contains a signaling module essentially comprising a support 8 , a light guide 12 and a mask 10 .",
"The light guide 12 is an element that is generally elongate in a longitudinal direction.",
"The latter direction does not have to be rectilinear, quite the opposite, it may be curved.",
"The light guide 12 has a cross section the overall outline of which is closed.",
"The cross section of the light guide 12 is generally constant.",
"Depending on the application though it may vary somewhat along the longitudinal direction of the light guide 12 .",
"In the specific case of FIG. 1 (and of FIGS. 2 , 3 and 4 which will be described hereinafter), the cross section of the light guide 12 is of oval shape.",
"However, it may adopt various shapes with closed contours such as notably elliptical, circular, rectangular or square shapes, or even more complex shapes still.",
"The light guide 12 is made of a transparent material such as polycarbonate.",
"Other materials may be used, for example polymethyl methacralate PMMA or other suitable transparent polymers.",
"[0041] The light guide 12 is arranged in an enclosure of the support 8 .",
"The enclosure comprises a supporting surface 20 opposite a retaining hook 16 collaborating with a rib 14 belonging to the light guide 12 .",
"In effect, the light guide 12 has a rib 14 running generally longitudinally along its surface so as to project from the overall outline of its cross section, The enclosure of the support 8 also comprises a bearing surface arranged in the closed end of the enclosure and intended to come into contact with a rear zone of the light guide 12 .",
"[0042] The mask 10 placed in front of the light guide 12 is mounted on the support 8 .",
"It is intended to mask the support 8 and the zones in which the light guide 12 is mounted on the support 8 .",
"It therefore comprises a window intended to let the rays of light emitted by the light guide 12 through to the zone that is to be lit or illuminated.",
"[0043] The light guide 12 is fed with rays of light in a conventional way from one of its ends that forms an input face.",
"In the conventional way it comprises a series of reflective facets along the rear zone of its surface, so as to deflect rays passing along it in a transverse direction directed toward the zone that is to be lit or illuminated.",
"These deflected rays pass through the window 24 of the mask 10 .",
"[0044] A first embodiment of the light guide 12 according to the invention is illustrated in FIG. 2 .",
"The light guide 12 illustrated is rectilinear for the sake of the clarity of the description, on the understanding that it may be curved.",
"A light source 22 such as, for example, of the light-emitting diode type, has been illustrated facing the input face of the light guide 12 .",
"The rib 14 extends over the entire useful length of the light guide 12 , this useful length essentially corresponding at least to the length of the window in the mask, which is illustrated by the rectangle 24 .",
"This is because, since the purpose of the rib 14 is to act as a zone for the attachment of the light guide 12 , it is important for this rib 14 to extend over most of the length of the visible zone of the light guide 12 so as to avoid generating any non-uniformity in the appearance of the visible zone when the light guide 12 is illuminated.",
"Because of the transparent very nature of the material of the light guide 12 and because of the phenomenon of successive reflections off the diopter formed by its exterior surface with the ambient air, the rib 14 is able to guide the rays of light that pass along the light guide 12 , and potentially cause some of them to leave the light guide 12 in a direction transverse to the longitudinal direction of the light guide 12 .",
"Such rays are caught by the mask 10 so that they are not visible from outside the lighting or signaling device 2 .",
"A break in the rib 14 could generate a non-uniformity in the visible part of the light guide 12 .",
"It is therefore beneficial for this rib 14 to extend continuously over most of the length of the window 24 of the mask 10 .",
"[0045] A second embodiment is illustrated in FIG. 3 .",
"In a similar way to what was mentioned in respect of FIG. 2 , the light guide 120 illustrated is rectilinear for the sake of clarity, it being understood that it could be curved.",
"A light source 22 such as, for example, of the light-emitting diode type is illustrated facing the input face of the light guide 120 .",
"The light guide 120 comprises a series of continuous ribs 141 , 142 and 143 .",
"A window 241 , 242 and 243 is arranged in front of each of the ribs 141 , 142 and 143 .",
"Each of these ribs extends over at least approximately the entire length of the corresponding window, for the same reasons as were given hereinabove in relation to FIG. 2 .",
"The various ribs 141 , 142 and 143 are preferably aligned.",
"However, they may exhibit a certain offset without thereby generating any lack of uniformity.",
"[0046] In general, the rib ( 14 , 141 , 142 , 143 ) has a generally rectangular cross section so as to form a contact surface able to retain the light guide ( 12 , 120 ) in the enclosure in the support 8 .",
"The dimensions of the cross section of the rib are of the order of 1 millimeter.",
"The height of the rib is typically of the order of 1 mm.",
"However, it may be comprised between 0.5 mm and 3 mm.",
"The same is true of the width.",
"[0047] FIG. 4 is a front-on view of a portion of light guide 12 and of a window 24 defining the visible zone of the portion of light guide 12 .",
"It may be seen that the window 24 has a length L and that the continuous rib 14 has a length I. For preference and contrary to what has been illustrated in FIG. 4 , the length I of the rib 14 is greater than or equal to the length L of the window and the rib 14 extends over the entire length L of the window 24 .",
"This is because in this way, any non-uniformities that could be generated by breaks in the rib 14 are completely masked by the mask.",
"Depending on the actual distance between the mask 10 and the light guide 12 and, more particularly, the rib 14 , it may be beneficial to have the rib 14 protrude beyond the corresponding edge of the window 24 so as to guard against any problem of non-uniformity if the module is observed from a direction that is transverse to the main direction of lighting or illumination of the module.",
"Such protrusion could be of the order of a few millimeters.",
"[0048] Depending on the size and shape of the rib 14 , a break therein could have a very small influence on the uniformity of the visible part of the light guide 12 .",
"The non-uniformity may prove to be visible only a certain distance away from the break in the rib 14 .",
"In that case, the length I of the rib 14 may possibly be slightly shorter than the length L of the window 24 as has been illustrated in FIG. 4 .",
"The zones of the window 24 that correspond to an absence of rib 14 have, on each side of the rib 14 , lengths l 1 et l 2.",
"These lengths may therefore be of the order of a few millimeters.",
"[0049] In general, it should be noted that the window or windows formed by the mask or masks 10 are configured to have a height slightly shorter than the height of the light guide 12 and included within the height of the light guide 12 , so as to mask the guide attachment zones properly.",
"This situation is clearly visible in FIG. 1 and in FIG. 4 .",
"The lower and upper edges of the window or windows 24 are therefore set back from the upper and lower edges of the light guide 12 .",
"This setback is not compulsory but preferred.",
"It is of course dependent on the size of the light guide 12 and is of the order of a few percent of the height of the light guide 12 .",
"For preference it is comprised between 1% and 20% of the height of the light guide 12 , more preferably between 1% and 15%, and more preferably still, between 3% and 10%.",
"[0050] The support 8 for the signaling module of FIG. 1 is illustrated in perspective in FIG. 5 .",
"There, the enclosure in the overall shape of a U intended to accept the light guide 12 can be clearly seen.",
"In order to avoid excessively large contact surfaces for the contact between the light guide 12 and the enclosure, the latter comprises a series of generally horizontal and transverse supporting surfaces 20 distributed along its longitudinal direction.",
"Each of these supporting surfaces 20 forms a ridge on the surface of the enclosure.",
"For preference, each of these supporting surfaces 20 is arranged facing an arm 26 and retaining hook 16 .",
"For preference, each of these supporting surfaces 20 has a front part that is inclined so as to guide the light guide 12 and make it easier to insert into its enclosure.",
"[0051] Bearing surfaces 18 in the form of ribs are arranged along the closed end of the enclosure to bear the rear zone of the light guide 12 .",
"Creating these in the form of ribs means that the contact surfaces for contact with the light guide 12 can be minimized while at the same time ensuring very stable attachment.",
"For preference, each of these surfaces is aligned with the corresponding supporting surface 20 and/or the corresponding flexible arm 26 and hook 16 .",
"The thickness of the supporting surfaces 20 and bearing surfaces 18 is of the order of a few millimeters, preferably comprised between 0.5 mm and 5 mm, more preferably still comprised between 0.5 mm and 3 mm.",
"[0052] Each flexible arm 26 comprises a hook 16 and a flexible zone able to allow the hook 16 to move as the light guide 12 is being inserted into its enclosure.",
"Each hook 16 comprises a catching surface for catching on the rib 14 of the light guide 12 , this surface being generally perpendicular to the direction in which the enclosure is open which direction essentially corresponds to the direction in which the light guide 12 is inserted into the enclosure.",
"This surface thus forms a positive-contact surface for positive contact with the front surface of the rib 14 of the light guide 12 .",
"Each hook 16 also comprises a front surface that is inclined with respect to the direction in which the light guide 12 is inserted into the enclosure, this surface being intended to collaborate with the upper surface of the rib 14 of the light guide 12 .",
"This front surface of the hook 16 is inclined so that the force of inserting the light guide 12 in the direction of insertion generates a perpendicular component directed away from the enclosure, this component allowing the arm 26 to flex and allowing the light guide 12 to be inserted further until the front surface leaves the upper surface of the rib 14 and until the contact surface is positioned in front of the front surface of the rib 14 , thus retaining the light guide 12 in its enclosure.",
"[0053] For preference, the flexible arms 26 and the hooks 16 apply a force to the light guide 12 that is directed toward the supporting surfaces.",
"This elastic force ensures optimal retention of the light guide 12 in its enclosure.",
"[0054] It should be noted that the positive-contact surfaces for contact with the rib 14 may adopt shapes other than those illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 5 .",
"The presence of flexible arms 26 is not compulsory.",
"By way of example, it is in fact conceivable to provide one or more mobile elements supporting the contact surfaces, this or these mobile elements for example being able to be locked in a closed position in which the contact surfaces collaborate by engaging with the rib or ribs 14 of the light guide 12 .",
"[0055] The support 8 is preferably made of molded plastic, for example polyoxymethylene (or polyformaldehyde) which is a polymer also known as POM according to the ISO standard.",
"[0056] While the system, apparatus, process and method herein described constitute preferred embodiments of this invention, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited to this precise system, apparatus, process and method, and that changes may be made therein without departing from the scope of the invention which is defined in the appended claims."
] |
TECHNICAL FIELD
The present invention refers to the cache management system (CMS) of a proxy server to store a single or multiple media of continuous flow such as video or audio being accessed from a Media-on-Demand (MoD) server by one or several users. The proxy server hereafter called proxy, reserves part of its cache memory for every user that starts a multimedia session. In this way, users can have smaller buffers, which reduce costs of set-top-boxes and client equipments, since the user buffer is complemented by the client's part in the reserved cache of the proxy. To optimize cache performance, the reserved part for a client can be superimposed by the part of another client, provided the two parts have the same contents, thus avoiding replication of redundant contents and increasing the rate of media reuse. These reserved cache parts can also be concatenated in such a way to further increase the reuse of media contents. The concatenation can happen inside of a single proxy cache or between several proxy caches in a cooperative way. The concatenation of parts of proxy caches is also used to offer facilities of videocassette recorder (VCR) operations. The non-reserved part of the cache is used either to store fragments of most popular media or to increase the concatenation degree of the cache's reserved parts. In this way, it is possible to increase the scalability of MoD systems while implementing VCR operations to offer an interactive system to the users of the MoD system.
PREVIOUS TECHNIQUES
The Distributed Cooperative Memory (DCM), as have been previously defined by PCT/BR 01/00029 of 26, Mar. 2001, changes the paradigm of the video-on-demand (VoD) system, from the conventional client-server to the peer-to-peer one. DCM allows the implementation of scalable and interactive VoD systems using a communication infrastructure based on symmetrical large bandwidth in which the uplink bandwidth is equal to the downlink bandwidth, allowing client uplink bandwidth to be exploited so that client equipment can also become a server by recycling the video flow that it receives. Such a communication infrastructure is more often available only at large companies, research centers, or at academic institutions, which currently restricts its use to corporative users.
The home user has no access yet to this kind of communication infrastructure, since providing it at a large scale is still unfeasible due to the high implementation costs of the so-called ‘last-mile’. There exists a high-speed communication backbone, but connecting thousands of users to it through large-bandwidth links would require great investments. However, those thousands of users are already connected to a telephony infrastructure based on copper wires, an investment that the telecommunication companies want to preserve while taking advantage of it to offer communication services based on large bandwidth. Another option is to use wireless network technology, whose quick installation and cost-reduction trends, can make it a viable alternative for offering large bandwidth access to the end user in the near future.
In this technological context, the ADSL (Asymmetrical Digital Subscriber Line) technology was developed, which enables a conventional telephone line to transmit digital information, with downlink bandwidth being much larger than that of uplink and using the same pair of copper wires already installed at user's home. The explanation is that a client usually receives much more information than sends, so that a client uplink with small bandwidth to allow interactivity and voice transmission is enough to support immediate user's needs, and the remainder bandwidth that can be exploited in conventional telephone lines is left to the client downlink. ADSL lines converge to a central station called DSLAM (Digital Subscriber Line Access Multiplexer), similar to a central telephone station, which in turn is interconnected by a high-speed network. Recently, other access technologies grouped together under the acronym xDSL have been developed, which comprise both symmetrical and asymmetrical accesses with different data transmission speeds. Note that everything that has been stated for ADSLs can be also applied to xDSLs.
In case of wireless access, the available bandwidth is also limited but already guarantees bandwidth up to 12-Mbps for point-to-point access, which allows to comfortably transmitting a good-quality video. For point-to-point wireless network also there exists a central access point (CAP) usually called the Head end.
In case of users being connected directly to a high-speed network either through a router or switch, either equipment becomes the access point.
To make viable the use of DCM within this kind of communication infrastructure, the client buffers of standard DCM were collapsed in the central access points (CPAs) such as DSLAMs, Head ends, or routers/switches, in their existing memories or in proxies connected to them. The proxies work on symmetrical and asymmetrical architectures, and can be located at any point of the network; the difference is that the proxy will use the C-DCM (Collapsed Distributed Cooperative Memory) for its cache management. To summarize, a proxy can be distinct from CPA or can be incorporated into it. The policy of cache management of a C-DCM proxy differs in several aspects from traditional policies such as LRU (Least Recently Used) or MRU (Most Recently Used) since the exploration of ‘hot data sets’ does not apply to large files. Also, C-DCM policy differs from multimedia policies such as BASIC, DISTANCE, INTERVAL CACHING (IC) and GENERALIZED INTERVAL CACHING (GIC) in the detail of its operation, more specifically, in its way of allocating buffers to video flows. While traditional management methods search for increasing cache hit rates using replacement of video contents, C-DCM guarantees cache hit by reserving part of the cache and using replacement policies only to increase even more the reuse of contents. C-DCM also differs from caches in disk since C-DCM's objective is to have video content in memory so that it can be promptly transmitted to the client whose buffer was collapsed in a nearby CPA. In other words, the main objective of C-DCM is not to store contents in disks, though the use of disks is not excluded, on the contrary, disk storage has advantages that are orthogonal to the ones that C-DCM offers, so that both techniques can be used to increase system performance.
The cache management policies for multimedia systems, like MoD systems, take into account that multimedia objects are too large so storing the entire object in cache does not offer a good cost/benefit ratio. Therefore, these policies retain only fragments of objects not the whole object, besides they attempt to explore the relationship between different flows delivered to the clients, taking into account always the sequential access pattern.
C-DCM is different from standard DCM because it also works with an asymmetrical communication infrastructure, by centralizing the existing memory space of client buffers in the central access points, and offering a robust and optimized VoD service. In addition, C-DCM maintains the advantages of standard DCM, since it alleviates the VoD server and its communication links from an excessive workload in a manner that the resulting VoD system becomes scalable and interactive.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention implements a method for memory cache management of proxy servers for continuous media such as video and audio. The method can be divided in two parts. The first part treats the cache management of a single proxy server, that is, the local C-DCM. The second part addresses the cooperation between proxy servers to share media contents they store in their caches, that is, the distributed method of C-DCM. The C-DCM can be used in its local form as well as in its distributed form.
The local C-DCM method reserves a space in the proxy cache for each client that starts a session. This space represents part of the client buffer that was collapsed in the proxy. To manage all the independent cache spaces so as to avoid useless replication of contents while maximizing media reuse a circular structure of superimposed data is created. In this structure, the continuous media is represented by the list of continuous media units (LCMU) and cache units called slots, for which clients make reservation, represented by the list of slot units (LSU).
If the continuous media is a video stream, the LCMU unit is given by GoFs (Group of Frames) that are indexed by timestamps in time units. The size of each LSU unit usually comprises several LCMU units. Since each LCMU unit does not have necessarily a fixed size in time units, the number of LCMU units that a LSU can have is given by an average size, defined as the ratio given by the size of LSU unit divided by the average time of a GoF. Assuming that LCMU GoFs are preferably ordered clockwise and in increasing order of timestamps, the LSU rotates preferably clockwise over the LCMU, which is fixed, and with a speed equal to that of the continuous media presentation. The LSU is also an ordered list, but preferably counterclockwise.
Both LCMU and LSU are preferably lists of is pointers. The LCMU is a list that points to the cache area in which GoFs are stored. The LSU is a list that points in the LCMU the beginning and end of slots. If a LSU slot is reserved, its content, which lies between the two slot pointers, cannot be discarded.
On starting a session, the C-MCD manager reserves some contiguous LSU slots that correspond to the initial media content as requested by the client. These contiguous slots correspond to the buffer that should exist at the client in its totality, being preferably mapped onto the beginning and end pointers, read and write pointers, and maximum and minimum level pointers of the buffer.
The flow that arrives at a proxy is stored in the cache and mapped on the LCMU with a reservation priority given by its corresponding slot at that instant of time, that is, if between the read and end pointers there is video content, this should not be discarded. If there is content after the end of buffer, it means that an overflow occurred, i.e., the GoF is eligible to be discarded, but with a lower priority than the GoF that has just left out of the buffer, since it has already been read.
Two users can start a session to watch the same media apart from a small time interval (less than a slot size), in this case the collapsed buffers will share the same slots. If the time interval is larger than a slot, the collapsed buffers will share only the slots that overlap. If the time interval between accesses is up to a slot greater than the size of collapsed buffer, the slots that comprise these buffers will be contiguous to ensure a continuous stream of stored media. If the time interval is one or more slots greater than the collapsed buffer, the reserved slots will not be contiguous, thus the contents of non-reserved slot(s) that join the collapsed buffers can be discarded from the cache, depending on both the popularity rank of the film and the distance until next reuse.
The lesser popular the film and larger the distance of its reuse (period of time for the film to enter into the next collapsed buffer) the greater is its probability of being discarded. Temporary slots can be used to reserve the content of slots between two buffers, provided that there is room in the cache and the distance between them is small.
In order to avoid keeping slots reserved and contents occupying memory space unnecessarily, a process of garbage collect periodically verifies the clients that become inactive and release the associate slots and contents they reserved.
The distributed C-DCM allows the contents of proxies to be shared. For this purpose, every time a collapsed buffer needs to receive a flow to refill its content it will preferably ask for the flow to the nearest the states of the proxies that form the system and will ask the content directly to whom possesses it. Similarly, the collapsed buffers can be either superimposed or concatenated, which guarantees the continuous media flow; in case they are not, temporary buffers can be created to guarantee that the flow content is not discarded unexpectedly.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
The goals, advantages, and characteristics of the invention are easier to understand and described better if the following detailed description is read together with the following figures:
FIG. 1 shows a generic architecture of the system used in the present invention.
FIG. 2 shows the list of continuous media units and the list of slot units in the circular form and the relationship between the lists.
FIG. 3 shows the conceptual divisions of the collapsed buffer and its relationship with the slots of the LSU.
FIG. 4 a is block diagram illustrating the relationship between various data structures used by C-DCM.
FIG. 4 b exemplifies the data structure of a unit of the list of medias.
FIG. 4 c exemplifies the data structure of a unit of the LSU.
FIG. 4 d exemplifies the data structure of a unit of LCMU.
FIG. 4 e exemplifies the data structure of a unit of LBA or LBL FIG. 5 is a block diagram illustrating the proxy's components.
FIG. 6 is a flowchart describing an example of subroutine for admission of new clients.
FIG. 7 is a flowchart describing an example of subroutine for cache replacement of video units.
FIG. 8 is a flowchart describing an example of slot management process.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
The present invention implements a method to allocate collapsed buffers in proxies FIG. 1 50 and 60 . The method uses a technique to determine whether the content of a proxy's cache will be reused or not in the future, such that the proxy's cache space can be assigned (or released) to store new content so as to reduce the load on the MoD server FIG. 1 40 and reduce the communication traffic on the communication network backbone FIG. 1 10 and also that the content can be re-transmitted to other proxies so it can be reused by other clients in the system.
In the FIGS. 1 , 20 and 30 are central access points, which can be DSLAMS, Head ends, or even routers or switches. The proxies FIG. 1 50 and 60 can or cannot be embedded in the central access points.
The Client
Clients in the FIGS. 1 , 80 , 90 , 100 , 110 and 120 represent client equipments from simple set-top-boxes to multimedia computers or residential gateways. Clients connect preferably to the nearest proxy. The client equipment usually has a buffer to store segments of continuous media for decoding purpose and also to reduce the problem of system jitter (the statistical variance of delays). The larger is the jitter the greater is the amount of memory that is necessary to avoid overflow or underflow in the client buffer. The task of managing the jitter that nearest proxy. In this way, the proxy will reserve a buffer for that client, called collapsed buffer, which can be shared with other clients, and thus can have other functions that will be detailed further. Since the jitter as perceived by the client will be the one from the last network segment, it will be smaller, and thus the client buffer can be shorter, reducing its cost.
The Implementation
There exist various parameters used to implement this method. FIG. 2 shows a list that contains pointers to the elements of a continuous media flow, which is represented by the internal circumference 201 . The flow units vary from 0 to k- 1 . To this flow can or cannot be added other units to complete the circumference, the padding, which is represented in the FIG. 2 201 by the letter P.
An indexing unit can also represent a flow unit. An indexing unit can be as small as one bit or up to a set of bits such as a word, a set of words, a video frame, or even a set of video frames. The flow's content is indexed in an ordered form so that the access to its content is not only sequentially made but also can be made at random. The unit that is to be used in this report so as to exemplify the functioning of C-DCM is the GoF (Group of Frame) of a compressed video based on the MPEG standard, but it could be of any digital video format, whether compressed or not. Integrated with List 201 there exists a list of slots 301 that preferably rotates clockwise. The slots are numbered from 0 to n- 1 and represent time intervals in such a way that these n slots have the same duration as the media plus padding. Since the LSU 301 rotates over list 201 , new units of list 201 always enter to the slot as well as leave from it. Since the elements that enter and leave the slots are pointers to the cache, this does not means that a video unit enters into the slot, but that it is possible through lists 201 and 301 to control the cache content. In the FIG. 2 , slot n- 2 contains the list elements that point to the video units from 4 to 7 . For each media there will be a control structure composed by 201 and 301 .
The control of contents uses the concept of collapsed buffer that is a virtual buffer mapped on the list 301 in the FIG. 2 . A collapsed buffer is constituted of 4 slots as shown in the segment of list 301 .
The Collapsed Buffer
A collapsed buffer 300 is divided as follows:
Beginning of buffer 310 —it coincides with the end of slot s. Sooner GoF pointers pass this point they are marked as out of buffer, and thus with a higher priority to be discarded. The content within s has already been read and sent to clients, but stay in with a certain priority of reservation to make possible a rewind operation.
Read 320 —it coincides with the beginning of slot s and points to the next GoF to be viewed by the client. After passing this pointer, video elements are marked as being already read.
Minimum 330 —it coincides with the beginning of slot s+ 1 and indicates when the buffer is to reach the point of minimum level, generating a signal to the C-DCM manager to take the necessary measures to start a new flow to refill the buffer, avoiding a possible underflow. All of the content that it points to is reserved, and cannot be discarded.
Write 340 —it points to the position where the next incoming GoF should be stored. Usually, it should be located between pointers 330 and 350 . If it is below 330 it indicates a risk of underflow and if it is above 350 it indicates a risk of overflow.
Maximum 350 —it coincides with the start of slot s+ 3 . It indicates the risk of buffer overflow. When the buffer is reaching this level, the client generates a signal to the C-DCM, which will take the necessary actions to prevent a buffer overflow and corresponding lost of GoFs.
End 360 —it coincides with the beginning of slot s+ 3 . It indicates the end of physical space assigned to the buffer. The previous content before this limit can be discarded. If this content will not be read, it can be reserved with temporary slots.
Temporary Slots
These are slots that do not make part of collapsed buffers but can have their contents reserved for either concatenating or increasing the length of collapsed buffers.
The Local Method
The cache content pointed to by each collapsed buffer is guaranteed to support one or more clients, i.e., the system cannot discard the cache content that is to be transmitted. Two or more collapsed buffers can have their contents overlapped, that is, they are superimposed and thus share slots in common. In this way, it avoids unnecessary replication and optimizes the use of memory, which can be utilized to allocate temporary buffers or to simply leave in the cache media contents that are often accessed such as the initial part of films of large audience. Collapsed buffers that are superimposed or concatenated act as a single buffer regarded to the flow control that arrives at a proxy, and this control is performed by the buffer, called receiver, that receives the flow from another proxy or server. Other superimposed or concatenated buffers depend on the content that is already in the local memory, thus the control of the receiver's buffer is enough to guarantee the necessary content to other buffers.
A proxy should have preferably memory enough to allocate collapsed buffers for its local clients. In case of proxy 50 as shown in the FIG. 1 , its clients are 80 , 90 , and 100 , i.e., the clients that are served by the central access point 20 to whom proxy 50 is connected. For reasons of economy, a proxy can have less memory than necessary to allocate one collapsed buffer for each active client, since the probability that all these clients simultaneously open different media sessions is low. In addition, clients can share slots, mostly for popular films and during periods of time of large audience. On the other hand, if memory cost is low or if the objective is to maximize the reuse of media, a proxy can have much more memory than necessary to allocate one collapsed buffer for every local client.
The local C-DCM manager attempts to make continuous the greatest possible amount of collapsed buffers locally. For this purpose it makes use of temporary buffers. Once collapsed buffers become continuous, the next objective is to minimize the amount of flows sent to local clients, that is, flows that are close enough are grouped so that a single multicast flow can be sent, which diminishes the proxy's I/O workload.
As an example, FIG. 5 shows a block diagram that illustrates proxies 50 and 60 . A proxy includes preferably a central processing unit (CPU) 510 and memory 520 . The CPU can be a single processor or multiple processors in parallel. The instructions are stored in the memory (RAM, 510 . The CPU preferably has a Unit of Logical and Arithmetic (ULA), a Unit of Control and a local memory such as cache of instructions and/or data or several registers. Such CPU architecture is well known. Proxy 50 or 60 can or cannot be embedded in communication equipment, such as DSLAM, Head end, or router/commuter.
Proxy 50 or 60 in FIG. 1 is preferably composed of ( FIG. 5 ) a slot management process 530 , a client admission subroutine 540 , a subroutine for cache replacement of video units 550 , and a subroutine for interactive operations 560 , a process for garbage collection 570 , and a manager process for distributed C-DCM 580 when there are two or more cooperative proxies, besides the cache itself 590 .
A client request (cli) is processed by the client admission subroutine 540 , as shown by the example in the flowchart of FIG. 6 . When a client request arrives the list of medias (LM) 410 is searched for the requested media. If it is not found locally, the proxy moves towards the server in search for the media′s meta-information and creates one more unit in the LM, together with LSU 430 and LCMU 450 structures, inserting the client into the waiting list of the LM element 410 that corresponds to the request. If the request is already in the LM then the client is inserted in the waiting list as before. Next, the initial slot s in the FIG. 3 is computed, and into which the client will be inserted 610 . The initial slot s is calculated by diminishing the current time TC from start time TI at which the LSU began to rotate over the LCMU plus the initial time TS (Time Stamp) of the requested segment in relation to the beginning of the media. This value is also divided by the duration DS of a slot; the result is submitted to a module operation using the number of slots NS. To summarize, S=[(TC−TI+TS)/DS]% NS, where the symbol % is the modulo operation that finds the remainder from a division and a real result is truncated to an integer value. As the client is requesting the initial segment TS is equal to zero. If the slot has already a client 620 , that is, there already has a flow to another client, either unicast or multicast, starting from the GoF pointed by the beginning of slot s 420 , the client is inserted into that flow and the part of flow that was missed, which is part of content under s, is sent as a patch 625 . C-DCM works on networks that do or do not support multicast, though in the latter it is possible to emulate multicast using unicast. If slot s has no client, it is checked to see if the content that s encompasses until the minimum level 330 is in the cache 630 , if it is not, the proxy provides a new flow from either the server or another proxy to provide the content 635 . If the content is already in the cache the proxy creates a collapsed buffer and updates the status of slots that are within its limits, inserts the client that was in the waiting list into slot s, and sends a patch if it is necessary 640 . If the buffer has a provider to supply the content 645 i.e. the client is a receiver then the admission process ends 680 . Otherwise, it checks the distance until the previous collapsed buffer 650 . If that distance is less than the one that compensates for avoiding a new external flow, it attempts to allocate temporary buffers so as to benefit from the content of the preceding receiver 670 , provided there is enough space in the cache to allocate temporary slots 660 , otherwise it starts a new flow with the required content 655 .
The C-DCM works with the client's reservation of part of the cache through the use of a collapsed buffer. However, the content that stay outside of the buffer does not need to be discarded if there is room in the cache. In this manner, most frequently accessed parts of a media can continue in cache such as the beginning of a video, as well as the contents of temporary slots and contents that are left out of the cache due to overflow, or even the content of a popular media. Nevertheless, if the cache is full there is a need for substituting the non-reserved content for one that is going to be inside of a reserved slot. When the cache is full the substitution of media units FIG. 7 takes into account the media popularity. In this way, all the media units are ordered according to its popularity rank 710 in increasing order, and starting with that of lowest rank 720 , the video units of highest priority of discarding are removed, as follows: (1) the ones that have been already read and are outside of the collapsed buffers; (2) the ones that in the beginning of the media and are not reserved; (3) the ones that have not been read but due to overflow are outside of the collapsed buffers, and lastly (4) removing temporary buffers 730 . On removing temporary buffers, it is verified if there is a need to substitute them for an external flow, to supply the content of collapsed buffers on behalf of the temporary buffers that can be discarded 735 . When choosing a media unit or temporary buffer to be discarded, in case of a tie, it will be first discarded the one that is farther from the previous collapsed buffer, that is, farther from being reused until the amount of necessary cache is released 740 and 750 .
The collapsed buffer is a virtual C-DCM concept in that what does really control both content and flow is the slots. In the FIG. 3 , a collapsed buffer is illustrated with 4 slots, but it could have just a single slot or more than 5 slots, actually this is a question of convention. Every slot has its status set in accord to its location in the collapsed buffer or if it is a temporary one or if it is not reserved. If it is not reserved it does not monitor its virtual content The content is said to be virtual because the slot does not store content, but only indicates which elements in the LCMU it is the manager of. If it is reserved, the slot manages its virtual content. Since the LSU rotates over the LCMU, after some time interval, the LSU can have rotated some times around itself. To calculate the start and end of slot using the media timestamp, it is necessary to know how many turns the slot performed up to current time. Given the instant of time I at which the LSU started to rotate, the period of time VC for a complete turn (the media duration plus padding), the current time A, and the position of slot P, then the number of cycles is calculated by the current time A less initial time I less slot position P times its length T divided by a complete turn VC, and the real result being truncated to integer values. Once the cycle is calculated, the slot start time is given by start time I less current time A less the number of cycles C times the time VC for a complete turn less slot position P times its length T. The end of slot FS is given by slot beginning IS less slot length T 810 .
Both IS and FS return a time value in relation to the media's start time. Since GoFs can be accessed using either its sequential number or its timestamp, we can delimit the GoFs managed by a given slot through the simple calculation we described previously.
If a slot has the status of temporary slot the elements that pass the beginning of slot are marked as temporarily reserved and after leaving the slot they are marked as free 820 .
If a slot is the slot s in the FIG. 3 , the GoF that passes the end of slot 310 will be marked as free and the one that passes the beginning of slot 320 will be marked as reserved and read 820 , given that on passing that point the GoF will be multicast to other clients that have been included in the list of clients of the slot 830 .
If the slot is slot s+ 1 in the FIG. 3 , for every element that passes the beginning of the slot 330 it is verified to see if it is in the cache, and if it is not, it means that the provider failed, and a pre-overflow warning is generated so that a new provider can be established 840 .
Everything that a provider sends is written to the cache and the status is updated in the LCMU as written but not read. If the slot is s+ 1 , s+ 2 , or s+ 3 , as GoFs pass the beginning-of-slot pointer 330 , 350 , or 360 , they are updated as written, not read, and reserved 820 .
If the slot is s+ 2 in the FIG. 3 , and upon verifying the element that is passing the beginning of slot 350 , besides updating its status, the slot generates a pre-overflow warning so that actions can be taken to avoid overflow if necessary 840 .
If the slot is s+ 3 , all the GoFs that are in the cache upon passing the beginning pointer 360 are updated as being not read and reserved 820 .
For purposes of processing economy, the verification or/and updating of GoFs in the beginning or end of a slot can be dismissed if the status of the GoFs are not altered when passing from a slot to another. For example, on consecutive temporary slots, the status is only altered in the beginning of first slot and at the end of last slot.
The Distributed Method
Collapsed Buffers with non-empty intersection that are located in distinct proxies can be interconnected by a video flow that guarantees the receiver's minimum level, establishing cooperation between proxies and the need for coordinating such a cooperation with the objective of maximizing the use of system resources.
The distributed C-DCM manager 580 tries to chain continuous buffers of the proxies in order to reuse their contents. To increase the chaining degree so as to avoid the need of another flow from the server, continuous collapsed buffers can be augmented at the opposed end of the receiver by using a temporary buffer. The allocation priority of temporary slots depends on the amount of available memory and the number of remote clients that will reuse the content. The allocation priority is for small amount of temporary buffers that have high potential to server large number of remote clients, and is inverse of the discarding priority that is towards large number of temporary slots that have low potential of reuse (serve few clients). This is a question of trading off cache space (temporary buffers) for using bandwidth from both network backbone and server.
This means that, taking into consideration the slot hierarchy, in the absence of memory space, the content of largest discarding priority is the one that belongs to a non-reserved slot followed by the temporary buffer. The contents of slots that belong to a collapsed buffer are discarded only if the client stops using the system.
The distributed C-DCM manager as well as the local one maintains a mapping of the proxies' continuous buffers. With this information, the C-DCM manager is capable of chaining collapsed buffers. The C-DCM manager has to try to reuse the content of other proxies and only as the last option to resort to the server, avoiding however to generate a ping-pong traffic, which would congest the network backbone. To avoid ping-pong traffic proxies, which in turn request to their neighbors until the requested content is found or the request message arrives at the server. In this way, only the nearest proxy that has the requested content will send it. The neighboring proxies and the server are connected through persistent links that preferably reflect the network topology. Another way to do so is making all the proxies to have information about the state of other proxies, which is obtained in a distributed fashion, to calculate locally the proxy that will provide the requested content.
Interactive Operations
The interactive operations on the media comprise any client being able to definitively stop the media exhibition, to pause it temporarily, to start from the point it paused, to forward it to a certain point within the media and to start exhibiting the media from that point, and both to fast advance and to fast rewind while keeping exhibiting the media. Each of these interactive operations will be described next.
Stop Operation
For this operation, the proxy simply moves the client out of its list and frees the reserved resources accordingly.
Pause Operation
In this operation, the proxy frees the slots of the collapsed buffer of the client that requested the operation, provided that there is no clients on the collapsed buffer, taking care to preferably reserve the content of s+ 2 and s+ 3 in the LCMU FIG. 3 as content of PAUSE and releasing the provider or temporary buffers if they are unnecessary to maintain the flow to other local or remote collapsed buffer; the content of s and s+ 1 are in the client's local buffer. The client moves from the list of active clients 436 to the list of clients in pause 420 , which besides recording the client identity, stores information on which content was reserved. A time limit can be established during which the content stays reserved as pause content, depending on the film popularity, so as to optimize the use of the cache.
Restart Operation
In this operation, the client informs the point at which the exhibition should restart. This procedure is similar to the one for client admission except that part of the content is already in the local buffer, and part of it will be preferably in the cache. The reserved content in the cache during a pause is synchronized with the list of slot units, removing the pause reservation and keeping only with the slot reservation. The slot that is to be synchronized is calculated according to the formula already described to locate the initial slot when admitting a new client except that the initial time of segment is the time of segment that is in the cache. The client also leaves the list 420 and enters into the list 436 of slot s that forms its collapsed buffer.
Jump Operation
In this operation, the client informs the point to which the media should advance, case of the media is being exhibited; the proxy frees the reserved resources if they have not been reserved for other clients and if they are unnecessary to maintain the flow to other local or remote collapsed buffer, after which the procedure is equal to the admission of a new client, except that the film will not be exhibited from the beginning but from the point that the client chose randomly, for which it uses the same formula described previously.
Fast Forward Operation
This and next operation are the ones that demand most of system resources. Thus they should be used preferably together with the JUMP operation, followed by rewinding or fast forwarding until arriving at the desired point of the media. The quality of exhibition may be sub-optimal so that if any lost of GoFs occur, they can be tolerated. On asking for this operation, the slots of the client's collapsed buffer are reserved and controlled by the process for interactive operations (PIO) 560 that is created for the client. This process reserves preferably n slots ahead of the collapsed buffer, and prefetches the content that is missing in those n slots, from either the server or a cooperative proxy. Since proxies keep information on the medias that are in their caches in the LM, LSU, and LCMU, these lists can be searched to verify if the requested media segment is in cache, and if it is not the proxy transfers the request for prefetching to the next cooperative proxy, or to the server as the last resort. Given that this operation requires transmission of n times more contents than the normal case, it is necessary that the non-read part of collapsed buffer has preferably a size n times greater to anticipate the prefetching for the content that is going to be exhibited at high speed. As this augmented collapsed buffer to move over the LCMU 450 with a different speed from that of LSU 430 , PIO 560 forces the augmented collapsed buffer moves over the LSU 430 with a speed that is n- 1 times the normal one. While reading the content if it does not have any other reservation the corresponding slots are released at the same n- 1 speed for possible discard, if the slot is neither used by a temporary buffer nor belongs to a collapsed buffer. For, the PIO 560 increments the fast-forward status 434 and inserts the client into the list of fast-forward 437 , so as to make reservation ahead, while decrements the fast-forward status 434 and removes the client from the list of fast-forward clients 437 for the slots behind. In addition, it sends the content to the client at a speed that is n times superior to the normal one. Usually, n is equal two, i.e., it exhibits a speed that is twice faster than the normal one.
Fast Rewind Operation
This operation is implemented in a way similar to fast forward, except that GoFs are reserved and prefetched backwards, making the augmented collapsed buffer to move over the LSU at a speed that is n+1 times the normal one and on the opposite direction of exhibition.
The Garbage Collector
In the C-DCM the function of garbage collection 570 is to eliminate reservations left by any client that had a silent failure or simply left the system without warning, leaving slots and memory areas reserved. The process of garbage collect 570 , from time to time walks through the list of clients, checking if they are still actives, if it finds an inactive client, it removes the client from the list and if it is the only client of a reserved slot, this slot is updated to become non-reserved and its content is released for discarding by the subroutine for substitution of continuous media units in the cache. | This invention treats of a two-level cache management method for continuous media files of a proxy server. In the first level, the method reserves collapsed buffers in the cache for every active client attended by the proxy server. To save bandwidth and memory space collapsed buffers can be concatenated and overlapped when content belongs to the same continuous media file. The proxy manages collectively the collapsed buffers of each client, which cooperate by making its content available to the whole system, reducing traffic over the communication network and on the media-on-demand server. In the second level, the method allows proxy servers to cooperate between themselves, by concatenating collapsed buffers when necessary, increasing the amount of available shared media in the cache, saving bandwidth both on the media-on-demand server and on the communication network backbone. | Briefly outline the background technology and the problem the invention aims to solve. | [
"TECHNICAL FIELD The present invention refers to the cache management system (CMS) of a proxy server to store a single or multiple media of continuous flow such as video or audio being accessed from a Media-on-Demand (MoD) server by one or several users.",
"The proxy server hereafter called proxy, reserves part of its cache memory for every user that starts a multimedia session.",
"In this way, users can have smaller buffers, which reduce costs of set-top-boxes and client equipments, since the user buffer is complemented by the client's part in the reserved cache of the proxy.",
"To optimize cache performance, the reserved part for a client can be superimposed by the part of another client, provided the two parts have the same contents, thus avoiding replication of redundant contents and increasing the rate of media reuse.",
"These reserved cache parts can also be concatenated in such a way to further increase the reuse of media contents.",
"The concatenation can happen inside of a single proxy cache or between several proxy caches in a cooperative way.",
"The concatenation of parts of proxy caches is also used to offer facilities of videocassette recorder (VCR) operations.",
"The non-reserved part of the cache is used either to store fragments of most popular media or to increase the concatenation degree of the cache's reserved parts.",
"In this way, it is possible to increase the scalability of MoD systems while implementing VCR operations to offer an interactive system to the users of the MoD system.",
"PREVIOUS TECHNIQUES The Distributed Cooperative Memory (DCM), as have been previously defined by PCT/BR 01/00029 of 26, Mar. 2001, changes the paradigm of the video-on-demand (VoD) system, from the conventional client-server to the peer-to-peer one.",
"DCM allows the implementation of scalable and interactive VoD systems using a communication infrastructure based on symmetrical large bandwidth in which the uplink bandwidth is equal to the downlink bandwidth, allowing client uplink bandwidth to be exploited so that client equipment can also become a server by recycling the video flow that it receives.",
"Such a communication infrastructure is more often available only at large companies, research centers, or at academic institutions, which currently restricts its use to corporative users.",
"The home user has no access yet to this kind of communication infrastructure, since providing it at a large scale is still unfeasible due to the high implementation costs of the so-called ‘last-mile’.",
"There exists a high-speed communication backbone, but connecting thousands of users to it through large-bandwidth links would require great investments.",
"However, those thousands of users are already connected to a telephony infrastructure based on copper wires, an investment that the telecommunication companies want to preserve while taking advantage of it to offer communication services based on large bandwidth.",
"Another option is to use wireless network technology, whose quick installation and cost-reduction trends, can make it a viable alternative for offering large bandwidth access to the end user in the near future.",
"In this technological context, the ADSL (Asymmetrical Digital Subscriber Line) technology was developed, which enables a conventional telephone line to transmit digital information, with downlink bandwidth being much larger than that of uplink and using the same pair of copper wires already installed at user's home.",
"The explanation is that a client usually receives much more information than sends, so that a client uplink with small bandwidth to allow interactivity and voice transmission is enough to support immediate user's needs, and the remainder bandwidth that can be exploited in conventional telephone lines is left to the client downlink.",
"ADSL lines converge to a central station called DSLAM (Digital Subscriber Line Access Multiplexer), similar to a central telephone station, which in turn is interconnected by a high-speed network.",
"Recently, other access technologies grouped together under the acronym xDSL have been developed, which comprise both symmetrical and asymmetrical accesses with different data transmission speeds.",
"Note that everything that has been stated for ADSLs can be also applied to xDSLs.",
"In case of wireless access, the available bandwidth is also limited but already guarantees bandwidth up to 12-Mbps for point-to-point access, which allows to comfortably transmitting a good-quality video.",
"For point-to-point wireless network also there exists a central access point (CAP) usually called the Head end.",
"In case of users being connected directly to a high-speed network either through a router or switch, either equipment becomes the access point.",
"To make viable the use of DCM within this kind of communication infrastructure, the client buffers of standard DCM were collapsed in the central access points (CPAs) such as DSLAMs, Head ends, or routers/switches, in their existing memories or in proxies connected to them.",
"The proxies work on symmetrical and asymmetrical architectures, and can be located at any point of the network;",
"the difference is that the proxy will use the C-DCM (Collapsed Distributed Cooperative Memory) for its cache management.",
"To summarize, a proxy can be distinct from CPA or can be incorporated into it.",
"The policy of cache management of a C-DCM proxy differs in several aspects from traditional policies such as LRU (Least Recently Used) or MRU (Most Recently Used) since the exploration of ‘hot data sets’ does not apply to large files.",
"Also, C-DCM policy differs from multimedia policies such as BASIC, DISTANCE, INTERVAL CACHING (IC) and GENERALIZED INTERVAL CACHING (GIC) in the detail of its operation, more specifically, in its way of allocating buffers to video flows.",
"While traditional management methods search for increasing cache hit rates using replacement of video contents, C-DCM guarantees cache hit by reserving part of the cache and using replacement policies only to increase even more the reuse of contents.",
"C-DCM also differs from caches in disk since C-DCM's objective is to have video content in memory so that it can be promptly transmitted to the client whose buffer was collapsed in a nearby CPA.",
"In other words, the main objective of C-DCM is not to store contents in disks, though the use of disks is not excluded, on the contrary, disk storage has advantages that are orthogonal to the ones that C-DCM offers, so that both techniques can be used to increase system performance.",
"The cache management policies for multimedia systems, like MoD systems, take into account that multimedia objects are too large so storing the entire object in cache does not offer a good cost/benefit ratio.",
"Therefore, these policies retain only fragments of objects not the whole object, besides they attempt to explore the relationship between different flows delivered to the clients, taking into account always the sequential access pattern.",
"C-DCM is different from standard DCM because it also works with an asymmetrical communication infrastructure, by centralizing the existing memory space of client buffers in the central access points, and offering a robust and optimized VoD service.",
"In addition, C-DCM maintains the advantages of standard DCM, since it alleviates the VoD server and its communication links from an excessive workload in a manner that the resulting VoD system becomes scalable and interactive.",
"SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention implements a method for memory cache management of proxy servers for continuous media such as video and audio.",
"The method can be divided in two parts.",
"The first part treats the cache management of a single proxy server, that is, the local C-DCM.",
"The second part addresses the cooperation between proxy servers to share media contents they store in their caches, that is, the distributed method of C-DCM.",
"The C-DCM can be used in its local form as well as in its distributed form.",
"The local C-DCM method reserves a space in the proxy cache for each client that starts a session.",
"This space represents part of the client buffer that was collapsed in the proxy.",
"To manage all the independent cache spaces so as to avoid useless replication of contents while maximizing media reuse a circular structure of superimposed data is created.",
"In this structure, the continuous media is represented by the list of continuous media units (LCMU) and cache units called slots, for which clients make reservation, represented by the list of slot units (LSU).",
"If the continuous media is a video stream, the LCMU unit is given by GoFs (Group of Frames) that are indexed by timestamps in time units.",
"The size of each LSU unit usually comprises several LCMU units.",
"Since each LCMU unit does not have necessarily a fixed size in time units, the number of LCMU units that a LSU can have is given by an average size, defined as the ratio given by the size of LSU unit divided by the average time of a GoF.",
"Assuming that LCMU GoFs are preferably ordered clockwise and in increasing order of timestamps, the LSU rotates preferably clockwise over the LCMU, which is fixed, and with a speed equal to that of the continuous media presentation.",
"The LSU is also an ordered list, but preferably counterclockwise.",
"Both LCMU and LSU are preferably lists of is pointers.",
"The LCMU is a list that points to the cache area in which GoFs are stored.",
"The LSU is a list that points in the LCMU the beginning and end of slots.",
"If a LSU slot is reserved, its content, which lies between the two slot pointers, cannot be discarded.",
"On starting a session, the C-MCD manager reserves some contiguous LSU slots that correspond to the initial media content as requested by the client.",
"These contiguous slots correspond to the buffer that should exist at the client in its totality, being preferably mapped onto the beginning and end pointers, read and write pointers, and maximum and minimum level pointers of the buffer.",
"The flow that arrives at a proxy is stored in the cache and mapped on the LCMU with a reservation priority given by its corresponding slot at that instant of time, that is, if between the read and end pointers there is video content, this should not be discarded.",
"If there is content after the end of buffer, it means that an overflow occurred, i.e., the GoF is eligible to be discarded, but with a lower priority than the GoF that has just left out of the buffer, since it has already been read.",
"Two users can start a session to watch the same media apart from a small time interval (less than a slot size), in this case the collapsed buffers will share the same slots.",
"If the time interval is larger than a slot, the collapsed buffers will share only the slots that overlap.",
"If the time interval between accesses is up to a slot greater than the size of collapsed buffer, the slots that comprise these buffers will be contiguous to ensure a continuous stream of stored media.",
"If the time interval is one or more slots greater than the collapsed buffer, the reserved slots will not be contiguous, thus the contents of non-reserved slot(s) that join the collapsed buffers can be discarded from the cache, depending on both the popularity rank of the film and the distance until next reuse.",
"The lesser popular the film and larger the distance of its reuse (period of time for the film to enter into the next collapsed buffer) the greater is its probability of being discarded.",
"Temporary slots can be used to reserve the content of slots between two buffers, provided that there is room in the cache and the distance between them is small.",
"In order to avoid keeping slots reserved and contents occupying memory space unnecessarily, a process of garbage collect periodically verifies the clients that become inactive and release the associate slots and contents they reserved.",
"The distributed C-DCM allows the contents of proxies to be shared.",
"For this purpose, every time a collapsed buffer needs to receive a flow to refill its content it will preferably ask for the flow to the nearest the states of the proxies that form the system and will ask the content directly to whom possesses it.",
"Similarly, the collapsed buffers can be either superimposed or concatenated, which guarantees the continuous media flow;",
"in case they are not, temporary buffers can be created to guarantee that the flow content is not discarded unexpectedly.",
"BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS The goals, advantages, and characteristics of the invention are easier to understand and described better if the following detailed description is read together with the following figures: FIG. 1 shows a generic architecture of the system used in the present invention.",
"FIG. 2 shows the list of continuous media units and the list of slot units in the circular form and the relationship between the lists.",
"FIG. 3 shows the conceptual divisions of the collapsed buffer and its relationship with the slots of the LSU.",
"FIG. 4 a is block diagram illustrating the relationship between various data structures used by C-DCM.",
"FIG. 4 b exemplifies the data structure of a unit of the list of medias.",
"FIG. 4 c exemplifies the data structure of a unit of the LSU.",
"FIG. 4 d exemplifies the data structure of a unit of LCMU.",
"FIG. 4 e exemplifies the data structure of a unit of LBA or LBL FIG. 5 is a block diagram illustrating the proxy's components.",
"FIG. 6 is a flowchart describing an example of subroutine for admission of new clients.",
"FIG. 7 is a flowchart describing an example of subroutine for cache replacement of video units.",
"FIG. 8 is a flowchart describing an example of slot management process.",
"DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The present invention implements a method to allocate collapsed buffers in proxies FIG. 1 50 and 60 .",
"The method uses a technique to determine whether the content of a proxy's cache will be reused or not in the future, such that the proxy's cache space can be assigned (or released) to store new content so as to reduce the load on the MoD server FIG. 1 40 and reduce the communication traffic on the communication network backbone FIG. 1 10 and also that the content can be re-transmitted to other proxies so it can be reused by other clients in the system.",
"In the FIGS. 1 , 20 and 30 are central access points, which can be DSLAMS, Head ends, or even routers or switches.",
"The proxies FIG. 1 50 and 60 can or cannot be embedded in the central access points.",
"The Client Clients in the FIGS. 1 , 80 , 90 , 100 , 110 and 120 represent client equipments from simple set-top-boxes to multimedia computers or residential gateways.",
"Clients connect preferably to the nearest proxy.",
"The client equipment usually has a buffer to store segments of continuous media for decoding purpose and also to reduce the problem of system jitter (the statistical variance of delays).",
"The larger is the jitter the greater is the amount of memory that is necessary to avoid overflow or underflow in the client buffer.",
"The task of managing the jitter that nearest proxy.",
"In this way, the proxy will reserve a buffer for that client, called collapsed buffer, which can be shared with other clients, and thus can have other functions that will be detailed further.",
"Since the jitter as perceived by the client will be the one from the last network segment, it will be smaller, and thus the client buffer can be shorter, reducing its cost.",
"The Implementation There exist various parameters used to implement this method.",
"FIG. 2 shows a list that contains pointers to the elements of a continuous media flow, which is represented by the internal circumference 201 .",
"The flow units vary from 0 to k- 1 .",
"To this flow can or cannot be added other units to complete the circumference, the padding, which is represented in the FIG. 2 201 by the letter P. An indexing unit can also represent a flow unit.",
"An indexing unit can be as small as one bit or up to a set of bits such as a word, a set of words, a video frame, or even a set of video frames.",
"The flow's content is indexed in an ordered form so that the access to its content is not only sequentially made but also can be made at random.",
"The unit that is to be used in this report so as to exemplify the functioning of C-DCM is the GoF (Group of Frame) of a compressed video based on the MPEG standard, but it could be of any digital video format, whether compressed or not.",
"Integrated with List 201 there exists a list of slots 301 that preferably rotates clockwise.",
"The slots are numbered from 0 to n- 1 and represent time intervals in such a way that these n slots have the same duration as the media plus padding.",
"Since the LSU 301 rotates over list 201 , new units of list 201 always enter to the slot as well as leave from it.",
"Since the elements that enter and leave the slots are pointers to the cache, this does not means that a video unit enters into the slot, but that it is possible through lists 201 and 301 to control the cache content.",
"In the FIG. 2 , slot n- 2 contains the list elements that point to the video units from 4 to 7 .",
"For each media there will be a control structure composed by 201 and 301 .",
"The control of contents uses the concept of collapsed buffer that is a virtual buffer mapped on the list 301 in the FIG. 2 .",
"A collapsed buffer is constituted of 4 slots as shown in the segment of list 301 .",
"The Collapsed Buffer A collapsed buffer 300 is divided as follows: Beginning of buffer 310 —it coincides with the end of slot s. Sooner GoF pointers pass this point they are marked as out of buffer, and thus with a higher priority to be discarded.",
"The content within s has already been read and sent to clients, but stay in with a certain priority of reservation to make possible a rewind operation.",
"Read 320 —it coincides with the beginning of slot s and points to the next GoF to be viewed by the client.",
"After passing this pointer, video elements are marked as being already read.",
"Minimum 330 —it coincides with the beginning of slot s+ 1 and indicates when the buffer is to reach the point of minimum level, generating a signal to the C-DCM manager to take the necessary measures to start a new flow to refill the buffer, avoiding a possible underflow.",
"All of the content that it points to is reserved, and cannot be discarded.",
"Write 340 —it points to the position where the next incoming GoF should be stored.",
"Usually, it should be located between pointers 330 and 350 .",
"If it is below 330 it indicates a risk of underflow and if it is above 350 it indicates a risk of overflow.",
"Maximum 350 —it coincides with the start of slot s+ 3 .",
"It indicates the risk of buffer overflow.",
"When the buffer is reaching this level, the client generates a signal to the C-DCM, which will take the necessary actions to prevent a buffer overflow and corresponding lost of GoFs.",
"End 360 —it coincides with the beginning of slot s+ 3 .",
"It indicates the end of physical space assigned to the buffer.",
"The previous content before this limit can be discarded.",
"If this content will not be read, it can be reserved with temporary slots.",
"Temporary Slots These are slots that do not make part of collapsed buffers but can have their contents reserved for either concatenating or increasing the length of collapsed buffers.",
"The Local Method The cache content pointed to by each collapsed buffer is guaranteed to support one or more clients, i.e., the system cannot discard the cache content that is to be transmitted.",
"Two or more collapsed buffers can have their contents overlapped, that is, they are superimposed and thus share slots in common.",
"In this way, it avoids unnecessary replication and optimizes the use of memory, which can be utilized to allocate temporary buffers or to simply leave in the cache media contents that are often accessed such as the initial part of films of large audience.",
"Collapsed buffers that are superimposed or concatenated act as a single buffer regarded to the flow control that arrives at a proxy, and this control is performed by the buffer, called receiver, that receives the flow from another proxy or server.",
"Other superimposed or concatenated buffers depend on the content that is already in the local memory, thus the control of the receiver's buffer is enough to guarantee the necessary content to other buffers.",
"A proxy should have preferably memory enough to allocate collapsed buffers for its local clients.",
"In case of proxy 50 as shown in the FIG. 1 , its clients are 80 , 90 , and 100 , i.e., the clients that are served by the central access point 20 to whom proxy 50 is connected.",
"For reasons of economy, a proxy can have less memory than necessary to allocate one collapsed buffer for each active client, since the probability that all these clients simultaneously open different media sessions is low.",
"In addition, clients can share slots, mostly for popular films and during periods of time of large audience.",
"On the other hand, if memory cost is low or if the objective is to maximize the reuse of media, a proxy can have much more memory than necessary to allocate one collapsed buffer for every local client.",
"The local C-DCM manager attempts to make continuous the greatest possible amount of collapsed buffers locally.",
"For this purpose it makes use of temporary buffers.",
"Once collapsed buffers become continuous, the next objective is to minimize the amount of flows sent to local clients, that is, flows that are close enough are grouped so that a single multicast flow can be sent, which diminishes the proxy's I/O workload.",
"As an example, FIG. 5 shows a block diagram that illustrates proxies 50 and 60 .",
"A proxy includes preferably a central processing unit (CPU) 510 and memory 520 .",
"The CPU can be a single processor or multiple processors in parallel.",
"The instructions are stored in the memory (RAM, 510 .",
"The CPU preferably has a Unit of Logical and Arithmetic (ULA), a Unit of Control and a local memory such as cache of instructions and/or data or several registers.",
"Such CPU architecture is well known.",
"Proxy 50 or 60 can or cannot be embedded in communication equipment, such as DSLAM, Head end, or router/commuter.",
"Proxy 50 or 60 in FIG. 1 is preferably composed of ( FIG. 5 ) a slot management process 530 , a client admission subroutine 540 , a subroutine for cache replacement of video units 550 , and a subroutine for interactive operations 560 , a process for garbage collection 570 , and a manager process for distributed C-DCM 580 when there are two or more cooperative proxies, besides the cache itself 590 .",
"A client request (cli) is processed by the client admission subroutine 540 , as shown by the example in the flowchart of FIG. 6 .",
"When a client request arrives the list of medias (LM) 410 is searched for the requested media.",
"If it is not found locally, the proxy moves towards the server in search for the media′s meta-information and creates one more unit in the LM, together with LSU 430 and LCMU 450 structures, inserting the client into the waiting list of the LM element 410 that corresponds to the request.",
"If the request is already in the LM then the client is inserted in the waiting list as before.",
"Next, the initial slot s in the FIG. 3 is computed, and into which the client will be inserted 610 .",
"The initial slot s is calculated by diminishing the current time TC from start time TI at which the LSU began to rotate over the LCMU plus the initial time TS (Time Stamp) of the requested segment in relation to the beginning of the media.",
"This value is also divided by the duration DS of a slot;",
"the result is submitted to a module operation using the number of slots NS.",
"To summarize, S=[(TC−TI+TS)/DS]% NS, where the symbol % is the modulo operation that finds the remainder from a division and a real result is truncated to an integer value.",
"As the client is requesting the initial segment TS is equal to zero.",
"If the slot has already a client 620 , that is, there already has a flow to another client, either unicast or multicast, starting from the GoF pointed by the beginning of slot s 420 , the client is inserted into that flow and the part of flow that was missed, which is part of content under s, is sent as a patch 625 .",
"C-DCM works on networks that do or do not support multicast, though in the latter it is possible to emulate multicast using unicast.",
"If slot s has no client, it is checked to see if the content that s encompasses until the minimum level 330 is in the cache 630 , if it is not, the proxy provides a new flow from either the server or another proxy to provide the content 635 .",
"If the content is already in the cache the proxy creates a collapsed buffer and updates the status of slots that are within its limits, inserts the client that was in the waiting list into slot s, and sends a patch if it is necessary 640 .",
"If the buffer has a provider to supply the content 645 i.e. the client is a receiver then the admission process ends 680 .",
"Otherwise, it checks the distance until the previous collapsed buffer 650 .",
"If that distance is less than the one that compensates for avoiding a new external flow, it attempts to allocate temporary buffers so as to benefit from the content of the preceding receiver 670 , provided there is enough space in the cache to allocate temporary slots 660 , otherwise it starts a new flow with the required content 655 .",
"The C-DCM works with the client's reservation of part of the cache through the use of a collapsed buffer.",
"However, the content that stay outside of the buffer does not need to be discarded if there is room in the cache.",
"In this manner, most frequently accessed parts of a media can continue in cache such as the beginning of a video, as well as the contents of temporary slots and contents that are left out of the cache due to overflow, or even the content of a popular media.",
"Nevertheless, if the cache is full there is a need for substituting the non-reserved content for one that is going to be inside of a reserved slot.",
"When the cache is full the substitution of media units FIG. 7 takes into account the media popularity.",
"In this way, all the media units are ordered according to its popularity rank 710 in increasing order, and starting with that of lowest rank 720 , the video units of highest priority of discarding are removed, as follows: (1) the ones that have been already read and are outside of the collapsed buffers;",
"(2) the ones that in the beginning of the media and are not reserved;",
"(3) the ones that have not been read but due to overflow are outside of the collapsed buffers, and lastly (4) removing temporary buffers 730 .",
"On removing temporary buffers, it is verified if there is a need to substitute them for an external flow, to supply the content of collapsed buffers on behalf of the temporary buffers that can be discarded 735 .",
"When choosing a media unit or temporary buffer to be discarded, in case of a tie, it will be first discarded the one that is farther from the previous collapsed buffer, that is, farther from being reused until the amount of necessary cache is released 740 and 750 .",
"The collapsed buffer is a virtual C-DCM concept in that what does really control both content and flow is the slots.",
"In the FIG. 3 , a collapsed buffer is illustrated with 4 slots, but it could have just a single slot or more than 5 slots, actually this is a question of convention.",
"Every slot has its status set in accord to its location in the collapsed buffer or if it is a temporary one or if it is not reserved.",
"If it is not reserved it does not monitor its virtual content The content is said to be virtual because the slot does not store content, but only indicates which elements in the LCMU it is the manager of.",
"If it is reserved, the slot manages its virtual content.",
"Since the LSU rotates over the LCMU, after some time interval, the LSU can have rotated some times around itself.",
"To calculate the start and end of slot using the media timestamp, it is necessary to know how many turns the slot performed up to current time.",
"Given the instant of time I at which the LSU started to rotate, the period of time VC for a complete turn (the media duration plus padding), the current time A, and the position of slot P, then the number of cycles is calculated by the current time A less initial time I less slot position P times its length T divided by a complete turn VC, and the real result being truncated to integer values.",
"Once the cycle is calculated, the slot start time is given by start time I less current time A less the number of cycles C times the time VC for a complete turn less slot position P times its length T. The end of slot FS is given by slot beginning IS less slot length T 810 .",
"Both IS and FS return a time value in relation to the media's start time.",
"Since GoFs can be accessed using either its sequential number or its timestamp, we can delimit the GoFs managed by a given slot through the simple calculation we described previously.",
"If a slot has the status of temporary slot the elements that pass the beginning of slot are marked as temporarily reserved and after leaving the slot they are marked as free 820 .",
"If a slot is the slot s in the FIG. 3 , the GoF that passes the end of slot 310 will be marked as free and the one that passes the beginning of slot 320 will be marked as reserved and read 820 , given that on passing that point the GoF will be multicast to other clients that have been included in the list of clients of the slot 830 .",
"If the slot is slot s+ 1 in the FIG. 3 , for every element that passes the beginning of the slot 330 it is verified to see if it is in the cache, and if it is not, it means that the provider failed, and a pre-overflow warning is generated so that a new provider can be established 840 .",
"Everything that a provider sends is written to the cache and the status is updated in the LCMU as written but not read.",
"If the slot is s+ 1 , s+ 2 , or s+ 3 , as GoFs pass the beginning-of-slot pointer 330 , 350 , or 360 , they are updated as written, not read, and reserved 820 .",
"If the slot is s+ 2 in the FIG. 3 , and upon verifying the element that is passing the beginning of slot 350 , besides updating its status, the slot generates a pre-overflow warning so that actions can be taken to avoid overflow if necessary 840 .",
"If the slot is s+ 3 , all the GoFs that are in the cache upon passing the beginning pointer 360 are updated as being not read and reserved 820 .",
"For purposes of processing economy, the verification or/and updating of GoFs in the beginning or end of a slot can be dismissed if the status of the GoFs are not altered when passing from a slot to another.",
"For example, on consecutive temporary slots, the status is only altered in the beginning of first slot and at the end of last slot.",
"The Distributed Method Collapsed Buffers with non-empty intersection that are located in distinct proxies can be interconnected by a video flow that guarantees the receiver's minimum level, establishing cooperation between proxies and the need for coordinating such a cooperation with the objective of maximizing the use of system resources.",
"The distributed C-DCM manager 580 tries to chain continuous buffers of the proxies in order to reuse their contents.",
"To increase the chaining degree so as to avoid the need of another flow from the server, continuous collapsed buffers can be augmented at the opposed end of the receiver by using a temporary buffer.",
"The allocation priority of temporary slots depends on the amount of available memory and the number of remote clients that will reuse the content.",
"The allocation priority is for small amount of temporary buffers that have high potential to server large number of remote clients, and is inverse of the discarding priority that is towards large number of temporary slots that have low potential of reuse (serve few clients).",
"This is a question of trading off cache space (temporary buffers) for using bandwidth from both network backbone and server.",
"This means that, taking into consideration the slot hierarchy, in the absence of memory space, the content of largest discarding priority is the one that belongs to a non-reserved slot followed by the temporary buffer.",
"The contents of slots that belong to a collapsed buffer are discarded only if the client stops using the system.",
"The distributed C-DCM manager as well as the local one maintains a mapping of the proxies'",
"continuous buffers.",
"With this information, the C-DCM manager is capable of chaining collapsed buffers.",
"The C-DCM manager has to try to reuse the content of other proxies and only as the last option to resort to the server, avoiding however to generate a ping-pong traffic, which would congest the network backbone.",
"To avoid ping-pong traffic proxies, which in turn request to their neighbors until the requested content is found or the request message arrives at the server.",
"In this way, only the nearest proxy that has the requested content will send it.",
"The neighboring proxies and the server are connected through persistent links that preferably reflect the network topology.",
"Another way to do so is making all the proxies to have information about the state of other proxies, which is obtained in a distributed fashion, to calculate locally the proxy that will provide the requested content.",
"Interactive Operations The interactive operations on the media comprise any client being able to definitively stop the media exhibition, to pause it temporarily, to start from the point it paused, to forward it to a certain point within the media and to start exhibiting the media from that point, and both to fast advance and to fast rewind while keeping exhibiting the media.",
"Each of these interactive operations will be described next.",
"Stop Operation For this operation, the proxy simply moves the client out of its list and frees the reserved resources accordingly.",
"Pause Operation In this operation, the proxy frees the slots of the collapsed buffer of the client that requested the operation, provided that there is no clients on the collapsed buffer, taking care to preferably reserve the content of s+ 2 and s+ 3 in the LCMU FIG. 3 as content of PAUSE and releasing the provider or temporary buffers if they are unnecessary to maintain the flow to other local or remote collapsed buffer;",
"the content of s and s+ 1 are in the client's local buffer.",
"The client moves from the list of active clients 436 to the list of clients in pause 420 , which besides recording the client identity, stores information on which content was reserved.",
"A time limit can be established during which the content stays reserved as pause content, depending on the film popularity, so as to optimize the use of the cache.",
"Restart Operation In this operation, the client informs the point at which the exhibition should restart.",
"This procedure is similar to the one for client admission except that part of the content is already in the local buffer, and part of it will be preferably in the cache.",
"The reserved content in the cache during a pause is synchronized with the list of slot units, removing the pause reservation and keeping only with the slot reservation.",
"The slot that is to be synchronized is calculated according to the formula already described to locate the initial slot when admitting a new client except that the initial time of segment is the time of segment that is in the cache.",
"The client also leaves the list 420 and enters into the list 436 of slot s that forms its collapsed buffer.",
"Jump Operation In this operation, the client informs the point to which the media should advance, case of the media is being exhibited;",
"the proxy frees the reserved resources if they have not been reserved for other clients and if they are unnecessary to maintain the flow to other local or remote collapsed buffer, after which the procedure is equal to the admission of a new client, except that the film will not be exhibited from the beginning but from the point that the client chose randomly, for which it uses the same formula described previously.",
"Fast Forward Operation This and next operation are the ones that demand most of system resources.",
"Thus they should be used preferably together with the JUMP operation, followed by rewinding or fast forwarding until arriving at the desired point of the media.",
"The quality of exhibition may be sub-optimal so that if any lost of GoFs occur, they can be tolerated.",
"On asking for this operation, the slots of the client's collapsed buffer are reserved and controlled by the process for interactive operations (PIO) 560 that is created for the client.",
"This process reserves preferably n slots ahead of the collapsed buffer, and prefetches the content that is missing in those n slots, from either the server or a cooperative proxy.",
"Since proxies keep information on the medias that are in their caches in the LM, LSU, and LCMU, these lists can be searched to verify if the requested media segment is in cache, and if it is not the proxy transfers the request for prefetching to the next cooperative proxy, or to the server as the last resort.",
"Given that this operation requires transmission of n times more contents than the normal case, it is necessary that the non-read part of collapsed buffer has preferably a size n times greater to anticipate the prefetching for the content that is going to be exhibited at high speed.",
"As this augmented collapsed buffer to move over the LCMU 450 with a different speed from that of LSU 430 , PIO 560 forces the augmented collapsed buffer moves over the LSU 430 with a speed that is n- 1 times the normal one.",
"While reading the content if it does not have any other reservation the corresponding slots are released at the same n- 1 speed for possible discard, if the slot is neither used by a temporary buffer nor belongs to a collapsed buffer.",
"For, the PIO 560 increments the fast-forward status 434 and inserts the client into the list of fast-forward 437 , so as to make reservation ahead, while decrements the fast-forward status 434 and removes the client from the list of fast-forward clients 437 for the slots behind.",
"In addition, it sends the content to the client at a speed that is n times superior to the normal one.",
"Usually, n is equal two, i.e., it exhibits a speed that is twice faster than the normal one.",
"Fast Rewind Operation This operation is implemented in a way similar to fast forward, except that GoFs are reserved and prefetched backwards, making the augmented collapsed buffer to move over the LSU at a speed that is n+1 times the normal one and on the opposite direction of exhibition.",
"The Garbage Collector In the C-DCM the function of garbage collection 570 is to eliminate reservations left by any client that had a silent failure or simply left the system without warning, leaving slots and memory areas reserved.",
"The process of garbage collect 570 , from time to time walks through the list of clients, checking if they are still actives, if it finds an inactive client, it removes the client from the list and if it is the only client of a reserved slot, this slot is updated to become non-reserved and its content is released for discarding by the subroutine for substitution of continuous media units in the cache."
] |
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0001] 1. Field of the Invention
[0002] The present invention relates to semiconductor structures having a memory element, which is protected from interferences by an integrated shield.
[0003] 2. Description of the Related Art
[0004] With an increasing packing density of electronic elements, such as transistors, which are integrated on a chip, the significance of efficient protective measures against electromagnetical or electrostatic interferences increases. If memory elements, for example, are constructed with the help of transistors, the stored amount of charge might no longer be detected correctly, if, for example either the amount of the stored amount of charge or its sign have changed significantly due to an electrical interference field. This is particularly problematic, if EEPROMs are used for permanent storage of data (EEPROM=electrically erasable programmable read only memory), since an EEPROM cell is particularly susceptible against external interference fields.
[0005] Principally, an EEPROM cell is constructed similar to a MOS transistor (MOS=metal oxide semiconductor). In FIG. 1, a schematic diagram of an EEPROM cell ( 100 ) is illustrated, as it is known from the prior art. First, the EEPROM cell is characterized by a control terminal 102 , a floating gate electrode 104 , a source terminal 106 , a drain terminal 108 as well as a substrate or bulk terminal 110 . A coupling capacity 112 is effective between the control terminal 102 and the floating gate 104 , and the known MOS capacity 114 is effective between the floating gate 104 and the bulk terminal 110 .
[0006] In FIG. 2, the setup of an EEPROM cell is illustrated, as it is known from the prior art. In a substrate (bulk) 116 , such a p-substrate (p bulk), an n + source area 118 and an n + drain area 120 are formed. A channel area 122 is formed between the n + source area 118 and the n + drain area 120 . A thin oxide layer 126 is formed on a surface 124 of the substrate 116 , where the floating gate 104 is formed. An oxide layer 128 is formed on the floating gate, where again a control electrode 130 (control gate=CG) is formed, which is connected to the control terminal 102 . The n + source area 118 is connected to the source terminal 106 , and the n + drain area 120 is connected to the drain terminal 108 . The substrate 116 is connected to the bulk terminal 110 at the surface 132 opposite to the surface 124 . The coupling capacity 112 is formed by the control electrode 130 , the floating gate 104 and the oxide layer 128 lying between them. The MOS capacity 113 is formed by the floating gate 104 , the thin oxide layer 126 and the substrate 116 . In the setup of the EEPROM illustrated in FIG. 2, this is an n-type EEPROM. The EEPROM cell can also be formed as p-type EEPROM. In this case, the substrate would be an n-substrate or an n-well would be formed in the p-substrate 116 , where a p + source area and a p + drain area would be formed. In this case, the n-substrate and the n-well, respectively, would be the bulk of the p-type EEPROM.
[0007] The difference between the EEPROM cell and a MOS transistor is that two electrodes are provided for controlling in the EEPROM cell, the floating gate 104 (FG) and the control electrode 130 (CG). The floating gate 104 is directly opposite to the MOS channel area 122 , which is formed between the source area 118 and the drain area 120 , only separated by the thin oxide 126 , and is not connected to further parts of the circuit in an electrically conductive way, which is why it is electrically “floating”. By the other, mostly thicker, oxide 128 , the control electrode 130 is separated from the floating gate 104 and connected to the control terminal 102 . Thus, seen from the outside, the EEPROM cell is similar to a MOS transistor with source, drain, bulk and gate terminals. Particularly, in the EEPROM cell, an effective threshold voltage, U th,eff can be defined, like in the MOS transistor. In an n-type EEPROM, which corresponds to an NMOS, the control electrode 130 has to be raised above the source potential at least by U th,eff , so that the channel formed between the drain area 128 and the source area 126 becomes conductive.
[0008] By different physical mechanisms, such as by Fowler Nordheim tunneling (FN) or Hot Carrier Injection (HCI), an excess or a deficiency of net charge can be generated at the floating gate 104 . Therefore, a comparatively high voltage of a positive or negative polarity has to be applied between control terminal 102 and the bulk terminal 110 , whereby the respectively smallest information unit (bit) is stored in the form of this net charge or not, whereby, for example, a logical “1” or a logical “0” can be realized. It can be seen that after this programming the changed net charge at the floating gate 104 leads to a change of the effective threshold voltage. If the floating gate 104 is not charged, the respective effective threshold voltage is called UV level. This designation stems from the fact that an uncharged state can be achieved by irradiating the floating gate of the EEPROM cell with UV light for several minutes.
[0009] If a high positive potential is applied to the control terminal 102 due to the programming, a negative net charge (electron excess) occurs at the floating gate 104 , as long as the coupling capacity 112 is larger than the MOS capacity 114 , which is always assumed in the following. The effective threshold voltage will therefore be shifted to positive values; it is therefore larger than the UV level. If the control terminal 102 is provided with a strongly negative potential against the substrate 116 in the programming, a positive net charge (electron deficiency) is obtained at the floating gate 104 , and the threshold voltage becomes smaller than the UV level.
[0010] In the following, the programming is explained with an example of the Fowler Nordheim Tunnel mechanism, as it is known from the prior art.
[0011] If a positive voltage ramp is applied at the control terminal 102 , first, at small voltages, a separation of the voltage into two fractional voltages occurs, namely a voltage at the coupling capacity 112 (coupling capacitor), and a second voltage between the floating gate 104 and the MOS channel and substrate 116 , respectively, which drops at the MOS capacity 114 . According to the common rules for capacitive voltage dividers, the ratio of the coupling capacity 112 to the MOS capacity 114 is inverse proportional to a ratio of the fractional voltages dropping at these two capacities. For that reason, an effort is made to make the coupling capacity larger than the MOS capacity 114 , so that a portion of the total applied voltage as high as possible drops at the thin oxide 126 of the MOS capacity 114 , and affects the Fowler Nordheim tunneling there. This is achieved constructively by making the lateral dimensions of the thin oxide 126 defined by a layout smaller than those of the oxide 126 between the control electrode 130 and the floating 104 . If, therefore, the voltage applied to the control terminal 102 is ramped up, the two fractional voltages rise as well, until finally the larger fractional voltage—namely the one at the thin oxide 126 —achieves a field strength of, for example, about 8 MV/cm to about 9 MV/cm. Then, the Fowler Nordheim tunneling begins, i.e. a small stream flows above the thin oxide 126 from the floating gate 104 to the MOS channel and the substrate 116 , respectively. The rise time of the voltage ramp should thereby be so small that those processes run more or less statically. Thus, a small Fowler Nordheim tunnel current is enough to load the coupling capacity 112 sufficiently fast, so that the potential at the floating gate 104 remains, for example, at a value of Um=8 . . . 9 MV/cm*D. Thereby, D indicates a thickness of the thin oxide 126 .
[0012] If a maximum programming voltage is finally Up, a difference between Up and Um is stored at the coupling capacity 112 . This can be expressed as follows:
| UP|−Um=|Uc|=|Q ( FG )|* Cc
[0013] Thereby, Q(FG) is the charge stored at the floating gate 104 , and Cc is the value of the coupling capacity 112 . In the above expression, for simplicity reasons, the sign was omitted, which reflects in the amount-like version of the charge stored at the floating gate 104 . The normal rise times of the voltage ramps are between 100 μs 10 ms.
[0014] If, however, the rise time of the programming pulse is shorter, the small Fowler Nordheim tunnel stream is no longer sufficient to load the coupling capacity 112 sufficiently fast, so that the voltage at the thin oxide 126 rises above Um, and damages the thin oxide 126 more than absolutely necessary. This pre-damage is shown by the fact that the floating gate 104 looses the charge over time, and it comes to a data loss, which, of course, has to be avoided.
[0015] A bit error occurs, if, for example, high voltages at the thin oxide 126 (also referred to as gate oxide) of the MOS capacity 114 change a charge state of the floating gate 104 , whereby, for example, the sign of the stored charge changes. Often, however, it is already sufficient for a bit error when merely the amount of the charge stored at the floating gate is reduced sufficiently, without changing the sign. The reason therefore is that it is difficult in practice to apply the exact UV level as an ideal discrimination value between the positive and the negative charge at the floating gate 104 at the control electrode 102 . On the one hand, there are the discrimination value varies with temperature, on the other hand, the strong variations from batch to batch, disc to disc, chip to chip and even within a chip in dependency of a position of the memory element (memory cell) in the chip, which are common in the memory in the semiconductor technology.
[0016] In practice, it can happen that an integrated circuit (IC) is subject to a high electrical field. This is particularly the case in electrically “rough” environment, such as in the use in an automobile. Therefore, it is extremely important in security relevant applications that the IC functions properly despite an adverse electrical environment, particularly that it is not damaged thereby. For a function of the IC, often those data are relevant which are stored in the EEPROM cell. As an example, imagine an integrated magnetic-field sensor, which is to detect a blocking of a wheel in an ABS system (ABS=anti blocking system), and whose calibration data are stored on chip in an EEPROM. If these calibration data are, for example, lost by an electrical field pulse, the blocking of a wheel is continuously not detected, or in another extreme case, never detected. The consequences of such damage can be dramatic.
[0017] Particularly high electric fields can occur in ESD events (ESD=electrostatic discharge). Here, again, that case is to be seen as worst case, where the discharge takes place above a housing to the IC. Thereby, a tip of an ESD pistol is held directly to a surface of the IC, and, for example, charged to several kilovolt against ground. If the IC is applied to ground at the same time, an ESD flash can discharge above that part of a compound of the housing directly under the tip of the ESD pistol. If an EEPROM cell is within this area on the surface of IC, it can be damaged thereby.
[0018] In the following, the orders of the influence of an ESD event to an EEPROM cell are estimated.
[0019] As a model, the tip of the ESD pistol and the ESD cell is replaced by a small ball, since the capacity of a ball spark gap can be calculated analytically without too much effort as follows:
C = πɛ 0 ( 2 R + g ) ∑ p = 1 ∞ 1 sinh ( par sinh ( 1 + g 2 R ) )
[0020] Thereby, R is the radius of the ba s and g the distance of their facing surfaces, ε 0 is the electrical field constant. For thin housings, particularly with magnetic-field sensors, g=0.15 mm has to be assumed. arsinh ( . . . ) is the arcus sinus hyperbolic function and p is the sum index. Depending on the radius of the ball R, the following stray capacitances result from the above expression:
R C 100 nm 5.6 aF 1 μm 56 aF 10 μm 0.59 fF 100 μm 7.4 fF 1 mm 8.7 fF
[0021] In practice, naturally, the EEPROM cell is very small (smaller than 1 μm), the tip of an ESD diode or the fingertip of a human being is comparatively large (larger than 1 mm), so that the above model of the ball spark gap is not very well suitable for an exact calculation of the influence of the ESD event on an EEPROM cell. Still, this model can be used for a best-case estimation. The stray capacity between the fingertip and the EEPROM cell is definitely larger than the one between two balls with 1 μm radius, since the fingertip is significantly larger than 1 μm and according to the above table, the capacity rises also with increasing radius. Even this small stray capacity of 56 aF between fingertip and floating gate 104 effects that at an assumed coupling capacity 111 Cc=20 fF already the 20/0.056=357-th part of the ESD voltage is applied to the thin oxide. Thus, at a value of the ESD voltage of, for example, 4.6 kV, 13 V are applied to the thin oxide. This is already sufficient for the FN tunneling for a thickness of 12 nm assumed in this example.
[0022] Due to the above-described problem it is thus necessary to shield the floating gate 104 appropriately. This can, for example, be realized by covering the floating gate 104 fully with the control electrode 130 , so that the control electrode 130 electrically shields the floating gate 104 . This shield effect can be insufficient, when the control electrode 130 is not low-resistively connected to the substrate 116 of the EEPROM cell. Assumed that a person who is electrostatically charged touches the IC. The stray capacity between the fingertip of the person and the control electrode 130 raises-the potential of the control electrode 130 , when the control electrode 130 is not brought to a defined potential by other circuit parts. This case occurs particularly when the IC is not supplied with a voltage, because then the inner nodes of an MOS circuit have a high impedance, since no sufficient potentials are present at the gates of the belonging MOS transistors in order to switch those to being conductive. The coupling capacity 112 formed by the floating gate 104 , the oxide layer 128 and the control electrode 130 influences then subsequently the potential of the floating gate 104 , so that its charge state might change.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0023] It is the object of the present invention to provide a semiconductor structure with an efficient shield of a floating gate arranged in a semiconductor structure.
[0024] In accordance with a first aspect, the present invention provides a semiconductor structure having a memory element with a floating gate, a control electrode, which is capacitively coupled to the floating gate, wherein a signal for controlling the memory element is applicable to the control electrode, and a shield, which is arranged isolated from the floating gate and covers it fully.
[0025] The present invention is based on the knowledge that both the floating gate and the control electrode can be formed during a semiconductor manufacturing process such that the floating gate is fully covered with a further conductive layer and can thus be shielded.
[0026] Preferably, both the floating gate and the control electrode are covered with a conductive layer, which is preferably electrically isolated from the floating gate and the control electrode, wherein the conductive layer is low-resistively connected, preferably with the bulk of the EEPROM cell (e. g. p-substrate of the MOS transistor or ah n-sink of a PMOS transistor). Since the bulk of the EEPROM is mostly also connected to the system ground (e. g. 0 V), the conductive layer is thus also connected to the system ground.
[0027] The conductive layer can be realized by inserting an additional conductive layer during the semiconductor manufacturing process, which covers the appropriately arranged floating gate. Mostly, the floating gate and the control electrode overlap to some extend anyway, so that the conductive layer (shield) merely has to lie above both electrodes.
[0028] If the wiring levels and the floating gate and the control electrode are arranged in a predetermined positional relationship to each other, the formation of an additional conductive layer can be omitted during the semiconductor manufacturing process, since the shield can be realized by a wiring level. Since the wiring levels have a low impedance, they also have a good shielding effect, even at transient events (such as the actual ESD impact, “flash”), due to the low penetration depths. This is another reason why the shield should be connected to the bulk of an EEPROM with an impedance as low as possible.
[0029] Since there is a constantly increasing number of wiring levels (supply levels) in modern semiconductor technologies, it should be considered which of the wiring levels is ideally suited for a realization of the shield. This problem will be discussed below.
[0030] If the control electrode is formed such that it lies below the floating gate (see FIG. 7), a remarkable stray capacity arises between the floating gate (particularly between the part 104 b much larger than 104 a, 104 c ), and the wiring levels lying above it, which form the inventive shield. However, this is disadvantageous in programming the EEPROM, since this stray capacity decreases the efficiency of the coupling capacity, i.e. the shield is applied to ground and prevents with its stray capacity against the floating gate the floating gate from following a programming pulse at the control electrode. Thus, it is to be preferred to use an upper wiring level for the shield, i.e. a wiring level whose vertical distance to the floating gate is as large as possible. The distance between the used wiring level and the floating gate should, however, still be minuscully small against a housing thickness over this part of the IC, so that the shield effect is sufficiently good. Otherwise, the electric field lines surround the shield and form again a stray capacity between, for example, a fingertip and an ESD pistol, respectively, and the floating gate.
[0031] If the floating gate is formed such that it is below the control electrode (see FIG. 8), then it is optimal in this case to use a lower wiring level lying above the floating gate and above the control electrode, i.e. a wiring level whose vertical distance to the floating gate is as low as possible, for the shield, since the stray capacity of the lower wiring level to the control electrode, which is respectively large in this case, does not matter. The reason therefore is that the control electrode is controlled, for example, by a voltage source in programming, which can charge this stray capacity against ground without difficulty such that an appropriate programming voltage arises. If, however, the stray capacity between 104 a and the shield already significantly reduces the coupling efficiency of the coupling capacity to the floating gate, it can even be advisable in that case, to form the shield in a higher wiring level (such as 136 b, 136 c ). Thereby, the coupling efficiency is defined as follows:
0 <Um/Up< 1.
[0032] To minimize the above-mentioned surrounding of the field lines around the shield, the shield should not only cover the floating gate and the control electrode flush, but should protrude for several micrometers. Generally, the shield should protrude so far as a normal distance of the shield to the floating gate of the EEPROM cell (which means in a vertical direction to the chip).
[0033] It is an object of the present invention that by inserting a conductive layer during the semiconductor manufacturing process, the floating gate is shielded against external interferences independent of a spatial extension of the control electrode, so that less bit errors are caused due to electrostatical interferences.
[0034] It is another object of the present invention that a good shield of the floating gate can be achieved without increasing the costs of the semiconductor manufacturing process, by arranging the floating gate and the overlaying wiring levels already during the manufacturing process such that the floating gate is shielded by one or by several wiring levels.
[0035] Although above an electrostatical shield was discussed primarily, it is also necessary to keep transient (i.e. electromagnetical) fields away from the floating gate by a shield, which is also achieved by the inventive shield.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0036] Preferred embodiments of the present invention will be discussed in more detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings. They show:
[0037] [0037]FIG. 1 a schematic diagram of an EEPROM cell;
[0038] [0038]FIG. 2 a setup of an EEPROM cell;
[0039] [0039]FIG. 3 a schematic diagram of a first embodiment of an EEPROM cell according to the present invention;
[0040] [0040]FIG. 4 a setup of a semiconductor structure according to the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 3;
[0041] [0041]FIG. 5 a schematic diagram of a further embodiment of an EEPROM cell according to the present invention;
[0042] [0042]FIG. 6 a setup of a semiconductor structure according to the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 5;
[0043] [0043]FIG. 7 a further embodiment of a semiconductor structure according to the present invention; and
[0044] [0044]FIG. 8 a further embodiment of a semiconductor structure according to the present invention.
DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
[0045] In the following description of the preferred embodiments, elements, which have already been explained with reference to FIG. 1 and 2 are provided with the same reference numbers. There will be no further description of these elements. Further, the same elements in the Figures are provided with the same reference numbers.
[0046] [0046]FIG. 3 shows a schematic diagram of the inventive semiconductor structure. An EEPROM cell 100 is shown, as it has already been described with reference to FIG. 1. As can be seen, the bulk terminal 110 is connected to a potential 134 , e. g. ground. According to the invention, a shield 136 is provided, which is also connected to the potential 132 and shields the floating gate 104 , as it is schematically illustrated.
[0047] [0047]FIG. 4 shows an embodiment of a setup of a semiconductor structure according to the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 3. The semiconductor structure (n type EEPROM) comprises, similar to FIG. 2, a substrate (p bulk) 116 . The n + source area 118 and the n + drain area 120 are formed in the substrate 116 . The drain and source terminals illustrated in FIG. 2 are not illustrated in FIG. 4 for simplicity. Further, a first p + area 138 and a second p + area 140 are formed in a substrate 116 . A thin oxide layer 126 is formed on the substrate 116 , which extends on the surface of the substrate 116 between the n + source area 118 and the n + drain area 120 .
[0048] The floating gate is formed by a first floating gate electrode 104 a, a second floating gate electrode 104 b and a connection electrode 104 c between the first and the second floating gate electrode. The second floating gate electrode 104 b is arranged laterally shifted with regard to the first floating gate electrode 104 a. The control electrode 130 is disposed opposite to the second floating gate electrode, with a lesser vertical distance to the surface of the substrate 116 . The oxide layer 128 is formed between the second floating gate electrode 104 b and the control electrode 130 . Thus, as can be seen in FIG. 4, the floating gate is formed above the control electrode 130 with reference to the surface of the substrate 116 . The first floating gate electrode 104 a, the second floating gate electrode 104 b, the connection electrode 104 c, the control electrode 130 and the oxide layers 126 , 128 are formed in a first portion 142 above the substrate 142 .
[0049] The shield 136 , which is, for example, formed as a metallizing layer, is disposed in a second portion 144 above the first portion 142 . The shield 136 is arranged such that it fully covers all portions 104 a, 104 b, 104 c of the floating gate, and preferably protrudes on the side, respectively. The shield 136 is further connected to the p + area 138 , which is formed in the substrate 116 , via a connection 146 , so that the potential applied to the substrate 116 is applicable above the bulk terminal 110 , which is connected to the area 140 and designed towards the top, to the shield 136 so that it is accessible from the top, as it is illustrated in FIG. 3. Thereby, the shield 136 keeps an electromagnetical and an electrostatical influence away from the sensible floating gate, wherein the conductive bulk (substrate 116 ) provides a shielding effect from below. The control electrode 130 is connected to the control terminal 102 via a connection 148 , which extends through the second portion 144 .
[0050] In the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 4, the shield 136 is formed continuously. For the case illustrated in FIG. 4 that the floating gate has a plurality of portions 104 a, 104 b, 104 c, the shield 136 can be formed according to the invention, such that it also comprises a plurality of conductive areas, which mainly lie on the same potential and cover the plurality of portions of the floating gate.
[0051] The EEPROM cell can be realized in a single well CMOS process with an analog option by a standard NMOS transistor and, for example, a standard poly-poly capacitor, when the gate of the NMOS is connected to one of the two electrodes of the poly-poly capacitor to the floating gate. According to the invention, the floating gate is arranged such that it is fully covered by the shield 136 (the low impedance layer) towards the top. Above that, this layer is conductively connected to the bulk of the NMOS (for example directly realized in a substrate), which is formed by a substrate of the IC. Thereby, the stored charge at the floating gate is protected from ESD and other voltage events as well as from electromagnetical fields, since the floating gate is electrostatically shielded towards the top by the shield 136 and towards the bottom by the likewise conductive substrate 136 , such as a p-substrate, which is mostly supported in its shielding effect by a still better conductive supply frame lying below it. Therefore, the shield 136 (the screen) should cover all parts of the floating gate and protrude sufficiently on the sides. Since the p-substrate 116 is normally put on reference potential, this requirement is identical with putting the shield 136 also put on the reference potential.
[0052] Analogous considerations hold true for an EEPROM cell, consisting of a PMOS transistor by using an n-substrate (exchange of n- and p-doping) and a p-substrate with n-well, respectively.
[0053] [0053]FIG. 5 shows a schematic diagram of a further embodiment of an EEPROM cell according to the present invention. Different to the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 3, the EEPROM cell illustrated in FIG. 5 has a terminal 150 . The bulk terminal 110 is connected to the terminal 150 . Above that, the shield 136 is connected to the terminal 150 , so that the shield 136 is directly connected to the bulk terminal 110 . Above the terminal 150 , a potential is applicable both to the bulk terminal 110 and to the shield 136 . This embodiment is thus advantageous for CMOS transistors with their own well, which is not identical to the substrate.
[0054] [0054]FIG. 6 showed a setup—similar to FIG. 4—of a semiconductor structure according to the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 5. Different to FIG. 4, an n-well 152 is formed in a substrate 116 , wherein again a p-well 154 is formed, wherein the source area 118 and the drain area 120 as well as the first p + area 138 are formed. Further, an n + area 156 is formed in the n-well 152 , above which a potential, e.g. 3 Volt, is applicable to the n-well 152 . Above the first p + area 134 , a potential is applicable to the p-well and thus also to the shield 136 , as it is schematically shown by the terminal 150 . By the fact that the shield 136 and the p-well terminal 150 are on the same potential, it is achieved that the floating gate 104 is shielded both by the shield 136 as well as by the p-well 154 .
[0055] The significant difference between the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 3 and FIG. 5 is that in the embodiment according to FIG. 5, the common potential of p-well 154 and shield 136 is freely available, while in the embodiment according to FIG. 3, the common potential is identical to ground.
[0056] By the fact that the p-well 154 covers the floating gate formed of portions 104 a, 104 b, 104 c from below, it is achieved that the floating gate is arranged between the shield 136 and the p-well 154 , whereby a better shield is achieved from below.
[0057] According to the invention, the floating gate 104 , which is accessible towards the top, is preferably fully covered by a low-impedance layer (shield 136 ), and this layer is connected to the substrate 116 and a p-well 154 , respectively. Thereby, the stored charge at the floating gate 104 is protected from ESD and other high voltage events, since the floating gate 104 is shielded towards the top by the shield 136 , and towards the bottom by the likewise conductive substrate and the p-well, respectively. Therefore, the shield 136 should preferably cover all parts of the floating gate 104 and protrude sufficiently on the sides. Preferably, in the case of a p-well, it is extended such that all parts of the floating gate 104 are covered seen from below.
[0058] In FIG. 7, another embodiment of the semiconductor structure is illustrated according to the present invention. Different to the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 4, the semiconductor structure illustrated in FIG. 7 has a plurality of metallizing levels or supply levels 136 a to 136 c in the second portion 144 . It should be noted here, that an arbitrary number of supply levels could be provided.
[0059] In the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 7, the floating gatt (portions 104 a, 104 b, 104 c ) is disposed over the control electrode 130 , i.e. the vertical distance of the control electrode 130 to the substrate 116 is smaller than the distance of the second floating gate electrode 104 a to the substrate 116 . For such an arrangement of the floating gate 104 it is advantageous to use a supply level or wiring level for the shield, whose distance to the floating gate is highest, since the stray capacity between floating gate and shield should be kept small. In the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 7, the supply level 136 c is chosen as shield, which is connected to the substrate 116 like in FIG. 4.
[0060] The supply levels 136 a, 136 b, 136 c are several elements out of which the shield can be formed. If, for example, the first supply level 136 a is arranged such that it is not optimally accessible to establish a connection to the substrate 116 , the second supply level 136 b, for example, can be used as shield element. If the extension of the supply level is not sufficient to cover the floating gate, several supply levels or portions of several supply levels can be interconnected to obtain a sufficient coverage.
[0061] [0061]FIG. 8 shows a further embodiment of a semiconductor structure according to the present invention. Similar to FIG. 7, the floating gate is here also formed by the first floating gate electrode 104 a, the second floating gate electrode 104 b and the connection electrode 104 c between the first and the second floating gate electrode. The second floating gate electrode 104 b is arranged laterally shifted with regard to the first floating gate electrode 104 a. The control electrode 130 is arranged opposite to the second floating gate electrode, but with a higher vertical distance to the surface of the substrate 116 . Thus, the floating gate is formed below the control electrode with reference to the surface of the substrate 116 .
[0062] In this case, however, different to FIG. 7, the first supply level 136 c, whose distance to the control electrode 130 is the smallest, is connected to the substrate 116 .
[0063] Here, it should be noted that the embodiments discussed above with reference to an n-type EEPROM are analogously valid for a p-type EEPROM, wherein then the source and the drain areas are p-doped and formed either in an n-substrate or in an n-well in a p-substrate.
[0064] While this invention has been described in terms of several preferred embodiments, there are alterations, permutations, and equivalents which fall within the scope of this invention. It should also be noted that there are many alternative ways of implementing the methods and compositions of the present invention. It is therefore intended that the following appended claims be interpreted as including all such alterations, permutations, and equivalents as fall within the true spirit and scope of the present invention. | A semiconductor structure comprises a memory element, which comprises a floating gate, a control electrode, which is capacitively coupled to the floating gate, wherein a signal for controlling the memory element is applicable to the control electrode, as well as a shield, which is arranged isolated from the floating gate and covers it fully. | Summarize the patent document, focusing on the invention's functionality and advantages. | [
"BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION [0001] 1.",
"Field of the Invention [0002] The present invention relates to semiconductor structures having a memory element, which is protected from interferences by an integrated shield.",
"[0003] 2.",
"Description of the Related Art [0004] With an increasing packing density of electronic elements, such as transistors, which are integrated on a chip, the significance of efficient protective measures against electromagnetical or electrostatic interferences increases.",
"If memory elements, for example, are constructed with the help of transistors, the stored amount of charge might no longer be detected correctly, if, for example either the amount of the stored amount of charge or its sign have changed significantly due to an electrical interference field.",
"This is particularly problematic, if EEPROMs are used for permanent storage of data (EEPROM=electrically erasable programmable read only memory), since an EEPROM cell is particularly susceptible against external interference fields.",
"[0005] Principally, an EEPROM cell is constructed similar to a MOS transistor (MOS=metal oxide semiconductor).",
"In FIG. 1, a schematic diagram of an EEPROM cell ( 100 ) is illustrated, as it is known from the prior art.",
"First, the EEPROM cell is characterized by a control terminal 102 , a floating gate electrode 104 , a source terminal 106 , a drain terminal 108 as well as a substrate or bulk terminal 110 .",
"A coupling capacity 112 is effective between the control terminal 102 and the floating gate 104 , and the known MOS capacity 114 is effective between the floating gate 104 and the bulk terminal 110 .",
"[0006] In FIG. 2, the setup of an EEPROM cell is illustrated, as it is known from the prior art.",
"In a substrate (bulk) 116 , such a p-substrate (p bulk), an n + source area 118 and an n + drain area 120 are formed.",
"A channel area 122 is formed between the n + source area 118 and the n + drain area 120 .",
"A thin oxide layer 126 is formed on a surface 124 of the substrate 116 , where the floating gate 104 is formed.",
"An oxide layer 128 is formed on the floating gate, where again a control electrode 130 (control gate=CG) is formed, which is connected to the control terminal 102 .",
"The n + source area 118 is connected to the source terminal 106 , and the n + drain area 120 is connected to the drain terminal 108 .",
"The substrate 116 is connected to the bulk terminal 110 at the surface 132 opposite to the surface 124 .",
"The coupling capacity 112 is formed by the control electrode 130 , the floating gate 104 and the oxide layer 128 lying between them.",
"The MOS capacity 113 is formed by the floating gate 104 , the thin oxide layer 126 and the substrate 116 .",
"In the setup of the EEPROM illustrated in FIG. 2, this is an n-type EEPROM.",
"The EEPROM cell can also be formed as p-type EEPROM.",
"In this case, the substrate would be an n-substrate or an n-well would be formed in the p-substrate 116 , where a p + source area and a p + drain area would be formed.",
"In this case, the n-substrate and the n-well, respectively, would be the bulk of the p-type EEPROM.",
"[0007] The difference between the EEPROM cell and a MOS transistor is that two electrodes are provided for controlling in the EEPROM cell, the floating gate 104 (FG) and the control electrode 130 (CG).",
"The floating gate 104 is directly opposite to the MOS channel area 122 , which is formed between the source area 118 and the drain area 120 , only separated by the thin oxide 126 , and is not connected to further parts of the circuit in an electrically conductive way, which is why it is electrically “floating.”",
"By the other, mostly thicker, oxide 128 , the control electrode 130 is separated from the floating gate 104 and connected to the control terminal 102 .",
"Thus, seen from the outside, the EEPROM cell is similar to a MOS transistor with source, drain, bulk and gate terminals.",
"Particularly, in the EEPROM cell, an effective threshold voltage, U th,eff can be defined, like in the MOS transistor.",
"In an n-type EEPROM, which corresponds to an NMOS, the control electrode 130 has to be raised above the source potential at least by U th,eff , so that the channel formed between the drain area 128 and the source area 126 becomes conductive.",
"[0008] By different physical mechanisms, such as by Fowler Nordheim tunneling (FN) or Hot Carrier Injection (HCI), an excess or a deficiency of net charge can be generated at the floating gate 104 .",
"Therefore, a comparatively high voltage of a positive or negative polarity has to be applied between control terminal 102 and the bulk terminal 110 , whereby the respectively smallest information unit (bit) is stored in the form of this net charge or not, whereby, for example, a logical “1”",
"or a logical “0”",
"can be realized.",
"It can be seen that after this programming the changed net charge at the floating gate 104 leads to a change of the effective threshold voltage.",
"If the floating gate 104 is not charged, the respective effective threshold voltage is called UV level.",
"This designation stems from the fact that an uncharged state can be achieved by irradiating the floating gate of the EEPROM cell with UV light for several minutes.",
"[0009] If a high positive potential is applied to the control terminal 102 due to the programming, a negative net charge (electron excess) occurs at the floating gate 104 , as long as the coupling capacity 112 is larger than the MOS capacity 114 , which is always assumed in the following.",
"The effective threshold voltage will therefore be shifted to positive values;",
"it is therefore larger than the UV level.",
"If the control terminal 102 is provided with a strongly negative potential against the substrate 116 in the programming, a positive net charge (electron deficiency) is obtained at the floating gate 104 , and the threshold voltage becomes smaller than the UV level.",
"[0010] In the following, the programming is explained with an example of the Fowler Nordheim Tunnel mechanism, as it is known from the prior art.",
"[0011] If a positive voltage ramp is applied at the control terminal 102 , first, at small voltages, a separation of the voltage into two fractional voltages occurs, namely a voltage at the coupling capacity 112 (coupling capacitor), and a second voltage between the floating gate 104 and the MOS channel and substrate 116 , respectively, which drops at the MOS capacity 114 .",
"According to the common rules for capacitive voltage dividers, the ratio of the coupling capacity 112 to the MOS capacity 114 is inverse proportional to a ratio of the fractional voltages dropping at these two capacities.",
"For that reason, an effort is made to make the coupling capacity larger than the MOS capacity 114 , so that a portion of the total applied voltage as high as possible drops at the thin oxide 126 of the MOS capacity 114 , and affects the Fowler Nordheim tunneling there.",
"This is achieved constructively by making the lateral dimensions of the thin oxide 126 defined by a layout smaller than those of the oxide 126 between the control electrode 130 and the floating 104 .",
"If, therefore, the voltage applied to the control terminal 102 is ramped up, the two fractional voltages rise as well, until finally the larger fractional voltage—namely the one at the thin oxide 126 —achieves a field strength of, for example, about 8 MV/cm to about 9 MV/cm.",
"Then, the Fowler Nordheim tunneling begins, i.e. a small stream flows above the thin oxide 126 from the floating gate 104 to the MOS channel and the substrate 116 , respectively.",
"The rise time of the voltage ramp should thereby be so small that those processes run more or less statically.",
"Thus, a small Fowler Nordheim tunnel current is enough to load the coupling capacity 112 sufficiently fast, so that the potential at the floating gate 104 remains, for example, at a value of Um=8 .",
"9 MV/cm*D.",
"Thereby, D indicates a thickness of the thin oxide 126 .",
"[0012] If a maximum programming voltage is finally Up, a difference between Up and Um is stored at the coupling capacity 112 .",
"This can be expressed as follows: | UP|−Um=|Uc|=|Q ( FG )|* Cc [0013] Thereby, Q(FG) is the charge stored at the floating gate 104 , and Cc is the value of the coupling capacity 112 .",
"In the above expression, for simplicity reasons, the sign was omitted, which reflects in the amount-like version of the charge stored at the floating gate 104 .",
"The normal rise times of the voltage ramps are between 100 μs 10 ms.",
"[0014] If, however, the rise time of the programming pulse is shorter, the small Fowler Nordheim tunnel stream is no longer sufficient to load the coupling capacity 112 sufficiently fast, so that the voltage at the thin oxide 126 rises above Um, and damages the thin oxide 126 more than absolutely necessary.",
"This pre-damage is shown by the fact that the floating gate 104 looses the charge over time, and it comes to a data loss, which, of course, has to be avoided.",
"[0015] A bit error occurs, if, for example, high voltages at the thin oxide 126 (also referred to as gate oxide) of the MOS capacity 114 change a charge state of the floating gate 104 , whereby, for example, the sign of the stored charge changes.",
"Often, however, it is already sufficient for a bit error when merely the amount of the charge stored at the floating gate is reduced sufficiently, without changing the sign.",
"The reason therefore is that it is difficult in practice to apply the exact UV level as an ideal discrimination value between the positive and the negative charge at the floating gate 104 at the control electrode 102 .",
"On the one hand, there are the discrimination value varies with temperature, on the other hand, the strong variations from batch to batch, disc to disc, chip to chip and even within a chip in dependency of a position of the memory element (memory cell) in the chip, which are common in the memory in the semiconductor technology.",
"[0016] In practice, it can happen that an integrated circuit (IC) is subject to a high electrical field.",
"This is particularly the case in electrically “rough”",
"environment, such as in the use in an automobile.",
"Therefore, it is extremely important in security relevant applications that the IC functions properly despite an adverse electrical environment, particularly that it is not damaged thereby.",
"For a function of the IC, often those data are relevant which are stored in the EEPROM cell.",
"As an example, imagine an integrated magnetic-field sensor, which is to detect a blocking of a wheel in an ABS system (ABS=anti blocking system), and whose calibration data are stored on chip in an EEPROM.",
"If these calibration data are, for example, lost by an electrical field pulse, the blocking of a wheel is continuously not detected, or in another extreme case, never detected.",
"The consequences of such damage can be dramatic.",
"[0017] Particularly high electric fields can occur in ESD events (ESD=electrostatic discharge).",
"Here, again, that case is to be seen as worst case, where the discharge takes place above a housing to the IC.",
"Thereby, a tip of an ESD pistol is held directly to a surface of the IC, and, for example, charged to several kilovolt against ground.",
"If the IC is applied to ground at the same time, an ESD flash can discharge above that part of a compound of the housing directly under the tip of the ESD pistol.",
"If an EEPROM cell is within this area on the surface of IC, it can be damaged thereby.",
"[0018] In the following, the orders of the influence of an ESD event to an EEPROM cell are estimated.",
"[0019] As a model, the tip of the ESD pistol and the ESD cell is replaced by a small ball, since the capacity of a ball spark gap can be calculated analytically without too much effort as follows: C = πɛ 0 ( 2 R + g ) ∑ p = 1 ∞ 1 sinh ( par sinh ( 1 + g 2 R ) ) [0020] Thereby, R is the radius of the ba s and g the distance of their facing surfaces, ε 0 is the electrical field constant.",
"For thin housings, particularly with magnetic-field sensors, g=0.15 mm has to be assumed.",
"arsinh ( .",
") is the arcus sinus hyperbolic function and p is the sum index.",
"Depending on the radius of the ball R, the following stray capacitances result from the above expression: R C 100 nm 5.6 aF 1 μm 56 aF 10 μm 0.59 fF 100 μm 7.4 fF 1 mm 8.7 fF [0021] In practice, naturally, the EEPROM cell is very small (smaller than 1 μm), the tip of an ESD diode or the fingertip of a human being is comparatively large (larger than 1 mm), so that the above model of the ball spark gap is not very well suitable for an exact calculation of the influence of the ESD event on an EEPROM cell.",
"Still, this model can be used for a best-case estimation.",
"The stray capacity between the fingertip and the EEPROM cell is definitely larger than the one between two balls with 1 μm radius, since the fingertip is significantly larger than 1 μm and according to the above table, the capacity rises also with increasing radius.",
"Even this small stray capacity of 56 aF between fingertip and floating gate 104 effects that at an assumed coupling capacity 111 Cc=20 fF already the 20/0.056=357-th part of the ESD voltage is applied to the thin oxide.",
"Thus, at a value of the ESD voltage of, for example, 4.6 kV, 13 V are applied to the thin oxide.",
"This is already sufficient for the FN tunneling for a thickness of 12 nm assumed in this example.",
"[0022] Due to the above-described problem it is thus necessary to shield the floating gate 104 appropriately.",
"This can, for example, be realized by covering the floating gate 104 fully with the control electrode 130 , so that the control electrode 130 electrically shields the floating gate 104 .",
"This shield effect can be insufficient, when the control electrode 130 is not low-resistively connected to the substrate 116 of the EEPROM cell.",
"Assumed that a person who is electrostatically charged touches the IC.",
"The stray capacity between the fingertip of the person and the control electrode 130 raises-the potential of the control electrode 130 , when the control electrode 130 is not brought to a defined potential by other circuit parts.",
"This case occurs particularly when the IC is not supplied with a voltage, because then the inner nodes of an MOS circuit have a high impedance, since no sufficient potentials are present at the gates of the belonging MOS transistors in order to switch those to being conductive.",
"The coupling capacity 112 formed by the floating gate 104 , the oxide layer 128 and the control electrode 130 influences then subsequently the potential of the floating gate 104 , so that its charge state might change.",
"SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION [0023] It is the object of the present invention to provide a semiconductor structure with an efficient shield of a floating gate arranged in a semiconductor structure.",
"[0024] In accordance with a first aspect, the present invention provides a semiconductor structure having a memory element with a floating gate, a control electrode, which is capacitively coupled to the floating gate, wherein a signal for controlling the memory element is applicable to the control electrode, and a shield, which is arranged isolated from the floating gate and covers it fully.",
"[0025] The present invention is based on the knowledge that both the floating gate and the control electrode can be formed during a semiconductor manufacturing process such that the floating gate is fully covered with a further conductive layer and can thus be shielded.",
"[0026] Preferably, both the floating gate and the control electrode are covered with a conductive layer, which is preferably electrically isolated from the floating gate and the control electrode, wherein the conductive layer is low-resistively connected, preferably with the bulk of the EEPROM cell (e.",
"g. p-substrate of the MOS transistor or ah n-sink of a PMOS transistor).",
"Since the bulk of the EEPROM is mostly also connected to the system ground (e.",
"g. 0 V), the conductive layer is thus also connected to the system ground.",
"[0027] The conductive layer can be realized by inserting an additional conductive layer during the semiconductor manufacturing process, which covers the appropriately arranged floating gate.",
"Mostly, the floating gate and the control electrode overlap to some extend anyway, so that the conductive layer (shield) merely has to lie above both electrodes.",
"[0028] If the wiring levels and the floating gate and the control electrode are arranged in a predetermined positional relationship to each other, the formation of an additional conductive layer can be omitted during the semiconductor manufacturing process, since the shield can be realized by a wiring level.",
"Since the wiring levels have a low impedance, they also have a good shielding effect, even at transient events (such as the actual ESD impact, “flash”), due to the low penetration depths.",
"This is another reason why the shield should be connected to the bulk of an EEPROM with an impedance as low as possible.",
"[0029] Since there is a constantly increasing number of wiring levels (supply levels) in modern semiconductor technologies, it should be considered which of the wiring levels is ideally suited for a realization of the shield.",
"This problem will be discussed below.",
"[0030] If the control electrode is formed such that it lies below the floating gate (see FIG. 7), a remarkable stray capacity arises between the floating gate (particularly between the part 104 b much larger than 104 a, 104 c ), and the wiring levels lying above it, which form the inventive shield.",
"However, this is disadvantageous in programming the EEPROM, since this stray capacity decreases the efficiency of the coupling capacity, i.e. the shield is applied to ground and prevents with its stray capacity against the floating gate the floating gate from following a programming pulse at the control electrode.",
"Thus, it is to be preferred to use an upper wiring level for the shield, i.e. a wiring level whose vertical distance to the floating gate is as large as possible.",
"The distance between the used wiring level and the floating gate should, however, still be minuscully small against a housing thickness over this part of the IC, so that the shield effect is sufficiently good.",
"Otherwise, the electric field lines surround the shield and form again a stray capacity between, for example, a fingertip and an ESD pistol, respectively, and the floating gate.",
"[0031] If the floating gate is formed such that it is below the control electrode (see FIG. 8), then it is optimal in this case to use a lower wiring level lying above the floating gate and above the control electrode, i.e. a wiring level whose vertical distance to the floating gate is as low as possible, for the shield, since the stray capacity of the lower wiring level to the control electrode, which is respectively large in this case, does not matter.",
"The reason therefore is that the control electrode is controlled, for example, by a voltage source in programming, which can charge this stray capacity against ground without difficulty such that an appropriate programming voltage arises.",
"If, however, the stray capacity between 104 a and the shield already significantly reduces the coupling efficiency of the coupling capacity to the floating gate, it can even be advisable in that case, to form the shield in a higher wiring level (such as 136 b, 136 c ).",
"Thereby, the coupling efficiency is defined as follows: 0 <Um/Up<",
"[0032] To minimize the above-mentioned surrounding of the field lines around the shield, the shield should not only cover the floating gate and the control electrode flush, but should protrude for several micrometers.",
"Generally, the shield should protrude so far as a normal distance of the shield to the floating gate of the EEPROM cell (which means in a vertical direction to the chip).",
"[0033] It is an object of the present invention that by inserting a conductive layer during the semiconductor manufacturing process, the floating gate is shielded against external interferences independent of a spatial extension of the control electrode, so that less bit errors are caused due to electrostatical interferences.",
"[0034] It is another object of the present invention that a good shield of the floating gate can be achieved without increasing the costs of the semiconductor manufacturing process, by arranging the floating gate and the overlaying wiring levels already during the manufacturing process such that the floating gate is shielded by one or by several wiring levels.",
"[0035] Although above an electrostatical shield was discussed primarily, it is also necessary to keep transient (i.e. electromagnetical) fields away from the floating gate by a shield, which is also achieved by the inventive shield.",
"BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS [0036] Preferred embodiments of the present invention will be discussed in more detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings.",
"They show: [0037] [0037 ]FIG. 1 a schematic diagram of an EEPROM cell;",
"[0038] [0038 ]FIG. 2 a setup of an EEPROM cell;",
"[0039] [0039 ]FIG. 3 a schematic diagram of a first embodiment of an EEPROM cell according to the present invention;",
"[0040] [0040 ]FIG. 4 a setup of a semiconductor structure according to the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 3;",
"[0041] [0041 ]FIG. 5 a schematic diagram of a further embodiment of an EEPROM cell according to the present invention;",
"[0042] [0042 ]FIG. 6 a setup of a semiconductor structure according to the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 5;",
"[0043] [0043 ]FIG. 7 a further embodiment of a semiconductor structure according to the present invention;",
"and [0044] [0044 ]FIG. 8 a further embodiment of a semiconductor structure according to the present invention.",
"DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS [0045] In the following description of the preferred embodiments, elements, which have already been explained with reference to FIG. 1 and 2 are provided with the same reference numbers.",
"There will be no further description of these elements.",
"Further, the same elements in the Figures are provided with the same reference numbers.",
"[0046] [0046 ]FIG. 3 shows a schematic diagram of the inventive semiconductor structure.",
"An EEPROM cell 100 is shown, as it has already been described with reference to FIG. 1. As can be seen, the bulk terminal 110 is connected to a potential 134 , e. g. ground.",
"According to the invention, a shield 136 is provided, which is also connected to the potential 132 and shields the floating gate 104 , as it is schematically illustrated.",
"[0047] [0047 ]FIG. 4 shows an embodiment of a setup of a semiconductor structure according to the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 3. The semiconductor structure (n type EEPROM) comprises, similar to FIG. 2, a substrate (p bulk) 116 .",
"The n + source area 118 and the n + drain area 120 are formed in the substrate 116 .",
"The drain and source terminals illustrated in FIG. 2 are not illustrated in FIG. 4 for simplicity.",
"Further, a first p + area 138 and a second p + area 140 are formed in a substrate 116 .",
"A thin oxide layer 126 is formed on the substrate 116 , which extends on the surface of the substrate 116 between the n + source area 118 and the n + drain area 120 .",
"[0048] The floating gate is formed by a first floating gate electrode 104 a, a second floating gate electrode 104 b and a connection electrode 104 c between the first and the second floating gate electrode.",
"The second floating gate electrode 104 b is arranged laterally shifted with regard to the first floating gate electrode 104 a. The control electrode 130 is disposed opposite to the second floating gate electrode, with a lesser vertical distance to the surface of the substrate 116 .",
"The oxide layer 128 is formed between the second floating gate electrode 104 b and the control electrode 130 .",
"Thus, as can be seen in FIG. 4, the floating gate is formed above the control electrode 130 with reference to the surface of the substrate 116 .",
"The first floating gate electrode 104 a, the second floating gate electrode 104 b, the connection electrode 104 c, the control electrode 130 and the oxide layers 126 , 128 are formed in a first portion 142 above the substrate 142 .",
"[0049] The shield 136 , which is, for example, formed as a metallizing layer, is disposed in a second portion 144 above the first portion 142 .",
"The shield 136 is arranged such that it fully covers all portions 104 a, 104 b, 104 c of the floating gate, and preferably protrudes on the side, respectively.",
"The shield 136 is further connected to the p + area 138 , which is formed in the substrate 116 , via a connection 146 , so that the potential applied to the substrate 116 is applicable above the bulk terminal 110 , which is connected to the area 140 and designed towards the top, to the shield 136 so that it is accessible from the top, as it is illustrated in FIG. 3. Thereby, the shield 136 keeps an electromagnetical and an electrostatical influence away from the sensible floating gate, wherein the conductive bulk (substrate 116 ) provides a shielding effect from below.",
"The control electrode 130 is connected to the control terminal 102 via a connection 148 , which extends through the second portion 144 .",
"[0050] In the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 4, the shield 136 is formed continuously.",
"For the case illustrated in FIG. 4 that the floating gate has a plurality of portions 104 a, 104 b, 104 c, the shield 136 can be formed according to the invention, such that it also comprises a plurality of conductive areas, which mainly lie on the same potential and cover the plurality of portions of the floating gate.",
"[0051] The EEPROM cell can be realized in a single well CMOS process with an analog option by a standard NMOS transistor and, for example, a standard poly-poly capacitor, when the gate of the NMOS is connected to one of the two electrodes of the poly-poly capacitor to the floating gate.",
"According to the invention, the floating gate is arranged such that it is fully covered by the shield 136 (the low impedance layer) towards the top.",
"Above that, this layer is conductively connected to the bulk of the NMOS (for example directly realized in a substrate), which is formed by a substrate of the IC.",
"Thereby, the stored charge at the floating gate is protected from ESD and other voltage events as well as from electromagnetical fields, since the floating gate is electrostatically shielded towards the top by the shield 136 and towards the bottom by the likewise conductive substrate 136 , such as a p-substrate, which is mostly supported in its shielding effect by a still better conductive supply frame lying below it.",
"Therefore, the shield 136 (the screen) should cover all parts of the floating gate and protrude sufficiently on the sides.",
"Since the p-substrate 116 is normally put on reference potential, this requirement is identical with putting the shield 136 also put on the reference potential.",
"[0052] Analogous considerations hold true for an EEPROM cell, consisting of a PMOS transistor by using an n-substrate (exchange of n- and p-doping) and a p-substrate with n-well, respectively.",
"[0053] [0053 ]FIG. 5 shows a schematic diagram of a further embodiment of an EEPROM cell according to the present invention.",
"Different to the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 3, the EEPROM cell illustrated in FIG. 5 has a terminal 150 .",
"The bulk terminal 110 is connected to the terminal 150 .",
"Above that, the shield 136 is connected to the terminal 150 , so that the shield 136 is directly connected to the bulk terminal 110 .",
"Above the terminal 150 , a potential is applicable both to the bulk terminal 110 and to the shield 136 .",
"This embodiment is thus advantageous for CMOS transistors with their own well, which is not identical to the substrate.",
"[0054] [0054 ]FIG. 6 showed a setup—similar to FIG. 4—of a semiconductor structure according to the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 5. Different to FIG. 4, an n-well 152 is formed in a substrate 116 , wherein again a p-well 154 is formed, wherein the source area 118 and the drain area 120 as well as the first p + area 138 are formed.",
"Further, an n + area 156 is formed in the n-well 152 , above which a potential, e.g. 3 Volt, is applicable to the n-well 152 .",
"Above the first p + area 134 , a potential is applicable to the p-well and thus also to the shield 136 , as it is schematically shown by the terminal 150 .",
"By the fact that the shield 136 and the p-well terminal 150 are on the same potential, it is achieved that the floating gate 104 is shielded both by the shield 136 as well as by the p-well 154 .",
"[0055] The significant difference between the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 3 and FIG. 5 is that in the embodiment according to FIG. 5, the common potential of p-well 154 and shield 136 is freely available, while in the embodiment according to FIG. 3, the common potential is identical to ground.",
"[0056] By the fact that the p-well 154 covers the floating gate formed of portions 104 a, 104 b, 104 c from below, it is achieved that the floating gate is arranged between the shield 136 and the p-well 154 , whereby a better shield is achieved from below.",
"[0057] According to the invention, the floating gate 104 , which is accessible towards the top, is preferably fully covered by a low-impedance layer (shield 136 ), and this layer is connected to the substrate 116 and a p-well 154 , respectively.",
"Thereby, the stored charge at the floating gate 104 is protected from ESD and other high voltage events, since the floating gate 104 is shielded towards the top by the shield 136 , and towards the bottom by the likewise conductive substrate and the p-well, respectively.",
"Therefore, the shield 136 should preferably cover all parts of the floating gate 104 and protrude sufficiently on the sides.",
"Preferably, in the case of a p-well, it is extended such that all parts of the floating gate 104 are covered seen from below.",
"[0058] In FIG. 7, another embodiment of the semiconductor structure is illustrated according to the present invention.",
"Different to the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 4, the semiconductor structure illustrated in FIG. 7 has a plurality of metallizing levels or supply levels 136 a to 136 c in the second portion 144 .",
"It should be noted here, that an arbitrary number of supply levels could be provided.",
"[0059] In the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 7, the floating gatt (portions 104 a, 104 b, 104 c ) is disposed over the control electrode 130 , i.e. the vertical distance of the control electrode 130 to the substrate 116 is smaller than the distance of the second floating gate electrode 104 a to the substrate 116 .",
"For such an arrangement of the floating gate 104 it is advantageous to use a supply level or wiring level for the shield, whose distance to the floating gate is highest, since the stray capacity between floating gate and shield should be kept small.",
"In the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 7, the supply level 136 c is chosen as shield, which is connected to the substrate 116 like in FIG. 4. [0060] The supply levels 136 a, 136 b, 136 c are several elements out of which the shield can be formed.",
"If, for example, the first supply level 136 a is arranged such that it is not optimally accessible to establish a connection to the substrate 116 , the second supply level 136 b, for example, can be used as shield element.",
"If the extension of the supply level is not sufficient to cover the floating gate, several supply levels or portions of several supply levels can be interconnected to obtain a sufficient coverage.",
"[0061] [0061 ]FIG. 8 shows a further embodiment of a semiconductor structure according to the present invention.",
"Similar to FIG. 7, the floating gate is here also formed by the first floating gate electrode 104 a, the second floating gate electrode 104 b and the connection electrode 104 c between the first and the second floating gate electrode.",
"The second floating gate electrode 104 b is arranged laterally shifted with regard to the first floating gate electrode 104 a. The control electrode 130 is arranged opposite to the second floating gate electrode, but with a higher vertical distance to the surface of the substrate 116 .",
"Thus, the floating gate is formed below the control electrode with reference to the surface of the substrate 116 .",
"[0062] In this case, however, different to FIG. 7, the first supply level 136 c, whose distance to the control electrode 130 is the smallest, is connected to the substrate 116 .",
"[0063] Here, it should be noted that the embodiments discussed above with reference to an n-type EEPROM are analogously valid for a p-type EEPROM, wherein then the source and the drain areas are p-doped and formed either in an n-substrate or in an n-well in a p-substrate.",
"[0064] While this invention has been described in terms of several preferred embodiments, there are alterations, permutations, and equivalents which fall within the scope of this invention.",
"It should also be noted that there are many alternative ways of implementing the methods and compositions of the present invention.",
"It is therefore intended that the following appended claims be interpreted as including all such alterations, permutations, and equivalents as fall within the true spirit and scope of the present invention."
] |
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
[0001] This invention relates generally to a method for making diode devices and more specifically to an improved method of making diode devices.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0002] The present invention is related to diode devices, in particular to methods for making diode devices and particularly for making a pair of electrodes that may be used in a diode device. The term diode devices encompass, for example, thermionic converters and generators, photoelectric converters and generators, and vacuum diode heat pumps. It is also related to thermotunnel converters.
[0003] WO99/13562 discloses a method for making pairs of electrodes whose surfaces replicate each other. This approach uses solvents and reactive solutions, and involves heating and evaporating metal surfaces. The present invention offers a novel means for providing similarly paired electrodes by a more rapid, more economical and more environment-friendly than existing approaches.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0004] From the foregoing, it may be appreciated that a need has arisen for an improved method of making a diode device that is faster, cheaper, easier, and more efficient. In accordance with one embodiment of the present invention, a method for manufacturing a pair of electrodes comprises the steps of: fabricating a first electrode with a substantially flat surface; placing a sacrificial layer over a surface of said first electrode, wherein said sacrificial layer comprises a first material; placing a second material over said sacrificial layer, wherein said second material comprises a material that is suitable for use as a second electrode; and placing said sacrificial layer in a cold environment wherein said cold environment cools said sacrificial layer.
[0005] In accordance with another embodiment of the present invention, a method for manufacturing a pair of electrodes comprises the steps of: fabricating a first electrode with a substantially flat surface; placing a sacrificial layer over a surface of said first electrode, wherein said sacrificial layer comprises a sublimative material; placing a material that is suitable for use as a second electrode over said sacrificial layer; and heating said sacrificial layer, wherein said step of heating evaporates said sacrificial layer.
[0006] It is a technical advantage of the present invention to make diode devices faster, cheaper, easier, and more efficient.
[0007] Another technical advantage of the present invention is that it produces a reliable, small separation between an anode and a cathode, and this spacing is maintained and stabilized with piezo-electric actuators. Another technical advantage of the present invention is that it may make this separation in a diode device.
[0008] Other technical advantages of the present invention will be readily apparent to one skilled in the art from the following figures, descriptions, and claims.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING
[0009] For a more complete understanding of the present invention and the technical advantages thereof, reference is now made to the following description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which:
[0010] [0010]FIG. 1 is a diagrammatic representation of one embodiment of the electrode configuration of the present invention;
[0011] [0011]FIG. 2 is a diagrammatic representation of one embodiment of the electrode configuration of the present invention;
[0012] [0012]FIG. 3 is a diagrammatic representation of one embodiment of a diode device embodying the present invention;
[0013] [0013]FIG. 4 is a diagrammatic representation of one embodiment of a device illustrating how heat transfer is facilitated; and
[0014] [0014]FIG. 5 is a schematic representation of the method of the present invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
[0015] The embodiments of the present invention and its technical advantages are best understood by referring to FIGS. 1 - 5 . While in this description of the present invention the actuating element is often described as being connected to the collector electrode, in the present invention the actuating elements may be applied to either the emitter electrode or the collector electrode. Further, the present invention may be used in a number of devices, as stated herein, including, for example, (i) a device which uses a thermal gradient of any kind to generate electrical power or energy output using thermionics, thermotunneling, or other methods as described herein; (ii) a device which uses electrical power or energy to pump heat, thereby creating, maintaining, or degrading a thermal gradient using thermionics, thermotunneling, or other methods as described herein; and (iii) as any diode which employs a gap between the anode and the cathode, or the collector and emitter, and which causes or allows electrons to be transported between the two electrons, across or through the gap (with or without a vacuum in the gap). Alternatively, the device of the present invention may be integrated into or used for any ordinary diode applications.
[0016] Further, when surface features of two facing surfaces of electrodes are described as “matching,” it means that where one surface has an indentation, the other surface has a protrusion and vice versa. Thus when “matched,” the two surfaces are substantially equidistant from each other throughout their operating range.
[0017] Referring now to FIG. 1, two electrodes 1 and 5 are separated by a region 10 between an emitter and a collector and housed in a housing 15 . Electrode 1 is mechanically connected to a piezo-electric actuator 20 . An electric field is applied to the piezo-electric actuator via connecting wires 40 which causes the actuator to expand or contract longitudinally, thereby altering the distance of region 10 , which is between electrodes 1 and 5 . Electrodes 1 and 5 are connected to a capacitance controller 29 which generates a reference electrical signal for closed loop feedback electronics 28 . Closed loop feedback electronics 28 applies electrical signals to actuator 20 , which in turns maintains a constant distance between electrode 1 and 5 . Emitter 5 may also be referred to as the “hot side” and collector 1 may also be referred to as the “cold side.” Thus, the emitter may be the side where heat is applied, if electrical power is to be generated from the heat. When functioning as a heat pump, the collector may be the side that provides cooling, if refrigeration is to be generated from electrical power applied from the power supply. Piezo-electric actuator 20 may be on either the collector or the emitter, however, it is preferable to have piezo electric actuator 20 on the cold side as the higher temperatures on the hot side may interfere with proper operation of piezo electric actuator 20 .
[0018] Referring now to FIG. 2, two electrodes 1 and 5 are separated by a region 10 and housed in a housing 15 . Electrode 1 is attached to a number of piezo-electric actuators 20 at intervals. An electric field is applied to the piezo-electric actuators via connecting wires 40 which causes the actuators to expand or contract longitudinally, thereby altering the longitudinal distance of region 10 between electrodes 1 and 5 . Electrodes 1 and 5 are connected to capacitance controller 29 . The longitudinal distance of region 10 between electrodes 1 and 5 is controlled by applying an electric field to piezo-electric actuators 20 . The capacitance between emitter 5 and collector 1 is measured and controlling circuitry 29 adjusts the field applied to piezo-electric actuators 20 to hold the capacitance, and consequently the region 10 between the electrodes, at a predetermined fixed value. Alternatively the controller may be set to maximize the capacitance and thereby minimize region 10 between the electrodes. The diagram shown in FIG. 2 may be used as a thermionic device and/or as a tunneling device, and may be used to function as a device to create electrical power or energy output or as a device to pump heat. Capacitance controller 29 may be composed of multiple elements, and each piezo actuator 20 may receive its own distinct signal, independent from the control of surrounding elements.
[0019] If it is used as a thermionic device, then electrodes 1 and 5 are made from, or are coated with, a thermionically emissive material having a work function consistent with the copious emission of electrons at the temperature of thermal interfaces 30 and 35 . The specific work functions may be determined by calculation.
[0020] When functioning as a heat pump, electrons emitted from emitter 5 move across an evacuated space 10 to a collector 1 , where they release their kinetic energy as thermal energy which is conducted away from collector 1 through housing 15 to thermal interface 30 , which is, in this case, hotter than thermal interface 35 , which the electron emission serves to cool.
[0021] When functioning as a device to generate electrical power or energy output, region 10 may be evacuated. Electrons emitted from emitter 5 move across the evacuated space of region 10 to collector 1 , where they release their kinetic energy as thermal energy which is conducted away from collector 1 through housing 15 to thermal interface 30 , and a current is generated for electrical load 27 . The feedback loop from the capacitance controller to the piezo elements allows for the device to adjust for varying conditions, including vibration, shock, and thermal expansion.
[0022] When functioning as a tunneling device of the present invention, as one side of the device becomes hot and its components expand, the distance between the electrodes may be maintained at a fixed distance with the feedback loop between capacitance controller 29 and piezo elements 20 . Provided that the surface of emitter 5 and collector 1 are made sufficiently smooth (or, as discussed below, matching one another), emitter 5 may be moved into such close proximity to collector 1 that quantum tunneling between the electrodes occurs. Further, region 10 may or may not be evacuated.
[0023] Alternatively, atoms, such as cesium vapor, or alternatively an inert gas, may be in region 10 . When the gap distance between the electrodes is on the order of tens of angstroms, thermal conduction through a gas is considerably lessened. In the tunneling embodiments disclosed in this application, this advantage is noted, especially for applications where thermal conduction is a concern, such as a device to generate electrical power or energy output and heat pumps. Hence, the region 10 is in some embodiments filled with an inert gas or cesium vapor.
[0024] Referring now to FIG. 3, which shows a thermal interface 35 , electrical connectors 40 , and electrical load/power supply 27 for a photoelectric generator embodiment of the device shown in FIG. 2. For the sake of clarity, in FIG. 3, capacitance controller 29 and additional connecting wires 40 shown in FIG. 2 have been omitted. A light beam 70 passes through housing 15 and is absorbed by emitter 5 . Emitter 5 is made from, or is coated with, a photoelectrically emissive material having a work function consistent with the copious emission of electrons at the wavelengths of light beam 70 . In FIG. 3, region 10 is evacuated. Electrons emitted from emitter 5 move across the evacuated space of region 10 to a collector 1 , where they release their kinetic energy as thermal energy which is conducted away from collector 1 and housing 15 to thermal interface 35 . The electrons return to emitter 5 by means of external circuit 40 thereby powering electrical load/power supply 27 . The spacing of region 10 between electrodes 1 and 5 is controlled as described above (see FIG. 2). Thus, as the device becomes hot and its components expand, the distance between the electrodes may be maintained at a fixed distance. Provided that the surface of emitter 5 and collector 1 are made sufficiently smooth, collector 1 may be moved into such close proximity to emitter 5 that quantum tunneling between the electrodes occurs. Under these conditions, it is not necessary that region 10 should be evacuated, and the device operates as a tunneling device used to generate electrical power or energy output. It should be noted that a photoelectric device used to generate electrical power or energy output may use a temperature differential, by collecting some of the solar energy in heat form. In this embodiment, the device would function as the device used to generate electrical power or energy output, as in FIG. 2, with the heat energy provided as solar energy.
[0025] The device in FIG. 3 may alternatively be primarily photoelectric, where direct photon-electron contact results in the electron either topping the work-function barrier and emitting thermionically, or, in the tunneling version, the incident photon may cause the electron to tunnel. The device may also be a combination of the above, providing any combination of thermionic emission caused by solar heat, thermionic emission caused by direct photoelectric effects, thermotunneling from solar heat, or tunneling emission caused by direct photoelectric effects.
[0026] Referring now to FIG. 4, a preferred embodiment for facilitating heat transfer between a thermal interface 30 and an electrode 1 is shown. Corrugated tubes 80 , preferably fabricated from stainless steel, are shown as forming part of the structure between electrode 1 and thermal interface 30 . These tubes may be positioned with many variations, and act to allow for the movement of the positioning elements 20 and of the electrode 1 while maintaining support, containment, or the like for the device, by being able to be stretched and/or compressed longitudinally. In some embodiments, corrugated tubes 80 may form the walls of a depository of a metal powder 82 , preferably silver powder with a grain size of between 3 and 5 microns. More metal powder 82 would be used to receive heat transferred to the collector electrode 1 , but the surroundings of the metal powder would be made smaller as the positioning elements 20 cause the electrode to move upwards. Hence, an expandable depository made from corrugated tubing 80 is preferably used. Corrugated tubes 80 may also enclose the entire device, to allow for movement, as well as individual piezo actuators 20 .
[0027] On a device having electrodes with an area on the order of 1×1 cm 2 , surface irregularities are likely to be such that electrode spacing may be no closer than 0.1 to 1.0 μm. However for smaller electrodes, with an area on the order of 0.05×0.05 cm 2 , surface irregularities will be sufficiently small to allow the electrodes to be moved to a separation of approximately 5 nanometers or less, which is sufficiently close for quantum tunneling to occur. Moreover, it is preferable for large (with an area on the order of 1×1 cm 2 ) electrodes to be brought into close proximity to more easily facilitate electron tunneling.
[0028] The diode devices described in the present invention may be produced using various methods. For example, one such approach is illustrated in FIG. 5, which in schematic form describes a method for producing pairs of electrodes having substantially smooth surfaces in which any topographical features in one are matched in the other. The method involves a first step 100 in which a polished monocrystal of material 102 is provided. This forms one of the pair of electrodes. Material 102 may also be polished tungsten, or other materials. In a step 110 a thin layer of a second material 112 , preferably Si, Ti, or Mo, is deposited onto the surface of the material 102 . This layer is sufficiently thin so that the shape of the polished surface 102 is repeated with high accuracy. A thin layer of a third material is deposited on layer 112 in a step 120 , and in a step 130 it is thickened using electrochemical growth to form second electrode 132 . This forms the second electrode. In a step 140 the composite formed in steps 100 to 130 is cooled. Preferably, the cold environment is less than −25° C. (248° K) or is less than −50° C. (223° K). More preferably, the cold environment is less than −100° C. (173° K) or less than −150° C. (123° K). Most preferably, liquid nitrogen is used to establish the cold environment. Preferably, sandwich 150 may be immersed in liquid nitrogen, or liquid nitrogen vapor may be applied to sandwich 150 . Materials used to make electrodes 102 and 132 are chosen so that they have different coefficients of linear thermal expansion. Thus when composite 150 is cooled, the two electrodes 102 and 132 of reduce differently in linear dimensions. This causes controlled mechanical tension between electrodes 102 and 132 . The thickness and hardness of both electrodes 102 and 132 , however, is higher than the thickness and hardness of sacrificial layer 112 . As result, sacrificial layer 112 disintegrates and turns to powder while being cooled by the liquid nitrogen, making electrodes 102 and 132 separable. The resulting powder from sacrificial layer 112 may be removed using a suitable a suitable solvent or reactive solution. Thus, by using liquid nitrogen to cool sandwich 150 , the sandwich 150 is opened using forces which arise due to the different thermal expansion of the electrodes. Accordingly, the cold environment may be any environment with conditions that are cold enough to cool sandwich 150 such that tension between electrodes 102 and 132 destroys sacrificial layer 112 .
[0029] In an alternative embodiment (not shown in FIG. 5), electrode 102 additionally comprises a third material, which has a different coefficient of thermal expansion to the second material 112 . Preferably the coefficients of expansion differ by a factor of 3 or more.
[0030] After the sacrificial layer 112 has been reduced to powder, first electrode 102 and second electrode 132 are somewhat separated to allow the removal of the remnants of sacrificial layer 112 . First and second electrodes 102 and 132 are then returned back to a close proximity by piezoelectric actuators, such that they are no more than approximately 5-10 nanometers apart. Preferably, the two electrodes will be separated less than or equal to approximately 100 angstroms. More preferably, the two electrodes will be separated less than or equal to approximately 50 angstroms.
[0031] In another embodiment, a sublimative material (for example Cd (Cadmium), Zn, NA, K, or the like) may be used as the sacrificial layer in the present invention. These materials begin to evaporate before the melting temperature is reached. Considerable vapor pressure is developed inside the sandwich. Pressure opens the sandwich even before the melting point of Cadmium is reached. For example, with Cadmium, the vapor pressure at 150° C. is enough to open the sandwich. This allows a lower temperature to be used to open the sandwich. Thus, to remove the sacrificial layer when a sublimative material is used as the sacrificial layer, the sacrificial layer is heated. By heating the sacrificial layer, when it is comprised of a sublimative material, the sacrificial layer evaporates (or is boiled off) leaving the sandwich with a gap between the electrodes. The gap may be as described above, for example less than 50 nanometers, less than 100 angstroms, or less than 50 angstroms in distance.
[0032] In another preferred embodiment, a sublimative material (for example Cd (Cadmium), Zn, Na, K, Cs or the like) may be used as the sacrificial layer in the present invention. These materials begin to evaporate before the melting temperature is reached. Considerable vapor pressure is developed inside the sandwich. Pressure opens the sandwich even before the melting point of Cadmium is reached. For example, with Cadmium, the vapor pressure at 150° C. is enough to open the sandwich. This allows a lower temperature to be used to open the sandwich. Thus, to remove the sacrificial layer when a sublimative material is used as the sacrificial layer, the sacrificial layer is heated. By heating the sacrificial layer, when it is comprised of a sublimative material, the sacrificial layer evaporates (or is boiled off) leaving the sandwich with a gap between the electrodes. Further, with cesium, cesium has a melting temperature of about 30 C and so the sandwich will open (very) easily. For example heating the composite to 35 C will open it without introducing (any) considerable tension in the electrodes. Furthermore, the cesium may be retained between the electrodes as a vapor to further improve the performance of the device. The gap may be as described above, for example less than 50 nanometers, less than 100 angstroms, or less than 50 angstroms in distance.
[0033] Any of the above methods may be used to fabricate the diode devices described herein. Thus, for example, the actuators, preferably piezo actuators, may be introduced to keep region 10 at a desired distance. The actuators are preferably added after step 140 . Alternatively still, region 10 may be evacuated or may have an inert gas, such as He or Ar, or a vapor of cesium, introduced into region 10 .
[0034] When considering a device of the present invention wherein the two electrodes are close enough to one another to allow for electron tunneling to occur, thermal expansion should be considered. If thermal expansion is not taken into account, then the two electrodes could touch, causing the device to not optimally function. If the cold side of the device has a thermal expansion coefficient larger than that of the hot side, then the risk of touching is minimized. A preferred embodiment for this selection process, depending on the design temperature ranges of the device, is that the cold side should have a thermal expansion coefficient which is more than that of the hot side. Specific embodiments include the use of Silver or Aluminum on the cold side and Mo or Si on the hot side. The thermal expansion coefficient of aluminum is approximately 6 times that of Mo or Si and when either of these materials are used for the electrodes, when combined with the electrode matching invention shown in FIG. 5, they should tolerate a difference in temperature between the two sides. For example, if the hot side is heated by 500° C. and the cold side is heated by 80° C., ideal matching of the surfaces will occur. Ti could also be used on the hot side, but aluminum's thermal expansion coefficient is approximately 3 times that of Ti as opposed to 6 times that of Mo or Si.
[0035] Included in this invention is a method for constructing electrodes with matching topologies, the use of thermotunneling to produce a cooling effect, the use of solar energy as the motive energy for the devices of the present invention, the use of small, and angstrom-scale gaps for insulation.
[0036] Although the above specification contains many specificities, these should not be construed as limiting the scope of the invention but as merely providing illustrations of some of the presently preferred embodiments of this invention. For example, the piezo-electric, electrostrictive or magnetostrictive actuators could be used to position either or both electrodes. Such actuators do not need to be active once the device has been manufactured. For small temperature variations, it is conceivable that the capacitance loop and power supply for the actuators themselves will not be necessary, and the electrodes may be locked into place in the manufacturing or packaging process. Thus in operation the actuators should not be necessary, as the gap would not be compromised with smaller temperature fluctuations.
[0037] In the above specification, capacitance is used to measure the distance between the electrodes. Other methods may be used, including measuring the tunneling current and optical interferometry. The generated current produced by a thermionic, thermotunneling or photoelectric device may also be measured to assess the separation of the electrodes. Other properties which may be measured include heat, for example the temperature of one or both of the electrodes may be used to initiate programmed actuation of the piezo-electric, electrostrictive or magnetostrictive elements. The position of the electrodes may also be set according to the length of time the device has been in operation. Thus it may be envisaged that the electrodes are set at a certain distance when the device is first turned on, and then the positioning of the electrodes is adjusted after certain predetermined time intervals.
[0038] In addition, if the inter-converters are constructed using micro-machining techniques, the controlling circuitry for the separation of the electrodes may be deposited on the surface of the wafer next to the piezo-electric, electrostrictive or magnetostrictive actuators.
[0039] The devices of the present invention may be constructed as MicroElectroMechanicalSystems (MEMS) devices using micro-machining of an appropriate substrate. Integrated circuit techniques and very large scale integration techniques for forming electrode surfaces on an appropriate substrate may also be used to fabricate the devices. Other approaches useful in the construction of these devices include vapor deposition, fluid deposition, electrolytic deposition, printing, silk screen printing, airbrushing, and solution plating.
[0040] Substrates which may be used in the construction of these devices include silicon, silica, glass, metals, and quartz.
[0041] Additionally, the active control elements may be pulsed, which generates AC power output when the device is used as a power generator. The pulsing speeds of piezo elements are well within the requirements necessary for standard alternating current outputs.
[0042] Moreover, the electrodes made according to the present invention may be used in diode devices, vacuum diode devices, heat pumps, any other devices that are based on tunneling effects, and the like.
[0043] While this invention has been described with reference to numerous embodiments, it is to be understood that this description is not intended to be construed in a limiting sense. Various modifications and combinations of the illustrative embodiments will be apparent to persons skilled in the art upon reference to this description. It is to be further understood, therefore, that numerous changes in the details of the embodiments of the present invention and additional embodiments of the present invention will be apparent to, and may be made by, persons of ordinary skill in the art having reference to this description. It is contemplated that all such changes and additional embodiments are within the spirit and true scope of the invention as claimed below.
[0044] All publications and patent applications mentioned in this specification are indicative of the level of skill of those skilled in the art to which this invention pertains. All publications and patent applications are herein incorporated by reference to the same extent as if each individual publication or patent application was specifically and individually indicated to be incorporated by reference. | A method for manufacturing a pair of electrodes comprises fabricating a first electrode with a substantially flat surface and placing a sacrificial layer over a surface of the first electrode, wherein the sacrificial layer comprises a first material. A second material is placed over the sacrificial layer, wherein the second material comprises a material that is suitable for use as a second electrode. The sacrificial layer is removed with an etchant, wherein the etchant chemically reacts with the first material, and further wherein a region between the first electrode and the second electrode comprises a gap that is a distance of 50 nanometers or less, preferably 5 nanometers or less. Alternatively, the sacrificial layer is removed by cooling the sandwich with liquid nitrogen, or alternatively still, the sacrificial layer is removed by heating the sacrificial layer, thereby evaporating the sacrificial layer. | Identify and summarize the most critical technical features from the given patent document. | [
"FIELD OF THE INVENTION [0001] This invention relates generally to a method for making diode devices and more specifically to an improved method of making diode devices.",
"BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION [0002] The present invention is related to diode devices, in particular to methods for making diode devices and particularly for making a pair of electrodes that may be used in a diode device.",
"The term diode devices encompass, for example, thermionic converters and generators, photoelectric converters and generators, and vacuum diode heat pumps.",
"It is also related to thermotunnel converters.",
"[0003] WO99/13562 discloses a method for making pairs of electrodes whose surfaces replicate each other.",
"This approach uses solvents and reactive solutions, and involves heating and evaporating metal surfaces.",
"The present invention offers a novel means for providing similarly paired electrodes by a more rapid, more economical and more environment-friendly than existing approaches.",
"SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION [0004] From the foregoing, it may be appreciated that a need has arisen for an improved method of making a diode device that is faster, cheaper, easier, and more efficient.",
"In accordance with one embodiment of the present invention, a method for manufacturing a pair of electrodes comprises the steps of: fabricating a first electrode with a substantially flat surface;",
"placing a sacrificial layer over a surface of said first electrode, wherein said sacrificial layer comprises a first material;",
"placing a second material over said sacrificial layer, wherein said second material comprises a material that is suitable for use as a second electrode;",
"and placing said sacrificial layer in a cold environment wherein said cold environment cools said sacrificial layer.",
"[0005] In accordance with another embodiment of the present invention, a method for manufacturing a pair of electrodes comprises the steps of: fabricating a first electrode with a substantially flat surface;",
"placing a sacrificial layer over a surface of said first electrode, wherein said sacrificial layer comprises a sublimative material;",
"placing a material that is suitable for use as a second electrode over said sacrificial layer;",
"and heating said sacrificial layer, wherein said step of heating evaporates said sacrificial layer.",
"[0006] It is a technical advantage of the present invention to make diode devices faster, cheaper, easier, and more efficient.",
"[0007] Another technical advantage of the present invention is that it produces a reliable, small separation between an anode and a cathode, and this spacing is maintained and stabilized with piezo-electric actuators.",
"Another technical advantage of the present invention is that it may make this separation in a diode device.",
"[0008] Other technical advantages of the present invention will be readily apparent to one skilled in the art from the following figures, descriptions, and claims.",
"BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING [0009] For a more complete understanding of the present invention and the technical advantages thereof, reference is now made to the following description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which: [0010] [0010 ]FIG. 1 is a diagrammatic representation of one embodiment of the electrode configuration of the present invention;",
"[0011] [0011 ]FIG. 2 is a diagrammatic representation of one embodiment of the electrode configuration of the present invention;",
"[0012] [0012 ]FIG. 3 is a diagrammatic representation of one embodiment of a diode device embodying the present invention;",
"[0013] [0013 ]FIG. 4 is a diagrammatic representation of one embodiment of a device illustrating how heat transfer is facilitated;",
"and [0014] [0014 ]FIG. 5 is a schematic representation of the method of the present invention.",
"DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [0015] The embodiments of the present invention and its technical advantages are best understood by referring to FIGS. 1 - 5 .",
"While in this description of the present invention the actuating element is often described as being connected to the collector electrode, in the present invention the actuating elements may be applied to either the emitter electrode or the collector electrode.",
"Further, the present invention may be used in a number of devices, as stated herein, including, for example, (i) a device which uses a thermal gradient of any kind to generate electrical power or energy output using thermionics, thermotunneling, or other methods as described herein;",
"(ii) a device which uses electrical power or energy to pump heat, thereby creating, maintaining, or degrading a thermal gradient using thermionics, thermotunneling, or other methods as described herein;",
"and (iii) as any diode which employs a gap between the anode and the cathode, or the collector and emitter, and which causes or allows electrons to be transported between the two electrons, across or through the gap (with or without a vacuum in the gap).",
"Alternatively, the device of the present invention may be integrated into or used for any ordinary diode applications.",
"[0016] Further, when surface features of two facing surfaces of electrodes are described as “matching,” it means that where one surface has an indentation, the other surface has a protrusion and vice versa.",
"Thus when “matched,” the two surfaces are substantially equidistant from each other throughout their operating range.",
"[0017] Referring now to FIG. 1, two electrodes 1 and 5 are separated by a region 10 between an emitter and a collector and housed in a housing 15 .",
"Electrode 1 is mechanically connected to a piezo-electric actuator 20 .",
"An electric field is applied to the piezo-electric actuator via connecting wires 40 which causes the actuator to expand or contract longitudinally, thereby altering the distance of region 10 , which is between electrodes 1 and 5 .",
"Electrodes 1 and 5 are connected to a capacitance controller 29 which generates a reference electrical signal for closed loop feedback electronics 28 .",
"Closed loop feedback electronics 28 applies electrical signals to actuator 20 , which in turns maintains a constant distance between electrode 1 and 5 .",
"Emitter 5 may also be referred to as the “hot side”",
"and collector 1 may also be referred to as the “cold side.”",
"Thus, the emitter may be the side where heat is applied, if electrical power is to be generated from the heat.",
"When functioning as a heat pump, the collector may be the side that provides cooling, if refrigeration is to be generated from electrical power applied from the power supply.",
"Piezo-electric actuator 20 may be on either the collector or the emitter, however, it is preferable to have piezo electric actuator 20 on the cold side as the higher temperatures on the hot side may interfere with proper operation of piezo electric actuator 20 .",
"[0018] Referring now to FIG. 2, two electrodes 1 and 5 are separated by a region 10 and housed in a housing 15 .",
"Electrode 1 is attached to a number of piezo-electric actuators 20 at intervals.",
"An electric field is applied to the piezo-electric actuators via connecting wires 40 which causes the actuators to expand or contract longitudinally, thereby altering the longitudinal distance of region 10 between electrodes 1 and 5 .",
"Electrodes 1 and 5 are connected to capacitance controller 29 .",
"The longitudinal distance of region 10 between electrodes 1 and 5 is controlled by applying an electric field to piezo-electric actuators 20 .",
"The capacitance between emitter 5 and collector 1 is measured and controlling circuitry 29 adjusts the field applied to piezo-electric actuators 20 to hold the capacitance, and consequently the region 10 between the electrodes, at a predetermined fixed value.",
"Alternatively the controller may be set to maximize the capacitance and thereby minimize region 10 between the electrodes.",
"The diagram shown in FIG. 2 may be used as a thermionic device and/or as a tunneling device, and may be used to function as a device to create electrical power or energy output or as a device to pump heat.",
"Capacitance controller 29 may be composed of multiple elements, and each piezo actuator 20 may receive its own distinct signal, independent from the control of surrounding elements.",
"[0019] If it is used as a thermionic device, then electrodes 1 and 5 are made from, or are coated with, a thermionically emissive material having a work function consistent with the copious emission of electrons at the temperature of thermal interfaces 30 and 35 .",
"The specific work functions may be determined by calculation.",
"[0020] When functioning as a heat pump, electrons emitted from emitter 5 move across an evacuated space 10 to a collector 1 , where they release their kinetic energy as thermal energy which is conducted away from collector 1 through housing 15 to thermal interface 30 , which is, in this case, hotter than thermal interface 35 , which the electron emission serves to cool.",
"[0021] When functioning as a device to generate electrical power or energy output, region 10 may be evacuated.",
"Electrons emitted from emitter 5 move across the evacuated space of region 10 to collector 1 , where they release their kinetic energy as thermal energy which is conducted away from collector 1 through housing 15 to thermal interface 30 , and a current is generated for electrical load 27 .",
"The feedback loop from the capacitance controller to the piezo elements allows for the device to adjust for varying conditions, including vibration, shock, and thermal expansion.",
"[0022] When functioning as a tunneling device of the present invention, as one side of the device becomes hot and its components expand, the distance between the electrodes may be maintained at a fixed distance with the feedback loop between capacitance controller 29 and piezo elements 20 .",
"Provided that the surface of emitter 5 and collector 1 are made sufficiently smooth (or, as discussed below, matching one another), emitter 5 may be moved into such close proximity to collector 1 that quantum tunneling between the electrodes occurs.",
"Further, region 10 may or may not be evacuated.",
"[0023] Alternatively, atoms, such as cesium vapor, or alternatively an inert gas, may be in region 10 .",
"When the gap distance between the electrodes is on the order of tens of angstroms, thermal conduction through a gas is considerably lessened.",
"In the tunneling embodiments disclosed in this application, this advantage is noted, especially for applications where thermal conduction is a concern, such as a device to generate electrical power or energy output and heat pumps.",
"Hence, the region 10 is in some embodiments filled with an inert gas or cesium vapor.",
"[0024] Referring now to FIG. 3, which shows a thermal interface 35 , electrical connectors 40 , and electrical load/power supply 27 for a photoelectric generator embodiment of the device shown in FIG. 2. For the sake of clarity, in FIG. 3, capacitance controller 29 and additional connecting wires 40 shown in FIG. 2 have been omitted.",
"A light beam 70 passes through housing 15 and is absorbed by emitter 5 .",
"Emitter 5 is made from, or is coated with, a photoelectrically emissive material having a work function consistent with the copious emission of electrons at the wavelengths of light beam 70 .",
"In FIG. 3, region 10 is evacuated.",
"Electrons emitted from emitter 5 move across the evacuated space of region 10 to a collector 1 , where they release their kinetic energy as thermal energy which is conducted away from collector 1 and housing 15 to thermal interface 35 .",
"The electrons return to emitter 5 by means of external circuit 40 thereby powering electrical load/power supply 27 .",
"The spacing of region 10 between electrodes 1 and 5 is controlled as described above (see FIG. 2).",
"Thus, as the device becomes hot and its components expand, the distance between the electrodes may be maintained at a fixed distance.",
"Provided that the surface of emitter 5 and collector 1 are made sufficiently smooth, collector 1 may be moved into such close proximity to emitter 5 that quantum tunneling between the electrodes occurs.",
"Under these conditions, it is not necessary that region 10 should be evacuated, and the device operates as a tunneling device used to generate electrical power or energy output.",
"It should be noted that a photoelectric device used to generate electrical power or energy output may use a temperature differential, by collecting some of the solar energy in heat form.",
"In this embodiment, the device would function as the device used to generate electrical power or energy output, as in FIG. 2, with the heat energy provided as solar energy.",
"[0025] The device in FIG. 3 may alternatively be primarily photoelectric, where direct photon-electron contact results in the electron either topping the work-function barrier and emitting thermionically, or, in the tunneling version, the incident photon may cause the electron to tunnel.",
"The device may also be a combination of the above, providing any combination of thermionic emission caused by solar heat, thermionic emission caused by direct photoelectric effects, thermotunneling from solar heat, or tunneling emission caused by direct photoelectric effects.",
"[0026] Referring now to FIG. 4, a preferred embodiment for facilitating heat transfer between a thermal interface 30 and an electrode 1 is shown.",
"Corrugated tubes 80 , preferably fabricated from stainless steel, are shown as forming part of the structure between electrode 1 and thermal interface 30 .",
"These tubes may be positioned with many variations, and act to allow for the movement of the positioning elements 20 and of the electrode 1 while maintaining support, containment, or the like for the device, by being able to be stretched and/or compressed longitudinally.",
"In some embodiments, corrugated tubes 80 may form the walls of a depository of a metal powder 82 , preferably silver powder with a grain size of between 3 and 5 microns.",
"More metal powder 82 would be used to receive heat transferred to the collector electrode 1 , but the surroundings of the metal powder would be made smaller as the positioning elements 20 cause the electrode to move upwards.",
"Hence, an expandable depository made from corrugated tubing 80 is preferably used.",
"Corrugated tubes 80 may also enclose the entire device, to allow for movement, as well as individual piezo actuators 20 .",
"[0027] On a device having electrodes with an area on the order of 1×1 cm 2 , surface irregularities are likely to be such that electrode spacing may be no closer than 0.1 to 1.0 μm.",
"However for smaller electrodes, with an area on the order of 0.05×0.05 cm 2 , surface irregularities will be sufficiently small to allow the electrodes to be moved to a separation of approximately 5 nanometers or less, which is sufficiently close for quantum tunneling to occur.",
"Moreover, it is preferable for large (with an area on the order of 1×1 cm 2 ) electrodes to be brought into close proximity to more easily facilitate electron tunneling.",
"[0028] The diode devices described in the present invention may be produced using various methods.",
"For example, one such approach is illustrated in FIG. 5, which in schematic form describes a method for producing pairs of electrodes having substantially smooth surfaces in which any topographical features in one are matched in the other.",
"The method involves a first step 100 in which a polished monocrystal of material 102 is provided.",
"This forms one of the pair of electrodes.",
"Material 102 may also be polished tungsten, or other materials.",
"In a step 110 a thin layer of a second material 112 , preferably Si, Ti, or Mo, is deposited onto the surface of the material 102 .",
"This layer is sufficiently thin so that the shape of the polished surface 102 is repeated with high accuracy.",
"A thin layer of a third material is deposited on layer 112 in a step 120 , and in a step 130 it is thickened using electrochemical growth to form second electrode 132 .",
"This forms the second electrode.",
"In a step 140 the composite formed in steps 100 to 130 is cooled.",
"Preferably, the cold environment is less than −25° C. (248° K) or is less than −50° C. (223° K).",
"More preferably, the cold environment is less than −100° C. (173° K) or less than −150° C. (123° K).",
"Most preferably, liquid nitrogen is used to establish the cold environment.",
"Preferably, sandwich 150 may be immersed in liquid nitrogen, or liquid nitrogen vapor may be applied to sandwich 150 .",
"Materials used to make electrodes 102 and 132 are chosen so that they have different coefficients of linear thermal expansion.",
"Thus when composite 150 is cooled, the two electrodes 102 and 132 of reduce differently in linear dimensions.",
"This causes controlled mechanical tension between electrodes 102 and 132 .",
"The thickness and hardness of both electrodes 102 and 132 , however, is higher than the thickness and hardness of sacrificial layer 112 .",
"As result, sacrificial layer 112 disintegrates and turns to powder while being cooled by the liquid nitrogen, making electrodes 102 and 132 separable.",
"The resulting powder from sacrificial layer 112 may be removed using a suitable a suitable solvent or reactive solution.",
"Thus, by using liquid nitrogen to cool sandwich 150 , the sandwich 150 is opened using forces which arise due to the different thermal expansion of the electrodes.",
"Accordingly, the cold environment may be any environment with conditions that are cold enough to cool sandwich 150 such that tension between electrodes 102 and 132 destroys sacrificial layer 112 .",
"[0029] In an alternative embodiment (not shown in FIG. 5), electrode 102 additionally comprises a third material, which has a different coefficient of thermal expansion to the second material 112 .",
"Preferably the coefficients of expansion differ by a factor of 3 or more.",
"[0030] After the sacrificial layer 112 has been reduced to powder, first electrode 102 and second electrode 132 are somewhat separated to allow the removal of the remnants of sacrificial layer 112 .",
"First and second electrodes 102 and 132 are then returned back to a close proximity by piezoelectric actuators, such that they are no more than approximately 5-10 nanometers apart.",
"Preferably, the two electrodes will be separated less than or equal to approximately 100 angstroms.",
"More preferably, the two electrodes will be separated less than or equal to approximately 50 angstroms.",
"[0031] In another embodiment, a sublimative material (for example Cd (Cadmium), Zn, NA, K, or the like) may be used as the sacrificial layer in the present invention.",
"These materials begin to evaporate before the melting temperature is reached.",
"Considerable vapor pressure is developed inside the sandwich.",
"Pressure opens the sandwich even before the melting point of Cadmium is reached.",
"For example, with Cadmium, the vapor pressure at 150° C. is enough to open the sandwich.",
"This allows a lower temperature to be used to open the sandwich.",
"Thus, to remove the sacrificial layer when a sublimative material is used as the sacrificial layer, the sacrificial layer is heated.",
"By heating the sacrificial layer, when it is comprised of a sublimative material, the sacrificial layer evaporates (or is boiled off) leaving the sandwich with a gap between the electrodes.",
"The gap may be as described above, for example less than 50 nanometers, less than 100 angstroms, or less than 50 angstroms in distance.",
"[0032] In another preferred embodiment, a sublimative material (for example Cd (Cadmium), Zn, Na, K, Cs or the like) may be used as the sacrificial layer in the present invention.",
"These materials begin to evaporate before the melting temperature is reached.",
"Considerable vapor pressure is developed inside the sandwich.",
"Pressure opens the sandwich even before the melting point of Cadmium is reached.",
"For example, with Cadmium, the vapor pressure at 150° C. is enough to open the sandwich.",
"This allows a lower temperature to be used to open the sandwich.",
"Thus, to remove the sacrificial layer when a sublimative material is used as the sacrificial layer, the sacrificial layer is heated.",
"By heating the sacrificial layer, when it is comprised of a sublimative material, the sacrificial layer evaporates (or is boiled off) leaving the sandwich with a gap between the electrodes.",
"Further, with cesium, cesium has a melting temperature of about 30 C and so the sandwich will open (very) easily.",
"For example heating the composite to 35 C will open it without introducing (any) considerable tension in the electrodes.",
"Furthermore, the cesium may be retained between the electrodes as a vapor to further improve the performance of the device.",
"The gap may be as described above, for example less than 50 nanometers, less than 100 angstroms, or less than 50 angstroms in distance.",
"[0033] Any of the above methods may be used to fabricate the diode devices described herein.",
"Thus, for example, the actuators, preferably piezo actuators, may be introduced to keep region 10 at a desired distance.",
"The actuators are preferably added after step 140 .",
"Alternatively still, region 10 may be evacuated or may have an inert gas, such as He or Ar, or a vapor of cesium, introduced into region 10 .",
"[0034] When considering a device of the present invention wherein the two electrodes are close enough to one another to allow for electron tunneling to occur, thermal expansion should be considered.",
"If thermal expansion is not taken into account, then the two electrodes could touch, causing the device to not optimally function.",
"If the cold side of the device has a thermal expansion coefficient larger than that of the hot side, then the risk of touching is minimized.",
"A preferred embodiment for this selection process, depending on the design temperature ranges of the device, is that the cold side should have a thermal expansion coefficient which is more than that of the hot side.",
"Specific embodiments include the use of Silver or Aluminum on the cold side and Mo or Si on the hot side.",
"The thermal expansion coefficient of aluminum is approximately 6 times that of Mo or Si and when either of these materials are used for the electrodes, when combined with the electrode matching invention shown in FIG. 5, they should tolerate a difference in temperature between the two sides.",
"For example, if the hot side is heated by 500° C. and the cold side is heated by 80° C., ideal matching of the surfaces will occur.",
"Ti could also be used on the hot side, but aluminum's thermal expansion coefficient is approximately 3 times that of Ti as opposed to 6 times that of Mo or Si.",
"[0035] Included in this invention is a method for constructing electrodes with matching topologies, the use of thermotunneling to produce a cooling effect, the use of solar energy as the motive energy for the devices of the present invention, the use of small, and angstrom-scale gaps for insulation.",
"[0036] Although the above specification contains many specificities, these should not be construed as limiting the scope of the invention but as merely providing illustrations of some of the presently preferred embodiments of this invention.",
"For example, the piezo-electric, electrostrictive or magnetostrictive actuators could be used to position either or both electrodes.",
"Such actuators do not need to be active once the device has been manufactured.",
"For small temperature variations, it is conceivable that the capacitance loop and power supply for the actuators themselves will not be necessary, and the electrodes may be locked into place in the manufacturing or packaging process.",
"Thus in operation the actuators should not be necessary, as the gap would not be compromised with smaller temperature fluctuations.",
"[0037] In the above specification, capacitance is used to measure the distance between the electrodes.",
"Other methods may be used, including measuring the tunneling current and optical interferometry.",
"The generated current produced by a thermionic, thermotunneling or photoelectric device may also be measured to assess the separation of the electrodes.",
"Other properties which may be measured include heat, for example the temperature of one or both of the electrodes may be used to initiate programmed actuation of the piezo-electric, electrostrictive or magnetostrictive elements.",
"The position of the electrodes may also be set according to the length of time the device has been in operation.",
"Thus it may be envisaged that the electrodes are set at a certain distance when the device is first turned on, and then the positioning of the electrodes is adjusted after certain predetermined time intervals.",
"[0038] In addition, if the inter-converters are constructed using micro-machining techniques, the controlling circuitry for the separation of the electrodes may be deposited on the surface of the wafer next to the piezo-electric, electrostrictive or magnetostrictive actuators.",
"[0039] The devices of the present invention may be constructed as MicroElectroMechanicalSystems (MEMS) devices using micro-machining of an appropriate substrate.",
"Integrated circuit techniques and very large scale integration techniques for forming electrode surfaces on an appropriate substrate may also be used to fabricate the devices.",
"Other approaches useful in the construction of these devices include vapor deposition, fluid deposition, electrolytic deposition, printing, silk screen printing, airbrushing, and solution plating.",
"[0040] Substrates which may be used in the construction of these devices include silicon, silica, glass, metals, and quartz.",
"[0041] Additionally, the active control elements may be pulsed, which generates AC power output when the device is used as a power generator.",
"The pulsing speeds of piezo elements are well within the requirements necessary for standard alternating current outputs.",
"[0042] Moreover, the electrodes made according to the present invention may be used in diode devices, vacuum diode devices, heat pumps, any other devices that are based on tunneling effects, and the like.",
"[0043] While this invention has been described with reference to numerous embodiments, it is to be understood that this description is not intended to be construed in a limiting sense.",
"Various modifications and combinations of the illustrative embodiments will be apparent to persons skilled in the art upon reference to this description.",
"It is to be further understood, therefore, that numerous changes in the details of the embodiments of the present invention and additional embodiments of the present invention will be apparent to, and may be made by, persons of ordinary skill in the art having reference to this description.",
"It is contemplated that all such changes and additional embodiments are within the spirit and true scope of the invention as claimed below.",
"[0044] All publications and patent applications mentioned in this specification are indicative of the level of skill of those skilled in the art to which this invention pertains.",
"All publications and patent applications are herein incorporated by reference to the same extent as if each individual publication or patent application was specifically and individually indicated to be incorporated by reference."
] |
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] The present application claims priority to Higer's U.S. provisional patent application 60/490,842, filed Jul. 29, 2003, and entitled VACUUM PUMP CONTROL, the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.
TECHNICAL FIELD
[0002] The present invention generally relates to vacuum packaging. More particularly, the invention is directed to intelligent and variable speed control of a vacuum pump, intelligent vacuum pump controllers, and intelligent vacuum packaging appliances, as well as vacuum feedback.
BACKGROUND
[0003] Vacuum packaging involves removing air or other gases from a storage container and then sealing the container to prevent the contents from being exposed to the air. Vacuum packaging is particularly useful in protecting food and other perishables against oxidation. Oxygen is a main cause of food spoilage and contributes to the growth of bacteria, mold, and yeast. Accordingly, vacuum packaged food often lasts three to five times longer than food stored in ordinary containers. Moreover, vacuum packaging is useful for storing clothes, photographs, silver, and other items to prevent discoloration, corrosion, rust, and tarnishing. Furthermore, vacuum packaging produces tight, strong, and compact packages to reduce the bulk of articles and allow for more space to store other supplies.
[0004] FIGS. 1A and 1B are schematic isometric views of a conventional appliance 80 for vacuum packaging an object 79 in accordance with the prior art. The vacuum packaging appliance 80 includes a base 82 , a hood 90 pivotably coupled to the base 82 , a lower trough 84 , an upper trough (not shown) aligned with the lower trough 84 , and a vacuum pump (not shown) operably coupled to the upper trough. The hood 90 pivots between an open position (shown in FIG. 1B ) in which a bag 70 can be placed between the hood 90 and the base 82 and a closed position (shown in FIG. 1A ) in which the bag 70 can be evacuated and thermally sealed.
[0005] In the closed position of FIG. 1A , the upper trough and the lower trough 84 form a vacuum chamber to remove gas from the interior of the bag 70 . The base 82 also includes a seal 85 surrounding the vacuum chamber to seal the chamber from ambient air while gas is removed from the interior of the bag 70 . The vacuum packaging appliance 80 also includes a heating element 88 to thermally seal the bag 70 after the gas has been evacuated.
[0006] Conventional vacuum packaging bags include two panels attached together with an open end. Typically, the panels each include two or more layers. The inner layer can be a heat sealable material, and the outer layer can be a gas impermeable material to provide a barrier against the influx of air. The plasticity temperature of the inner layer is lower than the outer layer. Accordingly, the bag can be heated to thermally bond the inner layer of each panel together to seal the bag without melting or puncturing the outer layer during the heat sealing cycle.
[0007] A conventional vacuum packaging process includes depositing the object 79 into the bag 70 and positioning an open end 71 of the bag 70 proximate to the lower trough 84 of the vacuum packaging appliance 80 . Next, the hood 90 pivots downward to form the vacuum chamber around the open end 71 of the bag 70 . The vacuum pump then removes gas from the vacuum chamber and the interior of the bag 70 , which is in fluid communication with the vacuum chamber. After the gas has been removed from the interior of the bag 70 , the heating element 88 heats a strip of the bag 70 proximate to the open end 71 to melt the inner layer of each panel and thermally seal the bag 70 .
[0008] FIG. 2 is a flow chart illustrating a method 10 for operation of the vacuum pump of the vacuum packaging appliance in accordance with a conventional vacuum packaging process. A step 12 involves coupling a storage receptacle to a vacuum circuit of the vacuum packaging appliance. As will be appreciated, the vacuum circuit is coupled to the vacuum pump such that actuation of the vacuum pump results in evacuation of the vacuum circuit. By coupling the storage receptacle (bag as described above, canister, etc.) to the vacuum circuit, actuation of the vacuum pump will result in evacuation of the storage receptacle.
[0009] A step 14 hermetically closes the vacuum circuit. For example, step 14 may correspond to closing the hood 90 as described above. Step 14 insures that evacuation of the storage receptacle will result eventually in the storage receptacle reaching a gas pressure that is sufficiently near absolute vacuum to accomplish the intended purpose.
[0010] A step 16 actuates the vacuum pump at a constant evacuation speed fixed by the control circuitry of the vacuum packaging appliance. Step 16 is accomplished manually by a user actuating a control switch. This control switch may be attached to a button made available to the user, or may be formed into the vacuum packaging appliance such that when the vacuum circuit is hermetically sealed, the control switch actuates. The vacuum pump operates at the constant predefined evacuation speed until the user turns the machine off, or in some instances a vacuum sensor is placed in the vacuum circuit and the vacuum pump is turned off when the vacuum of the vacuum circuit reaches a certain predefined level.
[0011] FIG. 3 is a graphical illustration 50 symbolic of a vacuum level 52 of a bag-like storage receptacle (“bag”) during evacuation via the prior art single speed evacuation. As can be seen, the bag maintains a substantially constant vacuum level during an initial phase 54 of evacuation. The substantially constant vacuum level of the initial phase 54 results from the volume of the bag adjusting substantially proportionally to the volume of gas evacuated from the bag. Once the volume of the bag has compressed to a critical volume (depends upon the bag etc.), evacuation of the bag begins to substantially decrease bag pressure as shown during the critical phase 56 of vacuum level 52 . Assuming the pump is allowed to continuously operate, the vacuum level 52 of the bag will reach a final level during a final phase 58 . The final vacuum level will be determined by the strength of the vacuum pump.
[0012] The prior art teaches a single, constant speed vacuum pump. During the initial phase, the vacuum pump is not taxed, however during the critical phase and the final phase, the vacuum pump can be taxed. The vacuum speed of the prior art must be selected such that the pump motor operates safely during all phases of evacuation. A desirable feature to most users of the vacuum packaging appliance is to evacuate the bag as fast as possible. Thus the prior art teaches setting the vacuum pump evacuation speed as fast as will safely operate during the critical and final phases.
[0013] Unfortunately, this single, high-speed approach is not well suited for fragile contents in collapsible bags, as the user cannot stop the vacuum in time. Additionally, there are periods of evacuation when the vacuum pump could be run at higher rates without causing damage to the vacuum pump. This means the prior art teaching does not optimize evacuation speed.
[0014] Another problem with conventional vacuum packaging appliances is the lack of vacuum level feedback information provided to the user. During evacuation the user has no knowledge of the vacuum level at any given point in time. As a result, the user has to make a visual determination when to turn off the machine or rely on the machine's predefined vacuum level to automatically stop the vacuum pump. A lack of user interaction may result in damaging fragile contents and in some instances, may result in incomplete evacuation due to the storage receptacle.
[0015] The capability to sense various vacuum levels with user feedback would be particularly useful when the content in a collapsible storage receptacle is fragile. For example, when storing fragile items a user may want to deactivate the vacuum pump during the critical phase to avoid damaging the fragile contents. In other circumstances, the user may choose to prolong evacuation until the vacuum level reaches the final phase 58 to prevent incomplete evacuation. This functionality is not accomplished by the prior art.
[0016] Accordingly, there is a need for user feedback information regarding vacuum levels during evacuation to facilitate user interaction with the vacuum packaging appliance. Additionally, there is a need for more sophisticated vacuum sensing and vacuum pump control.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0017] PRIOR ART FIGS. 1A and 1B are schematic isometric views of a conventional appliance for vacuum packaging objects in accordance with the prior art.
[0018] PRIOR ART FIG. 2 is a flow chart for the operation of the vacuum pump of the vacuum packaging appliance in accordance with a conventional vacuum packaging process.
[0019] PRIOR ART FIG. 3 is a graphical depiction of vacuum levels in a vacuum circuit during evacuation using a conventional single-speed vacuum packaging appliance in accordance with the prior art.
[0020] FIG. 4 is a flow chart illustrating a vacuum pump control method 100 in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention.
[0021] FIG. 5 is a flow chart illustrating a method for controlling a vacuum pump of a vacuum packaging appliance in accordance with one vacuum operation mode.
[0022] FIG. 6 is a flow chart illustrating a method for controlling a vacuum pump of a vacuum packaging appliance according to another vacuum operation mode.
[0023] FIG. 7 is a flow chart illustrating a method for controlling a vacuum pump of a vacuum packaging appliance in accordance with still another vacuum operation mode.
[0024] FIG. 8 is a flow chart illustrating a method for controlling a vacuum pump of a vacuum packaging appliance in accordance with yet another vacuum operation mode.
[0025] FIG. 9 is a block diagram electrical schematic of a vacuum packaging appliance in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention.
[0026] FIG. 10 illustrates a vacuum packaging appliance having a mechanical vacuum feedback device.
[0027] FIG. 11 illustrates the vacuum packaging appliance of FIG. 10 operating in an attachment mode.
[0028] FIG. 12 illustrates a vacuum sensor within a vacuum hose.
[0029] FIG. 13 illustrates a vacuum packaging appliance having an electronic vacuum feedback device.
[0030] FIG. 14 illustrates a vacuum packaging appliance having an LED vacuum feedback device.
[0031] FIG. 15 is a flow chart of a method for operating a vacuum packaging device having vacuum feedback.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0032] The invention is directed to methods providing intelligent and variable speed control of a vacuum pump, intelligent vacuum pump controllers, and intelligent vacuum packaging appliances.
[0033] FIG. 4 is a flow chart illustrating a vacuum pump control method 100 in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention. The control method 100 contemplates intelligent control of the vacuum pump including variable speed operation of the vacuum pump, as well as modes of pump operation that take into consideration the nature of the vacuum packaging receptacle and the contents therein. The method 100 is well suited for controlling operation of a vacuum packaging appliance having a vacuum pump coupled to a vacuum circuit, and a vacuum sensor placed within the vacuum circuit.
[0034] A first step 102 involves coupling a vacuum storage receptacle to the vacuum circuit. The present invention contemplates a wide variety of suitable vacuum storage receptacles including heat sealable bag-like receptacles and hard walled canisters. Vacuum storage receptacles, and their interface with different types of vacuum packaging appliances will be appreciated by those skilled in the art. A step 104 closes the vacuum circuit so that the vacuum storage receptacle and the vacuum circuit are substantially hermetically sealed.
[0035] A step 106 determines a vacuum mode operation. The present invention contemplates a wide range of possible operation modes. The mode may be a function of a user selection or input, as a function of one or more sensed parameters such as vacuum level, fluid level, temperature of heat sealing element, etc., or a function of both user selection and sensed parameters. A step 108 operates the vacuum packaging appliance in the operation mode determined in step 106 . The operation step 108 is performed in an intelligent manner, based on the determined mode and in certain embodiments based on continued monitoring of one or more parameters, user input, etc.
[0036] A step 110 provides the user feedback regarding operation of the vacuum pump. For example, the vacuum packaging appliance may be equipped with several lights which could indicate messages such as selected or determined operation mode, status of vacuum pump, status of vacuum level, and status of heat sealing operation. Of course, step 110 is an optional step.
[0037] FIG. 5 illustrates a method 108 . 1 for controlling a vacuum pump of a vacuum packaging appliance in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention. The method 108 . 1 provides an intelligent manner for operating the vacuum pump at variable speeds, and can be safely used during a standard operating mode or a fragile operating mode, as well as other modes of operation. Essentially, the method 108 . 1 operates the vacuum pump at a high speed during the initial phase, a safe speed or low speed (depending upon the mode) during the critical phase, and then stops the vacuum pump upon reaching the final phase.
[0038] Turning directly to FIG. 5 , a step 150 begins operation of the vacuum pump at a high speed. The method 108 . 1 teaches operating the vacuum pump in an overdrive mode during the initial phase of evacuation. Because the vacuum packaging receptacle is at a constant relatively high pressure state during the initial phase of evacuation, the stress placed on the vacuum pump is relatively low making operation in an overdrive mode safe. A step 152 determines a vacuum level in the vacuum circuit, typically through a vacuum sensor disposed within the vacuum circuit. The vacuum sensor may be a discrete sensor providing binary data indicating the phase of the vacuum circuit. Alternative, the vacuum sensor may provide a continuous output related to vacuum level in the vacuum circuit.
[0039] A step 154 determines whether the vacuum level of the vacuum circuit has reached the critical phase. When the vacuum level is still in the initial phase, control is passed back to step 150 and operation of the vacuum pump is continued in the overdrive state.
[0040] When step 154 determines that the vacuum circuit vacuum level has entered the critical phase, control passes to a step 156 that transitions the vacuum pump operation to a safe operating or slow operating speed. The safe operating speed corresponds to a safe mode of operation intended for shorter evacuation periods that tend not to place undue stress on the vacuum pump. This is accomplished by decreasing the vacuum pump speed to a speed safe for operation during the critical and final phases. The slow speed corresponds to a fragile content mode of operation, and increases the time length of the critical phase such that the user has enough time to intervene and disable the vacuum pump should the integrity of the contents be threatened by the force of the collapsing receptacle.
[0041] A next step 158 again determines the vacuum level of the vacuum circuit. A step 160 determines whether the vacuum level of the vacuum circuit has reached the final phase. When the vacuum level is still in the critical phase, control passes to a step 162 that determines whether the user has requested that the vacuum pump cease operation. When the user has requested termination, control passes to a step 164 , which stops operation of the vacuum pump. Then a step 166 finishes the process by hermetically sealing the vacuum packaging receptacle and disconnecting the vacuum packaging receptacle from the vacuum circuit. Likewise, when step 160 determines that the vacuum circuit has reached the final phase, control is passed to the stop vacuum step 164 and then to the final step 166 .
[0042] FIG. 6 is a flow chart illustrating a method 108 . 2 for a manual evacuation mode of operation for a vacuum packaging appliance in accordance with another embodiment of the present invention. In the manual mode, the user manually activates the vacuum pump, and the operation of the vacuum pump may continue until the user ceases requesting activation or a final phase of the vacuum level is reached.
[0043] A step 200 monitors user input to determine whether the user has requested activation of the vacuum pump. The present invention contemplates a variety of mechanisms providing a control interface to the user. For example, the vacuum packaging appliance may be equipped with a single on/off switch. This switch may directly activate the vacuum pump, or may be fed as input into a controller such as an electronic control circuit, an ASIC, a PLD, a microprocessor or microcontroller that in turn controls the vacuum pump. The control may operate such that momentary switch actuation toggles the vacuum pump on and off; e.g., push once to begin evacuation, push again to stop evacuation. Alternatively, the control may require the user to continue actuation to maintain vacuum pump activation; e.g., push and hold down to begin evacuation, release button to stop evacuation. The user may also be provided multiple speed control.
[0044] Once the user requests a specific pump activation, a step 202 actuates the vacuum pump as requested by the user. A step 204 monitors the vacuum level and when it reaches the final phase, the method 108 . 2 is completed. If the vacuum level has not reached the final phase, control returns back to pump activation step 200 . Step 204 is optional, and certain embodiments will rely on the user to deactivate the vacuum pump.
[0045] FIG. 7 is a flow chart illustrating a pulse operation method 108 . 3 in accordance with yet another embodiment of the present invention. In a first step 250 , a user requests a pulse evacuation operation. A step 252 then determines whether the vacuum level has reach a final phase. When the vacuum is not complete, a step 254 actuates the vacuum pump for a fixed and predetermined period of time (a “pulse”). Then control passes back to step 205 to respond to a user's request. Note that these steps can be performed in parallel, such that the vacuum sensing and cut off at final phase can occur at any point.
[0046] Of course, the modes of operation can take on many embodiments, and the descriptions herein are merely intended to be illustrative. Certain embodiments may allow the user to select a period of evacuation, which is a multiple of the pulse length by making multiple requests (e.g., pushing pulse button multiple times). Step 252 can be optional, allowing the user to continue evacuating (e.g., running the pump motor) regardless of the vacuum level. Additionally, feedback such as a blinking light may be provided when the vacuum level reaches or approaches a desired point. Still further, evacuation may terminate upon sealing of the bag through manual or automatic operation the heat sealing element.
[0047] FIG. 8 is a flow chart illustrating a discrete mode method 108 . 4 in accordance with one aspect of the present invention. In a step 300 , the user is provided a plurality of discrete operating modes. These could be any plurality of modes as described above with reference to FIGS. 6-7 , and could be provided to the user via physical switches, a touch sensitive keypad, etc. A step 302 receives a request for a specific discrete mode of operation for the vacuum pump. A step 304 operates the vacuum pump according to a user-selected mode.
[0048] FIG. 9 is a block diagram electrical schematic of a vacuum packaging appliance 400 in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention. The vacuum packaging appliance 400 includes a vacuum controller 402 , user i/o 404 , a vacuum sensor 406 , a vacuum pump 408 , and other i/o 410 .
[0049] The vacuum controller 402 is responsive to input from the user i/o 404 , the vacuum sensor 406 , and the other i/o 410 to control operation of the vacuum pump 408 . The vacuum controller 402 may be an independent device, or may be a part of a system controlling all functions of the vacuum packaging appliance 400 . The vacuum controller 402 may take the form of a microprocessor, a microcontroller, an ASIC, a PLD, an electronic circuit, or any other suitable form.
[0050] The user i/o 404 may include any suitable user interface. For example, the user i/o 404 may include one or more button actuated switches, a keypad and screen, a touchscreen, etc. The user i/o 404 enables the user to select modes of operation for the vacuum packaging appliance 400 related to vacuum pump and in certain embodiments other operations of the vacuum packaging appliance 400 . The vacuum sensor 406 is disposed within the vacuum circuit and is operable to sense a vacuum level of the vacuum circuit. In certain embodiments, the vacuum sensor 406 can provide vacuum level data along a continuous scale. In other embodiments the vacuum sensor 406 provides a discrete output indicating transition from one vacuum phase to another, or perhaps several discrete outputs.
[0051] The vacuum pump 408 is coupled to the vacuum circuit and is operable to evacuate gas from the vacuum circuit when actuated by the vacuum controller 402 . Other i/o 410 may include a temperature sensor coupled to a heat sealing mechanism of the vacuum packaging appliance 400 .
[0052] Vacuum packaging appliances having vacuum sensors with mechanical user feedback devices will now be described with reference to FIGS. 10-12 . A vacuum packaging appliance 500 includes a base 502 , a lid 504 , a vacuum hose 506 coupling a first valve 508 formed in the base 502 to a second valve 570 formed in the lid 504 , and a vacuum sensing module 512 circumferentially attached to the vacuum hose 506 . The base 502 typically houses the components necessary for operation of a vacuum packaging appliance. These components typically include a vacuum pump, a vacuum circuit, a power supply, etc. The operation and the coupling of these elements are well known in the art and are described below in more detail.
[0053] The vacuum packaging appliance 500 includes a vacuum circuit made up of a vacuum chamber with a sealing strip, a vacuum pump, a vacuum hose 506 operationally connecting the vacuum pump through a first valve 508 to the vacuum chamber through a second valve 510 , and a vacuum sensing module 512 . To get the configuration of FIG. 11 from the device of FIG. 10 , the vacuum hose 506 is disconnected from the second valve 510 and is operationally attached to canister 520 through a valve 522 on the lid of the canister.
[0054] FIG. 11 also illustrates the vacuum chamber including a lower trough 524 in the base 502 having a seal 526 around the circumference of the lower trough, an upper trough (not shown) in the lid 504 with a corresponding upper seal around the circumference of the upper trough and a heating strip 528 . When lid 504 is in closed position, the lower seal and the upper seal form a seal around the vacuum chamber from ambient air while gas is evacuated from a storage receptacle. The vacuum sensing module, illustrated in FIG. 12 , includes a vacuum sensor with a probe extending into the vacuum hose 506 for measuring the flow rate of the vacuum in the vacuum circuit and a mechanical display device, such as a barber-pole with a spiral banner.
[0055] A vacuum sensor 530 is shown in FIG. 12 . Vacuum sensor 530 is embedded in vacuum hose 506 with probe 532 extending into the vacuum hose to measure the flow rate of the vacuum circuit. The spiral banner of the barber-pole device is driven by vacuum flow in the hose 506 . The spiral banner rotates at a speed proportional to the vacuum level. For example, at the start of evacuation, the color-coded banner of the barber-pole is green. The banner rotates to yellow as the vacuum level increases. At the completion of evacuation, the banner of the barber-pole device is red. When the user begins an evacuation session, the spiral banner of the barber-pole mechanism is reset to an initial color of white by engaging a reset button 514 . As the vacuum level enters the critical phase of evacuation, the barber-pole spiral mechanism will indicate that to the user. Upon recognizing that the vacuum level is in the critical phase, the user may decide to terminate evacuation, instead of continuing until the final vacuum level, if the content in the storage receptacle is fragile or susceptible to being crush.
[0056] The vacuum packaging appliance 500 as shown in FIG. 11 includes a vacuum circuit made up of a canister 520 , a vacuum pump (not shown) and a vacuum hose 506 operationally connecting the vacuum pump through first valve 508 to the canister through second valve 522 on the lid of canister 520 , and a vacuum sensing module 512 circumferentially attached to the vacuum hose 506 . The vacuum sensing module includes a vacuum sensor with a probe extending into the vacuum hose 506 for measuring the flow rate of the vacuum in the vacuum circuit and a mechanical display device, such as a barber-pole with color-coded spiral mechanism.
[0057] FIG. 13 illustrates a vacuum packaging appliance having an electronic feedback device. In the illustrated embodiment, the vacuum packaging appliance 600 includes a base 602 , a lid 604 , and a vacuum sensing module coupled to a vacuum circuit housed within base 602 . The vacuum sensing module includes a vacuum sensor, a controller, and a plurality of light emitting diodes (“LEDs”) 630 . The LEDs 630 provide user feedback information on the vacuum level during evacuation.
[0058] The vacuum sensor measures the flow rate of the vacuum level of the vacuum circuit. The controller analyzes the flow rate information from the vacuum sensor, determines the current vacuum level, and sends an electronic signal to turn on the LED that corresponds to the current vacuum level. For example, when the vacuum circuit is in the initial steady vacuum level, the controller sends a signal to turn on the LED 632 corresponding to “start.” When the vacuum level is in the critical phase, the controller turns on the LED 634 corresponding to “critical.” LED 636 corresponding to “stop” is illuminated when evacuation reached a final vacuum level.
[0059] In another embodiment depicted in FIG. 14 , a vacuum packaging appliance 700 includes a base 702 , a lid 704 , and a vacuum sensing module coupled to a vacuum circuit housed within base 702 . The vacuum circuit and vacuum sensing module are embedded within the housing of the vacuum packaging appliance. The vacuum sensing module includes a vacuum sensor, a controller, and a liquid crystal display (“LCD”) 740 shown in FIG. 14 . User feedback information is displayed on the LCD.
[0060] The vacuum sensor measures the flow rate of the vacuum level of the vacuum circuit. The controller analyzes the flow rate information from the vacuum sensor, determines the current vacuum level, and sends an electronic signal to the LCD to display the current vacuum level information to the user. For example, when the vacuum circuit is in the initial steady vacuum level, the controller sends a signal to the LCD to display a message indicative of the initial vacuum level. When the vacuum level is in the critical phase, the controller sends a signal to the LCD to display feedback information to the user indicating that the vacuum level is in the critical phase.
[0061] FIG. 15 is a flow chart illustrating a method 350 for evacuating a storage receptacle using a vacuum packaging appliance having a vacuum sensor with user feedback. At the start of the evacuation, a step 352 involves coupling the vacuum sensor to the vacuum circuit of the vacuum packaging appliance. If the vacuum sensor is permanently coupled to the vacuum circuit, step 352 is not needed. In order for the vacuum sensor to measure the flow rate of the vacuum level, it needs to be coupled to the vacuum circuit. After the vacuum sensor is in position to measure the flow rate of the vacuum circuit, whenever the user operates the vacuum packaging appliance in step 354 the sensor measures the flow rate of the vacuum circuit or in other words, senses the vacuum level in step 356 . The controller determines the vacuum level based on the flow rate measured by the vacuum sensor in step 358 . Then, in step 360 the controller formulates a signal and sends it to the electronic display to present the vacuum level information to the user.
[0062] From the foregoing, it will be appreciated that specific embodiments of the invention have been described herein for purposes of illustration, but that various modifications may be made without deviating from the spirit and scope of the invention. Accordingly, the invention is not limited except as by the appended claims. | The invention is directed to methods providing intelligent and variable speed control of a vacuum pump, intelligent vacuum pump controllers, intelligent vacuum packaging appliances, and vacuum feedback devices and methods. This Abstract is provided to comply with the rules requiring an abstract. It is submitted with the understanding that it will not be used to interpret or limit the scope or meaning of the claims. 37 C.F.R. § 1.72(b). | Provide a concise summary of the essential information conveyed in the given context. | [
"CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS [0001] The present application claims priority to Higer's U.S. provisional patent application 60/490,842, filed Jul. 29, 2003, and entitled VACUUM PUMP CONTROL, the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.",
"TECHNICAL FIELD [0002] The present invention generally relates to vacuum packaging.",
"More particularly, the invention is directed to intelligent and variable speed control of a vacuum pump, intelligent vacuum pump controllers, and intelligent vacuum packaging appliances, as well as vacuum feedback.",
"BACKGROUND [0003] Vacuum packaging involves removing air or other gases from a storage container and then sealing the container to prevent the contents from being exposed to the air.",
"Vacuum packaging is particularly useful in protecting food and other perishables against oxidation.",
"Oxygen is a main cause of food spoilage and contributes to the growth of bacteria, mold, and yeast.",
"Accordingly, vacuum packaged food often lasts three to five times longer than food stored in ordinary containers.",
"Moreover, vacuum packaging is useful for storing clothes, photographs, silver, and other items to prevent discoloration, corrosion, rust, and tarnishing.",
"Furthermore, vacuum packaging produces tight, strong, and compact packages to reduce the bulk of articles and allow for more space to store other supplies.",
"[0004] FIGS. 1A and 1B are schematic isometric views of a conventional appliance 80 for vacuum packaging an object 79 in accordance with the prior art.",
"The vacuum packaging appliance 80 includes a base 82 , a hood 90 pivotably coupled to the base 82 , a lower trough 84 , an upper trough (not shown) aligned with the lower trough 84 , and a vacuum pump (not shown) operably coupled to the upper trough.",
"The hood 90 pivots between an open position (shown in FIG. 1B ) in which a bag 70 can be placed between the hood 90 and the base 82 and a closed position (shown in FIG. 1A ) in which the bag 70 can be evacuated and thermally sealed.",
"[0005] In the closed position of FIG. 1A , the upper trough and the lower trough 84 form a vacuum chamber to remove gas from the interior of the bag 70 .",
"The base 82 also includes a seal 85 surrounding the vacuum chamber to seal the chamber from ambient air while gas is removed from the interior of the bag 70 .",
"The vacuum packaging appliance 80 also includes a heating element 88 to thermally seal the bag 70 after the gas has been evacuated.",
"[0006] Conventional vacuum packaging bags include two panels attached together with an open end.",
"Typically, the panels each include two or more layers.",
"The inner layer can be a heat sealable material, and the outer layer can be a gas impermeable material to provide a barrier against the influx of air.",
"The plasticity temperature of the inner layer is lower than the outer layer.",
"Accordingly, the bag can be heated to thermally bond the inner layer of each panel together to seal the bag without melting or puncturing the outer layer during the heat sealing cycle.",
"[0007] A conventional vacuum packaging process includes depositing the object 79 into the bag 70 and positioning an open end 71 of the bag 70 proximate to the lower trough 84 of the vacuum packaging appliance 80 .",
"Next, the hood 90 pivots downward to form the vacuum chamber around the open end 71 of the bag 70 .",
"The vacuum pump then removes gas from the vacuum chamber and the interior of the bag 70 , which is in fluid communication with the vacuum chamber.",
"After the gas has been removed from the interior of the bag 70 , the heating element 88 heats a strip of the bag 70 proximate to the open end 71 to melt the inner layer of each panel and thermally seal the bag 70 .",
"[0008] FIG. 2 is a flow chart illustrating a method 10 for operation of the vacuum pump of the vacuum packaging appliance in accordance with a conventional vacuum packaging process.",
"A step 12 involves coupling a storage receptacle to a vacuum circuit of the vacuum packaging appliance.",
"As will be appreciated, the vacuum circuit is coupled to the vacuum pump such that actuation of the vacuum pump results in evacuation of the vacuum circuit.",
"By coupling the storage receptacle (bag as described above, canister, etc.) to the vacuum circuit, actuation of the vacuum pump will result in evacuation of the storage receptacle.",
"[0009] A step 14 hermetically closes the vacuum circuit.",
"For example, step 14 may correspond to closing the hood 90 as described above.",
"Step 14 insures that evacuation of the storage receptacle will result eventually in the storage receptacle reaching a gas pressure that is sufficiently near absolute vacuum to accomplish the intended purpose.",
"[0010] A step 16 actuates the vacuum pump at a constant evacuation speed fixed by the control circuitry of the vacuum packaging appliance.",
"Step 16 is accomplished manually by a user actuating a control switch.",
"This control switch may be attached to a button made available to the user, or may be formed into the vacuum packaging appliance such that when the vacuum circuit is hermetically sealed, the control switch actuates.",
"The vacuum pump operates at the constant predefined evacuation speed until the user turns the machine off, or in some instances a vacuum sensor is placed in the vacuum circuit and the vacuum pump is turned off when the vacuum of the vacuum circuit reaches a certain predefined level.",
"[0011] FIG. 3 is a graphical illustration 50 symbolic of a vacuum level 52 of a bag-like storage receptacle (“bag”) during evacuation via the prior art single speed evacuation.",
"As can be seen, the bag maintains a substantially constant vacuum level during an initial phase 54 of evacuation.",
"The substantially constant vacuum level of the initial phase 54 results from the volume of the bag adjusting substantially proportionally to the volume of gas evacuated from the bag.",
"Once the volume of the bag has compressed to a critical volume (depends upon the bag etc.), evacuation of the bag begins to substantially decrease bag pressure as shown during the critical phase 56 of vacuum level 52 .",
"Assuming the pump is allowed to continuously operate, the vacuum level 52 of the bag will reach a final level during a final phase 58 .",
"The final vacuum level will be determined by the strength of the vacuum pump.",
"[0012] The prior art teaches a single, constant speed vacuum pump.",
"During the initial phase, the vacuum pump is not taxed, however during the critical phase and the final phase, the vacuum pump can be taxed.",
"The vacuum speed of the prior art must be selected such that the pump motor operates safely during all phases of evacuation.",
"A desirable feature to most users of the vacuum packaging appliance is to evacuate the bag as fast as possible.",
"Thus the prior art teaches setting the vacuum pump evacuation speed as fast as will safely operate during the critical and final phases.",
"[0013] Unfortunately, this single, high-speed approach is not well suited for fragile contents in collapsible bags, as the user cannot stop the vacuum in time.",
"Additionally, there are periods of evacuation when the vacuum pump could be run at higher rates without causing damage to the vacuum pump.",
"This means the prior art teaching does not optimize evacuation speed.",
"[0014] Another problem with conventional vacuum packaging appliances is the lack of vacuum level feedback information provided to the user.",
"During evacuation the user has no knowledge of the vacuum level at any given point in time.",
"As a result, the user has to make a visual determination when to turn off the machine or rely on the machine's predefined vacuum level to automatically stop the vacuum pump.",
"A lack of user interaction may result in damaging fragile contents and in some instances, may result in incomplete evacuation due to the storage receptacle.",
"[0015] The capability to sense various vacuum levels with user feedback would be particularly useful when the content in a collapsible storage receptacle is fragile.",
"For example, when storing fragile items a user may want to deactivate the vacuum pump during the critical phase to avoid damaging the fragile contents.",
"In other circumstances, the user may choose to prolong evacuation until the vacuum level reaches the final phase 58 to prevent incomplete evacuation.",
"This functionality is not accomplished by the prior art.",
"[0016] Accordingly, there is a need for user feedback information regarding vacuum levels during evacuation to facilitate user interaction with the vacuum packaging appliance.",
"Additionally, there is a need for more sophisticated vacuum sensing and vacuum pump control.",
"BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS [0017] PRIOR ART FIGS. 1A and 1B are schematic isometric views of a conventional appliance for vacuum packaging objects in accordance with the prior art.",
"[0018] PRIOR ART FIG. 2 is a flow chart for the operation of the vacuum pump of the vacuum packaging appliance in accordance with a conventional vacuum packaging process.",
"[0019] PRIOR ART FIG. 3 is a graphical depiction of vacuum levels in a vacuum circuit during evacuation using a conventional single-speed vacuum packaging appliance in accordance with the prior art.",
"[0020] FIG. 4 is a flow chart illustrating a vacuum pump control method 100 in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention.",
"[0021] FIG. 5 is a flow chart illustrating a method for controlling a vacuum pump of a vacuum packaging appliance in accordance with one vacuum operation mode.",
"[0022] FIG. 6 is a flow chart illustrating a method for controlling a vacuum pump of a vacuum packaging appliance according to another vacuum operation mode.",
"[0023] FIG. 7 is a flow chart illustrating a method for controlling a vacuum pump of a vacuum packaging appliance in accordance with still another vacuum operation mode.",
"[0024] FIG. 8 is a flow chart illustrating a method for controlling a vacuum pump of a vacuum packaging appliance in accordance with yet another vacuum operation mode.",
"[0025] FIG. 9 is a block diagram electrical schematic of a vacuum packaging appliance in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention.",
"[0026] FIG. 10 illustrates a vacuum packaging appliance having a mechanical vacuum feedback device.",
"[0027] FIG. 11 illustrates the vacuum packaging appliance of FIG. 10 operating in an attachment mode.",
"[0028] FIG. 12 illustrates a vacuum sensor within a vacuum hose.",
"[0029] FIG. 13 illustrates a vacuum packaging appliance having an electronic vacuum feedback device.",
"[0030] FIG. 14 illustrates a vacuum packaging appliance having an LED vacuum feedback device.",
"[0031] FIG. 15 is a flow chart of a method for operating a vacuum packaging device having vacuum feedback.",
"DETAILED DESCRIPTION [0032] The invention is directed to methods providing intelligent and variable speed control of a vacuum pump, intelligent vacuum pump controllers, and intelligent vacuum packaging appliances.",
"[0033] FIG. 4 is a flow chart illustrating a vacuum pump control method 100 in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention.",
"The control method 100 contemplates intelligent control of the vacuum pump including variable speed operation of the vacuum pump, as well as modes of pump operation that take into consideration the nature of the vacuum packaging receptacle and the contents therein.",
"The method 100 is well suited for controlling operation of a vacuum packaging appliance having a vacuum pump coupled to a vacuum circuit, and a vacuum sensor placed within the vacuum circuit.",
"[0034] A first step 102 involves coupling a vacuum storage receptacle to the vacuum circuit.",
"The present invention contemplates a wide variety of suitable vacuum storage receptacles including heat sealable bag-like receptacles and hard walled canisters.",
"Vacuum storage receptacles, and their interface with different types of vacuum packaging appliances will be appreciated by those skilled in the art.",
"A step 104 closes the vacuum circuit so that the vacuum storage receptacle and the vacuum circuit are substantially hermetically sealed.",
"[0035] A step 106 determines a vacuum mode operation.",
"The present invention contemplates a wide range of possible operation modes.",
"The mode may be a function of a user selection or input, as a function of one or more sensed parameters such as vacuum level, fluid level, temperature of heat sealing element, etc.",
", or a function of both user selection and sensed parameters.",
"A step 108 operates the vacuum packaging appliance in the operation mode determined in step 106 .",
"The operation step 108 is performed in an intelligent manner, based on the determined mode and in certain embodiments based on continued monitoring of one or more parameters, user input, etc.",
"[0036] A step 110 provides the user feedback regarding operation of the vacuum pump.",
"For example, the vacuum packaging appliance may be equipped with several lights which could indicate messages such as selected or determined operation mode, status of vacuum pump, status of vacuum level, and status of heat sealing operation.",
"Of course, step 110 is an optional step.",
"[0037] FIG. 5 illustrates a method 108 .",
"1 for controlling a vacuum pump of a vacuum packaging appliance in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention.",
"The method 108 .",
"1 provides an intelligent manner for operating the vacuum pump at variable speeds, and can be safely used during a standard operating mode or a fragile operating mode, as well as other modes of operation.",
"Essentially, the method 108 .",
"1 operates the vacuum pump at a high speed during the initial phase, a safe speed or low speed (depending upon the mode) during the critical phase, and then stops the vacuum pump upon reaching the final phase.",
"[0038] Turning directly to FIG. 5 , a step 150 begins operation of the vacuum pump at a high speed.",
"The method 108 .",
"1 teaches operating the vacuum pump in an overdrive mode during the initial phase of evacuation.",
"Because the vacuum packaging receptacle is at a constant relatively high pressure state during the initial phase of evacuation, the stress placed on the vacuum pump is relatively low making operation in an overdrive mode safe.",
"A step 152 determines a vacuum level in the vacuum circuit, typically through a vacuum sensor disposed within the vacuum circuit.",
"The vacuum sensor may be a discrete sensor providing binary data indicating the phase of the vacuum circuit.",
"Alternative, the vacuum sensor may provide a continuous output related to vacuum level in the vacuum circuit.",
"[0039] A step 154 determines whether the vacuum level of the vacuum circuit has reached the critical phase.",
"When the vacuum level is still in the initial phase, control is passed back to step 150 and operation of the vacuum pump is continued in the overdrive state.",
"[0040] When step 154 determines that the vacuum circuit vacuum level has entered the critical phase, control passes to a step 156 that transitions the vacuum pump operation to a safe operating or slow operating speed.",
"The safe operating speed corresponds to a safe mode of operation intended for shorter evacuation periods that tend not to place undue stress on the vacuum pump.",
"This is accomplished by decreasing the vacuum pump speed to a speed safe for operation during the critical and final phases.",
"The slow speed corresponds to a fragile content mode of operation, and increases the time length of the critical phase such that the user has enough time to intervene and disable the vacuum pump should the integrity of the contents be threatened by the force of the collapsing receptacle.",
"[0041] A next step 158 again determines the vacuum level of the vacuum circuit.",
"A step 160 determines whether the vacuum level of the vacuum circuit has reached the final phase.",
"When the vacuum level is still in the critical phase, control passes to a step 162 that determines whether the user has requested that the vacuum pump cease operation.",
"When the user has requested termination, control passes to a step 164 , which stops operation of the vacuum pump.",
"Then a step 166 finishes the process by hermetically sealing the vacuum packaging receptacle and disconnecting the vacuum packaging receptacle from the vacuum circuit.",
"Likewise, when step 160 determines that the vacuum circuit has reached the final phase, control is passed to the stop vacuum step 164 and then to the final step 166 .",
"[0042] FIG. 6 is a flow chart illustrating a method 108 .",
"2 for a manual evacuation mode of operation for a vacuum packaging appliance in accordance with another embodiment of the present invention.",
"In the manual mode, the user manually activates the vacuum pump, and the operation of the vacuum pump may continue until the user ceases requesting activation or a final phase of the vacuum level is reached.",
"[0043] A step 200 monitors user input to determine whether the user has requested activation of the vacuum pump.",
"The present invention contemplates a variety of mechanisms providing a control interface to the user.",
"For example, the vacuum packaging appliance may be equipped with a single on/off switch.",
"This switch may directly activate the vacuum pump, or may be fed as input into a controller such as an electronic control circuit, an ASIC, a PLD, a microprocessor or microcontroller that in turn controls the vacuum pump.",
"The control may operate such that momentary switch actuation toggles the vacuum pump on and off;",
"e.g., push once to begin evacuation, push again to stop evacuation.",
"Alternatively, the control may require the user to continue actuation to maintain vacuum pump activation;",
"e.g., push and hold down to begin evacuation, release button to stop evacuation.",
"The user may also be provided multiple speed control.",
"[0044] Once the user requests a specific pump activation, a step 202 actuates the vacuum pump as requested by the user.",
"A step 204 monitors the vacuum level and when it reaches the final phase, the method 108 .",
"2 is completed.",
"If the vacuum level has not reached the final phase, control returns back to pump activation step 200 .",
"Step 204 is optional, and certain embodiments will rely on the user to deactivate the vacuum pump.",
"[0045] FIG. 7 is a flow chart illustrating a pulse operation method 108 .",
"3 in accordance with yet another embodiment of the present invention.",
"In a first step 250 , a user requests a pulse evacuation operation.",
"A step 252 then determines whether the vacuum level has reach a final phase.",
"When the vacuum is not complete, a step 254 actuates the vacuum pump for a fixed and predetermined period of time (a “pulse”).",
"Then control passes back to step 205 to respond to a user's request.",
"Note that these steps can be performed in parallel, such that the vacuum sensing and cut off at final phase can occur at any point.",
"[0046] Of course, the modes of operation can take on many embodiments, and the descriptions herein are merely intended to be illustrative.",
"Certain embodiments may allow the user to select a period of evacuation, which is a multiple of the pulse length by making multiple requests (e.g., pushing pulse button multiple times).",
"Step 252 can be optional, allowing the user to continue evacuating (e.g., running the pump motor) regardless of the vacuum level.",
"Additionally, feedback such as a blinking light may be provided when the vacuum level reaches or approaches a desired point.",
"Still further, evacuation may terminate upon sealing of the bag through manual or automatic operation the heat sealing element.",
"[0047] FIG. 8 is a flow chart illustrating a discrete mode method 108 .",
"4 in accordance with one aspect of the present invention.",
"In a step 300 , the user is provided a plurality of discrete operating modes.",
"These could be any plurality of modes as described above with reference to FIGS. 6-7 , and could be provided to the user via physical switches, a touch sensitive keypad, etc.",
"A step 302 receives a request for a specific discrete mode of operation for the vacuum pump.",
"A step 304 operates the vacuum pump according to a user-selected mode.",
"[0048] FIG. 9 is a block diagram electrical schematic of a vacuum packaging appliance 400 in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention.",
"The vacuum packaging appliance 400 includes a vacuum controller 402 , user i/o 404 , a vacuum sensor 406 , a vacuum pump 408 , and other i/o 410 .",
"[0049] The vacuum controller 402 is responsive to input from the user i/o 404 , the vacuum sensor 406 , and the other i/o 410 to control operation of the vacuum pump 408 .",
"The vacuum controller 402 may be an independent device, or may be a part of a system controlling all functions of the vacuum packaging appliance 400 .",
"The vacuum controller 402 may take the form of a microprocessor, a microcontroller, an ASIC, a PLD, an electronic circuit, or any other suitable form.",
"[0050] The user i/o 404 may include any suitable user interface.",
"For example, the user i/o 404 may include one or more button actuated switches, a keypad and screen, a touchscreen, etc.",
"The user i/o 404 enables the user to select modes of operation for the vacuum packaging appliance 400 related to vacuum pump and in certain embodiments other operations of the vacuum packaging appliance 400 .",
"The vacuum sensor 406 is disposed within the vacuum circuit and is operable to sense a vacuum level of the vacuum circuit.",
"In certain embodiments, the vacuum sensor 406 can provide vacuum level data along a continuous scale.",
"In other embodiments the vacuum sensor 406 provides a discrete output indicating transition from one vacuum phase to another, or perhaps several discrete outputs.",
"[0051] The vacuum pump 408 is coupled to the vacuum circuit and is operable to evacuate gas from the vacuum circuit when actuated by the vacuum controller 402 .",
"Other i/o 410 may include a temperature sensor coupled to a heat sealing mechanism of the vacuum packaging appliance 400 .",
"[0052] Vacuum packaging appliances having vacuum sensors with mechanical user feedback devices will now be described with reference to FIGS. 10-12 .",
"A vacuum packaging appliance 500 includes a base 502 , a lid 504 , a vacuum hose 506 coupling a first valve 508 formed in the base 502 to a second valve 570 formed in the lid 504 , and a vacuum sensing module 512 circumferentially attached to the vacuum hose 506 .",
"The base 502 typically houses the components necessary for operation of a vacuum packaging appliance.",
"These components typically include a vacuum pump, a vacuum circuit, a power supply, etc.",
"The operation and the coupling of these elements are well known in the art and are described below in more detail.",
"[0053] The vacuum packaging appliance 500 includes a vacuum circuit made up of a vacuum chamber with a sealing strip, a vacuum pump, a vacuum hose 506 operationally connecting the vacuum pump through a first valve 508 to the vacuum chamber through a second valve 510 , and a vacuum sensing module 512 .",
"To get the configuration of FIG. 11 from the device of FIG. 10 , the vacuum hose 506 is disconnected from the second valve 510 and is operationally attached to canister 520 through a valve 522 on the lid of the canister.",
"[0054] FIG. 11 also illustrates the vacuum chamber including a lower trough 524 in the base 502 having a seal 526 around the circumference of the lower trough, an upper trough (not shown) in the lid 504 with a corresponding upper seal around the circumference of the upper trough and a heating strip 528 .",
"When lid 504 is in closed position, the lower seal and the upper seal form a seal around the vacuum chamber from ambient air while gas is evacuated from a storage receptacle.",
"The vacuum sensing module, illustrated in FIG. 12 , includes a vacuum sensor with a probe extending into the vacuum hose 506 for measuring the flow rate of the vacuum in the vacuum circuit and a mechanical display device, such as a barber-pole with a spiral banner.",
"[0055] A vacuum sensor 530 is shown in FIG. 12 .",
"Vacuum sensor 530 is embedded in vacuum hose 506 with probe 532 extending into the vacuum hose to measure the flow rate of the vacuum circuit.",
"The spiral banner of the barber-pole device is driven by vacuum flow in the hose 506 .",
"The spiral banner rotates at a speed proportional to the vacuum level.",
"For example, at the start of evacuation, the color-coded banner of the barber-pole is green.",
"The banner rotates to yellow as the vacuum level increases.",
"At the completion of evacuation, the banner of the barber-pole device is red.",
"When the user begins an evacuation session, the spiral banner of the barber-pole mechanism is reset to an initial color of white by engaging a reset button 514 .",
"As the vacuum level enters the critical phase of evacuation, the barber-pole spiral mechanism will indicate that to the user.",
"Upon recognizing that the vacuum level is in the critical phase, the user may decide to terminate evacuation, instead of continuing until the final vacuum level, if the content in the storage receptacle is fragile or susceptible to being crush.",
"[0056] The vacuum packaging appliance 500 as shown in FIG. 11 includes a vacuum circuit made up of a canister 520 , a vacuum pump (not shown) and a vacuum hose 506 operationally connecting the vacuum pump through first valve 508 to the canister through second valve 522 on the lid of canister 520 , and a vacuum sensing module 512 circumferentially attached to the vacuum hose 506 .",
"The vacuum sensing module includes a vacuum sensor with a probe extending into the vacuum hose 506 for measuring the flow rate of the vacuum in the vacuum circuit and a mechanical display device, such as a barber-pole with color-coded spiral mechanism.",
"[0057] FIG. 13 illustrates a vacuum packaging appliance having an electronic feedback device.",
"In the illustrated embodiment, the vacuum packaging appliance 600 includes a base 602 , a lid 604 , and a vacuum sensing module coupled to a vacuum circuit housed within base 602 .",
"The vacuum sensing module includes a vacuum sensor, a controller, and a plurality of light emitting diodes (“LEDs”) 630 .",
"The LEDs 630 provide user feedback information on the vacuum level during evacuation.",
"[0058] The vacuum sensor measures the flow rate of the vacuum level of the vacuum circuit.",
"The controller analyzes the flow rate information from the vacuum sensor, determines the current vacuum level, and sends an electronic signal to turn on the LED that corresponds to the current vacuum level.",
"For example, when the vacuum circuit is in the initial steady vacuum level, the controller sends a signal to turn on the LED 632 corresponding to “start.”",
"When the vacuum level is in the critical phase, the controller turns on the LED 634 corresponding to “critical.”",
"LED 636 corresponding to “stop”",
"is illuminated when evacuation reached a final vacuum level.",
"[0059] In another embodiment depicted in FIG. 14 , a vacuum packaging appliance 700 includes a base 702 , a lid 704 , and a vacuum sensing module coupled to a vacuum circuit housed within base 702 .",
"The vacuum circuit and vacuum sensing module are embedded within the housing of the vacuum packaging appliance.",
"The vacuum sensing module includes a vacuum sensor, a controller, and a liquid crystal display (“LCD”) 740 shown in FIG. 14 .",
"User feedback information is displayed on the LCD.",
"[0060] The vacuum sensor measures the flow rate of the vacuum level of the vacuum circuit.",
"The controller analyzes the flow rate information from the vacuum sensor, determines the current vacuum level, and sends an electronic signal to the LCD to display the current vacuum level information to the user.",
"For example, when the vacuum circuit is in the initial steady vacuum level, the controller sends a signal to the LCD to display a message indicative of the initial vacuum level.",
"When the vacuum level is in the critical phase, the controller sends a signal to the LCD to display feedback information to the user indicating that the vacuum level is in the critical phase.",
"[0061] FIG. 15 is a flow chart illustrating a method 350 for evacuating a storage receptacle using a vacuum packaging appliance having a vacuum sensor with user feedback.",
"At the start of the evacuation, a step 352 involves coupling the vacuum sensor to the vacuum circuit of the vacuum packaging appliance.",
"If the vacuum sensor is permanently coupled to the vacuum circuit, step 352 is not needed.",
"In order for the vacuum sensor to measure the flow rate of the vacuum level, it needs to be coupled to the vacuum circuit.",
"After the vacuum sensor is in position to measure the flow rate of the vacuum circuit, whenever the user operates the vacuum packaging appliance in step 354 the sensor measures the flow rate of the vacuum circuit or in other words, senses the vacuum level in step 356 .",
"The controller determines the vacuum level based on the flow rate measured by the vacuum sensor in step 358 .",
"Then, in step 360 the controller formulates a signal and sends it to the electronic display to present the vacuum level information to the user.",
"[0062] From the foregoing, it will be appreciated that specific embodiments of the invention have been described herein for purposes of illustration, but that various modifications may be made without deviating from the spirit and scope of the invention.",
"Accordingly, the invention is not limited except as by the appended claims."
] |
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
A spearpoint with adaptor for use in spear fishing, and particularly with rubber-strap type of spear fishing guns.
2. Brief Description of the Prior Art
Various devices for throwing a fishing gear, either by means of compressed gas or rubber tension straps, are known. The present invention relates to the spearshaft, and has general applicability to all forms of spear guns, though the present invention has particular utility with the most common. rubber strap form of spear guns, such as the Swim Master®, manufactured by Voit. Representative of prior art spearpoints, and their connection to a spear shaft, are illustrated by the U.S. patents, as follows:
MARES, U.S. Pat. No. 2,833,266
MALCOLM, U.S. Pat. No. 3,045,659
MERZ, U.S. Pat. No. 3,071,883
The present invention categorically is distinguished from such prior art by a cooperation among three (3) characteristics which results in an operation significantly improved over any prior art forms of spearpoint and spearshaft combination. Firstly, the adaptor interface facilitates release of the spearpoint, to eliminate shaft breakage. Second, the spearpoint itself is configured with a smooth taper and a single barb. Thirdly, a cable and ring assembly is provided, to enable a separated spearpoint to be retrieved back through the wound of the prey with great speed and ease.
Single barb spear points broadly are known in the prior art, and one such design is illustrated by the patent to MALCOLM. Spear shaft adaptors having non-tapered shafts to fit into non-tapered spearpoint bores also broadly are known, as shown by the patent to MARES. Further, it is also known in the prior art to use a flexible cable beween a spearpoint and an adaptor. The separation of the spearpoint from the adaptor must occur immediately after the prey has been speared, so that the reaction of the prey does not break the slender spear shaft, but rather allows the shaft to slide out of the entrance wound. For example, the patents to MALCOLM and MERZ illustrate a tether cable which connects the spearpoint, which remains outside the exit wound, and the spearshaft, which should wind up outside the entrance wound.
However, it should be appreciated that significant functional disadvantages occur from relatively subtle structural aspects of spearpoint and spear shaft design. For example, MERZ illustrates a tapered adaptor that fits into a tapered spear point so that, upon impact, a wedging effect occurs between the adaptor and spearpoint, and the two parts tend to jam together, preventing quick release as the prey reacts to the wound. It has been a common experience for the inventor to discover that the repeated wedging action splits such a spearpoint, after a relatively short period of use. While MARES illustrates an adaptor/spearpoint interface which does not include a taper, MARES in turn requires a short, internal tether cable, wherein cable crimps (hidden from view) are subject to great stresses, and are not available for inspection to indicate an imminent failure. The MARES approach is for a double-barb design, which will not require the spearpoint to turn sideways as it exits the prey. MARES essentially does not allow a large separation distance between the adaptor and the spearpoint. It should also be appreciated that if a fish or similar prey has a body width thicker than the length of the short cable shown by MARES, the adaptor and shaft will remain within the wound. The MERZ interface will tend to jam, destroying the possible advantage of a spearpoint capable of accelerating laterally, to ensure divergence from the axial path which the spearshift momentum causes it to follow. Neither prior art reference discusses how turning effects cooperate with the adaptor/spearpoint interface, or otherwise address back-travel of the spearshaft out of the entrance wound. Moreover, none of these prior art spear points are configured also to allow a selective spearpoint positioning, to ensure a quick reverse retrieval, out of the prey.
In summary, the prior art has failed to recognize how single-barb spearpoint design may be mounted and tethered to guarantee both a breakaway action and a quick retrieval action. Applicant has discovered that not only must a single barb breakaway spearpoint be mounted upon a non-tapered spearshaft adaptor element, but that when the spearpoint has a hole transversely extending through its approximate center of gravity, a loop and ring arrangement on the tether cable can be used to allow retrieval of the spearpoint, simply by an axial pull upon the cable from a point outside the entrance wound into the prey.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The object of the present invention is to provide a spearpoint design which not only breaks away immediately from an adaptor, (so that the spearshaft itself will slip back ouside the entrance wound of the prey, and not be subject to breakage), but also to provide such a spear point with a selective connector means for retrieval. The selective connector means does not oppose rotation of the spearpoint as it passes through and out of the prey, and enables retrieval of the spearpoint without binding inside the wound caused by passage of the spearpoint.
The preferred embodiment of the present invention provides a selective connector means beween the cable and the distal end at the breakaway spearpoint which is simple to manipulate, but still very securely maintains the spearpoint leading edge substantially coaxial with cable tension forces being exerted by an operator pulling on the cable, from a location outside of the entrance wound. The preferred embodiment of the invention employs an elongated, tapered spearpoint having a cable attachment that comprises a transverse aperture perpendicular to the lateral offset of the single barb and located proximate to the center of gravity of the spearpoint. Hence, when a stainless steel cable has a first loop through the spearpoint aperture and a second loop adjacent thereto, a steel ring secured upon the second loop is allowed longitudinally to move with respect to the cable, and selectively engage over the distal end of the spearpoint. When the ring is so engaged, the longitudinal axis of he spearpoint is positioned substantially colinear with the tensile forces exerted by the cable, as the spearpoint is being retrieved through the wound.
In order to ensure the initial separation of a spearpoint from spearshaft adaptor, the adaptor is characterized by an internal thread at its proximate end, with its distal end comprising an elongated, non-tapered male section to mate loosely within an internal bore at the proximate, or rear, end of the longiudinally extending spearpoint. The single barb configuration of the spearpoint extends in a first transverse direction, and preferably the cable first loop and second loop/ring assembly lies on the side of the spearpoint opposite to the transverse extension of the barb. In this manner, there is a dynamic balancing of the entire assembly, when passing through the prey and turning sideways out of the exit wound. As the spearpoint is urged to turn sideways by the action of the single barb, the cable and holding assembly attached thereto will be urged against the convex, trailing edge of the spearpoint barb, and facilitate a smooth following of the cable second loop, ring assembly through the exit wound.
Further features and objects of the invention will become more apparent hereinafter, wherein a preferrd embodiment is disclosed with reference to the accompanying dawings.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG. 1 is a right side elevation view, in partial section, showing a preferred embodiment for a spearpoint and adaptor assembly, according to the teachings of the present invention;
FIG. 2 is a left side, elevation view according to FIG. 1 showing, in explosion view, the separation of the main components of the present invention as it occurs during an intended use;
FIG. 3 is a right side elevation view of a spearpoint engaging a selective connector means, prior to retrieval back through the exit wound;
FIG. 4 is a front view of the spearpoint, looking axially at the tip of the spearpoint.
DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
The preferred embodiment comprises three (3) essential elements, which cooperate together to facilitate not only effective breakaway of the spearpoint from the shaft, but also effective retrieval of the separated spearpoint through the wound of the prey. A single barb spearpoint, 2, fits over an adaptor, 4, with the spearpoint being tethered to a shaft, 6, through the elongated stainless steel cable, 8. The illustrated spearpoint has an overall length of approximately 4 inches, and is constructed from a right circular cylinder blank of stainless steel, with an approximate diameter of 3/8 inches. The blank is provided with a 5 degree taper between its approximate mid point and a leading edge at the distal end, 20, a sharp point configuraion. The blank further internally is axially drilled from its proximate end and then a trailing edge is transversely bent to create a maximum lateral offset of approximately 1/4 of an inch, measured from the outside surface of the blank, to the rear tip of the barb. Prior to the bending, a triangular section of steel is removed, and after bending a taper to the bab, 18, is defined, as shown in FIGS. 1 AND 4. Accordingly, the 4 inch spearpoint has a midpoint transverse dimension of 3/8 of an inch, with a lateral offset dimension to one side, of an additional 1/4 inch. At the approximate midpoint or center of gravity for the spearpoint, an approximate 1/8 inch diameter, countersunk aperture, 10, is drilled perpendicular to the first transverse dimension in which the single barb is offset.
As further illustrated in FIG. 1, a first loop and a second loop in the cable is defined, and a steel ring, 12, is located within the second loop, to enable the ring to slide down the cable, to the axial vicinity of the barb trailing edge, 8. The steel ring preferably has an i.d. of 1/4 inch, an o.d. of 3/8 inch, and is approximately 1/16 inch thick. The ring is contained for motion along the cable by a first brass sleeve, 14, and a second brass sleeve, 16. As shown in FIG. 1, the ring and sleeve arrangement on the cable defines a selective connector mechanism that will drape over the transverse side opposite to the spearpoint barb, 18, before separation of the spearpoint and adaptor. With respect to the configuration of FIG. 1, a rightwardly turning motion of the spearpoint is created as the barb, 18, exists from the prey, thereby tending to urge the cable and ring against the smooth, concave surface of the spearpoint barb, 18. Hence, large entrance wounds in the prey are avoided, since the overall slender elongated taper of the point is not significantly defeated by the effects of the trailing cable and selective connector, which tend to drape against the barb trailing edge.
FIG. 2 schematically illustrates, in partial explosion view, that the adaptor, 4, has a distal end, 24, which is a substantially elongated non-tapered transverse dimension. A non-tapered bore extending exially inside the spearpoint from its proximate end is sized loosely to fit over the adaptor distal end, 24, in a non-binding fashion. As shown in FIG. 1, the transition section of adaptor, 4, between the non-tapered distal portion, 24, and the enlarged proximate end does not contact any portion of the spearpoint, 2. FIG. 1 further illustrates how the enlarged proximate end of the adaptor, accepts an externally threaded portion at the distal end, 22, of spearshaft, 6. The internal threading within the adaptor accepts an externally threaded portion at the distal end, 22, of spearshaft, 6. The internal threading within the adaptor proximate end may be easily configured to accommodate any one of three conventional spearshaft threads. Most commonly, spearshafts have a 3/8 inch o.d. shaft with a 12×24 thread. A common spear shaft of this format is the Swim Mater®, marketed by Voit. Manifestly, other conventional internal threads, such as 5/16 inch o.d. shafts with 6 mm threading or 5/16×24 threading can easily be cut into the adaptor.
FIG. 3 schematically illustrates the situation after the spearpoint has broken away from the adaptor and its attached shaft, wherein only the cable, 8, remains substantially within the wound defined within the prey, 30. The illustrated exit wound, 32, is distensible, but still presents a barrier to retrieval of the spearpoint, 2. A significant advantage of the present invention is the ability to quickly manipulate the steel ring, 12, over the distal end of the spearpoint, 2, as shown in FIG. 3. The first brass sleeve, 14 and the second brass sleeve, 16, are positioned to enable a large travel direction for the ring along the cable, with that dimension and the ring being configured to enable an easy engagement over the spearpoint leading edge, and a frictional tightening as the ring moves upwardly on the spearpoint taper. It should also be appreciated that when tensile forces are applied to the cable, 6, while the spearpoint is configured as in FIG. 3, the spearpoint is guided back through the exit wound, 32, and ring contact with the wound urges the ring more tightly against the taper of the spearpoint, 2. The overall structure thereby defeats any tendency for the ring, 12, to be dislodged forwardly and over the distal end of the spearpoint, and jamming of the spearpoint within the wound.
The preferred cable is a 1/16 inch o.d. stainless steel braid, of approximately 600 pound test. The preferred length of the cable is 12 inches, with the cable proximate end clamped by a brass sleeve, 28, to a conventional collar, 26, which slidably surrounds the spearshaft, below the adaptor, 4. Rubber-strap spear gun firing mechanisms often include provision for initially holding the collar, 26, rearwardly, so as to maintain a connection between a spearpoint and its adaptor. Upon firing of the spear, the forward momentum of the assembly maintains that mating connection between the adaptor and the spearpoint, without need for any effect from the cable. Upon impact, the spearshaft distal end invariably passes significantly into the fish or other prey, and the subsequenty violent reaction of the fish will break a spearshaft that remains in the wound. Upon separation, the shaft is able to slide out of the prey, and the cable then pulls the spearpoint against the exit wound. The concave surface of the barb first engages the exit wound, which then rotates the spearpoint oppositely to the first rotation direction which caused the spearpoint to break away fom the adaptor. The spearpoint thus winds up substantially perpendicular to the cable, and flat against the exit wound. As shown in FIG. 3, it then requires only the simple manipulation of pulling a short length of cable out the exit wound, and a further rotation of the spearpoint in the second direction, until the distal end is slippd inside the steel ring, 12. All further tensile forces in the cable then tend to guide the spearpoint smoothly and accurately back through the exit wound, and out of the entrance wound.
While a preferred embodiment of the present invention has been shown and described, the invention is to be limited solely by the scope of the appended claims. | An improved spearpoint of the type characterized by a smoothly extending single transverse barb, at its proximate end, and a circular taper to a point, at its distal end, and a spearshaft adaptor that will not jam within the spearpoint. A selectively connected cable ring loop assembly allows the spearpoint freely to break away by rotating out of the exit wound, while enabling the distal end of the spearpoint to be connected to the cable, for retrieval. | Briefly describe the main idea outlined in the provided context. | [
"BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1.",
"Field of the Invention A spearpoint with adaptor for use in spear fishing, and particularly with rubber-strap type of spear fishing guns.",
"Brief Description of the Prior Art Various devices for throwing a fishing gear, either by means of compressed gas or rubber tension straps, are known.",
"The present invention relates to the spearshaft, and has general applicability to all forms of spear guns, though the present invention has particular utility with the most common.",
"rubber strap form of spear guns, such as the Swim Master®, manufactured by Voit.",
"Representative of prior art spearpoints, and their connection to a spear shaft, are illustrated by the U.S. patents, as follows: MARES, U.S. Pat. No. 2,833,266 MALCOLM, U.S. Pat. No. 3,045,659 MERZ, U.S. Pat. No. 3,071,883 The present invention categorically is distinguished from such prior art by a cooperation among three (3) characteristics which results in an operation significantly improved over any prior art forms of spearpoint and spearshaft combination.",
"Firstly, the adaptor interface facilitates release of the spearpoint, to eliminate shaft breakage.",
"Second, the spearpoint itself is configured with a smooth taper and a single barb.",
"Thirdly, a cable and ring assembly is provided, to enable a separated spearpoint to be retrieved back through the wound of the prey with great speed and ease.",
"Single barb spear points broadly are known in the prior art, and one such design is illustrated by the patent to MALCOLM.",
"Spear shaft adaptors having non-tapered shafts to fit into non-tapered spearpoint bores also broadly are known, as shown by the patent to MARES.",
"Further, it is also known in the prior art to use a flexible cable beween a spearpoint and an adaptor.",
"The separation of the spearpoint from the adaptor must occur immediately after the prey has been speared, so that the reaction of the prey does not break the slender spear shaft, but rather allows the shaft to slide out of the entrance wound.",
"For example, the patents to MALCOLM and MERZ illustrate a tether cable which connects the spearpoint, which remains outside the exit wound, and the spearshaft, which should wind up outside the entrance wound.",
"However, it should be appreciated that significant functional disadvantages occur from relatively subtle structural aspects of spearpoint and spear shaft design.",
"For example, MERZ illustrates a tapered adaptor that fits into a tapered spear point so that, upon impact, a wedging effect occurs between the adaptor and spearpoint, and the two parts tend to jam together, preventing quick release as the prey reacts to the wound.",
"It has been a common experience for the inventor to discover that the repeated wedging action splits such a spearpoint, after a relatively short period of use.",
"While MARES illustrates an adaptor/spearpoint interface which does not include a taper, MARES in turn requires a short, internal tether cable, wherein cable crimps (hidden from view) are subject to great stresses, and are not available for inspection to indicate an imminent failure.",
"The MARES approach is for a double-barb design, which will not require the spearpoint to turn sideways as it exits the prey.",
"MARES essentially does not allow a large separation distance between the adaptor and the spearpoint.",
"It should also be appreciated that if a fish or similar prey has a body width thicker than the length of the short cable shown by MARES, the adaptor and shaft will remain within the wound.",
"The MERZ interface will tend to jam, destroying the possible advantage of a spearpoint capable of accelerating laterally, to ensure divergence from the axial path which the spearshift momentum causes it to follow.",
"Neither prior art reference discusses how turning effects cooperate with the adaptor/spearpoint interface, or otherwise address back-travel of the spearshaft out of the entrance wound.",
"Moreover, none of these prior art spear points are configured also to allow a selective spearpoint positioning, to ensure a quick reverse retrieval, out of the prey.",
"In summary, the prior art has failed to recognize how single-barb spearpoint design may be mounted and tethered to guarantee both a breakaway action and a quick retrieval action.",
"Applicant has discovered that not only must a single barb breakaway spearpoint be mounted upon a non-tapered spearshaft adaptor element, but that when the spearpoint has a hole transversely extending through its approximate center of gravity, a loop and ring arrangement on the tether cable can be used to allow retrieval of the spearpoint, simply by an axial pull upon the cable from a point outside the entrance wound into the prey.",
"SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The object of the present invention is to provide a spearpoint design which not only breaks away immediately from an adaptor, (so that the spearshaft itself will slip back ouside the entrance wound of the prey, and not be subject to breakage), but also to provide such a spear point with a selective connector means for retrieval.",
"The selective connector means does not oppose rotation of the spearpoint as it passes through and out of the prey, and enables retrieval of the spearpoint without binding inside the wound caused by passage of the spearpoint.",
"The preferred embodiment of the present invention provides a selective connector means beween the cable and the distal end at the breakaway spearpoint which is simple to manipulate, but still very securely maintains the spearpoint leading edge substantially coaxial with cable tension forces being exerted by an operator pulling on the cable, from a location outside of the entrance wound.",
"The preferred embodiment of the invention employs an elongated, tapered spearpoint having a cable attachment that comprises a transverse aperture perpendicular to the lateral offset of the single barb and located proximate to the center of gravity of the spearpoint.",
"Hence, when a stainless steel cable has a first loop through the spearpoint aperture and a second loop adjacent thereto, a steel ring secured upon the second loop is allowed longitudinally to move with respect to the cable, and selectively engage over the distal end of the spearpoint.",
"When the ring is so engaged, the longitudinal axis of he spearpoint is positioned substantially colinear with the tensile forces exerted by the cable, as the spearpoint is being retrieved through the wound.",
"In order to ensure the initial separation of a spearpoint from spearshaft adaptor, the adaptor is characterized by an internal thread at its proximate end, with its distal end comprising an elongated, non-tapered male section to mate loosely within an internal bore at the proximate, or rear, end of the longiudinally extending spearpoint.",
"The single barb configuration of the spearpoint extends in a first transverse direction, and preferably the cable first loop and second loop/ring assembly lies on the side of the spearpoint opposite to the transverse extension of the barb.",
"In this manner, there is a dynamic balancing of the entire assembly, when passing through the prey and turning sideways out of the exit wound.",
"As the spearpoint is urged to turn sideways by the action of the single barb, the cable and holding assembly attached thereto will be urged against the convex, trailing edge of the spearpoint barb, and facilitate a smooth following of the cable second loop, ring assembly through the exit wound.",
"Further features and objects of the invention will become more apparent hereinafter, wherein a preferrd embodiment is disclosed with reference to the accompanying dawings.",
"BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a right side elevation view, in partial section, showing a preferred embodiment for a spearpoint and adaptor assembly, according to the teachings of the present invention;",
"FIG. 2 is a left side, elevation view according to FIG. 1 showing, in explosion view, the separation of the main components of the present invention as it occurs during an intended use;",
"FIG. 3 is a right side elevation view of a spearpoint engaging a selective connector means, prior to retrieval back through the exit wound;",
"FIG. 4 is a front view of the spearpoint, looking axially at the tip of the spearpoint.",
"DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT The preferred embodiment comprises three (3) essential elements, which cooperate together to facilitate not only effective breakaway of the spearpoint from the shaft, but also effective retrieval of the separated spearpoint through the wound of the prey.",
"A single barb spearpoint, 2, fits over an adaptor, 4, with the spearpoint being tethered to a shaft, 6, through the elongated stainless steel cable, 8.",
"The illustrated spearpoint has an overall length of approximately 4 inches, and is constructed from a right circular cylinder blank of stainless steel, with an approximate diameter of 3/8 inches.",
"The blank is provided with a 5 degree taper between its approximate mid point and a leading edge at the distal end, 20, a sharp point configuraion.",
"The blank further internally is axially drilled from its proximate end and then a trailing edge is transversely bent to create a maximum lateral offset of approximately 1/4 of an inch, measured from the outside surface of the blank, to the rear tip of the barb.",
"Prior to the bending, a triangular section of steel is removed, and after bending a taper to the bab, 18, is defined, as shown in FIGS. 1 AND 4.",
"Accordingly, the 4 inch spearpoint has a midpoint transverse dimension of 3/8 of an inch, with a lateral offset dimension to one side, of an additional 1/4 inch.",
"At the approximate midpoint or center of gravity for the spearpoint, an approximate 1/8 inch diameter, countersunk aperture, 10, is drilled perpendicular to the first transverse dimension in which the single barb is offset.",
"As further illustrated in FIG. 1, a first loop and a second loop in the cable is defined, and a steel ring, 12, is located within the second loop, to enable the ring to slide down the cable, to the axial vicinity of the barb trailing edge, 8.",
"The steel ring preferably has an i.d. of 1/4 inch, an o.d. of 3/8 inch, and is approximately 1/16 inch thick.",
"The ring is contained for motion along the cable by a first brass sleeve, 14, and a second brass sleeve, 16.",
"As shown in FIG. 1, the ring and sleeve arrangement on the cable defines a selective connector mechanism that will drape over the transverse side opposite to the spearpoint barb, 18, before separation of the spearpoint and adaptor.",
"With respect to the configuration of FIG. 1, a rightwardly turning motion of the spearpoint is created as the barb, 18, exists from the prey, thereby tending to urge the cable and ring against the smooth, concave surface of the spearpoint barb, 18.",
"Hence, large entrance wounds in the prey are avoided, since the overall slender elongated taper of the point is not significantly defeated by the effects of the trailing cable and selective connector, which tend to drape against the barb trailing edge.",
"FIG. 2 schematically illustrates, in partial explosion view, that the adaptor, 4, has a distal end, 24, which is a substantially elongated non-tapered transverse dimension.",
"A non-tapered bore extending exially inside the spearpoint from its proximate end is sized loosely to fit over the adaptor distal end, 24, in a non-binding fashion.",
"As shown in FIG. 1, the transition section of adaptor, 4, between the non-tapered distal portion, 24, and the enlarged proximate end does not contact any portion of the spearpoint, 2.",
"FIG. 1 further illustrates how the enlarged proximate end of the adaptor, accepts an externally threaded portion at the distal end, 22, of spearshaft, 6.",
"The internal threading within the adaptor accepts an externally threaded portion at the distal end, 22, of spearshaft, 6.",
"The internal threading within the adaptor proximate end may be easily configured to accommodate any one of three conventional spearshaft threads.",
"Most commonly, spearshafts have a 3/8 inch o.d. shaft with a 12×24 thread.",
"A common spear shaft of this format is the Swim Mater®, marketed by Voit.",
"Manifestly, other conventional internal threads, such as 5/16 inch o.d. shafts with 6 mm threading or 5/16×24 threading can easily be cut into the adaptor.",
"FIG. 3 schematically illustrates the situation after the spearpoint has broken away from the adaptor and its attached shaft, wherein only the cable, 8, remains substantially within the wound defined within the prey, 30.",
"The illustrated exit wound, 32, is distensible, but still presents a barrier to retrieval of the spearpoint, 2.",
"A significant advantage of the present invention is the ability to quickly manipulate the steel ring, 12, over the distal end of the spearpoint, 2, as shown in FIG. 3. The first brass sleeve, 14 and the second brass sleeve, 16, are positioned to enable a large travel direction for the ring along the cable, with that dimension and the ring being configured to enable an easy engagement over the spearpoint leading edge, and a frictional tightening as the ring moves upwardly on the spearpoint taper.",
"It should also be appreciated that when tensile forces are applied to the cable, 6, while the spearpoint is configured as in FIG. 3, the spearpoint is guided back through the exit wound, 32, and ring contact with the wound urges the ring more tightly against the taper of the spearpoint, 2.",
"The overall structure thereby defeats any tendency for the ring, 12, to be dislodged forwardly and over the distal end of the spearpoint, and jamming of the spearpoint within the wound.",
"The preferred cable is a 1/16 inch o.d. stainless steel braid, of approximately 600 pound test.",
"The preferred length of the cable is 12 inches, with the cable proximate end clamped by a brass sleeve, 28, to a conventional collar, 26, which slidably surrounds the spearshaft, below the adaptor, 4.",
"Rubber-strap spear gun firing mechanisms often include provision for initially holding the collar, 26, rearwardly, so as to maintain a connection between a spearpoint and its adaptor.",
"Upon firing of the spear, the forward momentum of the assembly maintains that mating connection between the adaptor and the spearpoint, without need for any effect from the cable.",
"Upon impact, the spearshaft distal end invariably passes significantly into the fish or other prey, and the subsequenty violent reaction of the fish will break a spearshaft that remains in the wound.",
"Upon separation, the shaft is able to slide out of the prey, and the cable then pulls the spearpoint against the exit wound.",
"The concave surface of the barb first engages the exit wound, which then rotates the spearpoint oppositely to the first rotation direction which caused the spearpoint to break away fom the adaptor.",
"The spearpoint thus winds up substantially perpendicular to the cable, and flat against the exit wound.",
"As shown in FIG. 3, it then requires only the simple manipulation of pulling a short length of cable out the exit wound, and a further rotation of the spearpoint in the second direction, until the distal end is slippd inside the steel ring, 12.",
"All further tensile forces in the cable then tend to guide the spearpoint smoothly and accurately back through the exit wound, and out of the entrance wound.",
"While a preferred embodiment of the present invention has been shown and described, the invention is to be limited solely by the scope of the appended claims."
] |
This application is a divisional of application Ser. No. 07/721,944, filed Jun. 27, 1991 and now U.S. Pat. No. 5,328,491.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a dispersant having excellent properties of dispersing organic and inorganic substances and an effect of remarkably improving the stability of the dispersion system. In particular, the present invention relates to a dispersant for a coal/water slurry which dispersant exhibits excellent effects of increasing the concentration and improving stability of the slurry when it is left to stand.
It is known that polystyrenesulfonic acid produced by sulfonating polystyrene and salts thereof are usable as antistatic agents, dispersants and various other agents. They are used as, for example, antistatic agents for papers [Japanese Patent Publication for Opposition Purpose (hereinafter referred to as “J.P. KOKOKU” ) No. Sho 57-53953], antistatic agents for resins [Japanese Patent Unexamined Published Application (hereinafter referred to as “J.P. KOKAI”) No. Sho 59-8741], dispersants for coal/water slurry (J.P. KOKAI Nos. Sho 57-145187, Sho 62-590 and Sho 63-278997 and Japanese Patent Application No. Hei-1-338564), and dispersants for cements (J.P. KOKAI Nos. Sho 51-525, Sho 51-64527, Sho 56-41866, Sho 57-156355, Sho 60-46956 and Sho 63-25251). The polystyrenesulfonic acid and salts thereof are usually produced by polymerizing styrenesulfonic acid monomer or by sulfonating polystyrene. They have a structure shown the following general formula (II) or the like:
wherein l represents an integer and k represents 0 or an integer of at least 1. Although styrene of l recurring units in the above formula has one SO 3 X group, some of the recurring units may have 0 or two or more SO 3 X groups.
Although these known polymers exhibit an excellent effect for increasing the concentration of the dispersion system, their effect of improving the stability of the dispersion system is yet insufficient.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
A primary object of the present invention is to provide a new dispersant, in particular, capable of improving the stability of a dispersion system.
This and other objects of the invention will be apparent from the following description and Examples.
The inventors have found that the stability of the dispersion system can be improved by using a sulfonated polystyrene having a specified amount of indane ring at a terminal of the styrene recurring unit.
Namely, the present invention provides a dispersant comprising a polystyrenesulfonic acid having a weight-average molecular weight in the range of 2,000 to 100,000 or a salt thereof, wherein at least 70% of the terminals of the polymer chains have an indane ring of the formula (I):
wherein X represents a cation selected from the group consisting of a hydrogen, alkali metals, alkaline earth metals, ammonium and organic amines, and n and m each represent 0 or an integer of at least 1.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG. 1 is an NMR chart of polystyrene used as a starting material for the dispersant of the present invention. FIGS. 2 are a GC-MS gas chromatogram (A) of the dispersant of the present invention and an MS spectrum (B) thereof. FIG. 3 is an NMR chart of the dispersant of the present invention. FIG. 4 is an NMR chart of a lower molecular part of the dispersant of the present invention. FIG. 5 is an NMR chart of starting polystyrene for a comparative dispersant. FIG. 6 is an NMR chart of a comparative dispersant. FIG. 7 is an NMR chart of a methanol-soluble part of the starting polystyrene for the dispersant of the present invention.
DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
In the present invention, other terminals of the polymer than the indane ring of the above formula (I) have a structure shown by the following formula (III):
The part of the polymer other than its terminals comprises recurring units having a structure of the following general formula (IV):
wherein X and n are as defined above.
The polymers used in the present invention are preferably those having a molecular weight of 2,000 to 50,000 and a degree of sulfonation of at least 60%, preferably 80 to 95%, based on the styrene units.
In the formula (I), n and m are preferably not zero at the same time. X in the formula is preferably an alkali metal such as sodium or potassium, an alkaline earth metal such as calcium or magnesium or ammonium cation, more preferably sodium, calcium or ammonium.
The polystyrene having an indane ring at the terminal thereof used in the present invention can be produced by cationic polymerization of commercially available styrene monomer. It is preferred to use a metal halide, particularly a metal chloride, as the polymerization catalyst. Examples of them include tin dichloride, tin tetrachloride, aluminum chloride and titanium tetrachloride. other cationic polymerization catalysts are also usable. However, when, for example, BF 3 is used, the relative amount of the polystyrene having the indane ring at the terminal is reduced to about 50%. The amount of the catalyst used is preferably 0.01 to 1% by weight based on the styrene monomer.
Halogenated hydrocarbons are used as the reaction solvent. They include dichloromethane, chloroform, carbon tetrachloride, dichloroethane and tetrachloroethane.
Although the weight ratio of the solvent used for the polymerization reaction to the styrene monomer is not particularly limited, it is preferably 10/90 to 90/10, more preferably 20/80 to 80/20, from the viewpoints of the control of the reaction system and after-treatment.
The polymerization reaction is preferably conducted by previously heating the reaction solvent to a predetermined temperature and then adding styrene monomer dropwise to the reaction system to conduct the polymerization. After completion of the addition of the styrene monomer, the reaction is completed by aging. It is also possible to further add the catalyst after completion of the addition in order to accelerate the completion of the reaction.
The polymerization temperature usually ranges 30 to 150 ° C.
After completion of the reaction, the remaining catalyst is neutralized with ammonia or the like by an ordinary method and a precipitate thus formed can be removed by filtration or by washing with water. The remaining catalyst can be removed also by adsorbing it on an adsorbent and then filtering it.
The styrene polymer having the indane ring at the terminals in an amount of least 70%, preferably 80 to 95% obtained by the above-method, is sulfonated by an ordinary method to obtain the dispersant of the present invention.
Examples of the sulfonation reaction conditions are as follows: the sulfonation can be conducted with sulfuric anhydride, fuming sulfuric acid, chlorosulfonic acid or sulfuric acid as the sulfonating reagent. These sulfonating reagents can be directly added dropwise to the reaction system or, alternatively, they can be introduced into the reaction tank together with polystyrene to continuously conduct the sulfonation. Sulfuric acid anhydride can be introduced into the system after dilution with nitrogen or dry air or, alternatively, it is reacted with dioxane or the like to form a complex to be added dropwise.
The reaction solvents usable herein are those inert to the sulfonating reagent. The solvents inert to the sulfonating reagent include halogenated hydrocarbons such as dichloromethane, chloroform, carbon tetrachloride, dichloroethane and tetrachloroethane. When such a solvent is used as the polymerization solvent, the sulfonation can auto be conducted without changing the solvent.
After completion of the sulfonation, the solvent is removed and the product is neutralized to obtain the new dispersant usable in the present invention.
The dispersant thus produced is practically used directly in the form of the aqueous slurry having a concentration of about 5 to 50%, concentrate having a concentration of 50 to 60% or powder prepared by drying by an ordinary method.
The dispersant of the present invention is usable for any dispersion system for which an ordinary dispersant is usable. For example, it is usable as a dispersant for organic dispersions such as a coal dispersion, pigment dispersion, dye dispersion, paint dispersion, developer dispersion, microcapsule dispersion; as a dispersion stabilizer for suspension polymerization; as a levelling agent for a dye; or as a dispersant for inorganic dispersions such as silica or TiO 2 dispersion. The dispersant of the present invention is effective for stabilizing a dispersion such as a concrete admixture and particularly coal/water slurry. Thus it is effective for inhibiting coagulation of a slurry. The dispersant for the coal/water slurry is effective for preparing an aqueous slurry of anthracite, bituminous coal, sub-bituminous coal or brown coal. The amount of the dispersant is usually selected so that the amount of the polymer of the present invention will be in the range of 0.05 to 3.0% by weight based on the coal/water slurry.
When the coal/water slurry is to be produced by using the polymer of the present invention, the polymer can be added as it is to the fine coal powder or it can be used in the form of an aqueous solution thereof having a concentration of about 5 to 50% by weight. The mixture of the fine coal powder and water can be produced by, for example, a method wherein the coal is dry-pulverized to a desired particle size by means of a pulverizer such as a crusher or ball mill, water is added thereto in an amount determined so that the fine coal powder concentration in the final high-concentration coal/water slurry will be 55 to 75% in due consideration of water content of the fine coal powder and water content of the dispersant and they are homogeneously mixed with kneader, co-kneader or Bambury mixer; a method wherein the coal is pulverized to a desired particle size in the presence of water in an excess amount by means of a pulverizer such as a ball mill or rod mill and it is dehydrated so that the coal concentration in the final high-concentration coal/water slurry will be 55 to 75% in due consideration of water content of the dispersant; or a method wherein coal and water are mixed together to obtain a mixture of a predetermined concentration and the mixture is ground to a desired particle size by means of a pulverizer such as ball mill or rod mill to obtain a homogeneous mixture.
According to the present invention, a dispersant having a quite excellent dispersion stability is provided.
The following Examples will further illustrate the present invention.
EXAMPLE 1
200 g of ethylene dichloride as solvent was placed in a flask and 0.7 g of tin tetrachloride as catalyst was added thereto. The temperature was elevated to 70° C. while the reaction mixture was stirred and then 200 g of styrene was added dropwise thereto for 1 h. The stirring was continued at 84° C. for 5 h to complete the reaction. The weight-average molecular weight of the polymer (Polymer-1) determined by gel permeation chromatography was 7,500.
300 g of a solution of Polymer-1 in ethylene dichloride was diluted with 450 g of ethylene dichloride and sulfonation was conducted with sulfuric acid anhydride as the sulfonating reagent in molar ratio of 1.05:1 to synthesize a dispersant of the present invention (Polymer-2). The weight-average molecular weight of the polymer (Polymer-2) determined by gel permeation chromatography was 15,000.
The properties of the polymers were determined as follows:
(1) Weight-Average Molecular Weight of Polymer-1:
The weight-average molecular weight of Polymer-1 was determined by GPC method by using standard polystyrene as the standard substance, TSK G1000HXL (7.8 mm ID×30 cm) (a product of Toso Co., Ltd.) was used as the separation column and an ultraviolet ray detector (wave length: 266 nm) was also used. When styrene was detected in the sample, the weight-average molecular weight was determined by excluding styrene.
(2) Weight-average Molecular Weight of Polymer-2:
The weight-average molecular weight of Polymer-2 was determined by GPC method by using standard sodium polystyrenesulfonate as the standard substance, TSK G3000SW (7.5 mm ID×30 cm) and TSK G4000SW (7.5 mm ID×30 cm) (products of Toso Co., Ltd.) as the separation columns and an ultraviolet ray detector (wave length: 238 nm). When styrenesulfonic acid was detected in the sample, the weight-average molecular weight was determined by excluding styrenesulfonic acid.
(3) Recognization of Terminal Indane Ring of Polymer-1
Polymer-1 was examined with 400 M NMR (GSX-400; a product of JEOL., Ltd.) and CDCl 3 solvent under conditions comprising a determination temperature of 25° C., integrated circuit (16 times), pulse angle of 45° and pulse intervals of 5 sec. The presence of indane ring was confirmed by proton NMR. The NMR chart is shown in FIG. 1 .
In FIG. 1, the shift position of each proton was as follows:
Proton Shift Position (PPM)
A: 1.1, B: 1.4 to 2.8, C: 4.1 to 4.5 benzene ring 6.4 to 7.4.
The polymer having terminal indane ring was determined by enlarging a part (5 to 10 ppm) of the NMR chart of FIG. 1 and calculating the ratio of protons in the indane ring to protons in the terminal methyl group from the integration curve. As a result, it was found that 90% of the polymer produced by the synthesis process of the present invention had terminal indane ring.
(4) Characteristic Peak of Indane Ring
The characteristic peak showing the presence of the indane ring was determined by analyzing the low molecular components by the following GC-MS and NMR. At first, a low molecular fraction (about hexamer or below) was extracted from the styrene polymer produced by the process of the invention with methanol extractant and the analysis was conducted by GC-MS. The GC-MS determination conditions were as shown below:
GC: packing for the column: Ultra 2 (5% phenylmethyl silicone)
Column size: inner diameter of 0.2 mm and length of 12.5 m
Carrier gas: helium flow rate: 1.0 ml/min
Column temperature: 40° C.→300° C. (15° C./min)
Split ratio: 100:1
MS: Ionization mode: electron impact (E.I.)
Ionic voltate: 70 eV
Accelerating voltage: 3 kV
Molecular weight range: 35 to 500.
Scan speed: 1 sec.
The gas chromatogram of GC-MS and MS spectral chart are shown in FIG. 2 .
From the data file based on the parent peaks of MS spectrum and the fragment peaks, it was found that the two main components of the dimers were two optical isomers of 1-methyl-3-phenylindane and the balance was 2,4-diphenyl-1-butene. From the area ratio in the gas chronatogram, it was found that it comprised 93% of 1-methyl-3-phenylindane and 7% of 2,4-diphenyl-1-butene. To confirm the structure of this substance by NMR, the dimer fraction was taken from low molecular fraction by gel permeation chromatography [SC-8010 series (a product of Toso Co., Ltd.), Column G 4000 H and column G 1000 H, detector UV, wave length 238 nm, flow rate 0.5 ml/min, determination temperature: 40° C.]. The NMR chart of the dimer is shown in FIG. 3 .
The dimer was analyzed by proton MNR and proton proton COSY method to find that the main components of the dimer were two optical isomers of 1-phenyl-2-methylindane. These results supported the results of GC-MS. The shift positions of the respective protons in the NMR chart in FIG. 3 were assigned to as follows on the basis of the analytical results of the COSY chart.
Proton shift position (PPM)
a1: 1.4
b1: 1.3
a2: 3.2
b2: 3.4
a3: 2.7
b3: 2.2
a4: 1.6
b4: 2.3
a5: 4.2
b5: 4.4
benzene ring: 7.1 to 7.3
benzene ring 7.1 to 7.3
According to the NMR analysis, it was found that the proton on the α-position carbon of the benzene ring of 1-methyl-3-phenylindane has a specific peak at 4 to 4.5 ppm. The relative amount of the polymer having the indane ring was determined on the basis of the proton peak.
(5) Indane Ring of Polymer-2:
The presence of-indane ring of the sulfonated polymer (Polymer-2) was examined by NMR (under the same conditions as those of the above-described NMR determination except that heavy water was used as the solvent and that the number of integration was changed to 32). However, no peaks of indane ring could be recognized, since the peaks were widened because the relative amount of the indane ring in the polymer was very small in the polymer-2 and heavy water was used as the solvent. Therefore, a low molecular part which supposedly contained a larger relative amount of the indane ring was subjected to the NMR analysis. In this process, ethanol-soluble matter was extractd from the synthesized polymer and the resulting low-molecular sample (about hexamer or lower) was analyzed in the same manner as that described above. The results are shown in FIG. 4 . The presence of the indane ring could be recognized in FIG. 4 . From these results, it was found that 90% of the polymer in the dispersant of the present invention contained terminal indane ring. The sulfonation rate of Polymer-2 was 90%.
EXAMPLE 2
200 g of ethylene dichloride as solvent was placed in a flask and 1.0 g of tin tetrachloride as catalyst was added thereto. The temperature was elevated to 84° C. while the reaction mixture was stirred and then 200 g of styrene was added dropwise thereto for 1 h. The stirring was continued at 84° C. for 5 h to complete the reaction. The weight-average molecular weight of the polymer (Polymer 3) was 4,000.
300 g of a solution of Polymer 3 in ethylene dichloride was diluted with 450 g of ethylene dichloride and sulfonation was conducted with sulfuric acid anhydride as the sulfonating agent in molar ratio of 1.05:1 to synthesize a dispersant of the present invention (Polymer 4). The weight-average molecular weight of the polymer (Polymer-4) was 8,000. It was examined in the same manner as that of Example 1 to find that 90% thereof had terminal indane ring. The sulfonation rate of Polymer-4 was 86%.
EXAMPLE 3
200 g of ethylene dichloride as solvent was placed in a flask and 0.6 g of tin tetrachloride as catalyst was added thereto. The temperature was elevated to 30° C. while the reaction mixture was stirred and then 200 g of styrene was added dropwise thereto for 3 h. The stirring was continued at 30° C. for 72 h to complete the reaction. The weight-average molecular weight of the polymer (Polymer-5) was 15,000.
300 g of a solution of Polymer-5 in ethylene dichloride was diluted with 450 g of ethylene dichloride and sulfonation was conducted with sulfuric acid anhydride as the sulfonating reagent in molar ratio of 1.05:1 to synthesize a dispersant of the present invention (Polymer-6). The weight-average molecular weight of the polymer (Polymer-6) was 30,000. It was examined in the same manner as that of Example 1 to find that 91% thereof had terminal indane ring. The sulfonation rate of Polymer-6 was 93%.
EXAMPLE 4
Stainless steel balls were placed in a 6 liter stainless steel ball mill (inner diameter: 19 cm) to fill 50% of the mill. 465 g of water and 1,000 g of bituminous coal (Mt. Tholey coal) roughly pulverized to a particle size of 3 mm or below were placed in the ball mill and then the dispersant of the present invention (Polymer-2, 4 or 6, counter ion: Na) was added thereto in such an amount that it would be 0.4% by weight based on the slurry. The ball mill was rotated at 65 rpm to pulverize the coal. The particle size of the coal was determined with a laser diffraction-type size distribution measuring device and the pulverization was continued until 80% of the coal had a particle diameter of 74 μm or below. After completion of the pulverization with the ball mill, the coal/water slurry was taken out of the mill and it was further stirred in a homomixer at 4000 rpm for 10 min to obtain a coal/water slurry.
The properties of the coal used in the experiment are given in Table 1 and the results of the determination are given in Table 2.
TABLE 1
Item
Analytical value (wt. %)
Technical
Water content
4.4
analysis
Ash content
14.0
Volatile matter
32.4
Fixed carbon
49.2
Elementary
C
84.3
analysis
H
5.4
N
1.8
O
8.1
S
0.4
The resultant slurry was evaluated by the following methods:
(a) Viscosity of Slurry:
The viscosity of the slurry was determined with a Haake rotational viscometer at 25 ° C. and the viscosity at 100 sec −1 down was determined from the rheogram.
(b) Stability of Slurry Left to Stand:
The stablity was tested by pot test method, wherein a slurry produced as described above was placed in a 250 ml wide-mouth polymer bottle and left to stand at 25° C. for 10 days. Then it was poured on a 1 mm sieve, then the quantity of the slurry remaining on the sieve (% by weight based on the whole slurry) was determined, the slurry remaining in the polymer bottle was stirred with a spatula and the hardness of the precipitate layer was organoleptically classified as follows to determine the stability:
∘: The slurry was soft.
Δ: The slurry was hard.
x: The slurry was quite hard.
COMPARATIVE EXAMPLE 1
A polystyrene (weight-average molecular weight: 7,500) synthesized by radical polymerization was sulfonated in the same manner as that of Synthesis Example 1. The effects of the resulting polymer as the dispersant for coal/water slurry was examined in the same manner as that of Example 4. The results are shown in Table 2. The NMR chart of the polystyrene before the sulfonation and that of methanol-soluble matter (about hexamer or lower) are shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, respectively. Since no peak at 4.1 to 4.5 which indicates the presence of the indane ring was observed in the figure, it was found that the polystyrene had no indane ring and that the sulfonated product thereof was different from the dispersant of the present invention. (NMR determination conditions were the same as the polymer analysis conditions of the present invention).
For reference, NMR chart of methanol-soluble polymer of the present invention (Example 1) before the sulfonation is given in FIG. 7 .
TABLE 2
Results of determination of properties of coal/water slurry
Stability
Amount of
Hardness
slurry on
of the
Molecular
Viscosity
the sieve
precipi-
weight
(cP)
(%)
tate
Present
Polymer-4
8,000
850
3
∘
invention
Polymer-2
15,000
800
4
∘
Polymer-6
30,000
790
6
∘
Comparative Example
15,000
790
11
∘
When the polymer of the present invention was used as the dispersant, the amount of the aggregate of the slurry [amount of that remaining on the sieve (%)] was reduced to ⅓ as compared with that remaining when a known dispersant was used.
EXAMPLE 5
The fluidity of concrete and amount of air were determined by using Polymer-2 produced in Example 1 (molecular weight: 15,000, counter ion: Ca) and radical-polymerized polystyrenesulfonate (molecular weight: 15,000, counter ion: Ca) produced in Comparative Example 1 as the super plasticizer for flowing concrete according to Nippon-Kenchiku Gakkai JASS ST-402 (the standard estimation for flowing concrete) and, in addition, the separation of aggregates caused when the additive was added in an excess amount was also examined.
The materials used were as follows and the obtained composition is shown in Table 3.
Materials Used:
Cement: ordinary portland cement (specific gravity: 3.15)
Fine aggregate: sand produced in Kasima district (specific gravity: 2.62)
Coarse aggregate: crushed stone from Tsukui Lake (specific gravity: 2.66)
TABLE 3
Composition
Water/
Fine
Coarse
Cement
Water
cement
aggregate
aggregate
s/a
320
179
55.9%
794
991
45%
Note 1) 0.028 % of an air entraining agent was used so that the amount of air in the concrete would be 4.5%.
Note 2) s/a = fine aggregate / (fine aggregate + coarse aggregate) (%)
50 l of a concrete having a composition given in Table 3 was kneaded with an lancaster mixer (100 l) for 90 sec. The slump value of the base concrete was 8.0 cm and the quantity of air was 4.3%. After leaving to stand for 15 min, 0.1% (by weight), based on the cement, of the polymer of the present invention was added thereto as the dispersant and they were kneaded for 30 sec. Then the slump value of the concrete and the quantity of air were determined. To examine the influence of the excess amount of the dispersant added thereto, the similar test was also conducted except that the amount of the dispersant was increased to 0.25% by weight. The similar test was repeated by using the radical-polymerized product. The test results are given in Table 4. It will be apparent that the fluidizing agent of the present invention exerts an excellent effect of reducing the separation of the aggregate.
TABLE 4
Results of concrete property test
Present invention
Comparative Example
Amount of fluidizing
0.1
0.25
0.25
agent added
(% based on cement)
Base concrete
8.0
8.0
8.0
Slump (cm)
Quantity of air (%)
4.3
4.3
4.3
Flowing concrete
19.1
22.7
22.5
slump (cm)
Quantity of air (%)
4.3
4.5
4.6
Aggregate separation
none
none
separated | A dispersant comprises a polystyrenesulfonic acid having a weight-average molecular weight in the range of 2,000 to 100,000 or a salt thereof, wherein at least 70% of the terminals of the polymer chain have an indane ring of the formula (I):
wherein X represents a cation selected from the group consisting of a hydrogen, alkali metals, alkaline earth metals, ammonium and organic amines, and n and m each represent 0 or an integer of at least 1. The dispersant has excellent properties of dispersing organic and inorganic substances and an effect of remarkably improving the stability of a dispersion system such as a coal/water slurry. | Condense the core contents of the given document. | [
"This application is a divisional of application Ser.",
"No. 07/721,944, filed Jun. 27, 1991 and now U.S. Pat. No. 5,328,491.",
"BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to a dispersant having excellent properties of dispersing organic and inorganic substances and an effect of remarkably improving the stability of the dispersion system.",
"In particular, the present invention relates to a dispersant for a coal/water slurry which dispersant exhibits excellent effects of increasing the concentration and improving stability of the slurry when it is left to stand.",
"It is known that polystyrenesulfonic acid produced by sulfonating polystyrene and salts thereof are usable as antistatic agents, dispersants and various other agents.",
"They are used as, for example, antistatic agents for papers [Japanese Patent Publication for Opposition Purpose (hereinafter referred to as “J.P. KOKOKU”",
") No. Sho 57-53953], antistatic agents for resins [Japanese Patent Unexamined Published Application (hereinafter referred to as “J.P. KOKAI”) No. Sho 59-8741], dispersants for coal/water slurry (J.P. KOKAI Nos. Sho 57-145187, Sho 62-590 and Sho 63-278997 and Japanese Patent Application No. Hei-1-338564), and dispersants for cements (J.P. KOKAI Nos. Sho 51-525, Sho 51-64527, Sho 56-41866, Sho 57-156355, Sho 60-46956 and Sho 63-25251).",
"The polystyrenesulfonic acid and salts thereof are usually produced by polymerizing styrenesulfonic acid monomer or by sulfonating polystyrene.",
"They have a structure shown the following general formula (II) or the like: wherein l represents an integer and k represents 0 or an integer of at least 1.",
"Although styrene of l recurring units in the above formula has one SO 3 X group, some of the recurring units may have 0 or two or more SO 3 X groups.",
"Although these known polymers exhibit an excellent effect for increasing the concentration of the dispersion system, their effect of improving the stability of the dispersion system is yet insufficient.",
"SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION A primary object of the present invention is to provide a new dispersant, in particular, capable of improving the stability of a dispersion system.",
"This and other objects of the invention will be apparent from the following description and Examples.",
"The inventors have found that the stability of the dispersion system can be improved by using a sulfonated polystyrene having a specified amount of indane ring at a terminal of the styrene recurring unit.",
"Namely, the present invention provides a dispersant comprising a polystyrenesulfonic acid having a weight-average molecular weight in the range of 2,000 to 100,000 or a salt thereof, wherein at least 70% of the terminals of the polymer chains have an indane ring of the formula (I): wherein X represents a cation selected from the group consisting of a hydrogen, alkali metals, alkaline earth metals, ammonium and organic amines, and n and m each represent 0 or an integer of at least 1.",
"BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is an NMR chart of polystyrene used as a starting material for the dispersant of the present invention.",
"FIGS. 2 are a GC-MS gas chromatogram (A) of the dispersant of the present invention and an MS spectrum (B) thereof.",
"FIG. 3 is an NMR chart of the dispersant of the present invention.",
"FIG. 4 is an NMR chart of a lower molecular part of the dispersant of the present invention.",
"FIG. 5 is an NMR chart of starting polystyrene for a comparative dispersant.",
"FIG. 6 is an NMR chart of a comparative dispersant.",
"FIG. 7 is an NMR chart of a methanol-soluble part of the starting polystyrene for the dispersant of the present invention.",
"DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS In the present invention, other terminals of the polymer than the indane ring of the above formula (I) have a structure shown by the following formula (III): The part of the polymer other than its terminals comprises recurring units having a structure of the following general formula (IV): wherein X and n are as defined above.",
"The polymers used in the present invention are preferably those having a molecular weight of 2,000 to 50,000 and a degree of sulfonation of at least 60%, preferably 80 to 95%, based on the styrene units.",
"In the formula (I), n and m are preferably not zero at the same time.",
"X in the formula is preferably an alkali metal such as sodium or potassium, an alkaline earth metal such as calcium or magnesium or ammonium cation, more preferably sodium, calcium or ammonium.",
"The polystyrene having an indane ring at the terminal thereof used in the present invention can be produced by cationic polymerization of commercially available styrene monomer.",
"It is preferred to use a metal halide, particularly a metal chloride, as the polymerization catalyst.",
"Examples of them include tin dichloride, tin tetrachloride, aluminum chloride and titanium tetrachloride.",
"other cationic polymerization catalysts are also usable.",
"However, when, for example, BF 3 is used, the relative amount of the polystyrene having the indane ring at the terminal is reduced to about 50%.",
"The amount of the catalyst used is preferably 0.01 to 1% by weight based on the styrene monomer.",
"Halogenated hydrocarbons are used as the reaction solvent.",
"They include dichloromethane, chloroform, carbon tetrachloride, dichloroethane and tetrachloroethane.",
"Although the weight ratio of the solvent used for the polymerization reaction to the styrene monomer is not particularly limited, it is preferably 10/90 to 90/10, more preferably 20/80 to 80/20, from the viewpoints of the control of the reaction system and after-treatment.",
"The polymerization reaction is preferably conducted by previously heating the reaction solvent to a predetermined temperature and then adding styrene monomer dropwise to the reaction system to conduct the polymerization.",
"After completion of the addition of the styrene monomer, the reaction is completed by aging.",
"It is also possible to further add the catalyst after completion of the addition in order to accelerate the completion of the reaction.",
"The polymerization temperature usually ranges 30 to 150 ° C. After completion of the reaction, the remaining catalyst is neutralized with ammonia or the like by an ordinary method and a precipitate thus formed can be removed by filtration or by washing with water.",
"The remaining catalyst can be removed also by adsorbing it on an adsorbent and then filtering it.",
"The styrene polymer having the indane ring at the terminals in an amount of least 70%, preferably 80 to 95% obtained by the above-method, is sulfonated by an ordinary method to obtain the dispersant of the present invention.",
"Examples of the sulfonation reaction conditions are as follows: the sulfonation can be conducted with sulfuric anhydride, fuming sulfuric acid, chlorosulfonic acid or sulfuric acid as the sulfonating reagent.",
"These sulfonating reagents can be directly added dropwise to the reaction system or, alternatively, they can be introduced into the reaction tank together with polystyrene to continuously conduct the sulfonation.",
"Sulfuric acid anhydride can be introduced into the system after dilution with nitrogen or dry air or, alternatively, it is reacted with dioxane or the like to form a complex to be added dropwise.",
"The reaction solvents usable herein are those inert to the sulfonating reagent.",
"The solvents inert to the sulfonating reagent include halogenated hydrocarbons such as dichloromethane, chloroform, carbon tetrachloride, dichloroethane and tetrachloroethane.",
"When such a solvent is used as the polymerization solvent, the sulfonation can auto be conducted without changing the solvent.",
"After completion of the sulfonation, the solvent is removed and the product is neutralized to obtain the new dispersant usable in the present invention.",
"The dispersant thus produced is practically used directly in the form of the aqueous slurry having a concentration of about 5 to 50%, concentrate having a concentration of 50 to 60% or powder prepared by drying by an ordinary method.",
"The dispersant of the present invention is usable for any dispersion system for which an ordinary dispersant is usable.",
"For example, it is usable as a dispersant for organic dispersions such as a coal dispersion, pigment dispersion, dye dispersion, paint dispersion, developer dispersion, microcapsule dispersion;",
"as a dispersion stabilizer for suspension polymerization;",
"as a levelling agent for a dye;",
"or as a dispersant for inorganic dispersions such as silica or TiO 2 dispersion.",
"The dispersant of the present invention is effective for stabilizing a dispersion such as a concrete admixture and particularly coal/water slurry.",
"Thus it is effective for inhibiting coagulation of a slurry.",
"The dispersant for the coal/water slurry is effective for preparing an aqueous slurry of anthracite, bituminous coal, sub-bituminous coal or brown coal.",
"The amount of the dispersant is usually selected so that the amount of the polymer of the present invention will be in the range of 0.05 to 3.0% by weight based on the coal/water slurry.",
"When the coal/water slurry is to be produced by using the polymer of the present invention, the polymer can be added as it is to the fine coal powder or it can be used in the form of an aqueous solution thereof having a concentration of about 5 to 50% by weight.",
"The mixture of the fine coal powder and water can be produced by, for example, a method wherein the coal is dry-pulverized to a desired particle size by means of a pulverizer such as a crusher or ball mill, water is added thereto in an amount determined so that the fine coal powder concentration in the final high-concentration coal/water slurry will be 55 to 75% in due consideration of water content of the fine coal powder and water content of the dispersant and they are homogeneously mixed with kneader, co-kneader or Bambury mixer;",
"a method wherein the coal is pulverized to a desired particle size in the presence of water in an excess amount by means of a pulverizer such as a ball mill or rod mill and it is dehydrated so that the coal concentration in the final high-concentration coal/water slurry will be 55 to 75% in due consideration of water content of the dispersant;",
"or a method wherein coal and water are mixed together to obtain a mixture of a predetermined concentration and the mixture is ground to a desired particle size by means of a pulverizer such as ball mill or rod mill to obtain a homogeneous mixture.",
"According to the present invention, a dispersant having a quite excellent dispersion stability is provided.",
"The following Examples will further illustrate the present invention.",
"EXAMPLE 1 200 g of ethylene dichloride as solvent was placed in a flask and 0.7 g of tin tetrachloride as catalyst was added thereto.",
"The temperature was elevated to 70° C. while the reaction mixture was stirred and then 200 g of styrene was added dropwise thereto for 1 h. The stirring was continued at 84° C. for 5 h to complete the reaction.",
"The weight-average molecular weight of the polymer (Polymer-1) determined by gel permeation chromatography was 7,500.",
"300 g of a solution of Polymer-1 in ethylene dichloride was diluted with 450 g of ethylene dichloride and sulfonation was conducted with sulfuric acid anhydride as the sulfonating reagent in molar ratio of 1.05:1 to synthesize a dispersant of the present invention (Polymer-2).",
"The weight-average molecular weight of the polymer (Polymer-2) determined by gel permeation chromatography was 15,000.",
"The properties of the polymers were determined as follows: (1) Weight-Average Molecular Weight of Polymer-1: The weight-average molecular weight of Polymer-1 was determined by GPC method by using standard polystyrene as the standard substance, TSK G1000HXL (7.8 mm ID×30 cm) (a product of Toso Co., Ltd.) was used as the separation column and an ultraviolet ray detector (wave length: 266 nm) was also used.",
"When styrene was detected in the sample, the weight-average molecular weight was determined by excluding styrene.",
"(2) Weight-average Molecular Weight of Polymer-2: The weight-average molecular weight of Polymer-2 was determined by GPC method by using standard sodium polystyrenesulfonate as the standard substance, TSK G3000SW (7.5 mm ID×30 cm) and TSK G4000SW (7.5 mm ID×30 cm) (products of Toso Co., Ltd.) as the separation columns and an ultraviolet ray detector (wave length: 238 nm).",
"When styrenesulfonic acid was detected in the sample, the weight-average molecular weight was determined by excluding styrenesulfonic acid.",
"(3) Recognization of Terminal Indane Ring of Polymer-1 Polymer-1 was examined with 400 M NMR (GSX-400;",
"a product of JEOL.",
", Ltd.) and CDCl 3 solvent under conditions comprising a determination temperature of 25° C., integrated circuit (16 times), pulse angle of 45° and pulse intervals of 5 sec.",
"The presence of indane ring was confirmed by proton NMR.",
"The NMR chart is shown in FIG. 1 .",
"In FIG. 1, the shift position of each proton was as follows: Proton Shift Position (PPM) A: 1.1, B: 1.4 to 2.8, C: 4.1 to 4.5 benzene ring 6.4 to 7.4.",
"The polymer having terminal indane ring was determined by enlarging a part (5 to 10 ppm) of the NMR chart of FIG. 1 and calculating the ratio of protons in the indane ring to protons in the terminal methyl group from the integration curve.",
"As a result, it was found that 90% of the polymer produced by the synthesis process of the present invention had terminal indane ring.",
"(4) Characteristic Peak of Indane Ring The characteristic peak showing the presence of the indane ring was determined by analyzing the low molecular components by the following GC-MS and NMR.",
"At first, a low molecular fraction (about hexamer or below) was extracted from the styrene polymer produced by the process of the invention with methanol extractant and the analysis was conducted by GC-MS.",
"The GC-MS determination conditions were as shown below: GC: packing for the column: Ultra 2 (5% phenylmethyl silicone) Column size: inner diameter of 0.2 mm and length of 12.5 m Carrier gas: helium flow rate: 1.0 ml/min Column temperature: 40° C.→300° C. (15° C./min) Split ratio: 100:1 MS: Ionization mode: electron impact (E.I.) Ionic voltate: 70 eV Accelerating voltage: 3 kV Molecular weight range: 35 to 500.",
"Scan speed: 1 sec.",
"The gas chromatogram of GC-MS and MS spectral chart are shown in FIG. 2 .",
"From the data file based on the parent peaks of MS spectrum and the fragment peaks, it was found that the two main components of the dimers were two optical isomers of 1-methyl-3-phenylindane and the balance was 2,4-diphenyl-1-butene.",
"From the area ratio in the gas chronatogram, it was found that it comprised 93% of 1-methyl-3-phenylindane and 7% of 2,4-diphenyl-1-butene.",
"To confirm the structure of this substance by NMR, the dimer fraction was taken from low molecular fraction by gel permeation chromatography [SC-8010 series (a product of Toso Co., Ltd.), Column G 4000 H and column G 1000 H, detector UV, wave length 238 nm, flow rate 0.5 ml/min, determination temperature: 40° C.].",
"The NMR chart of the dimer is shown in FIG. 3 .",
"The dimer was analyzed by proton MNR and proton proton COSY method to find that the main components of the dimer were two optical isomers of 1-phenyl-2-methylindane.",
"These results supported the results of GC-MS.",
"The shift positions of the respective protons in the NMR chart in FIG. 3 were assigned to as follows on the basis of the analytical results of the COSY chart.",
"Proton shift position (PPM) a1: 1.4 b1: 1.3 a2: 3.2 b2: 3.4 a3: 2.7 b3: 2.2 a4: 1.6 b4: 2.3 a5: 4.2 b5: 4.4 benzene ring: 7.1 to 7.3 benzene ring 7.1 to 7.3 According to the NMR analysis, it was found that the proton on the α-position carbon of the benzene ring of 1-methyl-3-phenylindane has a specific peak at 4 to 4.5 ppm.",
"The relative amount of the polymer having the indane ring was determined on the basis of the proton peak.",
"(5) Indane Ring of Polymer-2: The presence of-indane ring of the sulfonated polymer (Polymer-2) was examined by NMR (under the same conditions as those of the above-described NMR determination except that heavy water was used as the solvent and that the number of integration was changed to 32).",
"However, no peaks of indane ring could be recognized, since the peaks were widened because the relative amount of the indane ring in the polymer was very small in the polymer-2 and heavy water was used as the solvent.",
"Therefore, a low molecular part which supposedly contained a larger relative amount of the indane ring was subjected to the NMR analysis.",
"In this process, ethanol-soluble matter was extractd from the synthesized polymer and the resulting low-molecular sample (about hexamer or lower) was analyzed in the same manner as that described above.",
"The results are shown in FIG. 4 .",
"The presence of the indane ring could be recognized in FIG. 4 .",
"From these results, it was found that 90% of the polymer in the dispersant of the present invention contained terminal indane ring.",
"The sulfonation rate of Polymer-2 was 90%.",
"EXAMPLE 2 200 g of ethylene dichloride as solvent was placed in a flask and 1.0 g of tin tetrachloride as catalyst was added thereto.",
"The temperature was elevated to 84° C. while the reaction mixture was stirred and then 200 g of styrene was added dropwise thereto for 1 h. The stirring was continued at 84° C. for 5 h to complete the reaction.",
"The weight-average molecular weight of the polymer (Polymer 3) was 4,000.",
"300 g of a solution of Polymer 3 in ethylene dichloride was diluted with 450 g of ethylene dichloride and sulfonation was conducted with sulfuric acid anhydride as the sulfonating agent in molar ratio of 1.05:1 to synthesize a dispersant of the present invention (Polymer 4).",
"The weight-average molecular weight of the polymer (Polymer-4) was 8,000.",
"It was examined in the same manner as that of Example 1 to find that 90% thereof had terminal indane ring.",
"The sulfonation rate of Polymer-4 was 86%.",
"EXAMPLE 3 200 g of ethylene dichloride as solvent was placed in a flask and 0.6 g of tin tetrachloride as catalyst was added thereto.",
"The temperature was elevated to 30° C. while the reaction mixture was stirred and then 200 g of styrene was added dropwise thereto for 3 h. The stirring was continued at 30° C. for 72 h to complete the reaction.",
"The weight-average molecular weight of the polymer (Polymer-5) was 15,000.",
"300 g of a solution of Polymer-5 in ethylene dichloride was diluted with 450 g of ethylene dichloride and sulfonation was conducted with sulfuric acid anhydride as the sulfonating reagent in molar ratio of 1.05:1 to synthesize a dispersant of the present invention (Polymer-6).",
"The weight-average molecular weight of the polymer (Polymer-6) was 30,000.",
"It was examined in the same manner as that of Example 1 to find that 91% thereof had terminal indane ring.",
"The sulfonation rate of Polymer-6 was 93%.",
"EXAMPLE 4 Stainless steel balls were placed in a 6 liter stainless steel ball mill (inner diameter: 19 cm) to fill 50% of the mill.",
"465 g of water and 1,000 g of bituminous coal (Mt.",
"Tholey coal) roughly pulverized to a particle size of 3 mm or below were placed in the ball mill and then the dispersant of the present invention (Polymer-2, 4 or 6, counter ion: Na) was added thereto in such an amount that it would be 0.4% by weight based on the slurry.",
"The ball mill was rotated at 65 rpm to pulverize the coal.",
"The particle size of the coal was determined with a laser diffraction-type size distribution measuring device and the pulverization was continued until 80% of the coal had a particle diameter of 74 μm or below.",
"After completion of the pulverization with the ball mill, the coal/water slurry was taken out of the mill and it was further stirred in a homomixer at 4000 rpm for 10 min to obtain a coal/water slurry.",
"The properties of the coal used in the experiment are given in Table 1 and the results of the determination are given in Table 2.",
"TABLE 1 Item Analytical value (wt.",
"%) Technical Water content 4.4 analysis Ash content 14.0 Volatile matter 32.4 Fixed carbon 49.2 Elementary C 84.3 analysis H 5.4 N 1.8 O 8.1 S 0.4 The resultant slurry was evaluated by the following methods: (a) Viscosity of Slurry: The viscosity of the slurry was determined with a Haake rotational viscometer at 25 ° C. and the viscosity at 100 sec −1 down was determined from the rheogram.",
"(b) Stability of Slurry Left to Stand: The stablity was tested by pot test method, wherein a slurry produced as described above was placed in a 250 ml wide-mouth polymer bottle and left to stand at 25° C. for 10 days.",
"Then it was poured on a 1 mm sieve, then the quantity of the slurry remaining on the sieve (% by weight based on the whole slurry) was determined, the slurry remaining in the polymer bottle was stirred with a spatula and the hardness of the precipitate layer was organoleptically classified as follows to determine the stability: ∘: The slurry was soft.",
"Δ: The slurry was hard.",
"x: The slurry was quite hard.",
"COMPARATIVE EXAMPLE 1 A polystyrene (weight-average molecular weight: 7,500) synthesized by radical polymerization was sulfonated in the same manner as that of Synthesis Example 1.",
"The effects of the resulting polymer as the dispersant for coal/water slurry was examined in the same manner as that of Example 4.",
"The results are shown in Table 2.",
"The NMR chart of the polystyrene before the sulfonation and that of methanol-soluble matter (about hexamer or lower) are shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, respectively.",
"Since no peak at 4.1 to 4.5 which indicates the presence of the indane ring was observed in the figure, it was found that the polystyrene had no indane ring and that the sulfonated product thereof was different from the dispersant of the present invention.",
"(NMR determination conditions were the same as the polymer analysis conditions of the present invention).",
"For reference, NMR chart of methanol-soluble polymer of the present invention (Example 1) before the sulfonation is given in FIG. 7 .",
"TABLE 2 Results of determination of properties of coal/water slurry Stability Amount of Hardness slurry on of the Molecular Viscosity the sieve precipi- weight (cP) (%) tate Present Polymer-4 8,000 850 3 ∘ invention Polymer-2 15,000 800 4 ∘ Polymer-6 30,000 790 6 ∘ Comparative Example 15,000 790 11 ∘ When the polymer of the present invention was used as the dispersant, the amount of the aggregate of the slurry [amount of that remaining on the sieve (%)] was reduced to ⅓ as compared with that remaining when a known dispersant was used.",
"EXAMPLE 5 The fluidity of concrete and amount of air were determined by using Polymer-2 produced in Example 1 (molecular weight: 15,000, counter ion: Ca) and radical-polymerized polystyrenesulfonate (molecular weight: 15,000, counter ion: Ca) produced in Comparative Example 1 as the super plasticizer for flowing concrete according to Nippon-Kenchiku Gakkai JASS ST-402 (the standard estimation for flowing concrete) and, in addition, the separation of aggregates caused when the additive was added in an excess amount was also examined.",
"The materials used were as follows and the obtained composition is shown in Table 3.",
"Materials Used: Cement: ordinary portland cement (specific gravity: 3.15) Fine aggregate: sand produced in Kasima district (specific gravity: 2.62) Coarse aggregate: crushed stone from Tsukui Lake (specific gravity: 2.66) TABLE 3 Composition Water/ Fine Coarse Cement Water cement aggregate aggregate s/a 320 179 55.9% 794 991 45% Note 1) 0.028 % of an air entraining agent was used so that the amount of air in the concrete would be 4.5%.",
"Note 2) s/a = fine aggregate / (fine aggregate + coarse aggregate) (%) 50 l of a concrete having a composition given in Table 3 was kneaded with an lancaster mixer (100 l) for 90 sec.",
"The slump value of the base concrete was 8.0 cm and the quantity of air was 4.3%.",
"After leaving to stand for 15 min, 0.1% (by weight), based on the cement, of the polymer of the present invention was added thereto as the dispersant and they were kneaded for 30 sec.",
"Then the slump value of the concrete and the quantity of air were determined.",
"To examine the influence of the excess amount of the dispersant added thereto, the similar test was also conducted except that the amount of the dispersant was increased to 0.25% by weight.",
"The similar test was repeated by using the radical-polymerized product.",
"The test results are given in Table 4.",
"It will be apparent that the fluidizing agent of the present invention exerts an excellent effect of reducing the separation of the aggregate.",
"TABLE 4 Results of concrete property test Present invention Comparative Example Amount of fluidizing 0.1 0.25 0.25 agent added (% based on cement) Base concrete 8.0 8.0 8.0 Slump (cm) Quantity of air (%) 4.3 4.3 4.3 Flowing concrete 19.1 22.7 22.5 slump (cm) Quantity of air (%) 4.3 4.5 4.6 Aggregate separation none none separated"
] |
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
This application is a continuation application of U.S. application Ser. No. 13/453,055, filed on Apr. 23, 2012, which is a continuation of U.S. Pat. No. 8,179,420, issued May 15, 2015, which is a continuation of U.S. Pat. No. 7,518,630, issued Apr. 14, 2009, which is a continuation of U.S. Pat. No. 6,956,600, issued Oct. 18, 2005, which are hereby incorporated herein by reference in their entirety for all purposes.
TECHNICAL FIELD
The present invention relates to combining multiple digital video picture frames into a single spatial multiplex video picture frame to produce a single displayed picture that is a composite of several individual pictures. More particularly, the present invention relates to generating the spatial multiplex video picture frame by altering header information of the individual video picture frames being combined.
BACKGROUND
A motion picture such as broadcast television is made of individual pictures that are rapidly displayed to give the illusion of continuous motion. Each individual picture in the sequence is a picture frame. A digitally encoded picture frame is made of many discrete picture elements, or pixels, that are arranged in a two-dimensional array. Each pixel represents the color (chrominance) and brightness (luminance) at its particular point in the picture. The pixels may be grouped for purposes of subsequent digital processing (such as digital compression). For example, the picture frame may be segmented into a rectangular array of contiguous macroblocks, as defined by the ITU-T H series coding structure. Each macroblock typically represents a 16×16 square of pixels.
Macroblocks may in turn be grouped into picture frame components such as slices or groups of blocks, as defined under the ITU-T H.263 video coding structure. Under H.263, a group of blocks is rectangular and always has the horizontal width of the picture, but the number of rows of group of blocks per frame depends on the number of lines in the picture. For example, one row of a group of blocks is used for pictures having 4 to 400 lines, two rows are used for pictures having 404 to 800 lines, and four rows are used for pictures having 804 to 1152 lines. A slice, on the other hand, is flexible grouping of macroblocks that is not necessarily rectangular. Headers within the encoded video picture bit stream identify and provide important information about the various subcomponents that make up the encoded video picture. The picture frame itself has a header, which contains information about how the picture frame was processed. Each group of blocks or slice within a video picture frame has a header that defines the picture frame component as being a slice or group of blocks as well as providing information regarding the placement of the component within the picture frame. Each header is interpreted by a decoder when decoding the data making up the picture frame in preparation for displaying it.
In certain applications, displaying multiple picture frames within a single display is desirable. For example, in video-conferencing situations it is useful for each participant to have a video display showing each of the other participants at remote locations. Visual cues are generally an important part of a discussion among a group of participants, and it is beneficial for each participant's display to present the visual cues of all participants simultaneously. Any method of simultaneously displaying all the conference participants is called a continuous presence display. This can be accomplished by using multiple decoders and multiple video displays at each site, or by combining the individual video pictures into a single video picture in a mosaic arrangement of the several individual pictures (called a spatial multiplex).
Multiplexing picture frames into a single composite picture frame requires some form of processing of each picture frame's encoded data. Conventionally, a spatial multiplex video picture frame could be created by completely decoding each picture frame to be multiplexed to a baseband level, multiplexing at the baseband level, and then re-encoding for transmission to the various locations for display. However, decoding and re-encoding a complete picture frame is computationally intensive and generally consumes a significant amount of time.
The H.263 standard provides a continuous presence multipoint and video multiplex mode that allows up to four individual picture frames to be included in a single bitstream, but each picture frame must be individually decoded by individual decoders or by one very fast decoder. No means of simultaneously displaying the pictures is specific in the standard. Additionally, time-consuming processing must be applied to the picture frames after they have been individually decoded to multiplex them together into a composite image for display. Therefore, there is a need in the art for a method and system that can spatially multiplex multiple picture frames into a single picture frame without requiring each individual picture frame to be fully decoded when being multiplexed and without requiring additional processing after decoding to multiplex the picture frames.
SUMMARY
The present invention spatially multiplexes several picture frames into a single spatial multiple video picture frame by manipulating header information for the picture frame components, such as the groups of blocks or slices, containing the picture frame data. A picture header associated with each picture frame is removed and a new picture header is generated that applies to the spatial multiplex video picture frame that is a composite of all of the individual picture frames. The new header provides an indication of a slice format for the spatial multiplex video picture frame. The component headers of each picture frame are altered to set a slice format based picture position for the picture frame within the picture that results from the spatial multiplex video picture frame. The slice format is prevalent within the H.263 standard. Thus, only the component headers need to be decoded and re-encoded to establish the spatial multiplex video picture frame.
The spatial multiplex video picture frame results from concatenating the new picture header together with the picture frames having the altered component header information. The spatial multiplex video picture frame may then be decoded as if it were a single picture frame to display the composite of the several individual picture frames. Displaying the spatial multiplex video picture frame allows the individual picture frames to be viewed simultaneously on one display screen.
The system that multiplexes the individual picture frames may be a scalable facility such that as the need for picture frame multiplexing increases, the system may be expanded to fill the need. The system includes a plurality of computing devices, such as single board computers, linked to a data packet switch through a serial interface. Each computing device within the system has the ability to combine individual picture frames into a single spatial multiplex video picture frame by altering the headers of the picture frame components to set a slice format based picture position for the picture frames. As the need for additional processing arises, additional computing devices in communication with the data packet switch may be added to provide additional capacity.
The present invention may be employed in a networked environment where a processing device, such as a network server, communicates with several client devices, such as videoconferencing devices. The processing device receives the multiple picture frames from various communication channels in the network. For example, the processing device may receive a stream of video picture frames from each participant in a videoconference through the network. The processing device then multiplexes the individual picture frames into a spatial multiplex video picture frame by altering the component header information to produce a slice based picture position for each frame. The spatial multiplex video picture frame is transmitted back through the communication channels of the network where it can be displayed by the display screen of the client devices.
The present invention may also be employed in a networked environment where each video site, such as a videoconferencing device, generates video picture frames. The picture frames are transmitted to other video sites in the network, and picture frames produced by other video sites are received. The video site multiplexes the picture frames to produces the multiplexed composite picture e by altering the component header information to set a slice format based picture position. The video site may then decode the spatial multiplex video picture frame and display it.
The various aspects of the present invention may be more clearly understood and appreciated from a review of the following detailed description of the disclosed embodiments and by reference to the drawings and claims.
DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG. 1 illustrates a composite picture frame and slice structure, an individual picture frame that may be multiplexed into the composite picture frame, and alternative picture frame structures.
FIG. 2 is an exemplary picture layer syntax of a picture frame under the H.263 standard.
FIG. 3 is an exemplary group of blocks layer syntax under the H.263 standard.
FIG. 4 is an exemplary slice layer syntax under the H.263 standard.
FIG. 5 is an operational flow for multiplexing picture frames utilized by one embodiment of the present invention.
FIGS. 6A and 6B are an operational flow of the group of blocks to slice format conversion utilized by the embodiment.
FIG. 7 . is a block diagram of an embodiment employing single-point processing in a network environment.
FIG. 8 is a block diagram of an embodiment employing on-site processing in a networked environment.
FIG. 9 is a block diagram of an embodiment of a scalable multiplexing facility.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
FIG. 1 Illustrates a display of a spatial multiplex video picture frame 100 made up of individual picture frames 102 . As shown, the spatial .multiplex video picture frame 100 includes sixteen picture frames 102 of individual people participating in a videoconference where the picture frames 102 form a mosaic pattern. Because each participant is always in view, the spatial multiplex video picture frame 100 is referred to as a continuous presence display. All will be discussed below, each individual picture frame 102 of the spatial multiplex video picture frame 100 is initially a normal picture frame 104 that may be displayed in full size on a display screen. The picture frame 104 may be represented as data that is encoded and segmented in various ways.
For the example shown, the picture frame 104 may have been transmitted in a quarter-size common image format (QCIF) indicating a pixel resolution of 16×144. In such a case, the spatial multiplex video picture frame 100 is decoded as a 4CIF picture indicating a resolution of 704×576 because it contains sixteen QCIFs where four QCIFs form a CIF size image. It is to be understood that other picture size formats for the individual picture frames 104 and for the spatial multiplex video picture frame 100 are possible as well. For example, the multiplexed image may contain 64 individual QCIF picture frames and therefore have a 16CIF size.
The group of blocks format 110 is one alternative for segmenting and encoding the picture frame 104 . The picture frame 104 of the group of blocks format 110 includes one or more rows of picture components known as groups of blocks 124 . In the example, shown, the QCIF frame 104 has three rows of groups of blocks. A picture header 122 is also included. The picture header provides information to a decoder when the picture frame 104 is to be displayed in full size and tells the decoder that the picture frame 104 has a group of blocks format 110 .
Each row 124 is made up of an array 112 of macroblocks 128 that define the luminance and chrominance of the picture frame 104 . Each row 124 also includes a header 126 that tells the decoder the position within the picture frame 104 where the row of group of blocks 124 belongs. In the example shown, the group of blocks 124 has two rows of macroblocks 128 because it is intended for the picture frame 104 to be displayed with 404 to 800 total lines. In reality, a group of blocks 124 will have many more macroblocks 128 per row than those shown in FIG. 1 .
As discussed above, the group of blocks format defined by the H.263 standard require that the row 124 always extends to the full width of the picture. Therefore, a 20 direct remapping of a group of blocks format 110 to a spatial multiplex video picture frame 100 is not possible because the spatial multiplex video picture frame 100 requires individual frames to have a width that may be less than the full width of the picture. In the videoconferencing context, several participants may need to be displayed across the width of the picture as shown in FIG. 1 , and a group of blocks format 110 does not permit such remapping.
An alternative format for segmenting and encoding the picture frame 104 is the slice format 106 , such as defined by the H.263 standard. The slice format 106 is more flexible and does not require each slice to maintain the full width of the picture. The slice format 106 includes one or more picture components known as slices n6 that may or 30 may not extend across the full width of the picture, and a picture header 114 that specifies to the decoder that the picture frame 104 has a slice format. Bach slice 116 is made up of a grouping 108 of macroblocks 120 . Each slice 116 also has a slice header 118 that indicates to the decoder the relative position of the slice in the picture 104 .
The slice format 106 of the picture frame 104 allows the picture frame 104 to be multiplexed into the composite picture frame 100 {with minimal decoding. The spatial 5 multiplex video picture frame 100 may be created in a slice format 130 of many slices 134 corresponding to the slices 116 of the individual picture frames 102 forming the composite. As shown, the slices 134 have a width that is less than the picture width so that multiple slices 134 are provided for each row of slices of the picture. A new picture header 132 is also generated to indicate to the decoder that the picture frame 100 is of the slice format 130 and is of a 4CIF size, 16CTF size, and so on. The header, such as 118 , of each slice 134 is modified to properly position the slice within the spatial multiplex video picture frame 100 .
FIG. 2 shows the picture layer syntax 200 that is made up of the picture header included at the beginning of each picture frame as well as the group of block layer or 15 slice layer. The picture layer syntax 200 includes a picture start code (PSC) 202 that signifies the beginning of a new picture frame. A temporal reference (TR) 204 follows in the bitstream and provides a value indicating the timing of display of the picture frame relative to a previous frame and the picture clock frequency. A PTYPE block 206 follows and provides information about the picture such as whether the source format of the picture frame is a quarter-size common image format (QCIF), a CIF format, or other.
The picture layer syntax 200 may also include a PLUS HEADER block 208 that contains information about the picture frame, including whether the frame consists of groups of blocks or slices. A PQUANT block 210 provides quantizer information to configure the quantization parameters used by the decoder. An optional continuous presence multipoint (CPM) block 212 signals the use of continuous presence multipoint and video multiplex mode discussed above that permits multiple individual frames to be included in the bitstream. As discussed the CPM mode causes the individual frames to maintain their identities as individual frames and requires that they be individually decoded and then processed to form a single image. A picture sub-bitstream indicator (PSBI) 214 may be included if CPM mode is indicated. CPM mode may be implemented in junction with the logical operations of FIGS. 5, 6A and 6B to provide sub-bitstreams that are themselves multiplexed bitstreams, or CPM may be turned off if only the logical operations of FIGS. 5, 6A and 6B are desired for providing continuous presence video.
A temporal reference for B-picture parts (TRB) 216 may be included if a PB-frame is indicated by the PTYPE block 204 or PLUS HEADER block 208 . A DBQUANT block 218 may also be included if a PB-frame is indicated to indicate the relation of the BQUANT quantization parameter used for B-picture parts in relation to the QUANT quantization parameter used or P-picture parts. A PEI block 220 includes a bit that signals the presence of the supplemental enhancement information (PSUPP) block 222 . PSUPP block 222 defines extended capabilities for picture decoding. The group of blocks (GOB) layer 24 or slice layer 226 then follows in the bitstream. The GOB layer 224 contains each group of block of the picture frame and is discussed in more detail in FIG. 3 . Slice layer 226 contains each slice of the picture frame and is discussed in more detail in FIG. 4 .
The ESTUF block 228 is included to provide mandatory byte alignment in the bitstrearn. The end of sequence (BOB) block 234 may be included to signal the end of the sequence of group of blocks or slices. Alternatively, the end of sub-bitstream sequence (EOSBS) block 230 may be included to indicate an end of a sub-bitstream when in CPM mode. An ending sub-bitstream indicator (ESBI) block 232 is included to provide the sub-bitstream number of the last sub-bitstream. The PSTUF block 236 is included to provide byte alignment for the PSC of the next picture frame.
FIG. 3 shows the group of blocks layer syntax 300 that is made up of the component header and the macroblocks of the array fanning a group of blocks and that would be found in each group of blocks of the group of blocks layer 224 of FIG. 2 . A GSTUF block 302 is included to provide byte alignment for a group of blocks start code (GBSC) 304 . The GBSC 304 indicates to the decoder the start of a group of blocks. A group number (GN) block 306 indicates the group of block number that defines the position of the group of blocks in the picture frame. A GOB sub-bitstream indicator (GSBI) 308 may be included when in CPM mode to indicate the sub-bitstream number.
A GOB frame ID (GFID) 310 is included to indicate the particular frame that the group of blocks corresponds to GQUANT block 312 provides quantizer information to control the quantization parameters of the decoder. A temporal reference indicator (TRI) block 314 is included to indicate the presence of a temporal reference when operating in a reference picture mode. A temporal reference (TR) block 316 is included to provide a value indicating the timing of display of the group of blocks relative to a previous group of blocks and the picture clock frequency. A temporal reference for prediction indication (TRPI) block 318 is included to indicate the presence of a temporal reference for prediction field (TRP) 320 . The TRP field 320 indicates the temporal reference to be used for prediction of the encoding.
A back channel message indication (BCI) field 322 is included to indicate whether a message is to be delivered from the decoder back to the encoder regarding conditions of the received coded stream. A back channel message (BCM) layer 324 contains a message that is returned from a decoder to an encoder in order to tell whether forward-channel data was correctly decoded or not. A macroblock (MB) layer 326 contains a macroblock header and the macroblock data for the group of blocks.
FIG. 4 shows the slice layer syntax 400 that is made up of the component header and the macroblocks of the array forming a slice and that would be found in each slice of the slice layer 226 of FIG. 2 . An SSTUF block 402 is included to provide byte alignment for a slice start code (SSC) block 404 indicating the beginning of a slice. A first slice emulation prevention bit (SEPB 1 ) 406 is included to prevent start code emulation after the SSC block 404 . A slice sub-bitstream indicator (SSBI) block 408 is included when in CPM mode to indicate the sub-bitstream number of the slice. A macroblock address (MBA) field 410 is included to indicate the first macroblock of the slice as counted from the beginning of the picture in scanning order to set the position of each slice in the picture frame.
A second slice emulation prevention bit (SEPB 2 ) block 412 is also included to prevent start code emulation after the MBA field 410 . An SQUANT block 414 is included to provide quantizer information that controls the quantization parameters of the decoder. A slice width indication (SWI) block 416 is provided to indicate the width of the current rectangular slice whose first macroblock is specified by the MBA field 410 . A third slice emulation prevention bit (SEPB 3 ) 418 is included to prevent start code emulation after the SWI block 416 . A slice frame ID (GFID) 420 is included to indicate the particular picture frame that the slice corresponds to. The TRI field 422 , TR field 424 , TRPI field 4261 TRP field . 428 , BCI field 430 , BCM layer 432 , and MB layer 434 are identical to the fields of FIG. 3 that go by the same name.
The operational flow of the process 500 for multiplexing individual picture frames containing the GOB syntax 300 or the slice syntax 400 into a single picture frame is shown in FIG. 5 . In this embodiment of the operational flow, it is assumed that the single picture frames are originating from encoder devices and are being processed by one or more decoder devices after transfer, such as through a network medium as shown in the systems of FIGS. 7 and 8 . The process 500 begins at call operation 502 where the two devices passing the picture data establish a common mode of operation suitable for generating continuous presence video. The common mode of operation includes a consistent usage of header information so that, for example, back channel messaging is employed between the encoder and decoder or other enhanced capabilities are realized. After communication is established, start operation 504 causes one device of the connection to broadcast a start indicator that allows synchronization of transmission of the individual picture frames from the various sources, such as the remote locations of the videoconference.
Once the picture frames to be included in the multiplex frame have been received, header operation 506 reads the picture layer header, such as shown in FIG. 2 , for each individual picture frame and discards them. This requires that only the picture header be decoded. A single new picture layer header that applies to the spatial multiplex video picture frame is created and encoded at header operation 506 . The single new picture layer header provides in the PTYPE field 206 an indication that the spatial multiplex video picture frame is of a size capable of including the number of individual frames being multiplexed. The PLUS HEADER field 208 of the new picture header is configured to indicate a rectangular slice format.
After substituting the new picture header, the component header of one of the individual frames is interpreted at read operation 508 in preparation for subsequent processing discussed below including conversion lo a slice format and repositioning within the multiplexed image. Query operation 510 detects whether the picture header read in header operation 506 for the current picture frame indicates a group of blocks format. If a group of blocks format is detected, then conversion operation 512 converts the group of blocks headers into slice headers. Conversion operation 512 is discussed in greater detail below with reference to FIGS. 6A and 6B . If a group of blocks format is not detected, then the conversion operation 512 is skipped since a slice format is already present in the picture frame.
After finding or converting to a slice format, macroblock operation 514 alters the MBA 410 within each slice of each picture frame to position the slice within a particular region of the spatial multiplex video picture frame. For example, one individual picture frame must go in the top left-hand corner of the multiplexed picture so the top-leftmost slice of that picture frame is given an MBA 410 corresponding to the top left-hand corner position. The component header is also re-encoded at this operation after the MBA 410 has been altered. The slice is then inserted into the proper location in the continuous presence picture stream by concatenating the bits of the slice with the bits already present in the picture stream ‘including the new picture header at stream operation 516 . The picture stream may be delivered as it is being generated at transmit operation 518 wherein the current slice is written to an output buffer and then transmitted to a network interface.
After writing the slice to the output buffer, query operation 520 detects whether the last slice was the end of the continuous presence or spatial multiplex video picture frame. If it was not the last slice of the multiplexed frame, then flow returns to read operation 508 where the header of the next group of blocks or slice to be included in the spatial multiplex video picture frame is read. If query operation 520 determines that the last slice was the end of the spatial multiplex video picture frame, then flow returns to header operation 506 wherein the picture headers for the next set of individual picture frames are read and discarded.
FIGS. 6A and 6B show the operational flow of the conversion operation 512 . Conversion operation 512 begins at alignment operation 602 where the GSTIJF field of the GOB syntax 300 is converted to an SSTUF field of the slice syntax 400 by adjusting the length of the stuff code to provide byte alignment of the next code element. At start code operation 604 , the GBSC 304 is maintained because it is already identical to the SSC 404 needed in the slice syntax 400 . At prevention operation 606 , the SEPB 1 406 is inserted into the bitstream to later prevent start code emulation when being decoded.
Translation operation 608 converts the GSBI 308 to the SSBI 408 . During this operation, GSBI ‘001 becomes SSBI ‘1001’, GSBI ‘011 becomes SSBI 11010’, GSBI ‘10’ becomes SSBI ‘1011’, and GSBI ‘11’ becomes SSBI ‘1101’. At MBA operation 610 , the GN 306 is replaced by an MBA 410 chosen to place the slice in its designated location within the composite picture frame resulting from multiplexing the individual picture frame bitstreams. Prevention operation 612 then places a SEPB 2 into the bitstream to prevent start code emulation. At quantizer operation 614 , GQUANT is maintained in the bitstream after SEPB 2 because GQUANT is already identical to SQUANT 414 .
Slice operation 616 then sets the width of the slice, or SWI 416 , to the width of the GOB in terms of the number of macroblocks. This is possible because the slice structure selection (SSS) field (not shown) of the PLUS HEADER field 208 of the picture syntax 200 of FIG. 2 has been set to the rectangular slice mode in header operation 506 of FIG. 5 . Prevention operation 618 then inserts a SEPB 3 into the bitstream to prevent start code emulation when the slice is decoded. At GFID operation 620 , the GFID 310 is maintained in the bitstream after SEPB 3 because it is already identical to GFID 420 . In substitute operation 622 , all remaining portions of the GOB syntax 300 are maintained in the bitstream because they are also identical to the remaining portions of the slice syntax 400 .
FIG. 7 shows one network environment for hosting a continuous presence videoconference. A server 702 communicates through bi-directional communication channels 716 with client devices 704 , 706 , 708 , and 710 . Each client device, such as a personal computer or special-purpose videoconferencing module is linked to a camera 712 or other video source and a video display 714 . The client devices transmit sequences of encoded picture frames produced by the camera 712 or other video source to the server 702 through the communication channels 716 . The server 702 then employs the processes of FIGS. 5, 6A and 6B to combine all of the encoded picture frames into an encoded spatial multiplex video picture frame. The server 702 then transmits the spatial multiplex video picture frame back through the communications channels 716 to the client devices where it is decoded and displayed on each display screen 714 . Thus, the client devices may include encoder and decoder processing but do not need to include the multiplexing processing discussed above.
Four client devices are shown only for exemplary purposes, and it is to be understood that any number of client devices may be used subject to the limitation on the total number of individual frames to be included on the display 714 . It is also to be understood that each individual frame to be included in the multiplexed frame through the processes of FIGS. 5, 6A and 6B do not have to be of the same size, such that one frame may occupy more screen area than others. For example, the frame showing the person currently speaking in a videoconference may be enlarged relative to frames showing other participants. One skilled in the art will recognize that negotiation between participating devices can be established such that mode switching can occur to permit one or more participants to provide one image size (e,g., QCIF) while other participants provide a different image size (e.g., C). subject to the ability to combine the image sizes into a composite that will fit on the intended display. Furthermore, it is to be understood that the server 702 may customize each videostream being returned to each client device 704 , 706 , 708 , and 710 , such as by removing the frame provided by the recipient client device from the spatial multiplex being returned or creating the spatial multiplex from some other subset.
The communication channel between the client devices 704 , 706 , 708 , and 710 and the server 702 can be of various forms known in the art such as conventional dial-up connections, asymmetric digital subscriber lines (ADSL), cable modem lines, Ethernet, and/or any combination. An Internet Service Provider (ISP) (not shown) may be provided between the server 702 and each client device or the server 702 may itself act as an ISP. The transmissions through a given channel 716 are asymmetric due to one picture frame being transmitted to the server 702 from each client device while the server 702 transmits a configuration of picture frames forming the multiplexed bitstream back to each client device. Therefore, ADSL is well suited to picture frame transfer in this network configuration since ADSL typically provides a much greater bandwidth from the network to the client device.
FIG. 8 shows an alternative network configuration where each client device 802 , 804 , 806 , and 808 has its own processing device performing the operations of FIGS. 5, 6A and 6B . Each client device is linked to a camera 810 or other video source and a display 812 . A bi-directional communication path 814 interconnects each client device to the others. The bi-directional communication paths 814 can also be of various forms known in the art such as conventional dial-up connections, asymmetric digital subscriber lines (ADSL), cable modem lines, Ethernet, and/or any combination. One or .more ISPs (not shown) may facilitate transfer between a pair of client devices.
Each client device generates an encoded picture frame sequence that is transmitted to the other client devices. Thus, each client device receives an encoded picture frame from the other client devices. The client device may then perform the multiplexing operations discussed above to create the spatial multiplex video picture frame that is displayed.
Multiplexing the individual picture frames together at each client device where the spatial multiplex video picture frame will be displayed allows each client device to have control over the spatial multiplex video picture frame it will display. For example, the client device can choose to exclude certain picture frames or alter the displayed size of particular picture frames. In a videoconference, the client device may choose to eliminate the picture frame that it generates and sends to others from the spatial multiplex video picture frame that it generates and displays. Because each client device performs the multiplexing operations, the communication paths 814 carry only the individual picture frame sequences generated by each sending client device rather than spatial multiplex video picture frame sequences.
FIG. 9 shows an example of a scalable multi-point conferencing facility 900 . The facility includes a packet switch 902 ; such as a multi-gigabit Ethernet switch, linked to several processing modules, such as single board computers (SBCs) 904 , 906 , and 908 . An SBC generally refers to a computer having a single circuit board including memory, magnetic storage, and a processor for executing a logical process such as those of FIGS. 5, 6A and 6B . The processing modules may include general-purpose programmable processors or dedicated logic circuits depending upon the performance necessary. Because the operations of FIGS. 5, 6A, and 6B to be performed by the processing modules require only decoding of header information, programmable processors are adequate for continuous presence processing in real time for most implementations.
The processing modules are linked to the packet switch 902 through high-speed serial interfaces 910 , such as Fast/Gigabit Ethernet. The packet switch 902 receives encoded picture frame sequences from client devices, such as discussed with reference to FIG. 7 , but possibly from several videoconferencing sessions. The packet switch 902 may then send all picture frame sequences corresponding to a particular videoconference to one of the processing modules 904 ) 906 , or 908 . The processing module multiplexes the picture frames to generate a spatial multiplex video picture frame and sends the spatial multiplex video picture frame sequence back to the packet switch 902 . The packet switch 902 then delivers the spatial multiplex video picture frame sequence back to client devices of the particular videoconference.
Thus, the scalable multi-point conferencing facility 900 can provide multiplexing services for multiple videoconference groups simultaneously. As the number of videoconference groups at any given time increases or decreases, the processing modules employed by the packet switch 902 can be added or removed from active service and made available for other duties when not needed by packet switch 902 .
Although the present invention has been described in connection with various exemplary embodiments) those of ordinary skill in the art will understand that many modifications can be made thereto within the scope of the claims that follow. Accordingly, it is not intended that the scope of the invention in any way be limited by the above, description, but instead be determined entirely by reference to the claims that follow. | Multiple video picture frames are combined into a spatial multiplex video picture frame that may be fully decoded and displayed. The video display of the spatial multiplex video picture frame is a composite combination of all of the video picture frames that have been combined, and may have an appearance such as a mosaic. Multiplexing the video picture frames involves removing picture headers, creating a picture header for the spatial multiplex video picture frame, and altering the headers of individual components of each video picture frame. The new header for the spatial multiplex video picture frame indicates a slice format frame, and headers of the individual components are altered to provide a slice format based picture position for each video picture frame. The headers of the individual components are altered to become slice based, such as in accordance with the ITU-T H.263 video standard, prior to establishing the slice based picture position if the frames are not already of the slice format. | Provide a concise summary of the essential information conveyed in the context. | [
"CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS This application is a continuation application of U.S. application Ser.",
"No. 13/453,055, filed on Apr. 23, 2012, which is a continuation of U.S. Pat. No. 8,179,420, issued May 15, 2015, which is a continuation of U.S. Pat. No. 7,518,630, issued Apr. 14, 2009, which is a continuation of U.S. Pat. No. 6,956,600, issued Oct. 18, 2005, which are hereby incorporated herein by reference in their entirety for all purposes.",
"TECHNICAL FIELD The present invention relates to combining multiple digital video picture frames into a single spatial multiplex video picture frame to produce a single displayed picture that is a composite of several individual pictures.",
"More particularly, the present invention relates to generating the spatial multiplex video picture frame by altering header information of the individual video picture frames being combined.",
"BACKGROUND A motion picture such as broadcast television is made of individual pictures that are rapidly displayed to give the illusion of continuous motion.",
"Each individual picture in the sequence is a picture frame.",
"A digitally encoded picture frame is made of many discrete picture elements, or pixels, that are arranged in a two-dimensional array.",
"Each pixel represents the color (chrominance) and brightness (luminance) at its particular point in the picture.",
"The pixels may be grouped for purposes of subsequent digital processing (such as digital compression).",
"For example, the picture frame may be segmented into a rectangular array of contiguous macroblocks, as defined by the ITU-T H series coding structure.",
"Each macroblock typically represents a 16×16 square of pixels.",
"Macroblocks may in turn be grouped into picture frame components such as slices or groups of blocks, as defined under the ITU-T H[.",
"].263 video coding structure.",
"Under H[.",
"].263, a group of blocks is rectangular and always has the horizontal width of the picture, but the number of rows of group of blocks per frame depends on the number of lines in the picture.",
"For example, one row of a group of blocks is used for pictures having 4 to 400 lines, two rows are used for pictures having 404 to 800 lines, and four rows are used for pictures having 804 to 1152 lines.",
"A slice, on the other hand, is flexible grouping of macroblocks that is not necessarily rectangular.",
"Headers within the encoded video picture bit stream identify and provide important information about the various subcomponents that make up the encoded video picture.",
"The picture frame itself has a header, which contains information about how the picture frame was processed.",
"Each group of blocks or slice within a video picture frame has a header that defines the picture frame component as being a slice or group of blocks as well as providing information regarding the placement of the component within the picture frame.",
"Each header is interpreted by a decoder when decoding the data making up the picture frame in preparation for displaying it.",
"In certain applications, displaying multiple picture frames within a single display is desirable.",
"For example, in video-conferencing situations it is useful for each participant to have a video display showing each of the other participants at remote locations.",
"Visual cues are generally an important part of a discussion among a group of participants, and it is beneficial for each participant's display to present the visual cues of all participants simultaneously.",
"Any method of simultaneously displaying all the conference participants is called a continuous presence display.",
"This can be accomplished by using multiple decoders and multiple video displays at each site, or by combining the individual video pictures into a single video picture in a mosaic arrangement of the several individual pictures (called a spatial multiplex).",
"Multiplexing picture frames into a single composite picture frame requires some form of processing of each picture frame's encoded data.",
"Conventionally, a spatial multiplex video picture frame could be created by completely decoding each picture frame to be multiplexed to a baseband level, multiplexing at the baseband level, and then re-encoding for transmission to the various locations for display.",
"However, decoding and re-encoding a complete picture frame is computationally intensive and generally consumes a significant amount of time.",
"The H[.",
"].263 standard provides a continuous presence multipoint and video multiplex mode that allows up to four individual picture frames to be included in a single bitstream, but each picture frame must be individually decoded by individual decoders or by one very fast decoder.",
"No means of simultaneously displaying the pictures is specific in the standard.",
"Additionally, time-consuming processing must be applied to the picture frames after they have been individually decoded to multiplex them together into a composite image for display.",
"Therefore, there is a need in the art for a method and system that can spatially multiplex multiple picture frames into a single picture frame without requiring each individual picture frame to be fully decoded when being multiplexed and without requiring additional processing after decoding to multiplex the picture frames.",
"SUMMARY The present invention spatially multiplexes several picture frames into a single spatial multiple video picture frame by manipulating header information for the picture frame components, such as the groups of blocks or slices, containing the picture frame data.",
"A picture header associated with each picture frame is removed and a new picture header is generated that applies to the spatial multiplex video picture frame that is a composite of all of the individual picture frames.",
"The new header provides an indication of a slice format for the spatial multiplex video picture frame.",
"The component headers of each picture frame are altered to set a slice format based picture position for the picture frame within the picture that results from the spatial multiplex video picture frame.",
"The slice format is prevalent within the H[.",
"].263 standard.",
"Thus, only the component headers need to be decoded and re-encoded to establish the spatial multiplex video picture frame.",
"The spatial multiplex video picture frame results from concatenating the new picture header together with the picture frames having the altered component header information.",
"The spatial multiplex video picture frame may then be decoded as if it were a single picture frame to display the composite of the several individual picture frames.",
"Displaying the spatial multiplex video picture frame allows the individual picture frames to be viewed simultaneously on one display screen.",
"The system that multiplexes the individual picture frames may be a scalable facility such that as the need for picture frame multiplexing increases, the system may be expanded to fill the need.",
"The system includes a plurality of computing devices, such as single board computers, linked to a data packet switch through a serial interface.",
"Each computing device within the system has the ability to combine individual picture frames into a single spatial multiplex video picture frame by altering the headers of the picture frame components to set a slice format based picture position for the picture frames.",
"As the need for additional processing arises, additional computing devices in communication with the data packet switch may be added to provide additional capacity.",
"The present invention may be employed in a networked environment where a processing device, such as a network server, communicates with several client devices, such as videoconferencing devices.",
"The processing device receives the multiple picture frames from various communication channels in the network.",
"For example, the processing device may receive a stream of video picture frames from each participant in a videoconference through the network.",
"The processing device then multiplexes the individual picture frames into a spatial multiplex video picture frame by altering the component header information to produce a slice based picture position for each frame.",
"The spatial multiplex video picture frame is transmitted back through the communication channels of the network where it can be displayed by the display screen of the client devices.",
"The present invention may also be employed in a networked environment where each video site, such as a videoconferencing device, generates video picture frames.",
"The picture frames are transmitted to other video sites in the network, and picture frames produced by other video sites are received.",
"The video site multiplexes the picture frames to produces the multiplexed composite picture e by altering the component header information to set a slice format based picture position.",
"The video site may then decode the spatial multiplex video picture frame and display it.",
"The various aspects of the present invention may be more clearly understood and appreciated from a review of the following detailed description of the disclosed embodiments and by reference to the drawings and claims.",
"DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 illustrates a composite picture frame and slice structure, an individual picture frame that may be multiplexed into the composite picture frame, and alternative picture frame structures.",
"FIG. 2 is an exemplary picture layer syntax of a picture frame under the H[.",
"].263 standard.",
"FIG. 3 is an exemplary group of blocks layer syntax under the H[.",
"].263 standard.",
"FIG. 4 is an exemplary slice layer syntax under the H[.",
"].263 standard.",
"FIG. 5 is an operational flow for multiplexing picture frames utilized by one embodiment of the present invention.",
"FIGS. 6A and 6B are an operational flow of the group of blocks to slice format conversion utilized by the embodiment.",
"FIG. 7 .",
"is a block diagram of an embodiment employing single-point processing in a network environment.",
"FIG. 8 is a block diagram of an embodiment employing on-site processing in a networked environment.",
"FIG. 9 is a block diagram of an embodiment of a scalable multiplexing facility.",
"DETAILED DESCRIPTION FIG. 1 Illustrates a display of a spatial multiplex video picture frame 100 made up of individual picture frames 102 .",
"As shown, the spatial .",
"multiplex video picture frame 100 includes sixteen picture frames 102 of individual people participating in a videoconference where the picture frames 102 form a mosaic pattern.",
"Because each participant is always in view, the spatial multiplex video picture frame 100 is referred to as a continuous presence display.",
"All will be discussed below, each individual picture frame 102 of the spatial multiplex video picture frame 100 is initially a normal picture frame 104 that may be displayed in full size on a display screen.",
"The picture frame 104 may be represented as data that is encoded and segmented in various ways.",
"For the example shown, the picture frame 104 may have been transmitted in a quarter-size common image format (QCIF) indicating a pixel resolution of 16×144.",
"In such a case, the spatial multiplex video picture frame 100 is decoded as a 4CIF picture indicating a resolution of 704×576 because it contains sixteen QCIFs where four QCIFs form a CIF size image.",
"It is to be understood that other picture size formats for the individual picture frames 104 and for the spatial multiplex video picture frame 100 are possible as well.",
"For example, the multiplexed image may contain 64 individual QCIF picture frames and therefore have a 16CIF size.",
"The group of blocks format 110 is one alternative for segmenting and encoding the picture frame 104 .",
"The picture frame 104 of the group of blocks format 110 includes one or more rows of picture components known as groups of blocks 124 .",
"In the example, shown, the QCIF frame 104 has three rows of groups of blocks.",
"A picture header 122 is also included.",
"The picture header provides information to a decoder when the picture frame 104 is to be displayed in full size and tells the decoder that the picture frame 104 has a group of blocks format 110 .",
"Each row 124 is made up of an array 112 of macroblocks 128 that define the luminance and chrominance of the picture frame 104 .",
"Each row 124 also includes a header 126 that tells the decoder the position within the picture frame 104 where the row of group of blocks 124 belongs.",
"In the example shown, the group of blocks 124 has two rows of macroblocks 128 because it is intended for the picture frame 104 to be displayed with 404 to 800 total lines.",
"In reality, a group of blocks 124 will have many more macroblocks 128 per row than those shown in FIG. 1 .",
"As discussed above, the group of blocks format defined by the H[.",
"].263 standard require that the row 124 always extends to the full width of the picture.",
"Therefore, a 20 direct remapping of a group of blocks format 110 to a spatial multiplex video picture frame 100 is not possible because the spatial multiplex video picture frame 100 requires individual frames to have a width that may be less than the full width of the picture.",
"In the videoconferencing context, several participants may need to be displayed across the width of the picture as shown in FIG. 1 , and a group of blocks format 110 does not permit such remapping.",
"An alternative format for segmenting and encoding the picture frame 104 is the slice format 106 , such as defined by the H[.",
"].263 standard.",
"The slice format 106 is more flexible and does not require each slice to maintain the full width of the picture.",
"The slice format 106 includes one or more picture components known as slices n6 that may or 30 may not extend across the full width of the picture, and a picture header 114 that specifies to the decoder that the picture frame 104 has a slice format.",
"Bach slice 116 is made up of a grouping 108 of macroblocks 120 .",
"Each slice 116 also has a slice header 118 that indicates to the decoder the relative position of the slice in the picture 104 .",
"The slice format 106 of the picture frame 104 allows the picture frame 104 to be multiplexed into the composite picture frame 100 {with minimal decoding.",
"The spatial 5 multiplex video picture frame 100 may be created in a slice format 130 of many slices 134 corresponding to the slices 116 of the individual picture frames 102 forming the composite.",
"As shown, the slices 134 have a width that is less than the picture width so that multiple slices 134 are provided for each row of slices of the picture.",
"A new picture header 132 is also generated to indicate to the decoder that the picture frame 100 is of the slice format 130 and is of a 4CIF size, 16CTF size, and so on.",
"The header, such as 118 , of each slice 134 is modified to properly position the slice within the spatial multiplex video picture frame 100 .",
"FIG. 2 shows the picture layer syntax 200 that is made up of the picture header included at the beginning of each picture frame as well as the group of block layer or 15 slice layer.",
"The picture layer syntax 200 includes a picture start code (PSC) 202 that signifies the beginning of a new picture frame.",
"A temporal reference (TR) 204 follows in the bitstream and provides a value indicating the timing of display of the picture frame relative to a previous frame and the picture clock frequency.",
"A PTYPE block 206 follows and provides information about the picture such as whether the source format of the picture frame is a quarter-size common image format (QCIF), a CIF format, or other.",
"The picture layer syntax 200 may also include a PLUS HEADER block 208 that contains information about the picture frame, including whether the frame consists of groups of blocks or slices.",
"A PQUANT block 210 provides quantizer information to configure the quantization parameters used by the decoder.",
"An optional continuous presence multipoint (CPM) block 212 signals the use of continuous presence multipoint and video multiplex mode discussed above that permits multiple individual frames to be included in the bitstream.",
"As discussed the CPM mode causes the individual frames to maintain their identities as individual frames and requires that they be individually decoded and then processed to form a single image.",
"A picture sub-bitstream indicator (PSBI) 214 may be included if CPM mode is indicated.",
"CPM mode may be implemented in junction with the logical operations of FIGS. 5, 6A and 6B to provide sub-bitstreams that are themselves multiplexed bitstreams, or CPM may be turned off if only the logical operations of FIGS. 5, 6A and 6B are desired for providing continuous presence video.",
"A temporal reference for B-picture parts (TRB) 216 may be included if a PB-frame is indicated by the PTYPE block 204 or PLUS HEADER block 208 .",
"A DBQUANT block 218 may also be included if a PB-frame is indicated to indicate the relation of the BQUANT quantization parameter used for B-picture parts in relation to the QUANT quantization parameter used or P-picture parts.",
"A PEI block 220 includes a bit that signals the presence of the supplemental enhancement information (PSUPP) block 222 .",
"PSUPP block 222 defines extended capabilities for picture decoding.",
"The group of blocks (GOB) layer 24 or slice layer 226 then follows in the bitstream.",
"The GOB layer 224 contains each group of block of the picture frame and is discussed in more detail in FIG. 3 .",
"Slice layer 226 contains each slice of the picture frame and is discussed in more detail in FIG. 4 .",
"The ESTUF block 228 is included to provide mandatory byte alignment in the bitstrearn.",
"The end of sequence (BOB) block 234 may be included to signal the end of the sequence of group of blocks or slices.",
"Alternatively, the end of sub-bitstream sequence (EOSBS) block 230 may be included to indicate an end of a sub-bitstream when in CPM mode.",
"An ending sub-bitstream indicator (ESBI) block 232 is included to provide the sub-bitstream number of the last sub-bitstream.",
"The PSTUF block 236 is included to provide byte alignment for the PSC of the next picture frame.",
"FIG. 3 shows the group of blocks layer syntax 300 that is made up of the component header and the macroblocks of the array fanning a group of blocks and that would be found in each group of blocks of the group of blocks layer 224 of FIG. 2 .",
"A GSTUF block 302 is included to provide byte alignment for a group of blocks start code (GBSC) 304 .",
"The GBSC 304 indicates to the decoder the start of a group of blocks.",
"A group number (GN) block 306 indicates the group of block number that defines the position of the group of blocks in the picture frame.",
"A GOB sub-bitstream indicator (GSBI) 308 may be included when in CPM mode to indicate the sub-bitstream number.",
"A GOB frame ID (GFID) 310 is included to indicate the particular frame that the group of blocks corresponds to GQUANT block 312 provides quantizer information to control the quantization parameters of the decoder.",
"A temporal reference indicator (TRI) block 314 is included to indicate the presence of a temporal reference when operating in a reference picture mode.",
"A temporal reference (TR) block 316 is included to provide a value indicating the timing of display of the group of blocks relative to a previous group of blocks and the picture clock frequency.",
"A temporal reference for prediction indication (TRPI) block 318 is included to indicate the presence of a temporal reference for prediction field (TRP) 320 .",
"The TRP field 320 indicates the temporal reference to be used for prediction of the encoding.",
"A back channel message indication (BCI) field 322 is included to indicate whether a message is to be delivered from the decoder back to the encoder regarding conditions of the received coded stream.",
"A back channel message (BCM) layer 324 contains a message that is returned from a decoder to an encoder in order to tell whether forward-channel data was correctly decoded or not.",
"A macroblock (MB) layer 326 contains a macroblock header and the macroblock data for the group of blocks.",
"FIG. 4 shows the slice layer syntax 400 that is made up of the component header and the macroblocks of the array forming a slice and that would be found in each slice of the slice layer 226 of FIG. 2 .",
"An SSTUF block 402 is included to provide byte alignment for a slice start code (SSC) block 404 indicating the beginning of a slice.",
"A first slice emulation prevention bit (SEPB 1 ) 406 is included to prevent start code emulation after the SSC block 404 .",
"A slice sub-bitstream indicator (SSBI) block 408 is included when in CPM mode to indicate the sub-bitstream number of the slice.",
"A macroblock address (MBA) field 410 is included to indicate the first macroblock of the slice as counted from the beginning of the picture in scanning order to set the position of each slice in the picture frame.",
"A second slice emulation prevention bit (SEPB 2 ) block 412 is also included to prevent start code emulation after the MBA field 410 .",
"An SQUANT block 414 is included to provide quantizer information that controls the quantization parameters of the decoder.",
"A slice width indication (SWI) block 416 is provided to indicate the width of the current rectangular slice whose first macroblock is specified by the MBA field 410 .",
"A third slice emulation prevention bit (SEPB 3 ) 418 is included to prevent start code emulation after the SWI block 416 .",
"A slice frame ID (GFID) 420 is included to indicate the particular picture frame that the slice corresponds to.",
"The TRI field 422 , TR field 424 , TRPI field 4261 TRP field .",
"428 , BCI field 430 , BCM layer 432 , and MB layer 434 are identical to the fields of FIG. 3 that go by the same name.",
"The operational flow of the process 500 for multiplexing individual picture frames containing the GOB syntax 300 or the slice syntax 400 into a single picture frame is shown in FIG. 5 .",
"In this embodiment of the operational flow, it is assumed that the single picture frames are originating from encoder devices and are being processed by one or more decoder devices after transfer, such as through a network medium as shown in the systems of FIGS. 7 and 8 .",
"The process 500 begins at call operation 502 where the two devices passing the picture data establish a common mode of operation suitable for generating continuous presence video.",
"The common mode of operation includes a consistent usage of header information so that, for example, back channel messaging is employed between the encoder and decoder or other enhanced capabilities are realized.",
"After communication is established, start operation 504 causes one device of the connection to broadcast a start indicator that allows synchronization of transmission of the individual picture frames from the various sources, such as the remote locations of the videoconference.",
"Once the picture frames to be included in the multiplex frame have been received, header operation 506 reads the picture layer header, such as shown in FIG. 2 , for each individual picture frame and discards them.",
"This requires that only the picture header be decoded.",
"A single new picture layer header that applies to the spatial multiplex video picture frame is created and encoded at header operation 506 .",
"The single new picture layer header provides in the PTYPE field 206 an indication that the spatial multiplex video picture frame is of a size capable of including the number of individual frames being multiplexed.",
"The PLUS HEADER field 208 of the new picture header is configured to indicate a rectangular slice format.",
"After substituting the new picture header, the component header of one of the individual frames is interpreted at read operation 508 in preparation for subsequent processing discussed below including conversion lo a slice format and repositioning within the multiplexed image.",
"Query operation 510 detects whether the picture header read in header operation 506 for the current picture frame indicates a group of blocks format.",
"If a group of blocks format is detected, then conversion operation 512 converts the group of blocks headers into slice headers.",
"Conversion operation 512 is discussed in greater detail below with reference to FIGS. 6A and 6B .",
"If a group of blocks format is not detected, then the conversion operation 512 is skipped since a slice format is already present in the picture frame.",
"After finding or converting to a slice format, macroblock operation 514 alters the MBA 410 within each slice of each picture frame to position the slice within a particular region of the spatial multiplex video picture frame.",
"For example, one individual picture frame must go in the top left-hand corner of the multiplexed picture so the top-leftmost slice of that picture frame is given an MBA 410 corresponding to the top left-hand corner position.",
"The component header is also re-encoded at this operation after the MBA 410 has been altered.",
"The slice is then inserted into the proper location in the continuous presence picture stream by concatenating the bits of the slice with the bits already present in the picture stream ‘including the new picture header at stream operation 516 .",
"The picture stream may be delivered as it is being generated at transmit operation 518 wherein the current slice is written to an output buffer and then transmitted to a network interface.",
"After writing the slice to the output buffer, query operation 520 detects whether the last slice was the end of the continuous presence or spatial multiplex video picture frame.",
"If it was not the last slice of the multiplexed frame, then flow returns to read operation 508 where the header of the next group of blocks or slice to be included in the spatial multiplex video picture frame is read.",
"If query operation 520 determines that the last slice was the end of the spatial multiplex video picture frame, then flow returns to header operation 506 wherein the picture headers for the next set of individual picture frames are read and discarded.",
"FIGS. 6A and 6B show the operational flow of the conversion operation 512 .",
"Conversion operation 512 begins at alignment operation 602 where the GSTIJF field of the GOB syntax 300 is converted to an SSTUF field of the slice syntax 400 by adjusting the length of the stuff code to provide byte alignment of the next code element.",
"At start code operation 604 , the GBSC 304 is maintained because it is already identical to the SSC 404 needed in the slice syntax 400 .",
"At prevention operation 606 , the SEPB 1 406 is inserted into the bitstream to later prevent start code emulation when being decoded.",
"Translation operation 608 converts the GSBI 308 to the SSBI 408 .",
"During this operation, GSBI ‘001 becomes SSBI ‘1001’, GSBI ‘011 becomes SSBI 11010’, GSBI ‘10’ becomes SSBI ‘1011’, and GSBI ‘11’ becomes SSBI ‘1101’.",
"At MBA operation 610 , the GN 306 is replaced by an MBA 410 chosen to place the slice in its designated location within the composite picture frame resulting from multiplexing the individual picture frame bitstreams.",
"Prevention operation 612 then places a SEPB 2 into the bitstream to prevent start code emulation.",
"At quantizer operation 614 , GQUANT is maintained in the bitstream after SEPB 2 because GQUANT is already identical to SQUANT 414 .",
"Slice operation 616 then sets the width of the slice, or SWI 416 , to the width of the GOB in terms of the number of macroblocks.",
"This is possible because the slice structure selection (SSS) field (not shown) of the PLUS HEADER field 208 of the picture syntax 200 of FIG. 2 has been set to the rectangular slice mode in header operation 506 of FIG. 5 .",
"Prevention operation 618 then inserts a SEPB 3 into the bitstream to prevent start code emulation when the slice is decoded.",
"At GFID operation 620 , the GFID 310 is maintained in the bitstream after SEPB 3 because it is already identical to GFID 420 .",
"In substitute operation 622 , all remaining portions of the GOB syntax 300 are maintained in the bitstream because they are also identical to the remaining portions of the slice syntax 400 .",
"FIG. 7 shows one network environment for hosting a continuous presence videoconference.",
"A server 702 communicates through bi-directional communication channels 716 with client devices 704 , 706 , 708 , and 710 .",
"Each client device, such as a personal computer or special-purpose videoconferencing module is linked to a camera 712 or other video source and a video display 714 .",
"The client devices transmit sequences of encoded picture frames produced by the camera 712 or other video source to the server 702 through the communication channels 716 .",
"The server 702 then employs the processes of FIGS. 5, 6A and 6B to combine all of the encoded picture frames into an encoded spatial multiplex video picture frame.",
"The server 702 then transmits the spatial multiplex video picture frame back through the communications channels 716 to the client devices where it is decoded and displayed on each display screen 714 .",
"Thus, the client devices may include encoder and decoder processing but do not need to include the multiplexing processing discussed above.",
"Four client devices are shown only for exemplary purposes, and it is to be understood that any number of client devices may be used subject to the limitation on the total number of individual frames to be included on the display 714 .",
"It is also to be understood that each individual frame to be included in the multiplexed frame through the processes of FIGS. 5, 6A and 6B do not have to be of the same size, such that one frame may occupy more screen area than others.",
"For example, the frame showing the person currently speaking in a videoconference may be enlarged relative to frames showing other participants.",
"One skilled in the art will recognize that negotiation between participating devices can be established such that mode switching can occur to permit one or more participants to provide one image size (e,g.",
", QCIF) while other participants provide a different image size (e.g., C).",
"subject to the ability to combine the image sizes into a composite that will fit on the intended display.",
"Furthermore, it is to be understood that the server 702 may customize each videostream being returned to each client device 704 , 706 , 708 , and 710 , such as by removing the frame provided by the recipient client device from the spatial multiplex being returned or creating the spatial multiplex from some other subset.",
"The communication channel between the client devices 704 , 706 , 708 , and 710 and the server 702 can be of various forms known in the art such as conventional dial-up connections, asymmetric digital subscriber lines (ADSL), cable modem lines, Ethernet, and/or any combination.",
"An Internet Service Provider (ISP) (not shown) may be provided between the server 702 and each client device or the server 702 may itself act as an ISP.",
"The transmissions through a given channel 716 are asymmetric due to one picture frame being transmitted to the server 702 from each client device while the server 702 transmits a configuration of picture frames forming the multiplexed bitstream back to each client device.",
"Therefore, ADSL is well suited to picture frame transfer in this network configuration since ADSL typically provides a much greater bandwidth from the network to the client device.",
"FIG. 8 shows an alternative network configuration where each client device 802 , 804 , 806 , and 808 has its own processing device performing the operations of FIGS. 5, 6A and 6B .",
"Each client device is linked to a camera 810 or other video source and a display 812 .",
"A bi-directional communication path 814 interconnects each client device to the others.",
"The bi-directional communication paths 814 can also be of various forms known in the art such as conventional dial-up connections, asymmetric digital subscriber lines (ADSL), cable modem lines, Ethernet, and/or any combination.",
"One or .",
"more ISPs (not shown) may facilitate transfer between a pair of client devices.",
"Each client device generates an encoded picture frame sequence that is transmitted to the other client devices.",
"Thus, each client device receives an encoded picture frame from the other client devices.",
"The client device may then perform the multiplexing operations discussed above to create the spatial multiplex video picture frame that is displayed.",
"Multiplexing the individual picture frames together at each client device where the spatial multiplex video picture frame will be displayed allows each client device to have control over the spatial multiplex video picture frame it will display.",
"For example, the client device can choose to exclude certain picture frames or alter the displayed size of particular picture frames.",
"In a videoconference, the client device may choose to eliminate the picture frame that it generates and sends to others from the spatial multiplex video picture frame that it generates and displays.",
"Because each client device performs the multiplexing operations, the communication paths 814 carry only the individual picture frame sequences generated by each sending client device rather than spatial multiplex video picture frame sequences.",
"FIG. 9 shows an example of a scalable multi-point conferencing facility 900 .",
"The facility includes a packet switch 902 ;",
"such as a multi-gigabit Ethernet switch, linked to several processing modules, such as single board computers (SBCs) 904 , 906 , and 908 .",
"An SBC generally refers to a computer having a single circuit board including memory, magnetic storage, and a processor for executing a logical process such as those of FIGS. 5, 6A and 6B .",
"The processing modules may include general-purpose programmable processors or dedicated logic circuits depending upon the performance necessary.",
"Because the operations of FIGS. 5, 6A, and 6B to be performed by the processing modules require only decoding of header information, programmable processors are adequate for continuous presence processing in real time for most implementations.",
"The processing modules are linked to the packet switch 902 through high-speed serial interfaces 910 , such as Fast/Gigabit Ethernet.",
"The packet switch 902 receives encoded picture frame sequences from client devices, such as discussed with reference to FIG. 7 , but possibly from several videoconferencing sessions.",
"The packet switch 902 may then send all picture frame sequences corresponding to a particular videoconference to one of the processing modules 904 ) 906 , or 908 .",
"The processing module multiplexes the picture frames to generate a spatial multiplex video picture frame and sends the spatial multiplex video picture frame sequence back to the packet switch 902 .",
"The packet switch 902 then delivers the spatial multiplex video picture frame sequence back to client devices of the particular videoconference.",
"Thus, the scalable multi-point conferencing facility 900 can provide multiplexing services for multiple videoconference groups simultaneously.",
"As the number of videoconference groups at any given time increases or decreases, the processing modules employed by the packet switch 902 can be added or removed from active service and made available for other duties when not needed by packet switch 902 .",
"Although the present invention has been described in connection with various exemplary embodiments) those of ordinary skill in the art will understand that many modifications can be made thereto within the scope of the claims that follow.",
"Accordingly, it is not intended that the scope of the invention in any way be limited by the above, description, but instead be determined entirely by reference to the claims that follow."
] |
[0001] This application claims benefit of provisional application Serial No. 60/469,515, filed May 9, 2003.
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
[0002] The present invention relates generally to ice and beverage dispensing equipment, and more specifically to such equipment having a capability to prevent ice buildup on and in a drip tray thereof.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0003] Combination ice and beverage dispensing machines typically have several beverage dispensing valves and a single ice dispensing chute positioned on the dispenser above a drip tray. Such dispensers also include an ice retaining bin having an ice dispensing mechanism for delivering ice on demand to and through the ice dispense chute. The drip tray serves as a platform on which a receptacle, such as a cup, can be placed as it is being filled with beverage and ice. The drip tray support surface or cup rest usually comprises a wire grate with spacing between the wires to allow any spilled beverage to flow through the grate to a lower drain.
[0004] The accumulation of ice in the drip tray of an ice/beverage dispenser is an ever present problem in the beverage dispensing industry. Since a cup is often hand held during dispensing, and particularly when being filled with ice, it is not always necessary that the drip tray grate provide a cup rest in the area directly below the ice dispensing chute. Thus, the grate wire spacing below the ice chute can be increased or eliminated to permit any spilled ice particles to fall directly into the drip tray and not build up on the grate. The inherent volume of the drip tray below the cup rest grate can often accommodate enough ice during casual use of the dispenser that buildup of ice above the level of the grate is not a problem. However, during periods of high use sufficient ice can spill into the drip tray faster than the ice can melt, such that a significant volume of ice can accumulate in the tray and extend up above the cup rest surface of the grate. A buildup of ice in this manner can interfere with physical placement of a cup below the ice dispensing chute and will eventually lead to ice falling from the drip tray onto the floor area surrounding the dispenser. Thus, in addition to making use of the dispenser more difficult, drip tray ice buildup can result in the floor area around the dispenser becoming wet and having particles of ice thereon, which presents cleanliness and safety hazard problems.
[0005] Attempts have been made to prevent ice buildup on and in drip trays. Other than simply manually removing the ice, one approach has been to pour hot water into the drip tray to melt residual ice. However, this type of task is not something that is regularly scheduled and may not be timely performed. It also is possible that a buildup of ice can happen quickly enough that its presence may not be appreciated before a dangerous condition develops. Electrical resistive heating elements have been used to melt accumulated drip tray ice, but the cost of using such elements can be high if separate temperature sensing and control means are used to maintain and operate the heating elements within a predetermined temperature range, and where no controls are used in order to reduce initial costs, the heating element simply runs continuously, wasting power when heating is not required. Also, should such control mechanisms fail, the heating elements can possibly reach temperatures above what would be practical or safe for standard plastic drip trays.
[0006] Another approach to controlling an accumulation of drip tray ice is described in U.S. Pat. No. 6,107,607, issued Aug. 22, 2000 to Thaddeus M. Jablonski, the present inventor, assigned to the assignee of the present invention and the teachings of which are specifically incorporated herein by reference. According to said patent, the drip tray is rid of ice through an electrical heating element placed in the tray and having a positive temperature coefficient. In this manner, when ice is present in the tray the element is cooled, causing its electrical resistance to decrease and an increased current to flow through the element to heat the element and melt the ice. This approach works well, is less expensive to implement and generally uses less energy than conventional heating elements placed in drip trays, but it nevertheless requires the use of further energy.
[0007] Accordingly, it would be desirable to have a way of eliminating or minimizing drip tray ice buildup problems in a manner that does not require manual intervention or the use of additional energy and that is safe, reliable and of relatively low cost.
OBJECTS OF THE INVENTION
[0008] An object of the present invention is to provide a safe and reliable system for preventing an accumulation of ice in a drip tray of an ice and beverage dispenser.
[0009] Another object is to provide such a system in which an accumulation of ice in the drip tray is prevented by melting any ice as may enter the drip tray.
[0010] A further object is to provide such a system in which heat absorbed by ice in the drip tray as it is melted increases the operating efficiency of an icemaker associated with the ice and beverage dispenser.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0011] In accordance with the present invention, apparatus for making and dispensing ice comprises an ice dispenser having an ice dispensing chute and a sink below the chute; and an icemaker for making and delivering ice to the ice dispenser and having a high pressure refrigerant line, a portion of which refrigeration line extends within the ice dispenser sink to melt any ice in the sink.
[0012] In a preferred embodiment of the invention, an ice/beverage dispenser having a drip tray is associated with an icemaker. The icemaker includes a refrigeration system having a compressor, a condenser, an expansion valve and an evaporator. A high pressure refrigerant line extends from an outlet from the compressor to an inlet to the condenser and a further refrigerant line extends from an outlet from the condenser to an expansion valve for releasing high pressure refrigerant into an inlet to the evaporator, which refrigerant then expands and causes cooling of the evaporator. In the present invention, the refrigerant line exiting the condenser outlet does not extend directly to the expansion valve, but instead is routed through the ice/beverage dispenser drip tray before returning to the expansion valve. Refrigerant exiting the condenser has been “cooled,” but remains “warm” at a temperature of from about 100° to 140° F., and the heat energy of this refrigerant is used, as it passes through the drip tray, to melt any ice in the drip tray. As a side benefit, in the process of transferring heat energy to the ice, the refrigerant is further cooled prior to expansion of the refrigerant into the evaporator, which improves the cooling performance and operating efficiency of the refrigeration system.
[0013] The invention also contemplates a method of eliminating ice from a sink of an ice dispenser that is associated with an icemaker for making and delivering ice to the ice dispenser and that has a high pressure refrigerant line. The method comprising the step of thermally coupling a portion of the refrigerant line to ice in the sink.
[0014] In a preferred practice of the method, ice is eliminated from a drip tray of an ice and beverage dispenser that has an associated icemaker that makes ice for dispensing by the dispenser. The icemaker is of a type that utilizes a compressor, a condenser, an evaporator and an expansion valve having an inlet coupled to high pressure refrigerant at an outlet from the condenser and an outlet coupled to an inlet to the evaporator. To melt ice in the drip tray, the method comprises the step of thermally coupling the high pressure refrigerant to the ice.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0015] [0015]FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an icemaker and an ice and beverage dispenser that embody the teachings of the present invention;
[0016] [0016]FIG. 2 is a schematic representation of the icemaker and the ice and beverage dispenser;
[0017] [0017]FIG. 3 is a top plan view of a heated drip tray of the ice and beverage dispenser, and
[0018] [0018]FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view of another embodiment of heated drip tray.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0019] The present invention is adapted for use with an ice and beverage dispenser having an associated icemaker as shown in FIG. 1 and indicated generally at 10 . The dispenser 10 is adapted to rest on a countertop 11 or other suitable surface and includes an upper ice making portion or icemaker 12 having an external housing 13 and a lower ice and beverage dispensing portion or ice/beverage dispenser 14 having an external housing 16 . The icemaker 12 includes a refrigeration system including a compressor 18 , a condenser 20 and an ice making evaporator 22 . The ice/beverage dispenser 14 includes a merchandising cover 24 , an ice dispensing chute 26 , a splash panel 27 and a plurality of post-mix beverage dispensing valves 28 .
[0020] Referring also to FIG. 2, a drip tray or sink, indicated generally at 29 , is at the lower front of the ice/beverage dispenser 14 and is positioned below the ice dispensing chute 26 and the beverage dispensing valves 28 . The drip tray 29 includes a removable cup rest or metal grate 30 resting on an upper perimeter edge 31 of perimeter walls 32 of the drip tray. A drip tray volume or interior space 33 is defined within the drip tray 29 below the grate 30 , within the perimeter walls 32 and above a bottom drain surface 34 of the drip tray. The bottom drain surface 34 serves to direct waste fluids as may enter the drip tray to a drain 35 . As is conventional, the drip tray can be a rigid plastic structure and include foam insulation material 36 (FIG. 4)
[0021] In use of the dispenser 10 , ice dispensed from the ice dispensing chute 26 that does not enter a receptacle or cup can accumulate in the interior 33 of the trip tray 29 and on the drip tray top grate 30 . So that an accumulation of such ice can be eliminated before it presents problems, according to the present invention a readily available source of heat from the icemaker 12 is used to melt any ice as may enter the drip tray 29 or rest on its grate 30 . This source of heat from the icemaker is the “heat-of-rejection” produced at the condenser 20 , which heat is rejected as “waste” heat in operation of the icemaker in order to cool the evaporator 22 to make ice. The condenser 20 typically operates at a temperature in the range of from about 110° to 140° F., and this heat energy can be tapped and delivered to the drip tray or sink area to melt any ice as may accumulate in the drip tray 29 and/or on its grate 30 . A typical 500 pound per day icemaker rejects over about 11,000 Btu per hour during ice making cycles, only a small portion of which heat need be utilized to effectively melt any accumulation of such ice. This may be accomplished by routing a high pressure refrigerant line that exits the condenser 20 into the interior 33 of the drip tray 29 or to a heat sink located in the drip tray interior, so that a safe and effective supply of heat will be delivered to the drip tray interior to melt any ice accumulated therein. Under the circumstance where no ice is present in the drip tray, temperatures in the drip tray will not rise excessively and will remain at safe levels. A side benefit realized by directing evaporator heat to the drip tray is that a small performance gain will be realized by the icemaker in the melting of ice as a result of additional sub-cooling of the high pressure refrigerant when the refrigerant gives up heat to melt ice in the ice tray.
[0022] As best seen in FIG. 2, the refrigeration system of the icemaker 12 includes a low pressure refrigerant line 37 extending between an outlet from the evaporator 22 and an inlet to the compressor 18 and a high pressure refrigerant line 38 extending from an outlet from the compressor to an inlet to the condenser 20 . Another high pressure refrigerant line 40 extends between an outlet from the condenser 20 and an expansion valve 42 coupled to an inlet to the evaporator 22 . However, unlike the situation that exists in a conventional icemaker where a high pressure refrigerant line at an outlet from a condenser would lead directly to an expansion valve, according to the invention the high pressure refrigerant line 40 is routed from the condenser outlet first downward through and within the housing 16 of the ice/beverage dispenser 14 to a lower front end of the housing where the line exits forward from the housing into the interior space 33 of the drip tray 29 . As also seen in FIG. 3, the refrigerant line 40 includes a tortuously configured portion, such as a serpentine portion 40 a, that is located and extends in a plane within the interior space 33 of the drip tray 29 . Beyond or downstream from (with respect to the direction of refrigerant flow) its serpentine portion 40 a , the refrigerant line 40 extends rearward back into the ice/beverage dispenser housing 16 and then returns upward through and within the housing to the expansion valve 42 of the icemaker 12 . As is apparent and will be more fully described, in operation of the icemaker 12 the serpentine portion 40 a of the high pressure refrigerant line 40 will be warm and the heat provided by the serpentine portion within the drip tray will melt ice in the drip tray and on its grate.
[0023] The drip tray grate 30 is preferably made of stainless steel for heat conductivity, strength, resistance to rust and appearance, and is in heat exchange relationship with the serpentine line portion 40 a of the high pressure refrigerant line 40 within the interior 33 of the drip tray 29 . Various thermally conductive heat exchange support/connecting structures 44 can be removably placed within the interior 33 of the drip tray 29 to provide for retention of the refrigerant line serpentine portion 40 a in a fixed position within the drip tray and in heat exchange relationship with the grate 30 . To provide satisfactory heat exchange relationship and good thermal conductivity between the grate 30 and the refrigerant line portion 40 a , the support structures 44 are advantageously made of a suitable heat conducting material, such as aluminum or stainless steel. As seen in FIG. 2, further thermal mass and ice melting capability can be provided in the drip tray 29 by a metal plate or liner 46 extending on and along the drip tray bottom drain surface 34 , which plate is placed in thermal contact with the high pressure refrigerant line serpentine portion 40 a by means of thermal connectors 44 extending between the plate and the serpentine line portion. In an alternative arrangement shown in FIG. 4, the refrigerant line serpentine portion 40 a can be positioned below the metal plate or liner 46 , between the plate and the drip tray bottom drain surface 34 , so that it is more protected from accidental mechanical damage. In this alternative embodiment, removable thermal connectors 44 may be used to provide thermal connection between the plate 46 and the grate 30 as the plate is heated by the refrigerant line serpentine portion 40 a.
[0024] In operation of the invention, when the icemaker 12 operates to make ice, hot high pressure refrigerant flows through the refrigerant line 38 from the outlet from the compressor 18 to the inlet to the condenser 20 . As is understood, the hot refrigerant is cooled by the operation of condenser 20 , but the refrigerant as it leaves the condenser and flows through the refrigerant line 40 will still be warm. This warm refrigerant flows through the refrigerant line 40 to and through the refrigerant line serpentine portion 40 a within the interior 33 of the drip tray 29 , where the warm refrigerant gives up heat energy to melt any ice in the drip tray or as may be resting on the drip tray grate 30 . Melting of ice within the drip tray and on its grate will be enhanced to the extent that there is suitable thermal mass with which the high pressure refrigerant line serpentine portion 40 a is in thermal contact, such as the grate 30 , the metal connectors 44 and the metal liner 46 .
[0025] An additional benefit to melting ice in the drip tray 29 through use of warm refrigerant exiting the condenser 20 of the icemaker 12 is that the heat exchange process will result in high pressure refrigerant in the refrigerant line 40 being further cooled before it reaches and passes through the expansion valve 42 into the evaporator 22 , which will improve the cooling ability and efficiency of the of the icemaker. Consequently, in the process of advantageously using warm refrigerant to melt and eliminate the problems associated with an accumulation of waste ice in the drip tray 29 , the capacity of the waste ice to absorb heat from the refrigerant beneficially results in improvements in icemaker operating efficiency.
[0026] While embodiments of the invention have been described in detail, various modifications and other embodiments thereof may be devised by one skilled in the art without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention, as defined in the appended claims. | The present invention includes an ice and beverage dispenser having an icemaker associated therewith. The icemaker has a refrigeration system that includes a compressor, a condenser and an evaporator. A refrigerant line exiting the condenser is routed through a drip tray of the dispenser before returning to an expansion valve for release of refrigerant into the evaporator. The refrigerant exiting the condenser is at a temperature of from about 100° to 140° F. and provides sufficient heat energy, as it passes through the drip tray, to melt any ice in the drip tray. The additional cooling of the refrigerant as it melts the ice prior to expansion of the refrigerant into the evaporator improves the cooling performance and efficiency of the refrigeration system. | Identify and summarize the most critical technical features from the given patent document. | [
"[0001] This application claims benefit of provisional application Serial No. 60/469,515, filed May 9, 2003.",
"FIELD OF THE INVENTION [0002] The present invention relates generally to ice and beverage dispensing equipment, and more specifically to such equipment having a capability to prevent ice buildup on and in a drip tray thereof.",
"BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION [0003] Combination ice and beverage dispensing machines typically have several beverage dispensing valves and a single ice dispensing chute positioned on the dispenser above a drip tray.",
"Such dispensers also include an ice retaining bin having an ice dispensing mechanism for delivering ice on demand to and through the ice dispense chute.",
"The drip tray serves as a platform on which a receptacle, such as a cup, can be placed as it is being filled with beverage and ice.",
"The drip tray support surface or cup rest usually comprises a wire grate with spacing between the wires to allow any spilled beverage to flow through the grate to a lower drain.",
"[0004] The accumulation of ice in the drip tray of an ice/beverage dispenser is an ever present problem in the beverage dispensing industry.",
"Since a cup is often hand held during dispensing, and particularly when being filled with ice, it is not always necessary that the drip tray grate provide a cup rest in the area directly below the ice dispensing chute.",
"Thus, the grate wire spacing below the ice chute can be increased or eliminated to permit any spilled ice particles to fall directly into the drip tray and not build up on the grate.",
"The inherent volume of the drip tray below the cup rest grate can often accommodate enough ice during casual use of the dispenser that buildup of ice above the level of the grate is not a problem.",
"However, during periods of high use sufficient ice can spill into the drip tray faster than the ice can melt, such that a significant volume of ice can accumulate in the tray and extend up above the cup rest surface of the grate.",
"A buildup of ice in this manner can interfere with physical placement of a cup below the ice dispensing chute and will eventually lead to ice falling from the drip tray onto the floor area surrounding the dispenser.",
"Thus, in addition to making use of the dispenser more difficult, drip tray ice buildup can result in the floor area around the dispenser becoming wet and having particles of ice thereon, which presents cleanliness and safety hazard problems.",
"[0005] Attempts have been made to prevent ice buildup on and in drip trays.",
"Other than simply manually removing the ice, one approach has been to pour hot water into the drip tray to melt residual ice.",
"However, this type of task is not something that is regularly scheduled and may not be timely performed.",
"It also is possible that a buildup of ice can happen quickly enough that its presence may not be appreciated before a dangerous condition develops.",
"Electrical resistive heating elements have been used to melt accumulated drip tray ice, but the cost of using such elements can be high if separate temperature sensing and control means are used to maintain and operate the heating elements within a predetermined temperature range, and where no controls are used in order to reduce initial costs, the heating element simply runs continuously, wasting power when heating is not required.",
"Also, should such control mechanisms fail, the heating elements can possibly reach temperatures above what would be practical or safe for standard plastic drip trays.",
"[0006] Another approach to controlling an accumulation of drip tray ice is described in U.S. Pat. No. 6,107,607, issued Aug. 22, 2000 to Thaddeus M. Jablonski, the present inventor, assigned to the assignee of the present invention and the teachings of which are specifically incorporated herein by reference.",
"According to said patent, the drip tray is rid of ice through an electrical heating element placed in the tray and having a positive temperature coefficient.",
"In this manner, when ice is present in the tray the element is cooled, causing its electrical resistance to decrease and an increased current to flow through the element to heat the element and melt the ice.",
"This approach works well, is less expensive to implement and generally uses less energy than conventional heating elements placed in drip trays, but it nevertheless requires the use of further energy.",
"[0007] Accordingly, it would be desirable to have a way of eliminating or minimizing drip tray ice buildup problems in a manner that does not require manual intervention or the use of additional energy and that is safe, reliable and of relatively low cost.",
"OBJECTS OF THE INVENTION [0008] An object of the present invention is to provide a safe and reliable system for preventing an accumulation of ice in a drip tray of an ice and beverage dispenser.",
"[0009] Another object is to provide such a system in which an accumulation of ice in the drip tray is prevented by melting any ice as may enter the drip tray.",
"[0010] A further object is to provide such a system in which heat absorbed by ice in the drip tray as it is melted increases the operating efficiency of an icemaker associated with the ice and beverage dispenser.",
"SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION [0011] In accordance with the present invention, apparatus for making and dispensing ice comprises an ice dispenser having an ice dispensing chute and a sink below the chute;",
"and an icemaker for making and delivering ice to the ice dispenser and having a high pressure refrigerant line, a portion of which refrigeration line extends within the ice dispenser sink to melt any ice in the sink.",
"[0012] In a preferred embodiment of the invention, an ice/beverage dispenser having a drip tray is associated with an icemaker.",
"The icemaker includes a refrigeration system having a compressor, a condenser, an expansion valve and an evaporator.",
"A high pressure refrigerant line extends from an outlet from the compressor to an inlet to the condenser and a further refrigerant line extends from an outlet from the condenser to an expansion valve for releasing high pressure refrigerant into an inlet to the evaporator, which refrigerant then expands and causes cooling of the evaporator.",
"In the present invention, the refrigerant line exiting the condenser outlet does not extend directly to the expansion valve, but instead is routed through the ice/beverage dispenser drip tray before returning to the expansion valve.",
"Refrigerant exiting the condenser has been “cooled,” but remains “warm”",
"at a temperature of from about 100° to 140° F., and the heat energy of this refrigerant is used, as it passes through the drip tray, to melt any ice in the drip tray.",
"As a side benefit, in the process of transferring heat energy to the ice, the refrigerant is further cooled prior to expansion of the refrigerant into the evaporator, which improves the cooling performance and operating efficiency of the refrigeration system.",
"[0013] The invention also contemplates a method of eliminating ice from a sink of an ice dispenser that is associated with an icemaker for making and delivering ice to the ice dispenser and that has a high pressure refrigerant line.",
"The method comprising the step of thermally coupling a portion of the refrigerant line to ice in the sink.",
"[0014] In a preferred practice of the method, ice is eliminated from a drip tray of an ice and beverage dispenser that has an associated icemaker that makes ice for dispensing by the dispenser.",
"The icemaker is of a type that utilizes a compressor, a condenser, an evaporator and an expansion valve having an inlet coupled to high pressure refrigerant at an outlet from the condenser and an outlet coupled to an inlet to the evaporator.",
"To melt ice in the drip tray, the method comprises the step of thermally coupling the high pressure refrigerant to the ice.",
"BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS [0015] [0015 ]FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an icemaker and an ice and beverage dispenser that embody the teachings of the present invention;",
"[0016] [0016 ]FIG. 2 is a schematic representation of the icemaker and the ice and beverage dispenser;",
"[0017] [0017 ]FIG. 3 is a top plan view of a heated drip tray of the ice and beverage dispenser, and [0018] [0018 ]FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view of another embodiment of heated drip tray.",
"DETAILED DESCRIPTION [0019] The present invention is adapted for use with an ice and beverage dispenser having an associated icemaker as shown in FIG. 1 and indicated generally at 10 .",
"The dispenser 10 is adapted to rest on a countertop 11 or other suitable surface and includes an upper ice making portion or icemaker 12 having an external housing 13 and a lower ice and beverage dispensing portion or ice/beverage dispenser 14 having an external housing 16 .",
"The icemaker 12 includes a refrigeration system including a compressor 18 , a condenser 20 and an ice making evaporator 22 .",
"The ice/beverage dispenser 14 includes a merchandising cover 24 , an ice dispensing chute 26 , a splash panel 27 and a plurality of post-mix beverage dispensing valves 28 .",
"[0020] Referring also to FIG. 2, a drip tray or sink, indicated generally at 29 , is at the lower front of the ice/beverage dispenser 14 and is positioned below the ice dispensing chute 26 and the beverage dispensing valves 28 .",
"The drip tray 29 includes a removable cup rest or metal grate 30 resting on an upper perimeter edge 31 of perimeter walls 32 of the drip tray.",
"A drip tray volume or interior space 33 is defined within the drip tray 29 below the grate 30 , within the perimeter walls 32 and above a bottom drain surface 34 of the drip tray.",
"The bottom drain surface 34 serves to direct waste fluids as may enter the drip tray to a drain 35 .",
"As is conventional, the drip tray can be a rigid plastic structure and include foam insulation material 36 (FIG.",
"4) [0021] In use of the dispenser 10 , ice dispensed from the ice dispensing chute 26 that does not enter a receptacle or cup can accumulate in the interior 33 of the trip tray 29 and on the drip tray top grate 30 .",
"So that an accumulation of such ice can be eliminated before it presents problems, according to the present invention a readily available source of heat from the icemaker 12 is used to melt any ice as may enter the drip tray 29 or rest on its grate 30 .",
"This source of heat from the icemaker is the “heat-of-rejection”",
"produced at the condenser 20 , which heat is rejected as “waste”",
"heat in operation of the icemaker in order to cool the evaporator 22 to make ice.",
"The condenser 20 typically operates at a temperature in the range of from about 110° to 140° F., and this heat energy can be tapped and delivered to the drip tray or sink area to melt any ice as may accumulate in the drip tray 29 and/or on its grate 30 .",
"A typical 500 pound per day icemaker rejects over about 11,000 Btu per hour during ice making cycles, only a small portion of which heat need be utilized to effectively melt any accumulation of such ice.",
"This may be accomplished by routing a high pressure refrigerant line that exits the condenser 20 into the interior 33 of the drip tray 29 or to a heat sink located in the drip tray interior, so that a safe and effective supply of heat will be delivered to the drip tray interior to melt any ice accumulated therein.",
"Under the circumstance where no ice is present in the drip tray, temperatures in the drip tray will not rise excessively and will remain at safe levels.",
"A side benefit realized by directing evaporator heat to the drip tray is that a small performance gain will be realized by the icemaker in the melting of ice as a result of additional sub-cooling of the high pressure refrigerant when the refrigerant gives up heat to melt ice in the ice tray.",
"[0022] As best seen in FIG. 2, the refrigeration system of the icemaker 12 includes a low pressure refrigerant line 37 extending between an outlet from the evaporator 22 and an inlet to the compressor 18 and a high pressure refrigerant line 38 extending from an outlet from the compressor to an inlet to the condenser 20 .",
"Another high pressure refrigerant line 40 extends between an outlet from the condenser 20 and an expansion valve 42 coupled to an inlet to the evaporator 22 .",
"However, unlike the situation that exists in a conventional icemaker where a high pressure refrigerant line at an outlet from a condenser would lead directly to an expansion valve, according to the invention the high pressure refrigerant line 40 is routed from the condenser outlet first downward through and within the housing 16 of the ice/beverage dispenser 14 to a lower front end of the housing where the line exits forward from the housing into the interior space 33 of the drip tray 29 .",
"As also seen in FIG. 3, the refrigerant line 40 includes a tortuously configured portion, such as a serpentine portion 40 a, that is located and extends in a plane within the interior space 33 of the drip tray 29 .",
"Beyond or downstream from (with respect to the direction of refrigerant flow) its serpentine portion 40 a , the refrigerant line 40 extends rearward back into the ice/beverage dispenser housing 16 and then returns upward through and within the housing to the expansion valve 42 of the icemaker 12 .",
"As is apparent and will be more fully described, in operation of the icemaker 12 the serpentine portion 40 a of the high pressure refrigerant line 40 will be warm and the heat provided by the serpentine portion within the drip tray will melt ice in the drip tray and on its grate.",
"[0023] The drip tray grate 30 is preferably made of stainless steel for heat conductivity, strength, resistance to rust and appearance, and is in heat exchange relationship with the serpentine line portion 40 a of the high pressure refrigerant line 40 within the interior 33 of the drip tray 29 .",
"Various thermally conductive heat exchange support/connecting structures 44 can be removably placed within the interior 33 of the drip tray 29 to provide for retention of the refrigerant line serpentine portion 40 a in a fixed position within the drip tray and in heat exchange relationship with the grate 30 .",
"To provide satisfactory heat exchange relationship and good thermal conductivity between the grate 30 and the refrigerant line portion 40 a , the support structures 44 are advantageously made of a suitable heat conducting material, such as aluminum or stainless steel.",
"As seen in FIG. 2, further thermal mass and ice melting capability can be provided in the drip tray 29 by a metal plate or liner 46 extending on and along the drip tray bottom drain surface 34 , which plate is placed in thermal contact with the high pressure refrigerant line serpentine portion 40 a by means of thermal connectors 44 extending between the plate and the serpentine line portion.",
"In an alternative arrangement shown in FIG. 4, the refrigerant line serpentine portion 40 a can be positioned below the metal plate or liner 46 , between the plate and the drip tray bottom drain surface 34 , so that it is more protected from accidental mechanical damage.",
"In this alternative embodiment, removable thermal connectors 44 may be used to provide thermal connection between the plate 46 and the grate 30 as the plate is heated by the refrigerant line serpentine portion 40 a. [0024] In operation of the invention, when the icemaker 12 operates to make ice, hot high pressure refrigerant flows through the refrigerant line 38 from the outlet from the compressor 18 to the inlet to the condenser 20 .",
"As is understood, the hot refrigerant is cooled by the operation of condenser 20 , but the refrigerant as it leaves the condenser and flows through the refrigerant line 40 will still be warm.",
"This warm refrigerant flows through the refrigerant line 40 to and through the refrigerant line serpentine portion 40 a within the interior 33 of the drip tray 29 , where the warm refrigerant gives up heat energy to melt any ice in the drip tray or as may be resting on the drip tray grate 30 .",
"Melting of ice within the drip tray and on its grate will be enhanced to the extent that there is suitable thermal mass with which the high pressure refrigerant line serpentine portion 40 a is in thermal contact, such as the grate 30 , the metal connectors 44 and the metal liner 46 .",
"[0025] An additional benefit to melting ice in the drip tray 29 through use of warm refrigerant exiting the condenser 20 of the icemaker 12 is that the heat exchange process will result in high pressure refrigerant in the refrigerant line 40 being further cooled before it reaches and passes through the expansion valve 42 into the evaporator 22 , which will improve the cooling ability and efficiency of the of the icemaker.",
"Consequently, in the process of advantageously using warm refrigerant to melt and eliminate the problems associated with an accumulation of waste ice in the drip tray 29 , the capacity of the waste ice to absorb heat from the refrigerant beneficially results in improvements in icemaker operating efficiency.",
"[0026] While embodiments of the invention have been described in detail, various modifications and other embodiments thereof may be devised by one skilled in the art without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention, as defined in the appended claims."
] |
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
This application claims priority of German Patent Application No. 10 2008 023 370.6 DE filed May 13, 2008, which is incorporated by reference herein in its entirety.
FIELD OF INVENTION
The invention relates to a method for operating a hearing device and a hearing device.
BACKGROUND OF INVENTION
Interference noises or unwanted acoustic signals are omnipresent during a conversation between persons. These interfere with the human voice of a person or with a desired acoustic signal. Hearing device wearers are particularly prone to interference noises and unwanted acoustic signals. Conversations in the background, acoustic disturbances from electronic devices, like for instance mobile telephones, as well as noises in the surroundings can make it difficult for a person wearing a hearing device to understand a desired speaker. A reduction in the interference noise level in an acoustic signal, coupled with an automatic focus on a desired acoustic signal component can significantly improve the performance of a digital speech processor, as is used in modern hearing aids.
Hearing devices with a digital signal processing contain one or more microphones, A/D converters, digital signal processors and loudspeakers. Digital signal processors generally divide the incoming signals into a plurality of frequency bands. A signal amplification and processing can be individually adjusted within each band so as to match the requirements of a specific wearer of the hearing device. Furthermore, algorithms for feedback and interference noise minimization are also available in the case of digital signal processing, said algorithms nevertheless also being disadvantageous. The disadvantage with the currently existing algorithms for interference noise minimization is for instance the restricted improvement thereof in terms of the hearing device acoustics, if speech and background noises are in the same frequency range and they are thus not able to distinguish between spoken speech and background noise. This is one of the most frequent aims in the field of acoustic signal processing, namely to filter out one or a plurality of signals from different, superimposing acoustic signals. This is also referred to as the so-called “cocktail party problem”. Here different noises, such as music and chatter, mix to form an indefinable background noise. Nevertheless, it is generally not difficult for a person without a hearing impairment to converse with another person in such a situation. It is thus desirable for hearing device wearers to be able to chat in such situations in a similar way to people without a hearing impairment.
Spatial, e.g. directional microphone or beam forming, statistical, e.g. Blind Source Separation (BSS: “Separation of non visible sound sources”) or mixed methods exist in the acoustic signal processing, which can inter alia separate a single sound source or a plurality thereof from a number of simultaneously active sound sources using algorithms. BSS thus enables a separation of source signals without previous knowledge of their geometric arrangement by means of statistical signal processing of at least two microphone signals. When used in hearing devices, this method is advantageous compared with conventional directional microphone solutions. As a matter of principle, up to n sources can be separated, i.e. n output signals can be generated, using a BSS method with n microphones.
Numerous methods for BSS are known from the literature, with acoustic sources being analyzed by analyzing at least two microphone signals. The subsequently published patent application DE 10 2006 047 982 provides a good overview.
The control of directional microphones within the sense of BSS is subject to ambiguities as soon as several concurrent useful sources, e.g. speakers, are present at the same time. BSS in principle allows the separation of different sources, provided these are spatially separated. The ambiguity nevertheless reduces the potential use of a directional microphone, although a directional microphone can be particularly useful in such scenarios in order to improve speech intelligibility.
The hearing device and/or the mathematical algorithms for BSS have in principle the problem of having to decide which of the signals generated by BSS are to be most advantageously forwarded to the hearing aid wearer. In principle this is an insoluble problem for the hearing aid since the selection of wanted acoustic sources depends directly on the momentary wishes of the hearing aid wearer and a selection algorithm can thus not be present as an input variable. The selection affected by this algorithm must therefore draw upon the assumptions relating to the probable wishes of the hearer.
In the prior art, the hearing aid wearer preferably assumes an acoustic signal from a 0° direction, in other words the line of vision of the hearing aid wearer. This is realistic since the hearing aid wearer would look at his/her current conversational partner in an acoustically difficult situation in order to gain further information in terms of increasing the speech intelligibility of the conversational partner (e.g. lip movements). The hearing aid wearer is however herewith obliged to see his/her conversational partner so that the directional microphone results in increased speech intelligibility. This is particularly inconvenient if the hearing aid wearer wishes to converse with precisely one individual person, i.e. is not included in a communication with several speakers and would not like/have to always see his/her conversational partner.
SUMMARY OF INVENTION
An object of the invention is to specify an improved method for operating a hearing device, as well as an improved hearing device, with which it is possible to distinguish which output signals of a source separation, in particular a BSS, are acoustically supplied to the hearing aid wearer.
According to the invention, the set object is achieved with a method and a hearing device as claimed in the claims.
The invention includes a method for operating a hearing device, with electrical acoustic signals being generated by the hearing device from a recorded ambient sound. These are weighted according to the degree to which they match a predefinable acoustic signal class and are mixed together to form an output acoustic signal. The weight of the acoustic signal is greater or lesser depending on the degree of matching. This is advantageous in that a desired signal can be provided to a hearing device user from a plurality of ambient acoustic signals.
In one development, the degree of matching can be determined by the features volume, frequency range, fundamental frequency, cepstral coefficients and/or temporal course of the acoustic signals. A high flexibility is achieved as a result.
In a further embodiment, the predefinable acoustic signal class can include the classes speech and/or human voice, in a predefinable wave band, male voice, female voice, child's voice, voice of a predefinable person, music and ambient noise. This provides the advantage of a large selection for a hearing device user.
The predefinable acoustic signal class can also include any combination of classes.
Furthermore, the electrical acoustic signals can be generated from the ambient sound by means of a Blind Source Separation method. This results in a good acoustic signal separation.
The degree of matching can be advantageously determined by a feature analysis of the electrical acoustic signals, with a probability of the match with a predefinable acoustic signal class being determined for the electrical acoustic signals. The simple computational weighting is advantageous in this case.
A hearing device with at least one microphone for recording an ambient sound and with a segregation unit for generating electrical acoustic signals from the recorded ambient sound is also specified. The hearing device includes a signal processing unit, by means of which acoustic signals can be weighted according to their degree of matching with a predeterminable acoustic signal class and can be mixed to form an output acoustic signal, with the weight of the acoustic signal being greater or lesser depending on the degree of matching. As a result, the switchover between acoustic signal classes can take place “smoothly”.
In one development, the segregation unit can include a blind source separation module.
In a further embodiment, the signal processing unit can include at least one classification module, at least one weight determination module, at least one multiplier and at least one adder.
Furthermore, the hearing device can include an acoustic signal class input unit, with which the desired, predefinable acoustic signal class is communicated to the hearing device. This can be arranged on the hearing device or in a remote controller.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
Further details and advantages of the invention are apparent from the subsequent explanations of several exemplary embodiments with reference to schematic drawings, in which:
FIG. 1 : shows a block diagram of a hearing device with blind source separation according to the prior art and
FIG. 2 : shows a block diagram of a hearing device.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF INVENTION
FIG. 1 shows the prior art of a hearing device 1 comprising three microphones 2 and a segregation unit 5 according to the blind source separation method. Three signal sources generate three acoustic ambient acoustic signals s 1 , s 2 , s 3 , which are received by the three microphones 2 and are converted into electrical microphone signals X 1 , X 2 , X 3 . The three microphone signals x 1 , x 2 , x 3 are each fed to a signal input in the segregation unit 5 . The blind source separation method proceeds in the segregation unit 5 , with the aid of which the ambient acoustic signals s 1 , s 2 , s 3 can be reconstructed from the mixed electrical microphone signals x 1 , x 2 , x 3 . Three electrical acoustic signals s 1 ′, s 2 ′, s 3 ′ are thus available at three outputs of the segregation unit 5 .
In the simplest case, a hearing device user can make a selection between the three separately reproduced acoustic signals s 1 ′, s 2 ′, s 3 ′ with the aid of a selection switch 7 in a post processor module 6 . In FIG. 1 , the electrical acoustic signal s 2 ′ was selected and forwarded to a receiver 3 . The segregation unit 5 and the post processor module form a signal processing unit 4 .
The receiver 3 sends the signal s 2 ″, which corresponds approximately to the acoustic ambient acoustic signal s 2 , as an acoustic output signal. With the aid of the hearing device 1 in FIG. 1 , different acoustic input signals can thus be separated and can be separately output via the receiver 3 in accordance with the preferences of a hearing device user.
A hearing device wearer does not always want a stringent switchover between different input signal sources of this type. It is also not always possible for a segregation unit 5 to prepare the signals in a clean and reliably separated fashion. An improved representation of different ambient sound signals is thus offered by the apparatus in FIG. 2 .
FIG. 2 shows a hearing device 1 comprising three microphones 2 , a signal processing unit 4 and a receiver and/or loudspeaker 3 . Three ambient sound signals s 1 , s 2 , s 3 are recorded by the microphones 2 and routed to the signal processing unit 4 as microphone signals x 1 , x 2 , x 3 . The microphone signals x 1 , x 2 , x 3 prepared by the signal processing unit 4 are then routed to an input of the receiver 3 and provided to the hearing device user as one acoustic output signal s.
In the signal processing unit 4 , the microphone signals x 1 , x 2 , x 3 are processed with the aid of a segregation unit 5 and are routed to the further processing units as segregated electrical acoustic signals s 1 ′, s 2 ′, s 3 ′. The electrical acoustic signals s 1 ′, s 2 ′, s 3 ′ reach the inputs of multipliers 10 on the one hand, and the inputs of a classification module 8 on the other hand. An acoustic signal class input unit 12 allows a hearing device user to predefine a preferred acoustic signal class. This specification is routed to the classification module 8 and processed therein. The preselected acoustic signal class may include for instance a male voice, a female voice, a child's voice or also a certain frequency range, or in general human voices and/or speech, or music etc. In the classification module 8 , the probability can be calculated for instance, with which an electrical acoustic signal s 1 ′, s 2 ′, s 3 ′, belongs to a certain acoustic signal class. This degree of matching is now weighted accordingly with the aid of a weight determination module 9 . To this end, the degrees of matching of the classified signals are routed from outputs of the classification module 8 to inputs of the weight determination module 9 . The weight determination module 9 now determines the weights g 1 , g 2 , g 3 for instance such that the weight of an acoustic signal is selected to be greater, the higher the degree of matching with the preselected class. The weights g 1 , g 2 , g 3 are routed to these corresponding inputs of the multiplier 10 . The electrical acoustic signals s 1 ′, s 2 ′, s 3 ′ are now multiplied in the multipliers 10 with the weights g 1 , g 2 , g 3 . The weighted electrical acoustic signals are routed to an adder 11 from outputs of the multiplier 10 . These signals are added in the adder 11 and made available to the output of the adder 11 . The electrical signal is then converted at the output of the adder in the receiver 3 into an output acoustic signal S. | A method for operating a hearing device and a hearing device are provided. Electrical acoustic signals are generated by the hearing device from a recorded ambient sound, the electrical signals being weighted according to their degree of matching with a predefinable acoustic signal class and being mixed together to form an output sound signal. The weight of the acoustic signal is greater or lesser, the greater the extent of the degree of matching. | Concisely explain the essential features and purpose of the invention. | [
"CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS This application claims priority of German Patent Application No. 10 2008 023 370.6 DE filed May 13, 2008, which is incorporated by reference herein in its entirety.",
"FIELD OF INVENTION The invention relates to a method for operating a hearing device and a hearing device.",
"BACKGROUND OF INVENTION Interference noises or unwanted acoustic signals are omnipresent during a conversation between persons.",
"These interfere with the human voice of a person or with a desired acoustic signal.",
"Hearing device wearers are particularly prone to interference noises and unwanted acoustic signals.",
"Conversations in the background, acoustic disturbances from electronic devices, like for instance mobile telephones, as well as noises in the surroundings can make it difficult for a person wearing a hearing device to understand a desired speaker.",
"A reduction in the interference noise level in an acoustic signal, coupled with an automatic focus on a desired acoustic signal component can significantly improve the performance of a digital speech processor, as is used in modern hearing aids.",
"Hearing devices with a digital signal processing contain one or more microphones, A/D converters, digital signal processors and loudspeakers.",
"Digital signal processors generally divide the incoming signals into a plurality of frequency bands.",
"A signal amplification and processing can be individually adjusted within each band so as to match the requirements of a specific wearer of the hearing device.",
"Furthermore, algorithms for feedback and interference noise minimization are also available in the case of digital signal processing, said algorithms nevertheless also being disadvantageous.",
"The disadvantage with the currently existing algorithms for interference noise minimization is for instance the restricted improvement thereof in terms of the hearing device acoustics, if speech and background noises are in the same frequency range and they are thus not able to distinguish between spoken speech and background noise.",
"This is one of the most frequent aims in the field of acoustic signal processing, namely to filter out one or a plurality of signals from different, superimposing acoustic signals.",
"This is also referred to as the so-called “cocktail party problem.”",
"Here different noises, such as music and chatter, mix to form an indefinable background noise.",
"Nevertheless, it is generally not difficult for a person without a hearing impairment to converse with another person in such a situation.",
"It is thus desirable for hearing device wearers to be able to chat in such situations in a similar way to people without a hearing impairment.",
"Spatial, e.g. directional microphone or beam forming, statistical, e.g. Blind Source Separation (BSS: “Separation of non visible sound sources”) or mixed methods exist in the acoustic signal processing, which can inter alia separate a single sound source or a plurality thereof from a number of simultaneously active sound sources using algorithms.",
"BSS thus enables a separation of source signals without previous knowledge of their geometric arrangement by means of statistical signal processing of at least two microphone signals.",
"When used in hearing devices, this method is advantageous compared with conventional directional microphone solutions.",
"As a matter of principle, up to n sources can be separated, i.e. n output signals can be generated, using a BSS method with n microphones.",
"Numerous methods for BSS are known from the literature, with acoustic sources being analyzed by analyzing at least two microphone signals.",
"The subsequently published patent application DE 10 2006 047 982 provides a good overview.",
"The control of directional microphones within the sense of BSS is subject to ambiguities as soon as several concurrent useful sources, e.g. speakers, are present at the same time.",
"BSS in principle allows the separation of different sources, provided these are spatially separated.",
"The ambiguity nevertheless reduces the potential use of a directional microphone, although a directional microphone can be particularly useful in such scenarios in order to improve speech intelligibility.",
"The hearing device and/or the mathematical algorithms for BSS have in principle the problem of having to decide which of the signals generated by BSS are to be most advantageously forwarded to the hearing aid wearer.",
"In principle this is an insoluble problem for the hearing aid since the selection of wanted acoustic sources depends directly on the momentary wishes of the hearing aid wearer and a selection algorithm can thus not be present as an input variable.",
"The selection affected by this algorithm must therefore draw upon the assumptions relating to the probable wishes of the hearer.",
"In the prior art, the hearing aid wearer preferably assumes an acoustic signal from a 0° direction, in other words the line of vision of the hearing aid wearer.",
"This is realistic since the hearing aid wearer would look at his/her current conversational partner in an acoustically difficult situation in order to gain further information in terms of increasing the speech intelligibility of the conversational partner (e.g. lip movements).",
"The hearing aid wearer is however herewith obliged to see his/her conversational partner so that the directional microphone results in increased speech intelligibility.",
"This is particularly inconvenient if the hearing aid wearer wishes to converse with precisely one individual person, i.e. is not included in a communication with several speakers and would not like/have to always see his/her conversational partner.",
"SUMMARY OF INVENTION An object of the invention is to specify an improved method for operating a hearing device, as well as an improved hearing device, with which it is possible to distinguish which output signals of a source separation, in particular a BSS, are acoustically supplied to the hearing aid wearer.",
"According to the invention, the set object is achieved with a method and a hearing device as claimed in the claims.",
"The invention includes a method for operating a hearing device, with electrical acoustic signals being generated by the hearing device from a recorded ambient sound.",
"These are weighted according to the degree to which they match a predefinable acoustic signal class and are mixed together to form an output acoustic signal.",
"The weight of the acoustic signal is greater or lesser depending on the degree of matching.",
"This is advantageous in that a desired signal can be provided to a hearing device user from a plurality of ambient acoustic signals.",
"In one development, the degree of matching can be determined by the features volume, frequency range, fundamental frequency, cepstral coefficients and/or temporal course of the acoustic signals.",
"A high flexibility is achieved as a result.",
"In a further embodiment, the predefinable acoustic signal class can include the classes speech and/or human voice, in a predefinable wave band, male voice, female voice, child's voice, voice of a predefinable person, music and ambient noise.",
"This provides the advantage of a large selection for a hearing device user.",
"The predefinable acoustic signal class can also include any combination of classes.",
"Furthermore, the electrical acoustic signals can be generated from the ambient sound by means of a Blind Source Separation method.",
"This results in a good acoustic signal separation.",
"The degree of matching can be advantageously determined by a feature analysis of the electrical acoustic signals, with a probability of the match with a predefinable acoustic signal class being determined for the electrical acoustic signals.",
"The simple computational weighting is advantageous in this case.",
"A hearing device with at least one microphone for recording an ambient sound and with a segregation unit for generating electrical acoustic signals from the recorded ambient sound is also specified.",
"The hearing device includes a signal processing unit, by means of which acoustic signals can be weighted according to their degree of matching with a predeterminable acoustic signal class and can be mixed to form an output acoustic signal, with the weight of the acoustic signal being greater or lesser depending on the degree of matching.",
"As a result, the switchover between acoustic signal classes can take place “smoothly.”",
"In one development, the segregation unit can include a blind source separation module.",
"In a further embodiment, the signal processing unit can include at least one classification module, at least one weight determination module, at least one multiplier and at least one adder.",
"Furthermore, the hearing device can include an acoustic signal class input unit, with which the desired, predefinable acoustic signal class is communicated to the hearing device.",
"This can be arranged on the hearing device or in a remote controller.",
"BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS Further details and advantages of the invention are apparent from the subsequent explanations of several exemplary embodiments with reference to schematic drawings, in which: FIG. 1 : shows a block diagram of a hearing device with blind source separation according to the prior art and FIG. 2 : shows a block diagram of a hearing device.",
"DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF INVENTION FIG. 1 shows the prior art of a hearing device 1 comprising three microphones 2 and a segregation unit 5 according to the blind source separation method.",
"Three signal sources generate three acoustic ambient acoustic signals s 1 , s 2 , s 3 , which are received by the three microphones 2 and are converted into electrical microphone signals X 1 , X 2 , X 3 .",
"The three microphone signals x 1 , x 2 , x 3 are each fed to a signal input in the segregation unit 5 .",
"The blind source separation method proceeds in the segregation unit 5 , with the aid of which the ambient acoustic signals s 1 , s 2 , s 3 can be reconstructed from the mixed electrical microphone signals x 1 , x 2 , x 3 .",
"Three electrical acoustic signals s 1 ′, s 2 ′, s 3 ′ are thus available at three outputs of the segregation unit 5 .",
"In the simplest case, a hearing device user can make a selection between the three separately reproduced acoustic signals s 1 ′, s 2 ′, s 3 ′ with the aid of a selection switch 7 in a post processor module 6 .",
"In FIG. 1 , the electrical acoustic signal s 2 ′ was selected and forwarded to a receiver 3 .",
"The segregation unit 5 and the post processor module form a signal processing unit 4 .",
"The receiver 3 sends the signal s 2 ″, which corresponds approximately to the acoustic ambient acoustic signal s 2 , as an acoustic output signal.",
"With the aid of the hearing device 1 in FIG. 1 , different acoustic input signals can thus be separated and can be separately output via the receiver 3 in accordance with the preferences of a hearing device user.",
"A hearing device wearer does not always want a stringent switchover between different input signal sources of this type.",
"It is also not always possible for a segregation unit 5 to prepare the signals in a clean and reliably separated fashion.",
"An improved representation of different ambient sound signals is thus offered by the apparatus in FIG. 2 .",
"FIG. 2 shows a hearing device 1 comprising three microphones 2 , a signal processing unit 4 and a receiver and/or loudspeaker 3 .",
"Three ambient sound signals s 1 , s 2 , s 3 are recorded by the microphones 2 and routed to the signal processing unit 4 as microphone signals x 1 , x 2 , x 3 .",
"The microphone signals x 1 , x 2 , x 3 prepared by the signal processing unit 4 are then routed to an input of the receiver 3 and provided to the hearing device user as one acoustic output signal s. In the signal processing unit 4 , the microphone signals x 1 , x 2 , x 3 are processed with the aid of a segregation unit 5 and are routed to the further processing units as segregated electrical acoustic signals s 1 ′, s 2 ′, s 3 ′.",
"The electrical acoustic signals s 1 ′, s 2 ′, s 3 ′ reach the inputs of multipliers 10 on the one hand, and the inputs of a classification module 8 on the other hand.",
"An acoustic signal class input unit 12 allows a hearing device user to predefine a preferred acoustic signal class.",
"This specification is routed to the classification module 8 and processed therein.",
"The preselected acoustic signal class may include for instance a male voice, a female voice, a child's voice or also a certain frequency range, or in general human voices and/or speech, or music etc.",
"In the classification module 8 , the probability can be calculated for instance, with which an electrical acoustic signal s 1 ′, s 2 ′, s 3 ′, belongs to a certain acoustic signal class.",
"This degree of matching is now weighted accordingly with the aid of a weight determination module 9 .",
"To this end, the degrees of matching of the classified signals are routed from outputs of the classification module 8 to inputs of the weight determination module 9 .",
"The weight determination module 9 now determines the weights g 1 , g 2 , g 3 for instance such that the weight of an acoustic signal is selected to be greater, the higher the degree of matching with the preselected class.",
"The weights g 1 , g 2 , g 3 are routed to these corresponding inputs of the multiplier 10 .",
"The electrical acoustic signals s 1 ′, s 2 ′, s 3 ′ are now multiplied in the multipliers 10 with the weights g 1 , g 2 , g 3 .",
"The weighted electrical acoustic signals are routed to an adder 11 from outputs of the multiplier 10 .",
"These signals are added in the adder 11 and made available to the output of the adder 11 .",
"The electrical signal is then converted at the output of the adder in the receiver 3 into an output acoustic signal S."
] |
CROSSREFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] This application is based upon and claims the benefit of priority from the prior Japanese Patent Application No. 2002-282015, filed on Sep. 26, 2002; the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0002] The present invention relates to a server device, a client device, and a system for realizing video hypermedia by combining local video data and metadata on a network.
[0003] Hypermedia is a system in which a connection called a hyperlink is defined among media including a moving image, a still image, audio, and text, and which allows mutual or one-way reference. For example, HTML home pages which can be viewed through the Internet include text and still images, for which links are defined everywhere. Designating the link allows related information of link-destination to be immediately displayed. Since related information can be accessed by directly indicating a word or a phrase of interest, it is easy and intuitive to operate.
[0004] On the other hand, in hypermedia for video, not for text and still images, links are defined from people and objects in video to related contents including text and still images for describing them. Accordingly, when the viewers indicate the objects, the related contents are displayed. In this case, it becomes necessary to provide data (object-area data) indicating a spatiotemporal area of the object in the video.
[0005] For the object-area data, it is possible to use methods of describing a binary or more mask image sequence, arbitrary shape coding by MPEG-4 (ISO/IEC 14496), and describing the locus of the feature of a figure, which is described in JP-A-11-20387.
[0006] In order to achieve the video hypermedia, in addition to those, it becomes necessary to provide data (script data) that describes an action of displaying related contents when an object is indicated, contents data to be displayed and so on. These data are called metadata in contrast to video.
[0007] For the viewers to enjoy video hypermedia, for example, it is desirable to provide video CDs and DVDs in which both the video and the metadata are recorded. Also, the use of streaming distribution through a network such as the Internet allows the viewers to view video hypermedia by receiving both of the video and the metadata.
[0008] However, since already-owned video CDs and DVDs have no metadata, the viewers cannot enjoy hypermedia with such videos. One of methods for enjoying video hypermedia with the video CDs and DVDs having no metadata is to newly produce metadata for the videos and to distribute them to the viewers.
[0009] The metadata may be distributed while being recorded in CDS, flexible discs, DVDs and so on; however, it is most convenient to distribute the metadata through a network. When the viewers can access the network, they can easily download the metadata at home, which allows the viewers to view video CDs and DVDS that could only be played back previously as hypermedia and to view their related information.
[0010] However, when only the metadata is downloaded through a network, the viewers must wait to play back the video until the completion of downloading when the metadata is large in volume. In order to play back the video without a wait, there is a method of receiving video data and metadata by streaming distribution. However, videos that can be sent by streaming distribution have low image quality, and high-quality videos in the video CDs and DVDs in viewer's possession cannot be well utilized.
[0011] As described above, in order to enjoy video hypermedia by combining videos in possession and metadata on a network, the videos in viewer's possession must be utilized and also the viewer's waiting time for downloading the metadata must be eliminated.
BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0012] Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide devices and a system for eliminating viewer's waiting time for downloading metadata when viewers enjoy hyper media by combining videos in viewer's possession and metadata on a network.
[0013] According to embodiments of the present invention, a client device is provided which is capable of accessing a. hypermedia-data server device through a network. The client device includes a playback unit to play back a moving image; a time-stamp transmission unit to transmit the time stamp of the image in playback mode to the server device; a metadata receiving unit to receive metadata having information related to the contents of the image at each time stamp from the server device by streaming distribution in synchronization with the playback of the moving image; and a controller to display the received metadata or performing control on the basis of the metadata in synchronization with the playback of the image.
[0014] According to embodiments of the present invention, a server device is provided which is capable of accessing a hypermedia-data client device through a network. The server device includes a metadata storage unit to store metadata having information related to the contents of an image corresponding to each time stamp of a moving image to be played back by the client device; a time-stamp receiving unit to receive the time stamp of the image to be played back, the time stamp being transmitted from the client device; and a metadata transmission unit to transmit the stored metadata to the client device by streaming distribution in synchronization with the playback of the image in accordance with the received time stamp.
[0015] According to embodiments of the present invention, a method for playing back a moving image in a client device is provided which is capable of accessing a hypermedia-data server device through a network. The method includes a playback step of playing back the moving image; a time-stamp transmission step of transmitting the time stamp of the image in playback mode to the server device; a metadata receiving step of receiving metadata having information related to the contents of the image at each time stamp from the server device by streaming distribution in synchronization with the playback of the moving image; and a control step of displaying the received metadata or performing control on the basis of the metadata in synchronization with the playback of the image.
[0016] According to embodiments of the present invention, a method for transmitting data in a server device is provided which is capable of accessing a hypermedia-data client device through a network. The method includes a time-stamp receiving step of receiving the time stamp of an image to be played back, the time stamp being transmitted from the client device; and a metadata transmission step of transmitting metadata having information related to the contents of an image corresponding to each time stamp of a moving image to be played back by the client device to the client device by streaming distribution in synchronization with the playback of the image on the basis of the received time stamp.
[0017] According to embodiments of the present invention, even videos in viewer's possession can receive new metadata through a network. Therefore, the viewer can enjoy it as video hypermedia.
[0018] The viewer receives metadata by streaming distribution through a network in synchronization with the playback of the video. Accordingly, there is no need for the viewer to wait for the playback of the video unlike when downloading the metadata.
[0019] Furthermore, since videos in viewer's possession are used, high-quality images can be enjoyed as compared with images by streaming distribution for each video.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0020] [0020]FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the structure of a hypermedia system according to an embodiment of the present invention;
[0021] [0021]FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of the structure of object data according to an embodiment of the invention;
[0022] [0022]FIG. 3 is a diagram showing an example of the screen display of a hypermedia system according to an embodiment of the invention;
[0023] [0023]FIG. 4 is a diagram of an example of server-client communication according to an embodiment of the invention;
[0024] [0024]FIG. 5 is a flowchart of the process of determining the scheduling of metadata transmission according to an embodiment of the invention;
[0025] [0025]FIG. 6 is a diagram of an example of the process of packetizing object data according to an embodiment of the invention;
[0026] [0026]FIG. 7 is a diagram of an example of the structure of packet data according to an embodiment of the invention;
[0027] [0027]FIG. 8 is a diagram of another process of packetizing object data according to an embodiment of the invention;
[0028] [0028]FIG. 9 is a diagram of an example of sorting a metadata packet according to an embodiment of the invention;
[0029] [0029]FIG. 10 is a flowchart of the process of determining the timing of packet transmission according to an embodiment of the invention;
[0030] [0030]FIG. 11 is a diagram of an example of an access-point table of a packet according to an embodiment of the invention;
[0031] [0031]FIG. 12 is a flowchart for making an access-point table of a packet according to an embodiment of the invention;
[0032] [0032]FIG. 13 is a flowchart of another method of determining the position of starting the transmission of metadata by a streaming server when a jump command is sent from a streaming client to the streaming server, according to an embodiment of the invention;
[0033] [0033]FIG. 14 is a flowchart for starting metadata transmission when an access-point table for packets formed by the method of FIG. 13 is used, according to an embodiment of the invention; and
[0034] [0034]FIG. 15 is a diagram of an example of an object-data schedule table according to an embodiment of the invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
[0035] An embodiment of the present invention will be described hereinafter with reference to the drawings.
[0036] (1) Structure of Hypermedia System
[0037] [0037]FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the structure of a hypermedia system according to an embodiment of the present invention. The function of each component will be described with reference to the drawing.
[0038] Reference numeral 100 denotes a client device; numeral 101 denotes a server device; and numeral 102 denotes a network connecting the server device 101 and the client device 100 . Reference numerals 103 to 110 designate devices included in the client device 100 ; and numerals 111 and 112 indicate devices included in the server device 101 .
[0039] The client device 100 holds video data, and the server device 101 records metadata related to the video data. The server device 101 sends the metadata to the client device 100 through the network 102 by streaming distribution at the request from the client device 100 . The client device 100 processes the transmitted metadata to realize hypermedia together with local video data.
[0040] The word, streaming distribution, means that when audio and video images are distributed on the Internet, they are played back not after the user has completed to download the file but while the user are downloading it. Accordingly, even motion-video and audio data with large volume of data can be played back without a wait.
[0041] A video-data recording medium 103 , such as a DVD, a video CD, a video tape, a hard disk, and a semiconductor memory, holds digital or analog video data.
[0042] A video controller 104 controls the action of the video-data recording medium 103 . The video controller 104 issues an instruction to start and stop the reading of video data and to access a desired position in the video data.
[0043] A video decoder 105 decodes inputted video data to extract video pixel information when the video data recorded in the video-data recording medium 103 is digitally compressed.
[0044] A streaming client 106 receives the metadata transmitted from the server device 101 through the network 102 and sends it to a metadata decoder 107 in sequence. The streaming client 106 controls the communication with the server device 101 with reference to the time stamp of video in playback mode inputted from the video decoder 105 . Here, the word, time stamp, denotes the time of playback from the initial time when a head moving image is played back, which is also called video time.
[0045] The metadata decoder 107 processes the metadata inputted from the streaming client 106 . Specifically, the metadata decoder 107 produces image data to be displayed with reference to the time stamp of the video in playback mode inputted from the video decoder 105 , and outputs it to a renderer 108 , determines information to be displayed for the input through a user interface 110 by the user, or deletes metadata that has become unnecessary from a memory.
[0046] The renderer 108 draws the image inputted from the video decoder 105 onto a monitor 109 . To the renderer 108 , an image is inputted not only from the video decoder 105 but also from the metadata decoder 107 . The renderer 108 composes both the images and draws it on the monitor 109 .
[0047] Examples of the monitor 109 are displays capable of displaying moving images, such as a CRT display, a liquid crystal display, and a plasma display.
[0048] The user interface 110 is a pointing device for inputting coordinates on the displayed image, such as a mouse, a touch panel, and a keyboard.
[0049] The network 102 is a data communication network between the client device 100 and the server device 101 , such as a local-area network (LAN) and the Internet.
[0050] A streaming server 111 transmits metadata to the client device 100 through the network 102 . The streaming server 111 also draws up a schedule for metadata transmission so as to send data required by the streaming client 106 at a proper timing.
[0051] A metadata recording medium 112 , such as a hard disk, a semiconductor memory, a DVD, a video CD, and a video tape, holds metadata related to the video data recorded in the video-data recording medium 103 . The metadata includes object data, which will be described later.
[0052] The metadata used in the embodiment includes areas of people and objects in video, which are recorded in the video-data recording medium 103 , and actions when the objects are designated by the user. The information for each object is described in the metadata.
[0053] (2) Data Structure of Object Data
[0054] [0054]FIG. 2 shows the structure of one object of object data according to an embodiment of the invention.
[0055] An ID number 200 identifies an object. Different ID numbers are allocated to respective objects.
[0056] Object display information 201 gives a description of information about an image display related to the object. For example, the object display information 201 describes information on whether the outline of the object is to be displayed while being overlapped with the display of video in order to clearly express the object position to the user, whether the name of the object is to be displayed like a balloon near the object, what color is to be used for the outline and the balloon, and which character font is to be used. The data is described in JP-A-2002-183336.
[0057] Script data 202 describes what action should be taken when an object is designated by the user. When related information is displayed by clicking on an object, the script data 202 describes the address of the related information. The related information includes text or HTML pages, still images, and video.
[0058] Object-area data 203 is information for specifying in which area the object exists at any given time. For the data, a mask image train can be used which indicates an object area in each frame or field of video. More efficient method is MPEG-4 arbitrary shape coding (ISO/IEC 14496) in which a mask image train is compression-coded. When the object area may be approximated by a rectangle, an ellipse, or a polygon having a relatively small number of apexes, the method of Patent Document 1 can be used.
[0059] The ID number 200 , the object display information 201 , and the script data 202 may be omitted when unnecessary.
[0060] (3) Method for Realizing Hypermedia
[0061] A method for realizing hypermedia using object data will then be described.
[0062] Hypermedia is a system in which a connection called a hyperlink is defined among media including a moving image, a still image, audio, and text, and which allows mutual or one-way reference. Hypermedia realized by the present invention defines a hyperlink for an object area in a moving image, thus allowing reference to information related to the object.
[0063] The user points an object of interest with the user interface 110 during viewing a video recorded in the video-data recording medium 103 . For example, with a mouse, the user puts a mouse cursor on a displayed object for clicking. At that time, the positional coordinates of a clicked point on the image is sent to the metadata decoder 107 .
[0064] The metadata decoder 107 receives the positional coordinates sent from the user interface 110 , the time stamp of the video that is now displayed sent from the video decoder 105 , and object data sent from the streaming client 106 through the network 102 . The metadata decoder 107 then specifies an object indicated by the user using these information. For this purpose, the metadata decoder 107 first processes the object-area data 203 in the object data and produces an object area at the inputted time stamp. When object-area data is described by the MPEG-4 arbitrary shape coding, a frame corresponding to the time stamp is decoded, and when the object area is approximately expressed by a figure, a figure at the time stamp is specified. It is then determined whether the inputted coordinates exist within the object. In the case of the MPEG-4 arbitrary shape coding, it is sufficient to determine the pixel value at the coordinates. When the object area is approximately expressed by a figure, it can be determined by a simple operation whether or not the inputted coordinates exist within the object (for more detailed information, refer to Patent Document 1). Performing the process also for other object data in the metadata decoder 107 allows a determination on which object is pointed by the user or whether the object pointed by the user is out of the object area.
[0065] When an object pointed by the user is specified, the metadata decoder 107 allows an action described in the script data 202 of the object, such as displaying a designated HTML file and playing back a designated video. The HTML file and the video file may be ones sent from the server device 101 through the network 102 , or ones on the Internet.
[0066] To the metadata decoder 107 , metadata is successively inputted from the streaming client 106 . The metadata decoder 107 can start the process at a point of time when data sufficient to interpret the metadata has been prepared.
[0067] For example, the object data can be processed at a point of time when the object ID number 200 , the object display information 201 , the script data 202 , and part of the object-area data 203 have been prepared. The part of the object-area data 203 is, for example, one for decoding a head frame in the MPEG-4 arbitrary shape coding.
[0068] The metadata decoder 107 also deletes metadata that has become unnecessary. The object area data 203 in the object data describes the time during which a described object exists. When the time stamp sent from the video decoder 105 has exceeded the object existing time, the data on the object is deleted from the metadata decoder 107 to save a memory.
[0069] When contents to be displayed when an object is designated have been sent as metadata, the metadata decoder 107 extracts a file name included in the header of the contents data, records data following the header, and gives the file name.
[0070] When data of the same file is sent in sequence, arriving data is added to the previous data.
[0071] The contents file may also be deleted at the same time when object data that refers the contents file is deleted.
[0072] (4) Display Example of Hypermedia System
[0073] [0073]FIG. 3 shows a display example of a hypermedia system on the monitor 109 .
[0074] Reference numeral 300 denotes a video playback screen, and numeral 301 designates a mouse cursor.
[0075] Reference numeral 302 indicates an object area in a scene extracted from an object area described in object data. When the user moves the mouse cursor 301 to the object area 302 and clicks thereon, information 303 related to the clicked object is displayed.
[0076] The object area 302 may be displayed such that the user can view it, or alternatively, may not be displayed at all.
[0077] How to display it is described in the object display information 201 in the object data. The methods of display include a method of surrounding the object with a line and a method of changing the lightness and the color tone between the inside of the object and the other areas. When displaying the object area by such methods, the metadata decoder 107 produces an object area at the time according to the time stamp inputted from the video decoder 105 , from the object data. The metadata decoder 107 then sends the object area to the renderer 108 to display a composite video playback image.
[0078] (5) Method for Sending Metadata
[0079] A method for sending metadata in the server device 101 to the client device 100 through the network 102 will be now described.
[0080] [0080]FIG. 4 shows an example of a communication between the streaming server 111 of the server device 101 and the streaming client 106 of the client device 100 .
[0081] An instruction of playing back a video from the user is first transmitted to the video controller 104 .
[0082] The video controller 104 instructs the video-data recording medium 103 to play back the video and sends an instruction to play back the video, the time stamp of its starting position, and information for specifying video contents to be played back to the streaming client 106 . The video-contents specifying information includes a contents ID number and a file name recorded in the video.
[0083] Upon receiving the video-playback start command, the time stamp of the video-playback starting position, and the video-contents specifying information, the streaming client 106 sends reference time, the video-contents specifying information, and the specifications of the client device 100 to the server device 101 .
[0084] The reference time is calculated from the time stamp of the video-playback starting position, for example, which is obtained by subtracting a certain fixed time from the time stamp of the video-playback starting position. The specifications of the client device 100 include a communication protocol, a communication speed, and a client buffer size.
[0085] The streaming server 111 first refers to the video-contents specifying information to check if the metadata of the video to be played back by the client device 100 is recorded in the metadata recording medium 112 .
[0086] When the metadata has been recorded, the streaming server 111 sets a timer to the sent reference time and checks if the specifications of the client device 100 satisfies conditions for communication. When the conditions are satisfied, the streaming server 111 sends a confirmation signal to the streaming client 106 .
[0087] When the metadata of the video to be played back by the client device 100 is not recorded or the conditions are not satisfied, the streaming server 111 sends a signal indicating that there is no metadata or communication is unavailable to the streaming client 106 , thus communication is completed.
[0088] The timer in the server device 101 is a watch for the streaming server 111 to schedule the transmission of data, which is adjusted so as to synthesize with the time stamp of the video to be played back by the client device 100 .
[0089] The streaming client 106 then sends a playback command and the time stamp of a playback starting position to the streaming server 111 . Upon receiving them, the streaming server 111 specifies data that is necessary at the received time stamp from the metadata, and transmits packets including the metadata therefrom to the streaming client 106 in sequence.
[0090] The method for determining the position to start the transmission and the process of scheduling packet transmission will be specifically described later.
[0091] Even when the video controller 104 sends a video-playback start command to the streaming client 106 , video playback is not immediately started. This is for the purpose of waiting for the metadata necessary at the start of video playback to be accumulated in the metadata decoder 107 . When all the metadata necessary for starting video playback has been prepared, the streaming client 106 notifies the video controller 104 that the preparation has been finished, and the video controller. 104 then starts to playback the video.
[0092] The streaming client 106 periodically sends delay information to the streaming server 111 when receiving packets including metadata. The delay information indicates how long the timing at which the streaming client 106 receives the metadata is delayed from the time for playing back the video. On the contrary, it may be information that indicates how long the timing is fast. The streaming server 111 uses the information to advance the timing of transmitting the packets including the metadata when delayed, and on the other hand, to delay the timing when advanced.
[0093] The streaming client 106 also periodically transmits the reference time to the streaming server 111 when receiving packets including the metadata. The reference time at that time is the time stamp of a video in playback mode and is inputted from the video decoder 105 . The streaming server 111 sets the timer for receiving the reference time to synchronize with the video in playback mode in the client device 100 .
[0094] Finally, after the video has been play backed to the end or when the stop of the video playback is inputted from the user, a command to stop the video playback is sent from the video controller 104 to the streaming client 106 . Upon receiving the command, the streaming client 106 sends a stop command to the streaming server 111 . Upon receiving the stop command, the streaming server 111 finishes the data transmission. The transmission of all metadata sometimes finishes before the streaming client 106 sends the stop command. In such a case, the streaming server 111 sends a message to tell that the data transmission has been finished to the streaming client 106 , and thus the communication is finished.
[0095] In addition to the playback command and the stop command, which have already been described, the commands sent from the client device 100 to the server device 101 include a suspend command, a suspend release command, and a jump command. When a suspend command is issued from the user during the reception of metadata, the command is sent to the streaming server 111 . Upon receiving the command, the streaming server 111 suspends the transmission of metadata. When a suspend release command is issued from the user during the suspension, the streaming client 106 sends the suspend release command to the streaming server 111 . Upon receiving the command, the streaming server 111 restarts the suspended transmission of metadata.
[0096] The jump command is sent from the streaming client 106 to the streaming server 111 when the user instructs the video in playback mode to be played back from a position different from the current playback position. At the same time, the time stamp of a new video playback position is also sent together with the jump command. The streaming server 111 immediately sets the timer at the time stamp, specifies data necessary at the received time stamp from metadata, and successively transmits packets including metadata therefrom to the streaming client 106 .
[0097] (6) Method of How to Schedule Packet Transmission
[0098] Next, there will be described how the server device 101 schedules packet transmission including metadata.
[0099] [0099]FIG. 5 shows a flowchart of the process of metadata transmission by the streaming server 111 .
[0100] (6-1) Packetizing Metadata (step S 500 )
[0101] First, in step S 500 , metadata to be transmitted is divided into packets. Object data included in the metadata is packetized as shown in FIG. 6.
[0102] Referring to FIG. 6, reference numeral 600 represents object data for one object.
[0103] A header 601 and a payload 602 construct one packet.
[0104] The packet always has a fixed length, and the header 601 and the payload 602 also have a fixed length. The object data 600 is divided into parts of the same length as that of the payload 602 and inserted into the payloads 602 of the packets.
[0105] Because the length of the object data is not always a multiple of that of the payload 602 , the rearmost data of the object data is sometimes shorter than the payload. In such a case, dummy data 603 is inserted to the payload to produce a packet of the same length as other packets. When the object data is shorter than the payload, the object data is inserted in one packet.
[0106] [0106]FIG. 7 illustrates the structure of the packet more specifically.
[0107] Referring to FIG. 7, reference numeral 700 denotes an ID number. Packets produced from the same object data are assigned the same ID number.
[0108] A packet number 701 describes the ordinal number of the packet among the packets produced from the same object data.
[0109] A time stamp 702 describes the time at which data stored in the payload 602 becomes necessary. When the packet stores object data, the object-area data 203 includes object-existence time data. Therefore, object-appearance time extracted from the object-existence time data is described in the time stamp 702 .
[0110] When the object-area data 203 is partial data, even packets produced from the same object data may bear different time stamps. FIG. 8 shows the structure.
[0111] Referring to FIG. 8, reference numerals 800 to 802 indicate one object data and reference numerals 803 to 806 denote packets produced from the object data.
[0112] The partial data 800 includes the ID number 200 , the object display information 201 , and the script data 202 , and may also include part of the object-area data 203 .
[0113] The partial data 801 and 802 include only the object-area data 203 . Letting T 1 be object appearance time, the client device 100 needs the partial data 800 by the time T 1 . Therefore, the packets 803 and 804 including the partial data 800 are given the time stamp of T 1 .
[0114] On the other hand, among data included in the partial data 801 , letting T 2 be the time for data that is earliest required by the client device 100 , the time stamp of the packet 805 including the partial data 801 is T 2 .
[0115] While the packet 804 includes both the partial data 800 and 801 , the earlier time T 1 is used. Similarly, among data included in the partial data 802 , letting T 3 be the time for data that is earliest required by the client device 100 , the time stamp for the packet 806 including the partial data 802 is T 3 .
[0116] When the object-area data 203 is described by the MPEG-4 arbitrary shape coding, a different time stamp can be given for each interval between the frames by intra-frame coding (intra-video object plane: I-VOP).
[0117] When the object-area data 203 is described by the method of Patent Document 1, different time stamps can be given in units of the interpolating function of the apexes of a figure that indicating an object area.
[0118] When the script data 202 included in the object data describes that, when an object is designated by the user, other contents related to the object, such as an HTML file and a still image file are displayed, the related contents can be sent to the client device 100 as metadata. Here it is assumed that the contents data includes both header data describing the file name of the contents and data on the contents in themselves. In such a case, the contents data is packetized as well as the object data. The ID numbers 700 of packets produced from the same contents data are given the same ID number. The time stamp 702 describes the appearance time of a related object.
[0119] (6-2) Sorting (Step S 501 )
[0120] After the packetizing process in step S 500 has been finished, sorting is performed in step S 501 .
[0121] [0121]FIG. 9 shows an example of a packet-sorting process in order of time stamps.
[0122] Referring to FIG. 9, it is assumed that metadata includes N object data and M contents data.
[0123] Reference numeral 900 denotes object data and reference numeral 901 denotes contents data to be transmitted. Packets 902 produced from the data are sorted in order of the time stamp 702 in the packets 902 .
[0124] Here, the sorted packets that are made into a file are called a packet stream. The packets may be sorted after a metadata transmission command has been received from the client device 100 . For decreasing the amount of process, however, it is desired to produce the packet stream in advance.
[0125] (6-3) Transmitting (Step S 502 )
[0126] After the sorting process of step S 501 has been finished, a transmitting process is performed in step S 502 .
[0127] When a packet stream has been produced in advance in steps S 500 and S 501 , processes after the metadata transmission command has been received from the client device 100 may be started from step S 503 . FIG. 10 shows a flowchart of the detailed process of step S 503 .
[0128] In step S 1000 , it is determined whether a packet to be transmitted exists. When all the metadata required by the client device 100 has already been transmitted, there is no packet to be transmitted, and thus, the process is finished. On the other hand, when there is a packet to be transmitted, the process proceeds to step S 1001 .
[0129] In step S 1001 , among packets to be transmitted, a packet having the earliest time stamp is selected. Here, since the packet has already been sorted by the time stamp, it is sufficient to select a packet in sequence.
[0130] In step S 1002 , it is determined whether the selected packet should be immediately transmitted. Here, reference symbol TS denotes the time stamp of the packet; reference symbol T indicates the timer time of the server device 101 ; and reference symbol Lmax represents a maximum transmission-advance time, which indicates a limit of the transmission advance time when the packet is sent earlier than the time of the time stamp in the packet. The value may be determined in advance, or alternatively, may be calculated from a bit rate and a buffer size described in client specifications which is sent from the streaming client 106 . Alternatively, the value may be directly described in the client specifications. Reference symbol ΔT designates time that has passed from the timer time at which the immediately preceding packet is sent to the current timer time. Reference symbol Lmin denotes a minimum packet-transmission interval, which can be calculated from the bit rate and the buffer size described in the client specifications which is sent from the streaming client 106 . Only when both of two conditional expressions described in step S 1002 are satisfied, the process of S 1004 is performed. When one or both of the two conditional expressions are not satisfied, the process in step S 1004 must be performed after the process of step S 1003 .
[0131] The process of step S 1003 is a process of waiting the transmission of a packet until a packet in selection can be transmitted. Reference symbol MAX(a,b) denotes a larger one of a and b. Therefore, in step S 1003 , packet transmission is waited by the larger time out of TS-Lmax-T and Lmin-ΔT.
[0132] Finally, in step S 1004 , the packet in selection is transmitted, and the processes from step S 1000 are repeated again.
[0133] (7) Method for Determining Metadata-transmission Starting position by Streaming Server 111
[0134] A method will then be described by which a metadata-transmission starting position by the streaming server 111 is determined when a jump command is sent from the streaming client 106 to the streaming server 111 .
[0135] [0135]FIG. 11 shows an access-point table for packets used for the streaming server 111 to determine a transmission start packet.
[0136] The table is prepared in advance and recorded on the server device 101 . A column 1100 indicates access times and a column 1101 shows offset values corresponding to the access times on the left.
[0137] For example, when a jump to a time 0:01:05:00F is requested from the streaming client 106 , the streaming server 111 searches the access time train for the closest time after the jump destination time. The example in FIG. 11 shows a search result, time 0:01:06:21F. The streaming server 111 then refers to an offset value corresponding to the retrieved time.
[0138] In the example of FIG. 11, the offset value is 312 . The offset value indicates the ordinal number of a packet to be transmitted. Therefore, when a packet stream has been produced in advance, it is preferable to start to transmit the 312th packet in the packet stream.
[0139] The access point table for the packets is produced as in the flowchart of FIG. 12.
[0140] In step S 1200 , it is first determined on the ordinal number of the head packet of each object data and contents data in order of the time stamp after sorting. This can be performed in synchronization with the step S 501 in FIG. 5.
[0141] In step S 1201 , the orders of packets including the head packet in each object data and contents data are set to offset values, and are listed with the time stamps of the packets, thereby the table is produced. The table sometimes has different offset values corresponding to the same time stamp. Therefore, in step S 1202 , only a minimum offset value is left and other overlapping time stamps are deleted.
[0142] By the above processes, the access point table for the packets is produced. In the access point table, the packet in the table of offset values always corresponds to the head of the object data or the contents data. Therefore, starting the transmission by the streaming server 111 from the packet allows the client device 100 to obtain object data or contents data which is necessary at the video playback position.
[0143] (8) Another Method for Determining Metadata-transmission Starting Position by Streaming Server 111
[0144] Another method will be described by which a metadata-transmission starting position by the streaming server 111 is determined when a jump command is sent from the streaming client 106 to the streaming server 111 .
[0145] A packet access point table is first prepared by a method different from that in FIG. 12. FIG. 13 shows a flowchart of the procedure.
[0146] In step S 1300 , the orders (offset values) of all the packets that have been sorted in order of the time stamps and the time stamps of the packets are first listed to produce the table.
[0147] In step S 1301 , overlapping time stamps are deleted. More specifically, when the produced table includes an overlapping offset value at the same time stamp, only a minimum offset value is left and other overlapping time stamps and offset values are deleted.
[0148] In order to start metadata transmission using the access point table for packets thus produced, a method different from that of FIG. 12 must be used. The method will be described hereinafter.
[0149] [0149]FIG. 14 shows a flowchart for starting metadata transmission using the access-point table for packets produced by the method of FIG. 13.
[0150] In step S 1400 , among the object data, an object existing in the video at a playback start time required by the client device 100 is specified. For this purpose, an object scheduling table is referred. The table is prepared in advance and recorded in the client device 100 .
[0151] [0151]FIG. 15 shows an example of the object scheduling table.
[0152] Object ID numbers 1500 correspond to the object-data ID numbers 200 .
[0153] Start time 1501 describes the time when the object area in the object-area data 203 starts.
[0154] End time 1502 describes the time when the object area in the object-area data 203 ends.
[0155] An object file name 1503 specifies the file name of the object data.
[0156] The example of FIG. 15 shows that, for example, an object having an object ID number 000002 appears on the screen at time 0:00:19:00F and disappears at time 0:00:26:27F, and the data about the object is described in a file Girl- 1 .dat.
[0157] In step S 1400 , an object is selected which includes a playback start time required by the client device 100 between the start time and the end time on the object scheduling table.
[0158] In step S 1401 , the file name of the selected object is taken from the object scheduling table, from which object data other than the object-area data 203 is packetized and transmitted.
[0159] In step S 1402 , a transmission start packet is determined. In the process, among the sorted packets, a transmission start packet is determined with reference to the access point table for packets produced by the process of FIG. 13.
[0160] Finally, in step S 1403 , packets are transmitted from the transmission start packet in sequence.
[0161] On the packet access point table produced by the procedure of FIG. 13, the packet indicated by the offset value does not always correspond to the head of the object data. Accordingly, when the transmission is started from a packet designated by the offset value, important information such as the ID number 200 and the script data 202 in the object data is omitted. In order to prevent the omission, only the important information in the object data is first transmitted, and other packets are then transmitted in order of designation by the offset values on the packet access point table.
[0162] [Modification]
[0163] Although object data and contents data are used as metadata in the above description, other metadata can be processed such that the metadata is sent from the server device 101 to the client device 100 and it is processed in synchronization with the playback of video or audio contents held in the client device 100 .
[0164] For example, the invention can be applied to all metadata in which different contents are described for each time, such as video contents or audio contents. | In order to eliminate viewer's waiting time for downloading metadata on a network when enjoying hypermedia by combining videos in viewer's possession and the metadata, a client device holds video data, metadata related to the video data is recorded in a server device; the server device sends the metadata to the client device through the network at the request from the client device; and the client device processes the sent metadata, thus realizing hypermedia together with local video data. | Identify and summarize the most critical features from the given passage. | [
"CROSSREFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS [0001] This application is based upon and claims the benefit of priority from the prior Japanese Patent Application No. 2002-282015, filed on Sep. 26, 2002;",
"the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.",
"BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION [0002] The present invention relates to a server device, a client device, and a system for realizing video hypermedia by combining local video data and metadata on a network.",
"[0003] Hypermedia is a system in which a connection called a hyperlink is defined among media including a moving image, a still image, audio, and text, and which allows mutual or one-way reference.",
"For example, HTML home pages which can be viewed through the Internet include text and still images, for which links are defined everywhere.",
"Designating the link allows related information of link-destination to be immediately displayed.",
"Since related information can be accessed by directly indicating a word or a phrase of interest, it is easy and intuitive to operate.",
"[0004] On the other hand, in hypermedia for video, not for text and still images, links are defined from people and objects in video to related contents including text and still images for describing them.",
"Accordingly, when the viewers indicate the objects, the related contents are displayed.",
"In this case, it becomes necessary to provide data (object-area data) indicating a spatiotemporal area of the object in the video.",
"[0005] For the object-area data, it is possible to use methods of describing a binary or more mask image sequence, arbitrary shape coding by MPEG-4 (ISO/IEC 14496), and describing the locus of the feature of a figure, which is described in JP-A-11-20387.",
"[0006] In order to achieve the video hypermedia, in addition to those, it becomes necessary to provide data (script data) that describes an action of displaying related contents when an object is indicated, contents data to be displayed and so on.",
"These data are called metadata in contrast to video.",
"[0007] For the viewers to enjoy video hypermedia, for example, it is desirable to provide video CDs and DVDs in which both the video and the metadata are recorded.",
"Also, the use of streaming distribution through a network such as the Internet allows the viewers to view video hypermedia by receiving both of the video and the metadata.",
"[0008] However, since already-owned video CDs and DVDs have no metadata, the viewers cannot enjoy hypermedia with such videos.",
"One of methods for enjoying video hypermedia with the video CDs and DVDs having no metadata is to newly produce metadata for the videos and to distribute them to the viewers.",
"[0009] The metadata may be distributed while being recorded in CDS, flexible discs, DVDs and so on;",
"however, it is most convenient to distribute the metadata through a network.",
"When the viewers can access the network, they can easily download the metadata at home, which allows the viewers to view video CDs and DVDS that could only be played back previously as hypermedia and to view their related information.",
"[0010] However, when only the metadata is downloaded through a network, the viewers must wait to play back the video until the completion of downloading when the metadata is large in volume.",
"In order to play back the video without a wait, there is a method of receiving video data and metadata by streaming distribution.",
"However, videos that can be sent by streaming distribution have low image quality, and high-quality videos in the video CDs and DVDs in viewer's possession cannot be well utilized.",
"[0011] As described above, in order to enjoy video hypermedia by combining videos in possession and metadata on a network, the videos in viewer's possession must be utilized and also the viewer's waiting time for downloading the metadata must be eliminated.",
"BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION [0012] Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide devices and a system for eliminating viewer's waiting time for downloading metadata when viewers enjoy hyper media by combining videos in viewer's possession and metadata on a network.",
"[0013] According to embodiments of the present invention, a client device is provided which is capable of accessing a. hypermedia-data server device through a network.",
"The client device includes a playback unit to play back a moving image;",
"a time-stamp transmission unit to transmit the time stamp of the image in playback mode to the server device;",
"a metadata receiving unit to receive metadata having information related to the contents of the image at each time stamp from the server device by streaming distribution in synchronization with the playback of the moving image;",
"and a controller to display the received metadata or performing control on the basis of the metadata in synchronization with the playback of the image.",
"[0014] According to embodiments of the present invention, a server device is provided which is capable of accessing a hypermedia-data client device through a network.",
"The server device includes a metadata storage unit to store metadata having information related to the contents of an image corresponding to each time stamp of a moving image to be played back by the client device;",
"a time-stamp receiving unit to receive the time stamp of the image to be played back, the time stamp being transmitted from the client device;",
"and a metadata transmission unit to transmit the stored metadata to the client device by streaming distribution in synchronization with the playback of the image in accordance with the received time stamp.",
"[0015] According to embodiments of the present invention, a method for playing back a moving image in a client device is provided which is capable of accessing a hypermedia-data server device through a network.",
"The method includes a playback step of playing back the moving image;",
"a time-stamp transmission step of transmitting the time stamp of the image in playback mode to the server device;",
"a metadata receiving step of receiving metadata having information related to the contents of the image at each time stamp from the server device by streaming distribution in synchronization with the playback of the moving image;",
"and a control step of displaying the received metadata or performing control on the basis of the metadata in synchronization with the playback of the image.",
"[0016] According to embodiments of the present invention, a method for transmitting data in a server device is provided which is capable of accessing a hypermedia-data client device through a network.",
"The method includes a time-stamp receiving step of receiving the time stamp of an image to be played back, the time stamp being transmitted from the client device;",
"and a metadata transmission step of transmitting metadata having information related to the contents of an image corresponding to each time stamp of a moving image to be played back by the client device to the client device by streaming distribution in synchronization with the playback of the image on the basis of the received time stamp.",
"[0017] According to embodiments of the present invention, even videos in viewer's possession can receive new metadata through a network.",
"Therefore, the viewer can enjoy it as video hypermedia.",
"[0018] The viewer receives metadata by streaming distribution through a network in synchronization with the playback of the video.",
"Accordingly, there is no need for the viewer to wait for the playback of the video unlike when downloading the metadata.",
"[0019] Furthermore, since videos in viewer's possession are used, high-quality images can be enjoyed as compared with images by streaming distribution for each video.",
"BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS [0020] [0020 ]FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the structure of a hypermedia system according to an embodiment of the present invention;",
"[0021] [0021 ]FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of the structure of object data according to an embodiment of the invention;",
"[0022] [0022 ]FIG. 3 is a diagram showing an example of the screen display of a hypermedia system according to an embodiment of the invention;",
"[0023] [0023 ]FIG. 4 is a diagram of an example of server-client communication according to an embodiment of the invention;",
"[0024] [0024 ]FIG. 5 is a flowchart of the process of determining the scheduling of metadata transmission according to an embodiment of the invention;",
"[0025] [0025 ]FIG. 6 is a diagram of an example of the process of packetizing object data according to an embodiment of the invention;",
"[0026] [0026 ]FIG. 7 is a diagram of an example of the structure of packet data according to an embodiment of the invention;",
"[0027] [0027 ]FIG. 8 is a diagram of another process of packetizing object data according to an embodiment of the invention;",
"[0028] [0028 ]FIG. 9 is a diagram of an example of sorting a metadata packet according to an embodiment of the invention;",
"[0029] [0029 ]FIG. 10 is a flowchart of the process of determining the timing of packet transmission according to an embodiment of the invention;",
"[0030] [0030 ]FIG. 11 is a diagram of an example of an access-point table of a packet according to an embodiment of the invention;",
"[0031] [0031 ]FIG. 12 is a flowchart for making an access-point table of a packet according to an embodiment of the invention;",
"[0032] [0032 ]FIG. 13 is a flowchart of another method of determining the position of starting the transmission of metadata by a streaming server when a jump command is sent from a streaming client to the streaming server, according to an embodiment of the invention;",
"[0033] [0033 ]FIG. 14 is a flowchart for starting metadata transmission when an access-point table for packets formed by the method of FIG. 13 is used, according to an embodiment of the invention;",
"and [0034] [0034 ]FIG. 15 is a diagram of an example of an object-data schedule table according to an embodiment of the invention.",
"DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [0035] An embodiment of the present invention will be described hereinafter with reference to the drawings.",
"[0036] (1) Structure of Hypermedia System [0037] [0037 ]FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the structure of a hypermedia system according to an embodiment of the present invention.",
"The function of each component will be described with reference to the drawing.",
"[0038] Reference numeral 100 denotes a client device;",
"numeral 101 denotes a server device;",
"and numeral 102 denotes a network connecting the server device 101 and the client device 100 .",
"Reference numerals 103 to 110 designate devices included in the client device 100 ;",
"and numerals 111 and 112 indicate devices included in the server device 101 .",
"[0039] The client device 100 holds video data, and the server device 101 records metadata related to the video data.",
"The server device 101 sends the metadata to the client device 100 through the network 102 by streaming distribution at the request from the client device 100 .",
"The client device 100 processes the transmitted metadata to realize hypermedia together with local video data.",
"[0040] The word, streaming distribution, means that when audio and video images are distributed on the Internet, they are played back not after the user has completed to download the file but while the user are downloading it.",
"Accordingly, even motion-video and audio data with large volume of data can be played back without a wait.",
"[0041] A video-data recording medium 103 , such as a DVD, a video CD, a video tape, a hard disk, and a semiconductor memory, holds digital or analog video data.",
"[0042] A video controller 104 controls the action of the video-data recording medium 103 .",
"The video controller 104 issues an instruction to start and stop the reading of video data and to access a desired position in the video data.",
"[0043] A video decoder 105 decodes inputted video data to extract video pixel information when the video data recorded in the video-data recording medium 103 is digitally compressed.",
"[0044] A streaming client 106 receives the metadata transmitted from the server device 101 through the network 102 and sends it to a metadata decoder 107 in sequence.",
"The streaming client 106 controls the communication with the server device 101 with reference to the time stamp of video in playback mode inputted from the video decoder 105 .",
"Here, the word, time stamp, denotes the time of playback from the initial time when a head moving image is played back, which is also called video time.",
"[0045] The metadata decoder 107 processes the metadata inputted from the streaming client 106 .",
"Specifically, the metadata decoder 107 produces image data to be displayed with reference to the time stamp of the video in playback mode inputted from the video decoder 105 , and outputs it to a renderer 108 , determines information to be displayed for the input through a user interface 110 by the user, or deletes metadata that has become unnecessary from a memory.",
"[0046] The renderer 108 draws the image inputted from the video decoder 105 onto a monitor 109 .",
"To the renderer 108 , an image is inputted not only from the video decoder 105 but also from the metadata decoder 107 .",
"The renderer 108 composes both the images and draws it on the monitor 109 .",
"[0047] Examples of the monitor 109 are displays capable of displaying moving images, such as a CRT display, a liquid crystal display, and a plasma display.",
"[0048] The user interface 110 is a pointing device for inputting coordinates on the displayed image, such as a mouse, a touch panel, and a keyboard.",
"[0049] The network 102 is a data communication network between the client device 100 and the server device 101 , such as a local-area network (LAN) and the Internet.",
"[0050] A streaming server 111 transmits metadata to the client device 100 through the network 102 .",
"The streaming server 111 also draws up a schedule for metadata transmission so as to send data required by the streaming client 106 at a proper timing.",
"[0051] A metadata recording medium 112 , such as a hard disk, a semiconductor memory, a DVD, a video CD, and a video tape, holds metadata related to the video data recorded in the video-data recording medium 103 .",
"The metadata includes object data, which will be described later.",
"[0052] The metadata used in the embodiment includes areas of people and objects in video, which are recorded in the video-data recording medium 103 , and actions when the objects are designated by the user.",
"The information for each object is described in the metadata.",
"[0053] (2) Data Structure of Object Data [0054] [0054 ]FIG. 2 shows the structure of one object of object data according to an embodiment of the invention.",
"[0055] An ID number 200 identifies an object.",
"Different ID numbers are allocated to respective objects.",
"[0056] Object display information 201 gives a description of information about an image display related to the object.",
"For example, the object display information 201 describes information on whether the outline of the object is to be displayed while being overlapped with the display of video in order to clearly express the object position to the user, whether the name of the object is to be displayed like a balloon near the object, what color is to be used for the outline and the balloon, and which character font is to be used.",
"The data is described in JP-A-2002-183336.",
"[0057] Script data 202 describes what action should be taken when an object is designated by the user.",
"When related information is displayed by clicking on an object, the script data 202 describes the address of the related information.",
"The related information includes text or HTML pages, still images, and video.",
"[0058] Object-area data 203 is information for specifying in which area the object exists at any given time.",
"For the data, a mask image train can be used which indicates an object area in each frame or field of video.",
"More efficient method is MPEG-4 arbitrary shape coding (ISO/IEC 14496) in which a mask image train is compression-coded.",
"When the object area may be approximated by a rectangle, an ellipse, or a polygon having a relatively small number of apexes, the method of Patent Document 1 can be used.",
"[0059] The ID number 200 , the object display information 201 , and the script data 202 may be omitted when unnecessary.",
"[0060] (3) Method for Realizing Hypermedia [0061] A method for realizing hypermedia using object data will then be described.",
"[0062] Hypermedia is a system in which a connection called a hyperlink is defined among media including a moving image, a still image, audio, and text, and which allows mutual or one-way reference.",
"Hypermedia realized by the present invention defines a hyperlink for an object area in a moving image, thus allowing reference to information related to the object.",
"[0063] The user points an object of interest with the user interface 110 during viewing a video recorded in the video-data recording medium 103 .",
"For example, with a mouse, the user puts a mouse cursor on a displayed object for clicking.",
"At that time, the positional coordinates of a clicked point on the image is sent to the metadata decoder 107 .",
"[0064] The metadata decoder 107 receives the positional coordinates sent from the user interface 110 , the time stamp of the video that is now displayed sent from the video decoder 105 , and object data sent from the streaming client 106 through the network 102 .",
"The metadata decoder 107 then specifies an object indicated by the user using these information.",
"For this purpose, the metadata decoder 107 first processes the object-area data 203 in the object data and produces an object area at the inputted time stamp.",
"When object-area data is described by the MPEG-4 arbitrary shape coding, a frame corresponding to the time stamp is decoded, and when the object area is approximately expressed by a figure, a figure at the time stamp is specified.",
"It is then determined whether the inputted coordinates exist within the object.",
"In the case of the MPEG-4 arbitrary shape coding, it is sufficient to determine the pixel value at the coordinates.",
"When the object area is approximately expressed by a figure, it can be determined by a simple operation whether or not the inputted coordinates exist within the object (for more detailed information, refer to Patent Document 1).",
"Performing the process also for other object data in the metadata decoder 107 allows a determination on which object is pointed by the user or whether the object pointed by the user is out of the object area.",
"[0065] When an object pointed by the user is specified, the metadata decoder 107 allows an action described in the script data 202 of the object, such as displaying a designated HTML file and playing back a designated video.",
"The HTML file and the video file may be ones sent from the server device 101 through the network 102 , or ones on the Internet.",
"[0066] To the metadata decoder 107 , metadata is successively inputted from the streaming client 106 .",
"The metadata decoder 107 can start the process at a point of time when data sufficient to interpret the metadata has been prepared.",
"[0067] For example, the object data can be processed at a point of time when the object ID number 200 , the object display information 201 , the script data 202 , and part of the object-area data 203 have been prepared.",
"The part of the object-area data 203 is, for example, one for decoding a head frame in the MPEG-4 arbitrary shape coding.",
"[0068] The metadata decoder 107 also deletes metadata that has become unnecessary.",
"The object area data 203 in the object data describes the time during which a described object exists.",
"When the time stamp sent from the video decoder 105 has exceeded the object existing time, the data on the object is deleted from the metadata decoder 107 to save a memory.",
"[0069] When contents to be displayed when an object is designated have been sent as metadata, the metadata decoder 107 extracts a file name included in the header of the contents data, records data following the header, and gives the file name.",
"[0070] When data of the same file is sent in sequence, arriving data is added to the previous data.",
"[0071] The contents file may also be deleted at the same time when object data that refers the contents file is deleted.",
"[0072] (4) Display Example of Hypermedia System [0073] [0073 ]FIG. 3 shows a display example of a hypermedia system on the monitor 109 .",
"[0074] Reference numeral 300 denotes a video playback screen, and numeral 301 designates a mouse cursor.",
"[0075] Reference numeral 302 indicates an object area in a scene extracted from an object area described in object data.",
"When the user moves the mouse cursor 301 to the object area 302 and clicks thereon, information 303 related to the clicked object is displayed.",
"[0076] The object area 302 may be displayed such that the user can view it, or alternatively, may not be displayed at all.",
"[0077] How to display it is described in the object display information 201 in the object data.",
"The methods of display include a method of surrounding the object with a line and a method of changing the lightness and the color tone between the inside of the object and the other areas.",
"When displaying the object area by such methods, the metadata decoder 107 produces an object area at the time according to the time stamp inputted from the video decoder 105 , from the object data.",
"The metadata decoder 107 then sends the object area to the renderer 108 to display a composite video playback image.",
"[0078] (5) Method for Sending Metadata [0079] A method for sending metadata in the server device 101 to the client device 100 through the network 102 will be now described.",
"[0080] [0080 ]FIG. 4 shows an example of a communication between the streaming server 111 of the server device 101 and the streaming client 106 of the client device 100 .",
"[0081] An instruction of playing back a video from the user is first transmitted to the video controller 104 .",
"[0082] The video controller 104 instructs the video-data recording medium 103 to play back the video and sends an instruction to play back the video, the time stamp of its starting position, and information for specifying video contents to be played back to the streaming client 106 .",
"The video-contents specifying information includes a contents ID number and a file name recorded in the video.",
"[0083] Upon receiving the video-playback start command, the time stamp of the video-playback starting position, and the video-contents specifying information, the streaming client 106 sends reference time, the video-contents specifying information, and the specifications of the client device 100 to the server device 101 .",
"[0084] The reference time is calculated from the time stamp of the video-playback starting position, for example, which is obtained by subtracting a certain fixed time from the time stamp of the video-playback starting position.",
"The specifications of the client device 100 include a communication protocol, a communication speed, and a client buffer size.",
"[0085] The streaming server 111 first refers to the video-contents specifying information to check if the metadata of the video to be played back by the client device 100 is recorded in the metadata recording medium 112 .",
"[0086] When the metadata has been recorded, the streaming server 111 sets a timer to the sent reference time and checks if the specifications of the client device 100 satisfies conditions for communication.",
"When the conditions are satisfied, the streaming server 111 sends a confirmation signal to the streaming client 106 .",
"[0087] When the metadata of the video to be played back by the client device 100 is not recorded or the conditions are not satisfied, the streaming server 111 sends a signal indicating that there is no metadata or communication is unavailable to the streaming client 106 , thus communication is completed.",
"[0088] The timer in the server device 101 is a watch for the streaming server 111 to schedule the transmission of data, which is adjusted so as to synthesize with the time stamp of the video to be played back by the client device 100 .",
"[0089] The streaming client 106 then sends a playback command and the time stamp of a playback starting position to the streaming server 111 .",
"Upon receiving them, the streaming server 111 specifies data that is necessary at the received time stamp from the metadata, and transmits packets including the metadata therefrom to the streaming client 106 in sequence.",
"[0090] The method for determining the position to start the transmission and the process of scheduling packet transmission will be specifically described later.",
"[0091] Even when the video controller 104 sends a video-playback start command to the streaming client 106 , video playback is not immediately started.",
"This is for the purpose of waiting for the metadata necessary at the start of video playback to be accumulated in the metadata decoder 107 .",
"When all the metadata necessary for starting video playback has been prepared, the streaming client 106 notifies the video controller 104 that the preparation has been finished, and the video controller.",
"104 then starts to playback the video.",
"[0092] The streaming client 106 periodically sends delay information to the streaming server 111 when receiving packets including metadata.",
"The delay information indicates how long the timing at which the streaming client 106 receives the metadata is delayed from the time for playing back the video.",
"On the contrary, it may be information that indicates how long the timing is fast.",
"The streaming server 111 uses the information to advance the timing of transmitting the packets including the metadata when delayed, and on the other hand, to delay the timing when advanced.",
"[0093] The streaming client 106 also periodically transmits the reference time to the streaming server 111 when receiving packets including the metadata.",
"The reference time at that time is the time stamp of a video in playback mode and is inputted from the video decoder 105 .",
"The streaming server 111 sets the timer for receiving the reference time to synchronize with the video in playback mode in the client device 100 .",
"[0094] Finally, after the video has been play backed to the end or when the stop of the video playback is inputted from the user, a command to stop the video playback is sent from the video controller 104 to the streaming client 106 .",
"Upon receiving the command, the streaming client 106 sends a stop command to the streaming server 111 .",
"Upon receiving the stop command, the streaming server 111 finishes the data transmission.",
"The transmission of all metadata sometimes finishes before the streaming client 106 sends the stop command.",
"In such a case, the streaming server 111 sends a message to tell that the data transmission has been finished to the streaming client 106 , and thus the communication is finished.",
"[0095] In addition to the playback command and the stop command, which have already been described, the commands sent from the client device 100 to the server device 101 include a suspend command, a suspend release command, and a jump command.",
"When a suspend command is issued from the user during the reception of metadata, the command is sent to the streaming server 111 .",
"Upon receiving the command, the streaming server 111 suspends the transmission of metadata.",
"When a suspend release command is issued from the user during the suspension, the streaming client 106 sends the suspend release command to the streaming server 111 .",
"Upon receiving the command, the streaming server 111 restarts the suspended transmission of metadata.",
"[0096] The jump command is sent from the streaming client 106 to the streaming server 111 when the user instructs the video in playback mode to be played back from a position different from the current playback position.",
"At the same time, the time stamp of a new video playback position is also sent together with the jump command.",
"The streaming server 111 immediately sets the timer at the time stamp, specifies data necessary at the received time stamp from metadata, and successively transmits packets including metadata therefrom to the streaming client 106 .",
"[0097] (6) Method of How to Schedule Packet Transmission [0098] Next, there will be described how the server device 101 schedules packet transmission including metadata.",
"[0099] [0099 ]FIG. 5 shows a flowchart of the process of metadata transmission by the streaming server 111 .",
"[0100] (6-1) Packetizing Metadata (step S 500 ) [0101] First, in step S 500 , metadata to be transmitted is divided into packets.",
"Object data included in the metadata is packetized as shown in FIG. 6. [0102] Referring to FIG. 6, reference numeral 600 represents object data for one object.",
"[0103] A header 601 and a payload 602 construct one packet.",
"[0104] The packet always has a fixed length, and the header 601 and the payload 602 also have a fixed length.",
"The object data 600 is divided into parts of the same length as that of the payload 602 and inserted into the payloads 602 of the packets.",
"[0105] Because the length of the object data is not always a multiple of that of the payload 602 , the rearmost data of the object data is sometimes shorter than the payload.",
"In such a case, dummy data 603 is inserted to the payload to produce a packet of the same length as other packets.",
"When the object data is shorter than the payload, the object data is inserted in one packet.",
"[0106] [0106 ]FIG. 7 illustrates the structure of the packet more specifically.",
"[0107] Referring to FIG. 7, reference numeral 700 denotes an ID number.",
"Packets produced from the same object data are assigned the same ID number.",
"[0108] A packet number 701 describes the ordinal number of the packet among the packets produced from the same object data.",
"[0109] A time stamp 702 describes the time at which data stored in the payload 602 becomes necessary.",
"When the packet stores object data, the object-area data 203 includes object-existence time data.",
"Therefore, object-appearance time extracted from the object-existence time data is described in the time stamp 702 .",
"[0110] When the object-area data 203 is partial data, even packets produced from the same object data may bear different time stamps.",
"FIG. 8 shows the structure.",
"[0111] Referring to FIG. 8, reference numerals 800 to 802 indicate one object data and reference numerals 803 to 806 denote packets produced from the object data.",
"[0112] The partial data 800 includes the ID number 200 , the object display information 201 , and the script data 202 , and may also include part of the object-area data 203 .",
"[0113] The partial data 801 and 802 include only the object-area data 203 .",
"Letting T 1 be object appearance time, the client device 100 needs the partial data 800 by the time T 1 .",
"Therefore, the packets 803 and 804 including the partial data 800 are given the time stamp of T 1 .",
"[0114] On the other hand, among data included in the partial data 801 , letting T 2 be the time for data that is earliest required by the client device 100 , the time stamp of the packet 805 including the partial data 801 is T 2 .",
"[0115] While the packet 804 includes both the partial data 800 and 801 , the earlier time T 1 is used.",
"Similarly, among data included in the partial data 802 , letting T 3 be the time for data that is earliest required by the client device 100 , the time stamp for the packet 806 including the partial data 802 is T 3 .",
"[0116] When the object-area data 203 is described by the MPEG-4 arbitrary shape coding, a different time stamp can be given for each interval between the frames by intra-frame coding (intra-video object plane: I-VOP).",
"[0117] When the object-area data 203 is described by the method of Patent Document 1, different time stamps can be given in units of the interpolating function of the apexes of a figure that indicating an object area.",
"[0118] When the script data 202 included in the object data describes that, when an object is designated by the user, other contents related to the object, such as an HTML file and a still image file are displayed, the related contents can be sent to the client device 100 as metadata.",
"Here it is assumed that the contents data includes both header data describing the file name of the contents and data on the contents in themselves.",
"In such a case, the contents data is packetized as well as the object data.",
"The ID numbers 700 of packets produced from the same contents data are given the same ID number.",
"The time stamp 702 describes the appearance time of a related object.",
"[0119] (6-2) Sorting (Step S 501 ) [0120] After the packetizing process in step S 500 has been finished, sorting is performed in step S 501 .",
"[0121] [0121 ]FIG. 9 shows an example of a packet-sorting process in order of time stamps.",
"[0122] Referring to FIG. 9, it is assumed that metadata includes N object data and M contents data.",
"[0123] Reference numeral 900 denotes object data and reference numeral 901 denotes contents data to be transmitted.",
"Packets 902 produced from the data are sorted in order of the time stamp 702 in the packets 902 .",
"[0124] Here, the sorted packets that are made into a file are called a packet stream.",
"The packets may be sorted after a metadata transmission command has been received from the client device 100 .",
"For decreasing the amount of process, however, it is desired to produce the packet stream in advance.",
"[0125] (6-3) Transmitting (Step S 502 ) [0126] After the sorting process of step S 501 has been finished, a transmitting process is performed in step S 502 .",
"[0127] When a packet stream has been produced in advance in steps S 500 and S 501 , processes after the metadata transmission command has been received from the client device 100 may be started from step S 503 .",
"FIG. 10 shows a flowchart of the detailed process of step S 503 .",
"[0128] In step S 1000 , it is determined whether a packet to be transmitted exists.",
"When all the metadata required by the client device 100 has already been transmitted, there is no packet to be transmitted, and thus, the process is finished.",
"On the other hand, when there is a packet to be transmitted, the process proceeds to step S 1001 .",
"[0129] In step S 1001 , among packets to be transmitted, a packet having the earliest time stamp is selected.",
"Here, since the packet has already been sorted by the time stamp, it is sufficient to select a packet in sequence.",
"[0130] In step S 1002 , it is determined whether the selected packet should be immediately transmitted.",
"Here, reference symbol TS denotes the time stamp of the packet;",
"reference symbol T indicates the timer time of the server device 101 ;",
"and reference symbol Lmax represents a maximum transmission-advance time, which indicates a limit of the transmission advance time when the packet is sent earlier than the time of the time stamp in the packet.",
"The value may be determined in advance, or alternatively, may be calculated from a bit rate and a buffer size described in client specifications which is sent from the streaming client 106 .",
"Alternatively, the value may be directly described in the client specifications.",
"Reference symbol ΔT designates time that has passed from the timer time at which the immediately preceding packet is sent to the current timer time.",
"Reference symbol Lmin denotes a minimum packet-transmission interval, which can be calculated from the bit rate and the buffer size described in the client specifications which is sent from the streaming client 106 .",
"Only when both of two conditional expressions described in step S 1002 are satisfied, the process of S 1004 is performed.",
"When one or both of the two conditional expressions are not satisfied, the process in step S 1004 must be performed after the process of step S 1003 .",
"[0131] The process of step S 1003 is a process of waiting the transmission of a packet until a packet in selection can be transmitted.",
"Reference symbol MAX(a,b) denotes a larger one of a and b. Therefore, in step S 1003 , packet transmission is waited by the larger time out of TS-Lmax-T and Lmin-ΔT.",
"[0132] Finally, in step S 1004 , the packet in selection is transmitted, and the processes from step S 1000 are repeated again.",
"[0133] (7) Method for Determining Metadata-transmission Starting position by Streaming Server 111 [0134] A method will then be described by which a metadata-transmission starting position by the streaming server 111 is determined when a jump command is sent from the streaming client 106 to the streaming server 111 .",
"[0135] [0135 ]FIG. 11 shows an access-point table for packets used for the streaming server 111 to determine a transmission start packet.",
"[0136] The table is prepared in advance and recorded on the server device 101 .",
"A column 1100 indicates access times and a column 1101 shows offset values corresponding to the access times on the left.",
"[0137] For example, when a jump to a time 0:01:05:00F is requested from the streaming client 106 , the streaming server 111 searches the access time train for the closest time after the jump destination time.",
"The example in FIG. 11 shows a search result, time 0:01:06:21F.",
"The streaming server 111 then refers to an offset value corresponding to the retrieved time.",
"[0138] In the example of FIG. 11, the offset value is 312 .",
"The offset value indicates the ordinal number of a packet to be transmitted.",
"Therefore, when a packet stream has been produced in advance, it is preferable to start to transmit the 312th packet in the packet stream.",
"[0139] The access point table for the packets is produced as in the flowchart of FIG. 12.",
"[0140] In step S 1200 , it is first determined on the ordinal number of the head packet of each object data and contents data in order of the time stamp after sorting.",
"This can be performed in synchronization with the step S 501 in FIG. 5. [0141] In step S 1201 , the orders of packets including the head packet in each object data and contents data are set to offset values, and are listed with the time stamps of the packets, thereby the table is produced.",
"The table sometimes has different offset values corresponding to the same time stamp.",
"Therefore, in step S 1202 , only a minimum offset value is left and other overlapping time stamps are deleted.",
"[0142] By the above processes, the access point table for the packets is produced.",
"In the access point table, the packet in the table of offset values always corresponds to the head of the object data or the contents data.",
"Therefore, starting the transmission by the streaming server 111 from the packet allows the client device 100 to obtain object data or contents data which is necessary at the video playback position.",
"[0143] (8) Another Method for Determining Metadata-transmission Starting Position by Streaming Server 111 [0144] Another method will be described by which a metadata-transmission starting position by the streaming server 111 is determined when a jump command is sent from the streaming client 106 to the streaming server 111 .",
"[0145] A packet access point table is first prepared by a method different from that in FIG. 12.",
"FIG. 13 shows a flowchart of the procedure.",
"[0146] In step S 1300 , the orders (offset values) of all the packets that have been sorted in order of the time stamps and the time stamps of the packets are first listed to produce the table.",
"[0147] In step S 1301 , overlapping time stamps are deleted.",
"More specifically, when the produced table includes an overlapping offset value at the same time stamp, only a minimum offset value is left and other overlapping time stamps and offset values are deleted.",
"[0148] In order to start metadata transmission using the access point table for packets thus produced, a method different from that of FIG. 12 must be used.",
"The method will be described hereinafter.",
"[0149] [0149 ]FIG. 14 shows a flowchart for starting metadata transmission using the access-point table for packets produced by the method of FIG. 13.",
"[0150] In step S 1400 , among the object data, an object existing in the video at a playback start time required by the client device 100 is specified.",
"For this purpose, an object scheduling table is referred.",
"The table is prepared in advance and recorded in the client device 100 .",
"[0151] [0151 ]FIG. 15 shows an example of the object scheduling table.",
"[0152] Object ID numbers 1500 correspond to the object-data ID numbers 200 .",
"[0153] Start time 1501 describes the time when the object area in the object-area data 203 starts.",
"[0154] End time 1502 describes the time when the object area in the object-area data 203 ends.",
"[0155] An object file name 1503 specifies the file name of the object data.",
"[0156] The example of FIG. 15 shows that, for example, an object having an object ID number 000002 appears on the screen at time 0:00:19:00F and disappears at time 0:00:26:27F, and the data about the object is described in a file Girl- 1 .",
"dat.",
"[0157] In step S 1400 , an object is selected which includes a playback start time required by the client device 100 between the start time and the end time on the object scheduling table.",
"[0158] In step S 1401 , the file name of the selected object is taken from the object scheduling table, from which object data other than the object-area data 203 is packetized and transmitted.",
"[0159] In step S 1402 , a transmission start packet is determined.",
"In the process, among the sorted packets, a transmission start packet is determined with reference to the access point table for packets produced by the process of FIG. 13.",
"[0160] Finally, in step S 1403 , packets are transmitted from the transmission start packet in sequence.",
"[0161] On the packet access point table produced by the procedure of FIG. 13, the packet indicated by the offset value does not always correspond to the head of the object data.",
"Accordingly, when the transmission is started from a packet designated by the offset value, important information such as the ID number 200 and the script data 202 in the object data is omitted.",
"In order to prevent the omission, only the important information in the object data is first transmitted, and other packets are then transmitted in order of designation by the offset values on the packet access point table.",
"[0162] [Modification] [0163] Although object data and contents data are used as metadata in the above description, other metadata can be processed such that the metadata is sent from the server device 101 to the client device 100 and it is processed in synchronization with the playback of video or audio contents held in the client device 100 .",
"[0164] For example, the invention can be applied to all metadata in which different contents are described for each time, such as video contents or audio contents."
] |
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] The present application is related to U.S. application Ser. No. ______ (Attorney Docket No. 201-1312) entitled “Personal Audio Recorder In A Vehicular Entertainment Sound System Using Recommended Audio Signals”, that is simultaneously filed herewith and the disclosure of which is incorporated by reference herein.
BACKGROUND OF INVENTION
[0002] 1. Technical Field
[0003] The present invention relates generally to a vehicular entertainment sound system (VESS), and more specifically, to a method for selectively recording and playing back a plurality of audio sources in a VESS.
[0004] 2. Background Art
[0005] The automotive vehicle has become a venue where many individuals listen to news, traffic, and entertainment programs. By its very nature, the ability to listen to a desired program in a vehicle is significantly limited. For example, the length of time an individual spends in a vehicle rarely coincides with the duration of the program listened to by that person. Further, many times the desired program may not even be broadcasted during the time period an individual is in the vehicle. As a result, the individual is frequently prevented from listening to a desired program in its entirety.
[0006] There are many situations in which an occupant cannot listen to an entire audio program. A driver may be required to lower the volume of the VESS for short periods of time to allow him to focus on his driving. Typical situations demanding such action include occasions when unfavorable road conditions exist or when the driver must concentrate on the directions in which he should be driving. Other circumstances requiring the volume to be significantly lowered are when an occupant of the vehicle wishes to engage in a conversation with another person. For whatever reason the volume must be lowered, the individual is prevented from listening to a complete audio program in the vehicle. Such an adverse result is undesirable.
[0007] Currently, there exists a radio tape recorder for use in association with a VESS. This device allows a user to record radio broadcasts received by the VESS onto an audiocassette tape. Unfortunately, the recorder fails to provide the listener with a time-delayed version of the program being recorded while such program is being concurrently broadcasted. Accordingly, an individual who misses a portion of a program presently being recorded cannot listen to such portion and the remainder of the broadcast until the entire program has been recorded onto the audiocassette tape. Further, in comparison to RAM or hard disk drive as a medium, audiocassette tapes provide inferior sound quality and are subject to a shorter life span. The radio tape recorder also fails to independently provide users with audio programs that may appeal to the user. This device only records audio programs at the very moment the user activates it.
[0008] An automobile radio recording system has been introduced that permits a user to continuously record the contents of a radio program onto electronic media and then transfer such contents onto an audiocassette tape or compact disk. Unfortunately, similar to the previous device the automobile recorder fails to provide the listener with a time-delayed version of the program being recorded as long as such program is being simultaneously broadcasted. It also fails to independently provide the user with desired audio programs without the user's immediate activation of the device.
[0009] A programmable radio has been introduced that allows for the selective recording of desired broadcasts. The device has voice recognition software that initiates recording of the broadcast when certain words or phrases are identified by the software. However, similar to the previous devices, the programmable radio is not an ondemand system that allows the user to delay a broadcast for an arbitrary period of time.
[0010] A recovery recorder system for audio and video programs continuously records a brief span of a broadcast onto a short-term memory medium. If in viewing or listening to the program the user decides that he would like a copy of the program, a control logic command is executed that causes the material on the short-term storage medium to be transferred to a long-term storage medium. Consequently, a user has a copy of the entire broadcast even though he actuates the system after a portion of the program has already been broadcasted. Unfortunately, this system fails to allow the user to effectively pause the live radio broadcast and then immediately resume playing such broadcast from the same point as long as the program is being simultaneously broadcasted. This device also fails to independently record audio programs appealing to the user without the user's specific identification of such programs.
[0011] Digital recorders for television allow users to pause a television program being broadcasted and to subsequently resume playing the program from the same point. Unfortunately, this device does not provide any benefit to occupants of automobiles who wish to time-delay a broadcasted radio program. Also, the digital recorder has no feature to record an audio-only program.
[0012] In the context of the Internet and personal computers, technology exists for time-delay of radio broadcasts. However, this technology does not apply to FM, AM, or satellite broadcasts. Therefore, this technology falls short of helping an individual who wishes to listen to particular programs on his VESS.
[0013] There is a need to provide vehicular occupants with audio programs suited to their taste and at times when they demand such programs. Therefore, there is a need for a method of selectively recording a plurality of audio sources for a VESS.
SUMMARY OF INVENTION
[0014] The present invention provides a system that effectively pauses a live radio broadcast for a selected time period in a VESS. The invention also allows selective recording of audio signals congruent to previous audio signals listened to by the user. Further, the invention allows selective recording of audio signals identified by the user.
[0015] In carrying out the present invention, a method and system are provided for recording a plurality of audio signals in a VESS. The method and system provide the user with a selective plurality of desired audio signals upon his demand.
[0016] There is disclosed herein a method of recording a plurality of audio signals associated with a VESS. The method includes an audio input associated with an automotive vehicle. The plurality of audio signals is transmitted through the audio input to a controller within the automotive vehicle. A preferred plurality of audio signals is acoustically played on the VESS. A recorder is then actuated to record the preferred plurality of audio signals onto an electronic medium within the vehicle. The preferred plurality of audio signals is recorded for a recording time period onto the electronic medium within the vehicle. The controller suspends acoustical play of the preferred plurality of audio signals received from the audio input. This suspension begins at a halting point, at which time the recorder also begins to record the audio signals. Finally, the acoustical play is resumed from the halting point concurrently as the plurality of audio signals is being recorded. The acoustical play is resumed from the electronic medium within the vehicle.
[0017] In a further aspect of this invention, a control system associated with an automotive vehicle includes a controller that receives audio signals and data corresponding to the audio programs so as to compile a user profile. The controller then employs the user profile as a point of comparison for subsequently received audio programs and their accompanying data. If the data of the subsequently received audio program is congruent with the user profile, the controller actuates a recorder to record the audio program for the user.
[0018] In yet another aspect of the present invention, the control system associated with the automotive vehicle includes a controller that actuates a recorder to record an audio program upon detecting a programmable recording signal. In operation, the user enables the recording by selecting a programmable recording signal associated with the audio program he wishes to record.
[0019] One advantage of the invention is that a user may pause the acoustical transmission of a live radio broadcast in a VESS at an arbitrary point for an arbitrary period of time and then subsequently resume the broadcast from the same point. Another advantage of the invention is that a user may have access to a wide selection of audio programs suited to his personal taste and needs.
[0020] Other advantages of the present invention will become apparent upon reading the following detailed description and appended claims, and upon reference to the accompanying drawings.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS
[0021] For a more complete understanding of this invention, reference should now be had to the embodiments illustrated in greater detail in the accompanying drawings and described below by way of examples of the invention. In the drawings:
[0022] [0022]FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a personal audio recording system associated with an automotive vehicle according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention.
[0023] [0023]FIGS. 2A and 2B illustrate a flow chart depicting a method of time-delaying an acoustical transmission of a preferred plurality of audio signals in an automotive vehicle according to one embodiment of the present invention.
[0024] [0024]FIG. 3 is a flow chart depicting a method of providing a recommended plurality of audio signals within an automotive vehicle according to one embodiment of the present invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0025] Referring now to FIG. 1, a personal audio recording system 10 associated with an automotive vehicle 12 is illustrated. In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the personal audio recording system 10 includes a central server 14 for processing a plurality of data 16 related to a plurality of audio signals 18 .
[0026] In the preferred embodiment of the invention, the personal audio recording system 10 further includes an audio input 20 and a data input 22 each associated with the automotive vehicle 12 .
[0027] The audio input 20 transmits the plurality of audio signals 18 to a controller 24 disposed within the automotive vehicle 12 . As is widely known in the art, the plurality of audio signals 18 may be acoustically played on a conventional radio for a user to hear. A typical audio input 20 may include at least one of a radio antenna, a radio tuner, a compact disk player, a digital video disk player, a satellite radio receiver, a cellular phone, a telematics unit, and a microphone. Obviously, the specific type of audio input 20 used may vary as the invention requires.
[0028] The data input 22 typically receives the plurality of data 16 from the central server 14 and then transmits the plurality of data 16 to the controller 24 . The plurality of data 16 preferably includes at least one of a program schedule, a program description, a recommendation, and a preference vector related to the plurality of audio signals 18 . Typical data inputs 22 may be at least one of a cellular phone, a packet-based network, a data radio antenna and tuner, a short range connection, a virtual floating network, and a removable medium. Of course, the specific type of data input 20 may vary as well, should circumstances require it.
[0029] A personal audio recorder 28 within an automotive vehicle 12 preferably includes the controller 24 , a recorder 28 , an electronic medium 30 , and a user interface 32 . The controller 24 receives the plurality of audio signals 18 from the audio input 20 and the plurality of data 16 from the data input 22 .
[0030] Upon actuation by a user, the controller 24 encodes a preferred plurality of audio signals 34 and commands the recorder 28 to record the preferred plurality of audio signals 34 and its corresponding preferred plurality of data 36 onto the electronic medium 30 . Preferable forms of the electronic medium 30 include a flash memory chip, a dynamic RAM, and a hard disk drive. Upon further actuation by the user, the controller 24 may then decode the preferred plurality of audio signals 34 and retrieve them from the electronic medium 30 . The personal audio recorder 28 may also employ the user interface 32 for receiving manual feedback 38 from an occupant of the vehicle. Such manual feedback 38 is discussed in greater detail in the description for FIG. 3.
[0031] The controller 24 selectively transmits the preferred plurality of audio signals 34 and a recommended plurality of audio signals 40 to the VESS 42 . The VESS 42 includes various conventional automobile stereo components. These components may include, but are not limited to, recorders, compact disk players, audiocassette players, MP3 players, speakers, radio tuners, volume controls, and tone controls. Further, the VESS 42 serves as an audio output for providing the desired audio program to the listener in the format he so desires. Most typically, the VESS 42 uses speakers to acoustically play the preferred plurality of audio signals 34 for the user's listening pleasure. In other situations, the VESS 42 may record the preferred plurality of audio signals 34 onto removable media by way of a VESS component. These are only a few examples of the different means a user may benefit from the audio output.
[0032] Referring now to FIGS. 2A and 2B, a flow chart illustrates a method of time-delaying an acoustical transmission of a preferred plurality of audio signals 34 in an automotive vehicle 12 according to one embodiment of the present invention. In operation, the method of the present invention is initiated at step 44 and then immediately proceeds to step 46 . In step 46 , the controller 24 receives a plurality of audio signals 18 from an audio input 20 . For example, the controller 24 may receive radio broadcast signals from a radio antenna and a radio tuner associated with the vehicle 12 . Obviously, other forms of audio input 20 may be used, as the invention requires. Having performed step 46 , the sequence proceeds to step 48 .
[0033] In step 48 , the user selects a preferred plurality of audio signals 34 of the plurality of audio signals 18 received from the audio input 20 . For example, the user may select a specific radio program to be acoustically played on the VESS 42 . The user may do so by simply choosing a frequency on a radio tuner. The preferred plurality of audio signals 34 is then transmitted from the controller 24 to the VESS 42 for the next operation in step 50 .
[0034] In step 50 , the VESS 42 acoustically plays the preferred plurality of audio signals 34 . A component of the VESS 42 , such as speakers, receives these signals 18 from the controller 24 . Then, the sequence proceeds to step 52 .
[0035] In step 52 , the controller 24 determines whether the user has requested a time-delay in the acoustical transmission of the preferred plurality of audio signals 34 within the automotive vehicle 12 . As one skilled in the art would understand, there are various ways of actuating such a request. For example, the user may simply press a button thereby closing an electric circuit with the controller 24 and consequently prompting the controller 24 for the time-delay. Alternatively, the user may speak a command word received by a controller 24 having voice recognition capability. Actuating the request can be accomplished in many different ways.
[0036] If in step 52 the controller 24 determines that no request has been made, then the sequence returns to step 46 . However, if the controller 24 determines otherwise, then the sequence proceeds to step 54 .
[0037] In step 54 , the controller 24 determines whether the request for the time-delay is the first of such request since power up of the system. If the controller determines that the user has requested a time-delay for the first time since power up of the system, then the sequence proceeds to step 56 .
[0038] In step 56 , the controller 24 actuates the VESS 42 to stop acoustically playing the preferred plurality of audio signals 34 at a halting point. For example, the controller 24 may accomplish this step by ending transmission of the signals 34 to the VESS 42 . Further, as the VESS 42 ceases to acoustically play the preferred plurality of signals 34 , the controller 24 simultaneously begins to encode the signals 34 as they are received from the audio input 20 according to the preferred embodiment of the present invention. The controller 24 typically encodes the signals 34 from an analog format to a digital format. Preferably, the digital format is an MP3 format. However, the digital format may vary, as the invention requires. Then, the sequence proceeds to step 58 .
[0039] In step 58 , the controller 24 typically actuates the recorder 28 to begin recording the preferred plurality of audio signals 34 . The recorder 28 stores the preferred plurality of audio signals 34 onto an electronic medium 30 . Then, the sequence proceeds to step 64 .
[0040] However, if in step 54 , the controller determines that the request for a time-delay is not the first of such request since power up of the system, then the sequence proceeds to step 60 . In step 58 , the controller 24 actuates the VESS 42 to stop acoustically playing the preferred plurality of audio signals 34 at a halting point. Meanwhile, as the VESS 42 stops acoustically playing the signals 34 , the controller 24 simultaneously continues to encode the signals 30 according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention. As in step 56 , the controller 24 typically encodes the signals 18 from an analog format to a digital format. Preferably, the digital format is an MP3 format. Then, the sequence proceeds to step 62 .
[0041] In step 62 , the controller 24 continues to actuate the recorder 28 to record the preferred plurality of audio signals 34 . As in step 58 , the recorder 28 stores the preferred plurality of audio signals 34 onto an electronic medium 30 . Then, the sequence proceeds to step 64 .
[0042] In step 64 , the controller 24 determines whether the user has requested a continuation in the acoustical transmission of the preferred plurality of audio signals 34 . A person of ordinary skill in the art would understand that there are various ways of actuating such a request, as demonstrated in step 52 . The user may selectively request the continuation after an arbitrary period of time has passed since halting the acoustical transmission.
[0043] If the controller 24 determines that the user has not requested a continuation of the acoustical transmission within the automotive vehicle 12 , then the sequence repeats step 64 . However, if the controller 24 determines that the user has requested the continuation, then the sequence proceeds to step 66 .
[0044] In step 66 , the controller 24 preferably decodes the preferred plurality of audio signals 34 starting at the halting point. The controller typically decodes the signals 34 from a digital format to an analog format. The preferred plurality of audio signals 34 is then transmitted from the controller 24 to the VESS 42 for the next operation in step 68 .
[0045] In step 68 , the VESS 42 acoustically plays the preferred plurality of audio signals 34 . As mentioned in step 48 , a component of the VESS 42 , typically the speakers, receives the signals 34 and acoustically plays the signals 34 for the user to hear. Further, as the VESS 42 resumes acoustically playing the signals 34 , the controller 24 simultaneously continues to encode the signals 34 according to the preferred embodiment of the present invention. As in step 54 , the controller 24 typically encodes the signals 34 from an analog format to a digital format. Preferably, the digital format is an MP3 format. Then, the sequence proceeds to step 70 .
[0046] In step 70 , the controller 24 continues to actuate the recorder 28 to record the preferred plurality of audio signals 34 . As in step 58 , the recorder 28 stores the preferred plurality of audio signals 34 onto an electronic medium 30 . Then, the sequence returns to step 46 .
[0047] Thus, a method of time-delaying an acoustical transmission of a preferred plurality of audio signals 34 in an automotive vehicle 12 is provided. Accordingly, a user may selectively pause and resume the acoustical transmission of a preferred plurality of audio signals 34 as the signals 34 are simultaneously being received by the controller 24 .
[0048] Referring now to FIG. 3, a flow chart depicts a method of providing a recommended plurality of audio signals within an automotive vehicle according to one embodiment of the present invention. In operation, the method of the present invention is initiated at step 72 and then immediately proceeds to step 74 . In step 74 , a controller 24 receives a plurality of audio signals 18 from an audio input 20 . For example, the controller 24 may receive radio broadcast signals from a radio antenna and a radio tuner associated with the automotive vehicle 12 . Then, the sequence continues to step 76 .
[0049] In step 76 , the controller 24 receives a plurality of data 16 from the data input 22 . In a preferred embodiment, the data input 22 receives the plurality of data 16 from a central server 14 that processes the plurality of data 16 . Typically, the plurality of data 16 comprises at least one of a program description, a program schedule, a recommendation, and a preference vector associated with the plurality of audio signals 18 . Elements of the preference vector may include relative weightings of different audio types. Alternatively, the controller 24 can store, on the electronic medium 30 , multiple preference vectors for different users. For example, a program description may classify an audio program by at least one of a genre, a style, an artist, a song title, and an album. Examples of genre typically include, but are not limited to, music, traffic news, international news, financial news, controversial talk, and comedy programs. The operation then proceeds to step 78 .
[0050] In one embodiment of the invention, the plurality of audio signals 18 and the corresponding plurality of data 16 may be received by the controller 24 if the user selects the specific frequency broadcasting the audio signals 18 and data 16 . In an alternative embodiment, the audio signals 18 and the data 16 are received from various sources at a single time without actuation by the user.
[0051] In step 78 , the controller determines whether the VESS 42 has been powered up. If the VESS 42 is not powered up, then the sequence immediately proceeds to step 86 . If, however, the VESS 42 is powered up, then the sequence continues to step 80 .
[0052] In step 80 , the user selects a preferred plurality of audio signals 34 of the plurality of audio signals 18 received by the audio input 20 . The preferred plurality of audio signals 34 composes an audio program listened to by the user for a predetermined minimum time period. For example, if the VESS 42 is powered up, this step may be accomplished when the user selects a frequency on a radio tuner and listens to a financial news broadcast for a minimum of two minutes. Further, the user may also employ the user interface 32 to input into the controller 24 a manual feedback 38 that describes the type of audio programs he would like to hear. These examples are only a couple of the many different ways the user may choose a desired audio program. The sequence then continues onto step 82 .
[0053] In step 82 , the controller 24 detects the preferred plurality of data 36 and the manual feedback 38 , each describing characteristics of an audio program the controller 24 may record. For example, according to step 78 the user may be listening to a financial news broadcast on a particular radio station. Then, pursuant to step 80 , the controller 24 detects the data 36 identifying the financial news broadcast. The data 36 may include the time of the broadcast, the frequency of the broadcast, and a description of the genre or style of the broadcast. Of course, various other ways of identifying a desired program may be used. Then, the sequence proceeds to step 84 .
[0054] In step 84 , the controller 24 uses the preferred plurality of data 36 and the manual feedback 38 to format a user profile. For example, the user profile may include the particular genres or styles of audio programs that the user listens to along with the frequency in which he listens to these programs. Further, the user profile may also include the artist names, song titles, and other descriptions of the audio programs he wishes to hear. Then, the sequence proceeds to step 86 .
[0055] In step 86 , it is determined whether the plurality of data 16 is congruent to the user profile, with the user profile being compiled from the audio programs listened to by the user and the manual feedback inputted into the system by the user.
[0056] In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, step 86 is accomplished by the controller 24 within the automotive vehicle 12 . For example, a controller determines that a preference vector associated with a financial news broadcast is congruent to a user profile if the user has in the past frequently listened to financial news on that VESS 42 . Also, the controller 24 may determine the program description associated with a financial news broadcast is congruent to a user profile if the user selected such a program by inputting a proper identification in the manual feedback 38 . On the other hand, a plurality of a data 16 associated with a financial broadcast would not be congruent to a user profile if the user has never listened to a financial news broadcast on the VESS 42 or has never selected such a program through the user interface 32 . Obviously, these are only a few examples of carrying out this step of the invention.
[0057] In an alternative embodiment of the present invention, step 86 is performed by the central server 14 . The central server 14 preferably employs a recommender system based on collaborative filtering. As one skilled in the art would understand, a collaborative filtering algorithm is a standard method of generating recommendations. Pursuant to this embodiment, the controller 24 typically uses the data input 22 to transmit the user profile to the central server 14 . The central server 14 then searches its database for user profiles of neighbors. Neighbors are other individuals that have preferences in audio programs similar to those of the user. The central server typically searches for mismatches between the neighboring profiles and the user profile. Subsequently, the central server flags data 16 associated with these mismatched audio programs as recommendations for the user and then transmits these recommendations to the controller 24 .
[0058] The controller 24 receives the recommendation and begins to record upon detecting a recording signal. The recommendation may take the form of at least one of an artist name, song title, program description, and program schedule. The recording signal typically is at least one of a plurality of data 16 and a plurality of audio signals 18 that matches the recommendation. For example, if a neighbor frequently listens to controversial talk broadcasts and the user never has, a recommendation may indicate that the user may also appreciate controversial talk broadcasts. The controller 24 may receive a plurality of data 16 specifying broadcast schedules of various controversial talk broadcasts on several different frequencies. Accordingly, the time of the broadcast is the recording signal. Upon reaching the time of broadcast of the controversial talk program, the controller selects the corresponding frequency and prepares to record for the scheduled period. Another example employs the plurality of audio signals 18 as the recording signal. For instance, the user may have inputted manual feedback 38 into the controller 24 commanding the recorder to record traffic reports. The controller 24 may employ voice recognition software to detect the word “traffic” and begin recording for a predetermined time period upon detecting the word. These examples only illustrate typical methods of carrying out step 86 .
[0059] If, in step 86 , the controller 24 determines that the plurality of data is not congruent to the user profile, then the sequence returns to step 74 .
[0060] However, if the controller 24 determines that the plurality of data 16 is congruent to the user profile, then the sequence proceeds to step 88 . In step 88 , the controller 24 encodes a recommended plurality of audio signals 40 associated with the plurality of data 16 congruent to the user profile. The controller 24 usually encodes the recommended plurality of audio signals 18 from an analog format to a digital format. Preferably, the digital format is an MP3 format; however, it may be otherwise as the invention requires. Further, the controller 24 actuates the recorder 28 to record the recommended plurality of audio signals 40 onto the electronic medium 30 . Then, the sequence proceeds to step 90 .
[0061] In step 90 , the controller 24 provides the user with access to the recommended plurality of audio signals 40 . For example, the controller 24 may employ the user interface 32 to inform the user that a recommended plurality of audio signals 40 is available to him. The user may acoustically play the recommended plurality of audio signals 40 by actuating the controller 24 to do so. Upon actuation, the controller 24 retrieves the recommended plurality of audio signals 40 from the electronic medium 30 and preferably decodes the recommended plurality of audio signals 40 from a digital to an analog format. Then, the controller 24 transmits the recommended plurality of audio signals 40 to the VESS 42 for acoustical transmission.
[0062] While particular embodiments of the present invention have been shown and described, numerous variations and alternate embodiments will occur to those skilled in the art. Accordingly, it is intended that the invention be limited only in terms of the appended claims. | A method of recording a plurality of audio signals associated with an entertainment sound system ( 42 ) of an automotive vehicle ( 12 ) includes an audio input ( 20 ). A plurality of audio signals ( 18 ) is transmitted from the audio input ( 20 ) to a controller ( 24 ) within the automotive vehicle ( 12 ). A preferred plurality of audio signals ( 36 ) is acoustically played on the entertainment sound system ( 42 ). A recorder ( 28 ) is actuated to record the preferred plurality of audio signals ( 34 ) onto an electronic medium ( 30 ) within the vehicle ( 42 ). Consequently, the preferred plurality of audio signals ( 34 ) is recorded onto the electronic medium ( 30 ). An acoustical transmission of the preferred plurality of audio signals ( 34 ) received from said audio input ( 20 ) is halted at a halting point. Finally, the acoustical transmission is resumed from the electronic medium ( 30 ), from the halting point simultaneously as the plurality of audio signals ( 18 ) continues being recorded. | Briefly summarize the invention's components and working principles as described in the document. | [
"CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS [0001] The present application is related to U.S. application Ser.",
"No. ______ (Attorney Docket No. 201-1312) entitled “Personal Audio Recorder In A Vehicular Entertainment Sound System Using Recommended Audio Signals”, that is simultaneously filed herewith and the disclosure of which is incorporated by reference herein.",
"BACKGROUND OF INVENTION [0002] 1.",
"Technical Field [0003] The present invention relates generally to a vehicular entertainment sound system (VESS), and more specifically, to a method for selectively recording and playing back a plurality of audio sources in a VESS.",
"[0004] 2.",
"Background Art [0005] The automotive vehicle has become a venue where many individuals listen to news, traffic, and entertainment programs.",
"By its very nature, the ability to listen to a desired program in a vehicle is significantly limited.",
"For example, the length of time an individual spends in a vehicle rarely coincides with the duration of the program listened to by that person.",
"Further, many times the desired program may not even be broadcasted during the time period an individual is in the vehicle.",
"As a result, the individual is frequently prevented from listening to a desired program in its entirety.",
"[0006] There are many situations in which an occupant cannot listen to an entire audio program.",
"A driver may be required to lower the volume of the VESS for short periods of time to allow him to focus on his driving.",
"Typical situations demanding such action include occasions when unfavorable road conditions exist or when the driver must concentrate on the directions in which he should be driving.",
"Other circumstances requiring the volume to be significantly lowered are when an occupant of the vehicle wishes to engage in a conversation with another person.",
"For whatever reason the volume must be lowered, the individual is prevented from listening to a complete audio program in the vehicle.",
"Such an adverse result is undesirable.",
"[0007] Currently, there exists a radio tape recorder for use in association with a VESS.",
"This device allows a user to record radio broadcasts received by the VESS onto an audiocassette tape.",
"Unfortunately, the recorder fails to provide the listener with a time-delayed version of the program being recorded while such program is being concurrently broadcasted.",
"Accordingly, an individual who misses a portion of a program presently being recorded cannot listen to such portion and the remainder of the broadcast until the entire program has been recorded onto the audiocassette tape.",
"Further, in comparison to RAM or hard disk drive as a medium, audiocassette tapes provide inferior sound quality and are subject to a shorter life span.",
"The radio tape recorder also fails to independently provide users with audio programs that may appeal to the user.",
"This device only records audio programs at the very moment the user activates it.",
"[0008] An automobile radio recording system has been introduced that permits a user to continuously record the contents of a radio program onto electronic media and then transfer such contents onto an audiocassette tape or compact disk.",
"Unfortunately, similar to the previous device the automobile recorder fails to provide the listener with a time-delayed version of the program being recorded as long as such program is being simultaneously broadcasted.",
"It also fails to independently provide the user with desired audio programs without the user's immediate activation of the device.",
"[0009] A programmable radio has been introduced that allows for the selective recording of desired broadcasts.",
"The device has voice recognition software that initiates recording of the broadcast when certain words or phrases are identified by the software.",
"However, similar to the previous devices, the programmable radio is not an ondemand system that allows the user to delay a broadcast for an arbitrary period of time.",
"[0010] A recovery recorder system for audio and video programs continuously records a brief span of a broadcast onto a short-term memory medium.",
"If in viewing or listening to the program the user decides that he would like a copy of the program, a control logic command is executed that causes the material on the short-term storage medium to be transferred to a long-term storage medium.",
"Consequently, a user has a copy of the entire broadcast even though he actuates the system after a portion of the program has already been broadcasted.",
"Unfortunately, this system fails to allow the user to effectively pause the live radio broadcast and then immediately resume playing such broadcast from the same point as long as the program is being simultaneously broadcasted.",
"This device also fails to independently record audio programs appealing to the user without the user's specific identification of such programs.",
"[0011] Digital recorders for television allow users to pause a television program being broadcasted and to subsequently resume playing the program from the same point.",
"Unfortunately, this device does not provide any benefit to occupants of automobiles who wish to time-delay a broadcasted radio program.",
"Also, the digital recorder has no feature to record an audio-only program.",
"[0012] In the context of the Internet and personal computers, technology exists for time-delay of radio broadcasts.",
"However, this technology does not apply to FM, AM, or satellite broadcasts.",
"Therefore, this technology falls short of helping an individual who wishes to listen to particular programs on his VESS.",
"[0013] There is a need to provide vehicular occupants with audio programs suited to their taste and at times when they demand such programs.",
"Therefore, there is a need for a method of selectively recording a plurality of audio sources for a VESS.",
"SUMMARY OF INVENTION [0014] The present invention provides a system that effectively pauses a live radio broadcast for a selected time period in a VESS.",
"The invention also allows selective recording of audio signals congruent to previous audio signals listened to by the user.",
"Further, the invention allows selective recording of audio signals identified by the user.",
"[0015] In carrying out the present invention, a method and system are provided for recording a plurality of audio signals in a VESS.",
"The method and system provide the user with a selective plurality of desired audio signals upon his demand.",
"[0016] There is disclosed herein a method of recording a plurality of audio signals associated with a VESS.",
"The method includes an audio input associated with an automotive vehicle.",
"The plurality of audio signals is transmitted through the audio input to a controller within the automotive vehicle.",
"A preferred plurality of audio signals is acoustically played on the VESS.",
"A recorder is then actuated to record the preferred plurality of audio signals onto an electronic medium within the vehicle.",
"The preferred plurality of audio signals is recorded for a recording time period onto the electronic medium within the vehicle.",
"The controller suspends acoustical play of the preferred plurality of audio signals received from the audio input.",
"This suspension begins at a halting point, at which time the recorder also begins to record the audio signals.",
"Finally, the acoustical play is resumed from the halting point concurrently as the plurality of audio signals is being recorded.",
"The acoustical play is resumed from the electronic medium within the vehicle.",
"[0017] In a further aspect of this invention, a control system associated with an automotive vehicle includes a controller that receives audio signals and data corresponding to the audio programs so as to compile a user profile.",
"The controller then employs the user profile as a point of comparison for subsequently received audio programs and their accompanying data.",
"If the data of the subsequently received audio program is congruent with the user profile, the controller actuates a recorder to record the audio program for the user.",
"[0018] In yet another aspect of the present invention, the control system associated with the automotive vehicle includes a controller that actuates a recorder to record an audio program upon detecting a programmable recording signal.",
"In operation, the user enables the recording by selecting a programmable recording signal associated with the audio program he wishes to record.",
"[0019] One advantage of the invention is that a user may pause the acoustical transmission of a live radio broadcast in a VESS at an arbitrary point for an arbitrary period of time and then subsequently resume the broadcast from the same point.",
"Another advantage of the invention is that a user may have access to a wide selection of audio programs suited to his personal taste and needs.",
"[0020] Other advantages of the present invention will become apparent upon reading the following detailed description and appended claims, and upon reference to the accompanying drawings.",
"BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS [0021] For a more complete understanding of this invention, reference should now be had to the embodiments illustrated in greater detail in the accompanying drawings and described below by way of examples of the invention.",
"In the drawings: [0022] [0022 ]FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a personal audio recording system associated with an automotive vehicle according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention.",
"[0023] [0023 ]FIGS. 2A and 2B illustrate a flow chart depicting a method of time-delaying an acoustical transmission of a preferred plurality of audio signals in an automotive vehicle according to one embodiment of the present invention.",
"[0024] [0024 ]FIG. 3 is a flow chart depicting a method of providing a recommended plurality of audio signals within an automotive vehicle according to one embodiment of the present invention.",
"DETAILED DESCRIPTION [0025] Referring now to FIG. 1, a personal audio recording system 10 associated with an automotive vehicle 12 is illustrated.",
"In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the personal audio recording system 10 includes a central server 14 for processing a plurality of data 16 related to a plurality of audio signals 18 .",
"[0026] In the preferred embodiment of the invention, the personal audio recording system 10 further includes an audio input 20 and a data input 22 each associated with the automotive vehicle 12 .",
"[0027] The audio input 20 transmits the plurality of audio signals 18 to a controller 24 disposed within the automotive vehicle 12 .",
"As is widely known in the art, the plurality of audio signals 18 may be acoustically played on a conventional radio for a user to hear.",
"A typical audio input 20 may include at least one of a radio antenna, a radio tuner, a compact disk player, a digital video disk player, a satellite radio receiver, a cellular phone, a telematics unit, and a microphone.",
"Obviously, the specific type of audio input 20 used may vary as the invention requires.",
"[0028] The data input 22 typically receives the plurality of data 16 from the central server 14 and then transmits the plurality of data 16 to the controller 24 .",
"The plurality of data 16 preferably includes at least one of a program schedule, a program description, a recommendation, and a preference vector related to the plurality of audio signals 18 .",
"Typical data inputs 22 may be at least one of a cellular phone, a packet-based network, a data radio antenna and tuner, a short range connection, a virtual floating network, and a removable medium.",
"Of course, the specific type of data input 20 may vary as well, should circumstances require it.",
"[0029] A personal audio recorder 28 within an automotive vehicle 12 preferably includes the controller 24 , a recorder 28 , an electronic medium 30 , and a user interface 32 .",
"The controller 24 receives the plurality of audio signals 18 from the audio input 20 and the plurality of data 16 from the data input 22 .",
"[0030] Upon actuation by a user, the controller 24 encodes a preferred plurality of audio signals 34 and commands the recorder 28 to record the preferred plurality of audio signals 34 and its corresponding preferred plurality of data 36 onto the electronic medium 30 .",
"Preferable forms of the electronic medium 30 include a flash memory chip, a dynamic RAM, and a hard disk drive.",
"Upon further actuation by the user, the controller 24 may then decode the preferred plurality of audio signals 34 and retrieve them from the electronic medium 30 .",
"The personal audio recorder 28 may also employ the user interface 32 for receiving manual feedback 38 from an occupant of the vehicle.",
"Such manual feedback 38 is discussed in greater detail in the description for FIG. 3. [0031] The controller 24 selectively transmits the preferred plurality of audio signals 34 and a recommended plurality of audio signals 40 to the VESS 42 .",
"The VESS 42 includes various conventional automobile stereo components.",
"These components may include, but are not limited to, recorders, compact disk players, audiocassette players, MP3 players, speakers, radio tuners, volume controls, and tone controls.",
"Further, the VESS 42 serves as an audio output for providing the desired audio program to the listener in the format he so desires.",
"Most typically, the VESS 42 uses speakers to acoustically play the preferred plurality of audio signals 34 for the user's listening pleasure.",
"In other situations, the VESS 42 may record the preferred plurality of audio signals 34 onto removable media by way of a VESS component.",
"These are only a few examples of the different means a user may benefit from the audio output.",
"[0032] Referring now to FIGS. 2A and 2B, a flow chart illustrates a method of time-delaying an acoustical transmission of a preferred plurality of audio signals 34 in an automotive vehicle 12 according to one embodiment of the present invention.",
"In operation, the method of the present invention is initiated at step 44 and then immediately proceeds to step 46 .",
"In step 46 , the controller 24 receives a plurality of audio signals 18 from an audio input 20 .",
"For example, the controller 24 may receive radio broadcast signals from a radio antenna and a radio tuner associated with the vehicle 12 .",
"Obviously, other forms of audio input 20 may be used, as the invention requires.",
"Having performed step 46 , the sequence proceeds to step 48 .",
"[0033] In step 48 , the user selects a preferred plurality of audio signals 34 of the plurality of audio signals 18 received from the audio input 20 .",
"For example, the user may select a specific radio program to be acoustically played on the VESS 42 .",
"The user may do so by simply choosing a frequency on a radio tuner.",
"The preferred plurality of audio signals 34 is then transmitted from the controller 24 to the VESS 42 for the next operation in step 50 .",
"[0034] In step 50 , the VESS 42 acoustically plays the preferred plurality of audio signals 34 .",
"A component of the VESS 42 , such as speakers, receives these signals 18 from the controller 24 .",
"Then, the sequence proceeds to step 52 .",
"[0035] In step 52 , the controller 24 determines whether the user has requested a time-delay in the acoustical transmission of the preferred plurality of audio signals 34 within the automotive vehicle 12 .",
"As one skilled in the art would understand, there are various ways of actuating such a request.",
"For example, the user may simply press a button thereby closing an electric circuit with the controller 24 and consequently prompting the controller 24 for the time-delay.",
"Alternatively, the user may speak a command word received by a controller 24 having voice recognition capability.",
"Actuating the request can be accomplished in many different ways.",
"[0036] If in step 52 the controller 24 determines that no request has been made, then the sequence returns to step 46 .",
"However, if the controller 24 determines otherwise, then the sequence proceeds to step 54 .",
"[0037] In step 54 , the controller 24 determines whether the request for the time-delay is the first of such request since power up of the system.",
"If the controller determines that the user has requested a time-delay for the first time since power up of the system, then the sequence proceeds to step 56 .",
"[0038] In step 56 , the controller 24 actuates the VESS 42 to stop acoustically playing the preferred plurality of audio signals 34 at a halting point.",
"For example, the controller 24 may accomplish this step by ending transmission of the signals 34 to the VESS 42 .",
"Further, as the VESS 42 ceases to acoustically play the preferred plurality of signals 34 , the controller 24 simultaneously begins to encode the signals 34 as they are received from the audio input 20 according to the preferred embodiment of the present invention.",
"The controller 24 typically encodes the signals 34 from an analog format to a digital format.",
"Preferably, the digital format is an MP3 format.",
"However, the digital format may vary, as the invention requires.",
"Then, the sequence proceeds to step 58 .",
"[0039] In step 58 , the controller 24 typically actuates the recorder 28 to begin recording the preferred plurality of audio signals 34 .",
"The recorder 28 stores the preferred plurality of audio signals 34 onto an electronic medium 30 .",
"Then, the sequence proceeds to step 64 .",
"[0040] However, if in step 54 , the controller determines that the request for a time-delay is not the first of such request since power up of the system, then the sequence proceeds to step 60 .",
"In step 58 , the controller 24 actuates the VESS 42 to stop acoustically playing the preferred plurality of audio signals 34 at a halting point.",
"Meanwhile, as the VESS 42 stops acoustically playing the signals 34 , the controller 24 simultaneously continues to encode the signals 30 according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention.",
"As in step 56 , the controller 24 typically encodes the signals 18 from an analog format to a digital format.",
"Preferably, the digital format is an MP3 format.",
"Then, the sequence proceeds to step 62 .",
"[0041] In step 62 , the controller 24 continues to actuate the recorder 28 to record the preferred plurality of audio signals 34 .",
"As in step 58 , the recorder 28 stores the preferred plurality of audio signals 34 onto an electronic medium 30 .",
"Then, the sequence proceeds to step 64 .",
"[0042] In step 64 , the controller 24 determines whether the user has requested a continuation in the acoustical transmission of the preferred plurality of audio signals 34 .",
"A person of ordinary skill in the art would understand that there are various ways of actuating such a request, as demonstrated in step 52 .",
"The user may selectively request the continuation after an arbitrary period of time has passed since halting the acoustical transmission.",
"[0043] If the controller 24 determines that the user has not requested a continuation of the acoustical transmission within the automotive vehicle 12 , then the sequence repeats step 64 .",
"However, if the controller 24 determines that the user has requested the continuation, then the sequence proceeds to step 66 .",
"[0044] In step 66 , the controller 24 preferably decodes the preferred plurality of audio signals 34 starting at the halting point.",
"The controller typically decodes the signals 34 from a digital format to an analog format.",
"The preferred plurality of audio signals 34 is then transmitted from the controller 24 to the VESS 42 for the next operation in step 68 .",
"[0045] In step 68 , the VESS 42 acoustically plays the preferred plurality of audio signals 34 .",
"As mentioned in step 48 , a component of the VESS 42 , typically the speakers, receives the signals 34 and acoustically plays the signals 34 for the user to hear.",
"Further, as the VESS 42 resumes acoustically playing the signals 34 , the controller 24 simultaneously continues to encode the signals 34 according to the preferred embodiment of the present invention.",
"As in step 54 , the controller 24 typically encodes the signals 34 from an analog format to a digital format.",
"Preferably, the digital format is an MP3 format.",
"Then, the sequence proceeds to step 70 .",
"[0046] In step 70 , the controller 24 continues to actuate the recorder 28 to record the preferred plurality of audio signals 34 .",
"As in step 58 , the recorder 28 stores the preferred plurality of audio signals 34 onto an electronic medium 30 .",
"Then, the sequence returns to step 46 .",
"[0047] Thus, a method of time-delaying an acoustical transmission of a preferred plurality of audio signals 34 in an automotive vehicle 12 is provided.",
"Accordingly, a user may selectively pause and resume the acoustical transmission of a preferred plurality of audio signals 34 as the signals 34 are simultaneously being received by the controller 24 .",
"[0048] Referring now to FIG. 3, a flow chart depicts a method of providing a recommended plurality of audio signals within an automotive vehicle according to one embodiment of the present invention.",
"In operation, the method of the present invention is initiated at step 72 and then immediately proceeds to step 74 .",
"In step 74 , a controller 24 receives a plurality of audio signals 18 from an audio input 20 .",
"For example, the controller 24 may receive radio broadcast signals from a radio antenna and a radio tuner associated with the automotive vehicle 12 .",
"Then, the sequence continues to step 76 .",
"[0049] In step 76 , the controller 24 receives a plurality of data 16 from the data input 22 .",
"In a preferred embodiment, the data input 22 receives the plurality of data 16 from a central server 14 that processes the plurality of data 16 .",
"Typically, the plurality of data 16 comprises at least one of a program description, a program schedule, a recommendation, and a preference vector associated with the plurality of audio signals 18 .",
"Elements of the preference vector may include relative weightings of different audio types.",
"Alternatively, the controller 24 can store, on the electronic medium 30 , multiple preference vectors for different users.",
"For example, a program description may classify an audio program by at least one of a genre, a style, an artist, a song title, and an album.",
"Examples of genre typically include, but are not limited to, music, traffic news, international news, financial news, controversial talk, and comedy programs.",
"The operation then proceeds to step 78 .",
"[0050] In one embodiment of the invention, the plurality of audio signals 18 and the corresponding plurality of data 16 may be received by the controller 24 if the user selects the specific frequency broadcasting the audio signals 18 and data 16 .",
"In an alternative embodiment, the audio signals 18 and the data 16 are received from various sources at a single time without actuation by the user.",
"[0051] In step 78 , the controller determines whether the VESS 42 has been powered up.",
"If the VESS 42 is not powered up, then the sequence immediately proceeds to step 86 .",
"If, however, the VESS 42 is powered up, then the sequence continues to step 80 .",
"[0052] In step 80 , the user selects a preferred plurality of audio signals 34 of the plurality of audio signals 18 received by the audio input 20 .",
"The preferred plurality of audio signals 34 composes an audio program listened to by the user for a predetermined minimum time period.",
"For example, if the VESS 42 is powered up, this step may be accomplished when the user selects a frequency on a radio tuner and listens to a financial news broadcast for a minimum of two minutes.",
"Further, the user may also employ the user interface 32 to input into the controller 24 a manual feedback 38 that describes the type of audio programs he would like to hear.",
"These examples are only a couple of the many different ways the user may choose a desired audio program.",
"The sequence then continues onto step 82 .",
"[0053] In step 82 , the controller 24 detects the preferred plurality of data 36 and the manual feedback 38 , each describing characteristics of an audio program the controller 24 may record.",
"For example, according to step 78 the user may be listening to a financial news broadcast on a particular radio station.",
"Then, pursuant to step 80 , the controller 24 detects the data 36 identifying the financial news broadcast.",
"The data 36 may include the time of the broadcast, the frequency of the broadcast, and a description of the genre or style of the broadcast.",
"Of course, various other ways of identifying a desired program may be used.",
"Then, the sequence proceeds to step 84 .",
"[0054] In step 84 , the controller 24 uses the preferred plurality of data 36 and the manual feedback 38 to format a user profile.",
"For example, the user profile may include the particular genres or styles of audio programs that the user listens to along with the frequency in which he listens to these programs.",
"Further, the user profile may also include the artist names, song titles, and other descriptions of the audio programs he wishes to hear.",
"Then, the sequence proceeds to step 86 .",
"[0055] In step 86 , it is determined whether the plurality of data 16 is congruent to the user profile, with the user profile being compiled from the audio programs listened to by the user and the manual feedback inputted into the system by the user.",
"[0056] In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, step 86 is accomplished by the controller 24 within the automotive vehicle 12 .",
"For example, a controller determines that a preference vector associated with a financial news broadcast is congruent to a user profile if the user has in the past frequently listened to financial news on that VESS 42 .",
"Also, the controller 24 may determine the program description associated with a financial news broadcast is congruent to a user profile if the user selected such a program by inputting a proper identification in the manual feedback 38 .",
"On the other hand, a plurality of a data 16 associated with a financial broadcast would not be congruent to a user profile if the user has never listened to a financial news broadcast on the VESS 42 or has never selected such a program through the user interface 32 .",
"Obviously, these are only a few examples of carrying out this step of the invention.",
"[0057] In an alternative embodiment of the present invention, step 86 is performed by the central server 14 .",
"The central server 14 preferably employs a recommender system based on collaborative filtering.",
"As one skilled in the art would understand, a collaborative filtering algorithm is a standard method of generating recommendations.",
"Pursuant to this embodiment, the controller 24 typically uses the data input 22 to transmit the user profile to the central server 14 .",
"The central server 14 then searches its database for user profiles of neighbors.",
"Neighbors are other individuals that have preferences in audio programs similar to those of the user.",
"The central server typically searches for mismatches between the neighboring profiles and the user profile.",
"Subsequently, the central server flags data 16 associated with these mismatched audio programs as recommendations for the user and then transmits these recommendations to the controller 24 .",
"[0058] The controller 24 receives the recommendation and begins to record upon detecting a recording signal.",
"The recommendation may take the form of at least one of an artist name, song title, program description, and program schedule.",
"The recording signal typically is at least one of a plurality of data 16 and a plurality of audio signals 18 that matches the recommendation.",
"For example, if a neighbor frequently listens to controversial talk broadcasts and the user never has, a recommendation may indicate that the user may also appreciate controversial talk broadcasts.",
"The controller 24 may receive a plurality of data 16 specifying broadcast schedules of various controversial talk broadcasts on several different frequencies.",
"Accordingly, the time of the broadcast is the recording signal.",
"Upon reaching the time of broadcast of the controversial talk program, the controller selects the corresponding frequency and prepares to record for the scheduled period.",
"Another example employs the plurality of audio signals 18 as the recording signal.",
"For instance, the user may have inputted manual feedback 38 into the controller 24 commanding the recorder to record traffic reports.",
"The controller 24 may employ voice recognition software to detect the word “traffic”",
"and begin recording for a predetermined time period upon detecting the word.",
"These examples only illustrate typical methods of carrying out step 86 .",
"[0059] If, in step 86 , the controller 24 determines that the plurality of data is not congruent to the user profile, then the sequence returns to step 74 .",
"[0060] However, if the controller 24 determines that the plurality of data 16 is congruent to the user profile, then the sequence proceeds to step 88 .",
"In step 88 , the controller 24 encodes a recommended plurality of audio signals 40 associated with the plurality of data 16 congruent to the user profile.",
"The controller 24 usually encodes the recommended plurality of audio signals 18 from an analog format to a digital format.",
"Preferably, the digital format is an MP3 format;",
"however, it may be otherwise as the invention requires.",
"Further, the controller 24 actuates the recorder 28 to record the recommended plurality of audio signals 40 onto the electronic medium 30 .",
"Then, the sequence proceeds to step 90 .",
"[0061] In step 90 , the controller 24 provides the user with access to the recommended plurality of audio signals 40 .",
"For example, the controller 24 may employ the user interface 32 to inform the user that a recommended plurality of audio signals 40 is available to him.",
"The user may acoustically play the recommended plurality of audio signals 40 by actuating the controller 24 to do so.",
"Upon actuation, the controller 24 retrieves the recommended plurality of audio signals 40 from the electronic medium 30 and preferably decodes the recommended plurality of audio signals 40 from a digital to an analog format.",
"Then, the controller 24 transmits the recommended plurality of audio signals 40 to the VESS 42 for acoustical transmission.",
"[0062] While particular embodiments of the present invention have been shown and described, numerous variations and alternate embodiments will occur to those skilled in the art.",
"Accordingly, it is intended that the invention be limited only in terms of the appended claims."
] |
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a control circuit and more specifically to a control circuit for a cool/heat pump room air conditioner.
Room air conditioners are well known and are of the type that generally fit in a window or in a sleeved opening formed through the wall of a room. Most such room air conditioners utilize a fluid refrigerant which is caused to alternately expand and condense to provide the desired cooling effect inside the room and to expel heat outside of the room. The refrigerant flows through a system which includes an evaporator where liquid refrigerant is permitted to evaporate thereby cooling a coil surface of the evaporator in order to extract heat from air within the room. A fan is used to cause room air to flow over the coil of the evaporator. The refrigerant then flows to the compressor where it is returned to a high pressure gas state. The refrigerant then flows to a condenser, generally positioned outside of the room wherein the refrigerant vapor condenses and gives off heat. Generally a fan is also provided on the condenser side to provide a flow of outside air over the condenser coil to remove heat therefrom. Refrigerant then flows to an expansion device where it is turned to a low pressure liquid state before flowing again to the evaporator.
It is known that by reversing the flow through the system, the air conditioner can act as a heat pump to draw heat from exterior of the room and to provide that heat to the interior of the room. In such an arrangement the refrigerant flow is reversed and what was the evaporator now acts as the condenser to release heat and what was the condenser now acts as the evaporator to absorb heat from the surrounding air.
Control systems for room air conditioners are well known and in such control circuits generally include a switch for powering a compressor motor and a fan motor as well as sometimes controlling other components.
Generally the type of motors utilized in such air conditioners have both a main winding and an auxiliary winding with capacitors in series with the auxiliary winding. Control circuits which have been provided for such air conditioning units and motors are disclosed in the following U.S. Pat. No(s). 2,242,370; 2,782,351; 3,045,159; 3,146,387; 3,385,077; and 3,852,648. Such circuits are limited to air conditioner units, however, and do not appear to provide the necessary controls for heat pump operation.
The above listed patents describe various types of control circuits and including circuits in which a single, dual rated capacitor is used in series with each of the two motor auxiliary windings.
Applicant has determined that in the application where such a room air conditioner is also being utilized as a heat pump, additional considerations arise over those necessary for controlling a room air conditioner, including the need to provide a de-icing circuit for the evaporator when the unit is being operated as a heat pump and, during such operation, the refrigerant flow must be reversed so as to provide a warming to the evaporator coil. Since the heat pump is generally being used to heat the interior space, it would be detrimental for the interior fan to run during the de-icing operation because during the de-icing operation the interior coil is acting as an evaporator and would thus result in cold air being blown from the evaporator coils. Therefore, it would be an improvement in the art for there to be provided a control circuit for a cool/heat pump room air conditioner which will control the various components with minimum number of parts, yet provide the desired heating and cooling and prevent undesired cooling effect within the room during a de-icing operation.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention provides a control circuit for a cool/heat pump room air conditioner which utilizes a minimum number of circuit parts, including only a single dual rated capacitor to control both the compressor motor and the fan motor, the control circuit providing means for terminating power to the main winding of one of the motors while maintaining power to both the auxiliary windings and the other main winding of the second motor. The means for terminating power to one of the main windings is a thermostat switch which also controls a solenoid to provide a reversing of the refrigerant flow through the cool/heat pump room air conditioner system. Thus, when the thermostat detects a condition which requires de-icing of the evaporator, the switch opens, terminating power to the fan motor and the solenoid, thus reversing the flow of refrigerant causing the evaporator to now function as a condenser and the interior condenser to operate as an evaporator. Thus, the exterior evaporator, now operating as a condenser, gives off heat to warm the coils and to effect a de-icing of that heat exchanger and, as the refrigerant flows through the interior heat exchanger, no fan is operated and therefore the cooling effect of the interior heat exchanger is kept at a minimum.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a cool/heat pump room air conditioner embodying the principles of the present invention.
FIG. 2 is a top elevational view of the cool/heat pump of FIG. 1 with the cover removed.
FIG. 3 is a sectional view through a central portion of the cool heat pump showing the "exterior" side of the unit.
FIG. 4 is a side sectional view of the cool/heat pump of FIG. 1.
FIG. 5 is an electrical schematic of the control circuit for the cool/heat pump.
FIG. 6 is a schematic diagram of the refrigerant system with a reversing valve in a heating position.
FIG. 7 is a schematic illustration of the refrigerant system with a reversing valve shown in a cooling position.
DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
FIG. 1 illustrates a cool/heat pump room air conditioner generally at 20 which embodies the principles of the present invention. Although the present invention may be utilized in other circuits where two motors are to be controlled, it has particular utility in a cool/heat pump room air conditioner and will be described in that environment.
The cool/heat pump room air conditioner has a front panel 22 which faces the interior of a room to be cooled or heated when the cool/heat pump unit is placed in an open window or in a through the wall sleeve. A central portion 24 of the panel constitutes an air inlet grill through which air flows into a portion of the cool/heat pump unit. The air is returned to the room through a pair of laterally spaced outlet grills 26.
A plurality of controls 28 are provided on a control panel area above the inlet grill. Positioned above the inlet grill 24 and below the controls is a slot 30 within which is received an air filter element 32.
The internal components of the cool/heat pump unit are shown in greater detail in FIGS. 2-4. Directly behind the front inlet grill is located a first heat exchange unit 60 which is mounted within a sheet metal shroud or housing 46. The housing 46 has central rear opening 48 which is positioned directly in front of an air moving device, preferably a blower wheel. The blower wheel 50 is mounted on a forwardly extending drive shaft 52 of an electric motor 54. The motor 54 also has a rearwardly extending drive shaft 56 to which a fan blade 58 is mounted. The drive shafts 52, 56 extend along the center line of the cool/heat pump unit. Directly behind the fan blade is a second heat exchanger 44. A compressor 62 is provided as is known in the art.
The forwardly extending drive shaft 52 extends through an opening 64 in a barrier wall 66 provided between the blower wheel 50 and the motor 52. The barrier wall 66 separates the two heat exchange units 44, 60 to prevent a short circuiting of the thermal effects generated by the unit. A barrier of expanded polystyrene 68 is provided along the barrier wall 66 which provides an insulation against heat transfer.
A base pan assembly 70 is provided as a mounting platform for a large number of the components of the cool/heat pump unit.
A control circuit for the cool/heat pump is illustrated in FIG. 5. A control switch 100, which may be one of the controls 28 on the front panel of the unit shown in FIG. 1 is provided for the user to select an operating mode for the cool/heat pump. The illustrated operating modes include three speeds each of heating and cooling, a fan only operating mode and an off mode. Other components of the circuit include the fan motor 54, a motor 102 for the compressor 62, an adjustable thermostat 104 having an upper temperature contact 106 and a lower temperature contact 108, a de-icer thermostat 110, a solenoid 112 and a single dual rated capacitor 114. Single phase alternating current is provided to the circuit on a pair of lines 114, 116. Fan motor 54 has a main winding 120 and an auxiliary winding 122 and the compressor motor 102 also has a main winding 124 and an auxiliary winding 126.
Alternating current line 114 is connected to the main and auxiliary windings 120, 122, 124, 126 through the control switch 100 and appropriate contacts therein. For the connection to the fan motor auxiliary winding 122, the alternating current line 114 is connected to a selected one of lines 130, 132, 134 depending upon whether the fan is to be run at a high, medium or low speed. Lines 130, 132 and 134 are connected to different taps in the auxiliary winding 122 of the fan motor. The main winding 120 is then connected through the de-icer thermostat 110 in series with lines 136 and 138 to the second line 116 of the alternating current supply. The auxiliary winding 122 is connected through line 140 to a terminal 142 of the capacitor 114. A central terminal of the capacitor 114 in turn is connected to the second alternating current line 116.
The compressor motor 102 main winding 124 is connected to the first alternating current line 114 through appropriate contacts in the control switch 100. During a heating mode of operation the connection from line 114 to the main winding is through line 142 and upper temperature contact 106 in line 144. During cooling operation line 114 is connected to the main winding 124 through line 146, lower temperature contact 108 and line 144. An overload fuse 148 is provided in line 144 to protect the compressor motor 102. The main winding 124 is then connected through line 150 to alternating current line 116. The compressor auxiliary winding 126 is connected to line 114 in precisely the same manner as the main winding. The auxiliary winding 126 is then connected through line 154 to a second terminal 156 of capacitor 114 which, again, is then connected directly to alternating current line 116 at its center terminal.
Solenoid 112 operates a pilot valve 160 as best seen in FIGS. 6 and 7. The pilot valve in turn is connected to a main valve 162 which provides for reversing flow of refrigerant through the system. Specifically, the compressor 62 is utilized to compress a refrigerant and to pump it, under high pressure, through line 170. Line 170 connects to an inlet port 172 on valve 162. In the position of valve 162 in FIG. 6 where a valve slide member 174 has been moved to a right hand position by the pilot valve 160, the refrigerant follows a flow path 176 to an outlet port 178 from where it flows through line 180 to heat exchange unit 60. In this arrangement heat exchange unit 60 acts as a condenser to reject heat to the surrounding air. The refrigerant condenses from a gas to a liquid in heat exchange unit 60.
From heat exchange unit 60 the refrigerant flows through line 182 to the second heat exchange unit 44 which, in this operating mode, acts as an evaporator where the now liquid refrigerant evaporates to a gas and absorbs heat from the surrounding air. From the second heat exchange unit 44 the now gaseous refrigerant flows through line 184 to a second inlet port 186 of valve unit 162 and along a flow path 188 to a second outlet port 190 of the valve member 162. From outlet port 190 the low pressure gaseous refrigerant flows through line 192 to a suction inlet on the compressor 62.
In a second position of solenoid 112, the pilot valve 160 is moved to a second position thus permitting its suction connection line 158 to be connected with line 159, and its pressure connection line 161 to be connected with line 163 to draw the slide member 174 to a left most position. Again, the compressor 62 operates in the same fashion and causes a flow of high pressure gaseous refrigerant through line 170 to inlet port 172. The refrigerant now flows on flow path 194 to what is now an outlet port 186 and through line 184 to the heat exchange unit 44. Now heat exchange unit 44 acts as a condenser rejecting heat to the surrounding atmosphere. The now liquid refrigerant flows through line 182 to the second heat exchange unit 60 which, in this mode of operation, functions as an evaporator to return the refrigerant to a gaseous state. The now low pressure liquid flows through line 180 through what is now an inlet port 178, along flow path 196 to outlet port 190, and through line 192 to again return to the suction side of the compressor 62.
In the heating mode selected by selector switch 100, the solenoid 112 is energized and thus causes the slide member 174 of valve 162 to move to the right most position as shown in FIG. 6. In this condition the heat exchange unit 60, which is positioned towards the interior of the room, acts as the condenser and gives off heat to the room. Heat is absorbed into the refrigerant in heat exchange unit 44 which is positioned on the exterior of the room.
During certain operating conditions it is possible for the coils of the exterior heat exchange unit 44 to become coated with ice due to condensation of moisture in the outside air on to the coils which have a temperature below freezing. This condition is not desirable in that it severely impairs the efficiency of the outside heat exchange unit 44. Therefore, the de-icer thermostat 110 is provided to detect such icing condition, as is known in the art.
When such an icing condition is detected, the thermostat 110 causes a switch connection to open thereby de-energizing the solenoid 112 causing the slide member 174 to move to the position shown in FIG. 7. In this position the outside heat exchange unit 44 now acts as the condenser whereby the heat given off by the refrigerant condensing causes the ice on the heat exchanger coils to melt. Since this de-icing operation occurs while the interior of the room is to be heated, it is not desirable to have the fan motor 54 operating (which would blow cool air into the room), although it is required to have the compressor motor 102 operating. Therefore, the de-icer thermostat 110 is also positioned in series with the main winding 120 of the fan motor 54. Thus, when the de-icer thermostat detects an icing condition, the main winding of the fan motor is de-energized. The main and auxiliary windings 124, 126 of the compressor motor 102 continue to be energized as does the auxiliary winding 122 of the fan motor. The energization of the fan motor auxiliary winding is not sufficient to cause the fan motor to operate, but it does provide the benefit of generating heat in the fan motor (which is positioned on the exterior (cold) side of barrier wall 66) thus assisting in the start up of the fan motor when the unit is returned to the heating mode. Since the start up of a cold motor is significantly harder and more energy consumptive than start up of a warm motor, the continued energization of the auxiliary winding to the fan motor provides a real benefit.
The use of a single dual rated capacitor 114 in the circuit significantly reduces the complexity of the circuit and reduces its cost in the reduction of components and in assembly time. During the cooling mode selected by selector switch 100 the solenoid 112 is not energized and thus operation and position of valve 162 is that shown in FIG. 7. During such operation, however, power is supplied to the fan motor main winding 120.
As is apparent from the foregoing specification, the invention is susceptible of being embodied with various alterations and modifications which may differ particularly from those that have been described in the preceding specification and description. It should be understood that I wish to embody within the scope of the patent warranted hereon all such modifications as reasonably and properly come within the scope of my contribution to the art. | A control circuit for a cool/heat pump in which two separate motors are utilized, each with a main winding and an auxiliary winding. A single dual rated capacitor is provided in series with the auxiliary windings and an alternating current line and a selectively operative switch, which may be in the form of a thermostat, is provided in series between one of the alternating current lines and a main winding of one of the motors to selectively terminate power to that main winding while maintaining power to both auxiliary windings and the main winding of the other motor. Such a control circuit allows a de-icing operation with the cool/heat pump working in a heating mode, without blowing cold air into the room which is to be heated. | Summarize the document in concise, focusing on the main idea's functionality and advantages. | [
"BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to a control circuit and more specifically to a control circuit for a cool/heat pump room air conditioner.",
"Room air conditioners are well known and are of the type that generally fit in a window or in a sleeved opening formed through the wall of a room.",
"Most such room air conditioners utilize a fluid refrigerant which is caused to alternately expand and condense to provide the desired cooling effect inside the room and to expel heat outside of the room.",
"The refrigerant flows through a system which includes an evaporator where liquid refrigerant is permitted to evaporate thereby cooling a coil surface of the evaporator in order to extract heat from air within the room.",
"A fan is used to cause room air to flow over the coil of the evaporator.",
"The refrigerant then flows to the compressor where it is returned to a high pressure gas state.",
"The refrigerant then flows to a condenser, generally positioned outside of the room wherein the refrigerant vapor condenses and gives off heat.",
"Generally a fan is also provided on the condenser side to provide a flow of outside air over the condenser coil to remove heat therefrom.",
"Refrigerant then flows to an expansion device where it is turned to a low pressure liquid state before flowing again to the evaporator.",
"It is known that by reversing the flow through the system, the air conditioner can act as a heat pump to draw heat from exterior of the room and to provide that heat to the interior of the room.",
"In such an arrangement the refrigerant flow is reversed and what was the evaporator now acts as the condenser to release heat and what was the condenser now acts as the evaporator to absorb heat from the surrounding air.",
"Control systems for room air conditioners are well known and in such control circuits generally include a switch for powering a compressor motor and a fan motor as well as sometimes controlling other components.",
"Generally the type of motors utilized in such air conditioners have both a main winding and an auxiliary winding with capacitors in series with the auxiliary winding.",
"Control circuits which have been provided for such air conditioning units and motors are disclosed in the following U.S. Pat. No(s).",
"2,242,370;",
"2,782,351;",
"3,045,159;",
"3,146,387;",
"3,385,077;",
"and 3,852,648.",
"Such circuits are limited to air conditioner units, however, and do not appear to provide the necessary controls for heat pump operation.",
"The above listed patents describe various types of control circuits and including circuits in which a single, dual rated capacitor is used in series with each of the two motor auxiliary windings.",
"Applicant has determined that in the application where such a room air conditioner is also being utilized as a heat pump, additional considerations arise over those necessary for controlling a room air conditioner, including the need to provide a de-icing circuit for the evaporator when the unit is being operated as a heat pump and, during such operation, the refrigerant flow must be reversed so as to provide a warming to the evaporator coil.",
"Since the heat pump is generally being used to heat the interior space, it would be detrimental for the interior fan to run during the de-icing operation because during the de-icing operation the interior coil is acting as an evaporator and would thus result in cold air being blown from the evaporator coils.",
"Therefore, it would be an improvement in the art for there to be provided a control circuit for a cool/heat pump room air conditioner which will control the various components with minimum number of parts, yet provide the desired heating and cooling and prevent undesired cooling effect within the room during a de-icing operation.",
"SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention provides a control circuit for a cool/heat pump room air conditioner which utilizes a minimum number of circuit parts, including only a single dual rated capacitor to control both the compressor motor and the fan motor, the control circuit providing means for terminating power to the main winding of one of the motors while maintaining power to both the auxiliary windings and the other main winding of the second motor.",
"The means for terminating power to one of the main windings is a thermostat switch which also controls a solenoid to provide a reversing of the refrigerant flow through the cool/heat pump room air conditioner system.",
"Thus, when the thermostat detects a condition which requires de-icing of the evaporator, the switch opens, terminating power to the fan motor and the solenoid, thus reversing the flow of refrigerant causing the evaporator to now function as a condenser and the interior condenser to operate as an evaporator.",
"Thus, the exterior evaporator, now operating as a condenser, gives off heat to warm the coils and to effect a de-icing of that heat exchanger and, as the refrigerant flows through the interior heat exchanger, no fan is operated and therefore the cooling effect of the interior heat exchanger is kept at a minimum.",
"BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a cool/heat pump room air conditioner embodying the principles of the present invention.",
"FIG. 2 is a top elevational view of the cool/heat pump of FIG. 1 with the cover removed.",
"FIG. 3 is a sectional view through a central portion of the cool heat pump showing the "exterior"",
"side of the unit.",
"FIG. 4 is a side sectional view of the cool/heat pump of FIG. 1. FIG. 5 is an electrical schematic of the control circuit for the cool/heat pump.",
"FIG. 6 is a schematic diagram of the refrigerant system with a reversing valve in a heating position.",
"FIG. 7 is a schematic illustration of the refrigerant system with a reversing valve shown in a cooling position.",
"DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS FIG. 1 illustrates a cool/heat pump room air conditioner generally at 20 which embodies the principles of the present invention.",
"Although the present invention may be utilized in other circuits where two motors are to be controlled, it has particular utility in a cool/heat pump room air conditioner and will be described in that environment.",
"The cool/heat pump room air conditioner has a front panel 22 which faces the interior of a room to be cooled or heated when the cool/heat pump unit is placed in an open window or in a through the wall sleeve.",
"A central portion 24 of the panel constitutes an air inlet grill through which air flows into a portion of the cool/heat pump unit.",
"The air is returned to the room through a pair of laterally spaced outlet grills 26.",
"A plurality of controls 28 are provided on a control panel area above the inlet grill.",
"Positioned above the inlet grill 24 and below the controls is a slot 30 within which is received an air filter element 32.",
"The internal components of the cool/heat pump unit are shown in greater detail in FIGS. 2-4.",
"Directly behind the front inlet grill is located a first heat exchange unit 60 which is mounted within a sheet metal shroud or housing 46.",
"The housing 46 has central rear opening 48 which is positioned directly in front of an air moving device, preferably a blower wheel.",
"The blower wheel 50 is mounted on a forwardly extending drive shaft 52 of an electric motor 54.",
"The motor 54 also has a rearwardly extending drive shaft 56 to which a fan blade 58 is mounted.",
"The drive shafts 52, 56 extend along the center line of the cool/heat pump unit.",
"Directly behind the fan blade is a second heat exchanger 44.",
"A compressor 62 is provided as is known in the art.",
"The forwardly extending drive shaft 52 extends through an opening 64 in a barrier wall 66 provided between the blower wheel 50 and the motor 52.",
"The barrier wall 66 separates the two heat exchange units 44, 60 to prevent a short circuiting of the thermal effects generated by the unit.",
"A barrier of expanded polystyrene 68 is provided along the barrier wall 66 which provides an insulation against heat transfer.",
"A base pan assembly 70 is provided as a mounting platform for a large number of the components of the cool/heat pump unit.",
"A control circuit for the cool/heat pump is illustrated in FIG. 5. A control switch 100, which may be one of the controls 28 on the front panel of the unit shown in FIG. 1 is provided for the user to select an operating mode for the cool/heat pump.",
"The illustrated operating modes include three speeds each of heating and cooling, a fan only operating mode and an off mode.",
"Other components of the circuit include the fan motor 54, a motor 102 for the compressor 62, an adjustable thermostat 104 having an upper temperature contact 106 and a lower temperature contact 108, a de-icer thermostat 110, a solenoid 112 and a single dual rated capacitor 114.",
"Single phase alternating current is provided to the circuit on a pair of lines 114, 116.",
"Fan motor 54 has a main winding 120 and an auxiliary winding 122 and the compressor motor 102 also has a main winding 124 and an auxiliary winding 126.",
"Alternating current line 114 is connected to the main and auxiliary windings 120, 122, 124, 126 through the control switch 100 and appropriate contacts therein.",
"For the connection to the fan motor auxiliary winding 122, the alternating current line 114 is connected to a selected one of lines 130, 132, 134 depending upon whether the fan is to be run at a high, medium or low speed.",
"Lines 130, 132 and 134 are connected to different taps in the auxiliary winding 122 of the fan motor.",
"The main winding 120 is then connected through the de-icer thermostat 110 in series with lines 136 and 138 to the second line 116 of the alternating current supply.",
"The auxiliary winding 122 is connected through line 140 to a terminal 142 of the capacitor 114.",
"A central terminal of the capacitor 114 in turn is connected to the second alternating current line 116.",
"The compressor motor 102 main winding 124 is connected to the first alternating current line 114 through appropriate contacts in the control switch 100.",
"During a heating mode of operation the connection from line 114 to the main winding is through line 142 and upper temperature contact 106 in line 144.",
"During cooling operation line 114 is connected to the main winding 124 through line 146, lower temperature contact 108 and line 144.",
"An overload fuse 148 is provided in line 144 to protect the compressor motor 102.",
"The main winding 124 is then connected through line 150 to alternating current line 116.",
"The compressor auxiliary winding 126 is connected to line 114 in precisely the same manner as the main winding.",
"The auxiliary winding 126 is then connected through line 154 to a second terminal 156 of capacitor 114 which, again, is then connected directly to alternating current line 116 at its center terminal.",
"Solenoid 112 operates a pilot valve 160 as best seen in FIGS. 6 and 7.",
"The pilot valve in turn is connected to a main valve 162 which provides for reversing flow of refrigerant through the system.",
"Specifically, the compressor 62 is utilized to compress a refrigerant and to pump it, under high pressure, through line 170.",
"Line 170 connects to an inlet port 172 on valve 162.",
"In the position of valve 162 in FIG. 6 where a valve slide member 174 has been moved to a right hand position by the pilot valve 160, the refrigerant follows a flow path 176 to an outlet port 178 from where it flows through line 180 to heat exchange unit 60.",
"In this arrangement heat exchange unit 60 acts as a condenser to reject heat to the surrounding air.",
"The refrigerant condenses from a gas to a liquid in heat exchange unit 60.",
"From heat exchange unit 60 the refrigerant flows through line 182 to the second heat exchange unit 44 which, in this operating mode, acts as an evaporator where the now liquid refrigerant evaporates to a gas and absorbs heat from the surrounding air.",
"From the second heat exchange unit 44 the now gaseous refrigerant flows through line 184 to a second inlet port 186 of valve unit 162 and along a flow path 188 to a second outlet port 190 of the valve member 162.",
"From outlet port 190 the low pressure gaseous refrigerant flows through line 192 to a suction inlet on the compressor 62.",
"In a second position of solenoid 112, the pilot valve 160 is moved to a second position thus permitting its suction connection line 158 to be connected with line 159, and its pressure connection line 161 to be connected with line 163 to draw the slide member 174 to a left most position.",
"Again, the compressor 62 operates in the same fashion and causes a flow of high pressure gaseous refrigerant through line 170 to inlet port 172.",
"The refrigerant now flows on flow path 194 to what is now an outlet port 186 and through line 184 to the heat exchange unit 44.",
"Now heat exchange unit 44 acts as a condenser rejecting heat to the surrounding atmosphere.",
"The now liquid refrigerant flows through line 182 to the second heat exchange unit 60 which, in this mode of operation, functions as an evaporator to return the refrigerant to a gaseous state.",
"The now low pressure liquid flows through line 180 through what is now an inlet port 178, along flow path 196 to outlet port 190, and through line 192 to again return to the suction side of the compressor 62.",
"In the heating mode selected by selector switch 100, the solenoid 112 is energized and thus causes the slide member 174 of valve 162 to move to the right most position as shown in FIG. 6. In this condition the heat exchange unit 60, which is positioned towards the interior of the room, acts as the condenser and gives off heat to the room.",
"Heat is absorbed into the refrigerant in heat exchange unit 44 which is positioned on the exterior of the room.",
"During certain operating conditions it is possible for the coils of the exterior heat exchange unit 44 to become coated with ice due to condensation of moisture in the outside air on to the coils which have a temperature below freezing.",
"This condition is not desirable in that it severely impairs the efficiency of the outside heat exchange unit 44.",
"Therefore, the de-icer thermostat 110 is provided to detect such icing condition, as is known in the art.",
"When such an icing condition is detected, the thermostat 110 causes a switch connection to open thereby de-energizing the solenoid 112 causing the slide member 174 to move to the position shown in FIG. 7. In this position the outside heat exchange unit 44 now acts as the condenser whereby the heat given off by the refrigerant condensing causes the ice on the heat exchanger coils to melt.",
"Since this de-icing operation occurs while the interior of the room is to be heated, it is not desirable to have the fan motor 54 operating (which would blow cool air into the room), although it is required to have the compressor motor 102 operating.",
"Therefore, the de-icer thermostat 110 is also positioned in series with the main winding 120 of the fan motor 54.",
"Thus, when the de-icer thermostat detects an icing condition, the main winding of the fan motor is de-energized.",
"The main and auxiliary windings 124, 126 of the compressor motor 102 continue to be energized as does the auxiliary winding 122 of the fan motor.",
"The energization of the fan motor auxiliary winding is not sufficient to cause the fan motor to operate, but it does provide the benefit of generating heat in the fan motor (which is positioned on the exterior (cold) side of barrier wall 66) thus assisting in the start up of the fan motor when the unit is returned to the heating mode.",
"Since the start up of a cold motor is significantly harder and more energy consumptive than start up of a warm motor, the continued energization of the auxiliary winding to the fan motor provides a real benefit.",
"The use of a single dual rated capacitor 114 in the circuit significantly reduces the complexity of the circuit and reduces its cost in the reduction of components and in assembly time.",
"During the cooling mode selected by selector switch 100 the solenoid 112 is not energized and thus operation and position of valve 162 is that shown in FIG. 7. During such operation, however, power is supplied to the fan motor main winding 120.",
"As is apparent from the foregoing specification, the invention is susceptible of being embodied with various alterations and modifications which may differ particularly from those that have been described in the preceding specification and description.",
"It should be understood that I wish to embody within the scope of the patent warranted hereon all such modifications as reasonably and properly come within the scope of my contribution to the art."
] |
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION
[0001] This application claims priority from U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 61/036,008 entitled “Authentication for a Data Card,” filed Mar. 12, 2008 which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety.
TECHNICAL FIELD
[0002] The present invention relates generally to portable identity or transactional data storage cards, and more particularly, to producing secure data on the card through a computer-assisted diffractive or holographic writing process.
BACKGROUND
[0003] Wireless electronic identification devices, such as radio frequency identification device (RFID) cards, are known in the art. RFID cards frequently include a unique serial number permanently and unalterably burned into an integrated circuit contained within the card. The integrated circuit typically has sufficient memory capacity for data (e.g., stored electronically) such as a card issuer identification (ID) number, user information (name, account number, signature image, etc.), the private key of a public-private key pair, a digital signature, and a personal identification number (PIN).
[0004] Optical storage techniques may also be used with RFID cards. Optionally, optical storage techniques may be used separately as a primary or sole data storage means on an identification card. Such storage techniques are known in the art and utilize, for example, diffractive or holographic patterns embedded on the card. A common “rainbow transmission” hologram utilizes common white light (as opposed to monochromatic sources, such as lasers) as an illumination source on secured transaction cards (e.g., credit cards). The rainbow transmission hologram is fabricated as a surface relief pattern formed on a first side of a plastic film. A second side of the film is placed in contact with a reflective coating, such as a sputtered aluminum film region, which reflects light incident on the transmissive hologram thus allowing viewing from the first (i.e., front) side of the card. The holograms are commonly used as a security feature on a variety of transaction and identification cards.
[0005] With reference to FIG. 1 , a prior art identification card 100 includes an optically encoded stripe 101 holding, for example, user data. An enlarged section 103 of the optically encoded stripe 101 reveals a diffraction grating-based optical identification element 105 . The diffraction grating-based optical identification element 105 is comprised of an optical substrate 107 , an optical diffraction grating 109 formed over the optical substrate, and a protective top layer 111 . The optical diffraction grating 109 is frequently formed by photolithographic techniques known in the semiconductor fabrication art and is produced either over an uppermost surface or within a volume of the optical substrate 107 .
[0006] The optical diffraction grating 109 is a periodic or aperiodic variation in the effective refractive index or effective optical absorption over at least a portion of the optical substrate 107 . A change in the effective refractive index or effective optical absorption produces diffractive elements. Diffractive elements are known in the optical arts. The optical diffraction grating 109 thus serves to either reflect or refract light in a certain way to produce diffracted patterns of light. The diffracted patterns may be observed optically or read with a specialized diffracted light viewer, described below.
[0007] The optical diffraction grating 109 is frequently a photosensitive layer (e.g., such as photoresist) allowing patterning of the diffractive elements. The optical diffraction grating 109 may also be a hologram, as the diffraction grating 109 can transform, translate, or filter an optical input signal to produce a predetermined desired optical output pattern or signal. The use of holograms on identification and security transaction cards (e.g., credit cards) is well-known in the art.
[0008] Referring now to FIG. 2 , a specialized diffracted light viewer 200 is used for inspection of data contained on the prior art identification card 100 . The specialized diffracted light viewer 200 includes an incoming laser beam 201 A incident upon the diffraction grating-based optical identification element 105 , and an optical diffraction detector 203 . The optical diffraction detector 203 includes an optional biconvex collection lens element 205 and a charge-coupled device (CCD) detection element 207 . When the laser beam 201 A is incident on the diffraction grating-based optical identification element 105 , a plurality of diffracted light beams 201 B is produced. The plurality of diffracted light beams 201 B is collected either by the optional biconvex collection lens element 205 focusing the diffracted light beams 201 B onto the CCD detection element 207 , or onto the CCD detection element 207 directly. As shown in FIG. 2 for clarity, the specialized diffracted light viewer 200 is being used in a transmission mode. However, the specialized diffracted light viewer 200 may be used in reflected light mode as well by selecting an optical substrate 107 ( FIG. 1 ) that is reflective.
[0009] The CCD detection element 207 reads an optical signal contained within the plurality of diffracted light beams 201 B and determines a code based on diffractive elements present or the optical pattern produced. The CCD detection element 207 may be coupled to a computer (not shown) that verifies all information stored on the diffraction grating-based optical identification element 105 . Alternatively, the CCD detection element 207 may be a portion of a camera (not shown) allowing direct inspection of the data contained on the diffraction grating-based optical identification element 105 .
[0010] With continued reference to FIG. 2 , the incoming laser beam 201 A has a given wavelength, λ, at a given angle of incidence θ i . Any other input wavelength λ can be used as long as the wavelength is within an optical transmission range of the protective top layer 111 . Depending upon whether the specialized diffracted light viewer 200 is designed to be used in transmission or reflection mode will determine whether the optical substrate 107 should be optically transparent for a given wavelength and angle of incidence.
[0011] While prior art identification cards having optically-embedded information have been produced and used successfully for many years, such cards tend to be expensive to manufacture and impossible to update since they rely upon photolithographically-produced diffraction elements containing user data. Manufacturing identification regions photolithographically is a time-consuming and expensive process requiring sophisticated fabrication facilities, expensive equipment, and caustic, dangerous chemicals. Therefore, what is needed is a safe and efficient system to produce an optically-based data storage region on an identification card. The card must be extremely difficult to copy while being easy for an end-user to read with a relatively inexpensive device. Ideally, the optically based data storage region will be incapable of being read either by a casual observer or surreptitiously without specialized equipment.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0012] In an exemplary embodiment, an optical media card forming at least a portion of an identification card is disclosed comprising an optical identification element formed upon a surface of the identification card and an optical stripe formed on the optical identification element having at least a portion formed substantially from a single material. The single material is configured to have a diffractive pattern formed thereupon by exposure to a laser. The diffractive pattern is capable of retaining information related to a cardholder and being readable by a light source external to the identification card.
[0013] In another exemplary embodiment, a method of producing a diffractive pattern on an optical element is disclosed. The method comprises compiling data for an identification card, calculating a far-field diffraction pattern containing the data, and calculating the diffractive pattern that is substantially equivalent to the far-field diffraction pattern.
[0014] In another exemplary embodiment, a processor-readable storage medium storing an instruction is disclosed. The processor-readable storage medium, when executed by a processor, causes the processor to perform a method for performing a diffraction pattern writing routine onto an optical element. The method comprises compiling data for an identification card, calculating a far-field diffraction pattern containing the data, and calculating the diffractive pattern that is substantially equivalent to the far-field diffraction pattern.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0015] Various ones of the appended drawings merely illustrate exemplary embodiments of the present invention and must not be considered as limiting its scope.
[0016] FIG. 1 is a top perspective view with cross-sectional detail of an identification card of the prior art having an optical stripe containing data.
[0017] FIG. 2 is an optical diagram of a diffracted light viewer of the prior art used to read optically embedded data from an identification card such as the prior art identification card of FIG. 1 .
[0018] FIG. 3 is a top perspective view with detail of an exemplary embodiment of an identification card containing an optical stripe in accordance with aspects of the present invention.
[0019] FIG. 4 is a simplified cross-sectional exemplary overview of light incident on the optical stripe of the identification card of FIG. 3 .
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0020] As indicated above, a person of skill in the art recognizes that data and identification cards can be made more secure by utilizing an optical stripe on the card containing diffraction patterns produced by photolithography. Various embodiments of the present invention contemplate producing data cards using unique diffraction patterns produced by a laser using a holographic writing process. The diffraction pattern produced by the laser can be read either in transmission or reflection. No photolithography is required. In an exemplary embodiment, the diffraction pattern is not visible by a simple non-aided visual inspection of the card.
[0021] With reference to FIG. 3 , an exemplary embodiment of an identification card 300 includes a substrate 301 and an optical stripe 303 . In a specific exemplary embodiment, the optical stripe 303 is written with an optical head containing a laser (not shown). Optical heads for driving or scanning lasers in a plurality of directions with multiple degrees of freedom are known independently in the art.
[0022] The optical stripe 303 may be comprised of, for example, a laser recording material such as Drexon®. Drexon® is made up of micrometer-sized silver particles in a gelatin matrix and having known optical reflectivity at various wavelengths. Drexon® is manufactured by LaserCard Corporation, 1875 N. Shoreline Blvd., Mountain View, Calif., USA.
[0023] The laser used to write the optical stripe 303 may be, for example, a 780 nm wavelength solid state laser. Additionally, various other types and wavelengths of lasers, could be used as well. The laser writes a diffractive pattern 305 to the Drexon® media or any other media used to fabricate the optical stripe 303 . The diffractive pattern 305 may be one-dimensional (not shown) in that it varies in only one axis (for example, along a long axis of the identification card 300 ). Alternatively, as shown in FIG. 3 , the diffractive pattern 305 may be two-dimensional in that the pattern varies both parallel to and normal to the long axis of the identification card 300 . The two-dimensional pattern may be best utilized where a viewer, such as the diffracted light viewer 200 of FIG. 2 , is capable of scanning in two or more directions. Such scanning techniques are known independently in the art.
[0024] In another embodiment (not shown), the diffractive pattern on the identification card 300 may be based on a patterned radial variation or some combination of Cartesian (e.g., one- or two-dimensional patterns) and radial variations.
[0025] No matter the actual pattern produced, the diffractive pattern 305 is typically written by a laser or other coherent light source using a standard process of darkening (i.e., making an area of the final pattern non-reflective) a portion of a reflective material. Such processes are described in, for example, U.S. Patent No. to Richard M. Haddock, entitled “Method of Making Secure Personal Data Card,” which is commonly assigned to the assignee of the present invention and is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety. Additionally, U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,680,459; 4,814,594; and 5,421,619, also assigned to the assignee of the present invention and hereby incorporated by reference, describe the creation of laser recorded data in optical memory cards.
[0026] In a specific exemplary embodiment, a holographic writing process is used whereby two or more light beams (e.g., from a single laser in a system employing a beam splitter or, alternatively, a plurality of lasers) interfere with one another on a path to the reflective material resulting in interference patterns being written.
[0027] In another specific exemplary embodiment, the diffractive pattern is established with a computer program causing the interference pattern to form in a particular way. The diffractive pattern is then converted either to a bitmap or vector pattern and a laser is instructed to write the pattern to a data storage medium to be viewed by a diffractive viewer. In this embodiment, the holographic process is thus simulated by a computer program which creates a bitmap or vector pattern that is written to the identification card 300 by darkening certain areas of the optical stripe 303 using a laser. A resulting diffractive pattern on the optical stripe 303 would not be visible on the identification card 300 without the use of an optical aid. The interference pattern would only be visible using an optical enhancement device such as, for example, a microscope. Even then, the diffractive pattern would be meaningless without a correct interpretive algorithm applied.
[0028] In a specific exemplary embodiment, the diffractive pattern 305 is computed using a computer program that estimates a correct diffractive (i.e., input) pattern, calculates a corresponding output pattern, and then compares the resulting output patterns against a desired output pattern. The program keeps changing the diffractive pattern iteratively, keeping those changes that tend to produce a result that is closer to the desired output pattern. These changes are repeated until the output pattern is of sufficient quality (i.e., substantially equivalent to the desired pattern) to satisfy the need for the pattern to be identified. The software thus creates a diffractive pattern that instead of being recognized by people as a certain pattern, is recognized only by a specialized reader, described herein, as an encoded serial number. Two-dimensional bar codes and “micro-spot” technologies are independently known ways of encoding digital data (bits) onto an optical image. The image formed from the diffractive pattern 305 onto a CCD array of the reader contains light and dark areas that comprise the patterns.
[0029] A modified version of the diffracted light viewer 200 may be utilized to read the identification card 300 in which the optional biconvex collection lens element 205 is unnecessary since an output light pattern coming from the identification card 300 is spreading out. Thus, a resulting image becomes larger at increasing distances from the CCD detection element 207 to the identification card 300 . Consequently, if the CCD detection element 207 is a certain distance from the identification card 300 , the optional biconvex collection lens element 205 is unnecessary.
[0030] A normal reading/writing optical setup for typical optical memory cards of the prior art utilizes sharp angles for the light and therefore a very narrow depth-of-field. The narrow depth-of-field is required in order to maximize the size of the beam as it goes through the surface of a protective layer of a card. Maximizing the beam diameter allows optical setup to focus past any dirt or scratches on the surface layer. For example, a diameter of the spot on which the laser beam is focused may be 2.5 micrometers (μm), while the diameter of the area through which the beam passes on the surface of the card may be 2000 μm (i.e., 2 mm).
[0031] Using the holographic process defined herein allows information on the identification card 300 to spread out, instead of merely spreading out the light as it passes the surface of the card. Thus, the viewing system can “look past” most dirt or scratches without tightly focusing the beam of light. Not having to tightly focus the light makes the reader for the hologram much less expensive than it might otherwise be since no complex optical trains are required.
[0032] Thus, the identification card 300 may be read in a manner similar to how most short-range RFID cards are read today: by placing them in proximity to an inexpensive reader. However, the identification card 300 cannot be read unless the diffractive pattern 305 on the optical stripe 303 is exposed to an illuminating laser of the reader. Such a card cannot readily be read surreptitiously as can an RFID card.
[0033] Thus, specific embodiments of the present invention employ a system that replaces an RFID card with an optical card that has advantages of an RFID card (e.g., an inexpensive reader, easy to scan) without accompanying disadvantages (e.g., susceptibility to electromagnetic fields, susceptibility to bending, and surreptitious reading). Prior art diffractive patterns on optical cards authenticate a type of card (using an image common to all cards of a given type) but cannot identify an individual card. Moreover, prior art optical cards are serialized using well-known techniques, but require a serial number reader that is relatively large and expensive.
[0034] A diffractive serial number may be used as a replacement for a traditional RFID card. Alternatively, the optical stripe 303 with the diffractive pattern 305 may be used as a supplement to the traditional RFID card thus allowing certain data types to be encoded as RFID while the diffractive pattern 305 can carry more sensitive data. Since the diffractive pattern 305 produces a diffracted light pattern only discernible by a given system, a resulting embedded serial number (or any other types of embedded data) could not be surreptitiously read or cloned.
[0035] A portion of the diffractive data storage reading system may consist of an optical diffractive viewer, currently available from LaserCard Corporation (Mountain View, Calif., USA). The viewer is a semiconductor laser that illuminates the medium (i.e., the optical stripe 303 ) coupled with a CCD detector. The viewer could be used to produce, for example, serial numbers for RFID or similar cards, where the serial numbers are written and read in diffraction. Such serial numbers help authenticate the cards.
[0036] For example, one LaserCard Corporation diffractive viewer has no lenses. Only an inexpensive off-the-shelf solid-state 632.8 nm laser and a mirror are used to image a pattern from the diffractive pattern 305 onto a small screen (not shown) of approximately 1 cm in diameter. A skilled artisan will recognize that other types and wavelengths of reading lasers may be readily employed as well. A pattern corresponding to a serial number is written into the diffractive pattern 305 . The reader then replaces the small screen with a CCD array coupled to digital circuitry that interprets the pattern thus converting the pattern to a unique serial number. The reader might also have a lens, but the system will have a large depth of field, so a position of the lens, if used, will not be critical.
[0037] As an overview of a reading process of the diffractive pattern 305 , reference is now made to a simplified exemplary process overview of FIG. 4 , which includes a cross-section of the optical stripe 303 with a monochromatic incident beam at wavelength λ i at an angle-of-incidence of θ i . The optical stripe 303 includes the diffractive pattern 305 , an optical substrate 401 , and a top protective layer 403 .
[0038] In a specific alternative exemplary embodiment, the diffractive pattern 305 may not be surrounded by the optical substrate 401 or the top protective layer 403 . In this embodiment, the diffractive pattern may be interrogated by a laser directly in either a transmissive mode or a reflective mode (not shown) based upon a material selected on which the diffractive pattern 305 is produced.
[0039] With continued reference to FIG. 4 , to read the diffractive pattern 305 from the optical stripe 303 , the incident beam must be reflected, diffracted, or scattered by the diffractive pattern 305 . As is known to one of skill in the art, at least two conditions must be met for light to be reflected. First, a diffraction condition for the diffractive pattern 305 must be satisfied. This condition, as is known, is the diffraction (or reflection or scatter) relationship between the incident wavelength λ i , the input incidence angle θ i , an output incidence angle θ o , and a spatial period Λ of the diffractive pattern 305 . The governing equation is given as:
[0000]
sin
(
θ
i
)
+
sin
(
θ
o
)
=
m
λ
n
y
Λ
[0000] where m is the diffractive order being observed, n y is the refractive index of a material through which incident and diffractive beams pass (e.g., n 1 is the refractive index of the optical substrate 401 ), and θ o is an output angle of the diffracted beam (measured from an angle normal to a surface as indicated by a normal line 407 ). The spatial wavelength, Λ, of the diffractive pattern 305 is merely the inverse of the spatial frequency of the diffractive pattern, f. Thus,
[0000]
f
=
1
Λ
.
[0000] The governing equation given above therefore provides a relationship between an incident beam and resulting diffracted beams.
[0040] As a result, for a given input wavelength λ i , spatial wavelength Λ, and angle of incidence θ i , the output incidence angle θ o , may be readily determined. Rearranging the governing equation above to solve for θ o and using m=1 for the first diffracted order, results in:
[0000]
θ
o
=
sin
-
1
(
λ
Λ
-
sin
(
θ
i
)
)
[0041] The second condition for reading diffracted or scattered light is that the diffracted angle of the output beam θ o must lie within an acceptable region of a Bragg envelope 409 to provide an acceptable intensity level of output light. The Bragg envelope 409 defines the diffracted or scattered efficiency of incident light. The Bragg envelope 409 has a center (or peak) on a center line 411 where refection efficiency is greatest when θ i =θ o . The Bragg envelope has a half-width θ B from the center line 411 or a total width of 2θ B . For enhanced efficiency in light output, the diffracted angle of the output beam θ o should be at the center of the Bragg envelope 409 .
[0042] Thus, any code embedded into the diffractive pattern 305 of the optical stripe 303 may be readily discerned if all of the parameters given are known to devise a proper identification card reader. A skilled artisan would be able to extend the simplified parameters given above into designing a card reader capable of reading two-dimensional cards as defined herein.
[0043] In the foregoing specification, the present invention has been described with reference to specific embodiments thereof. It will, however, be evident to a skilled artisan that various modifications and changes can be made thereto without departing from the broader spirit and scope of the present invention as set forth in the appended claims. For example, all embodiments described utilize a monochromatic light source in the form of a laser. However, a skilled artisan will recognize that other light sources, or combinations of sources, even at varying angles of incidence and polarization states, may be used as well. For instance, broadband sources with appropriate bandpass filters or monochromators may be used to form a diffractive pattern on the optical stripe. Further, other high-powered sources of electromagnetic radiation may also be adapted to form the diffractive pattern. Additionally, various combinations of embodiments described herein may be employed and both optical, magnetic, and other RFID structures may all be combined into a single identification card. Therefore, these and various other embodiments are all within a scope of the present invention. The specification and drawings are, accordingly, to be regarded in an illustrative rather than a restrictive sense. | An identification card and a method for formation of the card are disclosed. The identification card comprises an optical identification element formed upon a surface of the identification card and an optical stripe formed on the optical identification element and having at least a portion formed substantially from a single material. The single material is configured to have a diffractive pattern formed thereon by exposure to a laser. The diffractive pattern is capable of retaining information that is, for example, unique to a cardholder and being readable by a light source external to the identification card. | Briefly summarize the invention's components and working principles as described in the document. | [
"CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION [0001] This application claims priority from U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser.",
"No. 61/036,008 entitled “Authentication for a Data Card,” filed Mar. 12, 2008 which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety.",
"TECHNICAL FIELD [0002] The present invention relates generally to portable identity or transactional data storage cards, and more particularly, to producing secure data on the card through a computer-assisted diffractive or holographic writing process.",
"BACKGROUND [0003] Wireless electronic identification devices, such as radio frequency identification device (RFID) cards, are known in the art.",
"RFID cards frequently include a unique serial number permanently and unalterably burned into an integrated circuit contained within the card.",
"The integrated circuit typically has sufficient memory capacity for data (e.g., stored electronically) such as a card issuer identification (ID) number, user information (name, account number, signature image, etc.), the private key of a public-private key pair, a digital signature, and a personal identification number (PIN).",
"[0004] Optical storage techniques may also be used with RFID cards.",
"Optionally, optical storage techniques may be used separately as a primary or sole data storage means on an identification card.",
"Such storage techniques are known in the art and utilize, for example, diffractive or holographic patterns embedded on the card.",
"A common “rainbow transmission”",
"hologram utilizes common white light (as opposed to monochromatic sources, such as lasers) as an illumination source on secured transaction cards (e.g., credit cards).",
"The rainbow transmission hologram is fabricated as a surface relief pattern formed on a first side of a plastic film.",
"A second side of the film is placed in contact with a reflective coating, such as a sputtered aluminum film region, which reflects light incident on the transmissive hologram thus allowing viewing from the first (i.e., front) side of the card.",
"The holograms are commonly used as a security feature on a variety of transaction and identification cards.",
"[0005] With reference to FIG. 1 , a prior art identification card 100 includes an optically encoded stripe 101 holding, for example, user data.",
"An enlarged section 103 of the optically encoded stripe 101 reveals a diffraction grating-based optical identification element 105 .",
"The diffraction grating-based optical identification element 105 is comprised of an optical substrate 107 , an optical diffraction grating 109 formed over the optical substrate, and a protective top layer 111 .",
"The optical diffraction grating 109 is frequently formed by photolithographic techniques known in the semiconductor fabrication art and is produced either over an uppermost surface or within a volume of the optical substrate 107 .",
"[0006] The optical diffraction grating 109 is a periodic or aperiodic variation in the effective refractive index or effective optical absorption over at least a portion of the optical substrate 107 .",
"A change in the effective refractive index or effective optical absorption produces diffractive elements.",
"Diffractive elements are known in the optical arts.",
"The optical diffraction grating 109 thus serves to either reflect or refract light in a certain way to produce diffracted patterns of light.",
"The diffracted patterns may be observed optically or read with a specialized diffracted light viewer, described below.",
"[0007] The optical diffraction grating 109 is frequently a photosensitive layer (e.g., such as photoresist) allowing patterning of the diffractive elements.",
"The optical diffraction grating 109 may also be a hologram, as the diffraction grating 109 can transform, translate, or filter an optical input signal to produce a predetermined desired optical output pattern or signal.",
"The use of holograms on identification and security transaction cards (e.g., credit cards) is well-known in the art.",
"[0008] Referring now to FIG. 2 , a specialized diffracted light viewer 200 is used for inspection of data contained on the prior art identification card 100 .",
"The specialized diffracted light viewer 200 includes an incoming laser beam 201 A incident upon the diffraction grating-based optical identification element 105 , and an optical diffraction detector 203 .",
"The optical diffraction detector 203 includes an optional biconvex collection lens element 205 and a charge-coupled device (CCD) detection element 207 .",
"When the laser beam 201 A is incident on the diffraction grating-based optical identification element 105 , a plurality of diffracted light beams 201 B is produced.",
"The plurality of diffracted light beams 201 B is collected either by the optional biconvex collection lens element 205 focusing the diffracted light beams 201 B onto the CCD detection element 207 , or onto the CCD detection element 207 directly.",
"As shown in FIG. 2 for clarity, the specialized diffracted light viewer 200 is being used in a transmission mode.",
"However, the specialized diffracted light viewer 200 may be used in reflected light mode as well by selecting an optical substrate 107 ( FIG. 1 ) that is reflective.",
"[0009] The CCD detection element 207 reads an optical signal contained within the plurality of diffracted light beams 201 B and determines a code based on diffractive elements present or the optical pattern produced.",
"The CCD detection element 207 may be coupled to a computer (not shown) that verifies all information stored on the diffraction grating-based optical identification element 105 .",
"Alternatively, the CCD detection element 207 may be a portion of a camera (not shown) allowing direct inspection of the data contained on the diffraction grating-based optical identification element 105 .",
"[0010] With continued reference to FIG. 2 , the incoming laser beam 201 A has a given wavelength, λ, at a given angle of incidence θ i .",
"Any other input wavelength λ can be used as long as the wavelength is within an optical transmission range of the protective top layer 111 .",
"Depending upon whether the specialized diffracted light viewer 200 is designed to be used in transmission or reflection mode will determine whether the optical substrate 107 should be optically transparent for a given wavelength and angle of incidence.",
"[0011] While prior art identification cards having optically-embedded information have been produced and used successfully for many years, such cards tend to be expensive to manufacture and impossible to update since they rely upon photolithographically-produced diffraction elements containing user data.",
"Manufacturing identification regions photolithographically is a time-consuming and expensive process requiring sophisticated fabrication facilities, expensive equipment, and caustic, dangerous chemicals.",
"Therefore, what is needed is a safe and efficient system to produce an optically-based data storage region on an identification card.",
"The card must be extremely difficult to copy while being easy for an end-user to read with a relatively inexpensive device.",
"Ideally, the optically based data storage region will be incapable of being read either by a casual observer or surreptitiously without specialized equipment.",
"SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION [0012] In an exemplary embodiment, an optical media card forming at least a portion of an identification card is disclosed comprising an optical identification element formed upon a surface of the identification card and an optical stripe formed on the optical identification element having at least a portion formed substantially from a single material.",
"The single material is configured to have a diffractive pattern formed thereupon by exposure to a laser.",
"The diffractive pattern is capable of retaining information related to a cardholder and being readable by a light source external to the identification card.",
"[0013] In another exemplary embodiment, a method of producing a diffractive pattern on an optical element is disclosed.",
"The method comprises compiling data for an identification card, calculating a far-field diffraction pattern containing the data, and calculating the diffractive pattern that is substantially equivalent to the far-field diffraction pattern.",
"[0014] In another exemplary embodiment, a processor-readable storage medium storing an instruction is disclosed.",
"The processor-readable storage medium, when executed by a processor, causes the processor to perform a method for performing a diffraction pattern writing routine onto an optical element.",
"The method comprises compiling data for an identification card, calculating a far-field diffraction pattern containing the data, and calculating the diffractive pattern that is substantially equivalent to the far-field diffraction pattern.",
"BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS [0015] Various ones of the appended drawings merely illustrate exemplary embodiments of the present invention and must not be considered as limiting its scope.",
"[0016] FIG. 1 is a top perspective view with cross-sectional detail of an identification card of the prior art having an optical stripe containing data.",
"[0017] FIG. 2 is an optical diagram of a diffracted light viewer of the prior art used to read optically embedded data from an identification card such as the prior art identification card of FIG. 1 .",
"[0018] FIG. 3 is a top perspective view with detail of an exemplary embodiment of an identification card containing an optical stripe in accordance with aspects of the present invention.",
"[0019] FIG. 4 is a simplified cross-sectional exemplary overview of light incident on the optical stripe of the identification card of FIG. 3 .",
"DETAILED DESCRIPTION [0020] As indicated above, a person of skill in the art recognizes that data and identification cards can be made more secure by utilizing an optical stripe on the card containing diffraction patterns produced by photolithography.",
"Various embodiments of the present invention contemplate producing data cards using unique diffraction patterns produced by a laser using a holographic writing process.",
"The diffraction pattern produced by the laser can be read either in transmission or reflection.",
"No photolithography is required.",
"In an exemplary embodiment, the diffraction pattern is not visible by a simple non-aided visual inspection of the card.",
"[0021] With reference to FIG. 3 , an exemplary embodiment of an identification card 300 includes a substrate 301 and an optical stripe 303 .",
"In a specific exemplary embodiment, the optical stripe 303 is written with an optical head containing a laser (not shown).",
"Optical heads for driving or scanning lasers in a plurality of directions with multiple degrees of freedom are known independently in the art.",
"[0022] The optical stripe 303 may be comprised of, for example, a laser recording material such as Drexon®.",
"Drexon® is made up of micrometer-sized silver particles in a gelatin matrix and having known optical reflectivity at various wavelengths.",
"Drexon® is manufactured by LaserCard Corporation, 1875 N. Shoreline Blvd.",
", Mountain View, Calif.",
", USA.",
"[0023] The laser used to write the optical stripe 303 may be, for example, a 780 nm wavelength solid state laser.",
"Additionally, various other types and wavelengths of lasers, could be used as well.",
"The laser writes a diffractive pattern 305 to the Drexon® media or any other media used to fabricate the optical stripe 303 .",
"The diffractive pattern 305 may be one-dimensional (not shown) in that it varies in only one axis (for example, along a long axis of the identification card 300 ).",
"Alternatively, as shown in FIG. 3 , the diffractive pattern 305 may be two-dimensional in that the pattern varies both parallel to and normal to the long axis of the identification card 300 .",
"The two-dimensional pattern may be best utilized where a viewer, such as the diffracted light viewer 200 of FIG. 2 , is capable of scanning in two or more directions.",
"Such scanning techniques are known independently in the art.",
"[0024] In another embodiment (not shown), the diffractive pattern on the identification card 300 may be based on a patterned radial variation or some combination of Cartesian (e.g., one- or two-dimensional patterns) and radial variations.",
"[0025] No matter the actual pattern produced, the diffractive pattern 305 is typically written by a laser or other coherent light source using a standard process of darkening (i.e., making an area of the final pattern non-reflective) a portion of a reflective material.",
"Such processes are described in, for example, U.S. Patent No. to Richard M. Haddock, entitled “Method of Making Secure Personal Data Card,” which is commonly assigned to the assignee of the present invention and is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety.",
"Additionally, U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,680,459;",
"4,814,594;",
"and 5,421,619, also assigned to the assignee of the present invention and hereby incorporated by reference, describe the creation of laser recorded data in optical memory cards.",
"[0026] In a specific exemplary embodiment, a holographic writing process is used whereby two or more light beams (e.g., from a single laser in a system employing a beam splitter or, alternatively, a plurality of lasers) interfere with one another on a path to the reflective material resulting in interference patterns being written.",
"[0027] In another specific exemplary embodiment, the diffractive pattern is established with a computer program causing the interference pattern to form in a particular way.",
"The diffractive pattern is then converted either to a bitmap or vector pattern and a laser is instructed to write the pattern to a data storage medium to be viewed by a diffractive viewer.",
"In this embodiment, the holographic process is thus simulated by a computer program which creates a bitmap or vector pattern that is written to the identification card 300 by darkening certain areas of the optical stripe 303 using a laser.",
"A resulting diffractive pattern on the optical stripe 303 would not be visible on the identification card 300 without the use of an optical aid.",
"The interference pattern would only be visible using an optical enhancement device such as, for example, a microscope.",
"Even then, the diffractive pattern would be meaningless without a correct interpretive algorithm applied.",
"[0028] In a specific exemplary embodiment, the diffractive pattern 305 is computed using a computer program that estimates a correct diffractive (i.e., input) pattern, calculates a corresponding output pattern, and then compares the resulting output patterns against a desired output pattern.",
"The program keeps changing the diffractive pattern iteratively, keeping those changes that tend to produce a result that is closer to the desired output pattern.",
"These changes are repeated until the output pattern is of sufficient quality (i.e., substantially equivalent to the desired pattern) to satisfy the need for the pattern to be identified.",
"The software thus creates a diffractive pattern that instead of being recognized by people as a certain pattern, is recognized only by a specialized reader, described herein, as an encoded serial number.",
"Two-dimensional bar codes and “micro-spot”",
"technologies are independently known ways of encoding digital data (bits) onto an optical image.",
"The image formed from the diffractive pattern 305 onto a CCD array of the reader contains light and dark areas that comprise the patterns.",
"[0029] A modified version of the diffracted light viewer 200 may be utilized to read the identification card 300 in which the optional biconvex collection lens element 205 is unnecessary since an output light pattern coming from the identification card 300 is spreading out.",
"Thus, a resulting image becomes larger at increasing distances from the CCD detection element 207 to the identification card 300 .",
"Consequently, if the CCD detection element 207 is a certain distance from the identification card 300 , the optional biconvex collection lens element 205 is unnecessary.",
"[0030] A normal reading/writing optical setup for typical optical memory cards of the prior art utilizes sharp angles for the light and therefore a very narrow depth-of-field.",
"The narrow depth-of-field is required in order to maximize the size of the beam as it goes through the surface of a protective layer of a card.",
"Maximizing the beam diameter allows optical setup to focus past any dirt or scratches on the surface layer.",
"For example, a diameter of the spot on which the laser beam is focused may be 2.5 micrometers (μm), while the diameter of the area through which the beam passes on the surface of the card may be 2000 μm (i.e., 2 mm).",
"[0031] Using the holographic process defined herein allows information on the identification card 300 to spread out, instead of merely spreading out the light as it passes the surface of the card.",
"Thus, the viewing system can “look past”",
"most dirt or scratches without tightly focusing the beam of light.",
"Not having to tightly focus the light makes the reader for the hologram much less expensive than it might otherwise be since no complex optical trains are required.",
"[0032] Thus, the identification card 300 may be read in a manner similar to how most short-range RFID cards are read today: by placing them in proximity to an inexpensive reader.",
"However, the identification card 300 cannot be read unless the diffractive pattern 305 on the optical stripe 303 is exposed to an illuminating laser of the reader.",
"Such a card cannot readily be read surreptitiously as can an RFID card.",
"[0033] Thus, specific embodiments of the present invention employ a system that replaces an RFID card with an optical card that has advantages of an RFID card (e.g., an inexpensive reader, easy to scan) without accompanying disadvantages (e.g., susceptibility to electromagnetic fields, susceptibility to bending, and surreptitious reading).",
"Prior art diffractive patterns on optical cards authenticate a type of card (using an image common to all cards of a given type) but cannot identify an individual card.",
"Moreover, prior art optical cards are serialized using well-known techniques, but require a serial number reader that is relatively large and expensive.",
"[0034] A diffractive serial number may be used as a replacement for a traditional RFID card.",
"Alternatively, the optical stripe 303 with the diffractive pattern 305 may be used as a supplement to the traditional RFID card thus allowing certain data types to be encoded as RFID while the diffractive pattern 305 can carry more sensitive data.",
"Since the diffractive pattern 305 produces a diffracted light pattern only discernible by a given system, a resulting embedded serial number (or any other types of embedded data) could not be surreptitiously read or cloned.",
"[0035] A portion of the diffractive data storage reading system may consist of an optical diffractive viewer, currently available from LaserCard Corporation (Mountain View, Calif.",
", USA).",
"The viewer is a semiconductor laser that illuminates the medium (i.e., the optical stripe 303 ) coupled with a CCD detector.",
"The viewer could be used to produce, for example, serial numbers for RFID or similar cards, where the serial numbers are written and read in diffraction.",
"Such serial numbers help authenticate the cards.",
"[0036] For example, one LaserCard Corporation diffractive viewer has no lenses.",
"Only an inexpensive off-the-shelf solid-state 632.8 nm laser and a mirror are used to image a pattern from the diffractive pattern 305 onto a small screen (not shown) of approximately 1 cm in diameter.",
"A skilled artisan will recognize that other types and wavelengths of reading lasers may be readily employed as well.",
"A pattern corresponding to a serial number is written into the diffractive pattern 305 .",
"The reader then replaces the small screen with a CCD array coupled to digital circuitry that interprets the pattern thus converting the pattern to a unique serial number.",
"The reader might also have a lens, but the system will have a large depth of field, so a position of the lens, if used, will not be critical.",
"[0037] As an overview of a reading process of the diffractive pattern 305 , reference is now made to a simplified exemplary process overview of FIG. 4 , which includes a cross-section of the optical stripe 303 with a monochromatic incident beam at wavelength λ i at an angle-of-incidence of θ i .",
"The optical stripe 303 includes the diffractive pattern 305 , an optical substrate 401 , and a top protective layer 403 .",
"[0038] In a specific alternative exemplary embodiment, the diffractive pattern 305 may not be surrounded by the optical substrate 401 or the top protective layer 403 .",
"In this embodiment, the diffractive pattern may be interrogated by a laser directly in either a transmissive mode or a reflective mode (not shown) based upon a material selected on which the diffractive pattern 305 is produced.",
"[0039] With continued reference to FIG. 4 , to read the diffractive pattern 305 from the optical stripe 303 , the incident beam must be reflected, diffracted, or scattered by the diffractive pattern 305 .",
"As is known to one of skill in the art, at least two conditions must be met for light to be reflected.",
"First, a diffraction condition for the diffractive pattern 305 must be satisfied.",
"This condition, as is known, is the diffraction (or reflection or scatter) relationship between the incident wavelength λ i , the input incidence angle θ i , an output incidence angle θ o , and a spatial period Λ of the diffractive pattern 305 .",
"The governing equation is given as: [0000] sin ( θ i ) + sin ( θ o ) = m λ n y Λ [0000] where m is the diffractive order being observed, n y is the refractive index of a material through which incident and diffractive beams pass (e.g., n 1 is the refractive index of the optical substrate 401 ), and θ o is an output angle of the diffracted beam (measured from an angle normal to a surface as indicated by a normal line 407 ).",
"The spatial wavelength, Λ, of the diffractive pattern 305 is merely the inverse of the spatial frequency of the diffractive pattern, f. Thus, [0000] f = 1 Λ .",
"[0000] The governing equation given above therefore provides a relationship between an incident beam and resulting diffracted beams.",
"[0040] As a result, for a given input wavelength λ i , spatial wavelength Λ, and angle of incidence θ i , the output incidence angle θ o , may be readily determined.",
"Rearranging the governing equation above to solve for θ o and using m=1 for the first diffracted order, results in: [0000] θ o = sin - 1 ( λ Λ - sin ( θ i ) ) [0041] The second condition for reading diffracted or scattered light is that the diffracted angle of the output beam θ o must lie within an acceptable region of a Bragg envelope 409 to provide an acceptable intensity level of output light.",
"The Bragg envelope 409 defines the diffracted or scattered efficiency of incident light.",
"The Bragg envelope 409 has a center (or peak) on a center line 411 where refection efficiency is greatest when θ i =θ o .",
"The Bragg envelope has a half-width θ B from the center line 411 or a total width of 2θ B .",
"For enhanced efficiency in light output, the diffracted angle of the output beam θ o should be at the center of the Bragg envelope 409 .",
"[0042] Thus, any code embedded into the diffractive pattern 305 of the optical stripe 303 may be readily discerned if all of the parameters given are known to devise a proper identification card reader.",
"A skilled artisan would be able to extend the simplified parameters given above into designing a card reader capable of reading two-dimensional cards as defined herein.",
"[0043] In the foregoing specification, the present invention has been described with reference to specific embodiments thereof.",
"It will, however, be evident to a skilled artisan that various modifications and changes can be made thereto without departing from the broader spirit and scope of the present invention as set forth in the appended claims.",
"For example, all embodiments described utilize a monochromatic light source in the form of a laser.",
"However, a skilled artisan will recognize that other light sources, or combinations of sources, even at varying angles of incidence and polarization states, may be used as well.",
"For instance, broadband sources with appropriate bandpass filters or monochromators may be used to form a diffractive pattern on the optical stripe.",
"Further, other high-powered sources of electromagnetic radiation may also be adapted to form the diffractive pattern.",
"Additionally, various combinations of embodiments described herein may be employed and both optical, magnetic, and other RFID structures may all be combined into a single identification card.",
"Therefore, these and various other embodiments are all within a scope of the present invention.",
"The specification and drawings are, accordingly, to be regarded in an illustrative rather than a restrictive sense."
] |
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
U.S. patents disclosing methods of sulfonating thin films of organic liquids by related means include U.S. Pat. No. 3,902,857 filed by John E. Vander Mey and Frank J. Kremers on Aug. 13, 1973 and U.S. Pat. No. 4,163,751, a division of the above, filed on Aug. 7, 1979.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a process and to apparatus for reacting a thin film of an organic liquid with a gaseous medium under reduced pressure. In particular this invention relates to a process and apparatus for continuously reacting a sulfonatable or sulfatable organic liquid with sulfur trioxide.
2. Description of the Prior Art
In recent years several processes and several types of apparatus have been suggested for reacting thin films of sulfonatable and sulfatable organic liquids with sulfur trioxide. Hereinafter when reference is made to sulfonation processes and to sulfonatable materials, it is to be understood that sulfation processes and sulfatable materials are also included, where their inclusion is applicable.
As the need for developing more forms of energy has grown, sources of oil, once considered too difficult or uneconomical to recover have now assumed much greater importance. This fact has now provided great impetus for improving sulfonating processes and apparatus, for large quantities of sulfonated oil detergents are now used in the "tertiary" oil treatment for the recovery of residual oil from the ground, as can be obtained, for example, from otherwise exhausted oil wells.
This technique, also known as the "Marathon Process" is presently employed to recover some of the vast amount of oil still remaining in the ground. The process involves the use of large quantities of oil-soluble detergents for solubilizing oil remaining in the ground which has not been attainable by the methods used in the past.
But there are also many other uses for sulfonated organics, and whereas color is unimportant when sulfonated oil detergents are employed for oil recovery, the lack of color becomes important in the manufacture of detergents and surface active agents from alkyl aryl hydrocarbons or aliphatic alcohols. Where the final product is designed for household use, a colorless or substantially colorless product is of prime importance.
Sulfonation with sulfur trioxide has advantages over sulfonation procedures using oleum, but the reaction between sulfur trioxide and sulfonatable organic compounds is generally violent and difficult to control. The uncontrolled exothermic reaction provides an undesirable colored product, hence various means to control the reaction have been suggested.
Some of the suggested processes require large quantities of an inert carrier gas such as air, introduced at high velocities to move a thin film of organic liquid along a cooled surface during the reaction. Such processes require air compressors and dryers, becoming costly both because of equipment and power requirements.
A process and apparatus for reacting a thin film of an organic liquid with a gaseous reactant which minimizes the problems discussed above is described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,902,857 filed on Aug. 13, 1973, and 4,163,751, a division of the above, filed on Aug. 7, 1979. Another such process is disclosed in U.S. patent application, Ser. No. 285,382 filed Aug. 30, 1972, now abandoned.
It would be desirable, however, to provide an improved process and apparatus for reacting a thin film of an organic liquid with a gaseous sulfur trioxide in a manner to increase production, reduce the cost of operation, reduce the amount of plant space required and provide a high quality substantially colorless product. It would be desirable to provide a sulfonating apparatus so compact as to be readily constructed as a mobile unit, capable of movement to any location where a continuing supply of a sulfonated product is required. Further, it would be desirable to provide such a compact unit capable of still higher production rates in those instances where product color is of secondary importance.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention is directed to an improved process for reacting a thin film of an organic liquid with a gaseous medium. The process comprises the steps of introducing the organic liquid onto the inner curved surface of a rotating spheroidal reaction chamber at is axis or polar area, rotating the reaction chamber at a velocity such that the organic liquid is continuously formed into a thin film on the curved reaction surface, dividing the film covered curved reaction surface into three or more successive concentric reaction areas, depositing over each reaction area a controlled amount of said gaseous medium to thereby control the rate of reaction as the liquid film proceeds from one curved reaction area to the next under the urging of centrifugal force, reacting the organic liquid and the gaseous medium stepwise, under subatmospheric pressure on the rotating curved reaction surface, moving the resulting reaction product to the equatorial region of the rotating reaction chamber, and collecting the reaction product from the equatorial region of the spheroidal reaction chamber.
The apparatus of this invention for reacting a thin film of an organic liquid with a gaseous medium comprises an oblate or substantially spheroidal reaction chamber mounted on a supporting frame for rotation on its axis in a substantially horizontal position, with an inner reaction surface; evacuating means for maintaining the reaction chamber under subatmospheric pressure; separating means to divide the reaction surface into successive reaction areas or segments, thus forming corresponding individual chambers to which the reaction areas are exposed; a first depositing means to deposit the organic liquid on the reacting surface, a second depositing means for depositing controlled quantities of the gaseous reactant within the individual chambers; rotating means to rotate the reaction chamber at a speed such that the organic liquid is continuously moved by centrifugal action as a thin film, successively, over the concentric reaction areas for exposure to the gaseous reactant, and the resultant reaction product is continuously moved to the inner periphery of the reaction chamber where it accumulates; cooling means for controlling the reaction temperature; and means for removing the reaction product from the reactor.
When the gaseous reactant is sulfur trioxide, this may be introduced as a substantially undiluted gas, with the subatmospheric pressure being maintained below 100 mm Hg, preferably below 25 mm Hg. The sulfur trioxide may also be introduced as a mixture of sulfur trioxide and an inert gas such as air. The output of a sulfur burner system designed to deliver "converter gas" of about 8% SO 3 may be used, and in fact satisfactory results may be obtained even if the SO 3 content is as low as 4%. With the employment of such low strength sulfur trioxide the subatmospheric pressure of the reaction chamber may be maintained at about one-half atmosphere or less. The process of this invention can therefore be operated successfully employing a gaseous sulfur trioxide of from about the concentration of "converter gas" to pure sulfur trioxide obtained from such sources as stabilized liquid sulfur trioxide, oleum, or other conventional sources. Preferably, substantially pure sulfur trioxide is used with the pressure within the reaction chamber maintained below about 25 mm Hg.
The process of my invention produces far less air pollution than is obtained from conventional sulfonating apparatus, less power is required, a small vacuum pump is employed rather than a large air compressor and only a small scrubber is required.
Still another advantage of the apparatus of my invention is that it is small, compact, produces a high quality product in good yield, and can be constructed as a mobile unit for ready removal to any point where the product is required.
Although the present invention may be used for a variety of chemical reactions between organic liquids and gaseous reactants, in a preferred embodiment of this invention the gaseous medium is sulfur trioxide and the organic liquid comprises a sulfonatable or sulfatable organic liquid.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG. 1 of the drawings is a simplified cross sectional diagram of the rotary spherical reaction chamber of the present invention.
FIG. 2 is a partially exploded perspective view of the preferred embodiment of the present invention. This version has an oblate reaction chamber, the cross section being substantially eliptical. This drawing and those to follow are based on an actual prototype reactor.
FIG. 3 is a broken, partially exploded view of a detail of the stationary central column through which the gaseous reactant enters, and the product is withdrawn.
FIG. 4 is a perspective view of one type of screen diffuser which can be used between the separator discs to improve the uniformity of the distribution of the gaseous reactant within each separated chamber.
FIG. 5 is a cross sectional view in elevation of the assembled reaction chamber, being the same embodiment as the exploded view of FIG. 2.
FIG. 6 of the drawings is a cross sectional view taken through 6--6 of FIG. 5.
DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
The process and apparatus of the present invention are particularly applicable in the sulfonation or sulfation by gaseous sulfur trioxide of appropriate organic liquids. Such compounds include saturated alcohols, phenols, olefinic compounds and monocyclic and polycylic aromatic compounds. For example, compounds suitable for sulfation by sulfur trioxide include those fatty acids containing 8 to 20 carbon atoms such as lauryl, myristyl and cetyl alcohol; ethoxylated derivatives of the above fatty acids and the ethoxylated derivatives of alkyl phenols wherein the alkyl group contains from about 8 to about 16 carbon atoms such as octene, decene, dodecene, tetradecene, hexadecene, etc; aromatic hydrocarbons such as those containing benzene, anthracene, or like structures and alkyl substituted derivatives thereof, such as toluene, ethylbenzene, dodecyl benzene, etc. The advantages of the present method of sulfonation are particularly evident in the production of alkyl aromatic sulfonic acids which when neutralized with an alkali metal hydroxide, an amine or an alkanol amine form highly effective detergent compounds. Thus the process of the present invention will be preferably applied to those alkylated aromatic compounds in which the alkyl groups contain a total of from 8 to 22 carbon atoms and in particular, 12 to 14 carbon atoms. In those instances where the organic compound is a solid at room temperatures, it may be preheated to the liquid state, or liquefied by any other desired procedure.
The sulfur trioxide used as the active ingredient may be obtained from any suitable source. It may be vaporized from stabilized liquid sulfur trioxide, obtained from oleum or from other conventional sources. When such gaseous sulfur trioxide is undiluted with other gases, the sulfonation or sulfation is preferably maintained at a subatmospheric pressure of below about 100 mm Hg, or better still, below 25 mm pressure Hg.
However, dilute sulfur trioxide is also applicable. Converter gas containing about 8% sulfur trioxide with the balance being air gives good results, and in fact the sulfur trioxide content can be as low as about 4%. In those instances where such a dilute sulfur trioxide is used, the subatmospheric pressure is maintained at about half an atmosphere (380 mm Hg.) or lower. With other dilutions of higher concentration, intermediate pressures would apply.
An important benefit offered by the present invention stems from its compact structure and relatively high product output. It is compact enough to be rendered mobile, and sulfonators made according to the principles here disclosed can be moved to wherever a supply of a sulfonated product is required. This is especially important today when sulfonated oils are of such importance in the recovery of oil from shale, exhausted oil wells and oil-bearing sands and tars.
With reference to the drawings of FIGS. 1, 2 and 5, there is shown as a preferred embodiment, a rotatable spherical, spheroidal or oblate sulfonation reactor indicated generally at 10. This includes reaction chamber 13 comprising hemispherical sections 12 and 14. These hemispheres are of a material such as stainless steel, resistant to the reactants to be employed. This is also true of all those surfaces which come in contact with the reactants, with the possible exception of a few small parts mentioned below which may be fabricated of a resistant polymeric material such as Teflon. In the prototype reactor, 304 stainless steel was found to be satisfactory.
When ready for assembly the rims or perimeters of these two hemispheres 12 and 14 are brought together, separated only by a metal product-collector ring 21 having an outside diameter substantially equal to that of hemispheres 12 and 14, but an inner diameter up to about 2 inches less than the inner diameter of the hemispheres at their perimeters.
In the prototype sulfonator those sections herein referred to as "hemispheres" are actually 42 inch dish heads of 7/32 inch 304 stainless steel. The stainless steel product collector ring 21 is a circle or ring of channel steel with the sides of the channel extending outwardly, with the uppermost side of the channel having an outside diameter equal to the outer diameter of the hemispheres, and the lower side of the channel having a diameter just under that of the inside diameter of the hemispheres so that when ready for assembly, the lower side of the channel will fit inside the rim of the lower hemisphere and the upper side of the channel will extend over the rim, lying gasket-like between the butted rims of both hemispheres. The inner diameter of this collector ring 21 in the prototype is about 3/4 inch less than the inside diameter of the hemispheres at their rims so that the product-collector ring extends inwardly, 3/8 inch beyond the rims of the hemispheres. A clear view of the cross section of product-collector ring 21 as positioned in the prototype reactor is shown in FIG. 6. Although this is the preferred type of ring, a flat ring of sheet stainless steel would serve as well.
In the center of the bottom of the lower hemisphere 14 there is a circular opening at the perimeter of which is fixed a strong hollow shaft 11 extending downwardly from the reaction chamber. This shaft supports and rotates reaction chamber 13. Shaft 11 is journaled in bearing 15 shown fixed to supporting frame 17. Sheave 19 is fixed concentrically to the hollow shaft 11 below frame 17 whereby power transmitted from a motor not shown can rotate shaft 11 journaled at 15, and the reaction chamber 13 on a substantially vertical axis.
Hollow shaft 11 surrounds a stationary column 35 which extends below the rotary hollow shaft and is fixed with respect to supporting frame 17. The rotary hollow shaft 11 is journaled and sealed by a conventional ceramic-carbon mechanical seal 34. Such mechanical seals are marketed by the Crane Packing Co., and others. (FIG. 1)
This stationary column 35 also extends upwardly almost to the top of reaction chamber 13 and contains a plurality of conduits, 36 and 38. Extending from the lower end of this column are at least two tubes 36 for conducting sulfur trioxide up into the reaction chamber. Three are shown in FIG. 1, and four in FIGS. 2 and 3. If desired, still more can be used for fine reaction control, although about four is preferred. It would also be within the scope of the present invention to introduce the sulfur trioxide into the stationary column 11 through one conduit and use the column as a manifold to divide the sulfur trioxide into two or more streams within the column or as it leaves the column, within reaction chamber 13.
Also, extending from the lower end of the column is a product line 38 (FIGS. 1, 2 and 3), and a spent gas outlet 40 (FIGS. 1 and 2) which is connected with a small scrubber and vacuum pump, not shown. Still another conduit 41 (FIG. 2) can be included to withdraw any small amount of colored product which, if formed, can be collected in the lower hemisphere.
Preferably, one of the conduits of the group or bundle 36 extends to an opening 42 at the top of column 35 and enters a distributing head 44. In the preferred embodiment of the present invention, as shown in FIGS. 2 and 5, and detailed in FIG. 3, the upper portion of column 35 is shown as Teflon or any other suitable resistant material, and the conduits therein are cast or drilled within the solid Teflon. Stainless steel bolt 46 passing through stainless steel washer 48, Teflon disc 50 and stainless steel separator disc 52 engages threaded opening 54 to draw disc 52 tightly against distributing head 44. Sulfur trioxide or other gaseous reactant ascending a conduit, being one of the bundle 36 and escaping through opening 42 would be distributed by distributing head 44 through notches 56.
The type of distributing head is not essential. It can be a ring or cylinder of fritted glass, stainless steel, or a perforate ring of suitable material, stainless or Teflon woven screening, or it can be dispensed with entirely without affecting the end product to a marked degree.
In the embodiment of FIG. 1, Teflon disc 50 is adjacent to, and becomes a part of the distributing head; and the separator disc 52 is above rather than below it. Whether the Teflon disc 50 is above or below separator disc 52 is inconsequential.
Separator disc 52 has a diameter such that it leaves an annular space of no more than about an inch, preferably about a quarter of an inch between its perimeter and the adjacent wall of the upper hemisphere 12. Since the disc is attached to the stationary column 35, it too, remains stationary as the rotating reaction chamber turns about it.
Below separator disc 52 there is a second separator disc 60, also fixed to the stationary column 35. It is parallel to disc 52 and also extends almost to the wall of the upper hemisphere leaving an annular space of no more than about an inch, but preferably about one quarter of an inch. The vertical distance between the two discs is such that the annular area defined by these two circular separator discs comprises between about 5% and 15% of the total inner curved reaction surface of the upper hemisphere 12, or preferably about 7%.
The thickness of the circular separator discs is not critical provided they are heavy enough to remain substantially rigid. In the prototype sulfonator, 304 stainless steel was used having a thickness of 0.049 inches. Supporting separators 66 (FIGS. 2 and 3) can be employed if desired but are not essential.
Just below circular separator plate 60 there is an opening 58 in communication with a second conduit of the bundle 36, also for the introduction of the gaseous reactant such as sulfur trioxide.
Below circular separator disc 60 and opening 58 there is a third circular separator disc 70, also fixed to the column 35 at its center. It is parallel with separator disc 60 and also extends almost to the wall of the upper hemisphere leaving an annular space of no more than about an inch, preferably about one quarter of an inch.
The vertical distance between the two circular separator discs 60 and 70 is such, that the annular area of the wall or reaction surface defined by circular separator discs 60 and 70 comprises between about 7 to 20% of the total inner curved reaction surface of the upper hemisphere 12, or preferably about 10%.
Preferably a cylindrical screen 62 or porous or perforate cylinder surrounds column 35 between separator discs 60 and 70 to aid in producing an even distribution of the gaseous reactant leaving opening 58. Details of a suitable 304 stainless screen cylinder attached to a Teflon ring 64 is shown in FIG. 4. The inner surface of ring 64 can be threaded to cooperate with matching threads on column 35 for precise positioning of the distributing screen 62 (FIGS. 3 and 5) and for positioning separator disc 60.
Just below circular separator disc 70 there is another opening 68 in communication with a third conduit of the bundle 36, for the introduction of the gaseous reactant. Below this there is a forth circular separator disc 74 also fixed to the stationary column. It is parallel to discs 60 and 70 and extends almost to the wall of the upper hemisphere, also leaving an annular space of less than about one inch, preferably about one quarter of an inch.
The vertical distance between separator discs 70 and 74 is such that the annular area defined by separator discs 70 and 74 comprises between about 10% and 25% of the total inner curved reaction surface of the upper hemisphere 12, or preferably about 15%. As in the case of circular separator discs 60 and 70, preferably a cylindrical screen 72 (FIG. 5) or other type of distributor surrounds column 35 between separator discs 70 and 74.
Just below separator disc 74 in the case of the embodiment shown in FIG. 3, there is still another opening 75 in communication with the last conduit shown of the bundle 36 for the introduction of a gaseous reactant. Below this there is a fifth circular separator disc 76 also fixed at its center to the stationary column 35. It too, is parallel to discs 60, 70 and 74, and as with the latter, extends almost to the wall of the upper hemisphere 12, leaving an annular space of less than about an inch, preferably about one quarter of an inch. (FIGS. 2 and 5) The vertical distance between discs 74 and 76 is such that the annular area defined by separator discs 70 and 76 comprises between about 20 and 30% of the total inner curved reaction surface of the upper hemisphere 12, or preferably about 25%.
The above circular separator discs divide the reaction surface into three concentric reaction zones in the case of the embodiment of FIG. 1, and into four concentric reaction zones in the modified reaction chamber of FIGS. 2,3 and 5. In the case of the preferred embodiment of FIGS. 2 and 5, still another circular disc 78 is shown, but this serves only as a baffle and not as a separator disc. It is positioned just above collector ring 21 and has a diameter between about one half inch to 4 inches less than the inside diameter of the product collecting ring 21 which is just below it. Preferably, the diameter is about 2 inches less than the inner diameter of the product collecting ring. Baffle disc 78 is not critical to the present invention but serves to prevent any oversulfonated mist from reaching the final colorless, or essentially colorless product.
Hollow shaft 11 to which the driving pulley 19 for the rotary reaction chamber 13 is fixed, is adjustable within limits, so that it may be raised or lowered, and with it, the entire reaction chamber which is fixed thereto. It is clear, then, that by thus raising or lowering the reaction chamber in relation to the fixed column 35 which supports the separator discs, the annular clearances of these circular discs, and the concentric areas of reaction surface can be altered within limits. The bearing 15 and the seal 34 permit this adjustment.
The amount of sulfur trioxide or other gaseous reactant that can be delivered to each of the partitioned spaces between the circular separator discs can be controlled. Each of the conduits of bundle 36 can have its own control valve, not shown, as does my prototype sulfonator. These control valves are preferably in communication with a manifold supplied with the reactant gas of the concentration and pressure desired. Further, each can have its own flow meter and even automated equipment which is readily available, to mechanically control the flow of gas, independently, to each partitioned space.
In the preferred embodiment there is fixed, at the top center of the upper hemisphere 12 a bubble or bell-shaped appendage 16, the lower edge of which is joined smoothly to a circular opening at the top center of the upper hemisphere 12, said circular opening having the same diameter as that of the skirt or perimeter of bubble 16. The inner surface of the bubble 16 and the inner surface of the upper hemisphere 12, which is the reaction surface, are preferably highly polished.
An inlet feed pipeline 18 for the introduction of the organic liquid to be reacted with a gaseous reactant such as sulfur trioxide, passes through an opening in the top center of bubble 16 where it is journaled for longitudinal rotation. It is preferably supplied with suitable bearings for high speed rotation and passes through a substantially pressure-tight seal 20. Rotatable inlet feed pipeline 18 is in communication with a stationary conduit, the connection being made through a gas tight seal into which pipeline 18 is journaled. The conduit communicating with rotatable pipeline 18 is in communication with a controlled source of the liquid feed to be sulfonated or sulfated.
The lower end of feed line 18 terminates perpendicularly between two parallel discs, the diameter of which can be approximately half the diameter of the walls of the bubble 16 at its perimeter. Feed line 18 is sealed into a central opening in the first disc, the second disc of substantially the same diameter, being blank. These parallel discs are fastened together at three or more points. The vertical distance between these discs is related to the size of the sulfonator and to the amount of organic liquid to be fed into the reaction chamber. Assuming that the diameter of the feed inlet pipeline is chosen to be commensurate with the rate of flow of organic liquid to be handled, the distance between the discs is preferably about one quarter of the diameter of the feed inlet pipeline 18, or less. If desired, the parallel discs can have a plurality of perpendicular radiating impeller blades, straight or curved, as in a centrifugal pump, but these are not essential. Other types of spinning distributor heads can be used. A very effective type consists of two to four or more tubes in communication with the feed pipeline and radiating outwardly and perpendicularly from it. These may extend quite close to the wall of the bubble, being perpendicular to it, or they may turn away from their direction of rotation so as to be substantially parallel to the wall of the bubble and close to it.
Other types of spinning distributors are also satisfactory such as a hollow disc, sphere, or other shape having openings in its perimeter through which the liquid feed can be distributed by centrifugal force to the walls of the bubble. Furthermore, the bubble itself could be eliminated, with the distributing head dispersing the liquid feed directly into the top of the upper hemisphere 12.
A sheave is fixed to the rotary inlet feed pipeline 8 for driving the distributing head 22 and 24. The spinning distributing head is spun at an appreciably greater speed than that of the rotary reaction chamber, and preferably in the direction opposite to that of the rotary reaction chamber to insure uniform distribution of the liquid organic reactant.
There is also provided a product take-off line 80 terminating in a scoop 82 to collect product as it builds up as a result of centrifugal force above product collector ring 21. The take-off line 80 conducts the product to a take-off pump, not shown, for removal. A lute, not shown, can be included in the line to insure a good seal. A gear pump for product removal is preferred. The pump can deliver the product to a product receiver not shown. Alternately, the receiver can be maintained at a subatmospheric pressure to thus eliminate the need for a pump.
In FIG. 5 there is shown as an option, a discolored product take-off line 84 with scoop 86 positioned to collect any material collected below the collecting ring 21 coming from the lower hemisphere 14. An important feature of my invention is that all reacting surfaces face downwardly as well as inwardly, so that any mist formed which would not benefit from the cooling of the reaction surface, and would therefore be prone to overheating, over sulfonation and discoloration, would not fall back to the reaction surfaces, but would rapidly fall, because of the subatmospheric pressure, to the upper surface of the separator discs 60,70,74 or 76, or to the upper surface of baffle disc 78. All such material ultimately reaching the baffle disc would drop through the annular space surrounding baffle disc 78, to lower hemisphere 14. Here it would collect because of centrifugal force, below collector ring 21. So little such discolored product would be accumulated that it could easily be recovered from the bottom of the reactor after a short run, but the scoop 86 and discolored product take-off line 84 are shown in FIGS. 2 and 5 for the continuous removal of discolored product during a prolonged run, thus a novel method of continuously removing the bulk of substantially colorless product, and the small amount of discolored product, is provided. Any discolored product recovered can be combined with the main product when color is not critical, but kept separate where a colorless product is desired for use in household detergents and the like.
Recycling of any incompletely sulfonated product is easily accomplished by pumping all or part of the product back to feed line 18, but with all the adjustments provided, variation of the area of the several reaction surfaces, adjustment of the several streams of gaseous reactant and of the amount of liquid feed, incomplete sulfonation need not be encountered.
The opening 88 in the stationary column 35 of FIGS. 1,3 and 5, leads to the scrubber and vacuum pump not shown. It is the outlet for spent gas and provides the means for maintaining the system under reduced pressure.
When the reactor is to be closed, a band of suitable gasket material 23 of FIGS. 5 and 6, surrounds the juncture of the two hemispheres 12 and 14, so that the resulting reaction chamber 13 can be maintained at subatmospheric pressures. This band 23 is surrounded in turn by steel bellyband 26 of FIGS. 2,5 and 6, with a simple tightening device 28 of FIG. 2.
The hemispheres 12 and 14 are bolted together by two or more bolts passing through aligned drilled projections 32 fixed to the sides of each hemisphere.
In operating the equipment as in sulfonating a sulfonatable oil, the reaction chamber is evacuated. If substantially pure sulfur trioxide is to be used, a pressure of less than about 100 mm Hg is maintained, preferably between about 4 and 25 mm Hg. The oil is then introduced through feed inlet pipeline 18 while the feed line and disc distributor head 22-24 is spun at high speed. The sulfonatable oil is introduced into the reaction chamber while it is revolving in the direction opposite to that of the distributor 22-24 at a velocity of between about 25 and 400 RPM, preferably between about 100 and 200 RPM.
The liquid feed is thrown against the almost vertical polished inner wall of the bubble 16, and by centrifugal force, flows as a thin uniform film over the polished curved reaction surface toward the collector ring 21 at the equator or inner periphery of the rotating reaction chamber 13. In doing so it passes consecutively over the concentric annular areas separated by the circular separator disc 52, 60, 70, 74 and 76. Separate streams of sulfur trioxide, preferably independently controlled, are delivered to each partitioned chamber. Within each chamber the atmosphere provided does not supply sufficient sulfur trioxide to more than partially sulfonate that portion of the film of organic liquid momentarily exposed to that gaseous reactant. As the film of organic liquid flows over the annular reaction surfaces and passes one partitioned chamber after another, the ordinarily rapid reaction is slowed down. By the time it passes over the annular reaction surface exposed to the gaseous reactant between circular separator discs 74 and 76, the sulfonation has been virtually completed.
During the continuous process, zone heating or cooling as required is provided exteriorly by cold water jets or sprays, heated or cooled water or air, or heat lamps. The sulfonated product forced toward the reactor's inner perimeter collects above the collector ring 21 where it is continuously scooped up by scoop 82 of product line 80 and preferably directed to a gear pump and product receiver not shown. A product receiver maintained at subatmospheric pressure may be employed rather than a gear pump if desired.
A small sulfonator such as the 42 inch (diameter) prototype could be expected to produce between about 250 and 350 lbs of high quality product per hour. Any discolored product which may form from mist as previously explained could, if present in sufficient quantity, be scooped up by scoop 86 of pipeline 84 of FIG. 2 and collected by a separate gear pump and/or receiver not shown.
When treating highly viscose or solid sulfonatable materials, they can be fluidized by preheating, and if necessary, heat lamps or other sources of radiant energy can be used initially on the reaction surface.
The primary aim of this process and apparatus is to produce an essentially colorless high quality product. However, for some sulfonated products such as the sulfonated oils of value in the Tertiary process for the recovery of oil from exhausted oil wells, shales and oil bearing sands, color is of little concern.
Where there is no need for the separation of darkened product, no collector ring is required within the reaction chamber. The product can be scooped from the inner periphery or equator of the rotating reaction chamber.
It is also possible, where color in the product is of no consequence, to operate the apparatus in an inverted position with the reaction chamber suspended downwardly from its driving mechanism, or constructed as shown, but with the liquid organic feed and the partitioning separator discs being located in the lower hemisphere. The reaction chamber can also be fabricated and operated with a set of separator discs in each of the two hemispheres, with or without baffle discs, and with the fluid organic feed entering through rotating distributors at both poles of the rotating reaction chamber. The inner surface of both hemispheres is preferably a highly polished surface, and no collector ring is then required. The sulfonated product is continuously scooped from the inner periphery of the apparatus.
Quite apart from the use of the apparatus described as a sulfonator, it has also been found effective as a flash evaporator, either at atmospheric or subatmospheric pressures. Because of the thin film of liquid distributed over the evaporating surface, and the low evaporating temperatures possible, especially when the apparatus is used as a vacuum flash evaporator, products ordinarily discolored or chemically altered by heat can be effectively concentrated or evaporated in the apparatus described.
It will be apparent that the process and apparatus of my invention will permit the continuous production of an especially high quality product at a reasonably high rate of production, and this from a small compact apparatus which could be handled as a mobile unit and moved to those locations where a continuous supply of such product is required.
It is to be understood that variations and modifications of the present invention may be made without departing from the scope of this invention. It is also to be understood that the scope of the invention is not to be interpreted as limited to the specific embodiment disclosed herewith, but only in accordance with the appended claims when read in the light of the foregoing disclosure. | A continuous process is disclosed which comprises introducing a sulfonatable or sulfatable organic liquid onto a rotating reaction surface as a thin film, rotating the reaction surface at a velocity such that the thin film is continuously moved toward the periphery of the reaction surface, dividing the reaction surface into a plurality of areas, depositing within each area a controlled quantity of gaseous sulfur trioxide over the liquid film, maintaining the pressure during the reaction at subatmospheric levels, controlling the temperature of the reaction surface, moving the reaction product by centrifugal action to the periphery of the reaction surface and continuously collecting the reaction product.
An apparatus for carrying out such a process is also disclosed. | Summarize the patent document, focusing on the invention's functionality and advantages. | [
"CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS U.S. patents disclosing methods of sulfonating thin films of organic liquids by related means include U.S. Pat. No. 3,902,857 filed by John E. Vander Mey and Frank J. Kremers on Aug. 13, 1973 and U.S. Pat. No. 4,163,751, a division of the above, filed on Aug. 7, 1979.",
"BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1.",
"Field of the Invention This invention relates to a process and to apparatus for reacting a thin film of an organic liquid with a gaseous medium under reduced pressure.",
"In particular this invention relates to a process and apparatus for continuously reacting a sulfonatable or sulfatable organic liquid with sulfur trioxide.",
"Description of the Prior Art In recent years several processes and several types of apparatus have been suggested for reacting thin films of sulfonatable and sulfatable organic liquids with sulfur trioxide.",
"Hereinafter when reference is made to sulfonation processes and to sulfonatable materials, it is to be understood that sulfation processes and sulfatable materials are also included, where their inclusion is applicable.",
"As the need for developing more forms of energy has grown, sources of oil, once considered too difficult or uneconomical to recover have now assumed much greater importance.",
"This fact has now provided great impetus for improving sulfonating processes and apparatus, for large quantities of sulfonated oil detergents are now used in the "tertiary"",
"oil treatment for the recovery of residual oil from the ground, as can be obtained, for example, from otherwise exhausted oil wells.",
"This technique, also known as the "Marathon Process"",
"is presently employed to recover some of the vast amount of oil still remaining in the ground.",
"The process involves the use of large quantities of oil-soluble detergents for solubilizing oil remaining in the ground which has not been attainable by the methods used in the past.",
"But there are also many other uses for sulfonated organics, and whereas color is unimportant when sulfonated oil detergents are employed for oil recovery, the lack of color becomes important in the manufacture of detergents and surface active agents from alkyl aryl hydrocarbons or aliphatic alcohols.",
"Where the final product is designed for household use, a colorless or substantially colorless product is of prime importance.",
"Sulfonation with sulfur trioxide has advantages over sulfonation procedures using oleum, but the reaction between sulfur trioxide and sulfonatable organic compounds is generally violent and difficult to control.",
"The uncontrolled exothermic reaction provides an undesirable colored product, hence various means to control the reaction have been suggested.",
"Some of the suggested processes require large quantities of an inert carrier gas such as air, introduced at high velocities to move a thin film of organic liquid along a cooled surface during the reaction.",
"Such processes require air compressors and dryers, becoming costly both because of equipment and power requirements.",
"A process and apparatus for reacting a thin film of an organic liquid with a gaseous reactant which minimizes the problems discussed above is described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,902,857 filed on Aug. 13, 1973, and 4,163,751, a division of the above, filed on Aug. 7, 1979.",
"Another such process is disclosed in U.S. patent application, Ser.",
"No. 285,382 filed Aug. 30, 1972, now abandoned.",
"It would be desirable, however, to provide an improved process and apparatus for reacting a thin film of an organic liquid with a gaseous sulfur trioxide in a manner to increase production, reduce the cost of operation, reduce the amount of plant space required and provide a high quality substantially colorless product.",
"It would be desirable to provide a sulfonating apparatus so compact as to be readily constructed as a mobile unit, capable of movement to any location where a continuing supply of a sulfonated product is required.",
"Further, it would be desirable to provide such a compact unit capable of still higher production rates in those instances where product color is of secondary importance.",
"SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention is directed to an improved process for reacting a thin film of an organic liquid with a gaseous medium.",
"The process comprises the steps of introducing the organic liquid onto the inner curved surface of a rotating spheroidal reaction chamber at is axis or polar area, rotating the reaction chamber at a velocity such that the organic liquid is continuously formed into a thin film on the curved reaction surface, dividing the film covered curved reaction surface into three or more successive concentric reaction areas, depositing over each reaction area a controlled amount of said gaseous medium to thereby control the rate of reaction as the liquid film proceeds from one curved reaction area to the next under the urging of centrifugal force, reacting the organic liquid and the gaseous medium stepwise, under subatmospheric pressure on the rotating curved reaction surface, moving the resulting reaction product to the equatorial region of the rotating reaction chamber, and collecting the reaction product from the equatorial region of the spheroidal reaction chamber.",
"The apparatus of this invention for reacting a thin film of an organic liquid with a gaseous medium comprises an oblate or substantially spheroidal reaction chamber mounted on a supporting frame for rotation on its axis in a substantially horizontal position, with an inner reaction surface;",
"evacuating means for maintaining the reaction chamber under subatmospheric pressure;",
"separating means to divide the reaction surface into successive reaction areas or segments, thus forming corresponding individual chambers to which the reaction areas are exposed;",
"a first depositing means to deposit the organic liquid on the reacting surface, a second depositing means for depositing controlled quantities of the gaseous reactant within the individual chambers;",
"rotating means to rotate the reaction chamber at a speed such that the organic liquid is continuously moved by centrifugal action as a thin film, successively, over the concentric reaction areas for exposure to the gaseous reactant, and the resultant reaction product is continuously moved to the inner periphery of the reaction chamber where it accumulates;",
"cooling means for controlling the reaction temperature;",
"and means for removing the reaction product from the reactor.",
"When the gaseous reactant is sulfur trioxide, this may be introduced as a substantially undiluted gas, with the subatmospheric pressure being maintained below 100 mm Hg, preferably below 25 mm Hg.",
"The sulfur trioxide may also be introduced as a mixture of sulfur trioxide and an inert gas such as air.",
"The output of a sulfur burner system designed to deliver "converter gas"",
"of about 8% SO 3 may be used, and in fact satisfactory results may be obtained even if the SO 3 content is as low as 4%.",
"With the employment of such low strength sulfur trioxide the subatmospheric pressure of the reaction chamber may be maintained at about one-half atmosphere or less.",
"The process of this invention can therefore be operated successfully employing a gaseous sulfur trioxide of from about the concentration of "converter gas"",
"to pure sulfur trioxide obtained from such sources as stabilized liquid sulfur trioxide, oleum, or other conventional sources.",
"Preferably, substantially pure sulfur trioxide is used with the pressure within the reaction chamber maintained below about 25 mm Hg.",
"The process of my invention produces far less air pollution than is obtained from conventional sulfonating apparatus, less power is required, a small vacuum pump is employed rather than a large air compressor and only a small scrubber is required.",
"Still another advantage of the apparatus of my invention is that it is small, compact, produces a high quality product in good yield, and can be constructed as a mobile unit for ready removal to any point where the product is required.",
"Although the present invention may be used for a variety of chemical reactions between organic liquids and gaseous reactants, in a preferred embodiment of this invention the gaseous medium is sulfur trioxide and the organic liquid comprises a sulfonatable or sulfatable organic liquid.",
"BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 of the drawings is a simplified cross sectional diagram of the rotary spherical reaction chamber of the present invention.",
"FIG. 2 is a partially exploded perspective view of the preferred embodiment of the present invention.",
"This version has an oblate reaction chamber, the cross section being substantially eliptical.",
"This drawing and those to follow are based on an actual prototype reactor.",
"FIG. 3 is a broken, partially exploded view of a detail of the stationary central column through which the gaseous reactant enters, and the product is withdrawn.",
"FIG. 4 is a perspective view of one type of screen diffuser which can be used between the separator discs to improve the uniformity of the distribution of the gaseous reactant within each separated chamber.",
"FIG. 5 is a cross sectional view in elevation of the assembled reaction chamber, being the same embodiment as the exploded view of FIG. 2. FIG. 6 of the drawings is a cross sectional view taken through 6--6 of FIG. 5. DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT The process and apparatus of the present invention are particularly applicable in the sulfonation or sulfation by gaseous sulfur trioxide of appropriate organic liquids.",
"Such compounds include saturated alcohols, phenols, olefinic compounds and monocyclic and polycylic aromatic compounds.",
"For example, compounds suitable for sulfation by sulfur trioxide include those fatty acids containing 8 to 20 carbon atoms such as lauryl, myristyl and cetyl alcohol;",
"ethoxylated derivatives of the above fatty acids and the ethoxylated derivatives of alkyl phenols wherein the alkyl group contains from about 8 to about 16 carbon atoms such as octene, decene, dodecene, tetradecene, hexadecene, etc;",
"aromatic hydrocarbons such as those containing benzene, anthracene, or like structures and alkyl substituted derivatives thereof, such as toluene, ethylbenzene, dodecyl benzene, etc.",
"The advantages of the present method of sulfonation are particularly evident in the production of alkyl aromatic sulfonic acids which when neutralized with an alkali metal hydroxide, an amine or an alkanol amine form highly effective detergent compounds.",
"Thus the process of the present invention will be preferably applied to those alkylated aromatic compounds in which the alkyl groups contain a total of from 8 to 22 carbon atoms and in particular, 12 to 14 carbon atoms.",
"In those instances where the organic compound is a solid at room temperatures, it may be preheated to the liquid state, or liquefied by any other desired procedure.",
"The sulfur trioxide used as the active ingredient may be obtained from any suitable source.",
"It may be vaporized from stabilized liquid sulfur trioxide, obtained from oleum or from other conventional sources.",
"When such gaseous sulfur trioxide is undiluted with other gases, the sulfonation or sulfation is preferably maintained at a subatmospheric pressure of below about 100 mm Hg, or better still, below 25 mm pressure Hg.",
"However, dilute sulfur trioxide is also applicable.",
"Converter gas containing about 8% sulfur trioxide with the balance being air gives good results, and in fact the sulfur trioxide content can be as low as about 4%.",
"In those instances where such a dilute sulfur trioxide is used, the subatmospheric pressure is maintained at about half an atmosphere (380 mm Hg.) or lower.",
"With other dilutions of higher concentration, intermediate pressures would apply.",
"An important benefit offered by the present invention stems from its compact structure and relatively high product output.",
"It is compact enough to be rendered mobile, and sulfonators made according to the principles here disclosed can be moved to wherever a supply of a sulfonated product is required.",
"This is especially important today when sulfonated oils are of such importance in the recovery of oil from shale, exhausted oil wells and oil-bearing sands and tars.",
"With reference to the drawings of FIGS. 1, 2 and 5, there is shown as a preferred embodiment, a rotatable spherical, spheroidal or oblate sulfonation reactor indicated generally at 10.",
"This includes reaction chamber 13 comprising hemispherical sections 12 and 14.",
"These hemispheres are of a material such as stainless steel, resistant to the reactants to be employed.",
"This is also true of all those surfaces which come in contact with the reactants, with the possible exception of a few small parts mentioned below which may be fabricated of a resistant polymeric material such as Teflon.",
"In the prototype reactor, 304 stainless steel was found to be satisfactory.",
"When ready for assembly the rims or perimeters of these two hemispheres 12 and 14 are brought together, separated only by a metal product-collector ring 21 having an outside diameter substantially equal to that of hemispheres 12 and 14, but an inner diameter up to about 2 inches less than the inner diameter of the hemispheres at their perimeters.",
"In the prototype sulfonator those sections herein referred to as "hemispheres"",
"are actually 42 inch dish heads of 7/32 inch 304 stainless steel.",
"The stainless steel product collector ring 21 is a circle or ring of channel steel with the sides of the channel extending outwardly, with the uppermost side of the channel having an outside diameter equal to the outer diameter of the hemispheres, and the lower side of the channel having a diameter just under that of the inside diameter of the hemispheres so that when ready for assembly, the lower side of the channel will fit inside the rim of the lower hemisphere and the upper side of the channel will extend over the rim, lying gasket-like between the butted rims of both hemispheres.",
"The inner diameter of this collector ring 21 in the prototype is about 3/4 inch less than the inside diameter of the hemispheres at their rims so that the product-collector ring extends inwardly, 3/8 inch beyond the rims of the hemispheres.",
"A clear view of the cross section of product-collector ring 21 as positioned in the prototype reactor is shown in FIG. 6. Although this is the preferred type of ring, a flat ring of sheet stainless steel would serve as well.",
"In the center of the bottom of the lower hemisphere 14 there is a circular opening at the perimeter of which is fixed a strong hollow shaft 11 extending downwardly from the reaction chamber.",
"This shaft supports and rotates reaction chamber 13.",
"Shaft 11 is journaled in bearing 15 shown fixed to supporting frame 17.",
"Sheave 19 is fixed concentrically to the hollow shaft 11 below frame 17 whereby power transmitted from a motor not shown can rotate shaft 11 journaled at 15, and the reaction chamber 13 on a substantially vertical axis.",
"Hollow shaft 11 surrounds a stationary column 35 which extends below the rotary hollow shaft and is fixed with respect to supporting frame 17.",
"The rotary hollow shaft 11 is journaled and sealed by a conventional ceramic-carbon mechanical seal 34.",
"Such mechanical seals are marketed by the Crane Packing Co., and others.",
"(FIG.",
"1) This stationary column 35 also extends upwardly almost to the top of reaction chamber 13 and contains a plurality of conduits, 36 and 38.",
"Extending from the lower end of this column are at least two tubes 36 for conducting sulfur trioxide up into the reaction chamber.",
"Three are shown in FIG. 1, and four in FIGS. 2 and 3.",
"If desired, still more can be used for fine reaction control, although about four is preferred.",
"It would also be within the scope of the present invention to introduce the sulfur trioxide into the stationary column 11 through one conduit and use the column as a manifold to divide the sulfur trioxide into two or more streams within the column or as it leaves the column, within reaction chamber 13.",
"Also, extending from the lower end of the column is a product line 38 (FIGS.",
"1, 2 and 3), and a spent gas outlet 40 (FIGS.",
"1 and 2) which is connected with a small scrubber and vacuum pump, not shown.",
"Still another conduit 41 (FIG.",
"2) can be included to withdraw any small amount of colored product which, if formed, can be collected in the lower hemisphere.",
"Preferably, one of the conduits of the group or bundle 36 extends to an opening 42 at the top of column 35 and enters a distributing head 44.",
"In the preferred embodiment of the present invention, as shown in FIGS. 2 and 5, and detailed in FIG. 3, the upper portion of column 35 is shown as Teflon or any other suitable resistant material, and the conduits therein are cast or drilled within the solid Teflon.",
"Stainless steel bolt 46 passing through stainless steel washer 48, Teflon disc 50 and stainless steel separator disc 52 engages threaded opening 54 to draw disc 52 tightly against distributing head 44.",
"Sulfur trioxide or other gaseous reactant ascending a conduit, being one of the bundle 36 and escaping through opening 42 would be distributed by distributing head 44 through notches 56.",
"The type of distributing head is not essential.",
"It can be a ring or cylinder of fritted glass, stainless steel, or a perforate ring of suitable material, stainless or Teflon woven screening, or it can be dispensed with entirely without affecting the end product to a marked degree.",
"In the embodiment of FIG. 1, Teflon disc 50 is adjacent to, and becomes a part of the distributing head;",
"and the separator disc 52 is above rather than below it.",
"Whether the Teflon disc 50 is above or below separator disc 52 is inconsequential.",
"Separator disc 52 has a diameter such that it leaves an annular space of no more than about an inch, preferably about a quarter of an inch between its perimeter and the adjacent wall of the upper hemisphere 12.",
"Since the disc is attached to the stationary column 35, it too, remains stationary as the rotating reaction chamber turns about it.",
"Below separator disc 52 there is a second separator disc 60, also fixed to the stationary column 35.",
"It is parallel to disc 52 and also extends almost to the wall of the upper hemisphere leaving an annular space of no more than about an inch, but preferably about one quarter of an inch.",
"The vertical distance between the two discs is such that the annular area defined by these two circular separator discs comprises between about 5% and 15% of the total inner curved reaction surface of the upper hemisphere 12, or preferably about 7%.",
"The thickness of the circular separator discs is not critical provided they are heavy enough to remain substantially rigid.",
"In the prototype sulfonator, 304 stainless steel was used having a thickness of 0.049 inches.",
"Supporting separators 66 (FIGS.",
"2 and 3) can be employed if desired but are not essential.",
"Just below circular separator plate 60 there is an opening 58 in communication with a second conduit of the bundle 36, also for the introduction of the gaseous reactant such as sulfur trioxide.",
"Below circular separator disc 60 and opening 58 there is a third circular separator disc 70, also fixed to the column 35 at its center.",
"It is parallel with separator disc 60 and also extends almost to the wall of the upper hemisphere leaving an annular space of no more than about an inch, preferably about one quarter of an inch.",
"The vertical distance between the two circular separator discs 60 and 70 is such, that the annular area of the wall or reaction surface defined by circular separator discs 60 and 70 comprises between about 7 to 20% of the total inner curved reaction surface of the upper hemisphere 12, or preferably about 10%.",
"Preferably a cylindrical screen 62 or porous or perforate cylinder surrounds column 35 between separator discs 60 and 70 to aid in producing an even distribution of the gaseous reactant leaving opening 58.",
"Details of a suitable 304 stainless screen cylinder attached to a Teflon ring 64 is shown in FIG. 4. The inner surface of ring 64 can be threaded to cooperate with matching threads on column 35 for precise positioning of the distributing screen 62 (FIGS.",
"3 and 5) and for positioning separator disc 60.",
"Just below circular separator disc 70 there is another opening 68 in communication with a third conduit of the bundle 36, for the introduction of the gaseous reactant.",
"Below this there is a forth circular separator disc 74 also fixed to the stationary column.",
"It is parallel to discs 60 and 70 and extends almost to the wall of the upper hemisphere, also leaving an annular space of less than about one inch, preferably about one quarter of an inch.",
"The vertical distance between separator discs 70 and 74 is such that the annular area defined by separator discs 70 and 74 comprises between about 10% and 25% of the total inner curved reaction surface of the upper hemisphere 12, or preferably about 15%.",
"As in the case of circular separator discs 60 and 70, preferably a cylindrical screen 72 (FIG.",
"5) or other type of distributor surrounds column 35 between separator discs 70 and 74.",
"Just below separator disc 74 in the case of the embodiment shown in FIG. 3, there is still another opening 75 in communication with the last conduit shown of the bundle 36 for the introduction of a gaseous reactant.",
"Below this there is a fifth circular separator disc 76 also fixed at its center to the stationary column 35.",
"It too, is parallel to discs 60, 70 and 74, and as with the latter, extends almost to the wall of the upper hemisphere 12, leaving an annular space of less than about an inch, preferably about one quarter of an inch.",
"(FIGS.",
"2 and 5) The vertical distance between discs 74 and 76 is such that the annular area defined by separator discs 70 and 76 comprises between about 20 and 30% of the total inner curved reaction surface of the upper hemisphere 12, or preferably about 25%.",
"The above circular separator discs divide the reaction surface into three concentric reaction zones in the case of the embodiment of FIG. 1, and into four concentric reaction zones in the modified reaction chamber of FIGS. 2,3 and 5.",
"In the case of the preferred embodiment of FIGS. 2 and 5, still another circular disc 78 is shown, but this serves only as a baffle and not as a separator disc.",
"It is positioned just above collector ring 21 and has a diameter between about one half inch to 4 inches less than the inside diameter of the product collecting ring 21 which is just below it.",
"Preferably, the diameter is about 2 inches less than the inner diameter of the product collecting ring.",
"Baffle disc 78 is not critical to the present invention but serves to prevent any oversulfonated mist from reaching the final colorless, or essentially colorless product.",
"Hollow shaft 11 to which the driving pulley 19 for the rotary reaction chamber 13 is fixed, is adjustable within limits, so that it may be raised or lowered, and with it, the entire reaction chamber which is fixed thereto.",
"It is clear, then, that by thus raising or lowering the reaction chamber in relation to the fixed column 35 which supports the separator discs, the annular clearances of these circular discs, and the concentric areas of reaction surface can be altered within limits.",
"The bearing 15 and the seal 34 permit this adjustment.",
"The amount of sulfur trioxide or other gaseous reactant that can be delivered to each of the partitioned spaces between the circular separator discs can be controlled.",
"Each of the conduits of bundle 36 can have its own control valve, not shown, as does my prototype sulfonator.",
"These control valves are preferably in communication with a manifold supplied with the reactant gas of the concentration and pressure desired.",
"Further, each can have its own flow meter and even automated equipment which is readily available, to mechanically control the flow of gas, independently, to each partitioned space.",
"In the preferred embodiment there is fixed, at the top center of the upper hemisphere 12 a bubble or bell-shaped appendage 16, the lower edge of which is joined smoothly to a circular opening at the top center of the upper hemisphere 12, said circular opening having the same diameter as that of the skirt or perimeter of bubble 16.",
"The inner surface of the bubble 16 and the inner surface of the upper hemisphere 12, which is the reaction surface, are preferably highly polished.",
"An inlet feed pipeline 18 for the introduction of the organic liquid to be reacted with a gaseous reactant such as sulfur trioxide, passes through an opening in the top center of bubble 16 where it is journaled for longitudinal rotation.",
"It is preferably supplied with suitable bearings for high speed rotation and passes through a substantially pressure-tight seal 20.",
"Rotatable inlet feed pipeline 18 is in communication with a stationary conduit, the connection being made through a gas tight seal into which pipeline 18 is journaled.",
"The conduit communicating with rotatable pipeline 18 is in communication with a controlled source of the liquid feed to be sulfonated or sulfated.",
"The lower end of feed line 18 terminates perpendicularly between two parallel discs, the diameter of which can be approximately half the diameter of the walls of the bubble 16 at its perimeter.",
"Feed line 18 is sealed into a central opening in the first disc, the second disc of substantially the same diameter, being blank.",
"These parallel discs are fastened together at three or more points.",
"The vertical distance between these discs is related to the size of the sulfonator and to the amount of organic liquid to be fed into the reaction chamber.",
"Assuming that the diameter of the feed inlet pipeline is chosen to be commensurate with the rate of flow of organic liquid to be handled, the distance between the discs is preferably about one quarter of the diameter of the feed inlet pipeline 18, or less.",
"If desired, the parallel discs can have a plurality of perpendicular radiating impeller blades, straight or curved, as in a centrifugal pump, but these are not essential.",
"Other types of spinning distributor heads can be used.",
"A very effective type consists of two to four or more tubes in communication with the feed pipeline and radiating outwardly and perpendicularly from it.",
"These may extend quite close to the wall of the bubble, being perpendicular to it, or they may turn away from their direction of rotation so as to be substantially parallel to the wall of the bubble and close to it.",
"Other types of spinning distributors are also satisfactory such as a hollow disc, sphere, or other shape having openings in its perimeter through which the liquid feed can be distributed by centrifugal force to the walls of the bubble.",
"Furthermore, the bubble itself could be eliminated, with the distributing head dispersing the liquid feed directly into the top of the upper hemisphere 12.",
"A sheave is fixed to the rotary inlet feed pipeline 8 for driving the distributing head 22 and 24.",
"The spinning distributing head is spun at an appreciably greater speed than that of the rotary reaction chamber, and preferably in the direction opposite to that of the rotary reaction chamber to insure uniform distribution of the liquid organic reactant.",
"There is also provided a product take-off line 80 terminating in a scoop 82 to collect product as it builds up as a result of centrifugal force above product collector ring 21.",
"The take-off line 80 conducts the product to a take-off pump, not shown, for removal.",
"A lute, not shown, can be included in the line to insure a good seal.",
"A gear pump for product removal is preferred.",
"The pump can deliver the product to a product receiver not shown.",
"Alternately, the receiver can be maintained at a subatmospheric pressure to thus eliminate the need for a pump.",
"In FIG. 5 there is shown as an option, a discolored product take-off line 84 with scoop 86 positioned to collect any material collected below the collecting ring 21 coming from the lower hemisphere 14.",
"An important feature of my invention is that all reacting surfaces face downwardly as well as inwardly, so that any mist formed which would not benefit from the cooling of the reaction surface, and would therefore be prone to overheating, over sulfonation and discoloration, would not fall back to the reaction surfaces, but would rapidly fall, because of the subatmospheric pressure, to the upper surface of the separator discs 60,70,74 or 76, or to the upper surface of baffle disc 78.",
"All such material ultimately reaching the baffle disc would drop through the annular space surrounding baffle disc 78, to lower hemisphere 14.",
"Here it would collect because of centrifugal force, below collector ring 21.",
"So little such discolored product would be accumulated that it could easily be recovered from the bottom of the reactor after a short run, but the scoop 86 and discolored product take-off line 84 are shown in FIGS. 2 and 5 for the continuous removal of discolored product during a prolonged run, thus a novel method of continuously removing the bulk of substantially colorless product, and the small amount of discolored product, is provided.",
"Any discolored product recovered can be combined with the main product when color is not critical, but kept separate where a colorless product is desired for use in household detergents and the like.",
"Recycling of any incompletely sulfonated product is easily accomplished by pumping all or part of the product back to feed line 18, but with all the adjustments provided, variation of the area of the several reaction surfaces, adjustment of the several streams of gaseous reactant and of the amount of liquid feed, incomplete sulfonation need not be encountered.",
"The opening 88 in the stationary column 35 of FIGS. 1,3 and 5, leads to the scrubber and vacuum pump not shown.",
"It is the outlet for spent gas and provides the means for maintaining the system under reduced pressure.",
"When the reactor is to be closed, a band of suitable gasket material 23 of FIGS. 5 and 6, surrounds the juncture of the two hemispheres 12 and 14, so that the resulting reaction chamber 13 can be maintained at subatmospheric pressures.",
"This band 23 is surrounded in turn by steel bellyband 26 of FIGS. 2,5 and 6, with a simple tightening device 28 of FIG. 2. The hemispheres 12 and 14 are bolted together by two or more bolts passing through aligned drilled projections 32 fixed to the sides of each hemisphere.",
"In operating the equipment as in sulfonating a sulfonatable oil, the reaction chamber is evacuated.",
"If substantially pure sulfur trioxide is to be used, a pressure of less than about 100 mm Hg is maintained, preferably between about 4 and 25 mm Hg.",
"The oil is then introduced through feed inlet pipeline 18 while the feed line and disc distributor head 22-24 is spun at high speed.",
"The sulfonatable oil is introduced into the reaction chamber while it is revolving in the direction opposite to that of the distributor 22-24 at a velocity of between about 25 and 400 RPM, preferably between about 100 and 200 RPM.",
"The liquid feed is thrown against the almost vertical polished inner wall of the bubble 16, and by centrifugal force, flows as a thin uniform film over the polished curved reaction surface toward the collector ring 21 at the equator or inner periphery of the rotating reaction chamber 13.",
"In doing so it passes consecutively over the concentric annular areas separated by the circular separator disc 52, 60, 70, 74 and 76.",
"Separate streams of sulfur trioxide, preferably independently controlled, are delivered to each partitioned chamber.",
"Within each chamber the atmosphere provided does not supply sufficient sulfur trioxide to more than partially sulfonate that portion of the film of organic liquid momentarily exposed to that gaseous reactant.",
"As the film of organic liquid flows over the annular reaction surfaces and passes one partitioned chamber after another, the ordinarily rapid reaction is slowed down.",
"By the time it passes over the annular reaction surface exposed to the gaseous reactant between circular separator discs 74 and 76, the sulfonation has been virtually completed.",
"During the continuous process, zone heating or cooling as required is provided exteriorly by cold water jets or sprays, heated or cooled water or air, or heat lamps.",
"The sulfonated product forced toward the reactor's inner perimeter collects above the collector ring 21 where it is continuously scooped up by scoop 82 of product line 80 and preferably directed to a gear pump and product receiver not shown.",
"A product receiver maintained at subatmospheric pressure may be employed rather than a gear pump if desired.",
"A small sulfonator such as the 42 inch (diameter) prototype could be expected to produce between about 250 and 350 lbs of high quality product per hour.",
"Any discolored product which may form from mist as previously explained could, if present in sufficient quantity, be scooped up by scoop 86 of pipeline 84 of FIG. 2 and collected by a separate gear pump and/or receiver not shown.",
"When treating highly viscose or solid sulfonatable materials, they can be fluidized by preheating, and if necessary, heat lamps or other sources of radiant energy can be used initially on the reaction surface.",
"The primary aim of this process and apparatus is to produce an essentially colorless high quality product.",
"However, for some sulfonated products such as the sulfonated oils of value in the Tertiary process for the recovery of oil from exhausted oil wells, shales and oil bearing sands, color is of little concern.",
"Where there is no need for the separation of darkened product, no collector ring is required within the reaction chamber.",
"The product can be scooped from the inner periphery or equator of the rotating reaction chamber.",
"It is also possible, where color in the product is of no consequence, to operate the apparatus in an inverted position with the reaction chamber suspended downwardly from its driving mechanism, or constructed as shown, but with the liquid organic feed and the partitioning separator discs being located in the lower hemisphere.",
"The reaction chamber can also be fabricated and operated with a set of separator discs in each of the two hemispheres, with or without baffle discs, and with the fluid organic feed entering through rotating distributors at both poles of the rotating reaction chamber.",
"The inner surface of both hemispheres is preferably a highly polished surface, and no collector ring is then required.",
"The sulfonated product is continuously scooped from the inner periphery of the apparatus.",
"Quite apart from the use of the apparatus described as a sulfonator, it has also been found effective as a flash evaporator, either at atmospheric or subatmospheric pressures.",
"Because of the thin film of liquid distributed over the evaporating surface, and the low evaporating temperatures possible, especially when the apparatus is used as a vacuum flash evaporator, products ordinarily discolored or chemically altered by heat can be effectively concentrated or evaporated in the apparatus described.",
"It will be apparent that the process and apparatus of my invention will permit the continuous production of an especially high quality product at a reasonably high rate of production, and this from a small compact apparatus which could be handled as a mobile unit and moved to those locations where a continuous supply of such product is required.",
"It is to be understood that variations and modifications of the present invention may be made without departing from the scope of this invention.",
"It is also to be understood that the scope of the invention is not to be interpreted as limited to the specific embodiment disclosed herewith, but only in accordance with the appended claims when read in the light of the foregoing disclosure."
] |
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
[0001] The invention relates to an axial-flow low-pressure steam turbines and to axial/radial multi-channel diffuser and waste steam housing for guiding the waste steam from the blades with few losses.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0002] A diffuser of this type is described in DE 44 22 700. The diffuser disclosed in this document is provided after the last row of rotating blades of a low pressure steam turbine with an axial flow inlet and a radial flow outlet. The diffuser is designed with respect to optimized turbine performance by way of the greatest possible pressure recovery. For this purpose, the first partial pieces of the inner and outer diffuser ring each are oriented in relation to the hub or, respectively, the blade carrier, with an inflexion angle. This measure serves to homogenize the total pressure profile above the channel height of the diffuser in the area of the last row of rotating blades. The diffuser furthermore is provided with a radially outward curved guide plate that divides it into an inner and an outer channel. Hereby flow ribs impacted by the flow either radially or diagonally have been provided in the outer and inner channel. The guide plate is used both for deflecting and guiding the waste stream. The flow ribs have the purpose of supporting the guide plate and, in particular, reduce the spin in the delay zone, so that they also contribute to an optimization of the pressure recovery. However, realized flow ribs only are able to achieve optimum spin reduction with a specific operating load. At a different operating load, the spin reduction is not necessarily optimized. A diffuser with this kind of measure therefore only achieves optimum pressure recovery at a certain operating load. The flow ribs and their attachment to the guide plates furthermore are associated with relatively high construction expenditure. In addition, the supersonic gap flow interferes with the remaining subsonic flow.
[0003] EP 581 978, especially in FIG. 4 of this publication, discloses a multi-channel waste gas diffuser for an axial-flow gas turbine with axial flow inlet and radial flow outlet. This multi-channel diffuser is provided with three zones along its length. The first zone is constructed in the manner of a bell diffuser and extends as one channel from the last row of rotating blades to the outlet plane of several flow ribs. Here also, the diffuser rings are provided with inflexion angles that have been established so that the total pressure profile is homogenized. Downstream from the flow ribs, the second zone has flow-guiding guide rings that form several channels. The third zone is used for a major deflection of the waste gas flow in radial direction and then merges with the chimney of the gas turbine. For this purpose, the guide rings of the second zone are extended across the length of the third zone, whereby they are curved there. The second zone has a minor deflection yet high diffuser effect; the third zone a major deflection, yet has a very moderate diffuser effect.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0004] It is the objective of the present invention to create, for a low-pressure steam turbine, an axial/radial multi-channel diffuser with waste steam housing that, in comparison to diffusers according to the state of the art, achieves an improved steam recovery, thus increasing the effectiveness of the low-pressure steam turbine. In addition, the multi-channel diffuser should be simultaneously optimized for as many operating conditions of the steam turbine as possible and should be associated with reduced construction expenditure. Finally, the waste steam housing should be adapted to the diffuser with respect to turbine performance.
[0005] The three-channel diffuser is provided with three partial diffusers, i.e., an inner, middle, and outer partial diffuser, which are formed by an inner diffuser ring, and outer diffuser ring, and two guide plates provided between the diffuser rings. A first partial piece of the inner diffuser ring is hereby arranged in relation to the hub at an inflexion angle oriented inward, towards the rotor axis, and a first partial piece of the outer diffuser ring is arranged at an inflexion angle oriented outward in relation to the blade channel at the level of the last row of rotating blades, away from the rotor axis.
[0006] In the axial/radial three-channel diffuser according to the invention, in particular, the two guide plates extend across the entire length of the diffuser. They are unevenly distributed between the inner and outer diffuser ring, so that the distribution of the surface area over the three partial diffusers in the inlet surface area of the diffuser is uneven. In the inlet plane, the majority of the inlet surface area hereby is part of the inner and middle partial diffuser, and a small part of the inlet surface area is part of the outer partial diffuser. Furthermore, the starting tangents of the two guide plates, together with the limits of the blade channel on the hub side and housing side, which approximate each other in a straight line, form an at least approximately common intersection point above the end stage of the low-pressure steam turbine in the meridian plane. Finally, the guide plates are located as close as possible to the last row of rotating blades, whereby the distance between the last rotating blade row and the leading edges of the guide plates are determined by the minimum distance that is permissible for all operating conditions.
[0007] This describes the characteristics of the diffuser in its interaction zone with the last stage.
[0008] The diffusion zone of the diffuser is characterized by the following characteristics.
[0009] The ratio of the outlet surface area to the inlet surface area of the individual partial diffusers is greater than 2 for the middle partial diffuser and smaller than 2 for the outer partial diffuser. For the inner partial diffuser, the corresponding geometric surface area ratio ranges from 1.5 to 1.8.
[0010] Furthermore, for the middle partial diffuser, the ratio of its length to its channel height in the inlet surface area is at least equal to 4. For the outer partial diffuser, the ratio of length to channel height in the inlet surface area is at least equal to 10, and for the inner partial diffuser, the corresponding ratio is at least equal to 2.5. Based on these relatively high length to channel height ratios, the deflections of the partial diffusers are accordingly relatively small.
[0011] The ratio of the outlet surface area to the inlet surface area of the diffuser overall is approximately 2.
[0012] Finally, the waste steam housing of the diffuser is designed so that the size of the surface area of the dividing plane between the top and bottom half of the waste steam housing is adapted to the size of the outlet surface areas of the partial diffusers.
[0013] The two guide plates hereby are used to divide the diffuser channel into three partial diffusers in which the blade waste flow is guided. The resulting flow guidance is hereby the better, the more partial diffusers are present for the same overall diffuser. In contrast, the more guide plates are provided, the more friction losses and obstructions are created. The number chosen here, i.e., three partial diffusers and two guide plates, has the advantage that optimized flow guidance is achieved with justifiable friction losses at the guide plate surface areas and obstructions.
[0014] The guide plates and partial diffusers bring about a guidance and stabilization of the blade waste flow as well as a deflection into a radial direction. Since the guide plates extend over the entire length of the diffuser, this guidance is further supported.
[0015] The radial extension of the partial diffusers furthermore is used to naturally reduce the tangential speed. Because of this, the partial diffusers are optimized for all operating conditions with respect to a reduction of the tangential speed. The construction expenditure for the guide plates is also rather low, and the reduction of the tangential speed does not require any further constructive measures, such as deflection and flow ribs.
[0016] The flow guidance and stabilization is further brought about, in particular, by distributing the diffuser inlet surface area over the three partial diffusers. A majority of the inlet surface area is part of the inner and middle channel, so that the majority of the flow is guided from the blades to the waste steam housing. The smaller part of the inlet surface area is part of the outer channel, through which the supersonic gap flow as well as the flow from the turbine influenced by the gap flow is taken up and is deflected meridionally and is guided, shielded from the majority flow, to the waste steam housing. This shielding prevents flow interferences between the majority flow and the high-energy gap flow that would interfere with the diffuser effect.
[0017] The minimum distance between the last row of blades and the leading edges of the guide plates further promotes an optimal shielding of the gap flow and prevention of flow interferences and streamline convergences.
[0018] The ratio of length to channel height of each partial diffuser of 2.5 or more enables a gentle deflection from the axial or diagonal to the radial flow direction, which prevents separation of the delayed flow even at a ratio of outlet surface area to inlet surface area of 1.6.
[0019] The guidance and stabilization of the blade waste flow through the three partial diffusers, the shielding of the high-energy gap flow as well as the gentle deflection based on the length of the channels in relation to their channel heights overall achieve a homogenization and reduction of the total pressure profile at the level of the last row of rotating blades. The resulting added performance results in an increased efficiency of the low-pressure steam turbine.
[0020] The design of the diffuser according to the invention is based on a reverse design process, during which the existing flow fields are determined first. Then the respective ideal flow fields are calculated from this, and the geometry of the diffuser is determined based on these ideal flow fields. In particular, this three-channel diffuser has been designed at limit load conditions. At the limit load, a flow field, for which a three-channel diffuser with an orientation of the starting tangent of its guide plates according to the invention achieves the highest pressure recovery, was determined. It was established experimentally, that the geometry resulting from this design is superior to the state of the art diffusers over the entire operating range. This design furthermore has the advantage that a higher turbine performance is achieved with the same condenser pressure, or that the same turbine performance is achieved with a higher condenser pressure, so that a smaller, cheaper cooling system is required for the steam turbine.
[0021] Special embodiments of the invention below disclose additional, special characteristics of the interaction zone of the diffuser.
[0022] In a first, special embodiment of the invention, the starting tangents of the guide plates are in an angle range around the first inflexion point of the guide plates and around a reference starting tangent that extend at least approximately through the first inflexion point of the guide plate and through the inflexion point of the blade channel limits that approximate each other in a straight line.
[0023] In another special embodiment of the invention, the outer partial diffuser accounts for a part of the entire flow inlet surface area of the diffuser in the range from 10-12%. Of the remaining inlet surface area, 55-60% is distributed to the inner partial diffuser, 30-35% to the middle partial diffuser.
[0024] In another embodiment, the distance between the leading edges of the guide plates and the trailing edge of the last rotating blade accounts for 4% of the entire height of the rotating blade row.
[0025] In another embodiment, the leading edges of the guide plates are constructed with a profile at the flow inlet of the diffuser, resulting in a gentle acceleration at the inlet into the partial diffusers.
[0026] In additional embodiments, the diffusion zone of the diffuser is characterized as follows.
[0027] The guide plates each are carried by struts or supports extending from the inner and outer diffuser ring to the two guide plates. The middle partial diffuser remains free from any supports and therefore has minimal flow interference and losses.
[0028] In another, special construction of the waste steam zone of the diffuser, a waste steam metal plate is arranged in a radial extension at the end of the guide plate between the inner and outer partial diffuser. This waste steam guide plate achieves a better flow distribution in the waste steam housing, so that flow losses are minimized and the condenser is supplied more evenly.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS
[0029] Preferred embodiments of the invention are described with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which
[0030] [0030]FIG. 1 is a vertical cross-section of a diffuser with a waste steam housing according to the invention,
[0031] [0031]FIG. 1 a is a detail view of the interaction zone of the diffuser on the cylinder side,
[0032] [0032]FIG. 1 b is a detail view of the interaction zone of the diffuser on the hub side,
[0033] [0033]FIG. 2 is a detail cross-section of the profiled leading edges of the guide plates at the diffuser inlet,
[0034] [0034]FIG. 3 is a cross-section through a waste steam housing of the diffuser,
[0035] [0035]FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view along the dividing plane between the upper and lower half of the diffuser,
[0036] [0036]FIG. 5 is a vertical cross-section of another embodiment of the diffuser with waste steam housing, according to the invention,
[0037] [0037]FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view along the dividing plane between the upper and lower half of the embodiment of FIG. 5.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
[0038] [0038]FIG. 1 shows a three-channel diffuser as part of a low-pressure steam turbine. It guides the blade waste flow into a waste steam housing 20 . Of the low-pressure steam turbine, the rotor 1 with rotor axis 2 and a rotating blade 3 of the last row of rotating blades is shown. An inner diffuser ring 4 and an outer diffuser ring 5 limit the three-channel diffuser. The outer diffuser ring 4 is connected to the blade carrier 7 . The inner and outer diffuser rings 4 and 5 are provided in the surface area of the trailing edge of the rotating blade 3 with an inflexion angle N or, respectively, z, whereby, as shown in FIGS. 1 a and 1 b , the angle N is formed by the first partial piece 4 ′ of the inner diffuser ring 4 and an extension of the hub 6 , and the angle Z is formed by the extension of the last partial piece 7 ′ of the blade carrier 7 and the first partial piece 5 ′ of the outer diffuser ring 5 . These inflexion angles are, for example, 10-20° and help to create the most homogeneous total pressure profile at the outlet of the last row of rotating blades.
[0039] The diffuser is provided on its inside with two guide plates 8 and 9 that divide the diffuser into three partial channels: one inner partial diffuser 10 , one middle partial diffuser 11 , and one outer partial diffuser 12 . The guide plates are hereby carried by supports 13 that extend from the inner and outer diffuser rings 4 and 5 to the guide plates. For stability reasons, the supports 13 located first in the direction of the flow are thicker than the second supports and have been constructed with a round cross-section. The middle partial diffuser 10 is, in particular, free of any supports.
[0040] The guide plates are distributed over the channel height of the diffuser with consideration of the total pressure profile in such a way that a surface area distribution over the three partial channels that is optimized with respect to flow mechanics is achieved. The first guide plate 8 is arranged so that the inner partial diffuser 10 has a flow inlet surface area that is, for example, approximately 60% of the flow inlet surface area of the diffuser overall. The second guide plate 9 is arranged furthermore so that the middle partial diffuser 11 has a flow inlet surface area that is, for example, approximately 30% of the flow inlet surface area overall. In this way, the majority of the total inlet surface area goes to the two first channels 10 and 11 . The outer partial diffuser 12 in contrast has a flow inlet surface area of, for example, approximately 10% of the flow inlet surface area overall.
[0041] The diffuser outlet surface area has been designed so that the ratio of the outlet surface area to the inlet surface area of the diffuser overall, i.e., of its upper and lower half, is approximately 2.
[0042] For the individual partial diffusers, the geometrical ratios of outlet to inlet surface area are as follows.
[0043] For example, for the inner partial diffuser 10 , the ratio of outlet surface area S 12 in the upper half of the diffuser to the inlet surface area S 11 is approximately 1.3.
[0044] The ratio of outlet surface area S 13 in the lower half of the diffuser is greater to the inlet surface area S 11 and is approximately 1.6. The outlet surface area S 13 of the inner partial diffuser 10 is therefore located further outward in the lower half of the diffuser than in the upper half. (It has been designated in this figure and in FIG. 4 with S 13 , even though it is actually located in the bottom half of the diffuser.)
[0045] For the middle partial diffuser 11 , the ratio of the outlet surface area S 22 to inlet surface area S 21 is approximately 2.1.
[0046] For the outer partial diffuser, the ratio of the outlet surface area S 32 to inlet surface area S 31 is approximately 3.3. Such surface area ratios are the condition for being able to significantly increase the effectiveness of the turbine.
[0047] With respect to a gentle guidance of the flow, the diffuser has been designed with a slight curvature in relation to the channel height. For this reason, the three partial diffusers have a high length-to-channel height ratio. For the inner partial diffuser 10 , this is, for example, greater than 2.7 in the lower half of the diffuser. For the middle and outer partial diffuser 11 and 12 , the ratios in the shown example are greater than 4.4 or, respectively, greater than 12. Because of manufacturing technology, the inner and outer diffuser rings as well as the two guide plates have several straight partial pieces in their cross-section, which, because of the high length-to-channel height ratios, are located at slight tilt angles to each other. These slight tilt angles permit improved guidance of the flow coming from the blades. This prevents, in particular, flow interferences and flow separations. Because of the relatively large radial extension of the diffuser and partial diffusers, a natural reduction of the tangential speeds without help from additional flow ribs or other measures for reducing the tangential speeds is also achieved.
[0048] Because of their radial extension, the three partial diffusers have a gentle deflection. The total deflection of each partial diffuser is designed with the angles 1, 2, and 3 in the center line 15 of the individual partial diffusers 10 , 11 or, respectively, 12 . These angles are, for example, approximately 70°, 36°, or, respectively, 47°.
[0049] The guide plates 8 and 9 are approximately constructed so that the extension of the starting tangents forms the intersection point A. Hereby the limits of the blade channel on the hub side and on the housing side, which approximate each other in a straight line, also runs through this intersection point A. In the shown exemplary embodiment, the starting tangents of guide plates 8 and 9 are oriented relative to the rotor axis 2 at angles 1 or, respectively, 2. In different embodiments of the invention, the intersection point A between the limits of the blade channel on the hub side and on the housing side, which approximate each other in a straight line, over the end stage of the turbine, and the starting tangents of the guide plates 8 and 9 form an at least approximately common intersection point. In the embodiments, the starting tangent of the guide plate 8 encloses an angle in the range from 1+8° with the limit on the hub side that is approximated in a straight line. The starting tangent of the guide plate 9 correspondingly forms an angle in the range of 2±4°
[0050] This geometric design of the guide plates in relation to the limits of the blade channel also applies to other housing contours and blade types, for example, for completely conical, straight housing contours, for housing contours in which the partial piece above the last row of rotating blades extends cylindrically or almost cylindrically. This geometry furthermore not only can be used for rotating blades with tip seal, but also for rotating blades with cover bands. In this case, the housing-side limit of the blade channel runs through the intersection point of the trailing edge of the last rotating blade and the cover band.
[0051] In a real design of the invention, the starting tangents of guide plates 8 , 9 are in an angle range around the first intersection points B and C of the guide plates 8 or 9 and around the reference tangents that run through the intersection points B or, respectively, C, and through the intersection point A.
[0052] In the shown example, the diffuser rings 4 and 5 and the guide plates 8 and 9 comprise several straight partial pieces that are placed together at small angles of tilt to each other. Instead of partial pieces, continuously curved guide plates and diffuser rings also can be realized.
[0053] The partial diffusers 10 and 11 are arranged so that a main part of the flow flows off from the blades through these two partial diffusers into the waste steam housing 20 . A stable guidance of the main flow part is hereby the most susceptible to obstructions in the range of the middle partial diffuser because of the mach values occurring there. The middle partial diffuser 11 that is free from any supports therefore guides this part of the main flow without additional interference.
[0054] In contrast, the high-energy, supersonic gap flow from the last row of rotating blades reaches the outer partial diffuser 12 , whereby the latter's channel height is determined in relation to the gap flow present. The gap flow is guided through the outer partial diffuser 12 , separately from the main part of the flow, into the waste steam housing 20 .
[0055] The high length-to-channel height ratios bring about a stabilization of the diffuser flow and homogenization as well as reduction of the total pressure profile at the level of the last row of rotating blades. This increases the pressure recovery of the diffuser and achieves an increase in the efficiency of the low-pressure steam turbine overall.
[0056] At the inlet to the diffuser, the guide plates 8 and 9 extend close to the row of rotating blades. Preferably, they are arranged as close as the axial, thermal movements of the rotating blade row and the safety distance necessary for the different operating conditions allow, without causing contact. For example, the distance a between the leading edges of the guide plates 8 and 9 and the trailing edge of the last rotating blades 3 accounts for 4% of the total height h W of the last row of rotating blades.
[0057] The leading edges of the guide plates 8 and 9 are also constructed with profiles in order to permit a gentle flow entrance with the smallest possible overspeeds into the partial diffusers. As shown in FIG. 2, the leading edges are, for example, shaped slightly tapered, for example according to the shape NACA 65 , whereby the profiling length e is three times the thickness . The guide plates are also constructed as thin as possible so that the mach numbers are increased slightly, if possible. To achieve this, their thickness is, for example, approximately 5% of the channel height of the middle partial diffuser 11 .
[0058] The as small as possible distance between the leading edges of the guide plates 8 and 9 and the rotating blade row 3 as well as the gentle profiling of the leading edges are a decisive factor for increasing the pressure recovery. If the guide plates are arranged at a greater distance, sound fields and flow interferences may result that would make a pressure recovery in this surface area impossible.
[0059] A waste steam guide plate 8 ′ is arranged in a radial extension at the guide plate 8 between the inner and middle partial diffuser in the shown embodiment. This waste steam guide plate 8 ′ achieves an improvement of the flow in the waste steam housing 20 and a homogenization of the flow in the condenser. The waste steam guide plate 8 ′ has a gentle total deflection L of approximately 50°. In this exemplary embodiment, this deflection is realized with two partial pieces whose ratio of total length to channel length in the outlet plane is approximately 0.7.
[0060] [0060]FIG. 3 shows a cross-section through the waste steam housing 20 with an upper half 21 and lower half 22 that are separated from each other by a dividing plane 23 . The turbine steam that flows through the outlet surface area of the upper half of the diffuser into the upper half 21 of the waste steam housing 20 then flows down through the dividing plane 23 into the lower half 22 , and from there through the outlet surface area 24 of the waste steam housing into the condenser connected there.
[0061] The waste steam housing has been adapted to the diffuser in such a way that the outlet surface area 24 of the waste steam housing 20 is approximately 15% greater than the total outlet surface area of the diffuser. This ensures a surface area reserve in the dividing plane for any obstructions of the outgoing flow.
[0062] According to FIG. 4, the sum of the outlet surface areas of partial diffusers 11 and 12 of the upper half of the diffuser corresponds approximately to the surface area 25 in the dividing plane 23 that is formed between the waste steam housing and the waste steam guide plate 8 ′ of the guide plate 8 and that is shown striated with continuous lines in the figure. This means that half of the sum of the outlet surface areas S 22 and S 32 of the partial diffusers 11 or, respectively, 12 over the entire rotation of the diffuser equals the dividing plane surface area 25 that is striated in the figure. In addition, half of the outlet surface area S 12 of the inner guide plate 10 across the entire rotation of the diffuser equals the surface area 26 that is shown striated with broken lines. As a result of the adaptation of these surface areas, the outgoing diffuser flow of partial diffusers 11 and 12 has, if possible, an equal-sized flow-through surface area and no bottlenecks when flowing from the diffuser into the waste steam housing. This again has a positive effect on the pressure recovery.
[0063] [0063]FIG. 5 shows an embodiment of the three-channel diffuser according to the invention with waste steam housing, which has been optimized in comparison with the configuration of FIG. 1. The optimized diffuser with waste steam housing has been designed, in particular, with respect to the inner partial diffuser, in such a manner that the outlet surface area S 12 ′ of the inner partial diffuser 10 has been defined further outward than in the configuration shown in FIG. 1. If the outlet surface area S 12 ′ is located further outward than indicated with the striated line, the ratio of outlet surface area to inlet surface area of the respective partial diffuser is increased, and the efficiency of the turbine correspondingly rises. For this purpose, the outlet surface area S 12 ′ is defined so that the ratio of its surface area to the inlet surface area S11 is increased to approximately 1.8, which is a significant increase compared to the ratio of approximately 1.3 in the embodiment shown in FIG. 1. In order to continue to ensure a flow-through surface area with the most equal size possible from the diffuser into the waste steam housing, the wall 21 ′ or hood of the upper half of the waste steam housing is placed radially further outward than the wall 21 of the waste steam housing in FIG. 1. At the same time, the impact wall 27 ′ of the waste steam housing is placed axially further outward. In comparison to the deflection angle in FIG. 1, the deflection angle 1 then is decreased to approximately 60°.
[0064] [0064]FIG. 6 shows this embodiment in the dividing plane 23 between the upper and lower half of the diffuser. It also shows how the dimensions of the waste steam housing and the sizes of the outlet surface areas of the partial diffusers are adapted to each other. The diffuser is designed so that half of the outlet surface area S 12 ′ of the inner partial diffuser 10 approximately equals the surface area 28 shown striated with broken lines in the dividing plane 23 between the upper and lower half of the diffuser over the entire rotation of the diffuser. The surface area 28 is formed by the impact wall 27 ′ arranged axially further outward, the hood 21 ′ arranged radially further outward, a wall 31 facing the turbine, and the waste steam guide plate 8 ′. The surface area 28 then is closed by a fictitious, axially extending line 30 between the waste steam guide plate 8 ′ and wall 31 .
[0065] The sum of the outlet surface areas S 22 and S 32 of the two other partial diffusers is furthermore approximately equal to the surface area 29 in the dividing plane that is striated with continuous lines. This surface area 29 is formed by the waste steam guide plate 8 ′, the line 30 , the wall 31 .
[0066] In addition, the outlet surface area S 13 ′ in the lower half of the diffuser in this case coincides with the same point as the outlet surface area S 12 ′ for the upper half of the diffuser. | An axial/radial three-channel diffuser is provided with two guide plates for dividing the diffuser into three partial diffusers that are distributed so that the distribution of the surface area over the three partial diffusers in the inlet surface area is uneven. The guide plates are oriented in accordance with the total pressure field after the last rotating blade row and are arranged at a minimum distance from the trailing edge of the last rotating blade row. Because of its long extension in relation to the channel heights of the partial diffusers, the three-channel diffuser brings about a gentle deflection of the diffuser flow. The diffuser according to the invention results in an improved pressure recovery and increased turbine performance. | Identify the most important aspect in the document and summarize the concept accordingly. | [
"FIELD OF THE INVENTION [0001] The invention relates to an axial-flow low-pressure steam turbines and to axial/radial multi-channel diffuser and waste steam housing for guiding the waste steam from the blades with few losses.",
"BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION [0002] A diffuser of this type is described in DE 44 22 700.",
"The diffuser disclosed in this document is provided after the last row of rotating blades of a low pressure steam turbine with an axial flow inlet and a radial flow outlet.",
"The diffuser is designed with respect to optimized turbine performance by way of the greatest possible pressure recovery.",
"For this purpose, the first partial pieces of the inner and outer diffuser ring each are oriented in relation to the hub or, respectively, the blade carrier, with an inflexion angle.",
"This measure serves to homogenize the total pressure profile above the channel height of the diffuser in the area of the last row of rotating blades.",
"The diffuser furthermore is provided with a radially outward curved guide plate that divides it into an inner and an outer channel.",
"Hereby flow ribs impacted by the flow either radially or diagonally have been provided in the outer and inner channel.",
"The guide plate is used both for deflecting and guiding the waste stream.",
"The flow ribs have the purpose of supporting the guide plate and, in particular, reduce the spin in the delay zone, so that they also contribute to an optimization of the pressure recovery.",
"However, realized flow ribs only are able to achieve optimum spin reduction with a specific operating load.",
"At a different operating load, the spin reduction is not necessarily optimized.",
"A diffuser with this kind of measure therefore only achieves optimum pressure recovery at a certain operating load.",
"The flow ribs and their attachment to the guide plates furthermore are associated with relatively high construction expenditure.",
"In addition, the supersonic gap flow interferes with the remaining subsonic flow.",
"[0003] EP 581 978, especially in FIG. 4 of this publication, discloses a multi-channel waste gas diffuser for an axial-flow gas turbine with axial flow inlet and radial flow outlet.",
"This multi-channel diffuser is provided with three zones along its length.",
"The first zone is constructed in the manner of a bell diffuser and extends as one channel from the last row of rotating blades to the outlet plane of several flow ribs.",
"Here also, the diffuser rings are provided with inflexion angles that have been established so that the total pressure profile is homogenized.",
"Downstream from the flow ribs, the second zone has flow-guiding guide rings that form several channels.",
"The third zone is used for a major deflection of the waste gas flow in radial direction and then merges with the chimney of the gas turbine.",
"For this purpose, the guide rings of the second zone are extended across the length of the third zone, whereby they are curved there.",
"The second zone has a minor deflection yet high diffuser effect;",
"the third zone a major deflection, yet has a very moderate diffuser effect.",
"SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION [0004] It is the objective of the present invention to create, for a low-pressure steam turbine, an axial/radial multi-channel diffuser with waste steam housing that, in comparison to diffusers according to the state of the art, achieves an improved steam recovery, thus increasing the effectiveness of the low-pressure steam turbine.",
"In addition, the multi-channel diffuser should be simultaneously optimized for as many operating conditions of the steam turbine as possible and should be associated with reduced construction expenditure.",
"Finally, the waste steam housing should be adapted to the diffuser with respect to turbine performance.",
"[0005] The three-channel diffuser is provided with three partial diffusers, i.e., an inner, middle, and outer partial diffuser, which are formed by an inner diffuser ring, and outer diffuser ring, and two guide plates provided between the diffuser rings.",
"A first partial piece of the inner diffuser ring is hereby arranged in relation to the hub at an inflexion angle oriented inward, towards the rotor axis, and a first partial piece of the outer diffuser ring is arranged at an inflexion angle oriented outward in relation to the blade channel at the level of the last row of rotating blades, away from the rotor axis.",
"[0006] In the axial/radial three-channel diffuser according to the invention, in particular, the two guide plates extend across the entire length of the diffuser.",
"They are unevenly distributed between the inner and outer diffuser ring, so that the distribution of the surface area over the three partial diffusers in the inlet surface area of the diffuser is uneven.",
"In the inlet plane, the majority of the inlet surface area hereby is part of the inner and middle partial diffuser, and a small part of the inlet surface area is part of the outer partial diffuser.",
"Furthermore, the starting tangents of the two guide plates, together with the limits of the blade channel on the hub side and housing side, which approximate each other in a straight line, form an at least approximately common intersection point above the end stage of the low-pressure steam turbine in the meridian plane.",
"Finally, the guide plates are located as close as possible to the last row of rotating blades, whereby the distance between the last rotating blade row and the leading edges of the guide plates are determined by the minimum distance that is permissible for all operating conditions.",
"[0007] This describes the characteristics of the diffuser in its interaction zone with the last stage.",
"[0008] The diffusion zone of the diffuser is characterized by the following characteristics.",
"[0009] The ratio of the outlet surface area to the inlet surface area of the individual partial diffusers is greater than 2 for the middle partial diffuser and smaller than 2 for the outer partial diffuser.",
"For the inner partial diffuser, the corresponding geometric surface area ratio ranges from 1.5 to 1.8.",
"[0010] Furthermore, for the middle partial diffuser, the ratio of its length to its channel height in the inlet surface area is at least equal to 4.",
"For the outer partial diffuser, the ratio of length to channel height in the inlet surface area is at least equal to 10, and for the inner partial diffuser, the corresponding ratio is at least equal to 2.5.",
"Based on these relatively high length to channel height ratios, the deflections of the partial diffusers are accordingly relatively small.",
"[0011] The ratio of the outlet surface area to the inlet surface area of the diffuser overall is approximately 2.",
"[0012] Finally, the waste steam housing of the diffuser is designed so that the size of the surface area of the dividing plane between the top and bottom half of the waste steam housing is adapted to the size of the outlet surface areas of the partial diffusers.",
"[0013] The two guide plates hereby are used to divide the diffuser channel into three partial diffusers in which the blade waste flow is guided.",
"The resulting flow guidance is hereby the better, the more partial diffusers are present for the same overall diffuser.",
"In contrast, the more guide plates are provided, the more friction losses and obstructions are created.",
"The number chosen here, i.e., three partial diffusers and two guide plates, has the advantage that optimized flow guidance is achieved with justifiable friction losses at the guide plate surface areas and obstructions.",
"[0014] The guide plates and partial diffusers bring about a guidance and stabilization of the blade waste flow as well as a deflection into a radial direction.",
"Since the guide plates extend over the entire length of the diffuser, this guidance is further supported.",
"[0015] The radial extension of the partial diffusers furthermore is used to naturally reduce the tangential speed.",
"Because of this, the partial diffusers are optimized for all operating conditions with respect to a reduction of the tangential speed.",
"The construction expenditure for the guide plates is also rather low, and the reduction of the tangential speed does not require any further constructive measures, such as deflection and flow ribs.",
"[0016] The flow guidance and stabilization is further brought about, in particular, by distributing the diffuser inlet surface area over the three partial diffusers.",
"A majority of the inlet surface area is part of the inner and middle channel, so that the majority of the flow is guided from the blades to the waste steam housing.",
"The smaller part of the inlet surface area is part of the outer channel, through which the supersonic gap flow as well as the flow from the turbine influenced by the gap flow is taken up and is deflected meridionally and is guided, shielded from the majority flow, to the waste steam housing.",
"This shielding prevents flow interferences between the majority flow and the high-energy gap flow that would interfere with the diffuser effect.",
"[0017] The minimum distance between the last row of blades and the leading edges of the guide plates further promotes an optimal shielding of the gap flow and prevention of flow interferences and streamline convergences.",
"[0018] The ratio of length to channel height of each partial diffuser of 2.5 or more enables a gentle deflection from the axial or diagonal to the radial flow direction, which prevents separation of the delayed flow even at a ratio of outlet surface area to inlet surface area of 1.6.",
"[0019] The guidance and stabilization of the blade waste flow through the three partial diffusers, the shielding of the high-energy gap flow as well as the gentle deflection based on the length of the channels in relation to their channel heights overall achieve a homogenization and reduction of the total pressure profile at the level of the last row of rotating blades.",
"The resulting added performance results in an increased efficiency of the low-pressure steam turbine.",
"[0020] The design of the diffuser according to the invention is based on a reverse design process, during which the existing flow fields are determined first.",
"Then the respective ideal flow fields are calculated from this, and the geometry of the diffuser is determined based on these ideal flow fields.",
"In particular, this three-channel diffuser has been designed at limit load conditions.",
"At the limit load, a flow field, for which a three-channel diffuser with an orientation of the starting tangent of its guide plates according to the invention achieves the highest pressure recovery, was determined.",
"It was established experimentally, that the geometry resulting from this design is superior to the state of the art diffusers over the entire operating range.",
"This design furthermore has the advantage that a higher turbine performance is achieved with the same condenser pressure, or that the same turbine performance is achieved with a higher condenser pressure, so that a smaller, cheaper cooling system is required for the steam turbine.",
"[0021] Special embodiments of the invention below disclose additional, special characteristics of the interaction zone of the diffuser.",
"[0022] In a first, special embodiment of the invention, the starting tangents of the guide plates are in an angle range around the first inflexion point of the guide plates and around a reference starting tangent that extend at least approximately through the first inflexion point of the guide plate and through the inflexion point of the blade channel limits that approximate each other in a straight line.",
"[0023] In another special embodiment of the invention, the outer partial diffuser accounts for a part of the entire flow inlet surface area of the diffuser in the range from 10-12%.",
"Of the remaining inlet surface area, 55-60% is distributed to the inner partial diffuser, 30-35% to the middle partial diffuser.",
"[0024] In another embodiment, the distance between the leading edges of the guide plates and the trailing edge of the last rotating blade accounts for 4% of the entire height of the rotating blade row.",
"[0025] In another embodiment, the leading edges of the guide plates are constructed with a profile at the flow inlet of the diffuser, resulting in a gentle acceleration at the inlet into the partial diffusers.",
"[0026] In additional embodiments, the diffusion zone of the diffuser is characterized as follows.",
"[0027] The guide plates each are carried by struts or supports extending from the inner and outer diffuser ring to the two guide plates.",
"The middle partial diffuser remains free from any supports and therefore has minimal flow interference and losses.",
"[0028] In another, special construction of the waste steam zone of the diffuser, a waste steam metal plate is arranged in a radial extension at the end of the guide plate between the inner and outer partial diffuser.",
"This waste steam guide plate achieves a better flow distribution in the waste steam housing, so that flow losses are minimized and the condenser is supplied more evenly.",
"BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS [0029] Preferred embodiments of the invention are described with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which [0030] [0030 ]FIG. 1 is a vertical cross-section of a diffuser with a waste steam housing according to the invention, [0031] [0031 ]FIG. 1 a is a detail view of the interaction zone of the diffuser on the cylinder side, [0032] [0032 ]FIG. 1 b is a detail view of the interaction zone of the diffuser on the hub side, [0033] [0033 ]FIG. 2 is a detail cross-section of the profiled leading edges of the guide plates at the diffuser inlet, [0034] [0034 ]FIG. 3 is a cross-section through a waste steam housing of the diffuser, [0035] [0035 ]FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view along the dividing plane between the upper and lower half of the diffuser, [0036] [0036 ]FIG. 5 is a vertical cross-section of another embodiment of the diffuser with waste steam housing, according to the invention, [0037] [0037 ]FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view along the dividing plane between the upper and lower half of the embodiment of FIG. 5. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [0038] [0038 ]FIG. 1 shows a three-channel diffuser as part of a low-pressure steam turbine.",
"It guides the blade waste flow into a waste steam housing 20 .",
"Of the low-pressure steam turbine, the rotor 1 with rotor axis 2 and a rotating blade 3 of the last row of rotating blades is shown.",
"An inner diffuser ring 4 and an outer diffuser ring 5 limit the three-channel diffuser.",
"The outer diffuser ring 4 is connected to the blade carrier 7 .",
"The inner and outer diffuser rings 4 and 5 are provided in the surface area of the trailing edge of the rotating blade 3 with an inflexion angle N or, respectively, z, whereby, as shown in FIGS. 1 a and 1 b , the angle N is formed by the first partial piece 4 ′ of the inner diffuser ring 4 and an extension of the hub 6 , and the angle Z is formed by the extension of the last partial piece 7 ′ of the blade carrier 7 and the first partial piece 5 ′ of the outer diffuser ring 5 .",
"These inflexion angles are, for example, 10-20° and help to create the most homogeneous total pressure profile at the outlet of the last row of rotating blades.",
"[0039] The diffuser is provided on its inside with two guide plates 8 and 9 that divide the diffuser into three partial channels: one inner partial diffuser 10 , one middle partial diffuser 11 , and one outer partial diffuser 12 .",
"The guide plates are hereby carried by supports 13 that extend from the inner and outer diffuser rings 4 and 5 to the guide plates.",
"For stability reasons, the supports 13 located first in the direction of the flow are thicker than the second supports and have been constructed with a round cross-section.",
"The middle partial diffuser 10 is, in particular, free of any supports.",
"[0040] The guide plates are distributed over the channel height of the diffuser with consideration of the total pressure profile in such a way that a surface area distribution over the three partial channels that is optimized with respect to flow mechanics is achieved.",
"The first guide plate 8 is arranged so that the inner partial diffuser 10 has a flow inlet surface area that is, for example, approximately 60% of the flow inlet surface area of the diffuser overall.",
"The second guide plate 9 is arranged furthermore so that the middle partial diffuser 11 has a flow inlet surface area that is, for example, approximately 30% of the flow inlet surface area overall.",
"In this way, the majority of the total inlet surface area goes to the two first channels 10 and 11 .",
"The outer partial diffuser 12 in contrast has a flow inlet surface area of, for example, approximately 10% of the flow inlet surface area overall.",
"[0041] The diffuser outlet surface area has been designed so that the ratio of the outlet surface area to the inlet surface area of the diffuser overall, i.e., of its upper and lower half, is approximately 2.",
"[0042] For the individual partial diffusers, the geometrical ratios of outlet to inlet surface area are as follows.",
"[0043] For example, for the inner partial diffuser 10 , the ratio of outlet surface area S 12 in the upper half of the diffuser to the inlet surface area S 11 is approximately 1.3.",
"[0044] The ratio of outlet surface area S 13 in the lower half of the diffuser is greater to the inlet surface area S 11 and is approximately 1.6.",
"The outlet surface area S 13 of the inner partial diffuser 10 is therefore located further outward in the lower half of the diffuser than in the upper half.",
"(It has been designated in this figure and in FIG. 4 with S 13 , even though it is actually located in the bottom half of the diffuser.) [0045] For the middle partial diffuser 11 , the ratio of the outlet surface area S 22 to inlet surface area S 21 is approximately 2.1.",
"[0046] For the outer partial diffuser, the ratio of the outlet surface area S 32 to inlet surface area S 31 is approximately 3.3.",
"Such surface area ratios are the condition for being able to significantly increase the effectiveness of the turbine.",
"[0047] With respect to a gentle guidance of the flow, the diffuser has been designed with a slight curvature in relation to the channel height.",
"For this reason, the three partial diffusers have a high length-to-channel height ratio.",
"For the inner partial diffuser 10 , this is, for example, greater than 2.7 in the lower half of the diffuser.",
"For the middle and outer partial diffuser 11 and 12 , the ratios in the shown example are greater than 4.4 or, respectively, greater than 12.",
"Because of manufacturing technology, the inner and outer diffuser rings as well as the two guide plates have several straight partial pieces in their cross-section, which, because of the high length-to-channel height ratios, are located at slight tilt angles to each other.",
"These slight tilt angles permit improved guidance of the flow coming from the blades.",
"This prevents, in particular, flow interferences and flow separations.",
"Because of the relatively large radial extension of the diffuser and partial diffusers, a natural reduction of the tangential speeds without help from additional flow ribs or other measures for reducing the tangential speeds is also achieved.",
"[0048] Because of their radial extension, the three partial diffusers have a gentle deflection.",
"The total deflection of each partial diffuser is designed with the angles 1, 2, and 3 in the center line 15 of the individual partial diffusers 10 , 11 or, respectively, 12 .",
"These angles are, for example, approximately 70°, 36°, or, respectively, 47°.",
"[0049] The guide plates 8 and 9 are approximately constructed so that the extension of the starting tangents forms the intersection point A. Hereby the limits of the blade channel on the hub side and on the housing side, which approximate each other in a straight line, also runs through this intersection point A. In the shown exemplary embodiment, the starting tangents of guide plates 8 and 9 are oriented relative to the rotor axis 2 at angles 1 or, respectively, 2.",
"In different embodiments of the invention, the intersection point A between the limits of the blade channel on the hub side and on the housing side, which approximate each other in a straight line, over the end stage of the turbine, and the starting tangents of the guide plates 8 and 9 form an at least approximately common intersection point.",
"In the embodiments, the starting tangent of the guide plate 8 encloses an angle in the range from 1+8° with the limit on the hub side that is approximated in a straight line.",
"The starting tangent of the guide plate 9 correspondingly forms an angle in the range of 2±4° [0050] This geometric design of the guide plates in relation to the limits of the blade channel also applies to other housing contours and blade types, for example, for completely conical, straight housing contours, for housing contours in which the partial piece above the last row of rotating blades extends cylindrically or almost cylindrically.",
"This geometry furthermore not only can be used for rotating blades with tip seal, but also for rotating blades with cover bands.",
"In this case, the housing-side limit of the blade channel runs through the intersection point of the trailing edge of the last rotating blade and the cover band.",
"[0051] In a real design of the invention, the starting tangents of guide plates 8 , 9 are in an angle range around the first intersection points B and C of the guide plates 8 or 9 and around the reference tangents that run through the intersection points B or, respectively, C, and through the intersection point A. [0052] In the shown example, the diffuser rings 4 and 5 and the guide plates 8 and 9 comprise several straight partial pieces that are placed together at small angles of tilt to each other.",
"Instead of partial pieces, continuously curved guide plates and diffuser rings also can be realized.",
"[0053] The partial diffusers 10 and 11 are arranged so that a main part of the flow flows off from the blades through these two partial diffusers into the waste steam housing 20 .",
"A stable guidance of the main flow part is hereby the most susceptible to obstructions in the range of the middle partial diffuser because of the mach values occurring there.",
"The middle partial diffuser 11 that is free from any supports therefore guides this part of the main flow without additional interference.",
"[0054] In contrast, the high-energy, supersonic gap flow from the last row of rotating blades reaches the outer partial diffuser 12 , whereby the latter's channel height is determined in relation to the gap flow present.",
"The gap flow is guided through the outer partial diffuser 12 , separately from the main part of the flow, into the waste steam housing 20 .",
"[0055] The high length-to-channel height ratios bring about a stabilization of the diffuser flow and homogenization as well as reduction of the total pressure profile at the level of the last row of rotating blades.",
"This increases the pressure recovery of the diffuser and achieves an increase in the efficiency of the low-pressure steam turbine overall.",
"[0056] At the inlet to the diffuser, the guide plates 8 and 9 extend close to the row of rotating blades.",
"Preferably, they are arranged as close as the axial, thermal movements of the rotating blade row and the safety distance necessary for the different operating conditions allow, without causing contact.",
"For example, the distance a between the leading edges of the guide plates 8 and 9 and the trailing edge of the last rotating blades 3 accounts for 4% of the total height h W of the last row of rotating blades.",
"[0057] The leading edges of the guide plates 8 and 9 are also constructed with profiles in order to permit a gentle flow entrance with the smallest possible overspeeds into the partial diffusers.",
"As shown in FIG. 2, the leading edges are, for example, shaped slightly tapered, for example according to the shape NACA 65 , whereby the profiling length e is three times the thickness .",
"The guide plates are also constructed as thin as possible so that the mach numbers are increased slightly, if possible.",
"To achieve this, their thickness is, for example, approximately 5% of the channel height of the middle partial diffuser 11 .",
"[0058] The as small as possible distance between the leading edges of the guide plates 8 and 9 and the rotating blade row 3 as well as the gentle profiling of the leading edges are a decisive factor for increasing the pressure recovery.",
"If the guide plates are arranged at a greater distance, sound fields and flow interferences may result that would make a pressure recovery in this surface area impossible.",
"[0059] A waste steam guide plate 8 ′ is arranged in a radial extension at the guide plate 8 between the inner and middle partial diffuser in the shown embodiment.",
"This waste steam guide plate 8 ′ achieves an improvement of the flow in the waste steam housing 20 and a homogenization of the flow in the condenser.",
"The waste steam guide plate 8 ′ has a gentle total deflection L of approximately 50°.",
"In this exemplary embodiment, this deflection is realized with two partial pieces whose ratio of total length to channel length in the outlet plane is approximately 0.7.",
"[0060] [0060 ]FIG. 3 shows a cross-section through the waste steam housing 20 with an upper half 21 and lower half 22 that are separated from each other by a dividing plane 23 .",
"The turbine steam that flows through the outlet surface area of the upper half of the diffuser into the upper half 21 of the waste steam housing 20 then flows down through the dividing plane 23 into the lower half 22 , and from there through the outlet surface area 24 of the waste steam housing into the condenser connected there.",
"[0061] The waste steam housing has been adapted to the diffuser in such a way that the outlet surface area 24 of the waste steam housing 20 is approximately 15% greater than the total outlet surface area of the diffuser.",
"This ensures a surface area reserve in the dividing plane for any obstructions of the outgoing flow.",
"[0062] According to FIG. 4, the sum of the outlet surface areas of partial diffusers 11 and 12 of the upper half of the diffuser corresponds approximately to the surface area 25 in the dividing plane 23 that is formed between the waste steam housing and the waste steam guide plate 8 ′ of the guide plate 8 and that is shown striated with continuous lines in the figure.",
"This means that half of the sum of the outlet surface areas S 22 and S 32 of the partial diffusers 11 or, respectively, 12 over the entire rotation of the diffuser equals the dividing plane surface area 25 that is striated in the figure.",
"In addition, half of the outlet surface area S 12 of the inner guide plate 10 across the entire rotation of the diffuser equals the surface area 26 that is shown striated with broken lines.",
"As a result of the adaptation of these surface areas, the outgoing diffuser flow of partial diffusers 11 and 12 has, if possible, an equal-sized flow-through surface area and no bottlenecks when flowing from the diffuser into the waste steam housing.",
"This again has a positive effect on the pressure recovery.",
"[0063] [0063 ]FIG. 5 shows an embodiment of the three-channel diffuser according to the invention with waste steam housing, which has been optimized in comparison with the configuration of FIG. 1. The optimized diffuser with waste steam housing has been designed, in particular, with respect to the inner partial diffuser, in such a manner that the outlet surface area S 12 ′ of the inner partial diffuser 10 has been defined further outward than in the configuration shown in FIG. 1. If the outlet surface area S 12 ′ is located further outward than indicated with the striated line, the ratio of outlet surface area to inlet surface area of the respective partial diffuser is increased, and the efficiency of the turbine correspondingly rises.",
"For this purpose, the outlet surface area S 12 ′ is defined so that the ratio of its surface area to the inlet surface area S11 is increased to approximately 1.8, which is a significant increase compared to the ratio of approximately 1.3 in the embodiment shown in FIG. 1. In order to continue to ensure a flow-through surface area with the most equal size possible from the diffuser into the waste steam housing, the wall 21 ′ or hood of the upper half of the waste steam housing is placed radially further outward than the wall 21 of the waste steam housing in FIG. 1. At the same time, the impact wall 27 ′ of the waste steam housing is placed axially further outward.",
"In comparison to the deflection angle in FIG. 1, the deflection angle 1 then is decreased to approximately 60°.",
"[0064] [0064 ]FIG. 6 shows this embodiment in the dividing plane 23 between the upper and lower half of the diffuser.",
"It also shows how the dimensions of the waste steam housing and the sizes of the outlet surface areas of the partial diffusers are adapted to each other.",
"The diffuser is designed so that half of the outlet surface area S 12 ′ of the inner partial diffuser 10 approximately equals the surface area 28 shown striated with broken lines in the dividing plane 23 between the upper and lower half of the diffuser over the entire rotation of the diffuser.",
"The surface area 28 is formed by the impact wall 27 ′ arranged axially further outward, the hood 21 ′ arranged radially further outward, a wall 31 facing the turbine, and the waste steam guide plate 8 ′.",
"The surface area 28 then is closed by a fictitious, axially extending line 30 between the waste steam guide plate 8 ′ and wall 31 .",
"[0065] The sum of the outlet surface areas S 22 and S 32 of the two other partial diffusers is furthermore approximately equal to the surface area 29 in the dividing plane that is striated with continuous lines.",
"This surface area 29 is formed by the waste steam guide plate 8 ′, the line 30 , the wall 31 .",
"[0066] In addition, the outlet surface area S 13 ′ in the lower half of the diffuser in this case coincides with the same point as the outlet surface area S 12 ′ for the upper half of the diffuser."
] |
FIELD OF APPLICATION AND PRIOR ART
The invention relates to a sensor device for producing a switch signal or trigger signal in the case of an approach or contact of a sensor element of the sensor device by the approach of a finger or the like.
Such a sensor device is known from DE 201 197 00.6, where an electrically conductive coating, for example as an impression, is provided behind a cover in the form of a glass or plastic panel and is electrically contacted with a corresponding control.
PROBLEM AND SOLUTION
The problem of the invention is to provide an aforementioned sensor device allowing a further development of the prior art.
This problem is solved by a sensor device having the features of claim 1 . Advantageous and preferred developments of the invention form the subject matter of the further claims and are explained in greater detail hereinafter. By express reference the wording of the claims is made into part of the content of the description.
According to the invention an aforementioned sensor device has a capacitive sensor element in flat form and defining a surface. It has an impression or coating containing conductive material. Thus, the sensor element forms an electrically conductive surface. The sensor element is placed on the back of a flat panel remote from a user. Said panel can for example be provided on an electrical appliance and is translucent or transparent. The sensor element is conductively connected to a control for controlling and evaluating the sensor element. According to the invention the impression or coating, respectively the sensor element are transparent or translucent. This permits an illumination or illuminated display to be provided below a sensor element without any need for corresponding cutouts or light passages in said sensor element. This in particular makes it possible to associate the function of a contact switch with a sensor element directly with a corresponding display or illumination. This permits a particularly good identification for a user.
The transparent impression or coating can advantageously extend over the entire sensor element surface or advantageously forms the entire sensor element. This permits a unitary structure. Alternatively only part of the sensor element surface has a transparent impression or coating. This can be in symbol form, for example so as to display a symbol through transillumination.
In one embodiment of the invention the sensor element or the impression or coating can be non-detachably applied to the panel. For example, a thin, conductive, transparent coating as the sensor element can be pressed onto a back surface of a panel. This can be advantageous, because in this way mechanical problems can be prevented, for example the sliding or falling of the sensor element. In addition and in particular with capacitive sensor elements, disturbing gaps can be avoided.
In another embodiment of the invention the sensor element can be pressed onto a transparent or translucent film or can be applied in coating form. This film, which consequently so-to-speak carries the sensor element, can be applied to the back surface of the panel. Thus, the sensor element and panel are separate components. This for example makes it possible to more easily manufacture the panel and a more flexible assembly of different components is possible.
In the aforementioned embodiment of the invention the film can also integrally not only form the sensor element, but the contacting on the control. To this end use can be made of the conductive impression or coating. Thus, the film can pass from the back of the panel in one piece to the control, which can be positioned with a certain spacing behind the panel. If the control is placed on a printed circuit board, the film can extend up to the latter, where it can be fixed in electrically contacting manner for example on a correspondingly constructed contact bank. For example, electrically conductive adhesives, as well as a preferably resilient clamping are suitable here.
An illuminating means can be provided on the back of the panel behind the sensor element and can have a light guide with an associated illumination. A light guide has the advantage that the illumination, which can for example be a LED, glow lamp, etc., can be located at a different or remote point. Moreover, for example through flat light guides which can have a light deflection very low overall heights can be achieved, which would otherwise be difficult to bring about.
It is advantageous for the fight guides and illumination, for example LEDs, to be separate or at least separable components, which permits greater flexibility. It is also conceivable to illuminate several sensor elements with a single LED via several light guides.
If an illuminating means as a module is placed behind a sensor element and the latter is in film form, the sensor element can extend around the illuminating means, preferably in surrounding or enveloping manner. As a result the illuminating means and sensor elements jointly or reciprocally fix another. Furthermore the illuminating means can be pressed against the area of the sensor element or film engaging with the back of the panel, so as to permit the placement and fixing of the sensor element. In this area the sensor element or film can be loose and only undergo fixing through the illuminating means.
According to a further development of the invention the illuminating means can have a display. This can be a seven-segment display, for example a LED display or a vacuum-fluorecent display (VF display). These displays light up automatically, require no independent illumination and are readily recognizable through the transparent panel and transparent sensor element.
Another advantage of a transparent, capacitive sensor element is that in this way the sensor element function can be directly illuminated. This more particularly applies when using illuminated symbols on which a user places the finger so as to allow a very troublefree operation.
The electrical conductivity of the impression or coating can be brought about through electrically conductive components. They can on the one hand be for example graphite or the like and on the other can be metallic components. One possible example is indium-tin oxide (ITO). It is also advantageous for the coating to have a limited thickness. This reduces costs and a sensor element in film form has higher flexibility. Limited thickness is also advantageous for the transparency of the impression or coating. Exemplified thicknesses are 5 to 100 μm, particularly 10 to 20 μm.
These and further examples can be gathered from the claims, description and drawings and the individual features, in each case singly or in the form of subcombinations, can be implemented in an embodiment of the invention and in other fields and can represent advantageous, independently protectable constructions for which protection is claimed here. The subdivision of the application into individual sections and the subheadings in no way restrict the general validity of the statements made thereunder.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
Embodiments of the invention are described in greater detail hereinafter relative to the diagrammatic drawings, wherein show:
FIG. 1 A section through a sensor device according to the invention under a transparent cover, a conductively coated film forming a sensor element behind which is placed an illuminated display.
FIG. 2 A variant of the arrangement of FIG. 1 , in which the film is placed around the illuminated display and leads to a contacting.
FIG. 3 A section through a film with a conductive coating.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS
FIG. 1 illustrates a first possibility of a sensor device 11 a . Below a cover 13 a , which can be transparent and can for example be an operating or control panel of an electrical appliance, is located the sensor device 11 a . The sensor device 11 a comprises a capacitive sensor element 15 a forming a surface and engaging on the underside of the cover 13 a.
FIG. 3 shows a flat material 17 from which the sensor element 15 a can be formed. The flat material 17 is formed by a carrier film 19 , which can have a limited thickness, for example a few tenths of a millimeter or even less and can be transparent. A coating 20 is placed on one side of the carrier film 19 , the top in FIG. 3 . This coating 20 can for example be of so-called ITO. This has the advantage that it has a good electrical conductivity, even in the case of small coating thicknesses. In addition, with such small coating thicknesses it is transparent or translucent. The thickness of the coating 20 , in the case of an ITO coating, can be 50 μm or less.
It is advantageous if the flat material 17 , respectively carrier film 19 together with the coating are bendable or flexible. Thus, the flat material 17 can be simultaneously used as an electrical contacting or flexible, electrical coating. Thus, for example shapes such as are shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 can be obtained.
In the case of the sensor device 11 a according to FIG. 1 , the flat material 17 which in the vicinity of the back of the cover 13 a forms the sensor element 15 a , passes in a S-shaped arc away from the cover. It is mechanically held in a contact clip 23 a and electrically contacted. The contact clip 23 a can be constructed in such a way that it produces the electrical contact between flat material 17 , electrically conductive coating 20 respectively and a corresponding connection on the printed circuit board 22 a on which the contact clip 23 a is located. The contact clip 23 a can be resilient for this purpose. Further possibilities are provided by electrically conductive bonds. From the contact clip 23 a a connection passes to a control 24 a , to which no further reference need be made here, because it can be constructed in a conventional manner for capacitive sensor elements.
An illuminated display 25 a is located on the back of the sensor element 15 a and is formed by a light guide element 26 a and a laterally positioned LED 28 a . The light guide element 26 a and LED 28 a are advantageously located on the same printed circuit board 22 a and are in particular electrically contacted like the contact clip 23 a . Thus, the printed circuit board 22 a together with the components located thereon can form a module. The sensor element 15 a can either be loosely clipped between the light guide element 26 a and cover 13 or can be firmly connected, for example bonded to the light guide element 26 a. In place of an illuminated display 25 a it is possible to have a seven-segment display or the like.
In the variant of the sensor device 11 b according to FIG. 2 , there is also a sensor element 15 b formed from flat material 17 b . In the region in which the flat material 17 b forms the sensor element 15 b , the latter is pressed by an illuminated display 25 b against the underside of the cover 13 b . The illuminated display 25 b is essentially constructed in the same way as that shown in FIG. 1 .
Through the other free end the flat material 17 b , after passing once around the illuminated display 25 b , projects into a contact clip 23 b , which is constructed in similar manner to a recording fork or the like and can be made from metal. The end of the flat material 17 b can be clipped therein and electrically contacted. It is unimportant here as to which side of the flat material 17 b has a conductive coating. The contact clip 23 b leads to the control 24 b.
In a further development of the invention it is possible to apply a capacitive element with a conductive surface, for example by printing on to the back of the cover 13 . Through the provision of a conductive flat material 17 , similar to FIGS. 1 or 2 , electrical contacting can easily be brought about. The transparent properties of the flat material, particularly also the electrically conductive coating 20 , make it possible to place illuminations or illuminated displays behind the same. The electrically conductive surfaces of sensor elements, particularly capacitive sensor elements, in this case no longer need corresponding cutouts, such as has hitherto been the case, in order to permit light transillumination.
FUNCTION
As regards the function, in the case of an illuminated display 25 a according to FIG. 1 , light from the LED 28 a is laterally irradiated into the light guide element 26 a . The latter reflects the light forwards through the flat material 17 or sensor element 15 a and the cover 13 . Thus, back illuminated sensor elements can be created, which as a result of additional printing or masks or the like can have a specific appearance on the light guide element or sensor element and which can for example be the display of a symbol, etc.
The representations, particularly of the sensor devices 11 a and 11 b in FIGS. 1 and 2 , make it clear to what extent an inventive sensor device or the construction of the conductively coated flat material 17 can provide novel and advantageous possibilities of creating electrical connections in general and capacitive sensor elements in particular. As a result of the flexible properties of the flat material 17 , a multiple guidance and contacting are possible. This makes it possible to create an integral construction of sensor element or sensor element surface and electrical contacting or lead. | A detector for a capacitive contact switch comprises a flat material consisting of a transparent carrier foil and a ITO-coating. The ITO coating is embodied in the form of a transparent electric conductor. The flat material can be arranged between a transparent cover and a lighted display in such a way that a sensor element is obtained. The flat material as the sensor element 10 makes it possible to represent an illuminated symbol or the corresponding display thereof. | Concisely explain the essential features and purpose of the concept presented in the passage. | [
"FIELD OF APPLICATION AND PRIOR ART The invention relates to a sensor device for producing a switch signal or trigger signal in the case of an approach or contact of a sensor element of the sensor device by the approach of a finger or the like.",
"Such a sensor device is known from DE 201 197 00.6, where an electrically conductive coating, for example as an impression, is provided behind a cover in the form of a glass or plastic panel and is electrically contacted with a corresponding control.",
"PROBLEM AND SOLUTION The problem of the invention is to provide an aforementioned sensor device allowing a further development of the prior art.",
"This problem is solved by a sensor device having the features of claim 1 .",
"Advantageous and preferred developments of the invention form the subject matter of the further claims and are explained in greater detail hereinafter.",
"By express reference the wording of the claims is made into part of the content of the description.",
"According to the invention an aforementioned sensor device has a capacitive sensor element in flat form and defining a surface.",
"It has an impression or coating containing conductive material.",
"Thus, the sensor element forms an electrically conductive surface.",
"The sensor element is placed on the back of a flat panel remote from a user.",
"Said panel can for example be provided on an electrical appliance and is translucent or transparent.",
"The sensor element is conductively connected to a control for controlling and evaluating the sensor element.",
"According to the invention the impression or coating, respectively the sensor element are transparent or translucent.",
"This permits an illumination or illuminated display to be provided below a sensor element without any need for corresponding cutouts or light passages in said sensor element.",
"This in particular makes it possible to associate the function of a contact switch with a sensor element directly with a corresponding display or illumination.",
"This permits a particularly good identification for a user.",
"The transparent impression or coating can advantageously extend over the entire sensor element surface or advantageously forms the entire sensor element.",
"This permits a unitary structure.",
"Alternatively only part of the sensor element surface has a transparent impression or coating.",
"This can be in symbol form, for example so as to display a symbol through transillumination.",
"In one embodiment of the invention the sensor element or the impression or coating can be non-detachably applied to the panel.",
"For example, a thin, conductive, transparent coating as the sensor element can be pressed onto a back surface of a panel.",
"This can be advantageous, because in this way mechanical problems can be prevented, for example the sliding or falling of the sensor element.",
"In addition and in particular with capacitive sensor elements, disturbing gaps can be avoided.",
"In another embodiment of the invention the sensor element can be pressed onto a transparent or translucent film or can be applied in coating form.",
"This film, which consequently so-to-speak carries the sensor element, can be applied to the back surface of the panel.",
"Thus, the sensor element and panel are separate components.",
"This for example makes it possible to more easily manufacture the panel and a more flexible assembly of different components is possible.",
"In the aforementioned embodiment of the invention the film can also integrally not only form the sensor element, but the contacting on the control.",
"To this end use can be made of the conductive impression or coating.",
"Thus, the film can pass from the back of the panel in one piece to the control, which can be positioned with a certain spacing behind the panel.",
"If the control is placed on a printed circuit board, the film can extend up to the latter, where it can be fixed in electrically contacting manner for example on a correspondingly constructed contact bank.",
"For example, electrically conductive adhesives, as well as a preferably resilient clamping are suitable here.",
"An illuminating means can be provided on the back of the panel behind the sensor element and can have a light guide with an associated illumination.",
"A light guide has the advantage that the illumination, which can for example be a LED, glow lamp, etc.",
", can be located at a different or remote point.",
"Moreover, for example through flat light guides which can have a light deflection very low overall heights can be achieved, which would otherwise be difficult to bring about.",
"It is advantageous for the fight guides and illumination, for example LEDs, to be separate or at least separable components, which permits greater flexibility.",
"It is also conceivable to illuminate several sensor elements with a single LED via several light guides.",
"If an illuminating means as a module is placed behind a sensor element and the latter is in film form, the sensor element can extend around the illuminating means, preferably in surrounding or enveloping manner.",
"As a result the illuminating means and sensor elements jointly or reciprocally fix another.",
"Furthermore the illuminating means can be pressed against the area of the sensor element or film engaging with the back of the panel, so as to permit the placement and fixing of the sensor element.",
"In this area the sensor element or film can be loose and only undergo fixing through the illuminating means.",
"According to a further development of the invention the illuminating means can have a display.",
"This can be a seven-segment display, for example a LED display or a vacuum-fluorecent display (VF display).",
"These displays light up automatically, require no independent illumination and are readily recognizable through the transparent panel and transparent sensor element.",
"Another advantage of a transparent, capacitive sensor element is that in this way the sensor element function can be directly illuminated.",
"This more particularly applies when using illuminated symbols on which a user places the finger so as to allow a very troublefree operation.",
"The electrical conductivity of the impression or coating can be brought about through electrically conductive components.",
"They can on the one hand be for example graphite or the like and on the other can be metallic components.",
"One possible example is indium-tin oxide (ITO).",
"It is also advantageous for the coating to have a limited thickness.",
"This reduces costs and a sensor element in film form has higher flexibility.",
"Limited thickness is also advantageous for the transparency of the impression or coating.",
"Exemplified thicknesses are 5 to 100 μm, particularly 10 to 20 μm.",
"These and further examples can be gathered from the claims, description and drawings and the individual features, in each case singly or in the form of subcombinations, can be implemented in an embodiment of the invention and in other fields and can represent advantageous, independently protectable constructions for which protection is claimed here.",
"The subdivision of the application into individual sections and the subheadings in no way restrict the general validity of the statements made thereunder.",
"BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS Embodiments of the invention are described in greater detail hereinafter relative to the diagrammatic drawings, wherein show: FIG. 1 A section through a sensor device according to the invention under a transparent cover, a conductively coated film forming a sensor element behind which is placed an illuminated display.",
"FIG. 2 A variant of the arrangement of FIG. 1 , in which the film is placed around the illuminated display and leads to a contacting.",
"FIG. 3 A section through a film with a conductive coating.",
"DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS FIG. 1 illustrates a first possibility of a sensor device 11 a .",
"Below a cover 13 a , which can be transparent and can for example be an operating or control panel of an electrical appliance, is located the sensor device 11 a .",
"The sensor device 11 a comprises a capacitive sensor element 15 a forming a surface and engaging on the underside of the cover 13 a. FIG. 3 shows a flat material 17 from which the sensor element 15 a can be formed.",
"The flat material 17 is formed by a carrier film 19 , which can have a limited thickness, for example a few tenths of a millimeter or even less and can be transparent.",
"A coating 20 is placed on one side of the carrier film 19 , the top in FIG. 3 .",
"This coating 20 can for example be of so-called ITO.",
"This has the advantage that it has a good electrical conductivity, even in the case of small coating thicknesses.",
"In addition, with such small coating thicknesses it is transparent or translucent.",
"The thickness of the coating 20 , in the case of an ITO coating, can be 50 μm or less.",
"It is advantageous if the flat material 17 , respectively carrier film 19 together with the coating are bendable or flexible.",
"Thus, the flat material 17 can be simultaneously used as an electrical contacting or flexible, electrical coating.",
"Thus, for example shapes such as are shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 can be obtained.",
"In the case of the sensor device 11 a according to FIG. 1 , the flat material 17 which in the vicinity of the back of the cover 13 a forms the sensor element 15 a , passes in a S-shaped arc away from the cover.",
"It is mechanically held in a contact clip 23 a and electrically contacted.",
"The contact clip 23 a can be constructed in such a way that it produces the electrical contact between flat material 17 , electrically conductive coating 20 respectively and a corresponding connection on the printed circuit board 22 a on which the contact clip 23 a is located.",
"The contact clip 23 a can be resilient for this purpose.",
"Further possibilities are provided by electrically conductive bonds.",
"From the contact clip 23 a a connection passes to a control 24 a , to which no further reference need be made here, because it can be constructed in a conventional manner for capacitive sensor elements.",
"An illuminated display 25 a is located on the back of the sensor element 15 a and is formed by a light guide element 26 a and a laterally positioned LED 28 a .",
"The light guide element 26 a and LED 28 a are advantageously located on the same printed circuit board 22 a and are in particular electrically contacted like the contact clip 23 a .",
"Thus, the printed circuit board 22 a together with the components located thereon can form a module.",
"The sensor element 15 a can either be loosely clipped between the light guide element 26 a and cover 13 or can be firmly connected, for example bonded to the light guide element 26 a. In place of an illuminated display 25 a it is possible to have a seven-segment display or the like.",
"In the variant of the sensor device 11 b according to FIG. 2 , there is also a sensor element 15 b formed from flat material 17 b .",
"In the region in which the flat material 17 b forms the sensor element 15 b , the latter is pressed by an illuminated display 25 b against the underside of the cover 13 b .",
"The illuminated display 25 b is essentially constructed in the same way as that shown in FIG. 1 .",
"Through the other free end the flat material 17 b , after passing once around the illuminated display 25 b , projects into a contact clip 23 b , which is constructed in similar manner to a recording fork or the like and can be made from metal.",
"The end of the flat material 17 b can be clipped therein and electrically contacted.",
"It is unimportant here as to which side of the flat material 17 b has a conductive coating.",
"The contact clip 23 b leads to the control 24 b. In a further development of the invention it is possible to apply a capacitive element with a conductive surface, for example by printing on to the back of the cover 13 .",
"Through the provision of a conductive flat material 17 , similar to FIGS. 1 or 2 , electrical contacting can easily be brought about.",
"The transparent properties of the flat material, particularly also the electrically conductive coating 20 , make it possible to place illuminations or illuminated displays behind the same.",
"The electrically conductive surfaces of sensor elements, particularly capacitive sensor elements, in this case no longer need corresponding cutouts, such as has hitherto been the case, in order to permit light transillumination.",
"FUNCTION As regards the function, in the case of an illuminated display 25 a according to FIG. 1 , light from the LED 28 a is laterally irradiated into the light guide element 26 a .",
"The latter reflects the light forwards through the flat material 17 or sensor element 15 a and the cover 13 .",
"Thus, back illuminated sensor elements can be created, which as a result of additional printing or masks or the like can have a specific appearance on the light guide element or sensor element and which can for example be the display of a symbol, etc.",
"The representations, particularly of the sensor devices 11 a and 11 b in FIGS. 1 and 2 , make it clear to what extent an inventive sensor device or the construction of the conductively coated flat material 17 can provide novel and advantageous possibilities of creating electrical connections in general and capacitive sensor elements in particular.",
"As a result of the flexible properties of the flat material 17 , a multiple guidance and contacting are possible.",
"This makes it possible to create an integral construction of sensor element or sensor element surface and electrical contacting or lead."
] |
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/406,172, filed Apr. 18, 2006, which issued as U.S. Pat. No. 7,199,565 on Apr. 3, 2007 and is incorporated by reference as if fully set forth.
FIELD OF INVENTION
The present invention is related to voltage regulation circuits. More particularly, the present invention is related to a voltage regulator that uses semiconductor devices to provide generally fixed output voltages over varying loads with minimal voltage dropout on the output.
BACKGROUND
Low-dropout (LDO) voltage regulators have gained popularity with the growth of battery-powered equipment. Portable electronic equipment including cellular telephones, pagers, laptop computers and a variety of handheld electronic devices has increased the need for efficient voltage regulation to prolong battery life. LDO voltage regulators are typically packaged as an integrated circuit (IC) to provide generally fixed output voltages over varying loads with minimal voltage dropout on the output in a battery-powered device. Furthermore, performance of LDO voltage regulators is optimized by taking into consideration standby and quiescent current flow, and stability of the output voltage.
FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a conventional LDO voltage regulator 100 including a startup circuit 105 , a curvature corrected bandgap circuit 110 , an error amplifier 115 , a metal oxide semiconductor (MOS) pass device 120 , (e.g., a positive channel MOS (PMOS) pass device, a negative channel MOS (NMOS) pass device), resistors 125 , 130 , and a decoupling capacitor 135 having a capacitance COUT. The LDO voltage regulator 100 outputs an output voltage, V out , 145 .
The curvature corrected bandgap circuit 110 is electrically coupled to the startup circuit 105 and the error amplifier 115 . The startup circuit 105 provides the curvature corrected bandgap circuit 110 with current when no current is flowing through the LDO voltage regulator 100 during a supply increase or startup phase until the bandgap voltage is high enough to allow the curvature corrected bandgap circuit 110 to be self-sustaining. The curvature corrected bandgap circuit 110 generates a reference voltage 152 which is input to a positive input 150 of the error amplifier 115 , and a reference current 154 which is input to a reference current input 158 of the error amplifier 115 . Generally, the reference current 154 is a proportional to absolute temperature (PTAT) current generated by the curvature corrected bandgap circuit 110 .
The error amplifier 115 includes a positive input 150 coupled to the curvature corrected bandgap circuit 110 for receiving the reference voltage 152 , a reference current input 158 for receiving the reference current 154 , a negative input 155 , and an amplifier output 160 .
The MOS pass device 120 includes a gate node 165 , a source node 170 and a drain node 175 . The MOS pass device 120 may be either a PMOS or an NMOS pass device. The gate node 165 of the MOS pass device 120 is coupled to the amplifier output 160 of the error amplifier 115 . The source node 170 of the MOS pass device 120 is coupled to a supply voltage, V s . The drain node 175 of the MOS pass device 120 generates the output voltage, V out , 145 of the LDO voltage regulator 100 . The resistors 125 and 130 are connected in series to form a resistor bridge. One end of the resistor 125 is coupled to the drain node 175 of the MOS pass device 120 and the other end of the resistor 125 is coupled to both the negative input 155 of the error amplifier 115 and one end of the resistor 130 . Thus an error correction loop 180 is formed. The other end of resistor 130 is coupled to ground. The decoupling capacitor 135 is coupled between V out and ground.
In the conventional LDO voltage regulator 100 , a capacitance CMOS associated with the gate node 165 of the MOS pass device 120 and the decoupling capacitor 135 cause the slew rate and bandwidth of the error amplifier 115 to be limited. The conventional LDO voltage regulator 100 provides a fixed output voltage, but is constrained by others specifications such as voltage drop, gain and transient response. When a current step occurs, (due to the load of a circuit coupled to the output voltage, V out , 145 ), the output voltage, V out , 145 decreases first and, after an error correction loop delay Tfb occurs, the gate node 165 of the MOS pass device 120 is adjusted by the error amplifier 115 to provide the requested output current.
FIG. 2 shows a graphical representation of the output voltage, V out , 145 of the conventional LDO voltage regulator 100 shown in FIG. 1 during a maximum current step required by the load of a circuit coupled to the voltage output, V out , 145 . The delay Tfb corresponds to the minimum error correction loop delay to ensure voltage regulation. This delay is proportional to the bandwidth of the error amplifier 115 and may be calculated in accordance with the following Equation (1):
Tfb = 1 fu ; Equation ( 1 )
where Tfb is the delay and fu is the unity gain frequency of the error amplifier 115 .
The voltage drop during this delay may be approximated in accordance with the following Equation (2):
δ V = I max C out Tfb Equation ( 2 )
where δV is the voltage drop, I max is the maximum output current required by the load of a circuit coupled to the voltage output, V out , 145 , C out is the capacitance of the decoupling capacitor 135 and Tfb is the error correction loop delay.
Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2 , the error correction loop 180 provides voltage regulation after the Tfb delay and modifies the voltage of the gate node 165 of the MOS pass device 120 in order to switch on the MOS pass device 120 . The output voltage, V out , 145 is adjusted until the full load regulated value is reached. The time needed to recover the final value, T reg , may be approximated in accordance with the following Equation (3):
T reg = C OUT I pass - I max × V drop Equation ( 3 )
where C out is the capacitance of the decoupling capacitor 135 , I pass is the current of the MOS pass device 120 , I max is the maximum output current required by the load of a circuit coupled to the voltage output, V out , 145 , and V drop is the maximum voltage drop.
After T reg , the voltage of the gate node 165 of the PMOS pass device 120 , V gsmax , provides sufficient current through the PMOS pass device 120 to ensure output voltage stability. However, a significant voltage drop and a delay in reaching the final regulated output voltage occurs.
It would be desirable to modify the LDO voltage regulator 100 of FIG. 1 such that it is able to more rapidly set the voltage of the gate node 165 of the PMOS pass device 120 to the V gsmax voltage (or lower) in order to reduce output voltage drops and delays in reaching the final regulated output voltage, V out , 145 .
SUMMARY
The present invention is related to an LDO voltage regulator for generating an output voltage. The voltage regulator includes a startup circuit, a curvature corrected bandgap circuit, an error amplifier, a MOS pass device and a voltage slew rate efficient transient response boost circuit. The MOS pass device has a gate node which is coupled to the output of the error amplifier, and a drain node for generating the output voltage. The voltage slew rate efficient transient response boost circuit applies a voltage to the gate node of the MOS pass device to accelerate the response time of the error amplifier in enabling the LDO voltage regulator to reach its final regulated output voltage when an output voltage drop occurs in the LDO voltage regulator.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
A more detailed understanding of the invention may be had from the following description, given by way of example and to be understood in conjunction with the accompanying drawings wherein:
FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a conventional LDO voltage regulator;
FIG. 2 is a graphical representation of the output voltage transient response to a maximum output current step in the conventional LDO voltage regulator of FIG. 1 ;
FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram of an LDO voltage regulator with a voltage slew rate efficient transient response boost circuit configured in accordance with the present invention;
FIG. 4 is a graphical representation of the output voltage transient response of the LDO voltage regulator of FIG. 3 when a transient response boost voltage, Vb, is set to zero volts (ground);
FIG. 5 is a graphical representation of the output voltage transient response of the LDO voltage regulator of FIG. 3 when Vb is set to V gsmax ; and
FIG. 6 is a flow diagram of a process of regulating an output voltage implemented by the LDO voltage regulator of FIG. 3 .
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
The present invention is incorporated in a novel voltage regulator which provides a simple solution to increase voltage regulator performance while reducing output voltage drop. This solution includes a voltage slew rate efficient transient response boost circuit that is configured in accordance with the present invention. The present invention can also be applied to any known voltage regulator structure by incorporating a voltage slew rate efficient transient response boost circuit which provides a simple solution to increase voltage regulator performance.
In one embodiment, the gate node of a PMOS pass device is rapidly set to the V gsmax voltage (or lower) in order to avoid voltage drops and to reduce delays between the output current step and the final regulated output voltage. When the output voltage falls below a predefined threshold, the gate node of the MOS pass device is coupled to V gsmax (or lower).
Referring now to FIG. 3 , a schematic diagram of an LDO voltage regulator 300 configured in accordance with the present invention is shown. The LDO voltage regulator 300 includes a startup circuit 305 , a curvature corrected bandgap circuit 310 , an error amplifier 315 , a MOS pass device 320 , a resistor bridge 325 including resistors 325 A, 325 B, 325 C, a decoupling capacitor 330 having a capacitance C out , a comparator 335 and a MOS switch device 340 . The LDO voltage regulator 300 generates an output voltage, V out , 345 . The resistor bridge 325 , the comparator 335 and the MOS switch device 340 form a slew rate efficient transient response boost circuit. The MOS pass device 320 may be either a PMOS or an NMOS pass device. The MOS switch device 340 may be either a PMOS or an NMOS switch device.
The curvature corrected bandgap circuit 310 is electrically coupled to the startup circuit 305 and the error amplifier 315 . The startup circuit 305 provides the curvature corrected bandgap circuit 310 with current when no current is flowing through the LDO voltage regulator 300 during a supply increase or startup phase until the bandgap voltage is high enough to allow the curvature corrected bandgap circuit 310 to be self-sustaining. The curvature corrected bandgap circuit 310 generates a bandgap reference voltage 352 which is input to a positive input 350 of the error amplifier 315 and a negative input 355 of the comparator 335 . The curvature corrected bandgap circuit 310 also generates a reference current 354 which is input to a reference current input 358 of the error amplifier 315 . Generally, the reference current 354 is a PTAT current generated by the curvature corrected bandgap circuit 310 .
The error amplifier 315 includes a positive input 350 coupled to the curvature corrected bandgap circuit 310 for receiving the bandgap reference voltage 352 , a reference current input 358 for receiving the bandgap reference current 354 , a negative input 360 for receiving an error correction voltage 359 from the resistor bridge 325 , and an amplifier output 365 .
The MOS pass device 320 includes a gate node 370 , a source node 372 and a drain node 374 . The gate node 370 of the MOS pass device 320 is coupled to the amplifier output 365 , which outputs a pass device control signal. The source node 372 of the MOS pass device 320 is coupled to a supply voltage, V s . The drain node 374 of the MOS pass device 320 generates the output voltage, V out , 345 of the LDO voltage regulator 300 . The resistors 325 A, 325 B, 325 C are connected in series to form a resistor bridge 325 . One end of the resistor 325 A is coupled to the drain node 374 of the MOS pass device 320 and the other end of the resistor 325 A is coupled to both a positive input 376 of the comparator 335 and one end of the resistor 325 B. The other end of the resistor 325 B is coupled to the negative input 360 of the error amplifier 315 and to one end of the resistor 325 C. The other end of the resistor 325 C is coupled to ground. The decoupling capacitor 330 is coupled between V out 345 and ground.
Still referring to FIG. 3 , the MOS switch device 340 includes a gate node 380 , a source node 382 and a drain node 384 . An output 378 of the comparator 335 is coupled to the gate node 380 of the MOS switch device 340 . The output 378 generates a switch device control signal. The drain node 384 is coupled to the output 365 of the error amplifier 315 and the gate node of the MOS pass device 320 . The source node 382 of the MOS switch device 340 is coupled to a transient response boost voltage, Vb, which may be generated, for example, by an output current monitoring unit coupled to the voltage output, V out , 345 .
The positive input 376 of the comparator 335 receives a threshold voltage, Vt, 326 from the junction between the resistors 325 A and 325 B. The value of Vt may be calculated in accordance with the following Equation (4):
Vt = V out - ( V drop - I max C out × τ de ) Equation ( 4 )
where Vt is the threshold voltage of the comparator 335 , V out is the regulated output voltage, V drop is the maximum voltage drop allowed, I max is the maximum output current, C out is the value of the decoupling capacitor 330 and τ de is the internal delay of the comparator 335 .
The MOS switch device 340 is a small and fast device having a drain node 384 coupled to the gate node 370 of the MOS pass device 320 and coupled to a transient response boost voltage, Vb, that is set to a “final value” between zero volts, (i.e., a ground value), and a maximum voltage, V gsmax . The purpose of the MOS switch device 340 is to rapidly set a final value on the gate node 370 of the MOS pass device 320 in order to permit the MOS pass device 320 to deliver the maximum output current to V out 145 .
As shown in FIG. 4 , the output voltage transient response of the present invention has the same error correction loop delay Tfb as that in the transient response of the conventional LDO voltage regulator 100 shown in FIG. 1 . By switching the MOS switch device 340 on, Vb is set to a ground value which results in a high output current and a fast output voltage rising edge. The comparator 335 then switches off the NMOS switch device 340 until the next voltage drop. The output 378 of the comparator 335 is either zero volts, (i.e., a ground value), which turns off the MOS switch device 340 , or V s which turns on the MOS switch device 340 . During this time, some oscillations may be present due to the multiple comparator switching but the maximum voltage drop is reduced. After the error correction loop delay Tfb, the error correction voltage 359 is provided by the resistor bridge 325 to the negative input 360 of the error amplifier 315 , which provides output voltage regulation and adjusts the output voltage on the gate node 370 of the MOS pass device 320 to the final value.
In another embodiment, the transient response boost voltage, Vb, is set exactly to V gsmax . The comparator 335 switches on the MOS switch device 340 , thus coupling the gate node 370 of the MOS pass device 320 to V gsmax , whereby the output current is exactly the same as the load current. Thus, output voltage, V out , 345 is immediately regulated, as shown in FIG. 5 . When the voltage drop exceeds Vt, the gate node 370 of the PMOS pass device 320 is immediately coupled to its final value and then the LDO voltage regulator 300 is set to a full load regulated voltage mode. By setting the voltage of the gate node 370 of the MOS pass device using the MOS switch device 340 , instead of waiting for the error amplifier 325 to do it, the error amplifier response time is increased and the voltage output 345 is regulated and the voltage drop of V out 345 is greatly reduced.
In accordance with the present invention, a process 600 of regulating an output voltage, V out , 345 is implemented using the LDO voltage regulator 300 . Referring to FIGS. 3 and 6 , a bandgap reference voltage 352 is received at the positive input 350 of the error amplifier 315 , a bandgap reference current 354 is received at the reference current input 358 of the error amplifier 315 , and an error correction voltage 359 derived from the output voltage, V out , 345 is received at the negative input 360 of the error amplifier 315 (step 605 ). The error amplifier 315 generates a pass device control signal which closes the pass device 320 based on the bandgap reference voltage 352 , the bandgap reference current 354 and the error correction voltage 359 to adjust the output voltage, V out , 345 to a full load regulated value (step 610 ). In step 615 , the transient response boost voltage, Vb, is generated. In step 620 , the bandgap reference voltage 352 is compared by the comparator 335 to a threshold voltage, Vt, 326 derived from the output voltage, V out , 345 . The comparator 335 generates a switch device control signal which closes the switch device 340 based on the comparison of step 620 to selectively apply the transient response boost voltage, Vb, to the pass device control signal to accelerate the rate at which the output voltage, V out , 345 is adjusted to the full load regulated value (step 625 ). The transient response boost voltage, Vb, is applied to the pass device control signal when a drop in the output voltage, V out , 345 occurs.
Although the features and elements of the present invention are described in particular combinations, each feature or element can be used alone without the other features and elements of the embodiments or in various combinations with or without other features and elements of the present invention. | A low-dropout (LDO) voltage regulator for generating an output voltage is disclosed. The voltage regulator includes a startup circuit, a curvature corrected bandgap circuit, an error amplifier, a metal oxide semiconductor (MOS) pass device and a voltage slew rate efficient transient response boost circuit. The MOS pass device has a gate node which is coupled to the output of the error amplifier, and a drain node for generating the output voltage. The voltage slew rate efficient transient response boost circuit applies a voltage to the gate node of the MOS pass device to accelerate the response time of the error amplifier in enabling the LDO voltage regulator to reach its final regulated output voltage when an output voltage drop occurs in the LDO voltage regulator. | Identify and summarize the most critical features from the given passage. | [
"CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser.",
"No. 11/406,172, filed Apr. 18, 2006, which issued as U.S. Pat. No. 7,199,565 on Apr. 3, 2007 and is incorporated by reference as if fully set forth.",
"FIELD OF INVENTION The present invention is related to voltage regulation circuits.",
"More particularly, the present invention is related to a voltage regulator that uses semiconductor devices to provide generally fixed output voltages over varying loads with minimal voltage dropout on the output.",
"BACKGROUND Low-dropout (LDO) voltage regulators have gained popularity with the growth of battery-powered equipment.",
"Portable electronic equipment including cellular telephones, pagers, laptop computers and a variety of handheld electronic devices has increased the need for efficient voltage regulation to prolong battery life.",
"LDO voltage regulators are typically packaged as an integrated circuit (IC) to provide generally fixed output voltages over varying loads with minimal voltage dropout on the output in a battery-powered device.",
"Furthermore, performance of LDO voltage regulators is optimized by taking into consideration standby and quiescent current flow, and stability of the output voltage.",
"FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a conventional LDO voltage regulator 100 including a startup circuit 105 , a curvature corrected bandgap circuit 110 , an error amplifier 115 , a metal oxide semiconductor (MOS) pass device 120 , (e.g., a positive channel MOS (PMOS) pass device, a negative channel MOS (NMOS) pass device), resistors 125 , 130 , and a decoupling capacitor 135 having a capacitance COUT.",
"The LDO voltage regulator 100 outputs an output voltage, V out , 145 .",
"The curvature corrected bandgap circuit 110 is electrically coupled to the startup circuit 105 and the error amplifier 115 .",
"The startup circuit 105 provides the curvature corrected bandgap circuit 110 with current when no current is flowing through the LDO voltage regulator 100 during a supply increase or startup phase until the bandgap voltage is high enough to allow the curvature corrected bandgap circuit 110 to be self-sustaining.",
"The curvature corrected bandgap circuit 110 generates a reference voltage 152 which is input to a positive input 150 of the error amplifier 115 , and a reference current 154 which is input to a reference current input 158 of the error amplifier 115 .",
"Generally, the reference current 154 is a proportional to absolute temperature (PTAT) current generated by the curvature corrected bandgap circuit 110 .",
"The error amplifier 115 includes a positive input 150 coupled to the curvature corrected bandgap circuit 110 for receiving the reference voltage 152 , a reference current input 158 for receiving the reference current 154 , a negative input 155 , and an amplifier output 160 .",
"The MOS pass device 120 includes a gate node 165 , a source node 170 and a drain node 175 .",
"The MOS pass device 120 may be either a PMOS or an NMOS pass device.",
"The gate node 165 of the MOS pass device 120 is coupled to the amplifier output 160 of the error amplifier 115 .",
"The source node 170 of the MOS pass device 120 is coupled to a supply voltage, V s .",
"The drain node 175 of the MOS pass device 120 generates the output voltage, V out , 145 of the LDO voltage regulator 100 .",
"The resistors 125 and 130 are connected in series to form a resistor bridge.",
"One end of the resistor 125 is coupled to the drain node 175 of the MOS pass device 120 and the other end of the resistor 125 is coupled to both the negative input 155 of the error amplifier 115 and one end of the resistor 130 .",
"Thus an error correction loop 180 is formed.",
"The other end of resistor 130 is coupled to ground.",
"The decoupling capacitor 135 is coupled between V out and ground.",
"In the conventional LDO voltage regulator 100 , a capacitance CMOS associated with the gate node 165 of the MOS pass device 120 and the decoupling capacitor 135 cause the slew rate and bandwidth of the error amplifier 115 to be limited.",
"The conventional LDO voltage regulator 100 provides a fixed output voltage, but is constrained by others specifications such as voltage drop, gain and transient response.",
"When a current step occurs, (due to the load of a circuit coupled to the output voltage, V out , 145 ), the output voltage, V out , 145 decreases first and, after an error correction loop delay Tfb occurs, the gate node 165 of the MOS pass device 120 is adjusted by the error amplifier 115 to provide the requested output current.",
"FIG. 2 shows a graphical representation of the output voltage, V out , 145 of the conventional LDO voltage regulator 100 shown in FIG. 1 during a maximum current step required by the load of a circuit coupled to the voltage output, V out , 145 .",
"The delay Tfb corresponds to the minimum error correction loop delay to ensure voltage regulation.",
"This delay is proportional to the bandwidth of the error amplifier 115 and may be calculated in accordance with the following Equation (1): Tfb = 1 fu ;",
"Equation ( 1 ) where Tfb is the delay and fu is the unity gain frequency of the error amplifier 115 .",
"The voltage drop during this delay may be approximated in accordance with the following Equation (2): δ V = I max C out Tfb Equation ( 2 ) where δV is the voltage drop, I max is the maximum output current required by the load of a circuit coupled to the voltage output, V out , 145 , C out is the capacitance of the decoupling capacitor 135 and Tfb is the error correction loop delay.",
"Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2 , the error correction loop 180 provides voltage regulation after the Tfb delay and modifies the voltage of the gate node 165 of the MOS pass device 120 in order to switch on the MOS pass device 120 .",
"The output voltage, V out , 145 is adjusted until the full load regulated value is reached.",
"The time needed to recover the final value, T reg , may be approximated in accordance with the following Equation (3): T reg = C OUT I pass - I max × V drop Equation ( 3 ) where C out is the capacitance of the decoupling capacitor 135 , I pass is the current of the MOS pass device 120 , I max is the maximum output current required by the load of a circuit coupled to the voltage output, V out , 145 , and V drop is the maximum voltage drop.",
"After T reg , the voltage of the gate node 165 of the PMOS pass device 120 , V gsmax , provides sufficient current through the PMOS pass device 120 to ensure output voltage stability.",
"However, a significant voltage drop and a delay in reaching the final regulated output voltage occurs.",
"It would be desirable to modify the LDO voltage regulator 100 of FIG. 1 such that it is able to more rapidly set the voltage of the gate node 165 of the PMOS pass device 120 to the V gsmax voltage (or lower) in order to reduce output voltage drops and delays in reaching the final regulated output voltage, V out , 145 .",
"SUMMARY The present invention is related to an LDO voltage regulator for generating an output voltage.",
"The voltage regulator includes a startup circuit, a curvature corrected bandgap circuit, an error amplifier, a MOS pass device and a voltage slew rate efficient transient response boost circuit.",
"The MOS pass device has a gate node which is coupled to the output of the error amplifier, and a drain node for generating the output voltage.",
"The voltage slew rate efficient transient response boost circuit applies a voltage to the gate node of the MOS pass device to accelerate the response time of the error amplifier in enabling the LDO voltage regulator to reach its final regulated output voltage when an output voltage drop occurs in the LDO voltage regulator.",
"BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS A more detailed understanding of the invention may be had from the following description, given by way of example and to be understood in conjunction with the accompanying drawings wherein: FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a conventional LDO voltage regulator;",
"FIG. 2 is a graphical representation of the output voltage transient response to a maximum output current step in the conventional LDO voltage regulator of FIG. 1 ;",
"FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram of an LDO voltage regulator with a voltage slew rate efficient transient response boost circuit configured in accordance with the present invention;",
"FIG. 4 is a graphical representation of the output voltage transient response of the LDO voltage regulator of FIG. 3 when a transient response boost voltage, Vb, is set to zero volts (ground);",
"FIG. 5 is a graphical representation of the output voltage transient response of the LDO voltage regulator of FIG. 3 when Vb is set to V gsmax ;",
"and FIG. 6 is a flow diagram of a process of regulating an output voltage implemented by the LDO voltage regulator of FIG. 3 .",
"DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The present invention is incorporated in a novel voltage regulator which provides a simple solution to increase voltage regulator performance while reducing output voltage drop.",
"This solution includes a voltage slew rate efficient transient response boost circuit that is configured in accordance with the present invention.",
"The present invention can also be applied to any known voltage regulator structure by incorporating a voltage slew rate efficient transient response boost circuit which provides a simple solution to increase voltage regulator performance.",
"In one embodiment, the gate node of a PMOS pass device is rapidly set to the V gsmax voltage (or lower) in order to avoid voltage drops and to reduce delays between the output current step and the final regulated output voltage.",
"When the output voltage falls below a predefined threshold, the gate node of the MOS pass device is coupled to V gsmax (or lower).",
"Referring now to FIG. 3 , a schematic diagram of an LDO voltage regulator 300 configured in accordance with the present invention is shown.",
"The LDO voltage regulator 300 includes a startup circuit 305 , a curvature corrected bandgap circuit 310 , an error amplifier 315 , a MOS pass device 320 , a resistor bridge 325 including resistors 325 A, 325 B, 325 C, a decoupling capacitor 330 having a capacitance C out , a comparator 335 and a MOS switch device 340 .",
"The LDO voltage regulator 300 generates an output voltage, V out , 345 .",
"The resistor bridge 325 , the comparator 335 and the MOS switch device 340 form a slew rate efficient transient response boost circuit.",
"The MOS pass device 320 may be either a PMOS or an NMOS pass device.",
"The MOS switch device 340 may be either a PMOS or an NMOS switch device.",
"The curvature corrected bandgap circuit 310 is electrically coupled to the startup circuit 305 and the error amplifier 315 .",
"The startup circuit 305 provides the curvature corrected bandgap circuit 310 with current when no current is flowing through the LDO voltage regulator 300 during a supply increase or startup phase until the bandgap voltage is high enough to allow the curvature corrected bandgap circuit 310 to be self-sustaining.",
"The curvature corrected bandgap circuit 310 generates a bandgap reference voltage 352 which is input to a positive input 350 of the error amplifier 315 and a negative input 355 of the comparator 335 .",
"The curvature corrected bandgap circuit 310 also generates a reference current 354 which is input to a reference current input 358 of the error amplifier 315 .",
"Generally, the reference current 354 is a PTAT current generated by the curvature corrected bandgap circuit 310 .",
"The error amplifier 315 includes a positive input 350 coupled to the curvature corrected bandgap circuit 310 for receiving the bandgap reference voltage 352 , a reference current input 358 for receiving the bandgap reference current 354 , a negative input 360 for receiving an error correction voltage 359 from the resistor bridge 325 , and an amplifier output 365 .",
"The MOS pass device 320 includes a gate node 370 , a source node 372 and a drain node 374 .",
"The gate node 370 of the MOS pass device 320 is coupled to the amplifier output 365 , which outputs a pass device control signal.",
"The source node 372 of the MOS pass device 320 is coupled to a supply voltage, V s .",
"The drain node 374 of the MOS pass device 320 generates the output voltage, V out , 345 of the LDO voltage regulator 300 .",
"The resistors 325 A, 325 B, 325 C are connected in series to form a resistor bridge 325 .",
"One end of the resistor 325 A is coupled to the drain node 374 of the MOS pass device 320 and the other end of the resistor 325 A is coupled to both a positive input 376 of the comparator 335 and one end of the resistor 325 B. The other end of the resistor 325 B is coupled to the negative input 360 of the error amplifier 315 and to one end of the resistor 325 C. The other end of the resistor 325 C is coupled to ground.",
"The decoupling capacitor 330 is coupled between V out 345 and ground.",
"Still referring to FIG. 3 , the MOS switch device 340 includes a gate node 380 , a source node 382 and a drain node 384 .",
"An output 378 of the comparator 335 is coupled to the gate node 380 of the MOS switch device 340 .",
"The output 378 generates a switch device control signal.",
"The drain node 384 is coupled to the output 365 of the error amplifier 315 and the gate node of the MOS pass device 320 .",
"The source node 382 of the MOS switch device 340 is coupled to a transient response boost voltage, Vb, which may be generated, for example, by an output current monitoring unit coupled to the voltage output, V out , 345 .",
"The positive input 376 of the comparator 335 receives a threshold voltage, Vt, 326 from the junction between the resistors 325 A and 325 B. The value of Vt may be calculated in accordance with the following Equation (4): Vt = V out - ( V drop - I max C out × τ de ) Equation ( 4 ) where Vt is the threshold voltage of the comparator 335 , V out is the regulated output voltage, V drop is the maximum voltage drop allowed, I max is the maximum output current, C out is the value of the decoupling capacitor 330 and τ de is the internal delay of the comparator 335 .",
"The MOS switch device 340 is a small and fast device having a drain node 384 coupled to the gate node 370 of the MOS pass device 320 and coupled to a transient response boost voltage, Vb, that is set to a “final value”",
"between zero volts, (i.e., a ground value), and a maximum voltage, V gsmax .",
"The purpose of the MOS switch device 340 is to rapidly set a final value on the gate node 370 of the MOS pass device 320 in order to permit the MOS pass device 320 to deliver the maximum output current to V out 145 .",
"As shown in FIG. 4 , the output voltage transient response of the present invention has the same error correction loop delay Tfb as that in the transient response of the conventional LDO voltage regulator 100 shown in FIG. 1 .",
"By switching the MOS switch device 340 on, Vb is set to a ground value which results in a high output current and a fast output voltage rising edge.",
"The comparator 335 then switches off the NMOS switch device 340 until the next voltage drop.",
"The output 378 of the comparator 335 is either zero volts, (i.e., a ground value), which turns off the MOS switch device 340 , or V s which turns on the MOS switch device 340 .",
"During this time, some oscillations may be present due to the multiple comparator switching but the maximum voltage drop is reduced.",
"After the error correction loop delay Tfb, the error correction voltage 359 is provided by the resistor bridge 325 to the negative input 360 of the error amplifier 315 , which provides output voltage regulation and adjusts the output voltage on the gate node 370 of the MOS pass device 320 to the final value.",
"In another embodiment, the transient response boost voltage, Vb, is set exactly to V gsmax .",
"The comparator 335 switches on the MOS switch device 340 , thus coupling the gate node 370 of the MOS pass device 320 to V gsmax , whereby the output current is exactly the same as the load current.",
"Thus, output voltage, V out , 345 is immediately regulated, as shown in FIG. 5 .",
"When the voltage drop exceeds Vt, the gate node 370 of the PMOS pass device 320 is immediately coupled to its final value and then the LDO voltage regulator 300 is set to a full load regulated voltage mode.",
"By setting the voltage of the gate node 370 of the MOS pass device using the MOS switch device 340 , instead of waiting for the error amplifier 325 to do it, the error amplifier response time is increased and the voltage output 345 is regulated and the voltage drop of V out 345 is greatly reduced.",
"In accordance with the present invention, a process 600 of regulating an output voltage, V out , 345 is implemented using the LDO voltage regulator 300 .",
"Referring to FIGS. 3 and 6 , a bandgap reference voltage 352 is received at the positive input 350 of the error amplifier 315 , a bandgap reference current 354 is received at the reference current input 358 of the error amplifier 315 , and an error correction voltage 359 derived from the output voltage, V out , 345 is received at the negative input 360 of the error amplifier 315 (step 605 ).",
"The error amplifier 315 generates a pass device control signal which closes the pass device 320 based on the bandgap reference voltage 352 , the bandgap reference current 354 and the error correction voltage 359 to adjust the output voltage, V out , 345 to a full load regulated value (step 610 ).",
"In step 615 , the transient response boost voltage, Vb, is generated.",
"In step 620 , the bandgap reference voltage 352 is compared by the comparator 335 to a threshold voltage, Vt, 326 derived from the output voltage, V out , 345 .",
"The comparator 335 generates a switch device control signal which closes the switch device 340 based on the comparison of step 620 to selectively apply the transient response boost voltage, Vb, to the pass device control signal to accelerate the rate at which the output voltage, V out , 345 is adjusted to the full load regulated value (step 625 ).",
"The transient response boost voltage, Vb, is applied to the pass device control signal when a drop in the output voltage, V out , 345 occurs.",
"Although the features and elements of the present invention are described in particular combinations, each feature or element can be used alone without the other features and elements of the embodiments or in various combinations with or without other features and elements of the present invention."
] |
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
This invention relates to a flying toy and more particularly a disc- or dish-shaped flying toy capable of flying in any desired direction.
In a well-known flying toy of this type, there is provided a hole at the central portion of the bottom surface thereof and the driving shaft of an actuating device is inserted into the hole to impart rotation to the flying toy. However, since such flying toy is generally rotated about the central axis thereof, it is impossible to fly the toy in any desired direction of the flying course. For example, regarding a known dish-shaped flying toy such as U F O (unidentified flying object) toy, the player cannot fly it in any desired direction since it can be flown only upwardly.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
Accordingly, an object of this invention is to provide an improved flying toy which can be flown in any desired direction over a long flight time and flight distance.
According to the present invention, there is provided a flying toy having disc- or dish-shaped configuration and provided with a hole in the bottom surface thereof adapted to receive the driving shaft of a launching device for imparting rotation to the toy, said hole, according to the improvement of the invention, being provided in the bottom surface of the toy at a position offset from the center thereof.
The other objects and advantages of the present invention will be more readily understood from the following detailed description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawing.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING
In the drawings:
FIG. 1 is a front view of the flying toy according to this invention;
FIG. 2 is a bottom view of the flying toy shown in FIG. 1; and
FIG. 3 is a perspective view, with a part broken away, of a launching device for rotating and flying the toy according to this invention.
DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, there is shown a disc-or dish-shaped flying toy 1 which is made of a light material suitable for flight, such as a synthetic resin, foam plastics, a thin plate of light metal, a thick paper or the like. The flying toy 1 is constructed symmetrically about the central axis A--A thereof. In the illustrated embodiment of the invention, the flying toy comprises a top portion 2 which is substantially in the form of a hemisphere, and a lower portion 3 which is formed in frustconical shape.
In the bottom surface 3a of the lower portion 3, there is provided a polygonal hole 4 which is offset from the axis A--A or the center A of the bottom surface as clearly shown in FIG. 2. The hole 4 is adapted for engagement with a polygonal driving shaft of a launching device as will be described in detail hereinbelow.
FIG. 3 shows one example of the launching device, which is generally designated by reference numeral 10, for rotating and flying the flying toy 1 of this invention. The launching device 10 comprises a disc-shaped launching plate 11, a grip 12 attached to the lower surface of the lauching plate 11 and a dome 14 disposed above the plate 11 and provided with an opening 13, the dome 14 serving as a safety cover to prevent the toy 1 from flying out backwardly. The device 10 is further provided with a generally U-shaped reflecting plate 15 secured to the peripheral portion of the lauching plate 11 so as to partially surround the center thereof.
The driving shaft referred to hereinabove is designated at 16 and is rotatably disposed in the interior of the grip 12 and the top end 16a of the shaft projects from the upper surface of the launching plate 11 to be detachably engaged with the hole 4 of the bottom surface 3a of the flying toy 1. The driving shaft 16 can be rotated by manually pulling a string 17 which is wound up or coiled around the peripheral surface of the shaft 16. Between the lower end of the shaft 16 and a plug 18, spring means 19 is fitted so that the string 17 will be wound up again on the shaft by the action of the spring 19 after the flight of the toy 1.
The operation of the flying toy embodying this invention will be described hereunder.
When the driving shaft 16 of the launching device 10 is rotated by manually pulling the string 17, the flying toy 1 engaged with the top end 16a of the shaft through the polygonal hole 4 is also rotated, but since the hole is provided offset from the center A of the bottom surface 3a of the flying toy, the toy is rotated eccentrically. This eccentric rotation enlarges the locus of the peripheral edge B of the rotating toy 1 and increases the centrifugal force thereof. The flying toy 1, accelerated by the rotation of the driving shaft 16, leaves from the top end 16a due to Coriolis force, flies outwardly in a radial direction by centrifugal force and off through the opening 13 of the dome 14, either directly or after collision with the reflecting plate 15.
Because of the enlarged locus of the rotating toy and the increased centrifugal force, the flight time can be increased and the flight distance can also be extended, and since the flying toy can be flown in any desired direction, the player can fully be amused with the toy in the flight.
Furthermore, the flying toy 1 of this invention may be preferably used as a flying target of trap shooting in combination with a launching device.
If desired, a plurality of polygonal holes 4' may be provided near the center A and near the peripheral edge B of the bottom surface 3a of the toy for selectively using one of the holes in conformity with the weather conditions and/or the surrounding terrain, and the peripheral edge B of the lower portion 3 and the wall of the hole 4 of the bottom surface of the toy may also be reinforced as occasion demands by a material slightly harder than the other portion of the flying toy. | A flying toy having disc- or dish-shaped configuration and provided with a polygonal hole in the bottom surface of the flying toy at a position offset from the center thereof. The driving shaft of a launching device is inserted into the hole to rotate and fly the flying toy. | Briefly describe the main invention outlined in the provided context. | [
"BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION This invention relates to a flying toy and more particularly a disc- or dish-shaped flying toy capable of flying in any desired direction.",
"In a well-known flying toy of this type, there is provided a hole at the central portion of the bottom surface thereof and the driving shaft of an actuating device is inserted into the hole to impart rotation to the flying toy.",
"However, since such flying toy is generally rotated about the central axis thereof, it is impossible to fly the toy in any desired direction of the flying course.",
"For example, regarding a known dish-shaped flying toy such as U F O (unidentified flying object) toy, the player cannot fly it in any desired direction since it can be flown only upwardly.",
"SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Accordingly, an object of this invention is to provide an improved flying toy which can be flown in any desired direction over a long flight time and flight distance.",
"According to the present invention, there is provided a flying toy having disc- or dish-shaped configuration and provided with a hole in the bottom surface thereof adapted to receive the driving shaft of a launching device for imparting rotation to the toy, said hole, according to the improvement of the invention, being provided in the bottom surface of the toy at a position offset from the center thereof.",
"The other objects and advantages of the present invention will be more readily understood from the following detailed description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawing.",
"BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING In the drawings: FIG. 1 is a front view of the flying toy according to this invention;",
"FIG. 2 is a bottom view of the flying toy shown in FIG. 1;",
"and FIG. 3 is a perspective view, with a part broken away, of a launching device for rotating and flying the toy according to this invention.",
"DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, there is shown a disc-or dish-shaped flying toy 1 which is made of a light material suitable for flight, such as a synthetic resin, foam plastics, a thin plate of light metal, a thick paper or the like.",
"The flying toy 1 is constructed symmetrically about the central axis A--A thereof.",
"In the illustrated embodiment of the invention, the flying toy comprises a top portion 2 which is substantially in the form of a hemisphere, and a lower portion 3 which is formed in frustconical shape.",
"In the bottom surface 3a of the lower portion 3, there is provided a polygonal hole 4 which is offset from the axis A--A or the center A of the bottom surface as clearly shown in FIG. 2. The hole 4 is adapted for engagement with a polygonal driving shaft of a launching device as will be described in detail hereinbelow.",
"FIG. 3 shows one example of the launching device, which is generally designated by reference numeral 10, for rotating and flying the flying toy 1 of this invention.",
"The launching device 10 comprises a disc-shaped launching plate 11, a grip 12 attached to the lower surface of the lauching plate 11 and a dome 14 disposed above the plate 11 and provided with an opening 13, the dome 14 serving as a safety cover to prevent the toy 1 from flying out backwardly.",
"The device 10 is further provided with a generally U-shaped reflecting plate 15 secured to the peripheral portion of the lauching plate 11 so as to partially surround the center thereof.",
"The driving shaft referred to hereinabove is designated at 16 and is rotatably disposed in the interior of the grip 12 and the top end 16a of the shaft projects from the upper surface of the launching plate 11 to be detachably engaged with the hole 4 of the bottom surface 3a of the flying toy 1.",
"The driving shaft 16 can be rotated by manually pulling a string 17 which is wound up or coiled around the peripheral surface of the shaft 16.",
"Between the lower end of the shaft 16 and a plug 18, spring means 19 is fitted so that the string 17 will be wound up again on the shaft by the action of the spring 19 after the flight of the toy 1.",
"The operation of the flying toy embodying this invention will be described hereunder.",
"When the driving shaft 16 of the launching device 10 is rotated by manually pulling the string 17, the flying toy 1 engaged with the top end 16a of the shaft through the polygonal hole 4 is also rotated, but since the hole is provided offset from the center A of the bottom surface 3a of the flying toy, the toy is rotated eccentrically.",
"This eccentric rotation enlarges the locus of the peripheral edge B of the rotating toy 1 and increases the centrifugal force thereof.",
"The flying toy 1, accelerated by the rotation of the driving shaft 16, leaves from the top end 16a due to Coriolis force, flies outwardly in a radial direction by centrifugal force and off through the opening 13 of the dome 14, either directly or after collision with the reflecting plate 15.",
"Because of the enlarged locus of the rotating toy and the increased centrifugal force, the flight time can be increased and the flight distance can also be extended, and since the flying toy can be flown in any desired direction, the player can fully be amused with the toy in the flight.",
"Furthermore, the flying toy 1 of this invention may be preferably used as a flying target of trap shooting in combination with a launching device.",
"If desired, a plurality of polygonal holes 4'",
"may be provided near the center A and near the peripheral edge B of the bottom surface 3a of the toy for selectively using one of the holes in conformity with the weather conditions and/or the surrounding terrain, and the peripheral edge B of the lower portion 3 and the wall of the hole 4 of the bottom surface of the toy may also be reinforced as occasion demands by a material slightly harder than the other portion of the flying toy."
] |
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0001] 1. Field of the Invention
[0002] This invention relates to the field of instant messaging systems.
[0003] 2. Description of the Related Art
[0004] Email is currently one of the most pervasive methods of communication in the world. Used for business or pleasure, email has revolutionized how companies do business and how friends stay in touch. Unfortunately, with the good also comes the bad. Electronic junk mail, known as “spam” is a term used to describe unsolicited and possibly illicit material coming from an unknown sender. The problem of spam is of such magnitude that federal legislation has been proposed and/or adopted to try to combat spam.
[0005] Another form of electronic communication, instant messaging (“IM”) is following in the steps of email as a major form of electronic communication, both for business or pleasure. Spammers of course, have moved into IM as another source of contacts to whom they can send unsolicited spam. The process of spamming through an instant messaging system has been dubbed “spimming” by, among others, Information Week Magazine. Like spam, spim is annoying to, and may even cost, IM users.
[0006] To utilize spim, a spimmer must establish a “screen name” (SN) for the system on which they intend to send spim. The current practice of instant messaging companies when setting up a screen name for a user involves the gathering of limited information, typically only a name and email address. All of the information provided by the potential user can be invalid (fake), except for the email address. The email address given must be valid because a temporary password is mailed to the given email address. The following scenario is typical:
[0007] 1. Spimmer obtains an email address from an ISP or another company providing free, web-based email accounts (e.g., Hotmail, Yahoo, etc.).
[0008] 2. Using the email address, the spimmer requests an IM screen name from the IM Provider (possibly the same vendor as the ISP, e.g., Yahoo).
[0009] 3. The IM Provider approves the requested screen name and sends a default password to the spimmer at the email address provided during the registration process.
[0010] 4. The spimmer starts sending unsolicited mass IM messages (spim) using the new screen name.
[0011] All major IM companies give users of their system the ability to block messages coming from unknown senders or specific senders designated by the user. The user may select an option whereby any messages from a screen name not contained in the user's “Buddy List” (a list of screen names with whom the user corresponds) will be automatically blocked, or authorization may be requested before the message is accepted. In addition, most IM companies allow the user to designate specific screen names and place them in an “excluded list”. Messages from screen names in the excluded list will be blocked unless they are removed from the excluded list.
[0012] A problem with this approach to blocking unwanted instant messages is that, in view of the simple manner in which screen names are obtainable, spimmers can and do have multiple screen names used for spimming. Thus, an IM user who blocks a particular screen name and any messages coming therefrom is still subject to attack by the same spimmer using a different screen name. This method requires that the user constantly update his or her list of excluded screen names as they occur. This is time consuming and annoying for IM users and is a significant problem.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0013] The present invention is a system, method, and computer program product for tracking one or more thresholds relating to the blocking of a particular screen name used on an IM system. If the number of people who have blocked a particular screen name reaches a threshold amount, a determination is made that the screen name is being used by a spimmer or other bothersome person, and that screen name can be suspended pending investigation, or other disciplinary action as deemed appropriate can be taken. Numerous other thresholds may be utilized, including but not limited to, the number of blockages over a certain period of time.
[0014] In a preferred embodiment, the email address associated with a user name of a suspected spimmer is identified and all screen names associated with that email address are also subjected to disciplinary action, if desired. Thus, an IM company can suspend all screen names of a spimmer that are tied to the same email address, even though not all (or even none) of the screen names individually have reached a threshold level for discipline/suspension.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0015] FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating the operation of a typical instant messaging system;
[0016] FIGS. 2 and 3 illustrate the method by which users of an IM system register names for use on the system and how this registration information is stored by the IM server;
[0017] FIGS. 4 and 5 illustrate an example where two of the users have designated certain screen names as being blocked; and
[0018] FIG. 6 is a flowchart illustrating the basic process/method of the present invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
[0019] FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating the operation of a typical instant messaging system 100 . An instant messaging server (IM server) 102 is coupled to a database 104 in which are stored data used by the IM server, including all of the user data related to users of the IM system.
[0020] A plurality of workstations 106 , 108 , 110 , 112 , 114 , and 116 are couplable to the IM server 102 via a network 118 such as the Internet. Workstation 116 is illustrated as having multiple connections (three in this example) to the network 118 . This signifies a single user having multiple screen names for use on an IM system. In a well known manner, a user of workstation 106 (for example) can prepare, using an IM client, an instant message for delivery to a user using, for example, workstation 112 .
[0021] The user creates the instant message by identifying the user of workstation 112 using a screen name that the user of workstation 112 has registered with the instant message system. The user of workstation 106 then sends the message to the IM server 102 via the network 118 . IM server 102 accesses the database 104 , correlates the screen name to which the message is directed with a particular user and directs the message back over the network 118 to that user.
[0022] In this example, the user whose screen name is associated with this message is signed on to workstation 112 ; thus, the IM server 102 delivers the instant message to the user, via a client program on workstation 112 , and the message is displayed at that workstation. The operation of a system such as the one illustrated in FIG. 1 is well known in the art and is not described in more detail herein.
[0023] FIGS. 2 and 3 illustrate the method by which users of IM system 100 register names for use on the system and how this registration information is stored by IM server 102 .
[0024] Referring to FIG. 2 , user A, in this example using workstation 106 , submits to IM server 102 a screen name (“User A”), a given name associated with that screen name (“User A”) and an email address (“[email protected]”) that is associated with this screen name and the given name. It is understood that the given name can be a pseudonym or other false name; the only portion of the registration information that must be accurate, for verification purposes, is the email address. The operator of IM system 100 will mail password information to the email address associated with the registration and if the email address is invalid, the screen name will not be registered with the system.
[0025] A second user, with a given name User B, registers the screen name User B with the email address [email protected]; a third user with a given name User C registers the screen name User C at email address [email protected]; a fourth user with a given name User D registers the screen name User D at email address [email protected] and a fifth user with a given name User E registers the screen name User E at email address [email protected].
[0026] In addition, FIG. 2 shows how a spimmer (or anyone) can register multiple screen names on the same IM system 100 . As shown in FIG. 2 , a user with the given name “Spimmer” registers the screen name “Spimmer 1” associated with email address [email protected], and also registers screen names Spimmer 2 and Spimmer 3 with the same email address, [email protected]. Although shown in FIG. 2 as using the same given name (“Spimmer”) for all three screen names, it is understood that, since the given name is not verified, different given names could be used for these registrations.
[0027] FIG. 3 illustrates an example of how the registration information might be stored in database 104 . The information illustrated in FIG. 3 is simply a series of fields of a database, whereby the given name, screen name, and email addresses are placed in appropriate fields so that they may be correlated in a relational database as is well known. Thus, for each of the registrations illustrated in FIG. 2 , there are relational database entries entered into and stored in the database 104 .
[0028] Also shown in both FIGS. 2 and 3 is an entry location for “Blocked Screen Names”. In a typical registration process, a new user of the system will be unlikely to enter any blocked screen names upon initial registration. Typically, as the user uses the system, they encounter instant messages coming from screen names that are unknown to them and that may be undesirable. Thus, as the user uses the system, they may designate these undesirable instant messages and the screen names associated therewith as screen names that they wish to have blocked. However, the blocked screen name field is illustrated in FIGS. 2 and 3 because there is no reason why, upon initial registration, a user cannot also immediately designate blocked screen names if desired. As shown in examples of FIGS. 2 and 3 , none of the users have blocked screen names at this point.
[0029] FIGS. 4 and 5 illustrate an example where two of the users have designated certain screen names as being blocked. Specifically, referring to FIG. 4 , User B has designated “Spimmer 2” as a blocked screen name, and User D has designated “Spimmer 3” as a blocked screen name. This information is stored in the relational database in the appropriate field as shown in FIG. 5 , so that the instant message system knows to block any messages coming from Spimmer 2 that are directed to User B, and any messages that are directed to User D from user name Spimmer 3.
[0030] In the example illustrated in the figures, there are a total of eight screen names being used on the system. Obviously in a real system, the number of users would be in the thousands or millions rather than such a small number, but the small number is used herein for purposes of example only.
[0031] In the example illustrated in FIGS. 4 and 5 , 12.5% (one out of eight) screen names have blocked messages from Spimmer 2, and 12.5% (one out of eight) screen names have blocked messages from Spimmer 3.
[0032] In accordance with the present invention, a threshold number is set which would indicate an acceptable or unacceptable level of blockages with respect to a particular screen name. In other words, the system operator might decide that if 25% or more of users of the system have blocked a particular screen name, this indicates a potential spimmer, and investigative measures can be taken, or even disciplinary action can be taken. If we assume for this example that a threshold level of 25% blockages for a particular screen name must be met before a screen name is considered to be that of a spimmer, then in the example of FIG. 4 , no screen names have yet met that threshold.
[0033] By simply tracking the number of screen names that have blocked a particular screen name, and taking some action when a threshold number of users have blocked a particular screen name, the present invention can help identify spimmers and take steps to prevent them from further use of the IM system.
[0034] In a preferred embodiment, the power available due to the use of the relational database can be brought to bear to identify a spimmer who is making use of multiple screen names to avoid detection. For example, in the illustration of FIGS. 4 and 5 , as noted above, only 12.5% of the screen names have blocked Spimmer 2 and only 12.5% have blocked Spimmer 3. If either Spimmer 2 or Spimmer 3 are blocked by another user, the 25% threshold is met. However, if, using the relational database in which the registration information is stored, the system operator identifies blockages of any screen names associated with a single email address (rather than blockages associated with a single screen name), the blockage by User B of Spimmer 2, and the blockage by User D of Spimmer 3, will each point to the same email address, [email protected]. This will identify that 25% (two out of eight) of the users of the system have blocked instant messages coming from a screen name associated with [email protected]. If this is used for the threshold measurement, the system of the present invention will identify all screen names associated with [email protected] as being those of a spimmer, and if desired, all instant messages coming from any screen names associated with [email protected] (including presently unblocked “Spimmer 1”) can be blocked and investigation or punitive measures taken.
[0035] The above example is an extremely simplified example used for the purpose of explanation. The above example simply looks for the reaching of a threshold percentage of blockages with respect to an email address, and then based on the meeting of that threshold, identifies all user names associated with the email address as being user names of a spimmer. However, limiting the threshold to a single threshold comprising the cumulative number of blockages may lead to an inaccurate portrayal of a user name as that of a spimmer. Accordingly, multiple thresholds may be combined to provide more resolution in identifying spimmers. For example, a time threshold may be combined with a number-of-blockages threshold so that in order for a user name and/or email address to be associated with a potential spimmer, the blockages must occur within a predetermined time frame or they will not necessarily be used to identify the user name and/or email address as that of a spimmer. In other words, this establishes a “rate of blockage” threshold that must be met.
[0036] A system operator could decide that if a predetermined number/percentage of users block a particular screen name within a 10 second (or any desired time interval) window, the screen name being blocked should be flagged as a potential spimmer. Another threshold possibility could be the amount of outbound traffic sent by a particular user name or by user names associated with the same email address. It does not have to be a requirement that a certain number of the outgoing messages be blocked; rather, the sending of a predetermined number of IM's within a predetermined time interval can be considered suspicious activity warranting that the user sending them be monitored for additional potential spimming behavior. If within a predetermined time interval form the mass IMing a certain percentage of the recipients block that user, this can be a threshold that triggers mitigating steps be taken against the user sending the Ims. Numerous other examples of threshold values and threshold combinations will be apparent to a designer of the system.
[0037] FIG. 6 is a flowchart illustrating the basic process/method of the present invention. Referring to FIG. 6 , when the process begins, the screen names registered with a particular instant messaging system are monitored for blockage instances. Each time a blockage occurs, a “blockage total” for the particular screen name is incremented. Thus, at step 604 , if a screen name has been blocked, the total blockage count for that screen name is incremented, and then the process proceeds to step 606 to determine if there are any other screen names associated with the email address for that screen name, and if there are any blockages for those other screen names, then those blockage totals are added to the blockage total of the first screen name. At step 608 , a determination is made as to whether or not the blockage threshold has been met. If the blockage threshold has not been met, the process proceeds back to step 602 to monitor for additional screen name blockages.
[0038] If, however, at step 608 it is determined that the blockage threshold has been met, then at step 610 , the use of all screen names associated with that email address are suspended. At step 612 , a determination is made as to whether or not a threshold blockage-time has been met. This is simply a predetermined time period for which the screen names will be blocked. This step is optional, and if desired, the screen names can be blocked permanently. However, it is anticipated that at least once the user of the screen names will be given the opportunity to stop sending messages that result in blockages.
[0039] If at step 612 , the threshold blockage time has not been met, the process loops around and waits until the blockage time threshold has been met. Once the blockage time threshold has been met, the process proceeds to step 614 , where the screen names are released from suspension. The process then goes back to step 602 where the screen names are monitored for blockages.
[0040] Numerous options are available with respect to the steps illustrated in FIG. 6 . For example, it is not required that, at step 606 , other user screen names be identified; if a certain number of blockages are identified for a single screen name, the suspension can occur without correlating that screen name to other screen names via the email address.
[0041] A “leaky bucket” approach may also be utilized. For example, once a threshold is set (e.g., a total number of blockages), a counter is set to correspond to the threshold number and is decremented each time a blockage occurs. Once the counter reaches zero (i.e., the “bucket” is empty), it can be assumed that a spimmer (or a person sending unwanted messages) is using the user name. If desired, time can be factored in, by, for example, incrementing the counter by one count after a period of time has elapsed without a blockage.
[0042] Further, if desired, at step 614 , when the threshold blockage time has been met and the suspension is released, if desired, the suspension period can be released for a predetermined trial period. If that trial period elapses without further blockages, the user can, for example, have their screen names unsuspended; however, if additional screen name blockages occur before the trial period ends, the screen names can be blocked permanently, or for an additional trial period or for additional trial periods.
[0043] Using the steps of FIG. 6 , the present invention can be implemented. It is understood that the steps in FIG. 6 are illustrated for the purpose of example only.
[0044] In a preferred embodiment, spimmers can be automatically warned and/or disciplined. In other words, upon reaching a predetermined threshold, the system may block all IMs associated with the offending email address. A first “offense” might result in a one-hour blockage, a second offense might result in a 10-hour suspension, etc. Any disciplining pattern may be utilized and fall within the scope of the present invention. An IM company may block a suspected spimmer for a finite time period, then remove the block to determine whether the behavior persists. In the case of persistent spimmer behavior, the IM company could then reapply the block for a longer time period. This policy may avoid mistaken permanent blocking that may cause administrative difficulties.
[0045] This approach gives the advantage of allowing an IM company to block an unwanted person on their network. This is much preferable to the current solution of everyone on the network blocking the unwanted person on an individual basis.
[0046] Use of the present invention also gives rise to a method for confirming the identification of a spimmer. Spammers send bulk email from an address, frequently from a robotic, non-human sender (known as a “bot”), and never check or respond to any replies. Spimmers also use the same method, that is, they send numerous robotically created IMs without replying to any replies that are returned. They don't want to deal with the hundreds of messages saying “go away” or “leave me alone” or “who are you?” Therefore, all incoming messages are ignored by a spimmer.
[0047] This fact can be used to confirm that a suspected spimmer is indeed a spimmer. Once an IM is received by a receiving party, a random word can be automatically sent back to the sending screen name, transparently to the receiving party, if desired. This word is followed with a request to repeat the word in a reply IM to ensure spimming is not occurring. A spimmer and/or spimming but will not view the return IM and will not respond with verification. It is then known that the IM is an illegitimate IM and the screen name can be added to the block list.
[0048] The above-described steps can be implemented using standard well-known programming techniques. The novelty of the above-described embodiment lies not in the specific programming techniques but in the use of the steps described to achieve the described results. Software programming code which embodies the present invention is typically stored in permanent storage of some type, such as permanent storage of a device on which an IM client is running. In a client/server environment, such software programming code may be stored with storage associated with a server. The software programming code may be embodied on any of a variety of known media for use with a data processing system, such as a diskette, or hard drive, or CD-ROM. The code may be distributed on such media, or may be distributed to users from the memory or storage of one computer system over a network of some type to other computer systems for use by users of such other systems. The techniques and methods for embodying software program code on physical media and/or distributing software code via networks are well known and will not be further discussed herein.
[0049] It will be understood that each element of the illustrations, and combinations of elements in the illustrations, can be implemented by general and/or special purpose hardware-based systems that perform the specified functions or steps, or by combinations of general and/or special-purpose hardware and computer instructions.
[0050] These program instructions may be provided to a processor to produce a machine, such that the instructions that execute on the processor create means for implementing the functions specified in the illustrations. The computer program instructions may be executed by a processor to cause a series of operational steps to be performed by the processor to produce a computer-implemented process such that the instructions that execute on the processor provide steps for implementing the functions specified in the illustrations. Accordingly, the figures support combinations of means for performing the specified functions, combinations of steps for performing the specified functions, and program instruction means for performing the specified functions.
[0051] While there has been described herein the principles of the invention, it is to be understood by those skilled in the art that this description is made only by way of example and not as a limitation to the scope of the invention. Accordingly, it is intended by the appended claims, to cover all modifications of the invention which fall within the true spirit and scope of the invention. | A technique for tracking one or more thresholds relating to the blocking of a particular screen name used on an IM system is disclosed. If the number of people who have blocked a particular screen name reaches a threshold amount, a determination is made that the screen name is being used by a spimmer or other bothersome person, and disciplinary action can be taken. In a preferred embodiment, the email address associated with a user name of a suspected spimmer is identified and all screen names associated with that email address are also subjected to disciplinary action, if desired. Thus, an IM company can suspend all screen names of a spimmer that are tied to the same email address, even though not all (or even none) of the screen names individually have reached a threshold level for discipline/suspension. | Identify the most important claim in the given context and summarize it | [
"BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION [0001] 1.",
"Field of the Invention [0002] This invention relates to the field of instant messaging systems.",
"[0003] 2.",
"Description of the Related Art [0004] Email is currently one of the most pervasive methods of communication in the world.",
"Used for business or pleasure, email has revolutionized how companies do business and how friends stay in touch.",
"Unfortunately, with the good also comes the bad.",
"Electronic junk mail, known as “spam”",
"is a term used to describe unsolicited and possibly illicit material coming from an unknown sender.",
"The problem of spam is of such magnitude that federal legislation has been proposed and/or adopted to try to combat spam.",
"[0005] Another form of electronic communication, instant messaging (“IM”) is following in the steps of email as a major form of electronic communication, both for business or pleasure.",
"Spammers of course, have moved into IM as another source of contacts to whom they can send unsolicited spam.",
"The process of spamming through an instant messaging system has been dubbed “spimming”",
"by, among others, Information Week Magazine.",
"Like spam, spim is annoying to, and may even cost, IM users.",
"[0006] To utilize spim, a spimmer must establish a “screen name”",
"(SN) for the system on which they intend to send spim.",
"The current practice of instant messaging companies when setting up a screen name for a user involves the gathering of limited information, typically only a name and email address.",
"All of the information provided by the potential user can be invalid (fake), except for the email address.",
"The email address given must be valid because a temporary password is mailed to the given email address.",
"The following scenario is typical: [0007] 1.",
"Spimmer obtains an email address from an ISP or another company providing free, web-based email accounts (e.g., Hotmail, Yahoo, etc.).",
"[0008] 2.",
"Using the email address, the spimmer requests an IM screen name from the IM Provider (possibly the same vendor as the ISP, e.g., Yahoo).",
"[0009] 3.",
"The IM Provider approves the requested screen name and sends a default password to the spimmer at the email address provided during the registration process.",
"[0010] 4.",
"The spimmer starts sending unsolicited mass IM messages (spim) using the new screen name.",
"[0011] All major IM companies give users of their system the ability to block messages coming from unknown senders or specific senders designated by the user.",
"The user may select an option whereby any messages from a screen name not contained in the user's “Buddy List”",
"(a list of screen names with whom the user corresponds) will be automatically blocked, or authorization may be requested before the message is accepted.",
"In addition, most IM companies allow the user to designate specific screen names and place them in an “excluded list.”",
"Messages from screen names in the excluded list will be blocked unless they are removed from the excluded list.",
"[0012] A problem with this approach to blocking unwanted instant messages is that, in view of the simple manner in which screen names are obtainable, spimmers can and do have multiple screen names used for spimming.",
"Thus, an IM user who blocks a particular screen name and any messages coming therefrom is still subject to attack by the same spimmer using a different screen name.",
"This method requires that the user constantly update his or her list of excluded screen names as they occur.",
"This is time consuming and annoying for IM users and is a significant problem.",
"SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION [0013] The present invention is a system, method, and computer program product for tracking one or more thresholds relating to the blocking of a particular screen name used on an IM system.",
"If the number of people who have blocked a particular screen name reaches a threshold amount, a determination is made that the screen name is being used by a spimmer or other bothersome person, and that screen name can be suspended pending investigation, or other disciplinary action as deemed appropriate can be taken.",
"Numerous other thresholds may be utilized, including but not limited to, the number of blockages over a certain period of time.",
"[0014] In a preferred embodiment, the email address associated with a user name of a suspected spimmer is identified and all screen names associated with that email address are also subjected to disciplinary action, if desired.",
"Thus, an IM company can suspend all screen names of a spimmer that are tied to the same email address, even though not all (or even none) of the screen names individually have reached a threshold level for discipline/suspension.",
"BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS [0015] FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating the operation of a typical instant messaging system;",
"[0016] FIGS. 2 and 3 illustrate the method by which users of an IM system register names for use on the system and how this registration information is stored by the IM server;",
"[0017] FIGS. 4 and 5 illustrate an example where two of the users have designated certain screen names as being blocked;",
"and [0018] FIG. 6 is a flowchart illustrating the basic process/method of the present invention.",
"DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS [0019] FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating the operation of a typical instant messaging system 100 .",
"An instant messaging server (IM server) 102 is coupled to a database 104 in which are stored data used by the IM server, including all of the user data related to users of the IM system.",
"[0020] A plurality of workstations 106 , 108 , 110 , 112 , 114 , and 116 are couplable to the IM server 102 via a network 118 such as the Internet.",
"Workstation 116 is illustrated as having multiple connections (three in this example) to the network 118 .",
"This signifies a single user having multiple screen names for use on an IM system.",
"In a well known manner, a user of workstation 106 (for example) can prepare, using an IM client, an instant message for delivery to a user using, for example, workstation 112 .",
"[0021] The user creates the instant message by identifying the user of workstation 112 using a screen name that the user of workstation 112 has registered with the instant message system.",
"The user of workstation 106 then sends the message to the IM server 102 via the network 118 .",
"IM server 102 accesses the database 104 , correlates the screen name to which the message is directed with a particular user and directs the message back over the network 118 to that user.",
"[0022] In this example, the user whose screen name is associated with this message is signed on to workstation 112 ;",
"thus, the IM server 102 delivers the instant message to the user, via a client program on workstation 112 , and the message is displayed at that workstation.",
"The operation of a system such as the one illustrated in FIG. 1 is well known in the art and is not described in more detail herein.",
"[0023] FIGS. 2 and 3 illustrate the method by which users of IM system 100 register names for use on the system and how this registration information is stored by IM server 102 .",
"[0024] Referring to FIG. 2 , user A, in this example using workstation 106 , submits to IM server 102 a screen name (“User A”), a given name associated with that screen name (“User A”) and an email address (“[email protected]”) that is associated with this screen name and the given name.",
"It is understood that the given name can be a pseudonym or other false name;",
"the only portion of the registration information that must be accurate, for verification purposes, is the email address.",
"The operator of IM system 100 will mail password information to the email address associated with the registration and if the email address is invalid, the screen name will not be registered with the system.",
"[0025] A second user, with a given name User B, registers the screen name User B with the email address [email protected];",
"a third user with a given name User C registers the screen name User C at email address [email protected];",
"a fourth user with a given name User D registers the screen name User D at email address [email protected] and a fifth user with a given name User E registers the screen name User E at email address [email protected].",
"[0026] In addition, FIG. 2 shows how a spimmer (or anyone) can register multiple screen names on the same IM system 100 .",
"As shown in FIG. 2 , a user with the given name “Spimmer”",
"registers the screen name “Spimmer 1”",
"associated with email address [email protected], and also registers screen names Spimmer 2 and Spimmer 3 with the same email address, [email protected].",
"Although shown in FIG. 2 as using the same given name (“Spimmer”) for all three screen names, it is understood that, since the given name is not verified, different given names could be used for these registrations.",
"[0027] FIG. 3 illustrates an example of how the registration information might be stored in database 104 .",
"The information illustrated in FIG. 3 is simply a series of fields of a database, whereby the given name, screen name, and email addresses are placed in appropriate fields so that they may be correlated in a relational database as is well known.",
"Thus, for each of the registrations illustrated in FIG. 2 , there are relational database entries entered into and stored in the database 104 .",
"[0028] Also shown in both FIGS. 2 and 3 is an entry location for “Blocked Screen Names.”",
"In a typical registration process, a new user of the system will be unlikely to enter any blocked screen names upon initial registration.",
"Typically, as the user uses the system, they encounter instant messages coming from screen names that are unknown to them and that may be undesirable.",
"Thus, as the user uses the system, they may designate these undesirable instant messages and the screen names associated therewith as screen names that they wish to have blocked.",
"However, the blocked screen name field is illustrated in FIGS. 2 and 3 because there is no reason why, upon initial registration, a user cannot also immediately designate blocked screen names if desired.",
"As shown in examples of FIGS. 2 and 3 , none of the users have blocked screen names at this point.",
"[0029] FIGS. 4 and 5 illustrate an example where two of the users have designated certain screen names as being blocked.",
"Specifically, referring to FIG. 4 , User B has designated “Spimmer 2”",
"as a blocked screen name, and User D has designated “Spimmer 3”",
"as a blocked screen name.",
"This information is stored in the relational database in the appropriate field as shown in FIG. 5 , so that the instant message system knows to block any messages coming from Spimmer 2 that are directed to User B, and any messages that are directed to User D from user name Spimmer 3.",
"[0030] In the example illustrated in the figures, there are a total of eight screen names being used on the system.",
"Obviously in a real system, the number of users would be in the thousands or millions rather than such a small number, but the small number is used herein for purposes of example only.",
"[0031] In the example illustrated in FIGS. 4 and 5 , 12.5% (one out of eight) screen names have blocked messages from Spimmer 2, and 12.5% (one out of eight) screen names have blocked messages from Spimmer 3.",
"[0032] In accordance with the present invention, a threshold number is set which would indicate an acceptable or unacceptable level of blockages with respect to a particular screen name.",
"In other words, the system operator might decide that if 25% or more of users of the system have blocked a particular screen name, this indicates a potential spimmer, and investigative measures can be taken, or even disciplinary action can be taken.",
"If we assume for this example that a threshold level of 25% blockages for a particular screen name must be met before a screen name is considered to be that of a spimmer, then in the example of FIG. 4 , no screen names have yet met that threshold.",
"[0033] By simply tracking the number of screen names that have blocked a particular screen name, and taking some action when a threshold number of users have blocked a particular screen name, the present invention can help identify spimmers and take steps to prevent them from further use of the IM system.",
"[0034] In a preferred embodiment, the power available due to the use of the relational database can be brought to bear to identify a spimmer who is making use of multiple screen names to avoid detection.",
"For example, in the illustration of FIGS. 4 and 5 , as noted above, only 12.5% of the screen names have blocked Spimmer 2 and only 12.5% have blocked Spimmer 3.",
"If either Spimmer 2 or Spimmer 3 are blocked by another user, the 25% threshold is met.",
"However, if, using the relational database in which the registration information is stored, the system operator identifies blockages of any screen names associated with a single email address (rather than blockages associated with a single screen name), the blockage by User B of Spimmer 2, and the blockage by User D of Spimmer 3, will each point to the same email address, [email protected].",
"This will identify that 25% (two out of eight) of the users of the system have blocked instant messages coming from a screen name associated with [email protected].",
"If this is used for the threshold measurement, the system of the present invention will identify all screen names associated with [email protected] as being those of a spimmer, and if desired, all instant messages coming from any screen names associated with [email protected] (including presently unblocked “Spimmer 1”) can be blocked and investigation or punitive measures taken.",
"[0035] The above example is an extremely simplified example used for the purpose of explanation.",
"The above example simply looks for the reaching of a threshold percentage of blockages with respect to an email address, and then based on the meeting of that threshold, identifies all user names associated with the email address as being user names of a spimmer.",
"However, limiting the threshold to a single threshold comprising the cumulative number of blockages may lead to an inaccurate portrayal of a user name as that of a spimmer.",
"Accordingly, multiple thresholds may be combined to provide more resolution in identifying spimmers.",
"For example, a time threshold may be combined with a number-of-blockages threshold so that in order for a user name and/or email address to be associated with a potential spimmer, the blockages must occur within a predetermined time frame or they will not necessarily be used to identify the user name and/or email address as that of a spimmer.",
"In other words, this establishes a “rate of blockage”",
"threshold that must be met.",
"[0036] A system operator could decide that if a predetermined number/percentage of users block a particular screen name within a 10 second (or any desired time interval) window, the screen name being blocked should be flagged as a potential spimmer.",
"Another threshold possibility could be the amount of outbound traffic sent by a particular user name or by user names associated with the same email address.",
"It does not have to be a requirement that a certain number of the outgoing messages be blocked;",
"rather, the sending of a predetermined number of IM's within a predetermined time interval can be considered suspicious activity warranting that the user sending them be monitored for additional potential spimming behavior.",
"If within a predetermined time interval form the mass IMing a certain percentage of the recipients block that user, this can be a threshold that triggers mitigating steps be taken against the user sending the Ims.",
"Numerous other examples of threshold values and threshold combinations will be apparent to a designer of the system.",
"[0037] FIG. 6 is a flowchart illustrating the basic process/method of the present invention.",
"Referring to FIG. 6 , when the process begins, the screen names registered with a particular instant messaging system are monitored for blockage instances.",
"Each time a blockage occurs, a “blockage total”",
"for the particular screen name is incremented.",
"Thus, at step 604 , if a screen name has been blocked, the total blockage count for that screen name is incremented, and then the process proceeds to step 606 to determine if there are any other screen names associated with the email address for that screen name, and if there are any blockages for those other screen names, then those blockage totals are added to the blockage total of the first screen name.",
"At step 608 , a determination is made as to whether or not the blockage threshold has been met.",
"If the blockage threshold has not been met, the process proceeds back to step 602 to monitor for additional screen name blockages.",
"[0038] If, however, at step 608 it is determined that the blockage threshold has been met, then at step 610 , the use of all screen names associated with that email address are suspended.",
"At step 612 , a determination is made as to whether or not a threshold blockage-time has been met.",
"This is simply a predetermined time period for which the screen names will be blocked.",
"This step is optional, and if desired, the screen names can be blocked permanently.",
"However, it is anticipated that at least once the user of the screen names will be given the opportunity to stop sending messages that result in blockages.",
"[0039] If at step 612 , the threshold blockage time has not been met, the process loops around and waits until the blockage time threshold has been met.",
"Once the blockage time threshold has been met, the process proceeds to step 614 , where the screen names are released from suspension.",
"The process then goes back to step 602 where the screen names are monitored for blockages.",
"[0040] Numerous options are available with respect to the steps illustrated in FIG. 6 .",
"For example, it is not required that, at step 606 , other user screen names be identified;",
"if a certain number of blockages are identified for a single screen name, the suspension can occur without correlating that screen name to other screen names via the email address.",
"[0041] A “leaky bucket”",
"approach may also be utilized.",
"For example, once a threshold is set (e.g., a total number of blockages), a counter is set to correspond to the threshold number and is decremented each time a blockage occurs.",
"Once the counter reaches zero (i.e., the “bucket”",
"is empty), it can be assumed that a spimmer (or a person sending unwanted messages) is using the user name.",
"If desired, time can be factored in, by, for example, incrementing the counter by one count after a period of time has elapsed without a blockage.",
"[0042] Further, if desired, at step 614 , when the threshold blockage time has been met and the suspension is released, if desired, the suspension period can be released for a predetermined trial period.",
"If that trial period elapses without further blockages, the user can, for example, have their screen names unsuspended;",
"however, if additional screen name blockages occur before the trial period ends, the screen names can be blocked permanently, or for an additional trial period or for additional trial periods.",
"[0043] Using the steps of FIG. 6 , the present invention can be implemented.",
"It is understood that the steps in FIG. 6 are illustrated for the purpose of example only.",
"[0044] In a preferred embodiment, spimmers can be automatically warned and/or disciplined.",
"In other words, upon reaching a predetermined threshold, the system may block all IMs associated with the offending email address.",
"A first “offense”",
"might result in a one-hour blockage, a second offense might result in a 10-hour suspension, etc.",
"Any disciplining pattern may be utilized and fall within the scope of the present invention.",
"An IM company may block a suspected spimmer for a finite time period, then remove the block to determine whether the behavior persists.",
"In the case of persistent spimmer behavior, the IM company could then reapply the block for a longer time period.",
"This policy may avoid mistaken permanent blocking that may cause administrative difficulties.",
"[0045] This approach gives the advantage of allowing an IM company to block an unwanted person on their network.",
"This is much preferable to the current solution of everyone on the network blocking the unwanted person on an individual basis.",
"[0046] Use of the present invention also gives rise to a method for confirming the identification of a spimmer.",
"Spammers send bulk email from an address, frequently from a robotic, non-human sender (known as a “bot”), and never check or respond to any replies.",
"Spimmers also use the same method, that is, they send numerous robotically created IMs without replying to any replies that are returned.",
"They don't want to deal with the hundreds of messages saying “go away”",
"or “leave me alone”",
"or “who are you?”",
"Therefore, all incoming messages are ignored by a spimmer.",
"[0047] This fact can be used to confirm that a suspected spimmer is indeed a spimmer.",
"Once an IM is received by a receiving party, a random word can be automatically sent back to the sending screen name, transparently to the receiving party, if desired.",
"This word is followed with a request to repeat the word in a reply IM to ensure spimming is not occurring.",
"A spimmer and/or spimming but will not view the return IM and will not respond with verification.",
"It is then known that the IM is an illegitimate IM and the screen name can be added to the block list.",
"[0048] The above-described steps can be implemented using standard well-known programming techniques.",
"The novelty of the above-described embodiment lies not in the specific programming techniques but in the use of the steps described to achieve the described results.",
"Software programming code which embodies the present invention is typically stored in permanent storage of some type, such as permanent storage of a device on which an IM client is running.",
"In a client/server environment, such software programming code may be stored with storage associated with a server.",
"The software programming code may be embodied on any of a variety of known media for use with a data processing system, such as a diskette, or hard drive, or CD-ROM.",
"The code may be distributed on such media, or may be distributed to users from the memory or storage of one computer system over a network of some type to other computer systems for use by users of such other systems.",
"The techniques and methods for embodying software program code on physical media and/or distributing software code via networks are well known and will not be further discussed herein.",
"[0049] It will be understood that each element of the illustrations, and combinations of elements in the illustrations, can be implemented by general and/or special purpose hardware-based systems that perform the specified functions or steps, or by combinations of general and/or special-purpose hardware and computer instructions.",
"[0050] These program instructions may be provided to a processor to produce a machine, such that the instructions that execute on the processor create means for implementing the functions specified in the illustrations.",
"The computer program instructions may be executed by a processor to cause a series of operational steps to be performed by the processor to produce a computer-implemented process such that the instructions that execute on the processor provide steps for implementing the functions specified in the illustrations.",
"Accordingly, the figures support combinations of means for performing the specified functions, combinations of steps for performing the specified functions, and program instruction means for performing the specified functions.",
"[0051] While there has been described herein the principles of the invention, it is to be understood by those skilled in the art that this description is made only by way of example and not as a limitation to the scope of the invention.",
"Accordingly, it is intended by the appended claims, to cover all modifications of the invention which fall within the true spirit and scope of the invention."
] |
[0001] This is a divisional of application Ser. No. 11/190,081 filed Jul. 25, 2005, currently pending.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0002] This invention relates to agents for the processing of synthetic fibers and methods of processing synthetic fibers.
[0003] The production speed of synthetic fibers is increasing rapidly in recent years. At the same time, there is a tendency to increase the production of new kinds of synthetic fibers such as low denier synthetic fibers, high multifilament synthetic fibers and modified cross-section synthetic fibers. If synthetic fibers of such new types are produced at a higher speed, their friction increases with the yarn passing, guides, rollers and heater. This causes an increase in the friction-charged electrostatic potential, resulting in low cohesion and unwanted tension variations of synthetic fibers, and the problems of fluffs and yarn breaking tend to occur. The present invention relates to agents for and methods of processing synthetic fibers capable of sufficiently preventing the occurrence of fluffs and yarn breaking as well as dyeing specks even when synthetic fibers of the aforementioned new kinds are produced at an increased production rate.
[0004] Examples of prior art processing agent for synthetic fibers for preventing the occurrence of fluffs and yarn breaking at the time of their high rate of production include (1) processing agents for synthetic fibers containing polyether compounds with molecular weight of 1000-20000, having dialkylamine with random or block addition of alkylene oxide with 2-4 carbon atoms (such as disclosed in Japanese Patent Publication Tokkai 6-228885); (2) processing agents for synthetic fibers containing branched-chain polypropylene glycol having 4 or more branched chains (such as disclosed in Japanese Patent Publication Tokkai 10-273876); (3) processing agents for synthetic fibers containing a polyether lubricant having 10-50 weight % of polyether block of number average molecular weight of 1000-10000 with block copolymerization of ethylene oxide and propylene oxide at weight ratio of 80/20-20/80 (such as disclosed in Japanese Patent Publication Tokkai 2001-146683); and (4) processing agents for synthetic fibers containing polyoxyalkylene glycol with number average molecular weight of 5000-7000 with copolymerization of ethylene oxide and propylene oxide at weight ratio of 40/60-20/80, monocarboxylic acid with 8-14 carbon atoms and alkylamine salt with 6-14 carbon atoms or quaternary ammonium salt (such as disclosed in Japanese Patent Publication Tokkai 10-245729).
[0005] These prior art processing agents are not sufficiently capable of preventing the occurrence of fluffs, yarn breaking and dyeing specks when synthetic fibers are produced at a fast rate and in particular when synthetic fibers of the aforementioned new kinds are produced at a fast rate.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0006] It is therefore an object of this invention to provide a processing agent and a process method capable of sufficiently prevent the occurrence of fluffs, yarn breaking and dyeing specks even when new kinds of synthetic fibers such as low denier synthetic fibers, high multifilament fibers and modified cross-section synthetic fibers are produced at a fast rate
[0007] The present invention is based on the discovery by the present inventor, as a result of his studies in view of the object described above, that a processing agent containing hydroxy compound of a specified kind at least as a part of functional improvement agent at a specified rate should be applied to the synthetic fibers.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
[0008] The invention firstly relates to a processing agent for synthetic fibers characterized as containing a lubricant and a functional improvement agent and containing hydroxy compound as described below in an amount of 1-30 weight % at least as a part of the functional improvement agent. The invention secondly relates to a processing method for synthetic fibers characterized as comprising the step of applying a processing agent of this invention to synthetic fibers so as to be 0.1-3 weight % with respect to the synthetic fibers. In the above, hydroxy compound is one or more selected from the group consisting of compounds shown by Formula 1 and the group consisting of compounds shown by Formula 2 where Formula 1 is:
[0000]
and Formula 2 is:
[0009]
[0000] where R 1 , R 2 , R 3 and R 4 are each hydrogen atom or aliphatic hydrocarbon group with 1-12 carbon atoms (only two or less of them being hydrogen atom at the same time); R 7 , R 8 , R 9 and R 10 are each hydrogen atom or aliphatic hydrocarbon group with 1-12 carbon atoms (only two or less of them being hydrogen atom at the same time); R 5 , R 6 , R 11 and R 12 are each hydrogen atom, methyl group or acyl group with 1-3 carbon atoms; and A 1 and A 2 are each residual group obtainable by removing hydrogen atoms from all hydroxyl groups of (poly)alkyleneglycol having (poly)oxyalkylene group formed with a total of 1-30 oxyalkylene units with 2-4 carbon atoms.
[0010] Processing agents for synthetic fibers according to this invention (hereinafter referred to simply as processing agents of this invention) will be described first.
[0011] Processing agents of this invention are characterized as containing a lubricant and a functional improvement agent and containing hydroxy compound of a specified kind at least as a part of the functional improvement agent.
[0012] What is herein referred to as hydroxy compound of a specified kind is one or more selected from the group consisting of compounds shown by Formula 1 and the group consisting of compounds shown by Formula 2.
[0013] Regarding Formula 1, R 1 , R 2 , R 3 and R 4 are each hydrogen atom or aliphatic hydrocarbon group with 1-12 carbon atoms but only two or less of them may be both hydrogen atom. Thus, there are (1) examples where two of them are each aliphatic hydrocarbon group with 1-12 carbon atoms, the remaining two being each hydrogen atom; (2) examples where three of them are each aliphatic hydrocarbon group with 1-12 carbon atoms, the remaining one being hydrogen atom; and (3) examples where each of them is aliphatic hydrocarbon group with 1-12 carbon atoms. Among these examples, the examples in (1) are preferred. Examples of aliphatic hydrocarbon group with 1-12 carbon atoms in (1)-(3) include methyl group, ethyl group, butyl group, hexyl group, heptyl group, octyl group, nonyl group, decyl group, undecyl group, dodecyl group, isopropyl group, t-butyl group, isobutyl group, 2-methylpentyl group, 2-ethyl-hexyl group, 2-propyl-heptyl group, 2-butyl-octyl group, vinyl group, allyl group, hexenyl group and 10-undecenyl group. Among these, aliphatic hydrocarbon groups with 1-6 carbon atoms are preferable and those for which the total number of carbon atoms for R 1 -R 4 is 2-14 are particularly preferable. R 5 and R 6 are each (1) hydrogen atom, (2) methyl group or (3) acyl group with 1-3 carbon atoms such as formyl group, acetyl group or propyonyl group. Among these, however, hydrogen atom is preferred.
[0014] The hydroxy compounds shown by Formula 1 themselves can be synthesized by a conventional method such as disclosed in Japanese Patent Publication Tokkai 2002-356451.
[0015] Regarding compounds shown by Formula 2, R 7 -R 10 are the same as described above regarding R 1 -R 4 , and R 11 and R 12 are the same as described above regarding R 5 and R 6 . A 1 and A 2 are each residual group obtainable by removing hydrogen atoms from all hydroxyl groups of (poly)alkyleneglycol having (poly)oxyalkylene group formed with a total of 1-30 oxyalkylene units with 2-4 carbon atoms. Examples of what A 1 and A 2 may each be include (1) residual groups obtainable by removing hydrogen atoms from all hydroxyl groups of alkyleneglycol having oxyalkylene unit formed with one oxyalkylene unit with 2-4 carbon atoms and (2) residual groups obtainable by removing hydrogen atoms from all hydroxyl groups of polyalkyleneglycol having polyoxyalkylene group formed with a total of 2-30 oxyalkylene units with 2-4 carbon atoms, and examples of oxyalkylene unit with 2-4 carbon atoms forming such polyoxyalkylene group include oxyethylene unit, oxypropylene unit and oxybutylene unit. Among these, residual group obtainable by removing hydrogen atoms from all hydroxyl groups of ethyleneglycol, residual group obtainable by removing hydrogen atoms from all hydroxyl groups of propyleneglycol and residual group obtainable by removing hydrogen atoms from all hydroxyl groups of polyalkyleneglycol having polyoxyalkylene group formed with a total of 2-12 oxyethylene units and oxypropylene units are preferable. If the polyalkylene group is formed with two or more different oxyalkylene units, their connection may be random connection, block connection or random-block connection.
[0016] The hydroxy compounds shown by Formula 2, as explained above, themselves can be synthesized by a conventional method such as disclosed in Japanese Patent Publication Tokkai 3-163038.
[0017] Processing agents of this invention are characterized as containing a lubricant and a functional improvement agent and containing one or more of hydroxy compounds selected from the group of compounds shown by Formula 1 and the group of compounds shown by Formula 2 as described above in an amount of 1-30 weight % at least as a part of the functional improvement agent but those containing such hydroxy compounds in an amount of 2-25 weight % are preferable and those containing such hydroxy compounds in an amount of 5-20 weight % are even more preferable.
[0018] Processing agents of this invention may contain functional improvement agents other than the hydroxy compounds shown by Formula 1 and Formula 2. Examples of such other functional improvement agent include those conventionally known kinds such as (1) antistatic agents including anionic surfactants such as organic sulfonic acid salts and organic aliphanic acid salts, cationic surfactants such as lauryl trimethyl ammonium sulfate, and ampholytic surfactants such as octyl dimethyl ammonioacetate; (2) oiliness improvement agents such as organic phosphoric acid salts and aliphatic acid salts; (3) penetration improvement agents such as polyether modified silicone having polydimethyl siloxane chain with average molecular weight of 1500-3000 as main chain and polyoxyalkylene chain with average molecular weight of 700-5000 as side chain and surfactant having perfluoroalkyl group; (4) cohesion improvement agents such as polyetherpolyesters; (5) extreme-pressure additives such as organic titanium compounds and organic phosphor compounds; (6) antioxidants such as phenol antioxidants, phosphite antioxidants and thioether antioxidants; and (7) antirust agents.
[0019] When a processing agent of this invention contains such other functional improvement agents, their content should preferably be 0.2-15 weight % and more preferably 1-12 weight %.
[0020] Processing agents of this invention contain a lubricant and a functional improvement agent as explained above. Examples of such lubricant include conventionally known kinds such as (1) polyether compounds; (2) aliphatic ester compounds; (3) aromatic ester compounds; (4) (poly)etherester compounds; (5) mineral oils; and (6) silicone oils.
[0021] Examples of aforementioned polyether compound include polyether monool, polyether diol and polyether triol, all having polyoxyalkylene group in the molecule. Among these, however, polyether compounds with average molecular weight of 700-10000 are preferred and polyether compounds with average molecular weight of 700-10000 with monohydric-trihydric hydroxy compound with 1-18 carbon atoms having block or random attachment of alkylene oxide with 2-4 carbon atoms are particularly preferable.
[0022] Examples of aforementioned aliphatic ester compound include (1) ester compounds obtainable by esterification of aliphatic monohydric alcohol and aliphatic monocarboxylic acid such as butyl stearate, octyl stearate, oleyl stearate, oleyl oleate and isopentacosanyl isostearate; (2) ester compounds obtainable by esterification of aliphatic polyhydric alcohol and aliphatic monocarboxylic acid such as 1,6-hexanediol didecanoate and trimethylol propane monooleate monolaurate; and (3) ester compounds obtainable by esterification of aliphatic monohydric alcohol and aliphatic polycarboxylic acid such as dilauryl adipate and dioleyl azelate. Among these, however, aliphatic ester compounds with 17-60 carbon atoms are preferable and aliphatic ester compounds with 17-60 carbon atoms obtainable by esterification of aliphatic monohydric alcohol and aliphatic monocarboxylic acid or aliphatic polyhydric alcohol and aliphatic monocarboxylic acid are particularly preferable.
[0023] Examples of aforementioned aromatic ester compound include (1) ester compounds obtainable by esterification of aromatic alcohol and aliphatic monocarboxylic acid such as benzyl stearate and benzyl laureate; and (2) ester compounds obtainable by esterification of aliphatic monohydric alcohol and aromatic carboxylic acid such as diisostearyl isophthalate and trioctyl trimellitate. Among these, however, ester compounds obtainable by esterification of aliphatic monohydric alcohol and aromatic carboxylic acid are preferable.
[0024] Examples of aforementioned (poly)etherester compound include (1) (poly)etherester compounds obtainable by esterification of (poly)ether compound obtainable by adding alkylene oxide with 2-4 carbon atoms to monohydric-trihydric aliphatic alcohol with 4-26 carbon atoms and aliphatic carboxylic acid with 4-26 carbon atoms; (2) (poly)etherester compounds obtainable by esterification of (poly)ether compound obtainable by adding alkylene oxide with 2-4 carbon atoms to monohydric-trihydric aromatic alcohol and aliphatic carboxylic acid with 4-26 carbon atoms; and (3) (poly)etherester compounds obtainable by esterification of (poly)ether compound obtainable by adding alkylene oxide with 2-4 carbon atoms to aliphatic alcohol with 4-26 carbon atoms and aromatic carboxylic acid.
[0025] Examples of aforementioned mineral oil include mineral oils of various kinds having different viscosity values. Among these, however, those with viscosity 1×10 −6 -1.3×10 −1 m 2 /s at 30° C. are preferable and those with viscosity 1×10 −6 -5×10 m 2 /s are even more preferable. Examples of such preferable mineral oil include fluid paraffin oil.
[0026] Examples of aforementioned silicone oil include silicone oils of various kinds having different viscosity values. Among these, however, linear polyorganosiloxane with viscosity 1×10 −3 -1 m 2 /s at 30° C. is preferable. Examples of such linear polyorganosiloxane include linear polydimethylsiloxane without substituent and linear polydimethylsiloxane with substituent, all with viscosity 1×10 −3 -1 m 2 /s at 30° C. Examples of substituent in these cases include ethyl group, phenyl group, fluoropropyl group, aminopropyl group, carboxyoctyl group, polyoxyethylene oxypropyl group and ω-methoxy polyethoxypolypropoxy propyl group. Among these, linear polydimethylsiloxane without substituent is preferable.
[0027] Among processing agents of this invention, those containing a lubricant as described above in an amount of 50-90 weight % and a functional improvement agent as described above in an amount of 1-30 weight % are preferable. Those further containing a hydroxy compound shown by Formula 1 or Formula 2 as described above in an amount of 1-30 weight % as the functional improvement agent are even more preferable.
[0028] Processing agents of this invention may further contain an emulsifier. An emulsifier of a known kind may be used. Examples of emulsifier of a known kind that may be used for the purpose of this invention include (1) nonionic surfactants having polyoxyalkylene group in the molecule such as polyoxyalkylene alkylethers, polyoxyalkylene alkylphenylethers, polyoxyalkylene alkylesters, alkylene oxide adducts of castor oil and polyoxyalkylene alkylaminoethers; (2) partial esters of polyhydric alcohol type nonionic surfactants such as sorbitan monolaurate, sorbitan trioleate, glycerol monolaurate and diglycerol dilaurate; and (3) partial esters of polyhydric alcohol type nonionic surfactants such as alkylene oxide adducts of partial esters of trihydric-hexahydric alcohol and aliphatic acid and partial or complete esters of alkylene oxide adduct of trihydric-hexahydric alcohol and aliphatic acid. Among these, however, polyoxyalkylenealkylethers having polyoxyalkylene group with 3-10 oxyethylene units and alkyl group with 8-18 carbon atoms in the molecule are preferable.
[0029] If processing agents of this invention contain an emulsifier as described above, it is preferable that such an emulsifier be contained in an amount of 2-30 weight %.
[0030] Among the processing agents of this invention containing an emulsifier, those containing a lubricant in an amount of 50-90 weight %, a functional improvement agent in an amount of 1-30 weight % and an emulsifier in an amount of 2-30 weight % (with a total of 100 weight %) are preferable. Those containing a hydroxy compound shown by Formula 1 or Formula 2 as described above in an amount of 3-25 weight % at least as a part of this functional improvement agent are even more preferable.
[0031] Next, the method according to this invention for processing synthetic fibers (hereinafter referred to simply as the method of this invention) is explained. The method of this invention is a method of applying a processing agent of this invention as described above at a rate of 0.1-3 weight % and more preferably 0.3-1.2 weight % of the synthetic fibers to be processed. The fabrication step during which a processing agent of this invention is to be applied to the synthetic fibers may be the spinning step or the step during which spinning and drawing are carried out simultaneously. Examples of the method of causing a processing agent of this invention to be attached to the synthetic fibers include the roller oiling method, the guide oiling method using a measuring pump, the emersion oiling method and the spray oiling method. The form in which a processing agent of this invention may be applied to synthetic fibers may be as a neat, as an organic solution or as an aqueous solution but the form as an aqueous solution is preferable. When an aqueous solution of a processing agent of this invention is applied, it is preferable to apply the solution at a rate of 0.1-3 weight % and more preferably 0.3-1.2 weight % as the processing agent with respect to the synthetic fiber.
[0032] Examples of synthetic fibers that may be processed by a method of this invention include (1) polyester fibers such as polyethylene terephthalate, polypropylene terephthalate and polylactic ester fibers; (2) polyamide fibers such as nylon 6 and nylon 66; (3) polyacryl fibers such as polyacrylic and modacrylic fibers; (4) polyolefin fibers such as polyethylene and polypropylene fibers and polyurethane fibers. The present invention is particularly effective, however, when applied to polyester fibers and polyamide fibers.
[0033] The invention is described next by way of test examples but it goes without saying that these examples are not intended to limit the scope of the invention. In what follows, “part” will mean “weight part” and “%” will mean “weight %” unless otherwise specified.
Part 1 (Preparation of Hydroxy Compounds)
Preparation of Hydroxy Compound (A-1)
[0034] Potassium hydroxide powder (purity 95%) 47.5 g and naphthen solvent (range of boiling point 210-230° C., specific weight 0.79) 400 g were placed inside a 1-liter autoclave and methylethyl ketone 50 g was further added after acetylene was introduced to the gauge pressure of 0.02 MPa. A reaction mixture was obtained after temperature was kept at 25° C. for 2 hours. This reaction mixture 500 g was transferred into a separation funnel and after it was washed with water to remove the potassium hydroxide, an organic phase was separated. After hydrochloric acid with concentration of 0.1 mol/L was added to this organic phase to neutralize the remaining potassium hydroxide, an organic phase 456 g containing 3,6-dimethyl-4-octine-3,6-diol was separated. This organic phase 456 g was taken inside a separation funnel, dimethyl sulfoxide 90 g was added, and it was left stationary after shaken. The lower layer 151 g formed by layer separation was collected, the naphthen solvent 363 g was added, and it was left stationary after shaken. The lower layer 140 g formed by layer separation was collected and distilled at a reduced pressure to obtain 3,6-dimethyl-4-octyne-3,6-diol as hydroxy compound (A-1).
[0000] Preparation of Hydroxy Compounds (A-2)-(A-12) and (a-1)
[0035] Hydroxy compounds (A-2)-(A-12) and (a-1) were prepared similarly as hydroxy compound (A-1) explained above.
Preparation of Hydroxy Compound (A-15)
[0036] Hydroxy compound (A-1) as described above 170 g (1 mole) and boron trifluoride diethyl ether 5 g were placed inside an autoclave and after the interior of the autoclave was replaced with nitrogen gas, a mixture of ethylene oxide 352 g (8 moles) and propylene oxide 464 g (8 moles) was pressured in under a pressured and heated condition at 60-70° C. for a reaction. A reaction product was obtained after an hour of ageing reaction. This reaction product was analyzed and found to be hydroxy compound (A-15) according to Formula 2 wherein R 7 and R 10 are each methyl group, R 8 and R 9 are each ethyl group, R 11 and R 12 are each hydrogen atom, and A 1 and A 2 are each residual group obtainable by removing hydrogen atoms from all hydroxyl groups of polyalkyleneglycol having polyoxyalkylene group formed with a total of 8 oxyethylene units and oxypropylene units.
[0000] Preparation of Hydroxy Compounds (A-16)-(A-20) and (a-2)
[0037] Hydroxy compounds (A-16)-(A-20) and (a-2) were prepared similarly as hydroxy compound (A-15) explained above.
Preparation of Hydroxy Compound (A-21)
[0038] Hydroxy compound 694 g (1 mole) obtained by adding 10 moles of ethylene oxide to 1 mole of 2,2,7,7-tetramethyl-3,6-diethyl-4-octine-3,6-diol and 48% aqueous solution of potassium hydroxide 14.5 g were placed inside an autoclave and dehydrated with stirring at 70-100° C. under a reduced pressure condition. After an etherifecation reaction was carried out by maintaining the reaction temperature at 100-120° C. and pressuring in methyl chloride 106 g (2.1 moles) until the lowering of pressure inside the autoclave became unnoticeable, a reaction product 765 g was obtained by filtering away the potassium chloride obtained as by-product. This reaction product was analyzed and found to be hydroxy compound (A-21) according to Formula 2 wherein R 7 and R 10 are each ethyl group, R 8 and R 9 are each t-butyl group, R 11 and R 12 are each methyl group, and A 1 and A 2 are each residual group obtainable by removing hydrogen atoms from all hydroxyl groups of polyalkyleneglycol having polyoxyethylene group formed with a total of 5 oxyethylene units.
[0000] Preparation of Hydroxy Compounds (A-14) and (a-3)
[0039] Hydroxy compounds (A-14) and (a-3) were prepared similarly as hydroxy compound (A-21) explained above.
Preparation of Hydroxy Compound (A-22)
[0040] Hydroxy compound 1420 g (1 mole) obtained by adding 8 moles of ethylene oxide and 14 moles of propylene oxide to 1 mole of 2,9-dimethyl-4,7-diethyl-5-decyne-4,7-diol, glacial acetic acid 144 g (2.4 moles) and concentrated sulfuric acid 12 g were placed inside a flask for an esterification reaction with stirring by maintaining the reaction temperature at 100-110° C. and dehydrating under a reduced pressure condition. After the reaction was completed, it was cooled and the concentrated sulfuric acid and the non-reacted acetic acid were neutralized with 48% potassium hydroxide 70 g and the generated water was distilled away under a reduced pressure condition. A reaction product 1420 g was obtained by filtering away organic salts obtained as by-products. This reaction product was analyzed and found to be hydroxy compound (A-22) according to Formula 2 wherein R 7 and R 10 are each ethyl group, R 8 and R 9 are each isobutyl group, R 11 and R 12 are each acetyl group, and A 1 and A 2 are each residual group obtainable by removing hydrogen atoms from all hydroxyl groups of polyalkyleneglycol having polyoxyalkylene group formed with a total of 11 oxyethylene units and oxypropylene units.
Preparation of Hydroxy Compound (A-13)
[0041] Hydroxy compound (A-13) was prepared similarly as hydroxy compound (A-21) explained above.
[0042] Details of all these hydroxy compounds obtained above are shown below, those corresponding to Formula 1 being shown in Table 1 and those corresponding to Formula 2 being shown in Table 2.
[0000]
TABLE 1
R 1
R 4
R 2
R 3
*1
R 5
R 6
A-1
Methyl
Methyl
Ethyl
Ethyl
6
Hydrogen
Hydrogen
group
group
group
group
atom
atom
A-2
Hydrogen
Hydrogen
Methyl
Methyl
2
Hydrogen
Hydrogen
atom
atom
group
group
atom
atom
A-3
Ethyl
Ethyl
Ethyl
Ethyl
8
Hydrogen
Hydrogen
group
group
group
group
atom
atom
A-4
Methyl
Methyl
n-propyl
n-propyl
8
Hydrogen
Hydrogen
group
group
group
group
atom
atom
A-5
Methyl
Methyl
Isopropyl
Isopropyl
8
Hydrogen
Hydrogen
group
group
group
group
atom
atom
A-6
Methyl
Methyl
n-butyl
n-butyl
10
Hydrogen
Hydrogen
group
group
group
group
atom
atom
A-7
Methyl
Methyl
Isobutyl
Isobutyl
10
Hydrogen
Hydrogen
group
group
group
group
atom
atom
A-8
Hydrogen
Hydrogen
n-pentyl
n-pentyl
10
Hydrogen
Hydrogen
atom
atom
group
group
atom
atom
A-9
Hydrogen
Hydrogen
n-hexyl
n-hexyl
12
Hydrogen
Hydrogen
atom
atom
group
group
atom
atom
A-10
Methyl
Methyl
t-butyl
t-butyl
12
Hydrogen
Hydrogen
group
group
group
group
atom
atom
A-11
Methyl
Methyl
Isopentyl
Isopentyl
12
Hydrogen
Hydrogen
group
group
group
group
atom
atom
A-12
Lauryl
Lauryl
Isobutyl
Isobutyl
32
Hydrogen
Hydrogen
group
group
group
group
atom
atom
A-13
Ethyl
Ethyl
Isopentyl
Isopentyl
14
Acetyl
Acetyl
group
group
group
group
group
group
A-14
Ethyl
Ethyl
Isopentyl
Isopentyl
14
Methyl
Methyl
group
group
group
group
group
group
a-1
Methyl
Methyl
Octa-
Octa-
38
Hydrogen
Hydrogen
group
group
decenyl
decenyl
atom
atom
group
group
In Table 1:
*1: Sum of carbon atom numbers of R 1 -R 4
[0000]
TABLE 2
A 1
A 2
R 7
R 10
R 8
R 9
*2
*3
*3
R 11
R 12
A-15
MG
MG
EG
EG
6
EO/4
EO/4
HA
HA
PO/4
PO/4
A-16
MG
MG
IPG
IPG
8
EO/2
EO/2
HA
HA
PO/2
PO/2
A-17
MG
MG
IBG
IBG
10
EO/7
EO/7
HA
HA
A-18
MG
MG
IPNG
IPNG
12
EO/15
EO/15
HA
HA
PO/5
PO/5
A-19
MG
MG
EG
EG
6
EO/1
EO/1
HA
HA
A-20
HA
HA
EG
EG
4
EO/25
EO/25
HA
HA
A-21
EG
EG
tBG
tBG
12
EO/5
EO/5
MG
MG
A-22
EG
EG
IBG
IBG
12
EO/4
EO/4
AG
AG
BO/7
BO/7
a-2
MG
MG
IPG
IPG
6
EO/20
EO/20
HA
HA
PO/20
PO/20
a-3
EG
EG
IPG
IPG
6
EO/5
EO/5
BG
BG
In Table 2:
*2: Sum of carbon atom numbers of R 7 -R 10
*3: Kind/Repetition number of oxyalkylene units
EO: Oxyethylene unit
PO: Oxypropylene unit
BO: Oxytetramethylene unit
HA: Hydrogen atom
MG: Methyl group
EG: Ethyl group
IPG: Isopropyl group
IPNG: Isopentyl group
IBG: Isobutyl group
tBG: t-butyl group
AG: Acetyl group
BG: Butyl group
Part 2
TEST EXAMPLE 1
Preparation of Processing Agent (P-1)
[0043] Processing agent (P-1) of Test Example 1 for synthetic fibers was prepared by uniformly mixing together 75 parts of lubricant (B-1) described below, 7 parts of hydroxy compound (A-1) shown in Table 1 as functional improvement agent, 10 parts of another functional improvement agent (C-1) described below, 1 part of still another functional improvement agent (E-1) described below and 7 parts of emulsifier (D-1) described below.
[0044] Lubricant (B-1): Mixture at weight ratio of 11/14/29/46 of dodecyl dodecanate, ester of α-butyl-ω-hydroxy (polyoxyethylene) (n=3) and dodecanoic acid, polyether monool with number average molecular weight of 3000 obtained by random addition of ethylene oxide and propylene oxide at weight ratio of 50/50 to butyl alcohol, and polyether monool with number average molecular weight of 1000 obtained by block addition of ethylene oxide and propylene oxide at weight ratio of 40/60 to butyl alcohol.
[0045] Functional improvement agent (C-1): Mixture at weight ratio 50/50 of potassium octadecenate and potassium decanesulfonate.
[0046] Functional improvement agent (E-1): Octyl diphenyl phosphite (antioxidant).
[0047] Emulsifier (D-1): Glycerol monolaurate.
TEST EXAMPLES 2-23 AND COMPARISON EXAMPLES 1-5
Preparation of Processing Agents (P-2)—(P-23) and (R-1)-(R-5)
[0048] Processing agents (P-2)-(P-23) and (R-1)-(R-5) of Test Examples 2-23 and Comparison Examples 1-5 for synthetic fibers were prepared similarly as processing agent (P-1) described above.
[0049] Details of these processing agents are summarized in Table 3.
[0000]
TABLE 3
Functional
improvement agents
Hydroxy
Lubricant
compound
Others
Emulsifier
Kind
Kind
Ratio
Kind
Ratio
Kind
Ratio
Kind
Ratio
Test
Exam-
ples
1
P-1
B-1
75
A-1
7
C-1
10
D-1
7
E-1
1
2
P-2
B-1
65
A-2
12
C-2
9
D-2
14
3
P-3
B-1
55
A-3
18
C-1
9
D-3
18
4
P-4
B-2
65
A-4
7
C-1
13
D-2
14
E-2
1
5
P-5
B-2
55
A-5
12
C-2
15
D-3
18
6
P-6
B-3
75
A-6
7
C-1
11
D-1
7
7
P-7
B-3
65
A-7
7
C-2
11
D-3
16
E-3
1
8
P-8
B-4
65
A-8
12
C-3
7
D-3
16
9
P-9
B-1
65
A-9
18
C-1
3
D-2
14
10
P-10
B-2
65
A-10
7
C-2
11
D-3
16
E-3
1
11
P-11
B-1
65
A-11
12
C-4
9
D-2
14
12
P-12
B-2
80
A-12
3
C-5
5
D-2
12
13
P-13
B-1
54
A-13
26
C-6
5
D-3
15
14
P-14
B-1
65
A-14
7
C-1
12
D-3
16
15
P-15
B-1
75
A-15
7
C-1
11
D-1
7
16
P-16
B-2
65
A-16
12
C-2
8
D-2
14
E-1
1
17
P-17
B-2
55
A-17
18
C-1
9
D-3
18
18
P-18
B-3
65
A-18
12
C-1
9
D-2
14
19
P-19
B-4
65
A-18
12
C-2
8
D-2
14
E-3
1
20
P-20
B-1
65
A-19
12
C-1
9
D-2
14
21
P-21
B-2
80
A-20
2
C-5
6
D-1
12
22
P-22
B-5
54
A-21
28
C-6
3
D-3
15
23
P-23
B-2
65
A-22
10
C-5
11
D-2
14
Com-
parison
Exam-
ples
1
R-1
B-2
65
a-1
18
C-3
3
D-2
14
2
R-2
B-2
65
a-2
18
C-3
3
D-2
14
3
R-3
B-2
65
a-3
18
C-3
3
D-2
14
4
R-4
B-2
70
A-14
0.5
C-3
14.5
D-2
15
5
R-5
B-2
54
A-14
33
C-3
7
D-2
6
In Table 3:
Ratio: Weight part;
B-1: Mixture of dodecyl dodecanate, ester of α-butyl-ω-hydroxy (polyoxyethylene) (n = 3) and dodecanoic acid, polyether monool with number average molecular weight of 3000 obtained by random addition of ethylene oxide and propylene oxide at weight ratio of 50/50 to butyl alcohol, and polyether monool with number average molecular weight of 1000 obtained by block addition of ethylene oxide and propylene oxide at weight ratio of 40/60 to butyl alcohol at weight ratio of 11/14/29/46;
B-2: Mixture of lauryl octanate, polyether monool with number average molecular weight of 3000 obtained by random addition of ethylene oxide and propylene oxide at weight ratio of 65/35 to butyl alcohol, and polyether monool with number average molecular weight of 2500 obtained by random addition of ethylene oxide and propylene oxide at weight ratio of 40/60 to butyl alcohol at weight ratio of 30/20/50;
B-3: Mixture of polyether monool with number average molecular weight of 10000 obtained by random addition of ethylene oxide and propylene oxide at weight ratio of 50/50 to butyl alcohol, polyether monool with number average molecular weight of 2500 obtained by random addition of ethylene oxide and propylene oxide at weight ratio of 50/50 to lauryl alcohol, and polyether monool with number average molecular weight of 1000 obtained by block addition of ethylene oxide a nd propylene oxide at weight ratio of 45/55 to octyl alcohol at weight ratio of 30/50/20;
B-4: Mixture of lauryl octanate and mineral oil with viscosity 1.3 × 10 −5 m 2 /s at 30° C. at weight ratio of 67/33;
B-5: Mixture of mineral oil with viscosity 3.0 × 10 −5 m 2 /s at 30° C., lauryl acid ester of α-butyl-ω-hydroxy (polyoxyethylene) (n = 8), and polyether monool with number average molecular weight of 1800 obtained by block addition of ethylene oxide and propylene oxide to butyl alcohol at weight ratio of 24/16/60;
A-1-A-22, a-1-a-3: Hydroxy compounds prepared in Part 1 and described in Tables 1 and 2.
D-1: Glycerol monolaurate;
D-2: α-dodecyl-ω-hydroxy (polyoxyethylene) (n = 7);
D-3: Mixture of castor oil with addition of 20 moles of ethylene oxide and diester of 1 mole of polyethylene glycol with average molecular weight of 600 and 2 moles of lauric acid at weight ratio of 80/20;
C-1: Mixture of potassium octadecenate and potassium decane sulfonate at weight ratio of 50/50;
C-2: Mixture of butyl diethanol amine laurate, sodium octadecyl benzene sulfonate, and potassium phosphoric acid ester of α-lauryl-ω-hydroxy (trioxyethylene) at weight ratio of 50/25/25;
C-3: Mixture of tributyl methyl ammonium diethylphosphate and sodium octadecyl benzene sulfonate at weight ratio of 60/40;
C-4: Mixture of dimethyl lauryl amine oxide and tributylmethyl ammonium diethyl phosphate at weight ratio of 50/50;
C-5: Mixture of tributylmethyl ammonium diethyl phosphate and lauryl trimethyl ammonium ethylsulfate at weight ratio of 60/40;
C-6: Mixture of decyl dimethyl ammonio acetate and N,N-bis(2-carboxyethyl)-octylamine at weight ratio of 50/50;
E-1: Octyl diphenyl phosphite (antioxidant);
E-2: 3,5-di-t-butyl-4-hydroxy-toluene (antioxidant);
E-3: dilauryl-3,3′-thiopropionate (antioxidant).
Part 3 (Attachment of Processing Agents to Synthetic Fibers, False Twisting and Evaluation)
[0050] Each of the processing agents prepared in Part 2 was diluted with water to prepare a 10% aqueous solution. After polyethylene terephthalate chips with intrinsic viscosity of 0.64 and containing titanium oxide by 0.2% were dried by a known method, they were spun at 295° C. by using an extruder. The 10% aqueous solution thus prepared was applied onto the yarns extruded out of the nozzle to be cooled and solidified by a guide oiling method using a measuring pump such that the attached amount of the processing agent became as shown in Table 4. Thereafter, the yarns were collected by means of a guide and wound up at the rate of 3000 m/minute without any drawing by a mechanical means to obtain partially oriented 56 decitex-144 filament yarns as wound cakes of 10 kg.
False Twisting
[0051] The cakes thus obtained as described above were subjected to a false twisting process under the conditions described below by using a false twister of the contact heater type (product name of SDS1200 produced by Teijinseiki Co., Ltd.):
[0000] Fabrication speeds: 800 m/minute and 1200 m/minute; Draw ratio: 1.652; Twisting system: Three-axis disk friction method (with one guide disk on the inlet side, one guide disk on the outlet side and four hard polyurethane disks); Heater on twisting side: Length of 2.5 m with surface temperature of 210° C.; Heater on untwisting side; None; Target number of twisting; 3300T/m.
The false twisting process was carried out under the conditions given above by a continuous operation of 25 days.
Evaluation of Fluffs
[0052] In the aforementioned false twisting process, the number of fluffs per hour was measured by means of a fly counter (produce name of DT-105 produced by Toray Engineering Co., Ltd.) before the false twisted yarns were wound up and evaluated according to the standards as described below:
[0053] A: The measured number of fluffs was zero;
[0054] A-B: The measured number of fluffs was less than 1 (exclusive of zero);
[0055] B: The measured number of fluffs was 1-2;
[0056] C: The measured number of fluffs was 3-9;
[0057] D: The measured number of fluffs was 10 or greater.
[0000] The results of the measurement are shown in Table 4.
Evaluation of Yarn Breaking
[0058] The number of occurrences of yarn breaking during the 25 days of operation in the false twisting process described above was converted into the number per day and such converted numbers were evaluated according to the standards as described below:
[0059] A: The number of occurrence was zero;
[0060] A-B: The number of occurrence was less than 0.5 (exclusive of zero);
[0061] B: The number of occurrence was 0.5 or greater and less than 1;
[0062] C: The number of occurrence was 1 or greater and less than 5;
[0063] D: The number of occurrence was 5 or greater.
[0000] The results are shown in Table 4.
Dyeing Property
[0064] A fabric with diameter of 70 mm and length of 1.2 m was produced from the false-twisted yarns on which fluffs were measured as above by using a knitting machine for tubular fabric. The fabric thus produced was dyed by a high temperature and high pressure dyeing machine by using disperse dyes (product name of Kayalon Polyester Blue-EBL-E produced by Nippon Kayaku Co. Ltd.). The dyed fabrics were washed with water, subjected to a reduction clearing process and dried according to a known routine and were thereafter set on an iron cylinder with diameter 70 mm and length 1 m. An inspection process for visually counting the number of points of densely dyed potion on the fabric surface was repeated five times and the evaluation results thus obtained were converted into the number of points per sheet of fabric. The evaluation was carried out according to the following standards:
[0065] A: There was no densely dyed portion;
[0066] A-B: There was 1 point of densely dyed portion;
[0067] B: There were 2 points of densely dyed portion;
[0068] C: There were 3-6 points of densely dyed portion;
[0069] D: There were 7 or more points of densely dyed portion.
[0000] The results are shown in Table 4.
[0070] This invention, as described above, has the favorable effects of sufficiently preventing the occurrence of fluffs, yarn breaking and dyeing specks even when synthetic fibers of new kinds such as low denier synthetic fibers, high multifilament synthetic fibers and modified cross-section synthetic fibers are being produced at a fast rate.
[0000]
TABLE 4
Processing agent
Rate of
800 m/minute
1200 m/minute
attachment
Yarn
Dyeing
Yarn
Dyeing
Kind
(%)
Fluffs
breaking
property
Fluffs
breaking
property
Test
Example
24
P-1
0.4
A
A
A
A
A
A
25
P-1
0.8
A
A
A
A
A
A
26
P-2
0.6
A
A
A
A
A
A
27
P-2
0.3
A
A
A
A
A
A
28
P-3
0.6
A
A
A
A
A
A
29
P-3
0.8
A
A
A
A
A
A
30
P-4
0.4
A
A
A
A
A
A
31
P-5
0.5
A
A
A
A
A
A
32
P-6
0.4
A
A
A
A
A
A
33
P-7
0.4
A
A
A
A
A
A
34
P-8
0.4
A
A
A
A
A
A
35
P-9
0.4
A
A
A
A-B
A
A
36
P-10
0.4
A
A
A
A
A-B
A
37
P-11
0.4
A
A-B
A
A
A-B
A
38
P-12
0.4
A-B
A
A
A-B
A-B
A-B
39
P-13
0.4
A
A-B
A
A-B
A-B
A-B
40
P-14
0.5
A-B
A
A
A-B
A-B
A-B
41
P-15
0.4
A-B
A-B
A
A
A
A
42
P-16
0.4
A
A
A
A-B
A
A
43
P-17
0.4
A
A
A
A-B
A
A
44
P-18
0.5
A
A
A
A-B
A
A
45
P-19
0.6
A
A
A
A
A
A-B
46
P-20
0.4
A-B
A-B
B
B
A-B
B
47
P-21
0.4
A-B
B
A-B
A-B
B
B
48
P-22
0.4
A-B
B
A-B
B
B
A-B
49
P-23
0.4
A-B
B
A-B
B
B
A-B
Comparison
Example
6
R-1
0.4
D
D
D
C
D
C
7
R-2
0.4
C
C
C
D
D
D
8
R-3
0.4
C
D
C
D
D
C
9
R-4
0.4
C
C
D
D
D
D
10
R-5
0.4
C
C
D
D
D
D | A processing agent for synthetic fibers contains a lubricant, a functional improvement agent and an emulsifier, each containing a specified kinds of components by a specified amount and also by a specified total amount so as to have improved characteristics of preventing occurrence of fluffs, yard breaking and uneven dyeing when applied to synthetic fibers at a specified rate. | Identify the most important aspect in the document and summarize the concept accordingly. | [
"[0001] This is a divisional of application Ser.",
"No. 11/190,081 filed Jul. 25, 2005, currently pending.",
"BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION [0002] This invention relates to agents for the processing of synthetic fibers and methods of processing synthetic fibers.",
"[0003] The production speed of synthetic fibers is increasing rapidly in recent years.",
"At the same time, there is a tendency to increase the production of new kinds of synthetic fibers such as low denier synthetic fibers, high multifilament synthetic fibers and modified cross-section synthetic fibers.",
"If synthetic fibers of such new types are produced at a higher speed, their friction increases with the yarn passing, guides, rollers and heater.",
"This causes an increase in the friction-charged electrostatic potential, resulting in low cohesion and unwanted tension variations of synthetic fibers, and the problems of fluffs and yarn breaking tend to occur.",
"The present invention relates to agents for and methods of processing synthetic fibers capable of sufficiently preventing the occurrence of fluffs and yarn breaking as well as dyeing specks even when synthetic fibers of the aforementioned new kinds are produced at an increased production rate.",
"[0004] Examples of prior art processing agent for synthetic fibers for preventing the occurrence of fluffs and yarn breaking at the time of their high rate of production include (1) processing agents for synthetic fibers containing polyether compounds with molecular weight of 1000-20000, having dialkylamine with random or block addition of alkylene oxide with 2-4 carbon atoms (such as disclosed in Japanese Patent Publication Tokkai 6-228885);",
"(2) processing agents for synthetic fibers containing branched-chain polypropylene glycol having 4 or more branched chains (such as disclosed in Japanese Patent Publication Tokkai 10-273876);",
"(3) processing agents for synthetic fibers containing a polyether lubricant having 10-50 weight % of polyether block of number average molecular weight of 1000-10000 with block copolymerization of ethylene oxide and propylene oxide at weight ratio of 80/20-20/80 (such as disclosed in Japanese Patent Publication Tokkai 2001-146683);",
"and (4) processing agents for synthetic fibers containing polyoxyalkylene glycol with number average molecular weight of 5000-7000 with copolymerization of ethylene oxide and propylene oxide at weight ratio of 40/60-20/80, monocarboxylic acid with 8-14 carbon atoms and alkylamine salt with 6-14 carbon atoms or quaternary ammonium salt (such as disclosed in Japanese Patent Publication Tokkai 10-245729).",
"[0005] These prior art processing agents are not sufficiently capable of preventing the occurrence of fluffs, yarn breaking and dyeing specks when synthetic fibers are produced at a fast rate and in particular when synthetic fibers of the aforementioned new kinds are produced at a fast rate.",
"SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION [0006] It is therefore an object of this invention to provide a processing agent and a process method capable of sufficiently prevent the occurrence of fluffs, yarn breaking and dyeing specks even when new kinds of synthetic fibers such as low denier synthetic fibers, high multifilament fibers and modified cross-section synthetic fibers are produced at a fast rate [0007] The present invention is based on the discovery by the present inventor, as a result of his studies in view of the object described above, that a processing agent containing hydroxy compound of a specified kind at least as a part of functional improvement agent at a specified rate should be applied to the synthetic fibers.",
"DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [0008] The invention firstly relates to a processing agent for synthetic fibers characterized as containing a lubricant and a functional improvement agent and containing hydroxy compound as described below in an amount of 1-30 weight % at least as a part of the functional improvement agent.",
"The invention secondly relates to a processing method for synthetic fibers characterized as comprising the step of applying a processing agent of this invention to synthetic fibers so as to be 0.1-3 weight % with respect to the synthetic fibers.",
"In the above, hydroxy compound is one or more selected from the group consisting of compounds shown by Formula 1 and the group consisting of compounds shown by Formula 2 where Formula 1 is: [0000] and Formula 2 is: [0009] [0000] where R 1 , R 2 , R 3 and R 4 are each hydrogen atom or aliphatic hydrocarbon group with 1-12 carbon atoms (only two or less of them being hydrogen atom at the same time);",
"R 7 , R 8 , R 9 and R 10 are each hydrogen atom or aliphatic hydrocarbon group with 1-12 carbon atoms (only two or less of them being hydrogen atom at the same time);",
"R 5 , R 6 , R 11 and R 12 are each hydrogen atom, methyl group or acyl group with 1-3 carbon atoms;",
"and A 1 and A 2 are each residual group obtainable by removing hydrogen atoms from all hydroxyl groups of (poly)alkyleneglycol having (poly)oxyalkylene group formed with a total of 1-30 oxyalkylene units with 2-4 carbon atoms.",
"[0010] Processing agents for synthetic fibers according to this invention (hereinafter referred to simply as processing agents of this invention) will be described first.",
"[0011] Processing agents of this invention are characterized as containing a lubricant and a functional improvement agent and containing hydroxy compound of a specified kind at least as a part of the functional improvement agent.",
"[0012] What is herein referred to as hydroxy compound of a specified kind is one or more selected from the group consisting of compounds shown by Formula 1 and the group consisting of compounds shown by Formula 2.",
"[0013] Regarding Formula 1, R 1 , R 2 , R 3 and R 4 are each hydrogen atom or aliphatic hydrocarbon group with 1-12 carbon atoms but only two or less of them may be both hydrogen atom.",
"Thus, there are (1) examples where two of them are each aliphatic hydrocarbon group with 1-12 carbon atoms, the remaining two being each hydrogen atom;",
"(2) examples where three of them are each aliphatic hydrocarbon group with 1-12 carbon atoms, the remaining one being hydrogen atom;",
"and (3) examples where each of them is aliphatic hydrocarbon group with 1-12 carbon atoms.",
"Among these examples, the examples in (1) are preferred.",
"Examples of aliphatic hydrocarbon group with 1-12 carbon atoms in (1)-(3) include methyl group, ethyl group, butyl group, hexyl group, heptyl group, octyl group, nonyl group, decyl group, undecyl group, dodecyl group, isopropyl group, t-butyl group, isobutyl group, 2-methylpentyl group, 2-ethyl-hexyl group, 2-propyl-heptyl group, 2-butyl-octyl group, vinyl group, allyl group, hexenyl group and 10-undecenyl group.",
"Among these, aliphatic hydrocarbon groups with 1-6 carbon atoms are preferable and those for which the total number of carbon atoms for R 1 -R 4 is 2-14 are particularly preferable.",
"R 5 and R 6 are each (1) hydrogen atom, (2) methyl group or (3) acyl group with 1-3 carbon atoms such as formyl group, acetyl group or propyonyl group.",
"Among these, however, hydrogen atom is preferred.",
"[0014] The hydroxy compounds shown by Formula 1 themselves can be synthesized by a conventional method such as disclosed in Japanese Patent Publication Tokkai 2002-356451.",
"[0015] Regarding compounds shown by Formula 2, R 7 -R 10 are the same as described above regarding R 1 -R 4 , and R 11 and R 12 are the same as described above regarding R 5 and R 6 .",
"A 1 and A 2 are each residual group obtainable by removing hydrogen atoms from all hydroxyl groups of (poly)alkyleneglycol having (poly)oxyalkylene group formed with a total of 1-30 oxyalkylene units with 2-4 carbon atoms.",
"Examples of what A 1 and A 2 may each be include (1) residual groups obtainable by removing hydrogen atoms from all hydroxyl groups of alkyleneglycol having oxyalkylene unit formed with one oxyalkylene unit with 2-4 carbon atoms and (2) residual groups obtainable by removing hydrogen atoms from all hydroxyl groups of polyalkyleneglycol having polyoxyalkylene group formed with a total of 2-30 oxyalkylene units with 2-4 carbon atoms, and examples of oxyalkylene unit with 2-4 carbon atoms forming such polyoxyalkylene group include oxyethylene unit, oxypropylene unit and oxybutylene unit.",
"Among these, residual group obtainable by removing hydrogen atoms from all hydroxyl groups of ethyleneglycol, residual group obtainable by removing hydrogen atoms from all hydroxyl groups of propyleneglycol and residual group obtainable by removing hydrogen atoms from all hydroxyl groups of polyalkyleneglycol having polyoxyalkylene group formed with a total of 2-12 oxyethylene units and oxypropylene units are preferable.",
"If the polyalkylene group is formed with two or more different oxyalkylene units, their connection may be random connection, block connection or random-block connection.",
"[0016] The hydroxy compounds shown by Formula 2, as explained above, themselves can be synthesized by a conventional method such as disclosed in Japanese Patent Publication Tokkai 3-163038.",
"[0017] Processing agents of this invention are characterized as containing a lubricant and a functional improvement agent and containing one or more of hydroxy compounds selected from the group of compounds shown by Formula 1 and the group of compounds shown by Formula 2 as described above in an amount of 1-30 weight % at least as a part of the functional improvement agent but those containing such hydroxy compounds in an amount of 2-25 weight % are preferable and those containing such hydroxy compounds in an amount of 5-20 weight % are even more preferable.",
"[0018] Processing agents of this invention may contain functional improvement agents other than the hydroxy compounds shown by Formula 1 and Formula 2.",
"Examples of such other functional improvement agent include those conventionally known kinds such as (1) antistatic agents including anionic surfactants such as organic sulfonic acid salts and organic aliphanic acid salts, cationic surfactants such as lauryl trimethyl ammonium sulfate, and ampholytic surfactants such as octyl dimethyl ammonioacetate;",
"(2) oiliness improvement agents such as organic phosphoric acid salts and aliphatic acid salts;",
"(3) penetration improvement agents such as polyether modified silicone having polydimethyl siloxane chain with average molecular weight of 1500-3000 as main chain and polyoxyalkylene chain with average molecular weight of 700-5000 as side chain and surfactant having perfluoroalkyl group;",
"(4) cohesion improvement agents such as polyetherpolyesters;",
"(5) extreme-pressure additives such as organic titanium compounds and organic phosphor compounds;",
"(6) antioxidants such as phenol antioxidants, phosphite antioxidants and thioether antioxidants;",
"and (7) antirust agents.",
"[0019] When a processing agent of this invention contains such other functional improvement agents, their content should preferably be 0.2-15 weight % and more preferably 1-12 weight %.",
"[0020] Processing agents of this invention contain a lubricant and a functional improvement agent as explained above.",
"Examples of such lubricant include conventionally known kinds such as (1) polyether compounds;",
"(2) aliphatic ester compounds;",
"(3) aromatic ester compounds;",
"(4) (poly)etherester compounds;",
"(5) mineral oils;",
"and (6) silicone oils.",
"[0021] Examples of aforementioned polyether compound include polyether monool, polyether diol and polyether triol, all having polyoxyalkylene group in the molecule.",
"Among these, however, polyether compounds with average molecular weight of 700-10000 are preferred and polyether compounds with average molecular weight of 700-10000 with monohydric-trihydric hydroxy compound with 1-18 carbon atoms having block or random attachment of alkylene oxide with 2-4 carbon atoms are particularly preferable.",
"[0022] Examples of aforementioned aliphatic ester compound include (1) ester compounds obtainable by esterification of aliphatic monohydric alcohol and aliphatic monocarboxylic acid such as butyl stearate, octyl stearate, oleyl stearate, oleyl oleate and isopentacosanyl isostearate;",
"(2) ester compounds obtainable by esterification of aliphatic polyhydric alcohol and aliphatic monocarboxylic acid such as 1,6-hexanediol didecanoate and trimethylol propane monooleate monolaurate;",
"and (3) ester compounds obtainable by esterification of aliphatic monohydric alcohol and aliphatic polycarboxylic acid such as dilauryl adipate and dioleyl azelate.",
"Among these, however, aliphatic ester compounds with 17-60 carbon atoms are preferable and aliphatic ester compounds with 17-60 carbon atoms obtainable by esterification of aliphatic monohydric alcohol and aliphatic monocarboxylic acid or aliphatic polyhydric alcohol and aliphatic monocarboxylic acid are particularly preferable.",
"[0023] Examples of aforementioned aromatic ester compound include (1) ester compounds obtainable by esterification of aromatic alcohol and aliphatic monocarboxylic acid such as benzyl stearate and benzyl laureate;",
"and (2) ester compounds obtainable by esterification of aliphatic monohydric alcohol and aromatic carboxylic acid such as diisostearyl isophthalate and trioctyl trimellitate.",
"Among these, however, ester compounds obtainable by esterification of aliphatic monohydric alcohol and aromatic carboxylic acid are preferable.",
"[0024] Examples of aforementioned (poly)etherester compound include (1) (poly)etherester compounds obtainable by esterification of (poly)ether compound obtainable by adding alkylene oxide with 2-4 carbon atoms to monohydric-trihydric aliphatic alcohol with 4-26 carbon atoms and aliphatic carboxylic acid with 4-26 carbon atoms;",
"(2) (poly)etherester compounds obtainable by esterification of (poly)ether compound obtainable by adding alkylene oxide with 2-4 carbon atoms to monohydric-trihydric aromatic alcohol and aliphatic carboxylic acid with 4-26 carbon atoms;",
"and (3) (poly)etherester compounds obtainable by esterification of (poly)ether compound obtainable by adding alkylene oxide with 2-4 carbon atoms to aliphatic alcohol with 4-26 carbon atoms and aromatic carboxylic acid.",
"[0025] Examples of aforementioned mineral oil include mineral oils of various kinds having different viscosity values.",
"Among these, however, those with viscosity 1×10 −6 -1.3×10 −1 m 2 /s at 30° C. are preferable and those with viscosity 1×10 −6 -5×10 m 2 /s are even more preferable.",
"Examples of such preferable mineral oil include fluid paraffin oil.",
"[0026] Examples of aforementioned silicone oil include silicone oils of various kinds having different viscosity values.",
"Among these, however, linear polyorganosiloxane with viscosity 1×10 −3 -1 m 2 /s at 30° C. is preferable.",
"Examples of such linear polyorganosiloxane include linear polydimethylsiloxane without substituent and linear polydimethylsiloxane with substituent, all with viscosity 1×10 −3 -1 m 2 /s at 30° C. Examples of substituent in these cases include ethyl group, phenyl group, fluoropropyl group, aminopropyl group, carboxyoctyl group, polyoxyethylene oxypropyl group and ω-methoxy polyethoxypolypropoxy propyl group.",
"Among these, linear polydimethylsiloxane without substituent is preferable.",
"[0027] Among processing agents of this invention, those containing a lubricant as described above in an amount of 50-90 weight % and a functional improvement agent as described above in an amount of 1-30 weight % are preferable.",
"Those further containing a hydroxy compound shown by Formula 1 or Formula 2 as described above in an amount of 1-30 weight % as the functional improvement agent are even more preferable.",
"[0028] Processing agents of this invention may further contain an emulsifier.",
"An emulsifier of a known kind may be used.",
"Examples of emulsifier of a known kind that may be used for the purpose of this invention include (1) nonionic surfactants having polyoxyalkylene group in the molecule such as polyoxyalkylene alkylethers, polyoxyalkylene alkylphenylethers, polyoxyalkylene alkylesters, alkylene oxide adducts of castor oil and polyoxyalkylene alkylaminoethers;",
"(2) partial esters of polyhydric alcohol type nonionic surfactants such as sorbitan monolaurate, sorbitan trioleate, glycerol monolaurate and diglycerol dilaurate;",
"and (3) partial esters of polyhydric alcohol type nonionic surfactants such as alkylene oxide adducts of partial esters of trihydric-hexahydric alcohol and aliphatic acid and partial or complete esters of alkylene oxide adduct of trihydric-hexahydric alcohol and aliphatic acid.",
"Among these, however, polyoxyalkylenealkylethers having polyoxyalkylene group with 3-10 oxyethylene units and alkyl group with 8-18 carbon atoms in the molecule are preferable.",
"[0029] If processing agents of this invention contain an emulsifier as described above, it is preferable that such an emulsifier be contained in an amount of 2-30 weight %.",
"[0030] Among the processing agents of this invention containing an emulsifier, those containing a lubricant in an amount of 50-90 weight %, a functional improvement agent in an amount of 1-30 weight % and an emulsifier in an amount of 2-30 weight % (with a total of 100 weight %) are preferable.",
"Those containing a hydroxy compound shown by Formula 1 or Formula 2 as described above in an amount of 3-25 weight % at least as a part of this functional improvement agent are even more preferable.",
"[0031] Next, the method according to this invention for processing synthetic fibers (hereinafter referred to simply as the method of this invention) is explained.",
"The method of this invention is a method of applying a processing agent of this invention as described above at a rate of 0.1-3 weight % and more preferably 0.3-1.2 weight % of the synthetic fibers to be processed.",
"The fabrication step during which a processing agent of this invention is to be applied to the synthetic fibers may be the spinning step or the step during which spinning and drawing are carried out simultaneously.",
"Examples of the method of causing a processing agent of this invention to be attached to the synthetic fibers include the roller oiling method, the guide oiling method using a measuring pump, the emersion oiling method and the spray oiling method.",
"The form in which a processing agent of this invention may be applied to synthetic fibers may be as a neat, as an organic solution or as an aqueous solution but the form as an aqueous solution is preferable.",
"When an aqueous solution of a processing agent of this invention is applied, it is preferable to apply the solution at a rate of 0.1-3 weight % and more preferably 0.3-1.2 weight % as the processing agent with respect to the synthetic fiber.",
"[0032] Examples of synthetic fibers that may be processed by a method of this invention include (1) polyester fibers such as polyethylene terephthalate, polypropylene terephthalate and polylactic ester fibers;",
"(2) polyamide fibers such as nylon 6 and nylon 66;",
"(3) polyacryl fibers such as polyacrylic and modacrylic fibers;",
"(4) polyolefin fibers such as polyethylene and polypropylene fibers and polyurethane fibers.",
"The present invention is particularly effective, however, when applied to polyester fibers and polyamide fibers.",
"[0033] The invention is described next by way of test examples but it goes without saying that these examples are not intended to limit the scope of the invention.",
"In what follows, “part”",
"will mean “weight part”",
"and “%”",
"will mean “weight %”",
"unless otherwise specified.",
"Part 1 (Preparation of Hydroxy Compounds) Preparation of Hydroxy Compound (A-1) [0034] Potassium hydroxide powder (purity 95%) 47.5 g and naphthen solvent (range of boiling point 210-230° C., specific weight 0.79) 400 g were placed inside a 1-liter autoclave and methylethyl ketone 50 g was further added after acetylene was introduced to the gauge pressure of 0.02 MPa.",
"A reaction mixture was obtained after temperature was kept at 25° C. for 2 hours.",
"This reaction mixture 500 g was transferred into a separation funnel and after it was washed with water to remove the potassium hydroxide, an organic phase was separated.",
"After hydrochloric acid with concentration of 0.1 mol/L was added to this organic phase to neutralize the remaining potassium hydroxide, an organic phase 456 g containing 3,6-dimethyl-4-octine-3,6-diol was separated.",
"This organic phase 456 g was taken inside a separation funnel, dimethyl sulfoxide 90 g was added, and it was left stationary after shaken.",
"The lower layer 151 g formed by layer separation was collected, the naphthen solvent 363 g was added, and it was left stationary after shaken.",
"The lower layer 140 g formed by layer separation was collected and distilled at a reduced pressure to obtain 3,6-dimethyl-4-octyne-3,6-diol as hydroxy compound (A-1).",
"[0000] Preparation of Hydroxy Compounds (A-2)-(A-12) and (a-1) [0035] Hydroxy compounds (A-2)-(A-12) and (a-1) were prepared similarly as hydroxy compound (A-1) explained above.",
"Preparation of Hydroxy Compound (A-15) [0036] Hydroxy compound (A-1) as described above 170 g (1 mole) and boron trifluoride diethyl ether 5 g were placed inside an autoclave and after the interior of the autoclave was replaced with nitrogen gas, a mixture of ethylene oxide 352 g (8 moles) and propylene oxide 464 g (8 moles) was pressured in under a pressured and heated condition at 60-70° C. for a reaction.",
"A reaction product was obtained after an hour of ageing reaction.",
"This reaction product was analyzed and found to be hydroxy compound (A-15) according to Formula 2 wherein R 7 and R 10 are each methyl group, R 8 and R 9 are each ethyl group, R 11 and R 12 are each hydrogen atom, and A 1 and A 2 are each residual group obtainable by removing hydrogen atoms from all hydroxyl groups of polyalkyleneglycol having polyoxyalkylene group formed with a total of 8 oxyethylene units and oxypropylene units.",
"[0000] Preparation of Hydroxy Compounds (A-16)-(A-20) and (a-2) [0037] Hydroxy compounds (A-16)-(A-20) and (a-2) were prepared similarly as hydroxy compound (A-15) explained above.",
"Preparation of Hydroxy Compound (A-21) [0038] Hydroxy compound 694 g (1 mole) obtained by adding 10 moles of ethylene oxide to 1 mole of 2,2,7,7-tetramethyl-3,6-diethyl-4-octine-3,6-diol and 48% aqueous solution of potassium hydroxide 14.5 g were placed inside an autoclave and dehydrated with stirring at 70-100° C. under a reduced pressure condition.",
"After an etherifecation reaction was carried out by maintaining the reaction temperature at 100-120° C. and pressuring in methyl chloride 106 g (2.1 moles) until the lowering of pressure inside the autoclave became unnoticeable, a reaction product 765 g was obtained by filtering away the potassium chloride obtained as by-product.",
"This reaction product was analyzed and found to be hydroxy compound (A-21) according to Formula 2 wherein R 7 and R 10 are each ethyl group, R 8 and R 9 are each t-butyl group, R 11 and R 12 are each methyl group, and A 1 and A 2 are each residual group obtainable by removing hydrogen atoms from all hydroxyl groups of polyalkyleneglycol having polyoxyethylene group formed with a total of 5 oxyethylene units.",
"[0000] Preparation of Hydroxy Compounds (A-14) and (a-3) [0039] Hydroxy compounds (A-14) and (a-3) were prepared similarly as hydroxy compound (A-21) explained above.",
"Preparation of Hydroxy Compound (A-22) [0040] Hydroxy compound 1420 g (1 mole) obtained by adding 8 moles of ethylene oxide and 14 moles of propylene oxide to 1 mole of 2,9-dimethyl-4,7-diethyl-5-decyne-4,7-diol, glacial acetic acid 144 g (2.4 moles) and concentrated sulfuric acid 12 g were placed inside a flask for an esterification reaction with stirring by maintaining the reaction temperature at 100-110° C. and dehydrating under a reduced pressure condition.",
"After the reaction was completed, it was cooled and the concentrated sulfuric acid and the non-reacted acetic acid were neutralized with 48% potassium hydroxide 70 g and the generated water was distilled away under a reduced pressure condition.",
"A reaction product 1420 g was obtained by filtering away organic salts obtained as by-products.",
"This reaction product was analyzed and found to be hydroxy compound (A-22) according to Formula 2 wherein R 7 and R 10 are each ethyl group, R 8 and R 9 are each isobutyl group, R 11 and R 12 are each acetyl group, and A 1 and A 2 are each residual group obtainable by removing hydrogen atoms from all hydroxyl groups of polyalkyleneglycol having polyoxyalkylene group formed with a total of 11 oxyethylene units and oxypropylene units.",
"Preparation of Hydroxy Compound (A-13) [0041] Hydroxy compound (A-13) was prepared similarly as hydroxy compound (A-21) explained above.",
"[0042] Details of all these hydroxy compounds obtained above are shown below, those corresponding to Formula 1 being shown in Table 1 and those corresponding to Formula 2 being shown in Table 2.",
"[0000] TABLE 1 R 1 R 4 R 2 R 3 *1 R 5 R 6 A-1 Methyl Methyl Ethyl Ethyl 6 Hydrogen Hydrogen group group group group atom atom A-2 Hydrogen Hydrogen Methyl Methyl 2 Hydrogen Hydrogen atom atom group group atom atom A-3 Ethyl Ethyl Ethyl Ethyl 8 Hydrogen Hydrogen group group group group atom atom A-4 Methyl Methyl n-propyl n-propyl 8 Hydrogen Hydrogen group group group group atom atom A-5 Methyl Methyl Isopropyl Isopropyl 8 Hydrogen Hydrogen group group group group atom atom A-6 Methyl Methyl n-butyl n-butyl 10 Hydrogen Hydrogen group group group group atom atom A-7 Methyl Methyl Isobutyl Isobutyl 10 Hydrogen Hydrogen group group group group atom atom A-8 Hydrogen Hydrogen n-pentyl n-pentyl 10 Hydrogen Hydrogen atom atom group group atom atom A-9 Hydrogen Hydrogen n-hexyl n-hexyl 12 Hydrogen Hydrogen atom atom group group atom atom A-10 Methyl Methyl t-butyl t-butyl 12 Hydrogen Hydrogen group group group group atom atom A-11 Methyl Methyl Isopentyl Isopentyl 12 Hydrogen Hydrogen group group group group atom atom A-12 Lauryl Lauryl Isobutyl Isobutyl 32 Hydrogen Hydrogen group group group group atom atom A-13 Ethyl Ethyl Isopentyl Isopentyl 14 Acetyl Acetyl group group group group group group A-14 Ethyl Ethyl Isopentyl Isopentyl 14 Methyl Methyl group group group group group group a-1 Methyl Methyl Octa- Octa- 38 Hydrogen Hydrogen group group decenyl decenyl atom atom group group In Table 1: *1: Sum of carbon atom numbers of R 1 -R 4 [0000] TABLE 2 A 1 A 2 R 7 R 10 R 8 R 9 *2 *3 *3 R 11 R 12 A-15 MG MG EG EG 6 EO/4 EO/4 HA HA PO/4 PO/4 A-16 MG MG IPG IPG 8 EO/2 EO/2 HA HA PO/2 PO/2 A-17 MG MG IBG IBG 10 EO/7 EO/7 HA HA A-18 MG MG IPNG IPNG 12 EO/15 EO/15 HA HA PO/5 PO/5 A-19 MG MG EG EG 6 EO/1 EO/1 HA HA A-20 HA HA EG EG 4 EO/25 EO/25 HA HA A-21 EG EG tBG tBG 12 EO/5 EO/5 MG MG A-22 EG EG IBG IBG 12 EO/4 EO/4 AG AG BO/7 BO/7 a-2 MG MG IPG IPG 6 EO/20 EO/20 HA HA PO/20 PO/20 a-3 EG EG IPG IPG 6 EO/5 EO/5 BG BG In Table 2: *2: Sum of carbon atom numbers of R 7 -R 10 *3: Kind/Repetition number of oxyalkylene units EO: Oxyethylene unit PO: Oxypropylene unit BO: Oxytetramethylene unit HA: Hydrogen atom MG: Methyl group EG: Ethyl group IPG: Isopropyl group IPNG: Isopentyl group IBG: Isobutyl group tBG: t-butyl group AG: Acetyl group BG: Butyl group Part 2 TEST EXAMPLE 1 Preparation of Processing Agent (P-1) [0043] Processing agent (P-1) of Test Example 1 for synthetic fibers was prepared by uniformly mixing together 75 parts of lubricant (B-1) described below, 7 parts of hydroxy compound (A-1) shown in Table 1 as functional improvement agent, 10 parts of another functional improvement agent (C-1) described below, 1 part of still another functional improvement agent (E-1) described below and 7 parts of emulsifier (D-1) described below.",
"[0044] Lubricant (B-1): Mixture at weight ratio of 11/14/29/46 of dodecyl dodecanate, ester of α-butyl-ω-hydroxy (polyoxyethylene) (n=3) and dodecanoic acid, polyether monool with number average molecular weight of 3000 obtained by random addition of ethylene oxide and propylene oxide at weight ratio of 50/50 to butyl alcohol, and polyether monool with number average molecular weight of 1000 obtained by block addition of ethylene oxide and propylene oxide at weight ratio of 40/60 to butyl alcohol.",
"[0045] Functional improvement agent (C-1): Mixture at weight ratio 50/50 of potassium octadecenate and potassium decanesulfonate.",
"[0046] Functional improvement agent (E-1): Octyl diphenyl phosphite (antioxidant).",
"[0047] Emulsifier (D-1): Glycerol monolaurate.",
"TEST EXAMPLES 2-23 AND COMPARISON EXAMPLES 1-5 Preparation of Processing Agents (P-2)—(P-23) and (R-1)-(R-5) [0048] Processing agents (P-2)-(P-23) and (R-1)-(R-5) of Test Examples 2-23 and Comparison Examples 1-5 for synthetic fibers were prepared similarly as processing agent (P-1) described above.",
"[0049] Details of these processing agents are summarized in Table 3.",
"[0000] TABLE 3 Functional improvement agents Hydroxy Lubricant compound Others Emulsifier Kind Kind Ratio Kind Ratio Kind Ratio Kind Ratio Test Exam- ples 1 P-1 B-1 75 A-1 7 C-1 10 D-1 7 E-1 1 2 P-2 B-1 65 A-2 12 C-2 9 D-2 14 3 P-3 B-1 55 A-3 18 C-1 9 D-3 18 4 P-4 B-2 65 A-4 7 C-1 13 D-2 14 E-2 1 5 P-5 B-2 55 A-5 12 C-2 15 D-3 18 6 P-6 B-3 75 A-6 7 C-1 11 D-1 7 7 P-7 B-3 65 A-7 7 C-2 11 D-3 16 E-3 1 8 P-8 B-4 65 A-8 12 C-3 7 D-3 16 9 P-9 B-1 65 A-9 18 C-1 3 D-2 14 10 P-10 B-2 65 A-10 7 C-2 11 D-3 16 E-3 1 11 P-11 B-1 65 A-11 12 C-4 9 D-2 14 12 P-12 B-2 80 A-12 3 C-5 5 D-2 12 13 P-13 B-1 54 A-13 26 C-6 5 D-3 15 14 P-14 B-1 65 A-14 7 C-1 12 D-3 16 15 P-15 B-1 75 A-15 7 C-1 11 D-1 7 16 P-16 B-2 65 A-16 12 C-2 8 D-2 14 E-1 1 17 P-17 B-2 55 A-17 18 C-1 9 D-3 18 18 P-18 B-3 65 A-18 12 C-1 9 D-2 14 19 P-19 B-4 65 A-18 12 C-2 8 D-2 14 E-3 1 20 P-20 B-1 65 A-19 12 C-1 9 D-2 14 21 P-21 B-2 80 A-20 2 C-5 6 D-1 12 22 P-22 B-5 54 A-21 28 C-6 3 D-3 15 23 P-23 B-2 65 A-22 10 C-5 11 D-2 14 Com- parison Exam- ples 1 R-1 B-2 65 a-1 18 C-3 3 D-2 14 2 R-2 B-2 65 a-2 18 C-3 3 D-2 14 3 R-3 B-2 65 a-3 18 C-3 3 D-2 14 4 R-4 B-2 70 A-14 0.5 C-3 14.5 D-2 15 5 R-5 B-2 54 A-14 33 C-3 7 D-2 6 In Table 3: Ratio: Weight part;",
"B-1: Mixture of dodecyl dodecanate, ester of α-butyl-ω-hydroxy (polyoxyethylene) (n = 3) and dodecanoic acid, polyether monool with number average molecular weight of 3000 obtained by random addition of ethylene oxide and propylene oxide at weight ratio of 50/50 to butyl alcohol, and polyether monool with number average molecular weight of 1000 obtained by block addition of ethylene oxide and propylene oxide at weight ratio of 40/60 to butyl alcohol at weight ratio of 11/14/29/46;",
"B-2: Mixture of lauryl octanate, polyether monool with number average molecular weight of 3000 obtained by random addition of ethylene oxide and propylene oxide at weight ratio of 65/35 to butyl alcohol, and polyether monool with number average molecular weight of 2500 obtained by random addition of ethylene oxide and propylene oxide at weight ratio of 40/60 to butyl alcohol at weight ratio of 30/20/50;",
"B-3: Mixture of polyether monool with number average molecular weight of 10000 obtained by random addition of ethylene oxide and propylene oxide at weight ratio of 50/50 to butyl alcohol, polyether monool with number average molecular weight of 2500 obtained by random addition of ethylene oxide and propylene oxide at weight ratio of 50/50 to lauryl alcohol, and polyether monool with number average molecular weight of 1000 obtained by block addition of ethylene oxide a nd propylene oxide at weight ratio of 45/55 to octyl alcohol at weight ratio of 30/50/20;",
"B-4: Mixture of lauryl octanate and mineral oil with viscosity 1.3 × 10 −5 m 2 /s at 30° C. at weight ratio of 67/33;",
"B-5: Mixture of mineral oil with viscosity 3.0 × 10 −5 m 2 /s at 30° C., lauryl acid ester of α-butyl-ω-hydroxy (polyoxyethylene) (n = 8), and polyether monool with number average molecular weight of 1800 obtained by block addition of ethylene oxide and propylene oxide to butyl alcohol at weight ratio of 24/16/60;",
"A-1-A-22, a-1-a-3: Hydroxy compounds prepared in Part 1 and described in Tables 1 and 2.",
"D-1: Glycerol monolaurate;",
"D-2: α-dodecyl-ω-hydroxy (polyoxyethylene) (n = 7);",
"D-3: Mixture of castor oil with addition of 20 moles of ethylene oxide and diester of 1 mole of polyethylene glycol with average molecular weight of 600 and 2 moles of lauric acid at weight ratio of 80/20;",
"C-1: Mixture of potassium octadecenate and potassium decane sulfonate at weight ratio of 50/50;",
"C-2: Mixture of butyl diethanol amine laurate, sodium octadecyl benzene sulfonate, and potassium phosphoric acid ester of α-lauryl-ω-hydroxy (trioxyethylene) at weight ratio of 50/25/25;",
"C-3: Mixture of tributyl methyl ammonium diethylphosphate and sodium octadecyl benzene sulfonate at weight ratio of 60/40;",
"C-4: Mixture of dimethyl lauryl amine oxide and tributylmethyl ammonium diethyl phosphate at weight ratio of 50/50;",
"C-5: Mixture of tributylmethyl ammonium diethyl phosphate and lauryl trimethyl ammonium ethylsulfate at weight ratio of 60/40;",
"C-6: Mixture of decyl dimethyl ammonio acetate and N,N-bis(2-carboxyethyl)-octylamine at weight ratio of 50/50;",
"E-1: Octyl diphenyl phosphite (antioxidant);",
"E-2: 3,5-di-t-butyl-4-hydroxy-toluene (antioxidant);",
"E-3: dilauryl-3,3′-thiopropionate (antioxidant).",
"Part 3 (Attachment of Processing Agents to Synthetic Fibers, False Twisting and Evaluation) [0050] Each of the processing agents prepared in Part 2 was diluted with water to prepare a 10% aqueous solution.",
"After polyethylene terephthalate chips with intrinsic viscosity of 0.64 and containing titanium oxide by 0.2% were dried by a known method, they were spun at 295° C. by using an extruder.",
"The 10% aqueous solution thus prepared was applied onto the yarns extruded out of the nozzle to be cooled and solidified by a guide oiling method using a measuring pump such that the attached amount of the processing agent became as shown in Table 4.",
"Thereafter, the yarns were collected by means of a guide and wound up at the rate of 3000 m/minute without any drawing by a mechanical means to obtain partially oriented 56 decitex-144 filament yarns as wound cakes of 10 kg.",
"False Twisting [0051] The cakes thus obtained as described above were subjected to a false twisting process under the conditions described below by using a false twister of the contact heater type (product name of SDS1200 produced by Teijinseiki Co., Ltd.): [0000] Fabrication speeds: 800 m/minute and 1200 m/minute;",
"Draw ratio: 1.652;",
"Twisting system: Three-axis disk friction method (with one guide disk on the inlet side, one guide disk on the outlet side and four hard polyurethane disks);",
"Heater on twisting side: Length of 2.5 m with surface temperature of 210° C.;",
"Heater on untwisting side;",
"None;",
"Target number of twisting;",
"3300T/m.",
"The false twisting process was carried out under the conditions given above by a continuous operation of 25 days.",
"Evaluation of Fluffs [0052] In the aforementioned false twisting process, the number of fluffs per hour was measured by means of a fly counter (produce name of DT-105 produced by Toray Engineering Co., Ltd.) before the false twisted yarns were wound up and evaluated according to the standards as described below: [0053] A: The measured number of fluffs was zero;",
"[0054] A-B: The measured number of fluffs was less than 1 (exclusive of zero);",
"[0055] B: The measured number of fluffs was 1-2;",
"[0056] C: The measured number of fluffs was 3-9;",
"[0057] D: The measured number of fluffs was 10 or greater.",
"[0000] The results of the measurement are shown in Table 4.",
"Evaluation of Yarn Breaking [0058] The number of occurrences of yarn breaking during the 25 days of operation in the false twisting process described above was converted into the number per day and such converted numbers were evaluated according to the standards as described below: [0059] A: The number of occurrence was zero;",
"[0060] A-B: The number of occurrence was less than 0.5 (exclusive of zero);",
"[0061] B: The number of occurrence was 0.5 or greater and less than 1;",
"[0062] C: The number of occurrence was 1 or greater and less than 5;",
"[0063] D: The number of occurrence was 5 or greater.",
"[0000] The results are shown in Table 4.",
"Dyeing Property [0064] A fabric with diameter of 70 mm and length of 1.2 m was produced from the false-twisted yarns on which fluffs were measured as above by using a knitting machine for tubular fabric.",
"The fabric thus produced was dyed by a high temperature and high pressure dyeing machine by using disperse dyes (product name of Kayalon Polyester Blue-EBL-E produced by Nippon Kayaku Co",
"Ltd.).",
"The dyed fabrics were washed with water, subjected to a reduction clearing process and dried according to a known routine and were thereafter set on an iron cylinder with diameter 70 mm and length 1 m. An inspection process for visually counting the number of points of densely dyed potion on the fabric surface was repeated five times and the evaluation results thus obtained were converted into the number of points per sheet of fabric.",
"The evaluation was carried out according to the following standards: [0065] A: There was no densely dyed portion;",
"[0066] A-B: There was 1 point of densely dyed portion;",
"[0067] B: There were 2 points of densely dyed portion;",
"[0068] C: There were 3-6 points of densely dyed portion;",
"[0069] D: There were 7 or more points of densely dyed portion.",
"[0000] The results are shown in Table 4.",
"[0070] This invention, as described above, has the favorable effects of sufficiently preventing the occurrence of fluffs, yarn breaking and dyeing specks even when synthetic fibers of new kinds such as low denier synthetic fibers, high multifilament synthetic fibers and modified cross-section synthetic fibers are being produced at a fast rate.",
"[0000] TABLE 4 Processing agent Rate of 800 m/minute 1200 m/minute attachment Yarn Dyeing Yarn Dyeing Kind (%) Fluffs breaking property Fluffs breaking property Test Example 24 P-1 0.4 A A A A A A 25 P-1 0.8 A A A A A A 26 P-2 0.6 A A A A A A 27 P-2 0.3 A A A A A A 28 P-3 0.6 A A A A A A 29 P-3 0.8 A A A A A A 30 P-4 0.4 A A A A A A 31 P-5 0.5 A A A A A A 32 P-6 0.4 A A A A A A 33 P-7 0.4 A A A A A A 34 P-8 0.4 A A A A A A 35 P-9 0.4 A A A A-B A A 36 P-10 0.4 A A A A A-B A 37 P-11 0.4 A A-B A A A-B A 38 P-12 0.4 A-B A A A-B A-B A-B 39 P-13 0.4 A A-B A A-B A-B A-B 40 P-14 0.5 A-B A A A-B A-B A-B 41 P-15 0.4 A-B A-B A A A A 42 P-16 0.4 A A A A-B A A 43 P-17 0.4 A A A A-B A A 44 P-18 0.5 A A A A-B A A 45 P-19 0.6 A A A A A A-B 46 P-20 0.4 A-B A-B B B A-B B 47 P-21 0.4 A-B B A-B A-B B B 48 P-22 0.4 A-B B A-B B B A-B 49 P-23 0.4 A-B B A-B B B A-B Comparison Example 6 R-1 0.4 D D D C D C 7 R-2 0.4 C C C D D D 8 R-3 0.4 C D C D D C 9 R-4 0.4 C C D D D D 10 R-5 0.4 C C D D D D"
] |
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to the field of data compression, and more specifically to a method and system for real-time multiple-pass data encoding, and particularly, for encoding video signals.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Digital video compression is an essential technology in video communications, broadcasting, and storage. MPEG video coding standards have been successfully used to reduce the transmission bandwidth and storage space requirements in many applications, such as digital TV broadcast through satellite and cable, Digital Video Disk (DVD), Video on-Demand and video streaming over the Internet, etc. However, emerging applications and new services become increasingly demanding for less transmission bandwidth and storage space. For example, in Video-on-Demand service over Asymmetric Digital Subscriber Line (ADSL), live news and sports events are transmitted in real-time to the subscribers using MPEG-2 video coding standard (ISO/IEC 13818-2) at a constant bit rate (CBR) in the range of 0.6 to 2 Mbits/second. For MPEG CBR video encoding at such a bit rate range, it is very challenging for the conventional MPEG encoders available on the commercial market to produce acceptable picture quality. Conventional MPEG encoders employ a single encoder scheme as depicted in FIG. 1 . As shown in FIG. 1 , the conventional video encoder device 110 implements a coding strategy which is based on the information retained in coding only the previous video frames 100 to provide coded video output 120 . These encoders 110 routinely adopt a coding strategy that is only based on the information obtained in coding of the previous video frames 100 and/or rely on some assumed signal models to predict or estimate the signal properties of the current input frame to guide the encoding process of the current frame. However, natural video is a statistically non-stationary signal source. Prediction and estimation based on the past signal will not correctly describe the current input signal. In addition there is no known robust signal model that can describe the natural video signal reliably. Such encoders will not be able to determine and apply the best coding strategy to encode the incoming video frames for lack of the information about the current and future input frames. In order to meet the challenges from more demanding emerging applications, more sophisticated schemes for MPEG-2 video coding are needed to improve the performance and to ensure the quality of services.
Research efforts have been made to improve the variable bit rate (VBR) MPEG video coding, e.g., for DVD applications, by employing two-pass and re-encoding schemes. However, there are no published research results for multi-pass CBR coding in the literature.
It would thus be highly desirable to provide a real-time MPEG CBR video coding method and associated system that are able to jointly determine and apply the best coding plan to encode input video frames based not only on the information of the previous and current frames, but also the information about the future input frames.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
According to one aspect of the invention, a system and method is provided for performing real-time multi-pass data encoding, in particular video signal multi-pass encoding.
According to another aspect of the invention, a system and method is provided for performing real-time video signal multi-pass encoding with information look-ahead.
According to a further aspect of the invention, there is provided a system and method for MPEG video coding with information look-ahead that utilizes two MPEG encoder devices. The first encoder device functions as an information collector, which information is then used by an on-line processor. Taking the advantage of the time delay between the inputs of the two encoder devices, the processor employs an efficient algorithm to jointly derive the best coding strategy for the all incoming frames in a look-ahead window by exploiting the information not only about the past and current frames but additionally the future frames. The second encoder, which operates at the same constant bit rate as the first encoder, uses the coding strategy from the processor as the guide to encode the incoming frames.
Advantageously, the system and method of the present invention may be applicable for encoding any type of digital information that can be divided into coding units having bits that may be allocated to the coding units for constant bit rate or variable bit rate encoding. For example, digital audio or digitized speech can be divided into frames in millisecond units. These frames can be treated the same as the video pictures and the invention can be applied to these coding units.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
The objects, features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent to one skilled in the art, in view of the following detailed description taken in combination with the attached drawings, in which:
FIG. 1 is a description of a conventional simple encoder system;
FIG. 2 illustrates an encoder system that has look-ahead information collection; and,
FIG. 3 is a block diagram depicting a preferred embodiment for encoding digital data according to the present invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
As illustrated in FIG. 2 , an information look-ahead mechanism is added to the conventional video signal encoder device of FIG. 1 . That is, as shown in FIG. 2 , video input frames 200 are fed in parallel to a buffer device 210 in front of the encoder device 220 and, an information collector/processor device 230 . The buffer device 210 functions to delay the input video frames 200 by a fixed amount of time so that the information collector/processor 230 will have the operation time to extract useful information about the incoming frames in the delay buffer 210 and process the information to determine a coding strategy for encoding these frames. The determined coding strategy is then passed in the form of coding parameters to the encoder device 220 for execution.
In the video coding scheme depicted in FIG. 2 , the buffer effectively creates a look-ahead time window for the information collector/processor to gather and process the information. Given the information and the processing algorithm executed in the information collector/processor device 230 , the best coding plan may be determined jointly based on the information about the past, current, and future input video frames. However, to implement this video coding scheme in a cost effective way and to achieve efficient performance, it is necessary to first determine what appropriate look-ahead information to collect from the input frames and how to collect it, how the look-ahead information should or can be used to devise the best coding strategy (i.e., the processing algorithm) and how the coding strategy can be carried out, and what is the proper buffer size (or the look-ahead window size).
The most useful information for determining the best coding strategy for the incoming video frames are the signal statistics and characteristic variables, rate-quality measure, and coding parameters that are directly used in various steps of the encoding process with the dominant impact in the coding results. The most effective approach to collect such information is to use a collector that emulates the encoder operation. Therefore, in order to gather the most pertinent and useful information to derive the best coding strategy, a second MPEG encoder device is employed such as depicted in the block diagram of FIG. 3 illustrating the preferred system of the invention. In the system depicted in FIG. 3 , two MPEG encoder devices 320 and 330 are provided that operate at the same CBR. Particularly, video input frames 300 are fed in parallel to a buffer device 310 and, a first MPEG encoder device 330 which functions as the information collector and feeds the processor device 340 which implements a processing algorithm executed within the information processor 340 which may be implemented in a general processor, a DSP chip, or reside on a host PC (not shown). The primary benefit of using the first MPEG encoder 330 as the information collector is that the direct signal information and intermediate results in various encoding stages can be obtained in the same encoding operation conditions as the intended encoding process. The exact items of information to be collected may depend on the need of the processing algorithm and the availability of the information in the encoder chip on the fly and the real-time output capability of the encoder device 330 . In the preferred embodiment depicted in FIG. 3 , information relating to the picture complexity, motion magnitude, and picture quality index are collected.
As an initial consideration, the length of the look-ahead window determines the input delay buffer 310 size. The more frames to look-ahead, the larger the buffer size and in turn the longer the delay. The cost also increases with the buffer size. For the convenience of bit allocation and rate control in CBR coding, the look-ahead window size is a predetermined multiple of the size of Group of Pictures (GOP) so that the numbers of Intra-coded (I), Predictive Coded (P), and Bi-direction Predictive Coded (B) frames in the look-ahead window are constants. Details regarding the MPEG encoding frames may be found in a reference entitled Informaiton Technology —Generic Coding of Moving Pictures and Associated Audio:Video, ISO/IEC 13818-2, 1995 incorporated by reference as if fully set forth herein. The look-ahead window size W s is thus determined to be:
W s =K*GOP s
where K=1 or 2; GOP S is the size of Group of Picture in MPEG video coding. The input delay buffer size B S , then becomes:
B s =W s +Δ p
where Δ p is the information processing time which depends on the complexity of the algorithm.
Once the information about the video frames in the look-ahead window is available, the processing algorithm determines a coding strategy for these frames using the information. In the preferred embodiment, a target bit allocation plan for the video frames is jointly determined so that the available bits can be used efficiently and the decoding buffer defined as Virtual Buffer Verifier (VBV) in MPEG-2 standard can be exploited sufficiently. Assume there are N frames in the look-ahead window. Let P i , i=1, . . . N, be the i-th frame in the window. The picture complexity, motion magnitude, picture quality index, and target number of bits for P i are denoted as C i , M i , Q i and T i , respectively. With R representing the bit rate and F the frame rate, the algorithm performs the following steps:
A first step is to calculate the dynamic weighted picture complexity, C i as:
C i ′ = C i W ( M i M _ l , Q i Q _ l , S i , D i ) ;
where W( ) is a real function; S iε {I, P, B} is the picture coding type of frame P i ; M l and Q l are the average motion magnitude and average picture quality index of all frames in the look-ahead window with the same picture coding type as S i ; and D i is the distance from P i to the most recent I frame. It should be noted that the larger the value of Q i , the worse the picture quality.
A second step is to jointly determine the target number of bits for all frames in the look-ahead window:
T
i
=
RNC
i
′
F
∑
k
=
1
N
C
k
′
;
A third step is the step of determining rate control to prevent decoder buffer overflow and underflow: The variable “V” is denoted as the decoder buffer size (e.g., 1835008 bits for MP@ML (Main Profile/Main level) case) as defined in MPEG-2 standard (See Informaiton Technology —Generic Coding of Moving Pictures and Associated Audio:Video, ISO/IEC 13818-2, 1995) and V i is denoted as the decoder buffer fullness just before the picture P i is drawn from the decoder buffer for decoding. Letting “G” be a guard band, for example, G=3%˜5% of V, the MPEG-2 decoder buffer model for CBR operation is described by the following recurrence:
V 0 =V init ,
V i =V i−1 +R/F−T i ,
where V init is the initial buffer fullness. To prevent any overflow and underflow, the buffer fullness must always satisfy the following relation:
T i +G≦V i ≦V−G.
If V i underflow or overflow the buffer requirement by an amount of δ, then the target bit allocation must be adjusted according to the following:
T
k
′
=
T
k
∑
m
=
1
i
T
m
∓
δ
∑
m
=
1
i
T
m
,
k
=
1
,
2
,
…
,
i
;
T
k
′
=
T
k
∑
n
=
i
+
1
N
T
n
±
δ
∑
n
=
i
+
1
N
T
n
,
k
=
i
+
1
,
…
,
N
.
Returning to FIG. 3 , after the coding strategy is determined for the video frames in the look-ahead window, it needs to be passed to the second encoder device 320 . This is preferably communicated in the form of the coding parameters and other necessary information. In practice, the real-time communication bandwidth between the second encoder device 320 and information processor 340 may limit the amount of the coding parameters and information to be transmitted to the encoder 320 on frame-by-frame basis and may have an impact on the execution of the coding strategy. In one of the embodiments of the invention, four (4) 16 bit integers are used to pass parameters to the second encoder 320 for every frame's encoding. They are 16 bits for the target number of bits, 16 bits for the weighted picture complexity, and 32 bits for the sum of the weighted complexities of the remaining un-encoded frames in the look-ahead window. The last two parameters are used by the second encoder 320 to reallocate any excess bits over the remaining frames.
While the invention has been described for MPEG video encoding, it is understood that the invention may be used with other video coding techniques or even with non-video data. Indeed, any digital information can be divided into coding units and bits are allocated to the coding units for constant bit rate or variable bit rate encoding. For example, digital audio or digitized speech can be divided into frames in millisecond units. These frames can be treated the same as the video pictures and the invention can be applied to these coding units.
While the invention has been particularly shown and described with respect to illustrative and preformed embodiments thereof, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that the foregoing and other changes in form and details may be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention which should be limited only by the scope of the appended claims. | A real-time MPEG video coding system with information look-ahead for constant bit rate (CBR) applications, such as, for example, Video-on-Demand (VoD) over ADSL. This scheme employs two MPEG encoders. The second encoder has a buffer to delay the input by an amount of time relative to the first encoder to create a look-ahead window. In encoding, the first encoder collects the information of statistics and rate-quality characteristics. An on-line information processor then uses the collected information to derive the best coding strategy for the second encoder to encode the incoming frames in the look-ahead window. The second encoder uses the encoding parameters from the processor as the coding guide to execute the coding strategy and generate the final bitstream. | Provide a concise summary of the essential information conveyed in the context. | [
"BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1.",
"Field of the Invention The present invention relates generally to the field of data compression, and more specifically to a method and system for real-time multiple-pass data encoding, and particularly, for encoding video signals.",
"Description of the Prior Art Digital video compression is an essential technology in video communications, broadcasting, and storage.",
"MPEG video coding standards have been successfully used to reduce the transmission bandwidth and storage space requirements in many applications, such as digital TV broadcast through satellite and cable, Digital Video Disk (DVD), Video on-Demand and video streaming over the Internet, etc.",
"However, emerging applications and new services become increasingly demanding for less transmission bandwidth and storage space.",
"For example, in Video-on-Demand service over Asymmetric Digital Subscriber Line (ADSL), live news and sports events are transmitted in real-time to the subscribers using MPEG-2 video coding standard (ISO/IEC 13818-2) at a constant bit rate (CBR) in the range of 0.6 to 2 Mbits/second.",
"For MPEG CBR video encoding at such a bit rate range, it is very challenging for the conventional MPEG encoders available on the commercial market to produce acceptable picture quality.",
"Conventional MPEG encoders employ a single encoder scheme as depicted in FIG. 1 .",
"As shown in FIG. 1 , the conventional video encoder device 110 implements a coding strategy which is based on the information retained in coding only the previous video frames 100 to provide coded video output 120 .",
"These encoders 110 routinely adopt a coding strategy that is only based on the information obtained in coding of the previous video frames 100 and/or rely on some assumed signal models to predict or estimate the signal properties of the current input frame to guide the encoding process of the current frame.",
"However, natural video is a statistically non-stationary signal source.",
"Prediction and estimation based on the past signal will not correctly describe the current input signal.",
"In addition there is no known robust signal model that can describe the natural video signal reliably.",
"Such encoders will not be able to determine and apply the best coding strategy to encode the incoming video frames for lack of the information about the current and future input frames.",
"In order to meet the challenges from more demanding emerging applications, more sophisticated schemes for MPEG-2 video coding are needed to improve the performance and to ensure the quality of services.",
"Research efforts have been made to improve the variable bit rate (VBR) MPEG video coding, e.g., for DVD applications, by employing two-pass and re-encoding schemes.",
"However, there are no published research results for multi-pass CBR coding in the literature.",
"It would thus be highly desirable to provide a real-time MPEG CBR video coding method and associated system that are able to jointly determine and apply the best coding plan to encode input video frames based not only on the information of the previous and current frames, but also the information about the future input frames.",
"SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION According to one aspect of the invention, a system and method is provided for performing real-time multi-pass data encoding, in particular video signal multi-pass encoding.",
"According to another aspect of the invention, a system and method is provided for performing real-time video signal multi-pass encoding with information look-ahead.",
"According to a further aspect of the invention, there is provided a system and method for MPEG video coding with information look-ahead that utilizes two MPEG encoder devices.",
"The first encoder device functions as an information collector, which information is then used by an on-line processor.",
"Taking the advantage of the time delay between the inputs of the two encoder devices, the processor employs an efficient algorithm to jointly derive the best coding strategy for the all incoming frames in a look-ahead window by exploiting the information not only about the past and current frames but additionally the future frames.",
"The second encoder, which operates at the same constant bit rate as the first encoder, uses the coding strategy from the processor as the guide to encode the incoming frames.",
"Advantageously, the system and method of the present invention may be applicable for encoding any type of digital information that can be divided into coding units having bits that may be allocated to the coding units for constant bit rate or variable bit rate encoding.",
"For example, digital audio or digitized speech can be divided into frames in millisecond units.",
"These frames can be treated the same as the video pictures and the invention can be applied to these coding units.",
"BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS The objects, features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent to one skilled in the art, in view of the following detailed description taken in combination with the attached drawings, in which: FIG. 1 is a description of a conventional simple encoder system;",
"FIG. 2 illustrates an encoder system that has look-ahead information collection;",
"and, FIG. 3 is a block diagram depicting a preferred embodiment for encoding digital data according to the present invention.",
"DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS As illustrated in FIG. 2 , an information look-ahead mechanism is added to the conventional video signal encoder device of FIG. 1 .",
"That is, as shown in FIG. 2 , video input frames 200 are fed in parallel to a buffer device 210 in front of the encoder device 220 and, an information collector/processor device 230 .",
"The buffer device 210 functions to delay the input video frames 200 by a fixed amount of time so that the information collector/processor 230 will have the operation time to extract useful information about the incoming frames in the delay buffer 210 and process the information to determine a coding strategy for encoding these frames.",
"The determined coding strategy is then passed in the form of coding parameters to the encoder device 220 for execution.",
"In the video coding scheme depicted in FIG. 2 , the buffer effectively creates a look-ahead time window for the information collector/processor to gather and process the information.",
"Given the information and the processing algorithm executed in the information collector/processor device 230 , the best coding plan may be determined jointly based on the information about the past, current, and future input video frames.",
"However, to implement this video coding scheme in a cost effective way and to achieve efficient performance, it is necessary to first determine what appropriate look-ahead information to collect from the input frames and how to collect it, how the look-ahead information should or can be used to devise the best coding strategy (i.e., the processing algorithm) and how the coding strategy can be carried out, and what is the proper buffer size (or the look-ahead window size).",
"The most useful information for determining the best coding strategy for the incoming video frames are the signal statistics and characteristic variables, rate-quality measure, and coding parameters that are directly used in various steps of the encoding process with the dominant impact in the coding results.",
"The most effective approach to collect such information is to use a collector that emulates the encoder operation.",
"Therefore, in order to gather the most pertinent and useful information to derive the best coding strategy, a second MPEG encoder device is employed such as depicted in the block diagram of FIG. 3 illustrating the preferred system of the invention.",
"In the system depicted in FIG. 3 , two MPEG encoder devices 320 and 330 are provided that operate at the same CBR.",
"Particularly, video input frames 300 are fed in parallel to a buffer device 310 and, a first MPEG encoder device 330 which functions as the information collector and feeds the processor device 340 which implements a processing algorithm executed within the information processor 340 which may be implemented in a general processor, a DSP chip, or reside on a host PC (not shown).",
"The primary benefit of using the first MPEG encoder 330 as the information collector is that the direct signal information and intermediate results in various encoding stages can be obtained in the same encoding operation conditions as the intended encoding process.",
"The exact items of information to be collected may depend on the need of the processing algorithm and the availability of the information in the encoder chip on the fly and the real-time output capability of the encoder device 330 .",
"In the preferred embodiment depicted in FIG. 3 , information relating to the picture complexity, motion magnitude, and picture quality index are collected.",
"As an initial consideration, the length of the look-ahead window determines the input delay buffer 310 size.",
"The more frames to look-ahead, the larger the buffer size and in turn the longer the delay.",
"The cost also increases with the buffer size.",
"For the convenience of bit allocation and rate control in CBR coding, the look-ahead window size is a predetermined multiple of the size of Group of Pictures (GOP) so that the numbers of Intra-coded (I), Predictive Coded (P), and Bi-direction Predictive Coded (B) frames in the look-ahead window are constants.",
"Details regarding the MPEG encoding frames may be found in a reference entitled Informaiton Technology —Generic Coding of Moving Pictures and Associated Audio:Video, ISO/IEC 13818-2, 1995 incorporated by reference as if fully set forth herein.",
"The look-ahead window size W s is thus determined to be: W s =K*GOP s where K=1 or 2;",
"GOP S is the size of Group of Picture in MPEG video coding.",
"The input delay buffer size B S , then becomes: B s =W s +Δ p where Δ p is the information processing time which depends on the complexity of the algorithm.",
"Once the information about the video frames in the look-ahead window is available, the processing algorithm determines a coding strategy for these frames using the information.",
"In the preferred embodiment, a target bit allocation plan for the video frames is jointly determined so that the available bits can be used efficiently and the decoding buffer defined as Virtual Buffer Verifier (VBV) in MPEG-2 standard can be exploited sufficiently.",
"Assume there are N frames in the look-ahead window.",
"Let P i , i=1, .",
"N, be the i-th frame in the window.",
"The picture complexity, motion magnitude, picture quality index, and target number of bits for P i are denoted as C i , M i , Q i and T i , respectively.",
"With R representing the bit rate and F the frame rate, the algorithm performs the following steps: A first step is to calculate the dynamic weighted picture complexity, C i as: C i ′ = C i W ( M i M _ l , Q i Q _ l , S i , D i ) ;",
"where W( ) is a real function;",
"S iε {I, P, B} is the picture coding type of frame P i ;",
"M l and Q l are the average motion magnitude and average picture quality index of all frames in the look-ahead window with the same picture coding type as S i ;",
"and D i is the distance from P i to the most recent I frame.",
"It should be noted that the larger the value of Q i , the worse the picture quality.",
"A second step is to jointly determine the target number of bits for all frames in the look-ahead window: T i = RNC i ′ F ∑ k = 1 N C k ′ ;",
"A third step is the step of determining rate control to prevent decoder buffer overflow and underflow: The variable “V”",
"is denoted as the decoder buffer size (e.g., 1835008 bits for MP@ML (Main Profile/Main level) case) as defined in MPEG-2 standard (See Informaiton Technology —Generic Coding of Moving Pictures and Associated Audio:Video, ISO/IEC 13818-2, 1995) and V i is denoted as the decoder buffer fullness just before the picture P i is drawn from the decoder buffer for decoding.",
"Letting “G”",
"be a guard band, for example, G=3%˜5% of V, the MPEG-2 decoder buffer model for CBR operation is described by the following recurrence: V 0 =V init , V i =V i−1 +R/F−T i , where V init is the initial buffer fullness.",
"To prevent any overflow and underflow, the buffer fullness must always satisfy the following relation: T i +G≦V i ≦V−G.",
"If V i underflow or overflow the buffer requirement by an amount of δ, then the target bit allocation must be adjusted according to the following: T k ′ = T k ∑ m = 1 i T m ∓ δ ∑ m = 1 i T m , k = 1 , 2 , … , i ;",
"T k ′ = T k ∑ n = i + 1 N T n ± δ ∑ n = i + 1 N T n , k = i + 1 , … , N .",
"Returning to FIG. 3 , after the coding strategy is determined for the video frames in the look-ahead window, it needs to be passed to the second encoder device 320 .",
"This is preferably communicated in the form of the coding parameters and other necessary information.",
"In practice, the real-time communication bandwidth between the second encoder device 320 and information processor 340 may limit the amount of the coding parameters and information to be transmitted to the encoder 320 on frame-by-frame basis and may have an impact on the execution of the coding strategy.",
"In one of the embodiments of the invention, four (4) 16 bit integers are used to pass parameters to the second encoder 320 for every frame's encoding.",
"They are 16 bits for the target number of bits, 16 bits for the weighted picture complexity, and 32 bits for the sum of the weighted complexities of the remaining un-encoded frames in the look-ahead window.",
"The last two parameters are used by the second encoder 320 to reallocate any excess bits over the remaining frames.",
"While the invention has been described for MPEG video encoding, it is understood that the invention may be used with other video coding techniques or even with non-video data.",
"Indeed, any digital information can be divided into coding units and bits are allocated to the coding units for constant bit rate or variable bit rate encoding.",
"For example, digital audio or digitized speech can be divided into frames in millisecond units.",
"These frames can be treated the same as the video pictures and the invention can be applied to these coding units.",
"While the invention has been particularly shown and described with respect to illustrative and preformed embodiments thereof, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that the foregoing and other changes in form and details may be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention which should be limited only by the scope of the appended claims."
] |
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention:
This invention relates to a temperature telemetering device and, in particular, to a sonic or ultra-sonic signal generating temperature probe.
2. Brief Statement of the Prior Art:
Various probe devices have been developed for indicating a sensed temperature of a body, typically the temperature of a comestible being heated in an oven and the like. Some of these devices have employed spring biased rod members received within a probe housing and restrained in a retracted position by a fusible link which melts at a preselected temperature, releasing the rod and providing a visual indication of the sensed temperature. Other devices have employed vaporizable liquids contained within a probe housing capped by a closure member which is displaceable by the pressure developed within the probe cavity to uncover a port, permitting the vaporized liquid to escape and generate an audible whistle or tone.
Heretofore, the various temperature probes have suffered from one or more disadvantages. A very common disadvantage is the inability to reset the probes for repeated use. Devices of relatively complex structure have also lacked adjustment capability and the triggering temperature of the alarm has not been fixedly adjustable, thereby severely limiting the device to one or only a few specific cooking applications. The devices which have employed umbilical cords for connection to the oven are cumbersome for use and not widely acceptable for ordinary household cooking applications. Additionally, such devices are not readily adaptable to retrofit existing conventional or microwave ovens since they require that the signal processing facilities and, often, the transmitting facilities be included in the oven structure.
BRIEF STATEMENT OF THE INVENTION
This invention comprises a temperature telemetering device which is particularly suited for use with household cooking ranges, ovens, mircowave ovens, and the like. The device is of a probe construction, having a probe member with an internal cavity which receives a temperature expansive material such as wax and the like. The cavity is in communication with a displaceable member such as a piston that is responsive to the pressure of the temperature expansive material and is mechanically linked, with a push rod, to a latch mechanism that inhibits the operation of a sonic or ultra-sonic signal generator. Preferably, the signal generator comprises a spring biased hammer and a resonating member such as a bell, tuning fork and the like which is struck by the hammer member when the latter is released. The latch mechanism can comprise a detent such as a cam and the like that is restrained by a lever positioned for displacement out of its detenting position by the push rod. The assembly is interconnected by adjustment means permitting a variable spacing between the latch mechanism and the displaceable member whereby the trigger temperature of the latch mechanism can be fixedly adjusted. Other embodiments of the invention can include a plurality of hammer members with respective latch detents to provide a plurality of output signals of progressively increasing temperatures.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
The invention will be described with reference to the illustrated, presently preferred embodiments thereof of which:
FIG. 1 is an elevational sectional view of a device of the invention;
FIG. 2 is a sectional perspective view of another embodiment of the invention;
FIG. 3 is a view of an alternative probe and displaceable member construction useful in the invention;
FIG. 4 is a sectional view of another embodiment of the invention; and
FIG. 5 illustrates the elements of a telemetering and oven control embodiment of the invention.
DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
FIG. 1 illustrates a telemetering device of the invention. The device 10 includes a probe member 12 which is a generally elongated, tubular member having a pointed end 14 for insertion into a mass undergoing a temperature change, e.g., into a comestible such as meat, e.g., a roast under going heating. The generally tubular probe member 12 has a central or coextensive cavity 16. A thermally expansive material 18 is received within the cavity at the furtherest extension of the cavity to be in heat exchange relationship with the distal portion 20 of the walls of probe member 12.
The device 10 also includes displaceable means, generally indicated at 22, in pressure responsive relationship with the thermally expansive material. In the device shown in FIG. 1, the displaceable means comprises a piston 24 slidably received within central cavity 26 in the enlarged diameter, shank portion 28 of the probe member. The central cavity 26 is defined by a coextensive bore in shank portion 28 which has internal threads 30 at its upper open end and an annular shoulder 32 to provide an abutment stop for piston 24. An annular spring retainer 34 is turned into the threaded open end of shank portion 28 to serve as an upper retainer for resilient means, compression spring 37 which biases against the upper surface of piston 24.
A cap 36 having a flat base plate 38 and a dependent cylindrical boss 40 with external threads is turned into the threaded open end of shank portion 28. This cap 36 has a central bore to receive push rod 42 that is secured to piston 24.
The upper surface of base plate 38 has a band yoke 44 to support the resonating member, bell 46, of the audio signal generator. The yoke 44 centrally carries a threaded stud 48 which extends through a central aperture of the bell 46 and receives nut 50 for securing the assembly.
The signal generator also includes a hammer 52 for striking the bell 46. The hammer 52 is distally secured to arm 54 which is mounted on shaft 56. This assembly is supported on base plate 38 by one or more bracket members 58. Shaft 56 also carries the detent cam 60 and resilient means to impart a clockwise, torsional force on shaft 56. The resilient means can be helical spring such as springs 98 and 99 which are shown in FIG. 3 for this purpose. The flat face 62 of cam 60 is restrained by latch means which includes the latch arm 64 pivotally secured by pin 66 on bracket 68 and superimposed on the upper end of push rod 42 whereby extension of piston 24 in central cavity 22 will raise latch arm 64, freeing cam 60 for rotation and permitting arm 54 to cause hammer 52 to strike bell 46.
The thermally responsive material 18 is mechanically linked to the latch means through push rod 42 and piston 24. The latter is mechanically linked to the thermally responsive material through elongated push rod 70 which extends through bore 72 in the upper end of the tubular probe.
The thermally expansive material 18 employed in the cavity 16 of the probe 12 can be any material having a suitable thermal volumetric expansion characteristic. Various thermostatic fluids such as wax, or wax impregnated rubber and the like can be employed. It is preferred that the material 18 be sealed within the cavity 16 by suitable resilient means such as a plug 74 of an elastomer, e.g., rubber and the like. The volumetric change of material 18 in response to temperature changes will elastically deform plug 74, causing rod 70 to exert a force on piston 24, deflecting this piston against the bias of spring 36 to release the latch mechanism which inhibits the operation of the output signal generator.
Preferably, the temperature set point for response of the output signal generator is fixedly adjustable and the device has adjustment means for this purpose. The adjustment means in the illustrated embodiment comprises the threaded plug 40 which is received within the threaded open upper end of the shank 28 such that the advance or retraction of the plug 40 in shank 28 provides a controlled variation in the relative distance between latch arm 64 and the displaceable means, piston 24. If desired, the undersurface of base plate 38 can bear a pointer 76 and the outer surface of shank portion 28 can be marked with suitable temperature indicia such that the device can be calibrated for preselection of any desirable temperature setting.
FIG. 2 illustrates an alternative embodiment for the thermally expansive material. Probe 12 has a central cavity 16 which communicates with an enlarged cavity 88 in the shank portion 28 of the probe member through a small aperture or orifice 82. The probe member cavity 16 is filled with a liquid having an atmospheric pressure boiling point from 120° to about 350° F.
The cavity 80 within shank portion 28 contains bellows 86 which has its open end sealed against the end wall 88 of cavity 80, defining an elastic chamber. The chamber serves as a flash or vaporization chamber for the liquid material 84 which is extruded through orifice 82 and into the chamber as a result of its thermal expansion.
The shank portion of the probe is at or near oven temperatures since it is not shielded by the comestible and, accordingly, the chamber 80 is at or near oven temperatures. If desired, the heating of this chamber can be improved by providing a plurality of heat exchange fins 90 longitudinally disposed about the shank portion.
Referring now to FIG. 3, there is illustrated a device having a plurality of output signals responsive to a plurality of temperature set points. The device has a probe member formed with probe portion 12 and shank portion 28. This probe member can be constructed substantially as described with regard to the embodiment of FIG. 1. The probe member receives cap 36 having base plate 38 and the plug 40 which is turned into the threaded open end of shank portion 28. As previously mentioned, the shank portion 28 can bear a plurality of temperature indicating indicia 92 and the base plate carries one or more cooperative pointers 76 and 77 for indicating the triggering temperature set points of the device.
The output signal generator includes bell 46 which is carried by the strap yoke 44 with its central stud 48 that extends through a central aperture 47 of bell 46 and is secured by acorn nut 50. The output signal generator also includes a plurality of hammer means 52 and 53 which are resiliently biased to strike bell 46 when released by the latching mechanism. To this end, the hammers are secured to respective ones of the plurality of arms 54 and 55 which are each carried on respective ones of the shafts 56 and 57. Shafts 56 and 57 extend laterally from U-bracket 96 and are distally supported by lateral brackets 94 and 95. These shafts are provided with torsion or helical springs 98 and 99 to impart a resilient clockwise rotational force thereto. Shaft 56 carries cam 60 and shaft 57 carries cam 61. Cams 60 and 61 are disposed in a side-by-side orientation within U-shaped bracket 96 and have their flat cam surfaces oriented for engagement by latch lever 64 which is pivotally mounted in U-shaped bracket 96 on pin 102. The latch lever 64 is resiliently biased against the cam surfaces by leaf spring 104.
A push rod extends upwardly through plug 40 and base plate 38 to engage the undersurface to latch lever 64, raising of the latch lever 64 in responsive to the thermal expansion of the material within the probe member 12 in a stepping action, first releasing cam 61 with its associated shaft 57 and arm 59, permitting hammer 53 to strike the bell and, thereafter, releasing cam 60 which, with its shaft 56 and dependent arm 54 to cause hammer 52 to strike the bell. The difference or spread between the temperature set points can be preselected by variation in the relative heights of the flat detent surfaces of the cams. A useful control can be achieved by providing a difference of from 5° to 20°, preferably about 10° to 15°, F. between the temperatures so that the first audio signal can be used to reduce the rate of heating, e.g., the oven temperature, and permit a slower, finishing cooking step, insuring against over-shooting the desired final temperature.
Referring now to FIG. 4, there is illustrated an embodiment having a vaporizable liquid and an adjustment means permitting a variable fixed adjustability of the alarm temperature. This device comprises a probe member 12 having a central cavity 16 which receives the vaporizable and thermally expansive liquid 18.
The cavity 16 is sealed with plug 17 which has a central aperture to receive tube 19 which extends into a bottom portion of the cavity and has an aperture 21 communicating with the cavity 16. The upper end of probe member 12 has a shank portion 51 which has an open end bearing internal threads to receive the threaded lower end of cylinder 25. Mounted within cylinder 25 is closed end bellows 86 which has its open end sealed against the end wall 87 of the threaded cavity. Cylinder 25 can be provided with a plurality of heat exchange means such as fins 94 maintaining this cylinder at or near the oven temperature. The upper end of cylinder 25 bears a peripheral groove 27 which receives the inwardly rolled edges 29 of cylindrical casing 31. This casing 31 is secured to the bottom of base plate 38 and houses the resilient means, compression spring 36, which is biased between the undersurface of plate 38 and spring retainer 33. The latter is carried on the push rod 42 by snap ring 35 that is seated in a groove of rod 42. Rod 42 is secured to piston 87. The bellows 86 provides a flash chamber for vaporization of the liquid material 18 extruded through tube 19 in responsive to the thermal expansion of liquid 18. The internal volume of bellows 86 is a controllable variable, fixedly adjustable by the advance or retraction of cylinder 25 in shank portion 28, thereby providing a fixed adjustability in the temperature set point of the device. The device can be calibrated to preset temperatures and shank portion 28 can be scribed with indicia 92 which cooperate with a marker 76 carried on cylinder 25.
Referring to FIG. 5, the telemetering system includes a signal receiver such as a microphone receiver 110 which can be mounted within the oven cavity. The microphone receiver 110 is connected to an amplifier 112 in the audio frequency range to develop a control signal which is applied to relay 114. Relay 114 is in the secondary winding circuit of a power transformer 116 which also includes the heating element of the oven, e.g., a Calrod heater 117 of a conventional oven or the power supply to a magnation of a microwave oven. The primary winding of transformer 116 is in the oven control circuit which includes control such as a temperature setting dial 120 and/or a timer dial 122.
When the telemetering device has a plurality of triggering temperature set points, as in FIG. 3, relay 114 can be a multiple pole, latching relay. The multiple poles can be connected to preselected secondary taps of transformer 116, e.g., to center tap 124 to provide progressive or stepwise reduction of power to the heating element.
Although the illustrations show the preferred audio signal generator, it is apparent that the illustrated bell could be replaced with a vibrating reed, tuning fork and the like capable of generating ultra-sonic signals when struck by one or more hammers which are spring biased and latched in the aforedescribed manner.
The invention has been described with reference to the illustratred and presently preferred embodiments thereof. It is not intended that the invention be unduly limited by this description of preferred embodiments. Instead, it is intended that the invention be defined by the means, and their obvious equivalents, set forth in the following claims. | There is disclosed a device for telemetry of the temperature of a mass undergoing temperature change, typically of a comestible being heated in an oven, and the like. The device includes a probe having a cavity which receives a thermally expansive material such as wax, a displacement member responsive to pressure developed by the temperature expansive material, a sonic or ultra-sonic signal generator, a latch mechanism inhibiting operation of the audio signal generator and a rod mechanically interconnecting the displacement member with the latch so that expansion of the material in the probe cavity trips the latch mechanism to permit generation of an output signal. The device also includes adjustment means for variation in the relative positions of the latch mechanism to the displaceable member whereby the triggering temperature for the latch mechanism can be fixedly adjusted. | Summarize the document in concise, focusing on the main idea's functionality and advantages. | [
"BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1.",
"Field of the Invention: This invention relates to a temperature telemetering device and, in particular, to a sonic or ultra-sonic signal generating temperature probe.",
"Brief Statement of the Prior Art: Various probe devices have been developed for indicating a sensed temperature of a body, typically the temperature of a comestible being heated in an oven and the like.",
"Some of these devices have employed spring biased rod members received within a probe housing and restrained in a retracted position by a fusible link which melts at a preselected temperature, releasing the rod and providing a visual indication of the sensed temperature.",
"Other devices have employed vaporizable liquids contained within a probe housing capped by a closure member which is displaceable by the pressure developed within the probe cavity to uncover a port, permitting the vaporized liquid to escape and generate an audible whistle or tone.",
"Heretofore, the various temperature probes have suffered from one or more disadvantages.",
"A very common disadvantage is the inability to reset the probes for repeated use.",
"Devices of relatively complex structure have also lacked adjustment capability and the triggering temperature of the alarm has not been fixedly adjustable, thereby severely limiting the device to one or only a few specific cooking applications.",
"The devices which have employed umbilical cords for connection to the oven are cumbersome for use and not widely acceptable for ordinary household cooking applications.",
"Additionally, such devices are not readily adaptable to retrofit existing conventional or microwave ovens since they require that the signal processing facilities and, often, the transmitting facilities be included in the oven structure.",
"BRIEF STATEMENT OF THE INVENTION This invention comprises a temperature telemetering device which is particularly suited for use with household cooking ranges, ovens, mircowave ovens, and the like.",
"The device is of a probe construction, having a probe member with an internal cavity which receives a temperature expansive material such as wax and the like.",
"The cavity is in communication with a displaceable member such as a piston that is responsive to the pressure of the temperature expansive material and is mechanically linked, with a push rod, to a latch mechanism that inhibits the operation of a sonic or ultra-sonic signal generator.",
"Preferably, the signal generator comprises a spring biased hammer and a resonating member such as a bell, tuning fork and the like which is struck by the hammer member when the latter is released.",
"The latch mechanism can comprise a detent such as a cam and the like that is restrained by a lever positioned for displacement out of its detenting position by the push rod.",
"The assembly is interconnected by adjustment means permitting a variable spacing between the latch mechanism and the displaceable member whereby the trigger temperature of the latch mechanism can be fixedly adjusted.",
"Other embodiments of the invention can include a plurality of hammer members with respective latch detents to provide a plurality of output signals of progressively increasing temperatures.",
"BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS The invention will be described with reference to the illustrated, presently preferred embodiments thereof of which: FIG. 1 is an elevational sectional view of a device of the invention;",
"FIG. 2 is a sectional perspective view of another embodiment of the invention;",
"FIG. 3 is a view of an alternative probe and displaceable member construction useful in the invention;",
"FIG. 4 is a sectional view of another embodiment of the invention;",
"and FIG. 5 illustrates the elements of a telemetering and oven control embodiment of the invention.",
"DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS FIG. 1 illustrates a telemetering device of the invention.",
"The device 10 includes a probe member 12 which is a generally elongated, tubular member having a pointed end 14 for insertion into a mass undergoing a temperature change, e.g., into a comestible such as meat, e.g., a roast under going heating.",
"The generally tubular probe member 12 has a central or coextensive cavity 16.",
"A thermally expansive material 18 is received within the cavity at the furtherest extension of the cavity to be in heat exchange relationship with the distal portion 20 of the walls of probe member 12.",
"The device 10 also includes displaceable means, generally indicated at 22, in pressure responsive relationship with the thermally expansive material.",
"In the device shown in FIG. 1, the displaceable means comprises a piston 24 slidably received within central cavity 26 in the enlarged diameter, shank portion 28 of the probe member.",
"The central cavity 26 is defined by a coextensive bore in shank portion 28 which has internal threads 30 at its upper open end and an annular shoulder 32 to provide an abutment stop for piston 24.",
"An annular spring retainer 34 is turned into the threaded open end of shank portion 28 to serve as an upper retainer for resilient means, compression spring 37 which biases against the upper surface of piston 24.",
"A cap 36 having a flat base plate 38 and a dependent cylindrical boss 40 with external threads is turned into the threaded open end of shank portion 28.",
"This cap 36 has a central bore to receive push rod 42 that is secured to piston 24.",
"The upper surface of base plate 38 has a band yoke 44 to support the resonating member, bell 46, of the audio signal generator.",
"The yoke 44 centrally carries a threaded stud 48 which extends through a central aperture of the bell 46 and receives nut 50 for securing the assembly.",
"The signal generator also includes a hammer 52 for striking the bell 46.",
"The hammer 52 is distally secured to arm 54 which is mounted on shaft 56.",
"This assembly is supported on base plate 38 by one or more bracket members 58.",
"Shaft 56 also carries the detent cam 60 and resilient means to impart a clockwise, torsional force on shaft 56.",
"The resilient means can be helical spring such as springs 98 and 99 which are shown in FIG. 3 for this purpose.",
"The flat face 62 of cam 60 is restrained by latch means which includes the latch arm 64 pivotally secured by pin 66 on bracket 68 and superimposed on the upper end of push rod 42 whereby extension of piston 24 in central cavity 22 will raise latch arm 64, freeing cam 60 for rotation and permitting arm 54 to cause hammer 52 to strike bell 46.",
"The thermally responsive material 18 is mechanically linked to the latch means through push rod 42 and piston 24.",
"The latter is mechanically linked to the thermally responsive material through elongated push rod 70 which extends through bore 72 in the upper end of the tubular probe.",
"The thermally expansive material 18 employed in the cavity 16 of the probe 12 can be any material having a suitable thermal volumetric expansion characteristic.",
"Various thermostatic fluids such as wax, or wax impregnated rubber and the like can be employed.",
"It is preferred that the material 18 be sealed within the cavity 16 by suitable resilient means such as a plug 74 of an elastomer, e.g., rubber and the like.",
"The volumetric change of material 18 in response to temperature changes will elastically deform plug 74, causing rod 70 to exert a force on piston 24, deflecting this piston against the bias of spring 36 to release the latch mechanism which inhibits the operation of the output signal generator.",
"Preferably, the temperature set point for response of the output signal generator is fixedly adjustable and the device has adjustment means for this purpose.",
"The adjustment means in the illustrated embodiment comprises the threaded plug 40 which is received within the threaded open upper end of the shank 28 such that the advance or retraction of the plug 40 in shank 28 provides a controlled variation in the relative distance between latch arm 64 and the displaceable means, piston 24.",
"If desired, the undersurface of base plate 38 can bear a pointer 76 and the outer surface of shank portion 28 can be marked with suitable temperature indicia such that the device can be calibrated for preselection of any desirable temperature setting.",
"FIG. 2 illustrates an alternative embodiment for the thermally expansive material.",
"Probe 12 has a central cavity 16 which communicates with an enlarged cavity 88 in the shank portion 28 of the probe member through a small aperture or orifice 82.",
"The probe member cavity 16 is filled with a liquid having an atmospheric pressure boiling point from 120° to about 350° F. The cavity 80 within shank portion 28 contains bellows 86 which has its open end sealed against the end wall 88 of cavity 80, defining an elastic chamber.",
"The chamber serves as a flash or vaporization chamber for the liquid material 84 which is extruded through orifice 82 and into the chamber as a result of its thermal expansion.",
"The shank portion of the probe is at or near oven temperatures since it is not shielded by the comestible and, accordingly, the chamber 80 is at or near oven temperatures.",
"If desired, the heating of this chamber can be improved by providing a plurality of heat exchange fins 90 longitudinally disposed about the shank portion.",
"Referring now to FIG. 3, there is illustrated a device having a plurality of output signals responsive to a plurality of temperature set points.",
"The device has a probe member formed with probe portion 12 and shank portion 28.",
"This probe member can be constructed substantially as described with regard to the embodiment of FIG. 1. The probe member receives cap 36 having base plate 38 and the plug 40 which is turned into the threaded open end of shank portion 28.",
"As previously mentioned, the shank portion 28 can bear a plurality of temperature indicating indicia 92 and the base plate carries one or more cooperative pointers 76 and 77 for indicating the triggering temperature set points of the device.",
"The output signal generator includes bell 46 which is carried by the strap yoke 44 with its central stud 48 that extends through a central aperture 47 of bell 46 and is secured by acorn nut 50.",
"The output signal generator also includes a plurality of hammer means 52 and 53 which are resiliently biased to strike bell 46 when released by the latching mechanism.",
"To this end, the hammers are secured to respective ones of the plurality of arms 54 and 55 which are each carried on respective ones of the shafts 56 and 57.",
"Shafts 56 and 57 extend laterally from U-bracket 96 and are distally supported by lateral brackets 94 and 95.",
"These shafts are provided with torsion or helical springs 98 and 99 to impart a resilient clockwise rotational force thereto.",
"Shaft 56 carries cam 60 and shaft 57 carries cam 61.",
"Cams 60 and 61 are disposed in a side-by-side orientation within U-shaped bracket 96 and have their flat cam surfaces oriented for engagement by latch lever 64 which is pivotally mounted in U-shaped bracket 96 on pin 102.",
"The latch lever 64 is resiliently biased against the cam surfaces by leaf spring 104.",
"A push rod extends upwardly through plug 40 and base plate 38 to engage the undersurface to latch lever 64, raising of the latch lever 64 in responsive to the thermal expansion of the material within the probe member 12 in a stepping action, first releasing cam 61 with its associated shaft 57 and arm 59, permitting hammer 53 to strike the bell and, thereafter, releasing cam 60 which, with its shaft 56 and dependent arm 54 to cause hammer 52 to strike the bell.",
"The difference or spread between the temperature set points can be preselected by variation in the relative heights of the flat detent surfaces of the cams.",
"A useful control can be achieved by providing a difference of from 5° to 20°, preferably about 10° to 15°, F. between the temperatures so that the first audio signal can be used to reduce the rate of heating, e.g., the oven temperature, and permit a slower, finishing cooking step, insuring against over-shooting the desired final temperature.",
"Referring now to FIG. 4, there is illustrated an embodiment having a vaporizable liquid and an adjustment means permitting a variable fixed adjustability of the alarm temperature.",
"This device comprises a probe member 12 having a central cavity 16 which receives the vaporizable and thermally expansive liquid 18.",
"The cavity 16 is sealed with plug 17 which has a central aperture to receive tube 19 which extends into a bottom portion of the cavity and has an aperture 21 communicating with the cavity 16.",
"The upper end of probe member 12 has a shank portion 51 which has an open end bearing internal threads to receive the threaded lower end of cylinder 25.",
"Mounted within cylinder 25 is closed end bellows 86 which has its open end sealed against the end wall 87 of the threaded cavity.",
"Cylinder 25 can be provided with a plurality of heat exchange means such as fins 94 maintaining this cylinder at or near the oven temperature.",
"The upper end of cylinder 25 bears a peripheral groove 27 which receives the inwardly rolled edges 29 of cylindrical casing 31.",
"This casing 31 is secured to the bottom of base plate 38 and houses the resilient means, compression spring 36, which is biased between the undersurface of plate 38 and spring retainer 33.",
"The latter is carried on the push rod 42 by snap ring 35 that is seated in a groove of rod 42.",
"Rod 42 is secured to piston 87.",
"The bellows 86 provides a flash chamber for vaporization of the liquid material 18 extruded through tube 19 in responsive to the thermal expansion of liquid 18.",
"The internal volume of bellows 86 is a controllable variable, fixedly adjustable by the advance or retraction of cylinder 25 in shank portion 28, thereby providing a fixed adjustability in the temperature set point of the device.",
"The device can be calibrated to preset temperatures and shank portion 28 can be scribed with indicia 92 which cooperate with a marker 76 carried on cylinder 25.",
"Referring to FIG. 5, the telemetering system includes a signal receiver such as a microphone receiver 110 which can be mounted within the oven cavity.",
"The microphone receiver 110 is connected to an amplifier 112 in the audio frequency range to develop a control signal which is applied to relay 114.",
"Relay 114 is in the secondary winding circuit of a power transformer 116 which also includes the heating element of the oven, e.g., a Calrod heater 117 of a conventional oven or the power supply to a magnation of a microwave oven.",
"The primary winding of transformer 116 is in the oven control circuit which includes control such as a temperature setting dial 120 and/or a timer dial 122.",
"When the telemetering device has a plurality of triggering temperature set points, as in FIG. 3, relay 114 can be a multiple pole, latching relay.",
"The multiple poles can be connected to preselected secondary taps of transformer 116, e.g., to center tap 124 to provide progressive or stepwise reduction of power to the heating element.",
"Although the illustrations show the preferred audio signal generator, it is apparent that the illustrated bell could be replaced with a vibrating reed, tuning fork and the like capable of generating ultra-sonic signals when struck by one or more hammers which are spring biased and latched in the aforedescribed manner.",
"The invention has been described with reference to the illustratred and presently preferred embodiments thereof.",
"It is not intended that the invention be unduly limited by this description of preferred embodiments.",
"Instead, it is intended that the invention be defined by the means, and their obvious equivalents, set forth in the following claims."
] |
This application is a divisional of Ser. No. 08/010,232 filed Jan. 28, 1993, now abandoned.
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
This invention relates to compositions useful in determination of particular analytes. In particular, the invention relates to compositions where a ferrous ion containing complex is the end result of a series of reactions, where the amount of complex can be correlated to the amount of analyte in the sample.
BACKGROUND AND PRIOR ART
The central concern of clinical chemistry is the qualitative and quantitative determination of specific analytes in samples. Of special concern is the analysis of body fluid samples, such as blood, serum, urine, and so forth. Determination of the presence and/or amount of various analytes, followed by comparison to established parameters determines diagnosis of diseased or abnormal states.
The literature on analytical determination of body fluid samples is an enormous one, as the art has investigated the determination of, e.g., glucose, cholesterol, creatine, sarcosine, urea, and other substances in samples of blood, serum, urine, and so forth.
The early clinical literature taught various non-enzymometric methods for determining analytes. Exemplary of this are the early glucose determination tests taught by Kaplan and Pesce in Clinical Chemistry: Theory, Analysis and Correlation (Mosby, 1984), pages 1032-1042. Such tests include the reduction of copper ions, reaction of copper with molybdate, and so forth. As this reference points out, these methods are insufficiently accurate, due to poor specificity, and interference by other analytes. One method described by Kaplan, et al. is the alkaline ferricyanide test. This method involves heating a solution containing glucose in the presence of ferricyanide, under alkaline conditions. The reaction: ##STR1## is accompanied by a change in color from yellow to colorless. Either this decrease in color is measured or the reaction of the colorless ferrocyanide ion with a ferric ion to form the intensely colored precipitate "Prussian Blue" is measured.
These early "chelation" type tests became replaced by more specific assays as enzymology became a more developed science. Enzymes are known for their extreme specificity, so via the use of an appropriate enzyme, the skilled artisan could determine, rather easily, whether or not a particular analyte is present, and how much. These enzymatic systems must be combined with indicator systems which, in combination with the enzyme reaction, form a detectable signal. Kaplan describes a glucose-hexokinase system, as well as a glucose oxidase system, and these are fairly well known to the art. They are used in connection with indicator systems such as the "coupled indicators" known as Trinder reagents, or oxidizable indicators such as o-tolidine and 3,3', 5,5'-tetramethylbenzidine. In such systems, reaction of the enzyme with its substrate yields a surplus of electrons carried by the enzyme, which are removed by the indicator systems. Color formation follows, indicating presence, absence, or amount of analyte in the sample.
The patent literature is replete with discussions of such systems. A by no means exhaustive selection of such patents include 4,680,259, 4,212,938, 4,144,129 and 3,925,164 (cholesterol oxidase); 4,672,029, 4,636,464, 4,490,465 and 4,418,037 (glucose oxidase); and 4,614,714 (L-glutamic acid oxidase). All of these enzymatic systems "oxidize" their substrates (i.e., the analyte in question) in that they remove electrons therefrom.
Once the analyte loses its electrons, it plays no further part in the determination reaction. As indicated, supra, the electrons may be transferred into a color forming systems, such as the Trinder system described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,291,121, or a tetrazolium system, such as is described in, e.g., U.S. Pat. No. 4,576,913. These systems employ substances known as "mediators" "electron transfer agents" or "electron shuttles" which remove the electrons from the enzymes. Eventually, the mediators release the electrons. The mediators can either absorb one, or two electrons per molecule of mediator. Ferricyanide, one preferred mediator, picks up one electron per molecule. The 4,576,913 patent, described supra, e.g., teaches another mediator, i.e., phenazine methosulfate, in combination with a tetrazolium salt. It is the latter which serves as the indicator. The use of these mediators enables one to proceed without oxygen. Normally, in a glucose determination reaction, oxygen is necessary to remove electrons from the reduced enzyme. This produces hydrogen peroxide: ##STR2## with the hydrogen peroxide taking part, in the presence of peroxidase, in reactions leading to formation of a color.
It is sometimes not desirable to use oxygen, or aerobic systems, because of various problems inherent in such systems. For example, in these reactions, the reaction is dependent on the partial pressure of O 2 in the atmosphere. In addition, because the O 2 must permeate throughout the entire test medium, the design of such media must be adapted to permit such permeation. There is interest, then, in indicator systems which are anaerobic, such as those where a mediator is used in connection with the indicator, or electrochemical systems using the mediator alone. There exists a need for anaerobic systems which utilize indicator reactions producing a detectable signal, such as a color.
While indicator systems of the type described supra are available, there is a difficulty with these in that the indicator molecules themselves are frequently unstable and do not have long shelf lives. There is therefore an interest in systems which utilize stable molecules which can form a detectable signal.
It will be recalled that Kaplan taught the formation of Prussian Blue in glucose determination, but dismissed it as a viable alternative because of the lack of specificity. Apart from this, the severe conditions under which the reactions are taught to take place are totally unsuitable for enzymatic assays. The reaction Kaplan teaches requires boiling the solutions. Enzymes are protein molecules, and inactivation via denaturing is characteristic of what happens when proteins are boiled. Thus, the skilled artisan, screening the heat parameters of Kaplan would avoid this teaching for enzymatic assays.
Mention of the Prussian Blue system is found in the aforementioned U.S. Pat. No. 4,576,913. This patent teaches a glycerol dehydrogenase which operates in a fashion similar to oxidases in that it teaches removal of two electrons from its substrate molecule. Column 5 of the patent refers to the Prussian Blue system (referred to as "Berlin Blue") as an the indicator.
This patent, however, must be read as a whole, and especially its teaching about the enzyme's operability. Enzymes are extremely pH sensitive, and the enzyme of the '913 patent is said to operate in a pH range from 6.0 to 10.0, and optimally at 7.0 to 8.5. The teachings, therefore, would suggest to the artisan that since the glycerol dehydrogenase operates at alkaline pHs, the adaptation of the Prussian Blue system to enzyme detection would be at alkaline pHs. However, ferric salts precipitate at alkaline pHs, which would eliminate them from participating in a reaction to form Prussian Blue under the conditions Adachi describes as necessary.
Refinements of the Prussian Blue based assay systems are described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,929,545, the disclosure of which is incorporated by reference. This patent teaches that ferrocyanide ions react with ferric ions supplied from the ferric ion containing salt Fe 3 (SO 4 ) 2 . The system can be used for determination of various analytes, including glucose and cholesterol.
A system similar to the Prussian Blue system is one based upon the chelator ferrozine. U.S. Pat. No. 4,701,420, the disclosure of which is incorporated by reference, describes the reaction. Essentially, the system uses an electron transfer agent together with an NAD(P)H/NAD(P) system. In essence, the reaction involves the transfer of an electron to NAD(P)H from analyte, followed by transfer to the electron transfer agent. In turn, the transfer agent shuttles the electron to a ferric ion containing complex, thereby generating ferrous ions. The ferrous ions then combine with a second material, leading to formation of a colored material. A series of possible materials are described as being useful as complexing agents for the ferric ion. The materials described in the '420 patent are extremely strong chelating agents.
It has now been found, surprisingly, that chelating agents not described as useful in indicator systems and which are weaker chelating agents than these described in the art are much more useful in indicator systems. Thus, these chelating agents are an important part of the invention described herein, which is a novel composition useful for determining analytes. This invention is described in more detail in the disclosure which follows.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The invention is a composition useful in determining an analyte in a sample. The composition includes, as essential elements, a specific oxidizing agent for the analyte in question, an electron transfer agent, a source of ferric ions, and two chelating agents. The first chelating agent is characterized by an affinity for ferric ions that is greater than its affinity for ferrous ions. The second chelating agent is one which complexes with ferrous ions to form a colored composition indicative of the analyte in question.
The particular of the invention and specific features thereof are set forth in the Detailed Description of Preferred Embodiments which follow.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
Example 1
A well known system for the detection of glucose in a sample involves the following series of reactions: ##STR3## Reactions "I" and "II" are coupled, i.e., in the oxidation of glucose, the electron removed is transferred to oPES, resulting in rPES. This species, rPES, however, immediately shuttles the electron in reaction "III":
III. Fe.sup.3+ (ferric ion)→Fe.sup.2+ (ferrous ions)
whereby rPES reverts to oPES. The ferrous ion (Fe 2+ ) then combines with ferrozine in reaction "IV":
IV. Fe.sup.2+ +ferrozine→purple complex
The intensity of purple color is a measurement of glucose.
In this experiment, sodium citrate was used as the chelating agent of the invention. A solution of citric acid (230 mM) was prepared, as was a solution of Fe 2 (SO 4 ) 3 (22 mM), and the pH adjusted to 5.00. These species correspond to the chelating agent and the ferric ion of the invention, respectively. A solution of PES (18 mM), i.e., the electron transfer agent, was prepared, as was a solution of glucose oxidase (5 ku/g). Finally, a 60 mM solution of ferrozine was prepared. These materials were combined in a test tube to give a final concentration of 200 mM citric acid, 19.1 mM Fe 2 (SO 4 ) 3 , 7.8 mM PES, 26.5 mM ferrozine, and 2.5 units of glucose oxidase. A solution of glucose (50 mg/dl) was added to give a final concentration of glucose of 9.1 mg/dl. Color formation was inspected visually, at a wavelength of 563 nm on a spectrophotometer (Shimadzu Model UV160 U), as were reaction kinetics. Absorbance was measured every two seconds over a one minute period.
Example 2
The protocols of Example 1 were followed, except sodium dl malate was used in place of sodium citrate.
Example 3
The protocols of Example 1 were followed, except sodium iminodiacetate was used in place of sodium citrate.
In all three cases, the colorimetric precipitate expected to form (i.e., complexes of ferrous ion and ferrozine) did form, with the citrate mixture forming most rapidly, followed by malate and iminodiacetate being the slowest former. Specifically, a change in absorbance of 1.29 units took 17 seconds for the citrate, 23 seconds for the malate, and 60 seconds for the iminodiacetate. The values are summarized in Tables 1-3, which follows. More color formed with the first two chelating agents than with the iminodiacetate.
TABLE 1______________________________________CITRATENo. T (SEC) ABS dA______________________________________2 0 0.409 2 0.421 0.012 4 0.426 0.005 6 0.443 0.017 8 0.491 0.048 10 0.658 0.167 12 0.976 0.318 14 1.343 0.367 16 1.678 0.335 18 1.958 0.280 20 2.184 0.226 22 2.362 0.179 24 2.485 0.123 26 2.485 0.000 28 2.485 0.000 30 2.485 0.000 32 2.485 0.000 34 2.485 0.000 36 2.485 0.000 38 2.485 0.000 40 2.485 0.000 42 2.485 0.000 44 2.485 0.000 46 2.485 0.000 48 2.485 0.000 50 2.485 0.000 52 2.485 0.000 54 2.485 0.000 56 2.485 0.000 58 2.485 0.000 60 2.485 0.000LAG T = 0 SEC RATE T = 60 SECdA/MIN. ACTIVITY2.4109 2.4109______________________________________
TABLE 2______________________________________MALATENo. T (SEC) ABS dA______________________________________3 0 0.589 2 0.602 0.013 4 0.621 0.019 6 0.663 0.042 8 0.766 0.104 10 0.932 0.165 12 1.137 0.205 14 1.342 0.205 16 1.518 0.177 18 1.661 0.142 20 1.769 0.108 22 1.847 0.078 24 1.903 0.056 26 1.942 0.039 28 1.969 0.027 30 1.987 0.018 32 1.999 0.012 34 2.008 0.009 36 2.014 0.006 38 2.018 0.005 40 2.021 0.003 42 2.025 0.003 44 2.027 0.002 46 2.028 0.002 48 2.030 0.002 50 2.031 0.001 52 2.032 0.001 54 2.033 0.001 56 2.034 0.001 58 2.034 0.001 60 2.035 0.000LAG T = 0 SEC RATE T = 60 SECdA/MIN. ACTIVITY1.6032 1.6032______________________________________
TABLE 3______________________________________IMINODIACETATENo. T (SEC) ABS dA______________________________________1 0 0.431 2 0.443 0.012 4 0.458 0.015 6 0.472 0.014 8 0.487 0.015 10 0.502 0.015 12 0.517 0.016 14 0.533 0.016 16 0.550 0.017 18 0.569 0.017 20 0.588 0.020 22 0.611 0.023 24 0.637 0.026 26 0.672 0.035 28 0.724 0.051 30 0.795 0.071 32 0.880 0.086 34 0.973 0.093 36 1.067 0.094 38 1.158 0.091 40 1.243 0.085 42 1.323 0.079 44 1.395 0.072 46 1.458 0.063 48 1.514 0.056 50 1.562 0.048 52 1.603 0.042 54 1.640 0.036 56 1.671 0.031 58 1.698 0.027 60 1.721 0.023LAG T = 0 SEC RATE T = 60 SECdA/MIN. ACTIVITY1.4848 1.4848______________________________________
The foregoing examples exemplify the use of the reagent compositions useful in determining an analyte in solution. Essential components of the composition include an analyte oxidizing agent, an electron transfer agent, a ferric ion source, a chelating agent which preferentially complexes ions as compared to ferrous ions, and a ferrous ion complexing agent, with the proviso that the chelating agent is not iminodiacetate containing compound.
"Analyte oxidizing agent" as the term is used herein refers to any material which removes an electron from the analyte of interest specifically. Ideally, this is an enzymatic oxidizing agent, as these materials are well known for the specificity of their activity. If glucose is the analyte of interest, for example, glucose oxidase may be used. Similarly, cholesterol oxidase may be used when cholesterol is being determined, and so forth. The art is very familiar with such oxidizing enzymes.
Electron transfer agent, as the term is used herein, refers to a material which accepts the electron from the oxidized analyte, but immediately "shuttles" it to another material. The transfer agents are reusable materials, as the act of transfer occurs very quickly, and in so doing the agent becomes receptive to receipt of further electrons. Non-exclusive examples of electron transfer agents include ferrocyanide compounds, such as potassium ferricyanide, phenazine methosulfate ("PMS"), phenazine ethosulfate ("PES"), and so forth. The electron transfer agent to be used will vary depending upon a number of criteria, including the pH of the composition. For example, potassium ferricyanide may be used at a pH range of from about 3.0 to about 5.5. PES may be used at a much broader range, i.e., at a pH of from about 3.0 to about 9.0. It is noted that the reagent is at a pH greater than about 5.5, however, there is some problem with association of the ferric ion with free hydroxyl groups, leading to formation of insoluble ferric hydroxide. To remedy this potential problem, the chelating agent should be a strong one. A citrate ion based chelator such as citric acid or sodium citrate is preferred for pHs above 5.0. Also preferred are malate containing compounds such as malic acid or sodium malate.
The composition may be prepared in a number of different forms. The examples show solution based materials, however, the compositions may also be formulated as multi part kits. In this case, the elements of the composition may be separated one from another, or different combinations may be prepared. For example, the ferric ion source may be kept in a container apart from the chelating agent, or the two components may be combined in one container. Some or all of the components of the reagent may be in liquid or solid form, such as in aqueous solutions, powders, tablets, lyophilisates, and so forth. The compositions may also be impregnated into an analytical device, such as a test strip or multilayered analytical apparatus. When used in a multilayered device, different components may be incorporated into different layers, so that each of the reactions in the series described supra occurs in a different layer. When a single layer, e.g., a test strip, is used, the reagents may be placed along the strip so that the sequential reactions take place at different points on the strip.
The preceding are examples of types of formulations of the reagent, and are not to be read as limitations thereon.
It will be understood that the specification and examples are illustrative but not limitative of the present invention and that other embodiments within the spirit and scope of the invention will suggest themselves to those skilled in the art. | The invention describes a composition useful in determining sample analytes, where the determination is carried out anaerobically. The compositions include an analyte oxidizing agent, an electron transfer agent, ferric ions, and two chelators. The first chelator complexes to ferric ions, but does not have good affinity for ferrous ions. The second chelator does chelate ferrous ions, and forms a colored complex with the ion. It is the colored complex which serves as the indicator for the analyte. Different formulations of the composition are described. | Concisely explain the essential features and purpose of the concept presented in the passage. | [
"This application is a divisional of Ser.",
"No. 08/010,232 filed Jan. 28, 1993, now abandoned.",
"FIELD OF THE INVENTION This invention relates to compositions useful in determination of particular analytes.",
"In particular, the invention relates to compositions where a ferrous ion containing complex is the end result of a series of reactions, where the amount of complex can be correlated to the amount of analyte in the sample.",
"BACKGROUND AND PRIOR ART The central concern of clinical chemistry is the qualitative and quantitative determination of specific analytes in samples.",
"Of special concern is the analysis of body fluid samples, such as blood, serum, urine, and so forth.",
"Determination of the presence and/or amount of various analytes, followed by comparison to established parameters determines diagnosis of diseased or abnormal states.",
"The literature on analytical determination of body fluid samples is an enormous one, as the art has investigated the determination of, e.g., glucose, cholesterol, creatine, sarcosine, urea, and other substances in samples of blood, serum, urine, and so forth.",
"The early clinical literature taught various non-enzymometric methods for determining analytes.",
"Exemplary of this are the early glucose determination tests taught by Kaplan and Pesce in Clinical Chemistry: Theory, Analysis and Correlation (Mosby, 1984), pages 1032-1042.",
"Such tests include the reduction of copper ions, reaction of copper with molybdate, and so forth.",
"As this reference points out, these methods are insufficiently accurate, due to poor specificity, and interference by other analytes.",
"One method described by Kaplan, et al.",
"is the alkaline ferricyanide test.",
"This method involves heating a solution containing glucose in the presence of ferricyanide, under alkaline conditions.",
"The reaction: ##STR1## is accompanied by a change in color from yellow to colorless.",
"Either this decrease in color is measured or the reaction of the colorless ferrocyanide ion with a ferric ion to form the intensely colored precipitate "Prussian Blue"",
"is measured.",
"These early "chelation"",
"type tests became replaced by more specific assays as enzymology became a more developed science.",
"Enzymes are known for their extreme specificity, so via the use of an appropriate enzyme, the skilled artisan could determine, rather easily, whether or not a particular analyte is present, and how much.",
"These enzymatic systems must be combined with indicator systems which, in combination with the enzyme reaction, form a detectable signal.",
"Kaplan describes a glucose-hexokinase system, as well as a glucose oxidase system, and these are fairly well known to the art.",
"They are used in connection with indicator systems such as the "coupled indicators"",
"known as Trinder reagents, or oxidizable indicators such as o-tolidine and 3,3', 5,5'-tetramethylbenzidine.",
"In such systems, reaction of the enzyme with its substrate yields a surplus of electrons carried by the enzyme, which are removed by the indicator systems.",
"Color formation follows, indicating presence, absence, or amount of analyte in the sample.",
"The patent literature is replete with discussions of such systems.",
"A by no means exhaustive selection of such patents include 4,680,259, 4,212,938, 4,144,129 and 3,925,164 (cholesterol oxidase);",
"4,672,029, 4,636,464, 4,490,465 and 4,418,037 (glucose oxidase);",
"and 4,614,714 (L-glutamic acid oxidase).",
"All of these enzymatic systems "oxidize"",
"their substrates (i.e., the analyte in question) in that they remove electrons therefrom.",
"Once the analyte loses its electrons, it plays no further part in the determination reaction.",
"As indicated, supra, the electrons may be transferred into a color forming systems, such as the Trinder system described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,291,121, or a tetrazolium system, such as is described in, e.g., U.S. Pat. No. 4,576,913.",
"These systems employ substances known as "mediators"",
""electron transfer agents"",
"or "electron shuttles"",
"which remove the electrons from the enzymes.",
"Eventually, the mediators release the electrons.",
"The mediators can either absorb one, or two electrons per molecule of mediator.",
"Ferricyanide, one preferred mediator, picks up one electron per molecule.",
"The 4,576,913 patent, described supra, e.g., teaches another mediator, i.e., phenazine methosulfate, in combination with a tetrazolium salt.",
"It is the latter which serves as the indicator.",
"The use of these mediators enables one to proceed without oxygen.",
"Normally, in a glucose determination reaction, oxygen is necessary to remove electrons from the reduced enzyme.",
"This produces hydrogen peroxide: ##STR2## with the hydrogen peroxide taking part, in the presence of peroxidase, in reactions leading to formation of a color.",
"It is sometimes not desirable to use oxygen, or aerobic systems, because of various problems inherent in such systems.",
"For example, in these reactions, the reaction is dependent on the partial pressure of O 2 in the atmosphere.",
"In addition, because the O 2 must permeate throughout the entire test medium, the design of such media must be adapted to permit such permeation.",
"There is interest, then, in indicator systems which are anaerobic, such as those where a mediator is used in connection with the indicator, or electrochemical systems using the mediator alone.",
"There exists a need for anaerobic systems which utilize indicator reactions producing a detectable signal, such as a color.",
"While indicator systems of the type described supra are available, there is a difficulty with these in that the indicator molecules themselves are frequently unstable and do not have long shelf lives.",
"There is therefore an interest in systems which utilize stable molecules which can form a detectable signal.",
"It will be recalled that Kaplan taught the formation of Prussian Blue in glucose determination, but dismissed it as a viable alternative because of the lack of specificity.",
"Apart from this, the severe conditions under which the reactions are taught to take place are totally unsuitable for enzymatic assays.",
"The reaction Kaplan teaches requires boiling the solutions.",
"Enzymes are protein molecules, and inactivation via denaturing is characteristic of what happens when proteins are boiled.",
"Thus, the skilled artisan, screening the heat parameters of Kaplan would avoid this teaching for enzymatic assays.",
"Mention of the Prussian Blue system is found in the aforementioned U.S. Pat. No. 4,576,913.",
"This patent teaches a glycerol dehydrogenase which operates in a fashion similar to oxidases in that it teaches removal of two electrons from its substrate molecule.",
"Column 5 of the patent refers to the Prussian Blue system (referred to as "Berlin Blue") as an the indicator.",
"This patent, however, must be read as a whole, and especially its teaching about the enzyme's operability.",
"Enzymes are extremely pH sensitive, and the enzyme of the '913 patent is said to operate in a pH range from 6.0 to 10.0, and optimally at 7.0 to 8.5.",
"The teachings, therefore, would suggest to the artisan that since the glycerol dehydrogenase operates at alkaline pHs, the adaptation of the Prussian Blue system to enzyme detection would be at alkaline pHs.",
"However, ferric salts precipitate at alkaline pHs, which would eliminate them from participating in a reaction to form Prussian Blue under the conditions Adachi describes as necessary.",
"Refinements of the Prussian Blue based assay systems are described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,929,545, the disclosure of which is incorporated by reference.",
"This patent teaches that ferrocyanide ions react with ferric ions supplied from the ferric ion containing salt Fe 3 (SO 4 ) 2 .",
"The system can be used for determination of various analytes, including glucose and cholesterol.",
"A system similar to the Prussian Blue system is one based upon the chelator ferrozine.",
"U.S. Pat. No. 4,701,420, the disclosure of which is incorporated by reference, describes the reaction.",
"Essentially, the system uses an electron transfer agent together with an NAD(P)H/NAD(P) system.",
"In essence, the reaction involves the transfer of an electron to NAD(P)H from analyte, followed by transfer to the electron transfer agent.",
"In turn, the transfer agent shuttles the electron to a ferric ion containing complex, thereby generating ferrous ions.",
"The ferrous ions then combine with a second material, leading to formation of a colored material.",
"A series of possible materials are described as being useful as complexing agents for the ferric ion.",
"The materials described in the '420 patent are extremely strong chelating agents.",
"It has now been found, surprisingly, that chelating agents not described as useful in indicator systems and which are weaker chelating agents than these described in the art are much more useful in indicator systems.",
"Thus, these chelating agents are an important part of the invention described herein, which is a novel composition useful for determining analytes.",
"This invention is described in more detail in the disclosure which follows.",
"SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The invention is a composition useful in determining an analyte in a sample.",
"The composition includes, as essential elements, a specific oxidizing agent for the analyte in question, an electron transfer agent, a source of ferric ions, and two chelating agents.",
"The first chelating agent is characterized by an affinity for ferric ions that is greater than its affinity for ferrous ions.",
"The second chelating agent is one which complexes with ferrous ions to form a colored composition indicative of the analyte in question.",
"The particular of the invention and specific features thereof are set forth in the Detailed Description of Preferred Embodiments which follow.",
"DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Example 1 A well known system for the detection of glucose in a sample involves the following series of reactions: ##STR3## Reactions "I"",
"and "II"",
"are coupled, i.e., in the oxidation of glucose, the electron removed is transferred to oPES, resulting in rPES.",
"This species, rPES, however, immediately shuttles the electron in reaction "III": III.",
"Fe.",
"sup[.",
"].3+ (ferric ion)→Fe.",
"sup[.",
"].2+ (ferrous ions) whereby rPES reverts to oPES.",
"The ferrous ion (Fe 2+ ) then combines with ferrozine in reaction "IV": IV.",
"Fe.",
"sup[.",
"].2+ +ferrozine→purple complex The intensity of purple color is a measurement of glucose.",
"In this experiment, sodium citrate was used as the chelating agent of the invention.",
"A solution of citric acid (230 mM) was prepared, as was a solution of Fe 2 (SO 4 ) 3 (22 mM), and the pH adjusted to 5.00.",
"These species correspond to the chelating agent and the ferric ion of the invention, respectively.",
"A solution of PES (18 mM), i.e., the electron transfer agent, was prepared, as was a solution of glucose oxidase (5 ku/g).",
"Finally, a 60 mM solution of ferrozine was prepared.",
"These materials were combined in a test tube to give a final concentration of 200 mM citric acid, 19.1 mM Fe 2 (SO 4 ) 3 , 7.8 mM PES, 26.5 mM ferrozine, and 2.5 units of glucose oxidase.",
"A solution of glucose (50 mg/dl) was added to give a final concentration of glucose of 9.1 mg/dl.",
"Color formation was inspected visually, at a wavelength of 563 nm on a spectrophotometer (Shimadzu Model UV160 U), as were reaction kinetics.",
"Absorbance was measured every two seconds over a one minute period.",
"Example 2 The protocols of Example 1 were followed, except sodium dl malate was used in place of sodium citrate.",
"Example 3 The protocols of Example 1 were followed, except sodium iminodiacetate was used in place of sodium citrate.",
"In all three cases, the colorimetric precipitate expected to form (i.e., complexes of ferrous ion and ferrozine) did form, with the citrate mixture forming most rapidly, followed by malate and iminodiacetate being the slowest former.",
"Specifically, a change in absorbance of 1.29 units took 17 seconds for the citrate, 23 seconds for the malate, and 60 seconds for the iminodiacetate.",
"The values are summarized in Tables 1-3, which follows.",
"More color formed with the first two chelating agents than with the iminodiacetate.",
"TABLE 1______________________________________CITRATENo.",
"T (SEC) ABS dA______________________________________2 0 0.409 2 0.421 0.012 4 0.426 0.005 6 0.443 0.017 8 0.491 0.048 10 0.658 0.167 12 0.976 0.318 14 1.343 0.367 16 1.678 0.335 18 1.958 0.280 20 2.184 0.226 22 2.362 0.179 24 2.485 0.123 26 2.485 0.000 28 2.485 0.000 30 2.485 0.000 32 2.485 0.000 34 2.485 0.000 36 2.485 0.000 38 2.485 0.000 40 2.485 0.000 42 2.485 0.000 44 2.485 0.000 46 2.485 0.000 48 2.485 0.000 50 2.485 0.000 52 2.485 0.000 54 2.485 0.000 56 2.485 0.000 58 2.485 0.000 60 2.485 0.000LAG T = 0 SEC RATE T = 60 SECdA/MIN.",
"ACTIVITY2.4109 2.4109______________________________________ TABLE 2______________________________________MALATENo.",
"T (SEC) ABS dA______________________________________3 0 0.589 2 0.602 0.013 4 0.621 0.019 6 0.663 0.042 8 0.766 0.104 10 0.932 0.165 12 1.137 0.205 14 1.342 0.205 16 1.518 0.177 18 1.661 0.142 20 1.769 0.108 22 1.847 0.078 24 1.903 0.056 26 1.942 0.039 28 1.969 0.027 30 1.987 0.018 32 1.999 0.012 34 2.008 0.009 36 2.014 0.006 38 2.018 0.005 40 2.021 0.003 42 2.025 0.003 44 2.027 0.002 46 2.028 0.002 48 2.030 0.002 50 2.031 0.001 52 2.032 0.001 54 2.033 0.001 56 2.034 0.001 58 2.034 0.001 60 2.035 0.000LAG T = 0 SEC RATE T = 60 SECdA/MIN.",
"ACTIVITY1.6032 1.6032______________________________________ TABLE 3______________________________________IMINODIACETATENo.",
"T (SEC) ABS dA______________________________________1 0 0.431 2 0.443 0.012 4 0.458 0.015 6 0.472 0.014 8 0.487 0.015 10 0.502 0.015 12 0.517 0.016 14 0.533 0.016 16 0.550 0.017 18 0.569 0.017 20 0.588 0.020 22 0.611 0.023 24 0.637 0.026 26 0.672 0.035 28 0.724 0.051 30 0.795 0.071 32 0.880 0.086 34 0.973 0.093 36 1.067 0.094 38 1.158 0.091 40 1.243 0.085 42 1.323 0.079 44 1.395 0.072 46 1.458 0.063 48 1.514 0.056 50 1.562 0.048 52 1.603 0.042 54 1.640 0.036 56 1.671 0.031 58 1.698 0.027 60 1.721 0.023LAG T = 0 SEC RATE T = 60 SECdA/MIN.",
"ACTIVITY1.4848 1.4848______________________________________ The foregoing examples exemplify the use of the reagent compositions useful in determining an analyte in solution.",
"Essential components of the composition include an analyte oxidizing agent, an electron transfer agent, a ferric ion source, a chelating agent which preferentially complexes ions as compared to ferrous ions, and a ferrous ion complexing agent, with the proviso that the chelating agent is not iminodiacetate containing compound.",
""Analyte oxidizing agent"",
"as the term is used herein refers to any material which removes an electron from the analyte of interest specifically.",
"Ideally, this is an enzymatic oxidizing agent, as these materials are well known for the specificity of their activity.",
"If glucose is the analyte of interest, for example, glucose oxidase may be used.",
"Similarly, cholesterol oxidase may be used when cholesterol is being determined, and so forth.",
"The art is very familiar with such oxidizing enzymes.",
"Electron transfer agent, as the term is used herein, refers to a material which accepts the electron from the oxidized analyte, but immediately "shuttles"",
"it to another material.",
"The transfer agents are reusable materials, as the act of transfer occurs very quickly, and in so doing the agent becomes receptive to receipt of further electrons.",
"Non-exclusive examples of electron transfer agents include ferrocyanide compounds, such as potassium ferricyanide, phenazine methosulfate ("PMS"), phenazine ethosulfate ("PES"), and so forth.",
"The electron transfer agent to be used will vary depending upon a number of criteria, including the pH of the composition.",
"For example, potassium ferricyanide may be used at a pH range of from about 3.0 to about 5.5.",
"PES may be used at a much broader range, i.e., at a pH of from about 3.0 to about 9.0.",
"It is noted that the reagent is at a pH greater than about 5.5, however, there is some problem with association of the ferric ion with free hydroxyl groups, leading to formation of insoluble ferric hydroxide.",
"To remedy this potential problem, the chelating agent should be a strong one.",
"A citrate ion based chelator such as citric acid or sodium citrate is preferred for pHs above 5.0.",
"Also preferred are malate containing compounds such as malic acid or sodium malate.",
"The composition may be prepared in a number of different forms.",
"The examples show solution based materials, however, the compositions may also be formulated as multi part kits.",
"In this case, the elements of the composition may be separated one from another, or different combinations may be prepared.",
"For example, the ferric ion source may be kept in a container apart from the chelating agent, or the two components may be combined in one container.",
"Some or all of the components of the reagent may be in liquid or solid form, such as in aqueous solutions, powders, tablets, lyophilisates, and so forth.",
"The compositions may also be impregnated into an analytical device, such as a test strip or multilayered analytical apparatus.",
"When used in a multilayered device, different components may be incorporated into different layers, so that each of the reactions in the series described supra occurs in a different layer.",
"When a single layer, e.g., a test strip, is used, the reagents may be placed along the strip so that the sequential reactions take place at different points on the strip.",
"The preceding are examples of types of formulations of the reagent, and are not to be read as limitations thereon.",
"It will be understood that the specification and examples are illustrative but not limitative of the present invention and that other embodiments within the spirit and scope of the invention will suggest themselves to those skilled in the art."
] |
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] This application is a 371 application from international application PCT/IB2014/063393 and is related to and claims priority from U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 61/861,185 filed Aug. 1, 2013 and having the same title, which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.
FIELD
[0002] Embodiments disclosed herein relate in general to digital cameras and in particular to thin multi-aperture digital cameras with auto-focus.
BACKGROUND
[0003] In recent years, mobile devices such as cell-phones, tablets and laptops have become ubiquitous. Most of these devices include one or two compact cameras—a main rear-facing camera (i.e. a camera on the back side of the device, facing away from the user and often used for casual photography) and a secondary front-facing camera (i.e. a camera located on the front side of the device and often used for video conferencing).
[0004] Although relatively compact in nature, the design of most of these cameras is very similar to the traditional structure of a digital still camera, i.e. they comprise an optical component (or a train of several optical elements and a main aperture) placed on top of an image sensor. The optical component (also referred to as “optics”) refracts the incoming light rays and bends them to create an image of a scene on the sensor. The dimensions of these cameras are largely determined by the size of the sensor and by the height of the optics. These are usually tied together through the focal length (“f”) of the lens and its field of view (FOV)—a lens that has to image a certain FOV on a sensor of a certain size has a specific focal length. Keeping the FOV constant, the larger the sensor dimensions (e.g. in an X-Y plane), the larger the focal length and the optics height.
[0005] As the dimensions of mobile devices shrink, the compact camera dimensions become more and more a key factor that limits the device thickness. Several approaches have been proposed to reduce the compact camera thickness in order to alleviate this constraint. Recently, multi-aperture systems have been proposed for this purpose. In such systems, instead of having one aperture with one train of optical elements, the camera is divided into several apertures, each with dedicated optical elements, all apertures sharing a similar field of view. Hereinafter, each such aperture, together with the optics and the sensor area on which the image is formed, is defined as a “sub-camera”. Typically, in multi-aperture camera designs, each sub-camera creates a smaller image on the image sensor compared with the image created by a reference single-aperture camera. Therefore, the height of each sub-camera can be smaller than the height of a single-aperture camera, reducing the total height of the camera could be reduced and allowing for slimmer designs of mobile devices.
[0006] FIG. 1A and FIG. 1B show a schematic design of a traditional camera and of a dual-aperture camera with two sub-cameras, respectively. A traditional camera 100 ′ in FIG. 1A includes an image sensor 102 placed on a substrate 104 and a lens 106 . A “camera height” is defined as the height of the camera module, from substrate 104 to the top of lens 106 . A dual-aperture camera 100 ″ in FIG. 1B includes two sub-cameras, a sub-camera 1 with an image sensor 112 a and a lens 116 a with an optical axis 118 a, and a sub-camera 2 with, an image sensor 112 b and a lens 116 b with an optical axis 118 b. The two sensors are placed on, respectively, substrates 114 a and 114 b. For comparison's sake, it is assumed that the reference single-aperture camera and the dual-aperture camera have the same field of view (FOV) and the sensors have the same pixel size. However, image sensor 102 has a higher resolution (number of pixels) compared with image sensor 112 a or image sensor 112 b, and is therefore larger in size. The potential advantage in camera height of the dual-aperture camera (i.e. the thickness from substrate 114 a to the top of lens 116 a and from substrate 114 b to the top of lens 116 b ) may be appreciated.
[0007] There are several significant challenges involved in multi-aperture camera designs. First and foremost, the sensor area of each sub-camera is smaller compared with that of a single-aperture camera. If the pixel size in each sub-camera sensor is kept the same as that in the single-aperture camera sensor, the resolution of an image captured by each sub-camera is smaller than that captured by the single-aperture camera. If the resolution of the output image is to be kept the same, the images from the different sub-cameras need to be combined into a higher-resolution image. This is usually done in the digital domain, by a dedicated algorithm Several methods have been proposed for combining lower-resolution images to produce a higher-resolution image. Some algorithms in such methods require a registration step between the set of low-resolution images, to account for parallax (which is present in a multi-aperture camera system due to the shift in point-of-view between sub-cameras). One such algorithm is described in co-assigned PCT patent application PCT/IB2014/062180 titled “Dual aperture zoom digital camera”, which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.
[0008] Another challenge relates to the requirement that the camera provides an in-focus image for a wide range of object distances (usually from several centimeters to infinity in compact camera modules). To fulfill this requirement, a single-aperture camera may include an Auto-Focus (AF) mechanism that controls the focus position of the optics, by moving the optical element along the optical axis, thus changing its height above the sensor. In multi-aperture cameras, in order to support an in-focus image for a wide range of object distances, a straightforward approach would be to provide a dedicated AF mechanism in each sub-camera. This approach has several drawbacks including increased size and cost of the camera, higher operating power and more complicated control, as the AF mechanisms of each sub-camera needs to be synchronized, to ensure all of the sub-cameras are focused to the same position.
[0009] Another complication that may arise when using an AF mechanism in a multi-aperture camera is connected with the algorithm that combines the lower resolution sub-camera images to produce a higher resolution image. Since an AF mechanism moves the optical element along the optical axis above the sensor, it scales the image that is formed on the sensor to some extent. Slight differences between the focusing positions of different AF mechanisms in each sub-camera may result in different scales applied to the lower resolution sub-camera images. Such differences in scale may degrade the performance of the image registration step in the algorithm. Correcting for the different scale is not trivial, due to the dynamic nature of the scale—the scale applied on the image depends on the focus position of the optics, which in turn changes with object distance. This means that the scale cannot be trivially corrected by calibrating the multi-aperture camera and applying a fixed correction, but rather, the correct scale has to be estimated at each image. Estimating the correct scale to apply from the image is not trivial, in the presence of parallax (where different objects appear at different locations as a function from their distance from the camera) and in the presence of possible occlusions of objects in one aperture but not in the other. There is therefore a need for a method that can accurately estimate and correct differences in scaling on a per-image basis.
[0010] As an alternative to using AF, multi-aperture camera designs have been proposed with no AF mechanism at all. Such designs rely on the smaller focal length of each sub-camera to provide increased depth-of-focus (DOF) compared with a corresponding single-aperture camera that supports a larger sensor. Since a larger DOF means that a wider range of object distances is imaged in-focus onto the sensor, the AF mechanism could be removed. While this approach is advantageous in terms of cost, size and system complexity, the larger DOF that results from the shorter focal length of a multi-aperture camera is often insufficient to support an in-focus image for object distances ranging from a few centimeters to infinity. In these cases, settling for a multi-aperture camera with fixed-focus optics results in poor imaging performance at close object distances.
[0011] Between using multiple AF mechanisms and using only fixed-focus optics, there is a need for a multi-aperture camera system that combines the benefits of an AF mechanism without adding additional complexity and cost to the camera system.
SUMMARY
[0012] Embodiments disclosed herein provide designs of a multi-aperture camera with an AF mechanism, describe an algorithm that dynamically corrects for scale differences between sub-camera images, and propose a color filter array (CFA) design that may result in higher resolution and sensitivity when combining sub-camera images, compared with standard CFAs.
[0013] In various embodiments, there are provided dual-aperture digital cameras with auto-focus (AF) for imaging an object or scene, each such dual-aperture digital camera comprising a first sub-camera that includes a first optics bloc and a color image sensor with a first number of pixels, the first camera operative to provide a color image of the object or scene, a second sub-camera that includes a second optics bloc and a clear image sensor having a second number of pixels, the second sub-camera operative to provide a luminance image of the object or scene, the first and second sub-cameras having substantially the same field of view, an AF mechanism coupled mechanically at least to the first optics bloc, and a camera controller coupled to the AF mechanism and to the two image sensors and configured to control the AF mechanism, to calculate a scaling difference and a sharpness difference between the color and luminance images, the scaling and sharpness differences being due to the AF mechanism, and to process the color and luminance images into a fused color image using the calculated differences.
[0014] The first number of pixels and second number of pixels may be equal or different. The first and second images sensors are formed on a single substrate. The first sub-camera may include an infra-red (IR) filter that blocks IR wavelengths from entering the color image sensor and the second sub-camera may be configured to allow at least some IR wavelengths to enter the clear image sensor. In some embodiments, the color image sensor may include a non-Bayer color filter array (CFA).
[0015] In an embodiment, the AF mechanism may be coupled mechanically to the first optics bloc, and the second optics bloc may have a fixed focus position. In an embodiment, the fixed focus position may be such that a DOF range of the second sub-camera is between infinity and less than about 100 cm. In an embodiment, the AF mechanism may be coupled mechanically to the first and second optics blocs and operative to move them together in a direction common to respective optics bloc optical axes.
[0016] In an embodiment, the camera may further comprise an optical image stabilization mechanism coupled mechanically to the first and second optics blocs and in a direction perpendicular to respective optics bloc optical axes to optically stabilize the AF fused color image.
[0017] In an embodiment there is provided method for obtaining a focused color image of an object or scene using a dual-aperture camera, comprising the steps of obtaining simultaneously an auto-focused color image and an auto-focused or fixed focus luminance image of the object or scene, wherein the color image has a first resolution, a first effective resolution and a first signal-to-noise ratio (SNR), and wherein the luminance image has a second resolution, a second effective resolution and a second SNR, preprocessing the two images to obtain respective rectified, normalized and scale-adjusted color and luminance images considering scaling and sharpness differences caused by the AF action, performing local registration between the rectified, normalized and scale-adjusted color and luminance images to obtain registered images, and fusing the registered images into a focused fused color image.
[0018] In an embodiment, the step of preprocessing to obtain scale-adjusted color and luminance images includes calculating a set of corresponding points in the color and luminance images, extracting a single coordinate from each corresponding point and using the single coordinate to estimate a scaling factor S between the color and luminance images. The extracted coordinate is Y and the scaling factor S may be given by S=(Y2′*W*Y2)\Y2′*W*Y1, where Y1 is a vector of Y coordinates of points taken from one image, Y2 is a vector of Y coordinates of points taken from the other image, and W is a diagonal matrix that holds the absolute values of Y2.
[0019] In an embodiment, a method may further comprise using scaling factor S to scale one of the images to match the other image, thereby obtaining the registered images.
[0020] In an embodiment, a method may further comprise optically stabilizing the obtained color and luminance images.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0021] Non-limiting examples of embodiments disclosed herein are described below with reference to figures attached hereto that are listed following this paragraph. The drawings and descriptions are meant to illuminate and clarify embodiments disclosed herein, and should not be considered limiting in any way.
[0022] FIG. 1A shows schematically the design of a traditional digital camera;
[0023] FIG. 1B shows schematically the design of a dual-aperture camera;
[0024] FIG. 2 shows schematically an embodiment of a dual-aperture imaging system with auto-focus disclosed herein, in (a) a general isomeric view, and (b) a sectioned isomeric view;
[0025] FIG. 3 shows an embodiment of an image sensor for the imaging system in FIG. 2 , in which one sub-camera has a CFA sensor, while another sub-camera has a clear sensor;
[0026] FIG. 4A shows schematically in a flow chart an embodiment of a method disclosed herein;
[0027] FIG. 4B shows in a flow chart details of the scale adjustment step in the method shown in FIG. 4A ;
[0028] FIG. 4C shows two images with corresponding points;
[0029] FIG. 5A shows schematically another embodiment of a dual-aperture imaging system with a single auto-focus mechanism disclosed herein in a sectioned isomeric view;
[0030] FIG. 5B shows schematically in a flow chart an embodiment of a method for auto-focus imaging with the imaging system in FIG. 5A ;
[0031] FIG. 6 shows schematically yet another embodiment of a dual-aperture imaging system numbered with a single auto-focus mechanism in a sectioned isomeric view.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0032] FIG. 2 shows schematically an embodiment of a dual-aperture imaging system with auto-focus disclosed herein and numbered 200 , in (a) a general isomeric view, and (b) a sectioned isomeric view. In the following description, “imaging system” and “camera” may be used interchangeably. System 200 comprises two sub-cameras, labeled 202 and 204 , each sub-camera having its own optics. Thus, sub-camera 202 includes an optics bloc 206 with an aperture 208 and an optical lens module 210 , as well as a sensor 212 Similarly, sub-camera 204 includes an optics bloc 214 with an aperture 216 and an optical lens module 218 , as well as a sensor 220 . The sensors are also referred to henceforth as “sensor 1 ” ( 212 ) and “sensor 2 ” ( 220 ). Note that the two sensors may be implemented as two distinct areas on the same substrate, and not necessarily as two stand-alone sensors. Each optical lens module may include several lens elements as well as an Infra-Red (IR) filter 222 a, b . In some embodiments, some or all of the lens elements belonging to different apertures may be formed on the same substrate. The two sub-cameras are positioned next to each other, with a small baseline 224 between the two apertures 208 and 216 . Each sub-camera further includes an auto-focus mechanism, respectively 226 and 228 .
[0033] The sensors used in each sub-camera may have different color filter arrays (CFAs). In some embodiments, sensor 1 may have one type of CFA, while sensor 2 may have another type of CFA. In some embodiments, sensor 1 may have a CFA and sensor 2 may have a “white” or “clear” filter array (marked by “W”)—in which all the pixels absorb the same wide range of wavelengths, e.g. between 400 nm and 700 nm (instead of each pixel absorbing a smaller portion of the spectrum). A sensor having a color filter array may be referred to henceforth as a “color image sensor”, while a sensor with a clear or W filter array is referred to as a “clear image sensor”. FIG. 3A shows a sensor embodiment 300 , where numeral “1” represents sensor 1 (with a CFA) and numeral “2” represents sensor 2 (with a clear “white” filter array). Circles 302 a, 302 b mark image circles formed by the optics on the sensors, while a white area 304 marks the substrate on which the sensors are located. Circles 302 a , 302 b may be larger than the respective size of the sensor the image is formed on. In some cases, overlap between the two image circles may occur and mechanical light blocking elements (e.g., walls) may be needed to prevent optical cross-talk between the sub-cameras.
[0034] The CFA of sensor 1 may be standard or non-standard. As used herein, a “standard CFA” may include a known CFA such as Bayer, RGBE, CYYM, CYGM and different RGBW filters such as RGBW# 1 , RGBW# 2 and RGBW# 3 . For example, non-Bayer CFA patterns include repetitions of a 2×2 micro-cell in which the color filter order is RRBB, RBBR or YCCY where Y=Yellow=Green+Red, C=Cyan=Green+Blue; repetition of a 3×3 micro-cell in which the color filter order is GBRRGBBRG (e.g. as in sensor 1 in FIG. 3A ); and repetitions of a 6×6 micro-cell in which the color filter order is one of the following options:
[0035] 1. Line 1: RBBRRB. Line 2: RWRBWB. Line3: BBRBRR. Line 4: RRBRBB. Line 5: BWBRWR. Line 6: BRRBBR.
[0036] 2. Line 1: BBGRRG. Line 2: RGRBGB. Line 3: GBRGRB. Line 4: RRGBBG. Line 5: BGBRGR. Line 6: GRBGBR.
[0037] 3. Line 1: RBBRRB. Line 2: RGRBGB. Line 3: BBRBRR. Line 4: RRBRBB. Line 5: BGBRGR. Line 6: BRRBBR.
[0038] 4. Line 1: RBRBRB. Line 2: BGBRGR. Line 3: RBRBRB. Line 4: BRBRBR. Line
[0039] 5: RGRBGB. Line 6: BRBRBR.
[0000] The color CFA of sensor 1 in FIG. 3B is a Bayer pattern. By using a CFA on sensor 1 , sub-camera 1 captures the color information about the scene, while sub-camera 2 captures luminance information about the scene.
[0040] The CFA pattern of sensor 1 in FIG. 3A as well as other non-Bayer CFAs listed above an advantage over the standard Bayer pattern in that they divide the red, green and blue colors evenly across the sensor pixels. This results in a finer sampling of red and blue colors, while the green color experiences coarser sampling compared with the standard Bayer pattern. However, as the image that is captured by sensor 2 is used to extract luminance information about the scene (instead of relying on the green channel for that, as is the case when using a Bayer CFA), the green pixels are only used for color information. In traditional compact camera design, a filter that lets in light in the visible range and blocks light in the IR range is typically placed in the optical path, sometimes as part of a cover glass that protects the sensor. Although the blocking of IR light wastes photons, it allows for a more accurate estimation of the color in the scene, as it reduces color crosstalk from the spectral response of the R, G and B color filters (which may be sensitive to IR light). In an embodiment, clear sensor 2 is made sensitive to IR light by removing the IR filter or by redesigning its spectral response to let in some light in the IR range. The motivation for capturing IR light, in addition to light in the visible range, is to increase the Signal-to-Noise Ratio (SNR) in the image, as many natural and artificial light sources also emit photons in the IR spectrum. Unlike a sensor with a color CFA (i.e. sensor 1 ), absorption of IR light does not introduce color cross-talk in clear sensor 2 (since the sensor records a panchromatic image of the scene).
[0041] Removing the IR filter may have some negative implications on image quality. For example, extending the range of wavelengths that are captured by the camera may lead to longitudinal chromatic aberrations that may degrade the Point Spread Function (PSF), resulting in a blurrier image. To address this issue, in an embodiment, the optics of sub-camera 2 are optimized across both the visible and the IR range, to mitigate the effect of chromatic aberrations and to result in a more compact PSF compared with standard compact camera optics that use an IR filter. This is unlike the standard optimization process, which considers only wavelengths inside the visible range.
[0042] In use, the two sub-cameras share a similar FOV and have substantially equal (limited only by manufacturing tolerances) focal lengths. An image capture process is synchronized, so that the two sub-cameras capture an image of the scene at a particular moment. Due to the small baseline between the two apertures (which could be only a few millimeters, for example 6.5 mm or 8.5 mm) of the sub-cameras, the output images may show parallax, depending on the object distances in the scene. A digital image processing algorithm combines the two images into one image, in a process called “image fusion”. Henceforth, the algorithm performing this process is called “image fusion algorithm” The resulting image may have a higher resolution (in terms of image pixels) and/or a higher “effective resolution” (in terms of the ability to resolve spatial frequencies in the scene, higher “effective resolution” meaning the ability to resolve higher spatial frequencies) and/or a higher SNR than that of one sub-camera image.
[0043] In terms of resolution and exemplarily, if each sub-camera produces a 5 megapixel (2592×1944 pixels) image, the image fusion algorithm may combine the two images to produce one image with 8 megapixel (3264×2448 pixels) resolution. In terms of effective resolution, assuming that an imaged object or scene includes spatial frequencies, the use of a dual-aperture camera having a clear sensor and a color sensor as disclosed herein leads to an overall increase in effective resolution because of the ability of the clear sensor to resolve higher spatial frequencies of the luminance component of the scene, compared with a color sensor. The fusion of the color and clear images as performed in a method disclosed herein (see below) adds information in spatial frequencies which are higher than what could be captured by a color (e.g. Bayer) sub-camera.
[0044] In order to generate a higher-resolution or higher effective resolution image, the image fusion algorithm combines the color information from sub-camera 1 with the luminance information from sub-camera 2 . Since clear sensor 2 samples the scene at a higher effective spatial sampling rate compared with any color channel or luminance thereof in the color sensor 1 , the algorithm synthesizes an image that includes information at higher spatial frequencies compared with the output image from sub-camera 1 alone. The target of the algorithm is to achieve a spatial resolution similar to that obtained from a single-aperture camera with a sensor that has a higher number of pixels. Continuing the example above, the algorithm may combine two 5 megapixel images, one color and one luminance, to produce one 8 megapixel image with information content similar to that of a single-aperture 8 megapixel color camera.
[0045] In addition to improved spatial resolution, the image fusion algorithm uses the luminance information from clear sensor 2 to generate an image with increased SNR, vs. an image from a corresponding single-aperture camera. The fact that the pixels of sensor 2 are not covered by color filters allow each pixel to absorb light in a wider wavelength spectrum, resulting in a significant increase in the light efficiency compared with a color CFA camera. In an embodiment, the fusion of clear image information and color image information then provides a +3 dB SNR increase over that of a single aperture digital camera.
[0046] As clear sensor 2 is more sensitive than color sensor 1 , there may be a need to adjust exposure times or analog gains to match the digital signal levels between the two cameras. This could be achieved by fixing the same exposure times to both sensors and configuring a different analog gain to each sensor, or by fixing the analog gain in both sensors and configuring a different exposure time to each sensor.
[0047] FIG. 4A shows schematically, in a flow chart, an embodiment of a method disclosed herein. FIG. 4B shows in a flow chart details of the scale adjustment step in the method shown in FIG. 4A . Two images 400 a and 400 b from respectively sub-cameras 1 and 2 serve as inputs. The two images undergo pre-processing, in respectively step 402 a for the color image of sensor 1 and 402 b for the luminance image of sensor 2 . Step 402 a includes digital image signal processing (ISP) in an ISP pipeline. The ISP generates a full color image, with R, G, B values at each image pixel. If the CFA pattern on sensor 1 is non-Bayer, the ISP includes non-standard demosaicing to interpolate the missing colors at each pixel location. In addition to demosaicing, other standard ISP pipeline algorithms may be applied on the image, e.g., black level correction, defect pixel correction, noise removal, etc, as known in the art. The luminance image from sub-camera 2 is also pre-processed to correct for defects, noise, shading profile, blur and other optical, analog and digital aberrations. Normalization, rectification and scale adjustment are then applied on the two images in step 404 . First, the two images are normalized to have the same mean signal intensity and standard deviation (which is a measure for the image dynamic range). This is done by subtracting the mean from each pixel and dividing each pixel by the standard deviation in each image. Then, the images are rectified by applying two projection matrices, in order to correct for different rotations around the x, y and z axes, to correct for x-y translations of the optical center of the two cameras and to fix lens distortions. The projection matrices parameters are pre-calculated from calibration data, which may be acquired through a calibration step that is applied for each camera module during camera module assembly. The data may be saved in one-time programmable memory or EEPROM in the camera module. After the rectification step, epipolar lines in both images are more-or-less parallel to the horizontal axis of the image, in case the two sub-cameras are positioned one beside the other along the X-axis, or parallel to the vertical axis of the image, in case the two sub-cameras are positioned one beside the other along the Y axis.
[0048] The scale adjustment, done after the rectification step, is described now in more detail with reference to FIGS. 4B . Preprocessed and rectified images 418 a and 418 b (also shown exemplarily in FIG. 4C ) from respectively sub-cameras 1 and 2 serve as inputs. In step 420 , corresponding points between the two images are found. In an embodiment, the set of corresponding points is calculated over the entire image. In another embodiment, the set of corresponding points is found for a specific region of interest (ROI) in each image. FIG. 4C , which shows schematically two images A and B of the same scene captured by adjacent cameras (i.e. A captured by sub-camera 1 and A′ captured by sub-camera 2 ) with some parallax—due to the different viewpoint, objects are imaged with some displacement in one image compared with the other, depending on their distance from the cameras. Pairs of features a-b-b′ and c-c′ represent the same “corresponding points” in the two images A and A′. An algorithm is used to find corresponding points between the two images. A set of prominent points are found (e.g. corners) in the two images and then the algorithm finds matches between the points in the two images. Such algorithms are known to the skilled in the art. In step 422 , the Y coordinate only is extracted in order to estimate the scale between the two images. Since the position of the optics, which is controlled by the AF mechanism, may introduce different scales between the two sub-camera images, the proper scale needs to be determined for each captured image (i.e. for each focus position). Assuming the two sub-cameras are positioned adjacent to one another along the X-axis, once corresponding pairs of points are found, a single coordinate is extracted from each point in step 422 . That is, the algorithm considers only their Y coordinate and disregards their X coordinate. The inventors have advantageously realized that while the X coordinate may be affected by parallax, the Y coordinate is largely unaffected by parallax after the rectification step, and therefore the Y coordinates can be used to estimate the scale more robustly. If the two sub-cameras are positioned adjacent along the Y-axis, then once corresponding pairs of point are found, the algorithm considers only their X coordinate and disregards their Y coordinate. Continuing with the assumption of the two sub-cameras being adjacent along the X-axis, the Y coordinates of the corresponding points are used to estimate a scaling factor S between the images in step 424 . In an exemplary embodiment, the scaling factor estimation is performed using least-squares, in which case S is given by
[0000] S =( Y 2′* W*Y 2)\ Y 2′* W*Y 1
[0000] where Y1 is a vector of Y coordinates of points taken from one image, Y2 is a vector of Y coordinates of points taken from the other image, and W is a diagonal matrix that holds the absolute values of Y2. Scaling factor S is then used in step 426 to scale one image in order to match the scale between the two images. In step 426 , point coordinates in each image are multiplied by the same scaling factor S. Finally, in step 428 , the corresponding pairs of scaled points are used to calculate a shift in x and y axes between the two images for each axis. In an embodiment, only a subset of the corresponding points that lie in a certain ROI is used to calculate the shift in x and y. For example, the ROI may be the region used to determine the focus, and may be chosen by the user or the camera software (SW). The estimated shift is applied on one of the images or on both images. The result of the scale adjustment process in FIG. 4B (and in step 404 , FIG. 4A ) are scaled images 430 .
[0049] Returning now to FIG. 4A , local registration and parallax correction to estimate a disparity map are applied to the scaled images in step 406 . The local registration uses scale and shift parameters found in step 404 . Fusion to enhance the resolution and improve SNR in the final image is then performed in step 408 , by combining information from both images, according to the disparity map. The fusion process uses the image from sub-camera 1 as a baseline. The output is a fused image 410 . Post-processing such as tone mapping, gamma correction, contrast enhancement and color correction/enhancement may then be applied to the fused image.
Auto-Focus
[0050] As mentioned with respect to FIG. 2 , a camera system disclosed herein includes an AF mechanism that controls the focus position of the optics. The system shown in FIG. 2 includes two such AF mechanisms. FIG. 5A shows schematically another embodiment of a dual-aperture imaging system numbered 500 with a single auto-focus mechanism in a sectioned isomeric view. System 500 includes in addition to the regular image sensors and optics only one AF mechanism 502 , positioned in a color sub-camera 1 . A luminance sub-camera 2 does not have an AF mechanism, being instead a fixed-focus camera, with the focus fixed to a certain object distance. The focus position is such that the DOF range of sub-camera 2 is between infinity and several tens of centimeters, depending on the focal length and optical design. For example, the DOF may be between infinity and 50 cm, such that sub-camera 2 would produce sharp images for object distances that lie within this range from the camera. In system 500 , sub-camera 1 can produce an image in which the main object is in focus for a wide range of object distances, so that it appears sharp in a sub-camera 1 image, by changing the focus position of the optics.
[0051] FIG. 5B shows schematically in a flow chart an embodiment of a method for image fusion using an imaging system 500 that has AF. Two images 500 a and 500 b from respectively sub-cameras 1 and 2 serve as inputs. A focus position is chosen for sub-camera 1 in step 502 . A check is performed in step 504 to determine whether the distance of an imaged object lies within the DOF of sub-camera 2 , by calculating a sharpness metric on the images of sub-cameras 1 and 2 , as known in the art. The calculation of the sharpness metric may result in a sharpness difference. If the answer in the check of step 504 is “Yes”, the object will appear sharp in the sub-camera 2 image. In such a case, image fusion as described above is applied to the object image obtained by both sub-cameras in step 506 to achieve higher output resolution and better SNR. If the answer to check 504 is “No” (i.e. the object lies closer to the camera, outside the DOF range of sub-camera 2 ), the object will appear blurry (not sharp) in the sub-camera 2 image. In this case, the image from sub-camera 2 is not used to enhance the resolution, but only to improve the SNR of the image from sub-camera 1 . To this end, another algorithm (procedure) similar to the fusion algorithm (procedure) above is applied in step 508 . The image from sub-camera 1 is scaled to the proper output size and a de-noising algorithm that uses information from the sub-camera 2 image is applied. Since in this case high frequencies are lost in the sub-camera 2 image (due to defocus), the algorithm only considers information at low spatial frequencies from the image of sub-camera 2 . In order to determine the object distance, the chosen focus position of the AF mechanism of sub-camera 1 is used (after the focusing process has converged).
[0052] FIG. 6 shows schematically yet another embodiment of a dual-aperture imaging system numbered 600 with a single AF mechanism in a sectioned isomeric view. Similar to system 500 , system 600 includes in addition to the regular image sensors and optics only one AF mechanism 602 . However, in contrast with AF mechanism 502 , AF mechanism 602 moves the optics of sub-camera 1 and the optics of sub-camera 2 together. The optical elements are mounted on a lens holder 604 with dedicated threads to hold the two lenses, which is moved by the AF mechanism. Since the optics of sub-camera 1 and sub-camera 2 have very similar focal lengths, the mechanical movement brings the image from sub-camera 1 and from sub-camera 2 to focus at the same time. The advantage of this construction over having only one AF mechanism is that both sub-cameras support the same range of object distances, so that the image fusion algorithm can be applied for the entire range. When the AF mechanism chooses the best focus position for the lens, information from both sub-camera images can be taken into account (e.g. to assist in focusing in low-light situations). In low-light, AF sharpness measurements are noisier, due to the lower SNR in the images. Using two images instead of one can help reduce the noise and improve the robustness and accuracy of the AF process (algorithm).
[0053] In an embodiment, some or all the optical elements of sub-camera 1 and sub-camera 2 , are made on the same die, using wafer-level optics manufacturing techniques or injection molding of glass or plastic materials. In this case, the single AF mechanism moves the optical dies on which the optical elements of the two sub-cameras are fabricated, so that the two optical stacks move together.
[0054] In another embodiment, a camera is similar to camera 500 and includes a single AF mechanism placed on sub-camera 1 (with the color CFA). Sub-camera 2 does not have an AF mechanism, but uses instead fixed focus optics with unique characteristics that provide extended depth of focus, which is achieved by means of optical design (e.g., by employing optics with narrower aperture and higher F-number). The optical performance of the optics of sub-camera 2 is designed to support sharp images for object distances between infinity and several cm from the camera—in this case, the fusion algorithm can be applied to enhance output resolution for a wider range of object distances compared with the single AF embodiment described above. There is usually a tradeoff between the DOF of the camera and the minimal achievable PSF size across the DOF range. An algorithm may be used to enhance the sharpness of the image captured by sub-camera 2 before the fusion algorithm is applied to combine the photos. Such an algorithm is known in the art.
[0055] To conclude, dual-aperture cameras and methods of use of such cameras disclosed herein have a number of advantages over single aperture cameras, in terms of camera height resolution, effective resolution and SNR. In terms of camera height, in one example, a standard 8 Mpix ⅓″ camera with a 70 degree diagonal FOV may have a module height of 5.7 mm. In comparison, a dual-aperture camera disclosed herein, with two 5 Mpix ¼″ image sensors (one color and one clear), each with 70 degrees diagonal field of view may have a module height of 4.5 mm. In another example, a standard 8 Mpix ⅓″ camera with a 76 degree diagonal FOV may have a module height of 5.2 mm. In comparison, a dual-aperture camera disclosed herein, with two 5 Mpix ¼″ image sensors (one color and one clear), each with a 76 degree diagonal FOV, may have a module height of 4.1 mm.
[0056] While this disclosure has been described in terms of certain embodiments and generally associated methods, alterations and permutations of the embodiments and methods will be apparent to those skilled in the art. The disclosure is to be understood as not limited by the specific embodiments described herein, but only by the scope of the appended claims | Dual-aperture digital cameras with auto-focus (AF) and related methods for obtaining a focused and, optionally optically stabilized color image of an object or scene. A dual-aperture camera includes a first sub-camera having a first optics bloc and a color image sensor for providing a color image, a second sub-camera having a second optics bloc and a clear image sensor for providing a luminance image, the first and second sub-cameras having substantially the same field of view, an AF mechanism coupled mechanically at least to the first optics bloc, and a camera controller coupled to the AF mechanism and to the two image sensors and configured to control the AF mechanism, to calculate a scaling difference and a sharpness difference between the color and luminance images, the scaling and sharpness differences being due to the AF mechanism, and to process the color and luminance images into a fused color image using the calculated differences. | Briefly summarize the invention's components and working principles as described in the document. | [
"CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS [0001] This application is a 371 application from international application PCT/IB2014/063393 and is related to and claims priority from U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 61/861,185 filed Aug. 1, 2013 and having the same title, which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.",
"FIELD [0002] Embodiments disclosed herein relate in general to digital cameras and in particular to thin multi-aperture digital cameras with auto-focus.",
"BACKGROUND [0003] In recent years, mobile devices such as cell-phones, tablets and laptops have become ubiquitous.",
"Most of these devices include one or two compact cameras—a main rear-facing camera (i.e. a camera on the back side of the device, facing away from the user and often used for casual photography) and a secondary front-facing camera (i.e. a camera located on the front side of the device and often used for video conferencing).",
"[0004] Although relatively compact in nature, the design of most of these cameras is very similar to the traditional structure of a digital still camera, i.e. they comprise an optical component (or a train of several optical elements and a main aperture) placed on top of an image sensor.",
"The optical component (also referred to as “optics”) refracts the incoming light rays and bends them to create an image of a scene on the sensor.",
"The dimensions of these cameras are largely determined by the size of the sensor and by the height of the optics.",
"These are usually tied together through the focal length (“f”) of the lens and its field of view (FOV)—a lens that has to image a certain FOV on a sensor of a certain size has a specific focal length.",
"Keeping the FOV constant, the larger the sensor dimensions (e.g. in an X-Y plane), the larger the focal length and the optics height.",
"[0005] As the dimensions of mobile devices shrink, the compact camera dimensions become more and more a key factor that limits the device thickness.",
"Several approaches have been proposed to reduce the compact camera thickness in order to alleviate this constraint.",
"Recently, multi-aperture systems have been proposed for this purpose.",
"In such systems, instead of having one aperture with one train of optical elements, the camera is divided into several apertures, each with dedicated optical elements, all apertures sharing a similar field of view.",
"Hereinafter, each such aperture, together with the optics and the sensor area on which the image is formed, is defined as a “sub-camera.”",
"Typically, in multi-aperture camera designs, each sub-camera creates a smaller image on the image sensor compared with the image created by a reference single-aperture camera.",
"Therefore, the height of each sub-camera can be smaller than the height of a single-aperture camera, reducing the total height of the camera could be reduced and allowing for slimmer designs of mobile devices.",
"[0006] FIG. 1A and FIG. 1B show a schematic design of a traditional camera and of a dual-aperture camera with two sub-cameras, respectively.",
"A traditional camera 100 ′ in FIG. 1A includes an image sensor 102 placed on a substrate 104 and a lens 106 .",
"A “camera height”",
"is defined as the height of the camera module, from substrate 104 to the top of lens 106 .",
"A dual-aperture camera 100 ″ in FIG. 1B includes two sub-cameras, a sub-camera 1 with an image sensor 112 a and a lens 116 a with an optical axis 118 a, and a sub-camera 2 with, an image sensor 112 b and a lens 116 b with an optical axis 118 b. The two sensors are placed on, respectively, substrates 114 a and 114 b. For comparison's sake, it is assumed that the reference single-aperture camera and the dual-aperture camera have the same field of view (FOV) and the sensors have the same pixel size.",
"However, image sensor 102 has a higher resolution (number of pixels) compared with image sensor 112 a or image sensor 112 b, and is therefore larger in size.",
"The potential advantage in camera height of the dual-aperture camera (i.e. the thickness from substrate 114 a to the top of lens 116 a and from substrate 114 b to the top of lens 116 b ) may be appreciated.",
"[0007] There are several significant challenges involved in multi-aperture camera designs.",
"First and foremost, the sensor area of each sub-camera is smaller compared with that of a single-aperture camera.",
"If the pixel size in each sub-camera sensor is kept the same as that in the single-aperture camera sensor, the resolution of an image captured by each sub-camera is smaller than that captured by the single-aperture camera.",
"If the resolution of the output image is to be kept the same, the images from the different sub-cameras need to be combined into a higher-resolution image.",
"This is usually done in the digital domain, by a dedicated algorithm Several methods have been proposed for combining lower-resolution images to produce a higher-resolution image.",
"Some algorithms in such methods require a registration step between the set of low-resolution images, to account for parallax (which is present in a multi-aperture camera system due to the shift in point-of-view between sub-cameras).",
"One such algorithm is described in co-assigned PCT patent application PCT/IB2014/062180 titled “Dual aperture zoom digital camera”, which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.",
"[0008] Another challenge relates to the requirement that the camera provides an in-focus image for a wide range of object distances (usually from several centimeters to infinity in compact camera modules).",
"To fulfill this requirement, a single-aperture camera may include an Auto-Focus (AF) mechanism that controls the focus position of the optics, by moving the optical element along the optical axis, thus changing its height above the sensor.",
"In multi-aperture cameras, in order to support an in-focus image for a wide range of object distances, a straightforward approach would be to provide a dedicated AF mechanism in each sub-camera.",
"This approach has several drawbacks including increased size and cost of the camera, higher operating power and more complicated control, as the AF mechanisms of each sub-camera needs to be synchronized, to ensure all of the sub-cameras are focused to the same position.",
"[0009] Another complication that may arise when using an AF mechanism in a multi-aperture camera is connected with the algorithm that combines the lower resolution sub-camera images to produce a higher resolution image.",
"Since an AF mechanism moves the optical element along the optical axis above the sensor, it scales the image that is formed on the sensor to some extent.",
"Slight differences between the focusing positions of different AF mechanisms in each sub-camera may result in different scales applied to the lower resolution sub-camera images.",
"Such differences in scale may degrade the performance of the image registration step in the algorithm.",
"Correcting for the different scale is not trivial, due to the dynamic nature of the scale—the scale applied on the image depends on the focus position of the optics, which in turn changes with object distance.",
"This means that the scale cannot be trivially corrected by calibrating the multi-aperture camera and applying a fixed correction, but rather, the correct scale has to be estimated at each image.",
"Estimating the correct scale to apply from the image is not trivial, in the presence of parallax (where different objects appear at different locations as a function from their distance from the camera) and in the presence of possible occlusions of objects in one aperture but not in the other.",
"There is therefore a need for a method that can accurately estimate and correct differences in scaling on a per-image basis.",
"[0010] As an alternative to using AF, multi-aperture camera designs have been proposed with no AF mechanism at all.",
"Such designs rely on the smaller focal length of each sub-camera to provide increased depth-of-focus (DOF) compared with a corresponding single-aperture camera that supports a larger sensor.",
"Since a larger DOF means that a wider range of object distances is imaged in-focus onto the sensor, the AF mechanism could be removed.",
"While this approach is advantageous in terms of cost, size and system complexity, the larger DOF that results from the shorter focal length of a multi-aperture camera is often insufficient to support an in-focus image for object distances ranging from a few centimeters to infinity.",
"In these cases, settling for a multi-aperture camera with fixed-focus optics results in poor imaging performance at close object distances.",
"[0011] Between using multiple AF mechanisms and using only fixed-focus optics, there is a need for a multi-aperture camera system that combines the benefits of an AF mechanism without adding additional complexity and cost to the camera system.",
"SUMMARY [0012] Embodiments disclosed herein provide designs of a multi-aperture camera with an AF mechanism, describe an algorithm that dynamically corrects for scale differences between sub-camera images, and propose a color filter array (CFA) design that may result in higher resolution and sensitivity when combining sub-camera images, compared with standard CFAs.",
"[0013] In various embodiments, there are provided dual-aperture digital cameras with auto-focus (AF) for imaging an object or scene, each such dual-aperture digital camera comprising a first sub-camera that includes a first optics bloc and a color image sensor with a first number of pixels, the first camera operative to provide a color image of the object or scene, a second sub-camera that includes a second optics bloc and a clear image sensor having a second number of pixels, the second sub-camera operative to provide a luminance image of the object or scene, the first and second sub-cameras having substantially the same field of view, an AF mechanism coupled mechanically at least to the first optics bloc, and a camera controller coupled to the AF mechanism and to the two image sensors and configured to control the AF mechanism, to calculate a scaling difference and a sharpness difference between the color and luminance images, the scaling and sharpness differences being due to the AF mechanism, and to process the color and luminance images into a fused color image using the calculated differences.",
"[0014] The first number of pixels and second number of pixels may be equal or different.",
"The first and second images sensors are formed on a single substrate.",
"The first sub-camera may include an infra-red (IR) filter that blocks IR wavelengths from entering the color image sensor and the second sub-camera may be configured to allow at least some IR wavelengths to enter the clear image sensor.",
"In some embodiments, the color image sensor may include a non-Bayer color filter array (CFA).",
"[0015] In an embodiment, the AF mechanism may be coupled mechanically to the first optics bloc, and the second optics bloc may have a fixed focus position.",
"In an embodiment, the fixed focus position may be such that a DOF range of the second sub-camera is between infinity and less than about 100 cm.",
"In an embodiment, the AF mechanism may be coupled mechanically to the first and second optics blocs and operative to move them together in a direction common to respective optics bloc optical axes.",
"[0016] In an embodiment, the camera may further comprise an optical image stabilization mechanism coupled mechanically to the first and second optics blocs and in a direction perpendicular to respective optics bloc optical axes to optically stabilize the AF fused color image.",
"[0017] In an embodiment there is provided method for obtaining a focused color image of an object or scene using a dual-aperture camera, comprising the steps of obtaining simultaneously an auto-focused color image and an auto-focused or fixed focus luminance image of the object or scene, wherein the color image has a first resolution, a first effective resolution and a first signal-to-noise ratio (SNR), and wherein the luminance image has a second resolution, a second effective resolution and a second SNR, preprocessing the two images to obtain respective rectified, normalized and scale-adjusted color and luminance images considering scaling and sharpness differences caused by the AF action, performing local registration between the rectified, normalized and scale-adjusted color and luminance images to obtain registered images, and fusing the registered images into a focused fused color image.",
"[0018] In an embodiment, the step of preprocessing to obtain scale-adjusted color and luminance images includes calculating a set of corresponding points in the color and luminance images, extracting a single coordinate from each corresponding point and using the single coordinate to estimate a scaling factor S between the color and luminance images.",
"The extracted coordinate is Y and the scaling factor S may be given by S=(Y2′*W*Y2)\\Y2′*W*Y1, where Y1 is a vector of Y coordinates of points taken from one image, Y2 is a vector of Y coordinates of points taken from the other image, and W is a diagonal matrix that holds the absolute values of Y2.",
"[0019] In an embodiment, a method may further comprise using scaling factor S to scale one of the images to match the other image, thereby obtaining the registered images.",
"[0020] In an embodiment, a method may further comprise optically stabilizing the obtained color and luminance images.",
"BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS [0021] Non-limiting examples of embodiments disclosed herein are described below with reference to figures attached hereto that are listed following this paragraph.",
"The drawings and descriptions are meant to illuminate and clarify embodiments disclosed herein, and should not be considered limiting in any way.",
"[0022] FIG. 1A shows schematically the design of a traditional digital camera;",
"[0023] FIG. 1B shows schematically the design of a dual-aperture camera;",
"[0024] FIG. 2 shows schematically an embodiment of a dual-aperture imaging system with auto-focus disclosed herein, in (a) a general isomeric view, and (b) a sectioned isomeric view;",
"[0025] FIG. 3 shows an embodiment of an image sensor for the imaging system in FIG. 2 , in which one sub-camera has a CFA sensor, while another sub-camera has a clear sensor;",
"[0026] FIG. 4A shows schematically in a flow chart an embodiment of a method disclosed herein;",
"[0027] FIG. 4B shows in a flow chart details of the scale adjustment step in the method shown in FIG. 4A ;",
"[0028] FIG. 4C shows two images with corresponding points;",
"[0029] FIG. 5A shows schematically another embodiment of a dual-aperture imaging system with a single auto-focus mechanism disclosed herein in a sectioned isomeric view;",
"[0030] FIG. 5B shows schematically in a flow chart an embodiment of a method for auto-focus imaging with the imaging system in FIG. 5A ;",
"[0031] FIG. 6 shows schematically yet another embodiment of a dual-aperture imaging system numbered with a single auto-focus mechanism in a sectioned isomeric view.",
"DETAILED DESCRIPTION [0032] FIG. 2 shows schematically an embodiment of a dual-aperture imaging system with auto-focus disclosed herein and numbered 200 , in (a) a general isomeric view, and (b) a sectioned isomeric view.",
"In the following description, “imaging system”",
"and “camera”",
"may be used interchangeably.",
"System 200 comprises two sub-cameras, labeled 202 and 204 , each sub-camera having its own optics.",
"Thus, sub-camera 202 includes an optics bloc 206 with an aperture 208 and an optical lens module 210 , as well as a sensor 212 Similarly, sub-camera 204 includes an optics bloc 214 with an aperture 216 and an optical lens module 218 , as well as a sensor 220 .",
"The sensors are also referred to henceforth as “sensor 1 ”",
"( 212 ) and “sensor 2 ”",
"( 220 ).",
"Note that the two sensors may be implemented as two distinct areas on the same substrate, and not necessarily as two stand-alone sensors.",
"Each optical lens module may include several lens elements as well as an Infra-Red (IR) filter 222 a, b .",
"In some embodiments, some or all of the lens elements belonging to different apertures may be formed on the same substrate.",
"The two sub-cameras are positioned next to each other, with a small baseline 224 between the two apertures 208 and 216 .",
"Each sub-camera further includes an auto-focus mechanism, respectively 226 and 228 .",
"[0033] The sensors used in each sub-camera may have different color filter arrays (CFAs).",
"In some embodiments, sensor 1 may have one type of CFA, while sensor 2 may have another type of CFA.",
"In some embodiments, sensor 1 may have a CFA and sensor 2 may have a “white”",
"or “clear”",
"filter array (marked by “W”)—in which all the pixels absorb the same wide range of wavelengths, e.g. between 400 nm and 700 nm (instead of each pixel absorbing a smaller portion of the spectrum).",
"A sensor having a color filter array may be referred to henceforth as a “color image sensor”, while a sensor with a clear or W filter array is referred to as a “clear image sensor.”",
"FIG. 3A shows a sensor embodiment 300 , where numeral “1”",
"represents sensor 1 (with a CFA) and numeral “2”",
"represents sensor 2 (with a clear “white”",
"filter array).",
"Circles 302 a, 302 b mark image circles formed by the optics on the sensors, while a white area 304 marks the substrate on which the sensors are located.",
"Circles 302 a , 302 b may be larger than the respective size of the sensor the image is formed on.",
"In some cases, overlap between the two image circles may occur and mechanical light blocking elements (e.g., walls) may be needed to prevent optical cross-talk between the sub-cameras.",
"[0034] The CFA of sensor 1 may be standard or non-standard.",
"As used herein, a “standard CFA”",
"may include a known CFA such as Bayer, RGBE, CYYM, CYGM and different RGBW filters such as RGBW# 1 , RGBW# 2 and RGBW# 3 .",
"For example, non-Bayer CFA patterns include repetitions of a 2×2 micro-cell in which the color filter order is RRBB, RBBR or YCCY where Y=Yellow=Green+Red, C=Cyan=Green+Blue;",
"repetition of a 3×3 micro-cell in which the color filter order is GBRRGBBRG (e.g. as in sensor 1 in FIG. 3A );",
"and repetitions of a 6×6 micro-cell in which the color filter order is one of the following options: [0035] 1.",
"Line 1: RBBRRB.",
"Line 2: RWRBWB.",
"Line3: BBRBRR.",
"Line 4: RRBRBB.",
"Line 5: BWBRWR.",
"Line 6: BRRBBR.",
"[0036] 2.",
"Line 1: BBGRRG.",
"Line 2: RGRBGB.",
"Line 3: GBRGRB.",
"Line 4: RRGBBG.",
"Line 5: BGBRGR.",
"Line 6: GRBGBR.",
"[0037] 3.",
"Line 1: RBBRRB.",
"Line 2: RGRBGB.",
"Line 3: BBRBRR.",
"Line 4: RRBRBB.",
"Line 5: BGBRGR.",
"Line 6: BRRBBR.",
"[0038] 4.",
"Line 1: RBRBRB.",
"Line 2: BGBRGR.",
"Line 3: RBRBRB.",
"Line 4: BRBRBR.",
"Line [0039] 5: RGRBGB.",
"Line 6: BRBRBR.",
"[0000] The color CFA of sensor 1 in FIG. 3B is a Bayer pattern.",
"By using a CFA on sensor 1 , sub-camera 1 captures the color information about the scene, while sub-camera 2 captures luminance information about the scene.",
"[0040] The CFA pattern of sensor 1 in FIG. 3A as well as other non-Bayer CFAs listed above an advantage over the standard Bayer pattern in that they divide the red, green and blue colors evenly across the sensor pixels.",
"This results in a finer sampling of red and blue colors, while the green color experiences coarser sampling compared with the standard Bayer pattern.",
"However, as the image that is captured by sensor 2 is used to extract luminance information about the scene (instead of relying on the green channel for that, as is the case when using a Bayer CFA), the green pixels are only used for color information.",
"In traditional compact camera design, a filter that lets in light in the visible range and blocks light in the IR range is typically placed in the optical path, sometimes as part of a cover glass that protects the sensor.",
"Although the blocking of IR light wastes photons, it allows for a more accurate estimation of the color in the scene, as it reduces color crosstalk from the spectral response of the R, G and B color filters (which may be sensitive to IR light).",
"In an embodiment, clear sensor 2 is made sensitive to IR light by removing the IR filter or by redesigning its spectral response to let in some light in the IR range.",
"The motivation for capturing IR light, in addition to light in the visible range, is to increase the Signal-to-Noise Ratio (SNR) in the image, as many natural and artificial light sources also emit photons in the IR spectrum.",
"Unlike a sensor with a color CFA (i.e. sensor 1 ), absorption of IR light does not introduce color cross-talk in clear sensor 2 (since the sensor records a panchromatic image of the scene).",
"[0041] Removing the IR filter may have some negative implications on image quality.",
"For example, extending the range of wavelengths that are captured by the camera may lead to longitudinal chromatic aberrations that may degrade the Point Spread Function (PSF), resulting in a blurrier image.",
"To address this issue, in an embodiment, the optics of sub-camera 2 are optimized across both the visible and the IR range, to mitigate the effect of chromatic aberrations and to result in a more compact PSF compared with standard compact camera optics that use an IR filter.",
"This is unlike the standard optimization process, which considers only wavelengths inside the visible range.",
"[0042] In use, the two sub-cameras share a similar FOV and have substantially equal (limited only by manufacturing tolerances) focal lengths.",
"An image capture process is synchronized, so that the two sub-cameras capture an image of the scene at a particular moment.",
"Due to the small baseline between the two apertures (which could be only a few millimeters, for example 6.5 mm or 8.5 mm) of the sub-cameras, the output images may show parallax, depending on the object distances in the scene.",
"A digital image processing algorithm combines the two images into one image, in a process called “image fusion.”",
"Henceforth, the algorithm performing this process is called “image fusion algorithm”",
"The resulting image may have a higher resolution (in terms of image pixels) and/or a higher “effective resolution”",
"(in terms of the ability to resolve spatial frequencies in the scene, higher “effective resolution”",
"meaning the ability to resolve higher spatial frequencies) and/or a higher SNR than that of one sub-camera image.",
"[0043] In terms of resolution and exemplarily, if each sub-camera produces a 5 megapixel (2592×1944 pixels) image, the image fusion algorithm may combine the two images to produce one image with 8 megapixel (3264×2448 pixels) resolution.",
"In terms of effective resolution, assuming that an imaged object or scene includes spatial frequencies, the use of a dual-aperture camera having a clear sensor and a color sensor as disclosed herein leads to an overall increase in effective resolution because of the ability of the clear sensor to resolve higher spatial frequencies of the luminance component of the scene, compared with a color sensor.",
"The fusion of the color and clear images as performed in a method disclosed herein (see below) adds information in spatial frequencies which are higher than what could be captured by a color (e.g. Bayer) sub-camera.",
"[0044] In order to generate a higher-resolution or higher effective resolution image, the image fusion algorithm combines the color information from sub-camera 1 with the luminance information from sub-camera 2 .",
"Since clear sensor 2 samples the scene at a higher effective spatial sampling rate compared with any color channel or luminance thereof in the color sensor 1 , the algorithm synthesizes an image that includes information at higher spatial frequencies compared with the output image from sub-camera 1 alone.",
"The target of the algorithm is to achieve a spatial resolution similar to that obtained from a single-aperture camera with a sensor that has a higher number of pixels.",
"Continuing the example above, the algorithm may combine two 5 megapixel images, one color and one luminance, to produce one 8 megapixel image with information content similar to that of a single-aperture 8 megapixel color camera.",
"[0045] In addition to improved spatial resolution, the image fusion algorithm uses the luminance information from clear sensor 2 to generate an image with increased SNR, vs.",
"an image from a corresponding single-aperture camera.",
"The fact that the pixels of sensor 2 are not covered by color filters allow each pixel to absorb light in a wider wavelength spectrum, resulting in a significant increase in the light efficiency compared with a color CFA camera.",
"In an embodiment, the fusion of clear image information and color image information then provides a +3 dB SNR increase over that of a single aperture digital camera.",
"[0046] As clear sensor 2 is more sensitive than color sensor 1 , there may be a need to adjust exposure times or analog gains to match the digital signal levels between the two cameras.",
"This could be achieved by fixing the same exposure times to both sensors and configuring a different analog gain to each sensor, or by fixing the analog gain in both sensors and configuring a different exposure time to each sensor.",
"[0047] FIG. 4A shows schematically, in a flow chart, an embodiment of a method disclosed herein.",
"FIG. 4B shows in a flow chart details of the scale adjustment step in the method shown in FIG. 4A .",
"Two images 400 a and 400 b from respectively sub-cameras 1 and 2 serve as inputs.",
"The two images undergo pre-processing, in respectively step 402 a for the color image of sensor 1 and 402 b for the luminance image of sensor 2 .",
"Step 402 a includes digital image signal processing (ISP) in an ISP pipeline.",
"The ISP generates a full color image, with R, G, B values at each image pixel.",
"If the CFA pattern on sensor 1 is non-Bayer, the ISP includes non-standard demosaicing to interpolate the missing colors at each pixel location.",
"In addition to demosaicing, other standard ISP pipeline algorithms may be applied on the image, e.g., black level correction, defect pixel correction, noise removal, etc, as known in the art.",
"The luminance image from sub-camera 2 is also pre-processed to correct for defects, noise, shading profile, blur and other optical, analog and digital aberrations.",
"Normalization, rectification and scale adjustment are then applied on the two images in step 404 .",
"First, the two images are normalized to have the same mean signal intensity and standard deviation (which is a measure for the image dynamic range).",
"This is done by subtracting the mean from each pixel and dividing each pixel by the standard deviation in each image.",
"Then, the images are rectified by applying two projection matrices, in order to correct for different rotations around the x, y and z axes, to correct for x-y translations of the optical center of the two cameras and to fix lens distortions.",
"The projection matrices parameters are pre-calculated from calibration data, which may be acquired through a calibration step that is applied for each camera module during camera module assembly.",
"The data may be saved in one-time programmable memory or EEPROM in the camera module.",
"After the rectification step, epipolar lines in both images are more-or-less parallel to the horizontal axis of the image, in case the two sub-cameras are positioned one beside the other along the X-axis, or parallel to the vertical axis of the image, in case the two sub-cameras are positioned one beside the other along the Y axis.",
"[0048] The scale adjustment, done after the rectification step, is described now in more detail with reference to FIGS. 4B .",
"Preprocessed and rectified images 418 a and 418 b (also shown exemplarily in FIG. 4C ) from respectively sub-cameras 1 and 2 serve as inputs.",
"In step 420 , corresponding points between the two images are found.",
"In an embodiment, the set of corresponding points is calculated over the entire image.",
"In another embodiment, the set of corresponding points is found for a specific region of interest (ROI) in each image.",
"FIG. 4C , which shows schematically two images A and B of the same scene captured by adjacent cameras (i.e. A captured by sub-camera 1 and A′ captured by sub-camera 2 ) with some parallax—due to the different viewpoint, objects are imaged with some displacement in one image compared with the other, depending on their distance from the cameras.",
"Pairs of features a-b-b′ and c-c′ represent the same “corresponding points”",
"in the two images A and A′.",
"An algorithm is used to find corresponding points between the two images.",
"A set of prominent points are found (e.g. corners) in the two images and then the algorithm finds matches between the points in the two images.",
"Such algorithms are known to the skilled in the art.",
"In step 422 , the Y coordinate only is extracted in order to estimate the scale between the two images.",
"Since the position of the optics, which is controlled by the AF mechanism, may introduce different scales between the two sub-camera images, the proper scale needs to be determined for each captured image (i.e. for each focus position).",
"Assuming the two sub-cameras are positioned adjacent to one another along the X-axis, once corresponding pairs of points are found, a single coordinate is extracted from each point in step 422 .",
"That is, the algorithm considers only their Y coordinate and disregards their X coordinate.",
"The inventors have advantageously realized that while the X coordinate may be affected by parallax, the Y coordinate is largely unaffected by parallax after the rectification step, and therefore the Y coordinates can be used to estimate the scale more robustly.",
"If the two sub-cameras are positioned adjacent along the Y-axis, then once corresponding pairs of point are found, the algorithm considers only their X coordinate and disregards their Y coordinate.",
"Continuing with the assumption of the two sub-cameras being adjacent along the X-axis, the Y coordinates of the corresponding points are used to estimate a scaling factor S between the images in step 424 .",
"In an exemplary embodiment, the scaling factor estimation is performed using least-squares, in which case S is given by [0000] S =( Y 2′* W*Y 2)\\ Y 2′* W*Y 1 [0000] where Y1 is a vector of Y coordinates of points taken from one image, Y2 is a vector of Y coordinates of points taken from the other image, and W is a diagonal matrix that holds the absolute values of Y2.",
"Scaling factor S is then used in step 426 to scale one image in order to match the scale between the two images.",
"In step 426 , point coordinates in each image are multiplied by the same scaling factor S. Finally, in step 428 , the corresponding pairs of scaled points are used to calculate a shift in x and y axes between the two images for each axis.",
"In an embodiment, only a subset of the corresponding points that lie in a certain ROI is used to calculate the shift in x and y. For example, the ROI may be the region used to determine the focus, and may be chosen by the user or the camera software (SW).",
"The estimated shift is applied on one of the images or on both images.",
"The result of the scale adjustment process in FIG. 4B (and in step 404 , FIG. 4A ) are scaled images 430 .",
"[0049] Returning now to FIG. 4A , local registration and parallax correction to estimate a disparity map are applied to the scaled images in step 406 .",
"The local registration uses scale and shift parameters found in step 404 .",
"Fusion to enhance the resolution and improve SNR in the final image is then performed in step 408 , by combining information from both images, according to the disparity map.",
"The fusion process uses the image from sub-camera 1 as a baseline.",
"The output is a fused image 410 .",
"Post-processing such as tone mapping, gamma correction, contrast enhancement and color correction/enhancement may then be applied to the fused image.",
"Auto-Focus [0050] As mentioned with respect to FIG. 2 , a camera system disclosed herein includes an AF mechanism that controls the focus position of the optics.",
"The system shown in FIG. 2 includes two such AF mechanisms.",
"FIG. 5A shows schematically another embodiment of a dual-aperture imaging system numbered 500 with a single auto-focus mechanism in a sectioned isomeric view.",
"System 500 includes in addition to the regular image sensors and optics only one AF mechanism 502 , positioned in a color sub-camera 1 .",
"A luminance sub-camera 2 does not have an AF mechanism, being instead a fixed-focus camera, with the focus fixed to a certain object distance.",
"The focus position is such that the DOF range of sub-camera 2 is between infinity and several tens of centimeters, depending on the focal length and optical design.",
"For example, the DOF may be between infinity and 50 cm, such that sub-camera 2 would produce sharp images for object distances that lie within this range from the camera.",
"In system 500 , sub-camera 1 can produce an image in which the main object is in focus for a wide range of object distances, so that it appears sharp in a sub-camera 1 image, by changing the focus position of the optics.",
"[0051] FIG. 5B shows schematically in a flow chart an embodiment of a method for image fusion using an imaging system 500 that has AF.",
"Two images 500 a and 500 b from respectively sub-cameras 1 and 2 serve as inputs.",
"A focus position is chosen for sub-camera 1 in step 502 .",
"A check is performed in step 504 to determine whether the distance of an imaged object lies within the DOF of sub-camera 2 , by calculating a sharpness metric on the images of sub-cameras 1 and 2 , as known in the art.",
"The calculation of the sharpness metric may result in a sharpness difference.",
"If the answer in the check of step 504 is “Yes”, the object will appear sharp in the sub-camera 2 image.",
"In such a case, image fusion as described above is applied to the object image obtained by both sub-cameras in step 506 to achieve higher output resolution and better SNR.",
"If the answer to check 504 is “No”",
"(i.e. the object lies closer to the camera, outside the DOF range of sub-camera 2 ), the object will appear blurry (not sharp) in the sub-camera 2 image.",
"In this case, the image from sub-camera 2 is not used to enhance the resolution, but only to improve the SNR of the image from sub-camera 1 .",
"To this end, another algorithm (procedure) similar to the fusion algorithm (procedure) above is applied in step 508 .",
"The image from sub-camera 1 is scaled to the proper output size and a de-noising algorithm that uses information from the sub-camera 2 image is applied.",
"Since in this case high frequencies are lost in the sub-camera 2 image (due to defocus), the algorithm only considers information at low spatial frequencies from the image of sub-camera 2 .",
"In order to determine the object distance, the chosen focus position of the AF mechanism of sub-camera 1 is used (after the focusing process has converged).",
"[0052] FIG. 6 shows schematically yet another embodiment of a dual-aperture imaging system numbered 600 with a single AF mechanism in a sectioned isomeric view.",
"Similar to system 500 , system 600 includes in addition to the regular image sensors and optics only one AF mechanism 602 .",
"However, in contrast with AF mechanism 502 , AF mechanism 602 moves the optics of sub-camera 1 and the optics of sub-camera 2 together.",
"The optical elements are mounted on a lens holder 604 with dedicated threads to hold the two lenses, which is moved by the AF mechanism.",
"Since the optics of sub-camera 1 and sub-camera 2 have very similar focal lengths, the mechanical movement brings the image from sub-camera 1 and from sub-camera 2 to focus at the same time.",
"The advantage of this construction over having only one AF mechanism is that both sub-cameras support the same range of object distances, so that the image fusion algorithm can be applied for the entire range.",
"When the AF mechanism chooses the best focus position for the lens, information from both sub-camera images can be taken into account (e.g. to assist in focusing in low-light situations).",
"In low-light, AF sharpness measurements are noisier, due to the lower SNR in the images.",
"Using two images instead of one can help reduce the noise and improve the robustness and accuracy of the AF process (algorithm).",
"[0053] In an embodiment, some or all the optical elements of sub-camera 1 and sub-camera 2 , are made on the same die, using wafer-level optics manufacturing techniques or injection molding of glass or plastic materials.",
"In this case, the single AF mechanism moves the optical dies on which the optical elements of the two sub-cameras are fabricated, so that the two optical stacks move together.",
"[0054] In another embodiment, a camera is similar to camera 500 and includes a single AF mechanism placed on sub-camera 1 (with the color CFA).",
"Sub-camera 2 does not have an AF mechanism, but uses instead fixed focus optics with unique characteristics that provide extended depth of focus, which is achieved by means of optical design (e.g., by employing optics with narrower aperture and higher F-number).",
"The optical performance of the optics of sub-camera 2 is designed to support sharp images for object distances between infinity and several cm from the camera—in this case, the fusion algorithm can be applied to enhance output resolution for a wider range of object distances compared with the single AF embodiment described above.",
"There is usually a tradeoff between the DOF of the camera and the minimal achievable PSF size across the DOF range.",
"An algorithm may be used to enhance the sharpness of the image captured by sub-camera 2 before the fusion algorithm is applied to combine the photos.",
"Such an algorithm is known in the art.",
"[0055] To conclude, dual-aperture cameras and methods of use of such cameras disclosed herein have a number of advantages over single aperture cameras, in terms of camera height resolution, effective resolution and SNR.",
"In terms of camera height, in one example, a standard 8 Mpix ⅓″ camera with a 70 degree diagonal FOV may have a module height of 5.7 mm.",
"In comparison, a dual-aperture camera disclosed herein, with two 5 Mpix ¼″ image sensors (one color and one clear), each with 70 degrees diagonal field of view may have a module height of 4.5 mm.",
"In another example, a standard 8 Mpix ⅓″ camera with a 76 degree diagonal FOV may have a module height of 5.2 mm.",
"In comparison, a dual-aperture camera disclosed herein, with two 5 Mpix ¼″ image sensors (one color and one clear), each with a 76 degree diagonal FOV, may have a module height of 4.1 mm.",
"[0056] While this disclosure has been described in terms of certain embodiments and generally associated methods, alterations and permutations of the embodiments and methods will be apparent to those skilled in the art.",
"The disclosure is to be understood as not limited by the specific embodiments described herein, but only by the scope of the appended claims"
] |
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION
This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/427,795, filed Jun. 30, 2006, which is incorporated herein in its entirety.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to filters for water and other liquids.
Filters are widely used to separate impurities and solids from liquids in a variety of applications. For example, filters are used in water lines to provide water in which dissolved minerals and other particles may be removed. Filters are also used in lubrication and fuel lines to remove metals and other solids from the lubricant or fuel.
Because the filters have a relatively short lifetime, compared to the equipment they are used in association with, such as water dispensers, etc., the filters are arranged to be removed and replaced from time to time. The removal and replacement feature requires that there be an interface between the filter and the remainder of the liquid system which typically requires a seal at the interface, in that generally the liquid moving through the filter is at a pressure elevated above ambient pressure.
In some systems, removal of the filter creates an opening in the liquid line, requiring replacement of the filter before the system can be used. For example, Great Britain U.S. Pat. No. 1,296,051 discloses a removable filter, that once removed, leaves a disconnected path at a head portion between an inlet and an outlet in the liquid line that requires replacement of the filter before the system can be used. The filter is sealed to the head portion via a sealing ring and a hollow plug which provide sealing interfaces at different planes, and are engaged in a sliding manner between mating surfaces when the filter is attached to the head portion via a bayonet mount arrangement. U.S. Pat. No. 4,764,275 discloses a removable filter, that once removed, leaves a disconnected path at a filter mount between an inlet and an outlet in the liquid line that requires replacement of the filter before the system can be used. The filter is sealed to the filter mount via an O-ring radial seal that slidingly engages a side wall of the filter mount and a gasket that slidingly engages a face of the filter mount, located in a plane different than the side wall of the filter mount.
In other systems, a valve is provided to close off the liquid line when the filter is removed, also requiring replacement of the filter before the system can be used. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,826,854 discloses a removable filter that engages with a rotatable block to rotate the block relative to a valve housing, to align and misalign the inlet and outlet passages. The filter is sealed to the actuator via 2 radial seal O-rings lying in different planes that slidingly seal against an inside side wall of the block as the filter in inserted into the block.
In still other systems, some type of valve or bypass arrangement is provided so that the system can remain in use, even with the filter removed. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,390,701 discloses a removable filter that engages with a rotatable housing member to rotate the housing member relative to a valve body, to align and misalign the inlet and outlet passages, and to align radial bypass passages formed in the housing member to allow the system to remain in use with the filter removed. The filter is sealed to the valve body via an axial seal member that slides against a face of the valve body as the filter is threaded onto the housing member. U.S. Patent Application Publication US2006/0070942 A1 discloses a water purifying apparatus with a removable filter that engages with a rotatable inner case to rotate the inner case relative to an outer case, to align and misalign the inlet and outlet passages, and to align a transverse bypass passage formed on an outer face of the inner case to allow the system to remain in use with the filter removed. The filter is sealed to the inner case via two radial seal O-rings that slide into place relative to the inner case, in different planes, as the filter is engaged with the inner case.
Sliding sealing surfaces allow for the seals to twist or move or to allow the surfaces or impurities to cause wear of the seal, potentially compromising the integrity of the seal.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION
A replaceable filter for a liquid filter cartridge system has a valve body having a fluid inlet passage and a fluid outlet passage and a valve actuator having a fluid inlet passage and a fluid outlet passage, with the valve body and valve actuator being relatively rotatable to control fluid flow through the valve by aligning and unaligning the respective fluid inlet passages and fluid outlet passages. The replaceable filter comprises a cartridge defining an interior, a filter body located within the interior, a first end provided on the cartridge having an end face, a rotational coupler and a face seal provided on the end face and arranged to abut the valve actuator when the filter is coupled with the valve actuator. The first end has a fluid inlet passage extending through the end face into the interior and a fluid outlet passage extending through the end face into the interior. The rotational coupler is provided on the first end, rotationally coupling the filter with the valve actuator for co-rotation. When the filter is coupled with the valve actuator for co-rotation, the face seal abuts the valve actuator to form a seal between the first end and the valve actuator that fluidly seals the fluid inlet passage and the fluid outlet passage of the first end.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG. 1 is a schematic perspective view of a refrigeration appliance in which the water filter cartridge system embodying the principles of the present invention may be used.
FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the water filter cartridge system embodying the principles of the present invention shown in isolation.
FIG. 3 is an exploded perspective view of components of the water filter cartridge system of FIG. 2 .
FIG. 4 is a side sectional view of a valve body component used in the water filter cartridge system.
FIG. 5 is a side sectional view of a valve actuator component used in the water filter cartridge system.
FIG. 6 is a partial side sectional view of a filter component used in the water filter cartridge system.
FIG. 7 is a partial side sectional view of a housing component used in the water filter cartridge system.
FIG. 8 is a side sectional view of an end of the assembled water filter cartridge and housing with the valve shown in the filtering position.
FIG. 9 is a side sectional view of an end of the assembled water filter cartridge and housing with the valve shown in the bypass/removal position.
FIG. 10 is an enlarged exploded view of the valve components of the system.
FIG. 11 is an exploded view of the components of the water filter.
FIG. 12 is an outside perspective view of the valve body.
FIG. 13 is an inside perspective view of the valve body.
FIG. 14 is an outside perspective view of the valve actuator.
FIG. 15 is an inside perspective view of the valve actuator.
FIG. 16 is an inside perspective view of the cartridge handle.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
As schematically illustrated in FIG. 1 , the present invention provides a water filter cartridge system 30 , shown in isolation in FIG. 2 , which may find particular utility in a water dispensing system 32 , such as found in a refrigeration appliance 34 . The present invention also has utility in other appliances and environments and for filtering liquids other than water. For purposes of disclosing an embodiment of the invention, it will be disclosed in the environment of a water dispensing system 32 in a domestic refrigerator 34 where the water is dispensed at a door 36 of the refrigerator. The water is supplied via a water line 38 plumbed into a building supply, and passes through a cabinet 40 of the refrigerator 34 , and into the refrigerator door 36 at a hinge 42 for the door. The water line 38 in the door 36 is connected to the water filter cartridge system 30 , and then a connecting water line 44 leads up to a water dispenser 46 accessible from an outside of the door. The water filter cartridge system 30 may be accessible for removal and replacement, such as at a stationary ventilation grill 48 positioned below the door 36 .
As illustrated in more detail in FIGS. 2-16 , the water filter cartridge system 30 includes a housing 56 which may be permanently attached to the refrigerator 34 , such as via a mounting bracket 57 . The housing 56 may be in the form of a cylinder with a first open end 58 , a second end 60 having a pair of internal flanges 62 ( FIG. 7 ) extending partially around an inner diameter 64 of the housing and a pair of radially outwardly extending ears 66 carrying an inwardly facing pair of tabs 68 . The tabs 68 extend circumferentially a portion of the way around the interior of the housing 56 , for example about 60 degrees each ( FIG. 2 ). The ears 66 extend axially further away from the first end 58 than the position of the internal flanges 62 , such that the inwardly facing pair of tabs 68 are spaced axially from the internal flanges 62 , thereby forming two segments of a circumferential groove 70 between the internal flanges 62 and the inwardly facing pair of tabs 68 along the arcuate length of the tabs.
The water filter cartridge system 30 also includes a valve body 72 ( FIGS. 4, 12 and 13 ) which has an inlet passage 74 and an outlet passage 76 extending therethrough in an axial direction, parallel to one another and laterally spaced from one another. The inlet and outlet passages 74 , 76 may be formed to receive a connection fitting (not shown), perhaps in the form of a push fit fitting, such as a John Guest™ fitting. For example, an interior wall 78 of the inlet 74 and outlet 76 passages may be formed as a series of steps 80 with seats 82 for receiving the connection fittings. The inlet and outlet passages 74 , 76 terminate at an inner face 84 ( FIGS. 4, 13 ) of the valve body 72 , and at the inner face, the inlet and outlet passages may be provided with a spider 86 to reduce the open area of the inlet and outlet passages at the inner face.
The valve body 72 may have an outer flange 88 with steps 90 extending radially and circumferentially, the steps comprising a series of alternating radially extending 92 and axially extending 94 walls. The flange 88 may have a pair of opposed radially extending flanges 96 projecting radially from an endmost axially extending wall 98 , each tab extending circumferentially through an arc of about 60 degrees. As best seen in FIGS. 12 and 13 , adjacent a circumferential end 100 of each of the flanges 96 is a small detent 102 projecting radially from the endmost axially extending wall 98 , and lying in a plane parallel to a plane in which the flanges lie, but spaced away from a free end 104 of the endmost axially extending wall. Projecting radially inwardly from the endmost axially extending wall 98 , and lying against an adjacent one of the radially extending walls 92 may be a small tab 106 ( FIG. 13 ). The inner face 84 may have a groove 108 ( FIG. 4 ) formed therein which surrounds the inlet and outlet passages 74 , 76 .
The water filter cartridge system 30 includes a filter 110 ( FIGS. 6, 11 ) having a porous filter body 112 that may have a cylindrical shape, a first 114 and second 116 impermeable end cap at each end of the filter body, a surrounding impermeable cartridge 118 and an end cover 120 . The cartridge has an outer diameter 122 sized to fit within the housing 56 . The end caps 114 , 116 may be permanently attached to a respective end face 124 , 126 of the filter body 112 , such as by an adhesive material, and each include a lip portion 128 , 130 which overlies a portion of a side wall 132 of the filter body, to position the end caps correctly on the end faces. The end caps 114 , 116 assure that water or other liquid entering the filter cartridge 118 will be forced to flow through the side wall 132 , and not short circuit through the end faces 124 , 126 . An open passage 134 is provided at a central portion of the filter body 112 for filtered liquid. The first end cap 114 has a passage 136 formed therein to allow filtered liquid to flow therethrough. The end cover 120 may be secured to the cartridge 118 in a permanent and non-removable fashion, such as by adhesive, spin welding, fasteners or other well known attachment arrangements.
The filter cartridge 118 has a first end 138 that has a stepped outer surface 140 forming a shoulder 142 with a pair of opposed tabs 144 extending radially therefrom, spaced from the shoulder. The filter cartridge 118 can be inserted into the open end 58 of the housing 56 and the shoulder 142 is sized to abut against and loosely engage the internal flanges 62 of the housing 56 to prevent the cartridge 118 from passing completely through the housing ( FIG. 8 ). The exploded illustration of FIG. 3 schematically shows the filter cartridge 118 extending out of the end of the housing 56 , however, the actual geometry of the parts does not allow this to occur. The tabs 144 are sized to pass between adjacent internal flanges 62 of the housing, and then when the filter cartridge 118 is rotated a quarter turn, the tabs 144 will overlie the internal flanges 62 to secure the filter cartridge axially relative to the housing 56 as described later. Leading edges 146 ( FIG. 10 ) of the tabs 144 may be sloped so that the filter cartridge 118 is moved axially further into the housing 56 as the cartridge is rotated, as explained in greater detail below.
The first end 138 of the filter cartridge 118 has a central outlet passage 148 which includes a cylindrical wall 150 sized to receive a tubular projection 152 of the first end cap 114 which has the passage 136 formed therein. The tubular projection 152 is sealingly joined to the cylindrical wall 150 , such as by an O-ring seal 153 , or other sealing arrangements.
The first end 138 of the filter cartridge 118 also has a plurality of inlet passages 154 formed therein arranged in a ring surrounding and spaced radially outward of the central outlet passage 148 . The inlet passages 154 lead to a chamber 156 forming the interior of the filter cartridge 118 occupied by the filter body 112 . An end face 158 of the first end 138 of the filter cartridge 118 is provided with a first circular seal gland 160 surrounding the central outlet passage 148 , and positioned radially inward of the ring of inlet passages 154 . An O-ring seal 162 may be positioned in this gland. A second circular seal gland 164 surrounds the ring of inlet passages 154 . An O-ring seal 166 may be positioned in this gland. The end face 158 may be planar such that the first 160 and second 164 seal glands, and the O-ring seals 162 , 166 lie in the same plane.
The water filter cartridge system further includes a valve actuator 168 ( FIGS. 5, 14, 15 ) which is positioned between the first end 138 of the filter cartridge 118 and the valve body 72 when the entire system is assembled. The valve actuator 168 has a first face 170 facing towards the valve body 72 which includes an inlet passage 174 which may be aligned with the inlet passage 74 in the valve body ( FIG. 8 ). A circular seal gland 176 surrounds the actuator inlet passage 174 in the first face 170 . An O-ring seal 178 may be positioned in this gland 176 . The first face 170 of the actuator 168 includes an outlet passage 180 which exits the first face in a position that may be aligned with the outlet passage 76 in the valve body 72 . A circular seal gland 182 surrounds the actuator outlet passage 180 in the first face 170 . An O-ring seal 184 may be positioned in this gland 182 .
The valve actuator 168 has a second face 186 facing away from the valve body 72 and towards the end face 158 of the filter cartridge. The inlet passage 174 exits at the second face 186 and intersects a circular channel 188 which extends around the second face and aligns with the plurality of inlet passages 154 in the first end 138 of the filter cartridge 118 . The outlet passage 180 of the valve actuator 168 extends through the actuator at an angle and exits the second face 186 at a central location, aligned with the outlet passage in the first end 138 of the filter cartridge 118 . The seals 178 , 184 are dynamic axial seals in that they effect a seal between the valve actuator 168 and the valve body 72 by means of a sliding motion between the two facing surfaces 154 , 186 .
The valve actuator 168 may have an axially extending flange 190 which closely surrounds and receives an outer peripheral edge 192 of the tabs 144 formed on the first end 138 of the filter cartridge 118 . The valve actuator 168 may also have an axially extending circular wall 194 extending from the first face 170 which is received in the circular groove 108 formed in the valve body 72 . The circular wall 194 includes an outwardly facing seal gland 198 formed therein for receiving an O-ring seal 200 which engages with a side wall of the groove 196 , and thus comprises a radial seal.
The valve actuator 168 , at an edge of the top face 170 , also includes a groove 202 FIG. 14 ) which receives the tab 106 of the valve body 72 . The groove 202 has an angular extent of approximately 90 degrees, so the valve actuator 168 is permitted to rotate only 90 degrees relative to the valve body 72 . The valve actuator 168 has a pair of opposed recesses 204 formed in the axially extending flange 190 which are sized to receive the tabs 144 of the filter cartridge 118 . Rotation of the filter cartridge 118 will therefore cause co-rotation of the valve actuator 168 .
To assemble the system 30 , the valve actuator 168 is inserted into the end 60 of the housing 56 such that its axially extending flange 190 rests on the inwardly facing flanges 62 of the housing. The valve body 72 is inserted into the end 60 of the housing 56 overlying the valve actuator 168 , the valve body 72 , housing 56 , and valve actuator 168 forming an assembly to define a fluid valve. The valve body 72 is rotated approximately 90 degrees, so that the radially projecting flanges 96 of the valve body engage under the tabs 68 of the housing 56 , thereby holding the valve body, the valve actuator 168 and the housing together as a unit and capturing the valve actuator between the valve body and the housing ( FIGS. 8, 9 ). The detents 102 on the valve body 72 engage with endwalls 70 of the inwardly facing tabs 68 on the housing 56 to lock the valve body in the assembled rotational position relative to the housing.
The assembled filter cartridge 118 is inserted from the first end 58 of the housing 56 , sufficiently into the housing such that the radial tabs 144 of the cartridge are positioned between the inwardly facing flanges 62 of the housing. The radial tabs 144 will be received in the recesses 204 in the valve actuator 168 . The filter cartridge 56 is rotated approximately 90 degrees in a first direction, such as clockwise, the sloped surfaces 146 of the cartridge tabs 144 causing the face 158 of the end 138 of the filter cartridge to move axially towards the second face 186 of the valve actuator 168 , compressing the concentric O-ring seals 162 , 166 between the filter cartridge and the valve actuator. Since rotation of the filter cartridge 118 also causes co-rotation of the valve actuator 168 , as discussed above, the O-ring seals 162 , 166 , which comprise axial seals, are only compressed and no sliding between the parts or seals occurs, thereby forming a static face seal (axial seal) which enhances and preserves the seal. In this way, there is no chance for the O-ring seals 162 , 166 to dislodge from the seal glands 160 , 164 . Rotation of the cartridge 118 and valve actuator 168 continues until the tab 106 of the valve body 72 strikes an end wall 206 of the groove 202 in the valve actuator, preventing further rotation of the valve actuator relative to the valve body.
When this rotation assembly occurs, the alignment of the parts is that as shown in FIG. 8 , with the inlet passage 174 in the valve actuator 168 aligned with the inlet passage 74 in the valve body 72 and the inlet passage 154 of the filter cartridge 118 to permit communication between the inlet passages and define a system inlet passage. The outlet passage 180 in the valve actuator 168 is also aligned with the outlet passage 76 in the valve body 72 and the outlet passage 148 in the filter cartridge 118 to permit communication between the outlet passages and define a system outlet passage. In such an orientation, water, or other liquid, flows in through the valve body inlet passage 74 , through the valve actuator inlet passage 174 , around the distribution channel 188 and into the inlet passages 154 of the filter cartridge 118 . The outer O-ring seal 166 and the inner O-ring seal 162 define the inlet flow path at the interface between the filter cartridge 118 and the valve actuator 168 . The liquid flows into the chamber 156 , past the end cap 114 , and through the side wall 132 of the filter body 112 . The liquid flows into the center passage 134 , now filtered, and through the outlet passage 136 in the end cap 114 , to the outlet passage 148 in the filter cartridge 118 , through the outlet passage 180 in the valve actuator 168 , and out through the outlet passage 76 of the valve body 72 . The inner O-ring seal 162 defines the outlet flow path, on its interior, at the interface between the filter cartridge 118 and the valve actuator 168 .
When the filter cartridge 118 is to be removed, such as for replacement with another filter cartridge, the filter cartridge is rotated approximately 90 degrees in the opposite direction, such as counter-clockwise, causing the valve actuator 168 to also rotate 90 degrees. This places the valve actuator 168 in the position shown in FIG. 9 , with the inlet passage 174 and outlet passage 180 of the valve actuator displaced out of alignment relative to the inlet passage 74 and outlet passage 76 of the valve body 72 (and not visible in FIG. 9 ). This position prevents communication between common passages, that is, between the two inlet passages 74 , 174 and between the two outlet passages 76 , 180 . A groove 207 ( FIGS. 5, 14 ) in the face 170 of the valve actuator 168 has its ends moved into alignment with the inlet 74 and outlet 76 passages of the valve body 72 , such that liquids flowing into the inlet passage 74 will be diverted into the groove 207 to the outlet passage 76 , automatically bypassing the remainder of the filter system. This groove 207 forms a bypass conduit which will permit the filter cartridge 118 to be removed and replaced, even if a liquid is flowing through the inlet 74 and outlet 76 passages, or will permit continued use of the liquid dispensing system 32 that the filter system 30 is a part of, even if the filter cartridge 118 is not in place. The O-ring 198 carried by the valve actuator 168 assures that any liquid in the space between the first face 170 of the valve actuator and the inner face 84 of the valve body 72 will not leak out of the assembly, and the O-rings 178 , 184 will assure that no liquid will flow into the inlet 174 or outlet 180 passages in the valve actuator.
In order to prevent unintentional dislodging of the O-rings 162 , 166 from the end face 158 of the filter cartridge 118 as it is being removed and replaced, the O-rings may be overmolded onto the end face of the filter cartridge. Alternatively, the O-rings 162 , 166 may be held onto the filter cartridge 118 by capillary action provided by silicone grease. In any event, the O-rings are to be removed and replaced each time the cartridge 118 is replaced, assuring a proper sealing of the flow paths. Since there is sliding rotational movement between the valve actuator 168 and the valve body 72 , there is a slight chance that the O-rings 178 , 184 will unseat from their glands 170 , 182 . The spiders 86 in the inlet 74 and outlet 76 passage openings will prevent the O-rings from extruding into those openings which might otherwise cause leakage.
To assist in insertion and removal of the filter cartridge 118 , the end cover 120 of the filter 110 may be provided with a projecting element 208 , such as a rectangular shaped element ( FIG. 11 ). A handle 210 ( FIGS. 3, 16 ) may be provided to engage, such as at a pocket 211 with the projecting element 208 , and may have an extending arm 212 to give the user greater leverage, and to apply greater torque, when rotating the filter cartridge 118 . The handle 210 may be removed from the projecting element 208 , and attached to the water dispensing unit, such as the grill 48 of the refrigerator 34 , even when the filter cartridge 118 is not in place. Connection arrangements, such as flexible fingers 214 may be provided which will hold the handle 210 in place on the water dispensing unit, and will even allow rotation of the handle relative to the grill 48 , with or without the filter cartridge 118 .
The present invention has been described utilizing particular embodiments. As will be evident to those skilled in the art, changes and modifications may be made to the disclosed embodiments and yet fall within the scope of the present invention. For example, various components could be utilized separately or independently in some embodiments without using all of the other components in the particular described embodiment. The disclosed embodiment is provided only to illustrate aspects of the present invention and not in any way to limit the scope and coverage of the invention. The scope of the invention is therefore to be limited only by the appended claims.
As is apparent from the foregoing specification, the invention is susceptible of being embodied with various alterations and modifications which may differ particularly from those that have been described in the preceding specification and description. It should be understood that I wish to embody within the scope of the patent warranted hereon all such modifications as reasonably and properly come within the scope of my contribution to the art. | A replaceable filter for a liquid filter cartridge system having a valve body and a valve actuator relatively rotatable to control fluid flow through the valve by aligning and unaligning respective fluid inlet passages and fluid outlet passages of the valve body and the valve actuator. | Identify and summarize the most critical features from the given passage. | [
"CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser.",
"No. 11/427,795, filed Jun. 30, 2006, which is incorporated herein in its entirety.",
"BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to filters for water and other liquids.",
"Filters are widely used to separate impurities and solids from liquids in a variety of applications.",
"For example, filters are used in water lines to provide water in which dissolved minerals and other particles may be removed.",
"Filters are also used in lubrication and fuel lines to remove metals and other solids from the lubricant or fuel.",
"Because the filters have a relatively short lifetime, compared to the equipment they are used in association with, such as water dispensers, etc.",
", the filters are arranged to be removed and replaced from time to time.",
"The removal and replacement feature requires that there be an interface between the filter and the remainder of the liquid system which typically requires a seal at the interface, in that generally the liquid moving through the filter is at a pressure elevated above ambient pressure.",
"In some systems, removal of the filter creates an opening in the liquid line, requiring replacement of the filter before the system can be used.",
"For example, Great Britain U.S. Pat. No. 1,296,051 discloses a removable filter, that once removed, leaves a disconnected path at a head portion between an inlet and an outlet in the liquid line that requires replacement of the filter before the system can be used.",
"The filter is sealed to the head portion via a sealing ring and a hollow plug which provide sealing interfaces at different planes, and are engaged in a sliding manner between mating surfaces when the filter is attached to the head portion via a bayonet mount arrangement.",
"U.S. Pat. No. 4,764,275 discloses a removable filter, that once removed, leaves a disconnected path at a filter mount between an inlet and an outlet in the liquid line that requires replacement of the filter before the system can be used.",
"The filter is sealed to the filter mount via an O-ring radial seal that slidingly engages a side wall of the filter mount and a gasket that slidingly engages a face of the filter mount, located in a plane different than the side wall of the filter mount.",
"In other systems, a valve is provided to close off the liquid line when the filter is removed, also requiring replacement of the filter before the system can be used.",
"For example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,826,854 discloses a removable filter that engages with a rotatable block to rotate the block relative to a valve housing, to align and misalign the inlet and outlet passages.",
"The filter is sealed to the actuator via 2 radial seal O-rings lying in different planes that slidingly seal against an inside side wall of the block as the filter in inserted into the block.",
"In still other systems, some type of valve or bypass arrangement is provided so that the system can remain in use, even with the filter removed.",
"For example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,390,701 discloses a removable filter that engages with a rotatable housing member to rotate the housing member relative to a valve body, to align and misalign the inlet and outlet passages, and to align radial bypass passages formed in the housing member to allow the system to remain in use with the filter removed.",
"The filter is sealed to the valve body via an axial seal member that slides against a face of the valve body as the filter is threaded onto the housing member.",
"U.S. Patent Application Publication US2006/0070942 A1 discloses a water purifying apparatus with a removable filter that engages with a rotatable inner case to rotate the inner case relative to an outer case, to align and misalign the inlet and outlet passages, and to align a transverse bypass passage formed on an outer face of the inner case to allow the system to remain in use with the filter removed.",
"The filter is sealed to the inner case via two radial seal O-rings that slide into place relative to the inner case, in different planes, as the filter is engaged with the inner case.",
"Sliding sealing surfaces allow for the seals to twist or move or to allow the surfaces or impurities to cause wear of the seal, potentially compromising the integrity of the seal.",
"BRIEF DESCRIPTION A replaceable filter for a liquid filter cartridge system has a valve body having a fluid inlet passage and a fluid outlet passage and a valve actuator having a fluid inlet passage and a fluid outlet passage, with the valve body and valve actuator being relatively rotatable to control fluid flow through the valve by aligning and unaligning the respective fluid inlet passages and fluid outlet passages.",
"The replaceable filter comprises a cartridge defining an interior, a filter body located within the interior, a first end provided on the cartridge having an end face, a rotational coupler and a face seal provided on the end face and arranged to abut the valve actuator when the filter is coupled with the valve actuator.",
"The first end has a fluid inlet passage extending through the end face into the interior and a fluid outlet passage extending through the end face into the interior.",
"The rotational coupler is provided on the first end, rotationally coupling the filter with the valve actuator for co-rotation.",
"When the filter is coupled with the valve actuator for co-rotation, the face seal abuts the valve actuator to form a seal between the first end and the valve actuator that fluidly seals the fluid inlet passage and the fluid outlet passage of the first end.",
"BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a schematic perspective view of a refrigeration appliance in which the water filter cartridge system embodying the principles of the present invention may be used.",
"FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the water filter cartridge system embodying the principles of the present invention shown in isolation.",
"FIG. 3 is an exploded perspective view of components of the water filter cartridge system of FIG. 2 .",
"FIG. 4 is a side sectional view of a valve body component used in the water filter cartridge system.",
"FIG. 5 is a side sectional view of a valve actuator component used in the water filter cartridge system.",
"FIG. 6 is a partial side sectional view of a filter component used in the water filter cartridge system.",
"FIG. 7 is a partial side sectional view of a housing component used in the water filter cartridge system.",
"FIG. 8 is a side sectional view of an end of the assembled water filter cartridge and housing with the valve shown in the filtering position.",
"FIG. 9 is a side sectional view of an end of the assembled water filter cartridge and housing with the valve shown in the bypass/removal position.",
"FIG. 10 is an enlarged exploded view of the valve components of the system.",
"FIG. 11 is an exploded view of the components of the water filter.",
"FIG. 12 is an outside perspective view of the valve body.",
"FIG. 13 is an inside perspective view of the valve body.",
"FIG. 14 is an outside perspective view of the valve actuator.",
"FIG. 15 is an inside perspective view of the valve actuator.",
"FIG. 16 is an inside perspective view of the cartridge handle.",
"DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS As schematically illustrated in FIG. 1 , the present invention provides a water filter cartridge system 30 , shown in isolation in FIG. 2 , which may find particular utility in a water dispensing system 32 , such as found in a refrigeration appliance 34 .",
"The present invention also has utility in other appliances and environments and for filtering liquids other than water.",
"For purposes of disclosing an embodiment of the invention, it will be disclosed in the environment of a water dispensing system 32 in a domestic refrigerator 34 where the water is dispensed at a door 36 of the refrigerator.",
"The water is supplied via a water line 38 plumbed into a building supply, and passes through a cabinet 40 of the refrigerator 34 , and into the refrigerator door 36 at a hinge 42 for the door.",
"The water line 38 in the door 36 is connected to the water filter cartridge system 30 , and then a connecting water line 44 leads up to a water dispenser 46 accessible from an outside of the door.",
"The water filter cartridge system 30 may be accessible for removal and replacement, such as at a stationary ventilation grill 48 positioned below the door 36 .",
"As illustrated in more detail in FIGS. 2-16 , the water filter cartridge system 30 includes a housing 56 which may be permanently attached to the refrigerator 34 , such as via a mounting bracket 57 .",
"The housing 56 may be in the form of a cylinder with a first open end 58 , a second end 60 having a pair of internal flanges 62 ( FIG. 7 ) extending partially around an inner diameter 64 of the housing and a pair of radially outwardly extending ears 66 carrying an inwardly facing pair of tabs 68 .",
"The tabs 68 extend circumferentially a portion of the way around the interior of the housing 56 , for example about 60 degrees each ( FIG. 2 ).",
"The ears 66 extend axially further away from the first end 58 than the position of the internal flanges 62 , such that the inwardly facing pair of tabs 68 are spaced axially from the internal flanges 62 , thereby forming two segments of a circumferential groove 70 between the internal flanges 62 and the inwardly facing pair of tabs 68 along the arcuate length of the tabs.",
"The water filter cartridge system 30 also includes a valve body 72 ( FIGS. 4, 12 and 13 ) which has an inlet passage 74 and an outlet passage 76 extending therethrough in an axial direction, parallel to one another and laterally spaced from one another.",
"The inlet and outlet passages 74 , 76 may be formed to receive a connection fitting (not shown), perhaps in the form of a push fit fitting, such as a John Guest™ fitting.",
"For example, an interior wall 78 of the inlet 74 and outlet 76 passages may be formed as a series of steps 80 with seats 82 for receiving the connection fittings.",
"The inlet and outlet passages 74 , 76 terminate at an inner face 84 ( FIGS. 4, 13 ) of the valve body 72 , and at the inner face, the inlet and outlet passages may be provided with a spider 86 to reduce the open area of the inlet and outlet passages at the inner face.",
"The valve body 72 may have an outer flange 88 with steps 90 extending radially and circumferentially, the steps comprising a series of alternating radially extending 92 and axially extending 94 walls.",
"The flange 88 may have a pair of opposed radially extending flanges 96 projecting radially from an endmost axially extending wall 98 , each tab extending circumferentially through an arc of about 60 degrees.",
"As best seen in FIGS. 12 and 13 , adjacent a circumferential end 100 of each of the flanges 96 is a small detent 102 projecting radially from the endmost axially extending wall 98 , and lying in a plane parallel to a plane in which the flanges lie, but spaced away from a free end 104 of the endmost axially extending wall.",
"Projecting radially inwardly from the endmost axially extending wall 98 , and lying against an adjacent one of the radially extending walls 92 may be a small tab 106 ( FIG. 13 ).",
"The inner face 84 may have a groove 108 ( FIG. 4 ) formed therein which surrounds the inlet and outlet passages 74 , 76 .",
"The water filter cartridge system 30 includes a filter 110 ( FIGS. 6, 11 ) having a porous filter body 112 that may have a cylindrical shape, a first 114 and second 116 impermeable end cap at each end of the filter body, a surrounding impermeable cartridge 118 and an end cover 120 .",
"The cartridge has an outer diameter 122 sized to fit within the housing 56 .",
"The end caps 114 , 116 may be permanently attached to a respective end face 124 , 126 of the filter body 112 , such as by an adhesive material, and each include a lip portion 128 , 130 which overlies a portion of a side wall 132 of the filter body, to position the end caps correctly on the end faces.",
"The end caps 114 , 116 assure that water or other liquid entering the filter cartridge 118 will be forced to flow through the side wall 132 , and not short circuit through the end faces 124 , 126 .",
"An open passage 134 is provided at a central portion of the filter body 112 for filtered liquid.",
"The first end cap 114 has a passage 136 formed therein to allow filtered liquid to flow therethrough.",
"The end cover 120 may be secured to the cartridge 118 in a permanent and non-removable fashion, such as by adhesive, spin welding, fasteners or other well known attachment arrangements.",
"The filter cartridge 118 has a first end 138 that has a stepped outer surface 140 forming a shoulder 142 with a pair of opposed tabs 144 extending radially therefrom, spaced from the shoulder.",
"The filter cartridge 118 can be inserted into the open end 58 of the housing 56 and the shoulder 142 is sized to abut against and loosely engage the internal flanges 62 of the housing 56 to prevent the cartridge 118 from passing completely through the housing ( FIG. 8 ).",
"The exploded illustration of FIG. 3 schematically shows the filter cartridge 118 extending out of the end of the housing 56 , however, the actual geometry of the parts does not allow this to occur.",
"The tabs 144 are sized to pass between adjacent internal flanges 62 of the housing, and then when the filter cartridge 118 is rotated a quarter turn, the tabs 144 will overlie the internal flanges 62 to secure the filter cartridge axially relative to the housing 56 as described later.",
"Leading edges 146 ( FIG. 10 ) of the tabs 144 may be sloped so that the filter cartridge 118 is moved axially further into the housing 56 as the cartridge is rotated, as explained in greater detail below.",
"The first end 138 of the filter cartridge 118 has a central outlet passage 148 which includes a cylindrical wall 150 sized to receive a tubular projection 152 of the first end cap 114 which has the passage 136 formed therein.",
"The tubular projection 152 is sealingly joined to the cylindrical wall 150 , such as by an O-ring seal 153 , or other sealing arrangements.",
"The first end 138 of the filter cartridge 118 also has a plurality of inlet passages 154 formed therein arranged in a ring surrounding and spaced radially outward of the central outlet passage 148 .",
"The inlet passages 154 lead to a chamber 156 forming the interior of the filter cartridge 118 occupied by the filter body 112 .",
"An end face 158 of the first end 138 of the filter cartridge 118 is provided with a first circular seal gland 160 surrounding the central outlet passage 148 , and positioned radially inward of the ring of inlet passages 154 .",
"An O-ring seal 162 may be positioned in this gland.",
"A second circular seal gland 164 surrounds the ring of inlet passages 154 .",
"An O-ring seal 166 may be positioned in this gland.",
"The end face 158 may be planar such that the first 160 and second 164 seal glands, and the O-ring seals 162 , 166 lie in the same plane.",
"The water filter cartridge system further includes a valve actuator 168 ( FIGS. 5, 14, 15 ) which is positioned between the first end 138 of the filter cartridge 118 and the valve body 72 when the entire system is assembled.",
"The valve actuator 168 has a first face 170 facing towards the valve body 72 which includes an inlet passage 174 which may be aligned with the inlet passage 74 in the valve body ( FIG. 8 ).",
"A circular seal gland 176 surrounds the actuator inlet passage 174 in the first face 170 .",
"An O-ring seal 178 may be positioned in this gland 176 .",
"The first face 170 of the actuator 168 includes an outlet passage 180 which exits the first face in a position that may be aligned with the outlet passage 76 in the valve body 72 .",
"A circular seal gland 182 surrounds the actuator outlet passage 180 in the first face 170 .",
"An O-ring seal 184 may be positioned in this gland 182 .",
"The valve actuator 168 has a second face 186 facing away from the valve body 72 and towards the end face 158 of the filter cartridge.",
"The inlet passage 174 exits at the second face 186 and intersects a circular channel 188 which extends around the second face and aligns with the plurality of inlet passages 154 in the first end 138 of the filter cartridge 118 .",
"The outlet passage 180 of the valve actuator 168 extends through the actuator at an angle and exits the second face 186 at a central location, aligned with the outlet passage in the first end 138 of the filter cartridge 118 .",
"The seals 178 , 184 are dynamic axial seals in that they effect a seal between the valve actuator 168 and the valve body 72 by means of a sliding motion between the two facing surfaces 154 , 186 .",
"The valve actuator 168 may have an axially extending flange 190 which closely surrounds and receives an outer peripheral edge 192 of the tabs 144 formed on the first end 138 of the filter cartridge 118 .",
"The valve actuator 168 may also have an axially extending circular wall 194 extending from the first face 170 which is received in the circular groove 108 formed in the valve body 72 .",
"The circular wall 194 includes an outwardly facing seal gland 198 formed therein for receiving an O-ring seal 200 which engages with a side wall of the groove 196 , and thus comprises a radial seal.",
"The valve actuator 168 , at an edge of the top face 170 , also includes a groove 202 FIG. 14 ) which receives the tab 106 of the valve body 72 .",
"The groove 202 has an angular extent of approximately 90 degrees, so the valve actuator 168 is permitted to rotate only 90 degrees relative to the valve body 72 .",
"The valve actuator 168 has a pair of opposed recesses 204 formed in the axially extending flange 190 which are sized to receive the tabs 144 of the filter cartridge 118 .",
"Rotation of the filter cartridge 118 will therefore cause co-rotation of the valve actuator 168 .",
"To assemble the system 30 , the valve actuator 168 is inserted into the end 60 of the housing 56 such that its axially extending flange 190 rests on the inwardly facing flanges 62 of the housing.",
"The valve body 72 is inserted into the end 60 of the housing 56 overlying the valve actuator 168 , the valve body 72 , housing 56 , and valve actuator 168 forming an assembly to define a fluid valve.",
"The valve body 72 is rotated approximately 90 degrees, so that the radially projecting flanges 96 of the valve body engage under the tabs 68 of the housing 56 , thereby holding the valve body, the valve actuator 168 and the housing together as a unit and capturing the valve actuator between the valve body and the housing ( FIGS. 8, 9 ).",
"The detents 102 on the valve body 72 engage with endwalls 70 of the inwardly facing tabs 68 on the housing 56 to lock the valve body in the assembled rotational position relative to the housing.",
"The assembled filter cartridge 118 is inserted from the first end 58 of the housing 56 , sufficiently into the housing such that the radial tabs 144 of the cartridge are positioned between the inwardly facing flanges 62 of the housing.",
"The radial tabs 144 will be received in the recesses 204 in the valve actuator 168 .",
"The filter cartridge 56 is rotated approximately 90 degrees in a first direction, such as clockwise, the sloped surfaces 146 of the cartridge tabs 144 causing the face 158 of the end 138 of the filter cartridge to move axially towards the second face 186 of the valve actuator 168 , compressing the concentric O-ring seals 162 , 166 between the filter cartridge and the valve actuator.",
"Since rotation of the filter cartridge 118 also causes co-rotation of the valve actuator 168 , as discussed above, the O-ring seals 162 , 166 , which comprise axial seals, are only compressed and no sliding between the parts or seals occurs, thereby forming a static face seal (axial seal) which enhances and preserves the seal.",
"In this way, there is no chance for the O-ring seals 162 , 166 to dislodge from the seal glands 160 , 164 .",
"Rotation of the cartridge 118 and valve actuator 168 continues until the tab 106 of the valve body 72 strikes an end wall 206 of the groove 202 in the valve actuator, preventing further rotation of the valve actuator relative to the valve body.",
"When this rotation assembly occurs, the alignment of the parts is that as shown in FIG. 8 , with the inlet passage 174 in the valve actuator 168 aligned with the inlet passage 74 in the valve body 72 and the inlet passage 154 of the filter cartridge 118 to permit communication between the inlet passages and define a system inlet passage.",
"The outlet passage 180 in the valve actuator 168 is also aligned with the outlet passage 76 in the valve body 72 and the outlet passage 148 in the filter cartridge 118 to permit communication between the outlet passages and define a system outlet passage.",
"In such an orientation, water, or other liquid, flows in through the valve body inlet passage 74 , through the valve actuator inlet passage 174 , around the distribution channel 188 and into the inlet passages 154 of the filter cartridge 118 .",
"The outer O-ring seal 166 and the inner O-ring seal 162 define the inlet flow path at the interface between the filter cartridge 118 and the valve actuator 168 .",
"The liquid flows into the chamber 156 , past the end cap 114 , and through the side wall 132 of the filter body 112 .",
"The liquid flows into the center passage 134 , now filtered, and through the outlet passage 136 in the end cap 114 , to the outlet passage 148 in the filter cartridge 118 , through the outlet passage 180 in the valve actuator 168 , and out through the outlet passage 76 of the valve body 72 .",
"The inner O-ring seal 162 defines the outlet flow path, on its interior, at the interface between the filter cartridge 118 and the valve actuator 168 .",
"When the filter cartridge 118 is to be removed, such as for replacement with another filter cartridge, the filter cartridge is rotated approximately 90 degrees in the opposite direction, such as counter-clockwise, causing the valve actuator 168 to also rotate 90 degrees.",
"This places the valve actuator 168 in the position shown in FIG. 9 , with the inlet passage 174 and outlet passage 180 of the valve actuator displaced out of alignment relative to the inlet passage 74 and outlet passage 76 of the valve body 72 (and not visible in FIG. 9 ).",
"This position prevents communication between common passages, that is, between the two inlet passages 74 , 174 and between the two outlet passages 76 , 180 .",
"A groove 207 ( FIGS. 5, 14 ) in the face 170 of the valve actuator 168 has its ends moved into alignment with the inlet 74 and outlet 76 passages of the valve body 72 , such that liquids flowing into the inlet passage 74 will be diverted into the groove 207 to the outlet passage 76 , automatically bypassing the remainder of the filter system.",
"This groove 207 forms a bypass conduit which will permit the filter cartridge 118 to be removed and replaced, even if a liquid is flowing through the inlet 74 and outlet 76 passages, or will permit continued use of the liquid dispensing system 32 that the filter system 30 is a part of, even if the filter cartridge 118 is not in place.",
"The O-ring 198 carried by the valve actuator 168 assures that any liquid in the space between the first face 170 of the valve actuator and the inner face 84 of the valve body 72 will not leak out of the assembly, and the O-rings 178 , 184 will assure that no liquid will flow into the inlet 174 or outlet 180 passages in the valve actuator.",
"In order to prevent unintentional dislodging of the O-rings 162 , 166 from the end face 158 of the filter cartridge 118 as it is being removed and replaced, the O-rings may be overmolded onto the end face of the filter cartridge.",
"Alternatively, the O-rings 162 , 166 may be held onto the filter cartridge 118 by capillary action provided by silicone grease.",
"In any event, the O-rings are to be removed and replaced each time the cartridge 118 is replaced, assuring a proper sealing of the flow paths.",
"Since there is sliding rotational movement between the valve actuator 168 and the valve body 72 , there is a slight chance that the O-rings 178 , 184 will unseat from their glands 170 , 182 .",
"The spiders 86 in the inlet 74 and outlet 76 passage openings will prevent the O-rings from extruding into those openings which might otherwise cause leakage.",
"To assist in insertion and removal of the filter cartridge 118 , the end cover 120 of the filter 110 may be provided with a projecting element 208 , such as a rectangular shaped element ( FIG. 11 ).",
"A handle 210 ( FIGS. 3, 16 ) may be provided to engage, such as at a pocket 211 with the projecting element 208 , and may have an extending arm 212 to give the user greater leverage, and to apply greater torque, when rotating the filter cartridge 118 .",
"The handle 210 may be removed from the projecting element 208 , and attached to the water dispensing unit, such as the grill 48 of the refrigerator 34 , even when the filter cartridge 118 is not in place.",
"Connection arrangements, such as flexible fingers 214 may be provided which will hold the handle 210 in place on the water dispensing unit, and will even allow rotation of the handle relative to the grill 48 , with or without the filter cartridge 118 .",
"The present invention has been described utilizing particular embodiments.",
"As will be evident to those skilled in the art, changes and modifications may be made to the disclosed embodiments and yet fall within the scope of the present invention.",
"For example, various components could be utilized separately or independently in some embodiments without using all of the other components in the particular described embodiment.",
"The disclosed embodiment is provided only to illustrate aspects of the present invention and not in any way to limit the scope and coverage of the invention.",
"The scope of the invention is therefore to be limited only by the appended claims.",
"As is apparent from the foregoing specification, the invention is susceptible of being embodied with various alterations and modifications which may differ particularly from those that have been described in the preceding specification and description.",
"It should be understood that I wish to embody within the scope of the patent warranted hereon all such modifications as reasonably and properly come within the scope of my contribution to the art."
] |
OBJECT OF THE INVENTION
[0001] The present invention relates to a fabric from polypropylene, either raw or pulp-colored, intended in particular for the mechanical fastening of the hook and loop type, and use thereof in several sectors and in particular in the personal care one.
KNOWN ART
[0002] As is known, polymers of synthetic origin that are especially utilized in the production of yarns and therefore of fabrics suitable for the most different uses, comprise, for instance, polyamide, polyester and polypropylene. These polymers are treated according to traditional techniques and then utilised, either alone or coupled with each other or to other fabrics also, for instance, of natural origin, for the realization of various kinds of fabrics intended for the most different sectors, from sports- and casual clothing up to the industrial, health and personal care sectors, cars, shoes, furnishings, abrasive articles, and the like. Polypropylene has always captured a great attention because of two main reasons: first of all, it is rather “economical” with respect to other polymers, for instance the aforementioned ones, and besides it is entirely recyclable and non toxic, allowing therefore to realize products having a very reduced impact on environment.
[0003] There are at present on the market polypropylene yarns having a yarn count in excess of 70 deniers which have however a limited application field and are used for the realization of products belonging to very limited sectors.
[0004] The process commonly utilized today for the realization of polypropylene yarns requires many distinct steps that involve such a cost of manpower as to render the obtained product very expensive, canceling out therefore the advantage of the low cost of the starting products.
[0005] One of the main problem arises from the fact that the processes for the realization of polypropylene yarns are very complex, as they comprise many separate working steps, and are often very long, causing thereby the production of polypropylene yarns to be very expensive. In practice, even though the raw material (polymer/fiber) is rather advantageous from the economic point of view, process difficulties and working times render the spun and finished product very expensive and not convenient from the commercial point of view.
OBJECTS OF THE INVENTION
[0006] Object of the present invention is to provide polypropylene fabrics intended, for instance, for mechanical fastening systems of the hook and loop type, and that are applicable to products of different fields, and in particular the health and personal care field, being essentially non toxic and entirely recyclable.
[0007] Another object of the present invention is to provide a polypropylene fabric having a low count of yarns and weight, such as not to loose the economic advantages ensuing from polypropylene low starting cost.
[0008] A further object of the present invention is to provide a fastening system of the hook and loop type realized with a polypropylene fabric coupleable by heat and ultrasounds and needing no glues/resins that jeopardize the natural non toxicity and recyclable nature of said product.
[0009] Still a further object of the invention is to provide a process for the preparation of a fabric from polypropylene that involves only a few steps, that is rapid and that supplies a product advantageous from the economic point of view.
DESCRIPTION
[0010] These and still further objects and related advantages that will be better stressed by the following description are achieved by a polypropylene-based fabric having a weight comprised between 10 and 300 g/m 2 , suitable to engage with hook elements of another fabric/component, and made up by yarns that come in the form of needle loops (eyelets), that comprise at least a base yarn and at least a knitted fabric that protrudes towards the outside of at least a side of said fabric.
[0011] Always according to the present invention, said polypropylene-based fabric has a weight comprised between 10 and 150 g/m 2 , preferably between 10 and 100 g/m 2 . It was found that it is possible to advantageously realize polypropylene-based fabrics according to the invention having a weight comprised between 10 and 50 g/m 2 that have all the advantages that will be described below.
[0012] According to the present invention, said polypropylene-based fabric comprises at least a continuous and/or discontinuous yarn and can be worked on ladder-proof, weft insertion, rachel, stitch-bonding, circular knitting, chain-weft looms.
[0013] More particularly, the polypropylene fabric may be based on a continuous mono-filament and/or a multi-filament yarn.
[0014] The polypropylene fabric according to the invention is entirely recyclable, does not affect environment, and provides big advantages with respect to compatibility with other polypropylene components. In particular, a great advantage arises from the fact that the fabric according to the present invention may be ultrasound and/or heat coupled, without having to use glues or resins that would jeopardize its natural non toxicity and recycling possibility. As is known, polypropylene is actually today the fittest product to be used and widespread in many sectors, for instance, to realize fabrics for use in abrasive, car, furniture, clothing, footwear, electronic, geotextile, and in particular, personal care sectors.
[0015] The so realized polypropylene fabric keeps unaltered the economic characteristics of the starting product employed, and conquers a market space previously non accessible because of the high working costs of the processes according to the known art. The advantages obtained from a low cost polypropylene fabric are numberless, and only some of them will be stressed hereunder:
as polypropylene is a 100% recyclable product, the products that can be realized have no ecological and environmental impact at all and may be advantageously employed in many applications, as for instance the personal care sector; polypropylene is a product having high hydrophobia characteristics and is therefore suitable for all applications wherein avoiding the formation of mildew, the proliferation of micro-organisms and bacteria of various type is of the essential. In particular, polypropylene is suitable for use in personal care field wherein its marked hydrophobia, together with its entire recycling possibility and tendential non toxicity, cause it to be very interesting and compatible for subsequent operations; polypropylene is a low melting point product and therefore suitable for all types of ultrasound and/or heat coupling, without having to use resins and glues; besides, with respect to some synthetic products of the known art, polypropylene is characterized by a specific weight lower by about ⅓ compared, for instance, to polyamide, and therefore, the diameter of the yarn being equal, the product realized with polypropylene is much lighter and has a lower yarn count with respect to a like product made from polyamide.
[0020] Therefore, according to the present invention, it is possible to realize a polypropylene fabric having a yarn count lower than or equal to 150 deniers, that is advantageous from the economic point of view and that is therefore of commercial interest.
[0021] According to the present invention, it is possible to realize fabrics having various characteristics. In particular, it is possible to utilize a continuous mono-filament or multi-filament yarn from polypropylene, and to obtain a fabric of the so-called terry type, or it is possible to realize a fabric of the raised type, using for the weaving two-, three-, four-comb looms (multi-bar) of the ladder-proof type. In this case, if one starts from a 100% polypropylene yarn, 100% recyclable fabrics are obtained that show many advantages, especially if they can be produced and marketed to'costs contained and competitive with respect to equivalent fabrics realized from non recyclable material. Always according to the present invention, it is possible to realize a fabric wherein the continuous (mono-filament and/or multi-filament) polypropylene yarn is meshed with a variable percentage of discontinuous polypropylene yarn. Also in this case, the fabric that is obtained, being entirely made from polypropylene, is 100% recyclable and shows the aforesaid advantages.
[0022] Further, according to the invention, it is possible to realize a fabric that comprises a variable percentage of continuous (mono-filament and/or multi-filament) polypropylene yarn associated to a variable percentage of yarn compatible but different from polypropylene. In this case, and depending on the material utilized, the fabric obtained will be no longer 100% recyclable, but has however other interesting characteristics arising also from the characteristics of the material selected. For instance, the compatible material may be advantageously selected from polyamide and/or polyester.
[0023] By way of non limiting example of the present invention, the attached Figures are described, and in particular:
[0024] FIGS. 1 and 2 show the construction scheme of a polypropylene-based fabric according to the present invention.
[0025] According to said figures, one observes that they show some of the possible constructions realizable according to the present invention. In particular, L 1 , L 2 and L 3 indicate the movement of the various combs operating on the looms employed for the realization of the above described and still other fabrics. For instance, to realize a fabric of the non-raised type, there may be advantageously utilized three-comb looms and therefore all the combinations possible between L 1 , L 2 and L 3 lead to the formation of fabrics having different characteristics but provided all with the advantages previously described. Should one wish to realize a fabric of the raised type, there may be utilized for instance two-comb looms, and as a consequence all the combinations between L 1 and L 2 will be possible. In any case, both types of looms may be utilized for the realization of the above described fabrics.
[0026] Always according to the invention and as said above, the polypropylene yard employed may be of the continuous filament or staple type with a yarn count comprised between NE 16/1 and NE 100/1. Two- or three-combs (multi-bar) knitting or rachel looms may be utilized according to the fabric type to be obtained and also weft insertion, rachel, stitch-bonding, circular knitting, chain-weft looms. The fabric according to the invention may have a fineness equal to or lower than 40.
[0027] Some examples of practical realization of fabrics realized according to the present invention will be now reported by way of non limiting explanation of the present invention.
EXAMPLE 1
[0000] “Raised” Fabric
[0000]
L 1 comb weave 10-12
L 2 comb weave 10-34
EXAMPLE 2
[0000] “Terry” Fabric
[0000]
L 1 comb weave 00-55
L 2 comb weave 10-01
L 3 comb weave 10-43-67-34
EXAMPLE 3
[0000] “Terry” Fabric
[0000]
L 1 comb weave 10-45
L 2 comb weave 10-01
L 3 comb weave 10-34-67-43
[0036] The fabric according to the invention may be submitted to serial raising and cutting operations, according to the intended use thereof. In particular, as said above, the polypropylene-based fabric is advantageously employed for the realization of mechanical fastening systems especially intended for, among other sectors, the personal care sector. These products are of great interest, especially when they are made entirely from polypropylene, and therefore entirely recyclable, coupleable by ultrasounds and/or heat, without having to use glues/resins that jeopardize the natural non-toxicity and recycling possibility of said products. | A fabric based on raw or pulp-colored polypropylene intended in particular for use as a “mechanical fastener” of the hook and loop type and utilization of said fabric in health and personal care sector. | Summarize the key points of the given patent document. | [
"OBJECT OF THE INVENTION [0001] The present invention relates to a fabric from polypropylene, either raw or pulp-colored, intended in particular for the mechanical fastening of the hook and loop type, and use thereof in several sectors and in particular in the personal care one.",
"KNOWN ART [0002] As is known, polymers of synthetic origin that are especially utilized in the production of yarns and therefore of fabrics suitable for the most different uses, comprise, for instance, polyamide, polyester and polypropylene.",
"These polymers are treated according to traditional techniques and then utilised, either alone or coupled with each other or to other fabrics also, for instance, of natural origin, for the realization of various kinds of fabrics intended for the most different sectors, from sports- and casual clothing up to the industrial, health and personal care sectors, cars, shoes, furnishings, abrasive articles, and the like.",
"Polypropylene has always captured a great attention because of two main reasons: first of all, it is rather “economical”",
"with respect to other polymers, for instance the aforementioned ones, and besides it is entirely recyclable and non toxic, allowing therefore to realize products having a very reduced impact on environment.",
"[0003] There are at present on the market polypropylene yarns having a yarn count in excess of 70 deniers which have however a limited application field and are used for the realization of products belonging to very limited sectors.",
"[0004] The process commonly utilized today for the realization of polypropylene yarns requires many distinct steps that involve such a cost of manpower as to render the obtained product very expensive, canceling out therefore the advantage of the low cost of the starting products.",
"[0005] One of the main problem arises from the fact that the processes for the realization of polypropylene yarns are very complex, as they comprise many separate working steps, and are often very long, causing thereby the production of polypropylene yarns to be very expensive.",
"In practice, even though the raw material (polymer/fiber) is rather advantageous from the economic point of view, process difficulties and working times render the spun and finished product very expensive and not convenient from the commercial point of view.",
"OBJECTS OF THE INVENTION [0006] Object of the present invention is to provide polypropylene fabrics intended, for instance, for mechanical fastening systems of the hook and loop type, and that are applicable to products of different fields, and in particular the health and personal care field, being essentially non toxic and entirely recyclable.",
"[0007] Another object of the present invention is to provide a polypropylene fabric having a low count of yarns and weight, such as not to loose the economic advantages ensuing from polypropylene low starting cost.",
"[0008] A further object of the present invention is to provide a fastening system of the hook and loop type realized with a polypropylene fabric coupleable by heat and ultrasounds and needing no glues/resins that jeopardize the natural non toxicity and recyclable nature of said product.",
"[0009] Still a further object of the invention is to provide a process for the preparation of a fabric from polypropylene that involves only a few steps, that is rapid and that supplies a product advantageous from the economic point of view.",
"DESCRIPTION [0010] These and still further objects and related advantages that will be better stressed by the following description are achieved by a polypropylene-based fabric having a weight comprised between 10 and 300 g/m 2 , suitable to engage with hook elements of another fabric/component, and made up by yarns that come in the form of needle loops (eyelets), that comprise at least a base yarn and at least a knitted fabric that protrudes towards the outside of at least a side of said fabric.",
"[0011] Always according to the present invention, said polypropylene-based fabric has a weight comprised between 10 and 150 g/m 2 , preferably between 10 and 100 g/m 2 .",
"It was found that it is possible to advantageously realize polypropylene-based fabrics according to the invention having a weight comprised between 10 and 50 g/m 2 that have all the advantages that will be described below.",
"[0012] According to the present invention, said polypropylene-based fabric comprises at least a continuous and/or discontinuous yarn and can be worked on ladder-proof, weft insertion, rachel, stitch-bonding, circular knitting, chain-weft looms.",
"[0013] More particularly, the polypropylene fabric may be based on a continuous mono-filament and/or a multi-filament yarn.",
"[0014] The polypropylene fabric according to the invention is entirely recyclable, does not affect environment, and provides big advantages with respect to compatibility with other polypropylene components.",
"In particular, a great advantage arises from the fact that the fabric according to the present invention may be ultrasound and/or heat coupled, without having to use glues or resins that would jeopardize its natural non toxicity and recycling possibility.",
"As is known, polypropylene is actually today the fittest product to be used and widespread in many sectors, for instance, to realize fabrics for use in abrasive, car, furniture, clothing, footwear, electronic, geotextile, and in particular, personal care sectors.",
"[0015] The so realized polypropylene fabric keeps unaltered the economic characteristics of the starting product employed, and conquers a market space previously non accessible because of the high working costs of the processes according to the known art.",
"The advantages obtained from a low cost polypropylene fabric are numberless, and only some of them will be stressed hereunder: as polypropylene is a 100% recyclable product, the products that can be realized have no ecological and environmental impact at all and may be advantageously employed in many applications, as for instance the personal care sector;",
"polypropylene is a product having high hydrophobia characteristics and is therefore suitable for all applications wherein avoiding the formation of mildew, the proliferation of micro-organisms and bacteria of various type is of the essential.",
"In particular, polypropylene is suitable for use in personal care field wherein its marked hydrophobia, together with its entire recycling possibility and tendential non toxicity, cause it to be very interesting and compatible for subsequent operations;",
"polypropylene is a low melting point product and therefore suitable for all types of ultrasound and/or heat coupling, without having to use resins and glues;",
"besides, with respect to some synthetic products of the known art, polypropylene is characterized by a specific weight lower by about ⅓ compared, for instance, to polyamide, and therefore, the diameter of the yarn being equal, the product realized with polypropylene is much lighter and has a lower yarn count with respect to a like product made from polyamide.",
"[0020] Therefore, according to the present invention, it is possible to realize a polypropylene fabric having a yarn count lower than or equal to 150 deniers, that is advantageous from the economic point of view and that is therefore of commercial interest.",
"[0021] According to the present invention, it is possible to realize fabrics having various characteristics.",
"In particular, it is possible to utilize a continuous mono-filament or multi-filament yarn from polypropylene, and to obtain a fabric of the so-called terry type, or it is possible to realize a fabric of the raised type, using for the weaving two-, three-, four-comb looms (multi-bar) of the ladder-proof type.",
"In this case, if one starts from a 100% polypropylene yarn, 100% recyclable fabrics are obtained that show many advantages, especially if they can be produced and marketed to'costs contained and competitive with respect to equivalent fabrics realized from non recyclable material.",
"Always according to the present invention, it is possible to realize a fabric wherein the continuous (mono-filament and/or multi-filament) polypropylene yarn is meshed with a variable percentage of discontinuous polypropylene yarn.",
"Also in this case, the fabric that is obtained, being entirely made from polypropylene, is 100% recyclable and shows the aforesaid advantages.",
"[0022] Further, according to the invention, it is possible to realize a fabric that comprises a variable percentage of continuous (mono-filament and/or multi-filament) polypropylene yarn associated to a variable percentage of yarn compatible but different from polypropylene.",
"In this case, and depending on the material utilized, the fabric obtained will be no longer 100% recyclable, but has however other interesting characteristics arising also from the characteristics of the material selected.",
"For instance, the compatible material may be advantageously selected from polyamide and/or polyester.",
"[0023] By way of non limiting example of the present invention, the attached Figures are described, and in particular: [0024] FIGS. 1 and 2 show the construction scheme of a polypropylene-based fabric according to the present invention.",
"[0025] According to said figures, one observes that they show some of the possible constructions realizable according to the present invention.",
"In particular, L 1 , L 2 and L 3 indicate the movement of the various combs operating on the looms employed for the realization of the above described and still other fabrics.",
"For instance, to realize a fabric of the non-raised type, there may be advantageously utilized three-comb looms and therefore all the combinations possible between L 1 , L 2 and L 3 lead to the formation of fabrics having different characteristics but provided all with the advantages previously described.",
"Should one wish to realize a fabric of the raised type, there may be utilized for instance two-comb looms, and as a consequence all the combinations between L 1 and L 2 will be possible.",
"In any case, both types of looms may be utilized for the realization of the above described fabrics.",
"[0026] Always according to the invention and as said above, the polypropylene yard employed may be of the continuous filament or staple type with a yarn count comprised between NE 16/1 and NE 100/1.",
"Two- or three-combs (multi-bar) knitting or rachel looms may be utilized according to the fabric type to be obtained and also weft insertion, rachel, stitch-bonding, circular knitting, chain-weft looms.",
"The fabric according to the invention may have a fineness equal to or lower than 40.",
"[0027] Some examples of practical realization of fabrics realized according to the present invention will be now reported by way of non limiting explanation of the present invention.",
"EXAMPLE 1 [0000] “Raised”",
"Fabric [0000] L 1 comb weave 10-12 L 2 comb weave 10-34 EXAMPLE 2 [0000] “Terry”",
"Fabric [0000] L 1 comb weave 00-55 L 2 comb weave 10-01 L 3 comb weave 10-43-67-34 EXAMPLE 3 [0000] “Terry”",
"Fabric [0000] L 1 comb weave 10-45 L 2 comb weave 10-01 L 3 comb weave 10-34-67-43 [0036] The fabric according to the invention may be submitted to serial raising and cutting operations, according to the intended use thereof.",
"In particular, as said above, the polypropylene-based fabric is advantageously employed for the realization of mechanical fastening systems especially intended for, among other sectors, the personal care sector.",
"These products are of great interest, especially when they are made entirely from polypropylene, and therefore entirely recyclable, coupleable by ultrasounds and/or heat, without having to use glues/resins that jeopardize the natural non-toxicity and recycling possibility of said products."
] |
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
This invention relates to relatively large-scale irrigation systems used to water turf and other planted areas along freeways, and at golf courses, cemetaries, parks, and the like. These areas are preferably watered at night for more effective irrigation, and to avoid interference with normal daytime usage.
Automatic control systems are commercially available for unattended actuation of such irrigation systems on a preselected and adjustable time cycle appropriate to weather conditions and the particular grass or landscaping material being watered. These control systems are helpful in reducing labor expense, and in providing the proper amount of water to each irrigated area during night hours.
Two problems are recognized in irrigation systems of the type just described. The first problem involves line drainage through the lower sprinkler heads when the main control valve is shut off and the heads are installed on sloping terrain. In a typical irrigation system, a substantial amount of water is in the lines downstream of the control valve. This water dribbles out of the lower sprinkler heads by gravity flow, causing flooding of the turf or planted areas adjacent these heads. This flooding may retard or destroy plant growth, and can result in the area around the heads becoming muddy and temporarily unusable. Drainage of the lines can further result in destructive water-hammer conditions if the main supply is subsequently opened to permit high-velocity flow into the empty downstream lines. Soil and clogging debris may also be drawn into higher-level heads as a result of reduced pressure in the lines during drainage flow.
A second and more serious problem arises when a sprinkler head is damaged or removed by vandals, resulting in uncontrolled flow and severe flooding of the adjacent area upon automatic actuation of a watering cycle. Water flow rate through an open-ended pipe is much higher than when the pipe is terminated in a sprinkler head due to the flow impedance of and significant pressure drop across the head. The irrigation system is designed on the basis of known line lengths and sprinkler-head characteristics to deliver a particular amount of water to the sprinkled area for a known water-main pressure and operating time. This controlled water distribution is destroyed when one or more heads are damaged or removed, with serious water loss and flooding being the result.
This problem is particularly acute in irrigation systems for watering sloping planted areas along the sides of freeways and major highways. It is not uncommon for an out-of-control vehicle to leave the road and tear one or more sprinkler heads from the supporting water lines. The sprinkler heads are relatively expensive, and have also frequently been stolen by vandals.
Either damage or removal of a head results in an open-ended line pouring out large amounts of water which floods over the roadway if the failure is not promptly detected and the control valve closed. The potential for vehicle accidents on a suddenly flooded section of roadway is so high that many municipalities require constant surveillance by a workman whenever the irrigation system is operated. This supervision involves additional labor expense at premium rates which usually must be paid for work performed through the night.
The dual-function valve of this invention solves these problems by preventing dribbling flow through the lowermost sprinkler after shutoff of the main control valve, and by sensing and terminating excessive flow caused by a damaged or missing sprinkler head. Drainage-preventing check valves are known for performing the first of these functions, and check valves have previously been used in pneumatic equipment to prevent whipping flexible lines in high-pressure air systems. The new valve described below, however, solves both problems in a simple and economical assembly which is well adapted for use in large-scale irrigation systems.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
Briefly stated, this invention relates to a dual-function valve having a valve body with a passage therethrough, the passage having inlet and outlet ends adapted for connection to upstream and downstream fluid conduits respectively. The body has a means such as an inwardly extending annular portion in the passage to define first and second valve seats.
A closure means is disposed within the passage to be movable between first and second positions, and the closure means has first and second closure surfaces configured to seal against the first and second seats respectively. The first closure surface seals against the first seat with the second closure surface being separated from the second seat in the first closure-means position. The second closure surface seals against the second seat with the first closure surface separated from the first seat when the closure means is in the second position.
A resilient means is disposed between the body and closure means to urge the closure means toward the first position and away from the second position whereby the valve is closed by the first seat and closure surface until upstream fluid pressure is sufficient to move the closure means to a position intermediate and first and second positions for normal fluid flow through the valve. Excessive fluid flow through the valve, as may result with a broken sprinkler head, will drive the closure means to the second position so the valve is closed by the second seat and closure surface to terminate further flow.
Preferably, the closure means has first and second resilient closure members forming the closure surfaces, and a mounting means for supporting the closure members in spaced-apart positions. The mounting means is preferably an elongated member such as a screw, the closure members being slipped over the screw and maintained in spaced-apart positions by a spacer. A nut threaded onto the screw clamps the closure members and spacer in fixed positions. The resilient means is preferably a coil spring having a tapered portion which reduces in diameter to contact a second nut threaded on the elongated member to adjust the compression of the spring.
The dual-function valve is thus effectively a double-acting check valve which terminates flow whenever the fluid flow rate is above or below a predetermined range of normal flow.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG. 1 is a sectional elevation of a dual-function valve assembly according to the invention and shown in a drainage-blocking position;
FIG. 2 is a partial view similar to FIG. 1, but showing the valve assembly in a fully open position;
FIG. 3 is a view similar to FIG. 2, but showing the valve assembly in a position for blocking excessive flow, and with an alternative closure-member positioning arrangement;
FIG. 4 is a section on line 4--4 of FIG. 3;
FIG. 5 is a schematic illustration of an irrigation system; and
FIG. 6 is a perspective view of a typical sprinkler head in combination with the valve assembly.
DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
A dual-function valve assembly 10 according to the invention is shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, and includes a hollow tubular housing 11 having a passage 12 therethrough. Passage 12 defines a threaded inlet end 14 and a threaded outlet end 15, the threads being configured to mate with conventional male pipe threads on plastic or metal water supply and delivery lines (not shown). Preferably, a central portion of the housing is formed with an octagonal outer surface 16 (best seen in FIG. 6) to accommodate a wrench during installation. In a typical configuration, housing 11 is about 3 to 31/2 inches long with an outside diameter of about 13/8 inch, and is internally threaded to receive the pipe being used which typically has a diameter of one-half, three-quarters, or one inch, depending on the gallonage requirements of the system.
The generally cylindrical bore of passage 12 between the tapered threaded sections is interrupted by an annular, inwardly extending portion 17. Beveled side surfaces of portion 17 facing the outlet and inlet ends of the housing respectively, define shoulders forming a first valve seat 18 and a second valve seat 19. A central opening 20 extends through portion 17. Housing 11, including portion 17, is preferably integrally molded from a plastic material such as polyvinyl chloride.
A dual-function closure means for valve assembly 10 is provided by a pair of resilient washer-shaped first and second closure members 22 and 23 which are preferably neoprene synthetic rubber. The closure members are mounted adjacent the head end of a stainless-steel machine screw 24, and are positioned on opposite sides of inwardly extending portion 17 during assembly. The closure members are spaced apart by a tubular spacer 25 and a pair of washers 26 which make a slip fit over the machine screw.
The closure members and tubular spacer are clamped in place by a nut 28 which is tightened against a flat washer 29 bearing against the side of second closure member 23 which faces inlet end 14 of the housing. A similar flat washer 30 is provided between the head of machine screw 24 and the outer face of first closure member 22.
A coil spring 32 provides a resilient means controlling movement of the closure assembly within the housing at different fluid-flow rates. In a typical form, spring 32 has about six turns, the first three of which are of constant diameter to enable free movement of second closure member 23 within this portion of the spring. Both ends of the spring are ground flat, and the inner or large-diameter end of the spring seats against an annular shoulder 34 formed at the periphery of second valve seat 19. The outer end of the spring tapers inwardly to seat against a nut 35 threaded onto machine screw 24.
Preferably, the metal components of valve assembly 10 are made of a corrosion-resistant material such as 300-series stainless steel. Nuts 28 and 35 may be of the self-locking aircraft type, or may be conventional hex nuts which are locked in place by an epoxy cement during assembly.
As shown in FIG. 1, nut 35 is threaded onto screw 24 sufficiently to compress coil spring 32, thereby urging first closure member 22 into sealing engagement with valve seat 18. FIG. 1 thus shows the position of the components in a zero-flow condition when the main irrigation control valve has been shut off. The exact position of nut 35 (and thus the restoring force exerted by spring 32) is selected to enable the valve to open with an upstream head of about 12 to 20 feet, depending upon the installation requirements.
The length of spacer 25 determines the amount of compression of coil spring 32 which is permitted before second closure member 23 comes into sealing engagement with second valve seat 19 to close the valve assembly in an excess-flow condition. In most installations, a simple fixed-length spacer is satisfactory, and the length is chosen to provide excess-flow closure at about seven gallons-per-minute flow in a one-half inch line, about 121/2 gpm flow in a three-quarter inch line, and about 25 gpm flow in a one-inch line.
If adjustability of the excess-flow cutoff point is desired, an alternative arrangement as shown in FIG. 3 can be used. In this configuration, spacer 25 is replaced by a nut 37 bearing against washer 26 on the inner face of second closure member 23. With this arrangement, the relative spacing of the two closure members can be varied by adjusting the position of nuts 35 and 37 to provide the desired excess-flow cutoff point.
A typical irrigation system is shown in schematic form in FIG. 5, and includes a water supply line 40 connected to a main control valve 41 which in turn feeds a sprinkler conduit 42 having a plurality of sprinklers 43 coupled thereto. A valve assembly 10 according to the invention is connected between each sprinkler 43 and conduit 42.
A typical installation is shown in greater detail in FIG. 6 where a "T" fitting 45 is provided in sprinkler conduit 42 for each sprinkler head. Valve assembly 10 is horizontally positioned, and threaded onto fitting 45. An elbow 46 is threaded into the downstream end of the valve assembly, and a riser 47 extends upwardly from the elbow to terminate in a sprinkler head 48. This installation arrangement is desirable in that an impact which snaps off the sprinkler head will not interfere with the flow-terminating function of the valve assembly, and the assembly is also positioned underground where it will not be disturbed by vandals.
When the irrigation system is operating at normal flow rates, the components of valve assembly 10 are in the position shown in FIG. 2 (in which coil spring 32 is omitted for clarity). Upstream water pressure in the valve assembly is sufficient to move machine screw 24 and the two closure members carried thereon to the left (as seen in FIG. 2) against the restoring force of spring 32 to unseat the first closure member and permit normal flow through the valve.
When the irrigation cycle is complete and control valve 41 is turned off to terminate further flow, spring 32 forces the first closure member back into engagement with seat 18 to terminate further flow to the associated sprinkler. As explained above, the advantage of this arrangement is that drainage of the upper portions of a sloping line through the downstream sprinkler heads is prevented, avoiding water-hammer problems during the start of the next irrigation cycle, and preventing damaging pooling of water around the lower sprinkler heads in the system.
The excess-flow shutoff condition of the valve assembly is shown in FIG. 3 (spring 32 again being omitted for clarity). This conditions arises when the line downstream of the valve assembly has been broken, or the sprinkler head has been removed or damaged, resulting in a large increase in flow rate through the associated lines. This increased flow rate causes a higher differential pressure across the closure members, causing screw 24 and the associated closure members to move to the left against the restoring force of spring 32 until second closure member 23 is seated against seat 19 to terminate further flow. The valve assembly remains in this condition throughout the remainder of the sprinkling cycle to prevent uncontrolled flow through the broken line or missing sprinkler head. When the main control valve is closed, the valve closure members return to the position shown in FIG. 1 as line pressure bleeds off through the other sprinklers.
The tapered construction of spring 32 enables the spring to act as a coarse screen preventing passage of gravel or other large particulates in the water stream which might otherwise clog the valve or prevent proper seating of the closure members. The tapered construction also provides a self-centering action which maintains the closure members in correct alignment with the respective seats.
The described construction is preferred for the valve assembly as it is simple and economical, and can be rapidly assembled and adjusted. Other constructions are possible, however, and are considered within the scope of the invention. For example, housing 11 may be made in two pieces, each piece having an inwardly extending portion defining one of the valve seats. A single closure member can then be positioned between the inwardly extending portions, and the two housing halves threaded together to capture the closure member between the seats. In this construction, a pair of springs can be used on opposite sides of the closure member to set the two operating points of the valve assembly. Alternatively, the single closure member can be replaced by a pair of unconnected closure members, each of which is actuated by its own spring. It has been found, however, that the preferred form of the valve assembly described in detail above is adequate for all normal applications.
There has been described a dual-function valve assembly for preventing both drainage flow and excess flow through sprinkler lines in an irrigation system. The assembly is made of corrosion-resistant materials, and is easily installed in either new or existing irrigation systems. Use of the assembly promotes efficient management of irrigation water, and prevents potentially hazardous flooding of adjacent areas in the event of damage to or loss of a sprinkler head. | A dual-function valve assembly for an irrigation system typically having a plurality of sprinkler heads disposed at different elevations downstream from a control valve. A spring-loaded check valve prevents drainage of the sprinkler lines through the lower heads when the control valve is closed. A second valve in the assembly closes to prevent excessive flow if a sprinkler head is damaged or removed. The valve assembly is especially useful in unattended, automatically actuated irrigation systems. | Identify the most important claim in the given context and summarize it | [
"BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION This invention relates to relatively large-scale irrigation systems used to water turf and other planted areas along freeways, and at golf courses, cemetaries, parks, and the like.",
"These areas are preferably watered at night for more effective irrigation, and to avoid interference with normal daytime usage.",
"Automatic control systems are commercially available for unattended actuation of such irrigation systems on a preselected and adjustable time cycle appropriate to weather conditions and the particular grass or landscaping material being watered.",
"These control systems are helpful in reducing labor expense, and in providing the proper amount of water to each irrigated area during night hours.",
"Two problems are recognized in irrigation systems of the type just described.",
"The first problem involves line drainage through the lower sprinkler heads when the main control valve is shut off and the heads are installed on sloping terrain.",
"In a typical irrigation system, a substantial amount of water is in the lines downstream of the control valve.",
"This water dribbles out of the lower sprinkler heads by gravity flow, causing flooding of the turf or planted areas adjacent these heads.",
"This flooding may retard or destroy plant growth, and can result in the area around the heads becoming muddy and temporarily unusable.",
"Drainage of the lines can further result in destructive water-hammer conditions if the main supply is subsequently opened to permit high-velocity flow into the empty downstream lines.",
"Soil and clogging debris may also be drawn into higher-level heads as a result of reduced pressure in the lines during drainage flow.",
"A second and more serious problem arises when a sprinkler head is damaged or removed by vandals, resulting in uncontrolled flow and severe flooding of the adjacent area upon automatic actuation of a watering cycle.",
"Water flow rate through an open-ended pipe is much higher than when the pipe is terminated in a sprinkler head due to the flow impedance of and significant pressure drop across the head.",
"The irrigation system is designed on the basis of known line lengths and sprinkler-head characteristics to deliver a particular amount of water to the sprinkled area for a known water-main pressure and operating time.",
"This controlled water distribution is destroyed when one or more heads are damaged or removed, with serious water loss and flooding being the result.",
"This problem is particularly acute in irrigation systems for watering sloping planted areas along the sides of freeways and major highways.",
"It is not uncommon for an out-of-control vehicle to leave the road and tear one or more sprinkler heads from the supporting water lines.",
"The sprinkler heads are relatively expensive, and have also frequently been stolen by vandals.",
"Either damage or removal of a head results in an open-ended line pouring out large amounts of water which floods over the roadway if the failure is not promptly detected and the control valve closed.",
"The potential for vehicle accidents on a suddenly flooded section of roadway is so high that many municipalities require constant surveillance by a workman whenever the irrigation system is operated.",
"This supervision involves additional labor expense at premium rates which usually must be paid for work performed through the night.",
"The dual-function valve of this invention solves these problems by preventing dribbling flow through the lowermost sprinkler after shutoff of the main control valve, and by sensing and terminating excessive flow caused by a damaged or missing sprinkler head.",
"Drainage-preventing check valves are known for performing the first of these functions, and check valves have previously been used in pneumatic equipment to prevent whipping flexible lines in high-pressure air systems.",
"The new valve described below, however, solves both problems in a simple and economical assembly which is well adapted for use in large-scale irrigation systems.",
"SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Briefly stated, this invention relates to a dual-function valve having a valve body with a passage therethrough, the passage having inlet and outlet ends adapted for connection to upstream and downstream fluid conduits respectively.",
"The body has a means such as an inwardly extending annular portion in the passage to define first and second valve seats.",
"A closure means is disposed within the passage to be movable between first and second positions, and the closure means has first and second closure surfaces configured to seal against the first and second seats respectively.",
"The first closure surface seals against the first seat with the second closure surface being separated from the second seat in the first closure-means position.",
"The second closure surface seals against the second seat with the first closure surface separated from the first seat when the closure means is in the second position.",
"A resilient means is disposed between the body and closure means to urge the closure means toward the first position and away from the second position whereby the valve is closed by the first seat and closure surface until upstream fluid pressure is sufficient to move the closure means to a position intermediate and first and second positions for normal fluid flow through the valve.",
"Excessive fluid flow through the valve, as may result with a broken sprinkler head, will drive the closure means to the second position so the valve is closed by the second seat and closure surface to terminate further flow.",
"Preferably, the closure means has first and second resilient closure members forming the closure surfaces, and a mounting means for supporting the closure members in spaced-apart positions.",
"The mounting means is preferably an elongated member such as a screw, the closure members being slipped over the screw and maintained in spaced-apart positions by a spacer.",
"A nut threaded onto the screw clamps the closure members and spacer in fixed positions.",
"The resilient means is preferably a coil spring having a tapered portion which reduces in diameter to contact a second nut threaded on the elongated member to adjust the compression of the spring.",
"The dual-function valve is thus effectively a double-acting check valve which terminates flow whenever the fluid flow rate is above or below a predetermined range of normal flow.",
"BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a sectional elevation of a dual-function valve assembly according to the invention and shown in a drainage-blocking position;",
"FIG. 2 is a partial view similar to FIG. 1, but showing the valve assembly in a fully open position;",
"FIG. 3 is a view similar to FIG. 2, but showing the valve assembly in a position for blocking excessive flow, and with an alternative closure-member positioning arrangement;",
"FIG. 4 is a section on line 4--4 of FIG. 3;",
"FIG. 5 is a schematic illustration of an irrigation system;",
"and FIG. 6 is a perspective view of a typical sprinkler head in combination with the valve assembly.",
"DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT A dual-function valve assembly 10 according to the invention is shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, and includes a hollow tubular housing 11 having a passage 12 therethrough.",
"Passage 12 defines a threaded inlet end 14 and a threaded outlet end 15, the threads being configured to mate with conventional male pipe threads on plastic or metal water supply and delivery lines (not shown).",
"Preferably, a central portion of the housing is formed with an octagonal outer surface 16 (best seen in FIG. 6) to accommodate a wrench during installation.",
"In a typical configuration, housing 11 is about 3 to 31/2 inches long with an outside diameter of about 13/8 inch, and is internally threaded to receive the pipe being used which typically has a diameter of one-half, three-quarters, or one inch, depending on the gallonage requirements of the system.",
"The generally cylindrical bore of passage 12 between the tapered threaded sections is interrupted by an annular, inwardly extending portion 17.",
"Beveled side surfaces of portion 17 facing the outlet and inlet ends of the housing respectively, define shoulders forming a first valve seat 18 and a second valve seat 19.",
"A central opening 20 extends through portion 17.",
"Housing 11, including portion 17, is preferably integrally molded from a plastic material such as polyvinyl chloride.",
"A dual-function closure means for valve assembly 10 is provided by a pair of resilient washer-shaped first and second closure members 22 and 23 which are preferably neoprene synthetic rubber.",
"The closure members are mounted adjacent the head end of a stainless-steel machine screw 24, and are positioned on opposite sides of inwardly extending portion 17 during assembly.",
"The closure members are spaced apart by a tubular spacer 25 and a pair of washers 26 which make a slip fit over the machine screw.",
"The closure members and tubular spacer are clamped in place by a nut 28 which is tightened against a flat washer 29 bearing against the side of second closure member 23 which faces inlet end 14 of the housing.",
"A similar flat washer 30 is provided between the head of machine screw 24 and the outer face of first closure member 22.",
"A coil spring 32 provides a resilient means controlling movement of the closure assembly within the housing at different fluid-flow rates.",
"In a typical form, spring 32 has about six turns, the first three of which are of constant diameter to enable free movement of second closure member 23 within this portion of the spring.",
"Both ends of the spring are ground flat, and the inner or large-diameter end of the spring seats against an annular shoulder 34 formed at the periphery of second valve seat 19.",
"The outer end of the spring tapers inwardly to seat against a nut 35 threaded onto machine screw 24.",
"Preferably, the metal components of valve assembly 10 are made of a corrosion-resistant material such as 300-series stainless steel.",
"Nuts 28 and 35 may be of the self-locking aircraft type, or may be conventional hex nuts which are locked in place by an epoxy cement during assembly.",
"As shown in FIG. 1, nut 35 is threaded onto screw 24 sufficiently to compress coil spring 32, thereby urging first closure member 22 into sealing engagement with valve seat 18.",
"FIG. 1 thus shows the position of the components in a zero-flow condition when the main irrigation control valve has been shut off.",
"The exact position of nut 35 (and thus the restoring force exerted by spring 32) is selected to enable the valve to open with an upstream head of about 12 to 20 feet, depending upon the installation requirements.",
"The length of spacer 25 determines the amount of compression of coil spring 32 which is permitted before second closure member 23 comes into sealing engagement with second valve seat 19 to close the valve assembly in an excess-flow condition.",
"In most installations, a simple fixed-length spacer is satisfactory, and the length is chosen to provide excess-flow closure at about seven gallons-per-minute flow in a one-half inch line, about 121/2 gpm flow in a three-quarter inch line, and about 25 gpm flow in a one-inch line.",
"If adjustability of the excess-flow cutoff point is desired, an alternative arrangement as shown in FIG. 3 can be used.",
"In this configuration, spacer 25 is replaced by a nut 37 bearing against washer 26 on the inner face of second closure member 23.",
"With this arrangement, the relative spacing of the two closure members can be varied by adjusting the position of nuts 35 and 37 to provide the desired excess-flow cutoff point.",
"A typical irrigation system is shown in schematic form in FIG. 5, and includes a water supply line 40 connected to a main control valve 41 which in turn feeds a sprinkler conduit 42 having a plurality of sprinklers 43 coupled thereto.",
"A valve assembly 10 according to the invention is connected between each sprinkler 43 and conduit 42.",
"A typical installation is shown in greater detail in FIG. 6 where a "T"",
"fitting 45 is provided in sprinkler conduit 42 for each sprinkler head.",
"Valve assembly 10 is horizontally positioned, and threaded onto fitting 45.",
"An elbow 46 is threaded into the downstream end of the valve assembly, and a riser 47 extends upwardly from the elbow to terminate in a sprinkler head 48.",
"This installation arrangement is desirable in that an impact which snaps off the sprinkler head will not interfere with the flow-terminating function of the valve assembly, and the assembly is also positioned underground where it will not be disturbed by vandals.",
"When the irrigation system is operating at normal flow rates, the components of valve assembly 10 are in the position shown in FIG. 2 (in which coil spring 32 is omitted for clarity).",
"Upstream water pressure in the valve assembly is sufficient to move machine screw 24 and the two closure members carried thereon to the left (as seen in FIG. 2) against the restoring force of spring 32 to unseat the first closure member and permit normal flow through the valve.",
"When the irrigation cycle is complete and control valve 41 is turned off to terminate further flow, spring 32 forces the first closure member back into engagement with seat 18 to terminate further flow to the associated sprinkler.",
"As explained above, the advantage of this arrangement is that drainage of the upper portions of a sloping line through the downstream sprinkler heads is prevented, avoiding water-hammer problems during the start of the next irrigation cycle, and preventing damaging pooling of water around the lower sprinkler heads in the system.",
"The excess-flow shutoff condition of the valve assembly is shown in FIG. 3 (spring 32 again being omitted for clarity).",
"This conditions arises when the line downstream of the valve assembly has been broken, or the sprinkler head has been removed or damaged, resulting in a large increase in flow rate through the associated lines.",
"This increased flow rate causes a higher differential pressure across the closure members, causing screw 24 and the associated closure members to move to the left against the restoring force of spring 32 until second closure member 23 is seated against seat 19 to terminate further flow.",
"The valve assembly remains in this condition throughout the remainder of the sprinkling cycle to prevent uncontrolled flow through the broken line or missing sprinkler head.",
"When the main control valve is closed, the valve closure members return to the position shown in FIG. 1 as line pressure bleeds off through the other sprinklers.",
"The tapered construction of spring 32 enables the spring to act as a coarse screen preventing passage of gravel or other large particulates in the water stream which might otherwise clog the valve or prevent proper seating of the closure members.",
"The tapered construction also provides a self-centering action which maintains the closure members in correct alignment with the respective seats.",
"The described construction is preferred for the valve assembly as it is simple and economical, and can be rapidly assembled and adjusted.",
"Other constructions are possible, however, and are considered within the scope of the invention.",
"For example, housing 11 may be made in two pieces, each piece having an inwardly extending portion defining one of the valve seats.",
"A single closure member can then be positioned between the inwardly extending portions, and the two housing halves threaded together to capture the closure member between the seats.",
"In this construction, a pair of springs can be used on opposite sides of the closure member to set the two operating points of the valve assembly.",
"Alternatively, the single closure member can be replaced by a pair of unconnected closure members, each of which is actuated by its own spring.",
"It has been found, however, that the preferred form of the valve assembly described in detail above is adequate for all normal applications.",
"There has been described a dual-function valve assembly for preventing both drainage flow and excess flow through sprinkler lines in an irrigation system.",
"The assembly is made of corrosion-resistant materials, and is easily installed in either new or existing irrigation systems.",
"Use of the assembly promotes efficient management of irrigation water, and prevents potentially hazardous flooding of adjacent areas in the event of damage to or loss of a sprinkler head."
] |
PRIORITY OF INVENTION
[0001] This application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 61/166,498 filed 3 Apr. 2009. The entire content of this application is hereby incorporated herein by reference.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0002] International Patent Application Publication Number WO 2008/010921 and International Patent Application Publication Number WO 2008/103949 disclose certain compounds that are reported to be useful to modify the pharmacokinetics of a co-administered drug, e.g. by inhibiting cytochrome P450 monooxygenase. One specific compound identified therein is a compound of the following formula I:
[0000]
[0003] There is currently a need for improved synthetic methods and intermediates that can be used to prepare the compound of formula I and its salts. There is also a need for improved methods for preparing intermediate compounds that can be used to prepare the compound of formula I and its salts. The improved methods and intermediates may reduce the cost, time, and/or the amount of waste associated with the existing methods for preparing the compound of formula I and its salts.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0004] An improved synthetic route for preparing the compound of formula I and its salts has been identified. This improved synthetic route utilizes novel intermediates of formulae IV, V, XIV, XVI, XVII, and XVIII, identified herein below.
[0005] This route reduces the cost, the time, and the amount of waste associated with the preparation of the compound of formula I and its salts.
[0006] Accordingly in one embodiment, the invention provides a compound of formula IV:
[0000]
[0000] wherein R 1 and R 2 are each independently a suitable protecting group; or a salt thereof.
[0007] In another embodiment, the invention provides a compound of formula V:
[0000]
[0000] wherein each R 1 is a suitable protecting group other than tert-butylsulfonyl; or a salt thereof.
[0008] In another embodiment, the invention provides a compound of formula XIV:
[0000]
[0000] wherein R is (C 2 -C 8 )alkyl, or a salt thereof.
[0009] In another embodiment, the invention provides a method for preparing a compound of formula V:
[0000]
[0000] wherein each R 1 is a suitable protecting group other than tert-butylsulfonyl, or a salt thereof, comprising dimerizing a corresponding compound of formula II:
[0000]
[0000] to provide the compound of formula V, or the salt thereof.
[0010] In another embodiment, the invention provides a method for preparing a compound of formula I:
[0000]
[0000] or a salt thereof, wherein a compound of formula V:
[0000]
[0000] wherein R 1 is a suitable protecting group, or a salt thereof is prepared and converted into a compound of formula I, characterized in that the compound of formula V is prepared from a corresponding compound of formula II:
[0000]
[0000] or a salt thereof, by dimerizing the compound of formula II.
[0011] In another embodiment, the invention provides a method for preparing a compound of formula I:
[0000]
[0000] or a salt thereof, wherein a compound of formula IV:
[0000]
[0000] wherein R 1 and R 2 are each independently a suitable protecting group, or a salt thereof is prepared and converted into a compound of formula I, characterized in that the compound of formula IV is prepared from a compound of formula III:
[0000]
[0000] or a salt thereof, by protecting the compound of formula III.
[0012] In another embodiment, the invention provides a method for preparing a compound of formula I:
[0000]
[0000] or a salt thereof, wherein a compound of formula XIV:
[0000]
[0000] wherein R is H or (C 1 -C 8 )alkyl, or a salt thereof is prepared and converted into a compound of formula I, characterized in that the compound of formula XIV or the salt thereof is prepared from a compound of formula XIII:
[0000]
[0000] wherein R is H or (C 1 -C 8 )alkyl or a salt thereof, by displacing the iodide with a suitable morpholine reagent. In a further embodiment of this method of the invention R is (C 2 -C 8 )alkyl in the compound of formula XIII and XIV.
[0013] In another embodiment, the invention provides a compound of formula XVI or XVII:
[0000]
[0000] or a salt thereof.
[0014] In another embodiment, the invention provides a salt of formula XVIII:
[0000]
[0000] wherein Y − is a suitable counterion.
[0015] In another embodiment, the invention provides a method for preparing a compound of formula I:
[0000]
[0000] or a salt thereof, wherein a compound of formula XII:
[0000]
[0000] or a salt thereof is prepared and converted into a compound of formula I, characterized in that the compound of formula XII is prepared from a corresponding compound of formula XVIII:
[0000]
[0000] wherein Y − is a suitable counterion, by treatment with a compound of formula XI:
[0000]
[0000] wherein R 3 is H or a protecting group in the presence of a base and optionally removing R 3 if it is a protecting group to provide the compound of formula XII.
[0016] In another embodiment, the invention provides a method for preparing a compound of formula I:
[0000]
[0000] or a salt thereof, wherein a salt of formula XVIII:
[0000]
[0000] wherein Y − is a suitable counterion is prepared and converted into a compound of formula I, characterized in that the salt of formula XVIII is prepared from a compound of formula XVII:
[0000]
[0000] or a salt thereof by treatment with a methylating agent to provide the salt of formula XVIII.
[0017] In another embodiment, the invention provides a method for preparing a compound of formula I:
[0000]
[0000] or a salt thereof, wherein a compound of formula XVII:
[0000]
[0000] or a salt thereof is prepared and converted into a compound of formula I, characterized in that the compound of formula XVII is prepared from a corresponding compound of formula XVI:
[0000]
[0000] or a salt thereof by treatment with a methylating agent to provide the compound of formula XVII or the salt thereof.
[0018] In another embodiment, the invention provides a method for preparing a compound of formula I:
[0000]
[0000] or a salt thereof, wherein a compound of formula XVI:
[0000]
[0000] or a salt thereof is prepared and converted into a compound of formula I, characterized in that the compound of formula XVI is prepared from a corresponding compound of formula XV:
[0000]
[0000] or a salt thereof by treatment with carbonyldiimidazole in the presence of a base to provide the compound of formula XVI.
[0019] In another embodiment, the invention provides a method (Method A) for preparing a compound of formula I:
[0000]
[0000] or a salt thereof comprising:
[0020] a) dimerizing a corresponding compound of formula II:
[0000]
[0000] wherein R 1 is a suitable protecting group to provide a corresponding compound of formula V:
[0000]
[0000] or a salt thereof;
[0021] b) deprotecting the compound of formula V or the salt thereof to provide a compound of formula VI:
[0000]
[0000] or a salt thereof;
[0022] c) reducing the compound of formula VI or the salt thereof to a compound of formula VII:
[0000]
[0000] or a salt thereof;
[0023] d) converting the compound of formula VII to a corresponding salt by treatment with an acid in an organic solvent;
[0024] e) converting the corresponding salt from d) to a compound of formula IX:
[0000]
[0000] or a salt thereof (e.g. a mineral acid salt such as an HCl salt); and
[0025] f) coupling the compound of formula IX or the salt thereof with a salt of formula X:
[0000]
[0000] wherein M + is a suitable counterion to provide the compound of formula I. In one specific embodiment of the invention a salt of the compound of formula IX (e.g. an HCl salt) can be coupled with a salt of formula X to provide the compound of formula I.
[0026] In another embodiment, Method A can further comprise preparing the compound of formula II by reacting (S)-2-benzylaziridine with a corresponding compound R 1 —X, wherein X is a leaving group (e.g. Cl) to provide the compound of formula II.
[0027] In another embodiment, Method A can further comprise preparing the compound of formula II by:
[0028] a) protecting a compound of formula III:
[0000]
[0000] or a salt thereof to provide a corresponding compound of formula IV:
[0000]
[0000] wherein R 1 and R 2 are each independently a suitable protecting group, or a salt thereof; and
[0029] b) treating the compound of formula IV or the salt thereof with a suitable base to provide the compound of formula II.
[0030] In another embodiment, Method A can further comprise preparing the salt of formula X by:
[0031] a) treating a compound of formula XII:
[0000]
[0000] or a salt thereof with a suitable iodide source in the presence of an alcohol ROH to provide a compound of formula XIII:
[0000]
[0000] wherein R is (C 1 -C 8 )alkyl, or a salt thereof;
[0032] b) treating the compound of formula XIII or the salt thereof with morpholine to provide an ester of formula XIV:
[0000]
[0000] or a salt thereof; and
[0033] c) hydrolyzing the ester of formula XIV to provide the salt of formula X.
[0034] In another embodiment, Method A can further comprise preparing the compound of formula XII or the salt thereof by:
[0035] a) treating L-methionine with an alkylating agent and optionally protecting the resulting amine to provide an amine of formula XI:
[0000]
[0000] wherein R 3 is H or a protecting group, or a salt thereof; and
[0036] b) treating the amine of formula XI or the salt thereof with a compound of formula XIX:
[0000]
[0000] or a salt thereof to provide the compound of formula XII or the salt thereof.
[0037] In another embodiment, Method A can further comprise preparing the compound of formula XII or the salt thereof by:
[0038] a) treating a compound of formula XV:
[0000]
[0000] or a salt thereof with carbonyldiimidazole in the presence of a base to provide a compound of formula XVI:
[0000]
[0000] or a salt thereof;
[0039] b) treating the compound of formula XVI or the salt thereof with a suitable methylating agent in the presence of a base to provide a compound of formula XVII:
[0000]
[0000] or a salt thereof;
[0040] c) methylating the compound of formula XVII or the salt thereof to provide a salt of formula XVIII:
[0000]
[0000] wherein Y − is a suitable counterion; and
[0041] d) treating the salt of formula XVIII with an amine of formula XI:
[0000]
[0000] wherein R 3 is H or a protecting group, or a salt thereof with a suitable base, and deprotecting to remove R 3 if it is a protecting group, to provide the compound of formula XII or the salt thereof.
[0000]
[0042] The invention also provides novel synthetic intermediates described herein as well as methods for preparing such intermediates.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0043] As used herein alkyl, alkoxy, etc. denote both straight and branched groups; but reference to an individual radical such as propyl embraces only the straight chain radical, a branched chain isomer such as isopropyl being specifically referred to. Haloalkyl denotes an alkyl group that is substituted with one or more (e.g. 1, 2, 3, 4, etc.) halo groups. Aryl denotes a phenyl radical or an ortho-fused bicyclic carbocyclic radical having about nine to ten ring atoms in which at least one ring is aromatic.
[0044] Specific values listed below for radicals, substituents, and ranges, are for illustration only; they do not exclude other defined values or other values within defined ranges for the radicals and substituents.
[0045] Specifically, (C 1 -C 8 )alkyl can be methyl, ethyl, propyl, isopropyl, butyl, iso-butyl, sec-butyl, pentyl, 3-pentyl, hexyl, heptyl, or octyl; (C 1 -C 8 )alkoxy can be methoxy, ethoxy, propoxy, isopropoxy, butoxy, iso-butoxy, sec-butoxy, pentoxy, hexyloxy, heptyloxy, or octyloxy; halo(C 1 -C 8 )alkyl can be fluoromethyl, difluoromethyl, and trifluoromethyl; aryl-(C 1 -C 8 )alkoxy can be benzyloxy; and aryl can be phenyl, indenyl, or naphthyl.
[0046] A specific value for R 1 is an N,N-disubstituted aminosulfonyl group.
[0047] Another specific value for R 1 is an N,N-dialkyl aminosulfonyl group.
[0048] Another specific value for R 1 is —S(═O) 2 NR a R b , —S(═O) 2 R c , —C(═O)R c , or —C(═O)NR a R b wherein each of R a and R b is independently (C 1 -C 8 )alkyl; or R a and R b together with the nitrogen to which they are attached form a 3 or 4 membered saturated ring or a 5, 6, or 7 membered saturated or partially unsaturated ring comprising 1 or 2 heteroatoms (e.g. aziridine, azetidine, piperidine, morpholine, thiomorpholine, pyrrolidine, homopiperazine, homopiperidine, or piperazine); and R c is aryl, (C 1 -C 8 )alkyl, halo(C 1 -C 8 )alkyl (C 1 -C 8 )alkoxy, or aryl-(C 1 -C 8 )alkoxy, wherein any aryl can optionally be substituted with one or more (C 1 -C 8 )alkyl. In one embodiment of the invention R 1 is not tert-butylsulfonyl (e.g. for a compound of formula V).
[0049] Another specific value for R 1 is —S(═O) 2 NR a R b wherein each of R a and R b is independently (C 1 -C 8 )alkyl; or R a and R b together with the nitrogen to which they are attached form a 3 or 4 membered saturated ring or a 5, 6, or 7 membered saturated or partially unsaturated ring comprising 1 or 2 heteroatoms (e.g. aziridine, azetidine, piperidine, morpholine, thiomorpholine, pyrrolidine, homopiperazine, homopiperidine, or piperazine.)
[0050] Another specific value for R 1 is:
[0000]
[0051] Another specific value for R 1 is —S(O) 2 N(CH 3 ) 2 .
[0052] Another specific value for R 1 is benzyloxycarbonyl.
[0053] A specific value for R 2 is an N,N-disubstituted aminosulfonyl group.
[0054] Another specific value for R 2 is an N,N-dialkyl aminosulfonyl group.
[0055] Another specific value for R 2 is —S(═O) 2 NR a R b , —S(═O) 2 R c , —C(═O)R c , or —C(═O)NR a R b wherein each of R a and R b is independently (C 1 -C 8 )alkyl; or R a and R b together with the nitrogen to which they are attached form a 3 or 4 membered saturated ring or a 5, 6, or 7 membered saturated or partially unsaturated ring comprising 1 or 2 heteroatoms (e.g. aziridine, azetidine, piperidine, morpholine, thiomorpholine, pyrrolidine, homopiperazine, homopiperidine, or piperazine); and R c is aryl, (C 1 -C 8 )alkyl, halo(C 1 -C 8 )alkyl (C 1 -C 8 )alkoxy, or aryl-(C 1 -C 8 )alkoxy, wherein any aryl can optionally be substituted with one or more (C 1 -C 8 )alkyl.
[0056] Another specific value for R 2 is —S(═O) 2 NR d R e wherein each of R d and R e is independently (C 1 -C 8 )alkyl; or R d and R e together with the nitrogen to which they are attached form a 3 or 4 membered saturated ring or a 5, 6, or 7 membered saturated or partially unsaturated ring comprising 1 or 2 heteroatoms (e.g. aziridine, azetidine, piperidine, morpholine, thiomorpholine, pyrrolidine, homopiperazine, homopiperidine, or piperazine.
[0057] Another specific value for R 2 is a leaving group such as 4-methylphenyl-sulfonyl, methylsulfonyl, trifluoromethylsulfonyl.
[0058] Another specific value for R 2 is:
[0000]
[0059] A specific value for R 3 is H.
[0060] A compound of formula I or a salt thereof can be prepared as illustrated in Schemes 1-4 below.
[0000]
[0000]
[0000]
[0000]
Preparation of a Compound of Formula Iv
[0061]
[0062] A compound of formula III can be protected with any suitable protecting groups (R 1 and R 2 , which can be the same or different) under standard conditions to provide the corresponding compound of formula IV. For example, the reaction(s) can be carried out in a suitable solvent in the presence of a base. Suitable solvents include aprotic solvents such as, dichloromethane, tetrahydrofuran, and 2-methyltetrahydrofuran, as well as other aprotic organic solvents, and mixtures thereof. Suitable bases include trialkylamines, such as triethylamine, diisopropylethylamine, and N-methyl morpholine, as well as hydride bases, such as sodium hydride. The reaction can conveniently be carried out at a temperature from about −20° C. to 40° C.
[0063] Suitable protecting groups include a tert-butylsulfonyl (Bus) group, N,N-dialkylsulfamoyl groups such as N,N-diisopropylsulfamoyl, N-aziridinylsulfamoyl and other sulfamoyl groups containing an N-heterocycle (such as pyrrolidine or piperidine), as well as N-ethyl and N-methylsulfamoyl groups and other mixed N-alkylsulfamoyl groups.
Preparation of a Compound of Formula II
[0064]
[0065] A compound of formula II can be prepared from a compound of formula IV by treatment with a base in a suitable solvent. Suitable bases include metal hydrides such as sodium hydride and potassium hydride; lithium 2,2,6,6-tetramethylpiperidide; the alkoxides, such as sodium tert-butoxide or lithium tert-butoxide, the hexamethyldisilazides, such as lithium hexamethyldisilazide, and carbonate bases, such as potassium carbonate or cesium carbonate.
[0066] Suitable solvents include aprotic solvents such as dichloromethane, tetrahydrofuran, and 2-methyltetrahydrofuran, as well as other aprotic organic solvents, and mixtures thereof. The reaction can conveniently be carried out at a temperature from about 0° C. to 22° C.
[0067] Suitable R 1 groups include a tert-butylsulfonyl (Bus) group, N,N-dialkylsulfamoyl groups such as N,N-diisopropylsulfamoyl, N-aziridinylsulfamoyl and other sulfamoyl groups containing an N-heterocycle (such as pyrrolidine or piperidine), as well as N-ethyl and N-methylsulfamoyl groups and other mixed N-alkylsulfamoyl groups.
[0068] The resulting compound of formula II can be purified by recrystallization from a suitable solvent or mixture of solvents. For example, combinations of ethereal and non-polar solvents, such as isopropyl ether/heptane as well as crystallization out of concentrated solutions of purely ethereal solvents such as tert-butyl methyl ether can be carried out.
Alternative Preparation of a Compound of Formula II
[0069]
[0070] The starting aziridine can be protected with any suitable protecting group (R 1 ), for example, by treatment with a compound R 1 —X wherein X is a leaving group, under standard conditions to provide the corresponding compound of formula II. For example, the reaction can be carried out in a suitable solvent in the presence of a base. Suitable solvents include aprotic solvents such as dichloromethane, tetrahydrofuran, ethyl ether, tert-butyl methyl ether, tetrahydropyran, 1,4-dioxane, 1,2-dichloroethane, and mixtures thereof. Suitable bases include trialkylamines such as triethylamine, N-methyl morpholine, quinuclidine, N-methylpiperidine, N,N-diisopropylethylamine, and N-methylpyrrolidine; as well as other weak, non-nucleophilic bases such as, potassium carbonate and sodium bicarbonate. The reaction can conveniently be carried out at a temperature from about −10° C. to 40° C.
[0071] The resulting compound of formula II can be purified by recrystallization from a suitable solvent or mixture of solvents. For example, combinations of ethereal and non-polar solvents, such as ethyl ether, n-butyl ether, tetrahydrofuran, tetrahydropyran, 1,2-dimethoxyethane, hexanes, tert-butyl methyl ether, heptane, pentane, cyclohexane, toluene can be used.
Preparation of a Compound of Formula V:
[0072]
[0073] The starting aziridine can be dimerized by treatment with a non-nucleophilic amide base in a suitable solvent. Suitable solvents include ethers such as ethyl ether, tert-butyl methyl ether, n-butyl ether, tetrahydropyran, and tetrahydrofuran, as well as hydrocarbons such as hexanes and heptane, and mixtures thereof. Suitable non-nucleophilic amide base include lithium diisopropylamide, lithium 2,2,6,6-tetramethylpiperidide, lithium hexamethyldisilazide, sodium hexamethyldisilazide, potassium hexamethyldisilazide, lithium di-t-butylamide, and lithium isopropylcyclohexylamide. The reaction can conveniently be carried out at a temperature from about −78° C. to 22° C.
[0074] The resulting compound of formula V can be purified by recrystallization from a suitable solvent or mixture of solvents. For example, combinations of ethereal and non-polar solvents, such as ethyl ether, n-butyl ether, tetrahydrofuran, tetrahydropyran, 1,2-dimethoxyethane, and tert-butyl methyl ether can be used.
Preparation of a Compound of Formula VI:
[0075]
[0076] The starting compound of formula V can be deprotected under standard conditions to provide the corresponding compound of formula VI. The reaction can be carried out in a solvent that comprises an amine; for example, a monoamine such as ethanolamine, a diamine such as 1,3-diaminopropane, ethylenediamine, 1,2-diaminocyclohexane, 1,2-phenylenediamine, putrescene, or cadaverine, or a polyamine such as diethylenetriamine, triethylenetriamine, or polyethyleneimine. The solvent can also comprise toluene, anisole, or the like, or mixtures thereof. The reaction can conveniently be carried out at a temperature from about 100° C. to about 140° C.
Hydrogenation to Provide a Compound of Formula VII
[0077]
[0078] The starting alkene VI can be hydrogenated under standard conditions. For example, the hydrogenation can be carried out using a metal containing catalyst in an alcoholic solvent. Suitable solvents include methanol, ethanol, isopropanol, n-propanol, butanol, ethyl acetate, toluene, dioxane, and anisole, and mixtures thereof. Suitable catalysts include palladium on carbon, platinum on carbon, Raney nickel, Wilkinson's catalyst, and palladium hydroxide. The reaction can conveniently be carried out at a pressure from about ambient pressure to about 60 psi.
[0079] The compound of formula VII can conveniently be isolated by treatment with an acid in an organic solvent to provide a corresponding salt. Suitable acids include hydrochloric acid, hydrobromic acid, hydroiodic acid, and sulfuric acid. Suitable solvents include dichloromethane, ethyl ether, tetrahydrofuran, tert-butyl methyl ether, 1,4-dioxane, 1,2-dimethoxyethane, chloroform, 1,2-dichloroethane, toluene, and anisole, and mixtures thereof. The conversion to the salt can conveniently be carried out at a temperature from about −10° C. to about 40° C.
Preparation of a Compound of Formula VIII:
[0080]
[0081] The mixed carbonate of formula VIII can be prepared by treating 5-hydroxymethylthiazole with a suitable carbonate or carbonate equivalent having a leaving group adjacent to the carbonyl carbon, such as phosgene in the presence of a base. For example, suitable carbonates include bis-(4-nitrophenyl)carbonate and disuccinimidyl carbonate. The reaction can conveniently be carried out in a suitable aprotic organic solvent, such as dichloromethane, tetrahydrofuran, 1,2-dichloroethane, or diethylether, or a mixture thereof.
[0082] Suitable bases include trialkylamine bases, such as diisopropylethylamine, N-methyl morpholine, and triethylamine.
Preparation of a Compound of Formula IX or a Salt Thereof
[0083]
[0084] A compound of formula IX or a salt thereof can be prepared from a compound of formula VII or a salt thereof by treatment with a carbonate of formula VIII or a salt thereof in the presence of a suitable base in a suitable solvent. Suitable bases include carbonate bases (e.g. potassium carbonate) and trialkylamines (e.g. diisopropylethylamine, or N-methyl morpholine). Suitable solvents include solvents such as dichloromethane, tetrahydrofuran, 1,2-dichloroethane, isopropylacetate, and diethylether, and mixtures thereof.
Preparation of a Compound of Formula XI:
[0085]
[0086] A compound of formula XI wherein R 3 is H or a salt thereof can be prepared by treating L-methionine with an alkylating agent in the presence of water and acetic acid. Suitable alkylating agents include alkyl bromides (bromoacetic acid), alkyl iodides, alkyl chlorides, and dimethyl sulfate. The reaction can conveniently be carried out in a solvent that comprises an alcohol (e.g. isopropanol), water, and acetic acid. The reaction can be carried out at a temperature from about 22° C. to about 90° C. A compound of formula XI wherein R 3 is a protecting group (e.g. a carbamate, amide, or benzyl protecting group) or a salt thereof can be prepared by protecting a corresponding compound of formula XI wherein R 3 is hydrogen to provide the compound of formula XI wherein R 3 is a protecting group or the salt thereof.
Preparation of a Compound of Formula XII:
[0087]
[0088] A compound of formula XII can be prepared by treating a compound of formula XI wherein R 3 is H or a protecting group (e.g. a carbamate, amide, or benzyl protecting group), or a salt thereof with a compound of formula XIX or a salt thereof, in an aprotic solvent at a temperature from about 0° C. to about 30° C. in the presence of a suitable base and a carbonyl source, such as CDI. When R 3 is a protecting group it can subsequently be removed to provide the compound of formula XII or the salt thereof. Suitable bases include metal hydrides (e.g. sodium hydride), and trialkylamines (e.g. diisopropylethylamine, triethylamine, N-methyl morpholine or DBU). Suitable aprotic solvents include tetrahydrofuran, 2-methyltetrahydrofuran, and dichloromethane, and mixtures thereof.
Preparation of a Compound of Formula XIII:
[0089]
[0090] A compound of formula XIII can be prepared by treating a compound of formula XII or a salt thereof with a suitable iodide source (e.g. trimethylsilyl iodide, hydrogen iodide, or sodium iodide and trimethylsilyl chloride) in an aprotic solvent in the presence of an alcohol ROH to provide the compound of formula XIII wherein R is (C 1 -C 8 )alkyl. Suitable aprotic solvents include tetrahydrofuran, 2-methyltetrahydrofuran, dichloromethane, and acetonitrile, and mixtures thereof. The reaction can typically be carried out at a temperature from about 0° C. to about 22° C.
Preparation of a Compound of Formula XIV or a Salt Thereof:
[0091]
[0092] A compound of formula XIV or a salt thereof can be prepared by treating a compound of formula XIII wherein R is (C 1 -C 8 )alkyl with morpholine to provide the compound of formula XIV or the salt thereof. The resulting compound of formula XIV can be converted to a corresponding salt by treatment with an acid (e.g. an organic acid such as oxalic acid, citric acid, or fumaric acid, or a mineral acid) in an organic solvent. Suitable solvents include tert-butyl methyl ether, methylene chloride, tetrahydrofuran, acetone, acetonitrile, toluene, heptanes, isopropyl acetate, ethyl acetate and alcohols, and mixtures thereof. The salt formation can typically be carried out at a temperature from about 22° C. to about 60° C.
Preparation of a Compound of Formula X:
[0093]
[0094] A compound of formula X wherein M + is a counterion, or a salt thereof, can be prepared by hydrolyzing an ester of formula XIV wherein R is (C 1 -C 8 )alkyl or a salt thereof under standard conditions. For example, the hydrolysis can be carried out in an aqueous solvent (e.g. water and dichloromethane) in the presence of a base (e.g. potassium hydroxide or lithium hydroxide) at a temperature from about −10° C. to about 28° C.
Preparation of a Compound of Formula I:
[0095]
[0096] A compound of formula I or a salt thereof can be prepared by coupling an acid salt of formula X wherein M + is a counterion with an amine of formula IX to form the corresponding amide. This amide forming reaction can be carried out under standard conditions. For example, it can be carried out in a suitable organic solvent (e.g. dichloromethane) in the presence of a suitable coupling agent (e.g. EDC.HCl and HOBt). Other suitable amide coupling reagents and conditions are known in the field. The reaction can typically be carried out at a temperature from about −30° C. to about 20° C.
[0097] When carried out in dichloromethane or toluene or a mixture thereof, this coupling reaction unexpectedly provides improved results compared to the coupling in tetrahydrofuran that is described on page 254 of international patent application publication number WO 2008/103949. Accordingly, in one embodiment, the invention provides a process for preparing a compound of formula I comprising coupling an acid salt of formula X with an amine of formula IX or a salt thereof in dichloromethane or toluene or a mixture thereof. This reaction can conveniently be carried out in the presence of a coupling agent (e.g. EDC.HCl and HOBt) at a temperature from about −30° C. to about 20° C. The resulting compound of formula I can be isolated using standard techniques. The compound of formula I can be isolated employing a solid support material as described in International Patent Application Publication Number WO 2009/135179
Alternative Preparation of a Compound of Formula I:
[0098]
[0099] A compound of formula I or a salt thereof can be prepared by coupling an acid of formula Xa or a salt thereof with an amine of formula IX or a salt thereof to form the corresponding amide. This amide forming reaction can be carried out under standard conditions. For example, it can be carried out in a suitable organic solvent (e.g. dichloromethane) in the presence of a suitable coupling agent (e.g. EDC.HCl and HOBt). Other suitable amide coupling reagents and conditions are known in the field. The reaction can typically be carried out at a temperature from about −30° C. to about 20° C.
Alternative Preparation of a Compound of Formula XII
[0100] The compound of formula XII shown in Scheme III above can also be prepared as illustrated in Scheme V.
[0000]
Preparation of a Compound of Formula XII
[0101] The amine of formula XV or a salt thereof can be treated with carbonyldiimidazole, in the presence of a suitable base (e.g. a trialkylamine, such as triethylamine, N-methyl morpholine, diisopropylethylamine, or DBU; a hydride base, such as sodium hydride; or an amide base, such as LiHMDS) in an aprotic solvent (e.g. tetrahydrofuran, or 2-methyltetrahydrofuran) to provide the urea of formula XVI. Alkylation of the urea of formula XVI with a suitable methylating agent (e.g. methyl iodide) in the presence of a base in an aprotic solvent provides a compound of formula XVII. Further alkylation with a suitable methylating agent (e.g. methyl iodide) provides a salt of formula XVIII. Treatment of the salt of formula XVIII with an N-unprotected amino γ-lactone of formula XI or with a corresponding N-protected amino γ-lactone (e.g. a carbamate, amide or benzylamine) in a suitable aprotic solvent (e.g. tetrahydrofuran, or 2-methyltetrahydrofuran) in the presence of a suitable base (e.g. a trialkylamine, such as triethylamine, N-methyl morpholine, diisopropylethylamine, or DBU) provides the compound of formula XII. If an N-protected amino γ-lactone is utilized in the previously described step (i.e. R 3 is a protecting group), the resulting protected product can be deprotected to provide the compound of formula XII.
[0102] The invention will now be illustrated by the following non-limiting examples.
Example 1
Preparation of protected (L)-phenylalaminol IVa
[0103]
[0104] L-phenylalaminol III (5.0 g) was dissolved in dichloromethane (150 mL). The resulting solution was cooled to 0° C. and diisopropylethylamine (21.4 g) was charged to the reaction mixture, followed by N,N-dimethylsulfamoyl chloride (10 g). The reaction was warmed to room temperature and allowed to stir. After 20 hours, the reaction was quenched with saturated aqueous ammonium chloride (100 mL) and water (50 mL). The layers were then separated and the organic phase was washed with 1 M HCl (2×10 volumes) and water (2×50 mL). The organics were then dried over sodium sulfate. The solids were filtered off and the liquors were concentrated in vacuo to yield 97% of compound IVa as a yellow-orange oil. Compound IVa was then typically used without further purification. 1 H NMR (CDCl 3 ) δ 7.26 (m, 5H), 4.94 (d, 1H, J=8 Hz), 3.75 (m, 1H), 3.57 (m, 2H), 2.94 (s, 6H), 2.85 (m, 2H), 2.54 (s, 6H).
Example 2
Preparation of (S)-2-benzyl-N,N-dimethylaziridine-1-sulfonamide IIa
[0105]
[0106] Protected amino alcohol IVa (10 g) was dissolved in 2-MeTHF (300 mL). The resulting solution was cooled to 0° C. Sodium hydride (2.0 g) was then charged portion-wise. The reaction was then warmed to room temperature and allowed to stir. After 4.5 hours, the reaction was cooled to 0° C. and quenched with saturated aqueous ammonium chloride solution (150 mL) and water (100 mL). The layers were separated and the organic layer was washed with 1M HCl (150 mL) followed by saturated aqueous NaCl (150 mL). The organics were dried over sodium sulfate. The solids were filtered off and the filtrate concentrated. Further purification can be done either by column chromatography eluting with 100% dichloromethane, or by recrystallization from MTBE/hexanes, ultimately yielding 64% of compound IIa as a white solid. 1 H NMR (CDCl 3 ) δ 7.30 (m, 5H), 2.94 (dd, 1H, J=14, 5 Hz), 2.83 (m, 1H), 2.71 (dd, 1H, J=14, 7 Hz), 2.66 (s, 6H), 2.56 (d, 1H, J=7 Hz), 2.14 (d, 1H, J=4 Hz); 13 C NMR (CDCl 3 ) δ 137.4, 129.3, 128.9, 127.2, 77.6, 77.3, 77.0, 40.6, 38.3, 38.1, 33.0.
Example 3
Alternative Preparation of (S)-2-benzyl-N,N-dimethylaziridine-1-sulfonamide IIa
[0107]
[0108] To a cooled (−10° C.) solution of (S)-2-benzylaziridine (100 g, 0.751 mol) and N,N-dimethylsulfamoyl chloride (84.5 mL, 0.787 mol) in dichloromethane (100 mL) was added N,N-diisopropylethylamine (131 mL, 0.751 mol). The resulting yellow solution was stirred at −10° C. for a minimum of 16 hours. After this period, a 0.5M solution of citric acid (500 mL) was added and the phases were separated. The organic phase was then washed with 1.0 M sodium bicarbonate solution (500 mL). The organic phase was then solvent exchanged into tent-butyl methyl ether (500 mL). The solution was then cooled to 0° C., and heptane (100 mL) was added dropwise over a period of 2 hours. The mixture was then aged for an additional 2 hours at 0° C., and then cooled (−10° C.), to allowed compound IIa to precipitate out as a white, crystalline solid (27.8 g, 77%). Tlc assay: R f : 0.53 (SiO 2 ; 1:1 heptane:ethyl acetate, KMnO 4 ). 1 H NMR (400 MHz, CDCl 3 ): δ 7.20-7.29 (m, 5H), 2.94 (dd, J=14, 5 Hz, 1H), 2.80-2.88 (m, 1H), 2.70 (dd, J=14, 7 Hz, 1H), 2.66 (s, 6H), 2.56 (d, J=7 Hz, 1H), 2.14 (d, J=4 Hz, 1H). 13 C NMR (100 MHz, CDCl 3 ): δ 137.4, 129.3, 128.9, 127.2, 40.6, 38.3, 38.1, 33.0.
Example 4
Preparation of Protected Diamine Va
[0109]
[0110] To a cooled (0° C.) solution of 2,2,6,6-tetramethylpiperidine (5.5 mL) in tetrahydrofuran (14 mL) was added n-butyllithium (10M in hexanes, 3.1 mL). The resulting cloudy, yellow solution was warmed to 22° C. and allowed to stir at that temperature for 20 minutes.
[0111] To a cooled (−10° C.) cloudy solution of IIa (5.0 g) in tetrahydrofuran (7 mL) was added the preformed lithium tetramethylpiperidide (LTMP) dropwise by syringe pump (addition rate: 40 mL/hr, LTMP temperature: 22° C.). During the addition, the reaction gradually turns to a purple-brown solution. The reaction was then allowed to slowly warm to 0° C. over the course of 45 minutes. A 10% (w/v) solution of citric acid (15 mL) was then added to the cold reaction and the resulting bright-yellow solution was stirred vigorously at 0° C. for several minutes. The biphasic mixture was then diluted with ethyl acetate (75 mL) and the phases were separated. The organic phase was washed with 10% (w/v) citric acid (1×15 mL), saturated sodium bicarbonate (2×15 mL) and brine (1×15 mL). The organic phase was subsequently dried over sodium sulfate, filtered, and concentrated under reduced pressure to give a bright yellow solid. The crude mixture was suspended in hot tert-butyl methyl ether, cooled to −16° C., and filtered to give Va as a white powder (3.2 g, 64%). Tlc assay: R f : 0.32 (SiO 2 , 1:1 heptane:ethyl acetate, KMnO 4 ). 1 H NMR (400 MHz, CDCl 3 ): δ 7.10-7.35 (m, 10H), 5.59 (s, 2H), 3.95-4.10 (m, 4H), 2.80 (ddd, J=22, 13, 6 Hz, 4H), 2.59 (s, 12H). 13 C NMR (100 MHz, CDCl 3 ): δ 136.7, 132.0, 129.9, 128.9, 127.2, 57.0, 42.4, 38.1.
Example 5
Alternative Preparation of Protected Diamine Va
[0112]
[0113] To a cooled (−10° C.) slurry of IIa (10.0 g) and 2,2,6,6-tetramethylpiperidine (2.1 mL) in 1:3 tetrahydrofuran:heptane (30 mL) was slowly added n-butyllithium (2.6M in hexanes, 19 mL) over the course of 3 hr. During the addition, the reaction gradually turned to a purple-brown solution; upon completion the resulting was stirred at that temperature for an additional 20 minutes.
[0114] Glacial acetic acid (4.0 mL) was then added to the cold reaction and the resulting bright-yellow suspension was stirred vigorously at 5° C. for several minutes. The mixture was then filtered and the solid material was washed with 3:1 t-butyl methyl ether:heptane (2×30 mL), water (3×30 mL), and again with 3:1 t-butyl methyl ether:heptane (2×30 mL). The wet cake was then thoroughly dried to give Va as a white powder (7.22 g, 72%). Tlc assay: R f : 0.32 (SiO 2 , 1:1 heptane:ethyl acetate, KMnO 4 ). 1 H NMR (400 MHz, CDCl 3 ): δ 7.10-7.35 (m, 10H), 5.59 (s, 2H), 3.95-4.10 (m, 4H), 2.80 (ddd, J=22, 13, 6 Hz, 4H), 2.59 (s, 12H). 13 C NMR (100 MHz, CDCl 3 ): δ 136.7, 132.0, 129.9, 128.9, 127.2, 57.0, 42.4, 38.1.
Example 6
Preparation of Unsaturated Diamine VI
[0115]
[0116] A solution of the protected diamine Va (2.0 g) in 1,3-diaminopropane (4 mL) was heated to 110° C. and stirred at that temperature for 90 minutes. After cooling the yellow solution to 22° C., water (16 mL) was added followed by dichloromethane (20 mL). The phases were separated and the aqueous phase was washed with an additional portion of dichloromethane (1×10 mL). The combined organic phases were dried over sodium sulfate, filtered, and concentrated under reduced pressure to give VI as a thick, yellow oil (1.1 g, 100%). This material was used directly in the next reaction without further purification. Tlc assay: R f : 0.61 (SiO 2 , 4:1 CH 2 Cl 2 :CH 3 OH w/5% Et 3 N, KMnO 4 ). 1 H NMR (400 MHz, CDCl 3 ): δ 7.10-7.35 (m, 10H), 5.60 (dd, J=4, 2 Hz, 2H), 3.50-3.60 (br, 2H), 2.85 (dd, J=13, 5 Hz, 2H), 2.60 (13, 8 Hz, 2H), 1.15 (br, 4H). 13 C NMR (100 MHz, CDCl 3 ): δ 139.0, 134.1, 129.7, 128.6, 126.5, 54.9, 44.9.
Example 7
Preparation of Compound VII
[0117]
[0118] To a solution of unsaturated diamine VI (1.1 g) in methanol (8.2 mL) was added 10% palladium on carbon (110 mg, 10 wt %). The resulting black suspension was purged with hydrogen gas and held under a hydrogen atmosphere (balloon) for 16 hours. The reaction was then filtered through celite and concentrated under reduced pressure to provide VII as a thick, yellow oil (1.11 g, 100%). This material was carried on to the next reaction without further purification. Tlc assay: R f : 0.60 (SiO 2 , 4:1 CH 2 Cl 2 :CH 3 OH w/5% Et 3 N, KMnO 4 ). 1 H NMR (400 MHz, CDCl 3 ): δ 7.15-7.35 (m, 10H), 2.95-3.05 (m, 2H), 2.82 (dd, J=13, 5 Hz, 2H), 2.50 (dd, J=13, 9 Hz, 2H), 1.45-1.66 (m, 4H), 1.36 (br, 4H). 13 C NMR (100 MHz, CDCl 3 ): δ 139.7, 129.5, 128.7, 126.5, 53.2, 45.1, 34.6.
Example 8
Preparation of Diamine-Dihydrogen Chloride VIIa
[0119]
[0120] To a cooled (0° C.) solution of VII (1.11 g) in dichloromethane (14 mL) was added a solution of 4M hydrochloric acid in dioxane (2.6 mL). The resulting pale-pink suspension was allowed to warm to 22° C. and was stirred at that temperature for 90 minutes. The mixture was then filtered; the precipitate was washed with copious amounts of dichloromethane and dried in vacuo to provide VIIa as a pale-pink powder (1.32 g, 94% from V). 1 H NMR (400 MHz, D 2 O): δ 7.10-7.35 (m, 10H), 3.38-3.48 (m, 2H), 2.92 (dd, J=14, 7 Hz, 2H), 2.76 (dd, J=14, 8 Hz, 2H), 1.58-1.74 (m, 4H).
Example 9
Preparation of Carbonate VIII
[0121]
[0122] 5-Hydroxymethylthiazole (5 kg) was dissolved in dichloromethane (210 kg). To this solution was added bis-(4-nitrophenyl)carbonate (15 kg) and triethylamine (7.5 kg). The reaction mixture was allowed to stir overnight. Upon reaction completion, the reaction mixture was washed with 1.0 M aqueous K 2 CO 3 solution (50 kg) to fully remove 4-nitrophenol. The organic layer was then washed with 1.0 M aqueous citric acid until the pH of the organic solution was less than 8. The organic layer was dried over Na 2 SO 4 . The solids were then filtered off and the organic layer was solvent exchanged into isopropyl acetate and concentrated to a volume of approximately 4 volumes. To this solution was slowly added n-heptane (100 L) and allowed to age over a period of 5 or more hours. This affords VIII as a solid which can subsequently be isolated via filtration. 1 H NMR (CDCl 3 ) δ 8.89 (s, 1H), 8.26 (d, 2H), 7.99 (s, 1H), 7.37 (d, 2H), 5.51 (s, 2H).
Example 10a
Preparation of mono-carbamate hydrochloride IXa
[0123]
[0124] Diamine-dihydrochloride VIIa (2.37 kg), aqueous potassium carbonate (1M, 27 kg), and dichloromethane (68 kg) were agitated for 1 hour at 20° C. The dichloromethane layer was separated, dried over sodium sulfate (7.1 kg), and filtered to afford the diamine freebase. To this solution was charged additional dichloromethane (66 kg) and mixed-carbonate VIII (1.95 kg). Once all solids had dissolved, diisopropylethylamine (1.1 kg, 8.3 mol) was added and the reaction monitored by tlc assay (SiO 2 , 80% ethyl dichloromethane in methanol as eluant, product R f =0.73, visualization by UV). The reaction contents were washed with 0.25N aqueous NaOH until the presence of residual VIII and 4-nitrophenol were not detected by tlc assay. The organic layer was washed with water, dried over sodium sulfate (7 kg), filtered, concentrated and dissolved into isopropyl acetate (about 50 L) and diluted with dichloromethane (47 kg). To this solution was charged HCl (1.88 kg 4N HCl in dioxane, about 8.2 mol HCl) to induce precipitation. The product IXa was filtered and rinsed with isopropyl acetate (21 kg) and dried under vacuum to afford a white powder (2.57 kg, 83% yield). 1 H NMR (CD 3 OD) δ 9.0 (s, 1H), 7.8 (s, 1H), 7.4-7.14 (m, 10H), 5.2 (d, 1H), 4.8 (s, 5H) 3.7 (m, 1H), 3.6 (m, 1H), 3.3 (s, 1H), 2.6-2.8 (m, 2H), 1.8-1.4 (m, 4H). 13 C NMR (CD 3 OD) δ 154.4, 143.2, 129.6, 128.0, 126.0, 58.0, 52.4, 44.3, 41.6, 33.8, 30.5.
Example 10b
Preparation of Mono-Carbamate Hydrochloride IXa
[0125]
[0126] Diamine-dihydrochloride VIIa (2.0 g), aqueous sodium hydroxide (3M, 4.1 g), and dichloromethane (13.3 g) were agitated for 1 hour at 20° C. The dichloromethane layer was separated and subsequently washed with water (10 g) to afford the diamine freebase. To this solution was charged additional dichloromethane (26.6 g) and mixed-carbonate VIII (1.72 g). The resulting solution was heated to 40° C. and held at that temperature until the reaction was deemed complete by HPLC. The solvent was then removed in vacuo, co-distilled with tetrahydrofuran (17.8 g) and then rediluted with tetrahydrofuran (35.6 g). To this solution was then added concentrated hydrochloric acid (12M, 0.588 g) to induce precipitation. The product IXa was filtered, rinsed with 1% H 2 O in 1:1 THF:CH 2 Cl 2 (2×40 mL) and dried under vacuum to afford a white powder (2.15 g, 82% yield). 1 H NMR (CD 3 OD) δ 9.0 (s, 1H), 7.8 (s, 1H), 7.4-7.14 (m, 10H), 5.2 (d, 1H), 4.8 (s, 5H) 3.7 (m, 1H), 3.6 (m, 1H), 3.3 (s, 1H), 2.6-2.8 (m, 2H), 1.8-1.4 (m, 4H). 13 C NMR (CD 3 OD) δ 154.4, 143.2, 129.6, 128.0, 126.0, 58.0, 52.4, 44.3, 41.6, 33.8, 30.5.
Example 11
Preparation of Amino Lactone XIa
[0127]
[0128] To a solution of L-methionine (46 kg) in water (69 kg, at ambient temperature was charged bromoacetic acid (46.0 kg), 2-propanol (69.0 kg) and acetic acid (69.0 kg). The resulting mixture was heated to reflux (85° C. to 95° C.) and agitated at this temperature until the reaction was judged complete by 1 H NMR. The mixture was concentrated under reduced pressure and co-evaporated with 2-propanol. 2-Propanol (161.0 kg) was charged to the concentrated mixture, followed by a slow addition of 10 wt % HCl/dioxane solution (102 kg) at ambient temperature. The resulting slurry was heated to about 60° C. and agitated for about 4 hours. The pot temperature was adjusted to about 22° C. and agitated for about 2 hours. The product Ma was filtered, washed with two portions of 2-propanol (28 kg each portion) and dried under vacuum at 40° C. to afford white to off-white solid (39.3 kg, 70% yield). 1 H NMR (D 2 O) 4.79 (s, 2H), 4.61 (dd, 1H), 4.49-4.41 (m, 2H), 2.80 (m, 1H), 2.42 (m, 1H).
Example 12
Preparation of Urea XII
[0129]
[0130] To a slurry of (L)-amino lactone Ma 31.5 kg) in dichloromethane (105 kg) was charged diisopropylethylamine (28.8 kg). The reaction mixture was cooled to about 10° C. and carbonyldiimidazole (27.1 kg) was added portion-wise while the content temperature was maintained at less than or equal to 25° C. The resulting mixture was agitated until the reaction was judged complete. Methyl aminomethyl thiazole XIX (21.0 kg) was charged maintaining content temperature at less than or equal to 25° C. and agitated. Once complete, the reaction mixture was washed with water (63.0 kg), then two times with 20 wt % aqueous citric acid solution (63.0 kg). All the aqueous layers were combined and extracted with dichloromethane (63.0 kg). The organic layers were combined and washed once with 8 wt % aqueous sodium bicarbonate solution (63.0 kg) and once with water (63.0 kg). The organic layer was concentrated under reduced pressure to 3 volumes and co-evaporated with dichloromethane. The product XII was discharged as a stock solution in dichloromethane (33.4 kg, 91% yield). 1 H NMR (CDCl 3 ) 7.02 (s, 1H), 4.55-4.41 (m, 4H), 4.27 (m, 1H), 3.29 (septets, 1H), 2.98 (s, 3H), 2.78 (m, 1H), 2.20 (m, 1H), 1.38 (d, 6H).
Example 13
Preparation of L-thiazole morpholine ethyl ester oxalate salt XIVa
[0131]
[0132] To a solution of (L)-thiazole amino lactone XII (33.4 kg) in dichloromethane (89.5 kg) was charged dichloromethane (150 kg) and absolute ethanol (33.4 kg). The content temperature was then adjusted to about 10° C., followed by slow addition of TMSI (78.8 kg) while the content temperature was maintained at less than or equal to 22° C. and agitated until the reaction was judged complete. The content temperature was adjusted to about 10° C., followed by a slow addition of morpholine (49.1 kg) while the content temperature was maintained at less than or equal to 22° C. Once complete, the reaction mixture was filtered to remove morpholine.HI salt and the filter cake was rinsed with two portions of dichloromethane (33.4 kg). The filtrate was washed twice with water (100 kg). The organic layer was concentrated under vacuum to dryness. Acetone (100 kg) was then charged to the concentrate and the solution was concentrated under reduced pressure to dryness. Acetone (233.8 kg) was charged to the concentrate, followed by a slow addition of the solution of oxalic acid (10 kg) in acetone (100 kg). The resulting slurry was refluxed for about 1 hour before cooling down to about 3° C. for isolation. The product XIVa was filtered and rinsed with acetone (66.8 kg) and dried under vacuum at 40° C. to afford a white to off-white solid (40 kg, 71% yield). 1 H NMR (CDCl 3 ) 7.00 (s, 1H), 6.35 (broad s, 1H), 4.60-4.40 (m, 3H), 4.19 (quartets, 2H), 4.00-3.90 (m, 4H), 3.35-3.10 (m, 7H), 3.00 (s, 3H), 2.40-2.30 (m, 1H), 2.15-2.05 (m, 1H), 1.38 (d, 6H), 1.25 (triplets, 3H).
Example 14
Preparation of Compound I
[0133]
[0134] To the solution of L-thiazole morpholine ethyl ester oxalate salt XIVa (35.6 kg) in water (66.0 kg) was charged dichloromethane (264 kg), followed by a slow addition of 15 wt % KHCO 3 solution (184.8 kg). The resulting mixture was agitated for about 1 hour. The layers were separated and the organic layer was washed with water (132 kg). The organic layer was concentrated under vacuum to dryness. Water (26.5 kg) was charged and the content temperature was adjusted to about 10° C., followed by slow addition of 45% KOH solution (9.8 kg) while maintaining the content temperature at less than or equal to 20° C. The mixture was agitated at less than or equal to 20° C. until the reaction was judged complete by HPLC. The reaction mixture was concentrated under vacuum to dryness and co-evaporated five times with dichloromethane (132 kg each time) under reduced pressure to dryness. Co-evaporation with dichloromethane (132 kg) was continued until the water content was <4% by Karl Fischer titration. Additional dichloromethane (264 kg) was charged and the content temperature was adjusted to −18° C. to −20° C., followed by addition of monocarbamate.HCl salt IXa (26.4 kg). The resulting mixture was agitated at −18° C. to −20° C. for about 1 hour. HOBt (11.4 kg) was charged and the reaction mixture was again agitated at −18° C. to −20° C. for about 1 hour. A pre-cooled solution (−20° C.) of EDC.HCl (21.4 kg) in dichloromethane (396 kg) was added to the reaction mixture while the content temperature was maintained at less than or equal to −20° C. The reaction mixture was agitated at −18° C. to −20° C. until the reaction was judged complete. The content temperature was adjusted to about 3° C. and the reaction mixture quenched with a 10 wt % aqueous citric acid solution (290 kg). The layers were separated and the organic layer was washed once with 15 wt % potassium bicarbonate solution (467 kg) and water (132 kg). The organic layer was concentrated under reduced pressure and then co-evaporated with absolute ethanol. The product I was isolated as the stock solution in ethanol (35.0 kg product, 76.1% yield). 1 H NMR ('DMSO) 9.05 (s, 1H), 7.85 (s, 1H), 7.52 (d, 1H), 7.25-7.02 (m, 12H), 6.60 (d, 1H), 5.16 (s, 2H), 4.45 (s, 2H), 4.12-4.05 (m, 1H), 3.97-3.85 (m, 1H), 3.68-3.59 (m, 1H), 3.57-3.45 (m, 4H), 3.22 (septets, 1H), 2.88 (s, 3H), 2.70-2.55 (m, 4H), 2.35-2.10 (m, 6H), 1.75 (m, 1H), 1.62 (m, 1H), 1.50-1.30 (m, 4H), 1.32 (d, 6H). 13 C NMR (CD 3 OD) δ 180.54, 174, 160.1, 157.7, 156.9, 153.8, 143.8, 140.1, 140.0, 136.0, 130.53, 130.49, 129.4, 127.4, 127.3, 115.5, 67.7, 58.8, 56.9, 55.9, 54.9, 53.9, 51.6, 49.8, 42.7, 42.0, 35.4, 34.5, 32.4, 32.1, 29.1, 23.7.
Example 15
Alternative preparation of urea XII
[0135]
[0136] A urea of formula XII can also be prepared as described in steps a-d below.
[0000] a. To a slurry of carbonyldiimidazole (8.5 g, 0.052 mol, 1.2 eq.) in tetrahydrofuran (100 g) at about 10° C. was charged triethylamine (6.6 g, 0.065 mol, 1.5 eq.) while the reaction temperature was maintained at about 10° C. The resulting slurry was charged in portions with starting amino isopropylthiazole diHCl, (XVa, 10 g, 0.044 mol) with the pot temperature maintained at about 10° C. Once the addition was complete, the pot temperature was allowed to warm to ambient temperature and the reaction mixture was agitated at this temperature until the reaction was judged complete by HPLC (target: starting material≦1%). Once complete, the triethylamine HCl salt was filtered off. The wet filter cake was washed with THF (80 kg) and the filtrate was concentrated under vacuum at about 40° C. and co-evaporated with ethyl acetate (50 kg). To the resulting slurry was charged with ethyl acetate (20 kg), then cooled to about 0° C. and agitated at this temperature for about 1 hour. The product was filtered off and washed with heptane (20 kg). The filter cake was pulled dry in the filter under vacuum.
b. The above wet filter cake was slurried up in tetrahydrofuran (80 g) and the pot temperature was adjusted to about 0° C. To this slurry, tert-BuOK (6.9 g, 0.061 mol, 1.4 eq.) was slowly charged while the reaction temperature was maintained at about 0° C., followed by addition of methyl iodide (8.7 g, 0.061 mol, 1.4 eq.) at about 0° C. Once the addition was complete, the reaction mixture was allowed to warm to ambient temperature and agitated at this temperature until the reaction was judged complete by HPLC (target: product≧70%). Once complete, the reaction mixture was adjusted to about 3° C. and agitated at this temperature for about 1 hour. The potassium iodide salt was filtered off and the filter cake was washed with THF (20 g). The mother-liquor containing product was collected and carried forward to the next step.
c. To the above mother-liquor, methyl iodide was charged (18.6 g, 0.131 mol, 3 eq.) and the reaction mixture was warmed to about 35° C. and agitated at this temperature until the reaction was judged complete by HPLC (target: starting material≦1%, approximately 24 hours). Once complete, the reaction mixture was adjusted to ambient temperature and filtered. The product filter cake was washed with THF (20 g). The filter cake was pulled dry in the filter under vacuum.
d. To the above wet filter cake was charged THF (80 g), followed by portion-wise addition of L-amino lactone, XI (7 g, 0.038 mol, 0.9 eq.). To the resulting mixture, diisopropylethylamine (8.5 g, 0.066 mol, 1.5 eq.) was charged slowly while the reaction temperature was maintained below 30° C. Once the addition was complete the reaction temperature was adjusted to ambient and agitated until the reaction was judged complete by HPLC (target: starting material≦1%, approximately 48 hours). Once complete, the reaction mixture was concentrated under vacuum to approximately 3 volumes with the bath temperature set at maximum (40° C.). The concentrate was then adjusted to ambient and charged with methylene chloride (50 g). The resulting organic solution was washed with 20% citric acid solution (30 g) and then water (30 g). The aqueous layers were combined and back extracted with methylene chloride (50 g). The organic layers were combined and concentrated under reduced pressure to about 3 volumes with bath temperature set at ≦40° C. The concentration was repeated until KF limit was met (target: KF≦0.5%). Once KF limit was met, the product XII was discharged as a stock solution in methylene chloride (5.8 g, 45% yield). 1 H NMR (CDCl 3 ) 7.02 (s, 1H), 4.55-4.41 (m, 4H), 4.27 (m, 1H), 3.29 (septets, 1H), 2.98 (s, 3H), 2.78 (m, 1H), 2.20 (m, 1H), 1.38 (d, 6H).
[0137] All publications, patents, and patent documents are incorporated by reference herein, as though individually incorporated by reference. The invention has been described with reference to various specific and preferred embodiments and techniques. However, it should be understood that many variations and modifications may be made while remaining within the spirit and scope of the invention. | The invention provides methods and intermediates that are useful for preparing a compound of formula I:
and salts thereof. | Condense the core contents of the given document. | [
"PRIORITY OF INVENTION [0001] This application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 61/166,498 filed 3 Apr. 2009.",
"The entire content of this application is hereby incorporated herein by reference.",
"BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION [0002] International Patent Application Publication Number WO 2008/010921 and International Patent Application Publication Number WO 2008/103949 disclose certain compounds that are reported to be useful to modify the pharmacokinetics of a co-administered drug, e.g. by inhibiting cytochrome P450 monooxygenase.",
"One specific compound identified therein is a compound of the following formula I: [0000] [0003] There is currently a need for improved synthetic methods and intermediates that can be used to prepare the compound of formula I and its salts.",
"There is also a need for improved methods for preparing intermediate compounds that can be used to prepare the compound of formula I and its salts.",
"The improved methods and intermediates may reduce the cost, time, and/or the amount of waste associated with the existing methods for preparing the compound of formula I and its salts.",
"SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION [0004] An improved synthetic route for preparing the compound of formula I and its salts has been identified.",
"This improved synthetic route utilizes novel intermediates of formulae IV, V, XIV, XVI, XVII, and XVIII, identified herein below.",
"[0005] This route reduces the cost, the time, and the amount of waste associated with the preparation of the compound of formula I and its salts.",
"[0006] Accordingly in one embodiment, the invention provides a compound of formula IV: [0000] [0000] wherein R 1 and R 2 are each independently a suitable protecting group;",
"or a salt thereof.",
"[0007] In another embodiment, the invention provides a compound of formula V: [0000] [0000] wherein each R 1 is a suitable protecting group other than tert-butylsulfonyl;",
"or a salt thereof.",
"[0008] In another embodiment, the invention provides a compound of formula XIV: [0000] [0000] wherein R is (C 2 -C 8 )alkyl, or a salt thereof.",
"[0009] In another embodiment, the invention provides a method for preparing a compound of formula V: [0000] [0000] wherein each R 1 is a suitable protecting group other than tert-butylsulfonyl, or a salt thereof, comprising dimerizing a corresponding compound of formula II: [0000] [0000] to provide the compound of formula V, or the salt thereof.",
"[0010] In another embodiment, the invention provides a method for preparing a compound of formula I: [0000] [0000] or a salt thereof, wherein a compound of formula V: [0000] [0000] wherein R 1 is a suitable protecting group, or a salt thereof is prepared and converted into a compound of formula I, characterized in that the compound of formula V is prepared from a corresponding compound of formula II: [0000] [0000] or a salt thereof, by dimerizing the compound of formula II.",
"[0011] In another embodiment, the invention provides a method for preparing a compound of formula I: [0000] [0000] or a salt thereof, wherein a compound of formula IV: [0000] [0000] wherein R 1 and R 2 are each independently a suitable protecting group, or a salt thereof is prepared and converted into a compound of formula I, characterized in that the compound of formula IV is prepared from a compound of formula III: [0000] [0000] or a salt thereof, by protecting the compound of formula III.",
"[0012] In another embodiment, the invention provides a method for preparing a compound of formula I: [0000] [0000] or a salt thereof, wherein a compound of formula XIV: [0000] [0000] wherein R is H or (C 1 -C 8 )alkyl, or a salt thereof is prepared and converted into a compound of formula I, characterized in that the compound of formula XIV or the salt thereof is prepared from a compound of formula XIII: [0000] [0000] wherein R is H or (C 1 -C 8 )alkyl or a salt thereof, by displacing the iodide with a suitable morpholine reagent.",
"In a further embodiment of this method of the invention R is (C 2 -C 8 )alkyl in the compound of formula XIII and XIV.",
"[0013] In another embodiment, the invention provides a compound of formula XVI or XVII: [0000] [0000] or a salt thereof.",
"[0014] In another embodiment, the invention provides a salt of formula XVIII: [0000] [0000] wherein Y − is a suitable counterion.",
"[0015] In another embodiment, the invention provides a method for preparing a compound of formula I: [0000] [0000] or a salt thereof, wherein a compound of formula XII: [0000] [0000] or a salt thereof is prepared and converted into a compound of formula I, characterized in that the compound of formula XII is prepared from a corresponding compound of formula XVIII: [0000] [0000] wherein Y − is a suitable counterion, by treatment with a compound of formula XI: [0000] [0000] wherein R 3 is H or a protecting group in the presence of a base and optionally removing R 3 if it is a protecting group to provide the compound of formula XII.",
"[0016] In another embodiment, the invention provides a method for preparing a compound of formula I: [0000] [0000] or a salt thereof, wherein a salt of formula XVIII: [0000] [0000] wherein Y − is a suitable counterion is prepared and converted into a compound of formula I, characterized in that the salt of formula XVIII is prepared from a compound of formula XVII: [0000] [0000] or a salt thereof by treatment with a methylating agent to provide the salt of formula XVIII.",
"[0017] In another embodiment, the invention provides a method for preparing a compound of formula I: [0000] [0000] or a salt thereof, wherein a compound of formula XVII: [0000] [0000] or a salt thereof is prepared and converted into a compound of formula I, characterized in that the compound of formula XVII is prepared from a corresponding compound of formula XVI: [0000] [0000] or a salt thereof by treatment with a methylating agent to provide the compound of formula XVII or the salt thereof.",
"[0018] In another embodiment, the invention provides a method for preparing a compound of formula I: [0000] [0000] or a salt thereof, wherein a compound of formula XVI: [0000] [0000] or a salt thereof is prepared and converted into a compound of formula I, characterized in that the compound of formula XVI is prepared from a corresponding compound of formula XV: [0000] [0000] or a salt thereof by treatment with carbonyldiimidazole in the presence of a base to provide the compound of formula XVI.",
"[0019] In another embodiment, the invention provides a method (Method A) for preparing a compound of formula I: [0000] [0000] or a salt thereof comprising: [0020] a) dimerizing a corresponding compound of formula II: [0000] [0000] wherein R 1 is a suitable protecting group to provide a corresponding compound of formula V: [0000] [0000] or a salt thereof;",
"[0021] b) deprotecting the compound of formula V or the salt thereof to provide a compound of formula VI: [0000] [0000] or a salt thereof;",
"[0022] c) reducing the compound of formula VI or the salt thereof to a compound of formula VII: [0000] [0000] or a salt thereof;",
"[0023] d) converting the compound of formula VII to a corresponding salt by treatment with an acid in an organic solvent;",
"[0024] e) converting the corresponding salt from d) to a compound of formula IX: [0000] [0000] or a salt thereof (e.g. a mineral acid salt such as an HCl salt);",
"and [0025] f) coupling the compound of formula IX or the salt thereof with a salt of formula X: [0000] [0000] wherein M + is a suitable counterion to provide the compound of formula I. In one specific embodiment of the invention a salt of the compound of formula IX (e.g. an HCl salt) can be coupled with a salt of formula X to provide the compound of formula I. [0026] In another embodiment, Method A can further comprise preparing the compound of formula II by reacting (S)-2-benzylaziridine with a corresponding compound R 1 —X, wherein X is a leaving group (e.g. Cl) to provide the compound of formula II.",
"[0027] In another embodiment, Method A can further comprise preparing the compound of formula II by: [0028] a) protecting a compound of formula III: [0000] [0000] or a salt thereof to provide a corresponding compound of formula IV: [0000] [0000] wherein R 1 and R 2 are each independently a suitable protecting group, or a salt thereof;",
"and [0029] b) treating the compound of formula IV or the salt thereof with a suitable base to provide the compound of formula II.",
"[0030] In another embodiment, Method A can further comprise preparing the salt of formula X by: [0031] a) treating a compound of formula XII: [0000] [0000] or a salt thereof with a suitable iodide source in the presence of an alcohol ROH to provide a compound of formula XIII: [0000] [0000] wherein R is (C 1 -C 8 )alkyl, or a salt thereof;",
"[0032] b) treating the compound of formula XIII or the salt thereof with morpholine to provide an ester of formula XIV: [0000] [0000] or a salt thereof;",
"and [0033] c) hydrolyzing the ester of formula XIV to provide the salt of formula X. [0034] In another embodiment, Method A can further comprise preparing the compound of formula XII or the salt thereof by: [0035] a) treating L-methionine with an alkylating agent and optionally protecting the resulting amine to provide an amine of formula XI: [0000] [0000] wherein R 3 is H or a protecting group, or a salt thereof;",
"and [0036] b) treating the amine of formula XI or the salt thereof with a compound of formula XIX: [0000] [0000] or a salt thereof to provide the compound of formula XII or the salt thereof.",
"[0037] In another embodiment, Method A can further comprise preparing the compound of formula XII or the salt thereof by: [0038] a) treating a compound of formula XV: [0000] [0000] or a salt thereof with carbonyldiimidazole in the presence of a base to provide a compound of formula XVI: [0000] [0000] or a salt thereof;",
"[0039] b) treating the compound of formula XVI or the salt thereof with a suitable methylating agent in the presence of a base to provide a compound of formula XVII: [0000] [0000] or a salt thereof;",
"[0040] c) methylating the compound of formula XVII or the salt thereof to provide a salt of formula XVIII: [0000] [0000] wherein Y − is a suitable counterion;",
"and [0041] d) treating the salt of formula XVIII with an amine of formula XI: [0000] [0000] wherein R 3 is H or a protecting group, or a salt thereof with a suitable base, and deprotecting to remove R 3 if it is a protecting group, to provide the compound of formula XII or the salt thereof.",
"[0000] [0042] The invention also provides novel synthetic intermediates described herein as well as methods for preparing such intermediates.",
"DETAILED DESCRIPTION [0043] As used herein alkyl, alkoxy, etc.",
"denote both straight and branched groups;",
"but reference to an individual radical such as propyl embraces only the straight chain radical, a branched chain isomer such as isopropyl being specifically referred to.",
"Haloalkyl denotes an alkyl group that is substituted with one or more (e.g. 1, 2, 3, 4, etc.) halo groups.",
"Aryl denotes a phenyl radical or an ortho-fused bicyclic carbocyclic radical having about nine to ten ring atoms in which at least one ring is aromatic.",
"[0044] Specific values listed below for radicals, substituents, and ranges, are for illustration only;",
"they do not exclude other defined values or other values within defined ranges for the radicals and substituents.",
"[0045] Specifically, (C 1 -C 8 )alkyl can be methyl, ethyl, propyl, isopropyl, butyl, iso-butyl, sec-butyl, pentyl, 3-pentyl, hexyl, heptyl, or octyl;",
"(C 1 -C 8 )alkoxy can be methoxy, ethoxy, propoxy, isopropoxy, butoxy, iso-butoxy, sec-butoxy, pentoxy, hexyloxy, heptyloxy, or octyloxy;",
"halo(C 1 -C 8 )alkyl can be fluoromethyl, difluoromethyl, and trifluoromethyl;",
"aryl-(C 1 -C 8 )alkoxy can be benzyloxy;",
"and aryl can be phenyl, indenyl, or naphthyl.",
"[0046] A specific value for R 1 is an N,N-disubstituted aminosulfonyl group.",
"[0047] Another specific value for R 1 is an N,N-dialkyl aminosulfonyl group.",
"[0048] Another specific value for R 1 is —S(═O) 2 NR a R b , —S(═O) 2 R c , —C(═O)R c , or —C(═O)NR a R b wherein each of R a and R b is independently (C 1 -C 8 )alkyl;",
"or R a and R b together with the nitrogen to which they are attached form a 3 or 4 membered saturated ring or a 5, 6, or 7 membered saturated or partially unsaturated ring comprising 1 or 2 heteroatoms (e.g. aziridine, azetidine, piperidine, morpholine, thiomorpholine, pyrrolidine, homopiperazine, homopiperidine, or piperazine);",
"and R c is aryl, (C 1 -C 8 )alkyl, halo(C 1 -C 8 )alkyl (C 1 -C 8 )alkoxy, or aryl-(C 1 -C 8 )alkoxy, wherein any aryl can optionally be substituted with one or more (C 1 -C 8 )alkyl.",
"In one embodiment of the invention R 1 is not tert-butylsulfonyl (e.g. for a compound of formula V).",
"[0049] Another specific value for R 1 is —S(═O) 2 NR a R b wherein each of R a and R b is independently (C 1 -C 8 )alkyl;",
"or R a and R b together with the nitrogen to which they are attached form a 3 or 4 membered saturated ring or a 5, 6, or 7 membered saturated or partially unsaturated ring comprising 1 or 2 heteroatoms (e.g. aziridine, azetidine, piperidine, morpholine, thiomorpholine, pyrrolidine, homopiperazine, homopiperidine, or piperazine.) [0050] Another specific value for R 1 is: [0000] [0051] Another specific value for R 1 is —S(O) 2 N(CH 3 ) 2 .",
"[0052] Another specific value for R 1 is benzyloxycarbonyl.",
"[0053] A specific value for R 2 is an N,N-disubstituted aminosulfonyl group.",
"[0054] Another specific value for R 2 is an N,N-dialkyl aminosulfonyl group.",
"[0055] Another specific value for R 2 is —S(═O) 2 NR a R b , —S(═O) 2 R c , —C(═O)R c , or —C(═O)NR a R b wherein each of R a and R b is independently (C 1 -C 8 )alkyl;",
"or R a and R b together with the nitrogen to which they are attached form a 3 or 4 membered saturated ring or a 5, 6, or 7 membered saturated or partially unsaturated ring comprising 1 or 2 heteroatoms (e.g. aziridine, azetidine, piperidine, morpholine, thiomorpholine, pyrrolidine, homopiperazine, homopiperidine, or piperazine);",
"and R c is aryl, (C 1 -C 8 )alkyl, halo(C 1 -C 8 )alkyl (C 1 -C 8 )alkoxy, or aryl-(C 1 -C 8 )alkoxy, wherein any aryl can optionally be substituted with one or more (C 1 -C 8 )alkyl.",
"[0056] Another specific value for R 2 is —S(═O) 2 NR d R e wherein each of R d and R e is independently (C 1 -C 8 )alkyl;",
"or R d and R e together with the nitrogen to which they are attached form a 3 or 4 membered saturated ring or a 5, 6, or 7 membered saturated or partially unsaturated ring comprising 1 or 2 heteroatoms (e.g. aziridine, azetidine, piperidine, morpholine, thiomorpholine, pyrrolidine, homopiperazine, homopiperidine, or piperazine.",
"[0057] Another specific value for R 2 is a leaving group such as 4-methylphenyl-sulfonyl, methylsulfonyl, trifluoromethylsulfonyl.",
"[0058] Another specific value for R 2 is: [0000] [0059] A specific value for R 3 is H. [0060] A compound of formula I or a salt thereof can be prepared as illustrated in Schemes 1-4 below.",
"[0000] [0000] [0000] [0000] Preparation of a Compound of Formula Iv [0061] [0062] A compound of formula III can be protected with any suitable protecting groups (R 1 and R 2 , which can be the same or different) under standard conditions to provide the corresponding compound of formula IV.",
"For example, the reaction(s) can be carried out in a suitable solvent in the presence of a base.",
"Suitable solvents include aprotic solvents such as, dichloromethane, tetrahydrofuran, and 2-methyltetrahydrofuran, as well as other aprotic organic solvents, and mixtures thereof.",
"Suitable bases include trialkylamines, such as triethylamine, diisopropylethylamine, and N-methyl morpholine, as well as hydride bases, such as sodium hydride.",
"The reaction can conveniently be carried out at a temperature from about −20° C. to 40° C. [0063] Suitable protecting groups include a tert-butylsulfonyl (Bus) group, N,N-dialkylsulfamoyl groups such as N,N-diisopropylsulfamoyl, N-aziridinylsulfamoyl and other sulfamoyl groups containing an N-heterocycle (such as pyrrolidine or piperidine), as well as N-ethyl and N-methylsulfamoyl groups and other mixed N-alkylsulfamoyl groups.",
"Preparation of a Compound of Formula II [0064] [0065] A compound of formula II can be prepared from a compound of formula IV by treatment with a base in a suitable solvent.",
"Suitable bases include metal hydrides such as sodium hydride and potassium hydride;",
"lithium 2,2,6,6-tetramethylpiperidide;",
"the alkoxides, such as sodium tert-butoxide or lithium tert-butoxide, the hexamethyldisilazides, such as lithium hexamethyldisilazide, and carbonate bases, such as potassium carbonate or cesium carbonate.",
"[0066] Suitable solvents include aprotic solvents such as dichloromethane, tetrahydrofuran, and 2-methyltetrahydrofuran, as well as other aprotic organic solvents, and mixtures thereof.",
"The reaction can conveniently be carried out at a temperature from about 0° C. to 22° C. [0067] Suitable R 1 groups include a tert-butylsulfonyl (Bus) group, N,N-dialkylsulfamoyl groups such as N,N-diisopropylsulfamoyl, N-aziridinylsulfamoyl and other sulfamoyl groups containing an N-heterocycle (such as pyrrolidine or piperidine), as well as N-ethyl and N-methylsulfamoyl groups and other mixed N-alkylsulfamoyl groups.",
"[0068] The resulting compound of formula II can be purified by recrystallization from a suitable solvent or mixture of solvents.",
"For example, combinations of ethereal and non-polar solvents, such as isopropyl ether/heptane as well as crystallization out of concentrated solutions of purely ethereal solvents such as tert-butyl methyl ether can be carried out.",
"Alternative Preparation of a Compound of Formula II [0069] [0070] The starting aziridine can be protected with any suitable protecting group (R 1 ), for example, by treatment with a compound R 1 —X wherein X is a leaving group, under standard conditions to provide the corresponding compound of formula II.",
"For example, the reaction can be carried out in a suitable solvent in the presence of a base.",
"Suitable solvents include aprotic solvents such as dichloromethane, tetrahydrofuran, ethyl ether, tert-butyl methyl ether, tetrahydropyran, 1,4-dioxane, 1,2-dichloroethane, and mixtures thereof.",
"Suitable bases include trialkylamines such as triethylamine, N-methyl morpholine, quinuclidine, N-methylpiperidine, N,N-diisopropylethylamine, and N-methylpyrrolidine;",
"as well as other weak, non-nucleophilic bases such as, potassium carbonate and sodium bicarbonate.",
"The reaction can conveniently be carried out at a temperature from about −10° C. to 40° C. [0071] The resulting compound of formula II can be purified by recrystallization from a suitable solvent or mixture of solvents.",
"For example, combinations of ethereal and non-polar solvents, such as ethyl ether, n-butyl ether, tetrahydrofuran, tetrahydropyran, 1,2-dimethoxyethane, hexanes, tert-butyl methyl ether, heptane, pentane, cyclohexane, toluene can be used.",
"Preparation of a Compound of Formula V: [0072] [0073] The starting aziridine can be dimerized by treatment with a non-nucleophilic amide base in a suitable solvent.",
"Suitable solvents include ethers such as ethyl ether, tert-butyl methyl ether, n-butyl ether, tetrahydropyran, and tetrahydrofuran, as well as hydrocarbons such as hexanes and heptane, and mixtures thereof.",
"Suitable non-nucleophilic amide base include lithium diisopropylamide, lithium 2,2,6,6-tetramethylpiperidide, lithium hexamethyldisilazide, sodium hexamethyldisilazide, potassium hexamethyldisilazide, lithium di-t-butylamide, and lithium isopropylcyclohexylamide.",
"The reaction can conveniently be carried out at a temperature from about −78° C. to 22° C. [0074] The resulting compound of formula V can be purified by recrystallization from a suitable solvent or mixture of solvents.",
"For example, combinations of ethereal and non-polar solvents, such as ethyl ether, n-butyl ether, tetrahydrofuran, tetrahydropyran, 1,2-dimethoxyethane, and tert-butyl methyl ether can be used.",
"Preparation of a Compound of Formula VI: [0075] [0076] The starting compound of formula V can be deprotected under standard conditions to provide the corresponding compound of formula VI.",
"The reaction can be carried out in a solvent that comprises an amine;",
"for example, a monoamine such as ethanolamine, a diamine such as 1,3-diaminopropane, ethylenediamine, 1,2-diaminocyclohexane, 1,2-phenylenediamine, putrescene, or cadaverine, or a polyamine such as diethylenetriamine, triethylenetriamine, or polyethyleneimine.",
"The solvent can also comprise toluene, anisole, or the like, or mixtures thereof.",
"The reaction can conveniently be carried out at a temperature from about 100° C. to about 140° C. Hydrogenation to Provide a Compound of Formula VII [0077] [0078] The starting alkene VI can be hydrogenated under standard conditions.",
"For example, the hydrogenation can be carried out using a metal containing catalyst in an alcoholic solvent.",
"Suitable solvents include methanol, ethanol, isopropanol, n-propanol, butanol, ethyl acetate, toluene, dioxane, and anisole, and mixtures thereof.",
"Suitable catalysts include palladium on carbon, platinum on carbon, Raney nickel, Wilkinson's catalyst, and palladium hydroxide.",
"The reaction can conveniently be carried out at a pressure from about ambient pressure to about 60 psi.",
"[0079] The compound of formula VII can conveniently be isolated by treatment with an acid in an organic solvent to provide a corresponding salt.",
"Suitable acids include hydrochloric acid, hydrobromic acid, hydroiodic acid, and sulfuric acid.",
"Suitable solvents include dichloromethane, ethyl ether, tetrahydrofuran, tert-butyl methyl ether, 1,4-dioxane, 1,2-dimethoxyethane, chloroform, 1,2-dichloroethane, toluene, and anisole, and mixtures thereof.",
"The conversion to the salt can conveniently be carried out at a temperature from about −10° C. to about 40° C. Preparation of a Compound of Formula VIII: [0080] [0081] The mixed carbonate of formula VIII can be prepared by treating 5-hydroxymethylthiazole with a suitable carbonate or carbonate equivalent having a leaving group adjacent to the carbonyl carbon, such as phosgene in the presence of a base.",
"For example, suitable carbonates include bis-(4-nitrophenyl)carbonate and disuccinimidyl carbonate.",
"The reaction can conveniently be carried out in a suitable aprotic organic solvent, such as dichloromethane, tetrahydrofuran, 1,2-dichloroethane, or diethylether, or a mixture thereof.",
"[0082] Suitable bases include trialkylamine bases, such as diisopropylethylamine, N-methyl morpholine, and triethylamine.",
"Preparation of a Compound of Formula IX or a Salt Thereof [0083] [0084] A compound of formula IX or a salt thereof can be prepared from a compound of formula VII or a salt thereof by treatment with a carbonate of formula VIII or a salt thereof in the presence of a suitable base in a suitable solvent.",
"Suitable bases include carbonate bases (e.g. potassium carbonate) and trialkylamines (e.g. diisopropylethylamine, or N-methyl morpholine).",
"Suitable solvents include solvents such as dichloromethane, tetrahydrofuran, 1,2-dichloroethane, isopropylacetate, and diethylether, and mixtures thereof.",
"Preparation of a Compound of Formula XI: [0085] [0086] A compound of formula XI wherein R 3 is H or a salt thereof can be prepared by treating L-methionine with an alkylating agent in the presence of water and acetic acid.",
"Suitable alkylating agents include alkyl bromides (bromoacetic acid), alkyl iodides, alkyl chlorides, and dimethyl sulfate.",
"The reaction can conveniently be carried out in a solvent that comprises an alcohol (e.g. isopropanol), water, and acetic acid.",
"The reaction can be carried out at a temperature from about 22° C. to about 90° C. A compound of formula XI wherein R 3 is a protecting group (e.g. a carbamate, amide, or benzyl protecting group) or a salt thereof can be prepared by protecting a corresponding compound of formula XI wherein R 3 is hydrogen to provide the compound of formula XI wherein R 3 is a protecting group or the salt thereof.",
"Preparation of a Compound of Formula XII: [0087] [0088] A compound of formula XII can be prepared by treating a compound of formula XI wherein R 3 is H or a protecting group (e.g. a carbamate, amide, or benzyl protecting group), or a salt thereof with a compound of formula XIX or a salt thereof, in an aprotic solvent at a temperature from about 0° C. to about 30° C. in the presence of a suitable base and a carbonyl source, such as CDI.",
"When R 3 is a protecting group it can subsequently be removed to provide the compound of formula XII or the salt thereof.",
"Suitable bases include metal hydrides (e.g. sodium hydride), and trialkylamines (e.g. diisopropylethylamine, triethylamine, N-methyl morpholine or DBU).",
"Suitable aprotic solvents include tetrahydrofuran, 2-methyltetrahydrofuran, and dichloromethane, and mixtures thereof.",
"Preparation of a Compound of Formula XIII: [0089] [0090] A compound of formula XIII can be prepared by treating a compound of formula XII or a salt thereof with a suitable iodide source (e.g. trimethylsilyl iodide, hydrogen iodide, or sodium iodide and trimethylsilyl chloride) in an aprotic solvent in the presence of an alcohol ROH to provide the compound of formula XIII wherein R is (C 1 -C 8 )alkyl.",
"Suitable aprotic solvents include tetrahydrofuran, 2-methyltetrahydrofuran, dichloromethane, and acetonitrile, and mixtures thereof.",
"The reaction can typically be carried out at a temperature from about 0° C. to about 22° C. Preparation of a Compound of Formula XIV or a Salt Thereof: [0091] [0092] A compound of formula XIV or a salt thereof can be prepared by treating a compound of formula XIII wherein R is (C 1 -C 8 )alkyl with morpholine to provide the compound of formula XIV or the salt thereof.",
"The resulting compound of formula XIV can be converted to a corresponding salt by treatment with an acid (e.g. an organic acid such as oxalic acid, citric acid, or fumaric acid, or a mineral acid) in an organic solvent.",
"Suitable solvents include tert-butyl methyl ether, methylene chloride, tetrahydrofuran, acetone, acetonitrile, toluene, heptanes, isopropyl acetate, ethyl acetate and alcohols, and mixtures thereof.",
"The salt formation can typically be carried out at a temperature from about 22° C. to about 60° C. Preparation of a Compound of Formula X: [0093] [0094] A compound of formula X wherein M + is a counterion, or a salt thereof, can be prepared by hydrolyzing an ester of formula XIV wherein R is (C 1 -C 8 )alkyl or a salt thereof under standard conditions.",
"For example, the hydrolysis can be carried out in an aqueous solvent (e.g. water and dichloromethane) in the presence of a base (e.g. potassium hydroxide or lithium hydroxide) at a temperature from about −10° C. to about 28° C. Preparation of a Compound of Formula I: [0095] [0096] A compound of formula I or a salt thereof can be prepared by coupling an acid salt of formula X wherein M + is a counterion with an amine of formula IX to form the corresponding amide.",
"This amide forming reaction can be carried out under standard conditions.",
"For example, it can be carried out in a suitable organic solvent (e.g. dichloromethane) in the presence of a suitable coupling agent (e.g. EDC.",
"HCl and HOBt).",
"Other suitable amide coupling reagents and conditions are known in the field.",
"The reaction can typically be carried out at a temperature from about −30° C. to about 20° C. [0097] When carried out in dichloromethane or toluene or a mixture thereof, this coupling reaction unexpectedly provides improved results compared to the coupling in tetrahydrofuran that is described on page 254 of international patent application publication number WO 2008/103949.",
"Accordingly, in one embodiment, the invention provides a process for preparing a compound of formula I comprising coupling an acid salt of formula X with an amine of formula IX or a salt thereof in dichloromethane or toluene or a mixture thereof.",
"This reaction can conveniently be carried out in the presence of a coupling agent (e.g. EDC.",
"HCl and HOBt) at a temperature from about −30° C. to about 20° C. The resulting compound of formula I can be isolated using standard techniques.",
"The compound of formula I can be isolated employing a solid support material as described in International Patent Application Publication Number WO 2009/135179 Alternative Preparation of a Compound of Formula I: [0098] [0099] A compound of formula I or a salt thereof can be prepared by coupling an acid of formula Xa or a salt thereof with an amine of formula IX or a salt thereof to form the corresponding amide.",
"This amide forming reaction can be carried out under standard conditions.",
"For example, it can be carried out in a suitable organic solvent (e.g. dichloromethane) in the presence of a suitable coupling agent (e.g. EDC.",
"HCl and HOBt).",
"Other suitable amide coupling reagents and conditions are known in the field.",
"The reaction can typically be carried out at a temperature from about −30° C. to about 20° C. Alternative Preparation of a Compound of Formula XII [0100] The compound of formula XII shown in Scheme III above can also be prepared as illustrated in Scheme V. [0000] Preparation of a Compound of Formula XII [0101] The amine of formula XV or a salt thereof can be treated with carbonyldiimidazole, in the presence of a suitable base (e.g. a trialkylamine, such as triethylamine, N-methyl morpholine, diisopropylethylamine, or DBU;",
"a hydride base, such as sodium hydride;",
"or an amide base, such as LiHMDS) in an aprotic solvent (e.g. tetrahydrofuran, or 2-methyltetrahydrofuran) to provide the urea of formula XVI.",
"Alkylation of the urea of formula XVI with a suitable methylating agent (e.g. methyl iodide) in the presence of a base in an aprotic solvent provides a compound of formula XVII.",
"Further alkylation with a suitable methylating agent (e.g. methyl iodide) provides a salt of formula XVIII.",
"Treatment of the salt of formula XVIII with an N-unprotected amino γ-lactone of formula XI or with a corresponding N-protected amino γ-lactone (e.g. a carbamate, amide or benzylamine) in a suitable aprotic solvent (e.g. tetrahydrofuran, or 2-methyltetrahydrofuran) in the presence of a suitable base (e.g. a trialkylamine, such as triethylamine, N-methyl morpholine, diisopropylethylamine, or DBU) provides the compound of formula XII.",
"If an N-protected amino γ-lactone is utilized in the previously described step (i.e. R 3 is a protecting group), the resulting protected product can be deprotected to provide the compound of formula XII.",
"[0102] The invention will now be illustrated by the following non-limiting examples.",
"Example 1 Preparation of protected (L)-phenylalaminol IVa [0103] [0104] L-phenylalaminol III (5.0 g) was dissolved in dichloromethane (150 mL).",
"The resulting solution was cooled to 0° C. and diisopropylethylamine (21.4 g) was charged to the reaction mixture, followed by N,N-dimethylsulfamoyl chloride (10 g).",
"The reaction was warmed to room temperature and allowed to stir.",
"After 20 hours, the reaction was quenched with saturated aqueous ammonium chloride (100 mL) and water (50 mL).",
"The layers were then separated and the organic phase was washed with 1 M HCl (2×10 volumes) and water (2×50 mL).",
"The organics were then dried over sodium sulfate.",
"The solids were filtered off and the liquors were concentrated in vacuo to yield 97% of compound IVa as a yellow-orange oil.",
"Compound IVa was then typically used without further purification.",
"1 H NMR (CDCl 3 ) δ 7.26 (m, 5H), 4.94 (d, 1H, J=8 Hz), 3.75 (m, 1H), 3.57 (m, 2H), 2.94 (s, 6H), 2.85 (m, 2H), 2.54 (s, 6H).",
"Example 2 Preparation of (S)-2-benzyl-N,N-dimethylaziridine-1-sulfonamide IIa [0105] [0106] Protected amino alcohol IVa (10 g) was dissolved in 2-MeTHF (300 mL).",
"The resulting solution was cooled to 0° C. Sodium hydride (2.0 g) was then charged portion-wise.",
"The reaction was then warmed to room temperature and allowed to stir.",
"After 4.5 hours, the reaction was cooled to 0° C. and quenched with saturated aqueous ammonium chloride solution (150 mL) and water (100 mL).",
"The layers were separated and the organic layer was washed with 1M HCl (150 mL) followed by saturated aqueous NaCl (150 mL).",
"The organics were dried over sodium sulfate.",
"The solids were filtered off and the filtrate concentrated.",
"Further purification can be done either by column chromatography eluting with 100% dichloromethane, or by recrystallization from MTBE/hexanes, ultimately yielding 64% of compound IIa as a white solid.",
"1 H NMR (CDCl 3 ) δ 7.30 (m, 5H), 2.94 (dd, 1H, J=14, 5 Hz), 2.83 (m, 1H), 2.71 (dd, 1H, J=14, 7 Hz), 2.66 (s, 6H), 2.56 (d, 1H, J=7 Hz), 2.14 (d, 1H, J=4 Hz);",
"13 C NMR (CDCl 3 ) δ 137.4, 129.3, 128.9, 127.2, 77.6, 77.3, 77.0, 40.6, 38.3, 38.1, 33.0.",
"Example 3 Alternative Preparation of (S)-2-benzyl-N,N-dimethylaziridine-1-sulfonamide IIa [0107] [0108] To a cooled (−10° C.) solution of (S)-2-benzylaziridine (100 g, 0.751 mol) and N,N-dimethylsulfamoyl chloride (84.5 mL, 0.787 mol) in dichloromethane (100 mL) was added N,N-diisopropylethylamine (131 mL, 0.751 mol).",
"The resulting yellow solution was stirred at −10° C. for a minimum of 16 hours.",
"After this period, a 0.5M solution of citric acid (500 mL) was added and the phases were separated.",
"The organic phase was then washed with 1.0 M sodium bicarbonate solution (500 mL).",
"The organic phase was then solvent exchanged into tent-butyl methyl ether (500 mL).",
"The solution was then cooled to 0° C., and heptane (100 mL) was added dropwise over a period of 2 hours.",
"The mixture was then aged for an additional 2 hours at 0° C., and then cooled (−10° C.), to allowed compound IIa to precipitate out as a white, crystalline solid (27.8 g, 77%).",
"Tlc assay: R f : 0.53 (SiO 2 ;",
"1:1 heptane:ethyl acetate, KMnO 4 ).",
"1 H NMR (400 MHz, CDCl 3 ): δ 7.20-7.29 (m, 5H), 2.94 (dd, J=14, 5 Hz, 1H), 2.80-2.88 (m, 1H), 2.70 (dd, J=14, 7 Hz, 1H), 2.66 (s, 6H), 2.56 (d, J=7 Hz, 1H), 2.14 (d, J=4 Hz, 1H).",
"13 C NMR (100 MHz, CDCl 3 ): δ 137.4, 129.3, 128.9, 127.2, 40.6, 38.3, 38.1, 33.0.",
"Example 4 Preparation of Protected Diamine Va [0109] [0110] To a cooled (0° C.) solution of 2,2,6,6-tetramethylpiperidine (5.5 mL) in tetrahydrofuran (14 mL) was added n-butyllithium (10M in hexanes, 3.1 mL).",
"The resulting cloudy, yellow solution was warmed to 22° C. and allowed to stir at that temperature for 20 minutes.",
"[0111] To a cooled (−10° C.) cloudy solution of IIa (5.0 g) in tetrahydrofuran (7 mL) was added the preformed lithium tetramethylpiperidide (LTMP) dropwise by syringe pump (addition rate: 40 mL/hr, LTMP temperature: 22° C.).",
"During the addition, the reaction gradually turns to a purple-brown solution.",
"The reaction was then allowed to slowly warm to 0° C. over the course of 45 minutes.",
"A 10% (w/v) solution of citric acid (15 mL) was then added to the cold reaction and the resulting bright-yellow solution was stirred vigorously at 0° C. for several minutes.",
"The biphasic mixture was then diluted with ethyl acetate (75 mL) and the phases were separated.",
"The organic phase was washed with 10% (w/v) citric acid (1×15 mL), saturated sodium bicarbonate (2×15 mL) and brine (1×15 mL).",
"The organic phase was subsequently dried over sodium sulfate, filtered, and concentrated under reduced pressure to give a bright yellow solid.",
"The crude mixture was suspended in hot tert-butyl methyl ether, cooled to −16° C., and filtered to give Va as a white powder (3.2 g, 64%).",
"Tlc assay: R f : 0.32 (SiO 2 , 1:1 heptane:ethyl acetate, KMnO 4 ).",
"1 H NMR (400 MHz, CDCl 3 ): δ 7.10-7.35 (m, 10H), 5.59 (s, 2H), 3.95-4.10 (m, 4H), 2.80 (ddd, J=22, 13, 6 Hz, 4H), 2.59 (s, 12H).",
"13 C NMR (100 MHz, CDCl 3 ): δ 136.7, 132.0, 129.9, 128.9, 127.2, 57.0, 42.4, 38.1.",
"Example 5 Alternative Preparation of Protected Diamine Va [0112] [0113] To a cooled (−10° C.) slurry of IIa (10.0 g) and 2,2,6,6-tetramethylpiperidine (2.1 mL) in 1:3 tetrahydrofuran:heptane (30 mL) was slowly added n-butyllithium (2.6M in hexanes, 19 mL) over the course of 3 hr.",
"During the addition, the reaction gradually turned to a purple-brown solution;",
"upon completion the resulting was stirred at that temperature for an additional 20 minutes.",
"[0114] Glacial acetic acid (4.0 mL) was then added to the cold reaction and the resulting bright-yellow suspension was stirred vigorously at 5° C. for several minutes.",
"The mixture was then filtered and the solid material was washed with 3:1 t-butyl methyl ether:heptane (2×30 mL), water (3×30 mL), and again with 3:1 t-butyl methyl ether:heptane (2×30 mL).",
"The wet cake was then thoroughly dried to give Va as a white powder (7.22 g, 72%).",
"Tlc assay: R f : 0.32 (SiO 2 , 1:1 heptane:ethyl acetate, KMnO 4 ).",
"1 H NMR (400 MHz, CDCl 3 ): δ 7.10-7.35 (m, 10H), 5.59 (s, 2H), 3.95-4.10 (m, 4H), 2.80 (ddd, J=22, 13, 6 Hz, 4H), 2.59 (s, 12H).",
"13 C NMR (100 MHz, CDCl 3 ): δ 136.7, 132.0, 129.9, 128.9, 127.2, 57.0, 42.4, 38.1.",
"Example 6 Preparation of Unsaturated Diamine VI [0115] [0116] A solution of the protected diamine Va (2.0 g) in 1,3-diaminopropane (4 mL) was heated to 110° C. and stirred at that temperature for 90 minutes.",
"After cooling the yellow solution to 22° C., water (16 mL) was added followed by dichloromethane (20 mL).",
"The phases were separated and the aqueous phase was washed with an additional portion of dichloromethane (1×10 mL).",
"The combined organic phases were dried over sodium sulfate, filtered, and concentrated under reduced pressure to give VI as a thick, yellow oil (1.1 g, 100%).",
"This material was used directly in the next reaction without further purification.",
"Tlc assay: R f : 0.61 (SiO 2 , 4:1 CH 2 Cl 2 :CH 3 OH w/5% Et 3 N, KMnO 4 ).",
"1 H NMR (400 MHz, CDCl 3 ): δ 7.10-7.35 (m, 10H), 5.60 (dd, J=4, 2 Hz, 2H), 3.50-3.60 (br, 2H), 2.85 (dd, J=13, 5 Hz, 2H), 2.60 (13, 8 Hz, 2H), 1.15 (br, 4H).",
"13 C NMR (100 MHz, CDCl 3 ): δ 139.0, 134.1, 129.7, 128.6, 126.5, 54.9, 44.9.",
"Example 7 Preparation of Compound VII [0117] [0118] To a solution of unsaturated diamine VI (1.1 g) in methanol (8.2 mL) was added 10% palladium on carbon (110 mg, 10 wt %).",
"The resulting black suspension was purged with hydrogen gas and held under a hydrogen atmosphere (balloon) for 16 hours.",
"The reaction was then filtered through celite and concentrated under reduced pressure to provide VII as a thick, yellow oil (1.11 g, 100%).",
"This material was carried on to the next reaction without further purification.",
"Tlc assay: R f : 0.60 (SiO 2 , 4:1 CH 2 Cl 2 :CH 3 OH w/5% Et 3 N, KMnO 4 ).",
"1 H NMR (400 MHz, CDCl 3 ): δ 7.15-7.35 (m, 10H), 2.95-3.05 (m, 2H), 2.82 (dd, J=13, 5 Hz, 2H), 2.50 (dd, J=13, 9 Hz, 2H), 1.45-1.66 (m, 4H), 1.36 (br, 4H).",
"13 C NMR (100 MHz, CDCl 3 ): δ 139.7, 129.5, 128.7, 126.5, 53.2, 45.1, 34.6.",
"Example 8 Preparation of Diamine-Dihydrogen Chloride VIIa [0119] [0120] To a cooled (0° C.) solution of VII (1.11 g) in dichloromethane (14 mL) was added a solution of 4M hydrochloric acid in dioxane (2.6 mL).",
"The resulting pale-pink suspension was allowed to warm to 22° C. and was stirred at that temperature for 90 minutes.",
"The mixture was then filtered;",
"the precipitate was washed with copious amounts of dichloromethane and dried in vacuo to provide VIIa as a pale-pink powder (1.32 g, 94% from V).",
"1 H NMR (400 MHz, D 2 O): δ 7.10-7.35 (m, 10H), 3.38-3.48 (m, 2H), 2.92 (dd, J=14, 7 Hz, 2H), 2.76 (dd, J=14, 8 Hz, 2H), 1.58-1.74 (m, 4H).",
"Example 9 Preparation of Carbonate VIII [0121] [0122] 5-Hydroxymethylthiazole (5 kg) was dissolved in dichloromethane (210 kg).",
"To this solution was added bis-(4-nitrophenyl)carbonate (15 kg) and triethylamine (7.5 kg).",
"The reaction mixture was allowed to stir overnight.",
"Upon reaction completion, the reaction mixture was washed with 1.0 M aqueous K 2 CO 3 solution (50 kg) to fully remove 4-nitrophenol.",
"The organic layer was then washed with 1.0 M aqueous citric acid until the pH of the organic solution was less than 8.",
"The organic layer was dried over Na 2 SO 4 .",
"The solids were then filtered off and the organic layer was solvent exchanged into isopropyl acetate and concentrated to a volume of approximately 4 volumes.",
"To this solution was slowly added n-heptane (100 L) and allowed to age over a period of 5 or more hours.",
"This affords VIII as a solid which can subsequently be isolated via filtration.",
"1 H NMR (CDCl 3 ) δ 8.89 (s, 1H), 8.26 (d, 2H), 7.99 (s, 1H), 7.37 (d, 2H), 5.51 (s, 2H).",
"Example 10a Preparation of mono-carbamate hydrochloride IXa [0123] [0124] Diamine-dihydrochloride VIIa (2.37 kg), aqueous potassium carbonate (1M, 27 kg), and dichloromethane (68 kg) were agitated for 1 hour at 20° C. The dichloromethane layer was separated, dried over sodium sulfate (7.1 kg), and filtered to afford the diamine freebase.",
"To this solution was charged additional dichloromethane (66 kg) and mixed-carbonate VIII (1.95 kg).",
"Once all solids had dissolved, diisopropylethylamine (1.1 kg, 8.3 mol) was added and the reaction monitored by tlc assay (SiO 2 , 80% ethyl dichloromethane in methanol as eluant, product R f =0.73, visualization by UV).",
"The reaction contents were washed with 0.25N aqueous NaOH until the presence of residual VIII and 4-nitrophenol were not detected by tlc assay.",
"The organic layer was washed with water, dried over sodium sulfate (7 kg), filtered, concentrated and dissolved into isopropyl acetate (about 50 L) and diluted with dichloromethane (47 kg).",
"To this solution was charged HCl (1.88 kg 4N HCl in dioxane, about 8.2 mol HCl) to induce precipitation.",
"The product IXa was filtered and rinsed with isopropyl acetate (21 kg) and dried under vacuum to afford a white powder (2.57 kg, 83% yield).",
"1 H NMR (CD 3 OD) δ 9.0 (s, 1H), 7.8 (s, 1H), 7.4-7.14 (m, 10H), 5.2 (d, 1H), 4.8 (s, 5H) 3.7 (m, 1H), 3.6 (m, 1H), 3.3 (s, 1H), 2.6-2.8 (m, 2H), 1.8-1.4 (m, 4H).",
"13 C NMR (CD 3 OD) δ 154.4, 143.2, 129.6, 128.0, 126.0, 58.0, 52.4, 44.3, 41.6, 33.8, 30.5.",
"Example 10b Preparation of Mono-Carbamate Hydrochloride IXa [0125] [0126] Diamine-dihydrochloride VIIa (2.0 g), aqueous sodium hydroxide (3M, 4.1 g), and dichloromethane (13.3 g) were agitated for 1 hour at 20° C. The dichloromethane layer was separated and subsequently washed with water (10 g) to afford the diamine freebase.",
"To this solution was charged additional dichloromethane (26.6 g) and mixed-carbonate VIII (1.72 g).",
"The resulting solution was heated to 40° C. and held at that temperature until the reaction was deemed complete by HPLC.",
"The solvent was then removed in vacuo, co-distilled with tetrahydrofuran (17.8 g) and then rediluted with tetrahydrofuran (35.6 g).",
"To this solution was then added concentrated hydrochloric acid (12M, 0.588 g) to induce precipitation.",
"The product IXa was filtered, rinsed with 1% H 2 O in 1:1 THF:CH 2 Cl 2 (2×40 mL) and dried under vacuum to afford a white powder (2.15 g, 82% yield).",
"1 H NMR (CD 3 OD) δ 9.0 (s, 1H), 7.8 (s, 1H), 7.4-7.14 (m, 10H), 5.2 (d, 1H), 4.8 (s, 5H) 3.7 (m, 1H), 3.6 (m, 1H), 3.3 (s, 1H), 2.6-2.8 (m, 2H), 1.8-1.4 (m, 4H).",
"13 C NMR (CD 3 OD) δ 154.4, 143.2, 129.6, 128.0, 126.0, 58.0, 52.4, 44.3, 41.6, 33.8, 30.5.",
"Example 11 Preparation of Amino Lactone XIa [0127] [0128] To a solution of L-methionine (46 kg) in water (69 kg, at ambient temperature was charged bromoacetic acid (46.0 kg), 2-propanol (69.0 kg) and acetic acid (69.0 kg).",
"The resulting mixture was heated to reflux (85° C. to 95° C.) and agitated at this temperature until the reaction was judged complete by 1 H NMR.",
"The mixture was concentrated under reduced pressure and co-evaporated with 2-propanol.",
"2-Propanol (161.0 kg) was charged to the concentrated mixture, followed by a slow addition of 10 wt % HCl/dioxane solution (102 kg) at ambient temperature.",
"The resulting slurry was heated to about 60° C. and agitated for about 4 hours.",
"The pot temperature was adjusted to about 22° C. and agitated for about 2 hours.",
"The product Ma was filtered, washed with two portions of 2-propanol (28 kg each portion) and dried under vacuum at 40° C. to afford white to off-white solid (39.3 kg, 70% yield).",
"1 H NMR (D 2 O) 4.79 (s, 2H), 4.61 (dd, 1H), 4.49-4.41 (m, 2H), 2.80 (m, 1H), 2.42 (m, 1H).",
"Example 12 Preparation of Urea XII [0129] [0130] To a slurry of (L)-amino lactone Ma 31.5 kg) in dichloromethane (105 kg) was charged diisopropylethylamine (28.8 kg).",
"The reaction mixture was cooled to about 10° C. and carbonyldiimidazole (27.1 kg) was added portion-wise while the content temperature was maintained at less than or equal to 25° C. The resulting mixture was agitated until the reaction was judged complete.",
"Methyl aminomethyl thiazole XIX (21.0 kg) was charged maintaining content temperature at less than or equal to 25° C. and agitated.",
"Once complete, the reaction mixture was washed with water (63.0 kg), then two times with 20 wt % aqueous citric acid solution (63.0 kg).",
"All the aqueous layers were combined and extracted with dichloromethane (63.0 kg).",
"The organic layers were combined and washed once with 8 wt % aqueous sodium bicarbonate solution (63.0 kg) and once with water (63.0 kg).",
"The organic layer was concentrated under reduced pressure to 3 volumes and co-evaporated with dichloromethane.",
"The product XII was discharged as a stock solution in dichloromethane (33.4 kg, 91% yield).",
"1 H NMR (CDCl 3 ) 7.02 (s, 1H), 4.55-4.41 (m, 4H), 4.27 (m, 1H), 3.29 (septets, 1H), 2.98 (s, 3H), 2.78 (m, 1H), 2.20 (m, 1H), 1.38 (d, 6H).",
"Example 13 Preparation of L-thiazole morpholine ethyl ester oxalate salt XIVa [0131] [0132] To a solution of (L)-thiazole amino lactone XII (33.4 kg) in dichloromethane (89.5 kg) was charged dichloromethane (150 kg) and absolute ethanol (33.4 kg).",
"The content temperature was then adjusted to about 10° C., followed by slow addition of TMSI (78.8 kg) while the content temperature was maintained at less than or equal to 22° C. and agitated until the reaction was judged complete.",
"The content temperature was adjusted to about 10° C., followed by a slow addition of morpholine (49.1 kg) while the content temperature was maintained at less than or equal to 22° C. Once complete, the reaction mixture was filtered to remove morpholine.",
"HI salt and the filter cake was rinsed with two portions of dichloromethane (33.4 kg).",
"The filtrate was washed twice with water (100 kg).",
"The organic layer was concentrated under vacuum to dryness.",
"Acetone (100 kg) was then charged to the concentrate and the solution was concentrated under reduced pressure to dryness.",
"Acetone (233.8 kg) was charged to the concentrate, followed by a slow addition of the solution of oxalic acid (10 kg) in acetone (100 kg).",
"The resulting slurry was refluxed for about 1 hour before cooling down to about 3° C. for isolation.",
"The product XIVa was filtered and rinsed with acetone (66.8 kg) and dried under vacuum at 40° C. to afford a white to off-white solid (40 kg, 71% yield).",
"1 H NMR (CDCl 3 ) 7.00 (s, 1H), 6.35 (broad s, 1H), 4.60-4.40 (m, 3H), 4.19 (quartets, 2H), 4.00-3.90 (m, 4H), 3.35-3.10 (m, 7H), 3.00 (s, 3H), 2.40-2.30 (m, 1H), 2.15-2.05 (m, 1H), 1.38 (d, 6H), 1.25 (triplets, 3H).",
"Example 14 Preparation of Compound I [0133] [0134] To the solution of L-thiazole morpholine ethyl ester oxalate salt XIVa (35.6 kg) in water (66.0 kg) was charged dichloromethane (264 kg), followed by a slow addition of 15 wt % KHCO 3 solution (184.8 kg).",
"The resulting mixture was agitated for about 1 hour.",
"The layers were separated and the organic layer was washed with water (132 kg).",
"The organic layer was concentrated under vacuum to dryness.",
"Water (26.5 kg) was charged and the content temperature was adjusted to about 10° C., followed by slow addition of 45% KOH solution (9.8 kg) while maintaining the content temperature at less than or equal to 20° C. The mixture was agitated at less than or equal to 20° C. until the reaction was judged complete by HPLC.",
"The reaction mixture was concentrated under vacuum to dryness and co-evaporated five times with dichloromethane (132 kg each time) under reduced pressure to dryness.",
"Co-evaporation with dichloromethane (132 kg) was continued until the water content was <4% by Karl Fischer titration.",
"Additional dichloromethane (264 kg) was charged and the content temperature was adjusted to −18° C. to −20° C., followed by addition of monocarbamate.",
"HCl salt IXa (26.4 kg).",
"The resulting mixture was agitated at −18° C. to −20° C. for about 1 hour.",
"HOBt (11.4 kg) was charged and the reaction mixture was again agitated at −18° C. to −20° C. for about 1 hour.",
"A pre-cooled solution (−20° C.) of EDC.",
"HCl (21.4 kg) in dichloromethane (396 kg) was added to the reaction mixture while the content temperature was maintained at less than or equal to −20° C. The reaction mixture was agitated at −18° C. to −20° C. until the reaction was judged complete.",
"The content temperature was adjusted to about 3° C. and the reaction mixture quenched with a 10 wt % aqueous citric acid solution (290 kg).",
"The layers were separated and the organic layer was washed once with 15 wt % potassium bicarbonate solution (467 kg) and water (132 kg).",
"The organic layer was concentrated under reduced pressure and then co-evaporated with absolute ethanol.",
"The product I was isolated as the stock solution in ethanol (35.0 kg product, 76.1% yield).",
"1 H NMR ('DMSO) 9.05 (s, 1H), 7.85 (s, 1H), 7.52 (d, 1H), 7.25-7.02 (m, 12H), 6.60 (d, 1H), 5.16 (s, 2H), 4.45 (s, 2H), 4.12-4.05 (m, 1H), 3.97-3.85 (m, 1H), 3.68-3.59 (m, 1H), 3.57-3.45 (m, 4H), 3.22 (septets, 1H), 2.88 (s, 3H), 2.70-2.55 (m, 4H), 2.35-2.10 (m, 6H), 1.75 (m, 1H), 1.62 (m, 1H), 1.50-1.30 (m, 4H), 1.32 (d, 6H).",
"13 C NMR (CD 3 OD) δ 180.54, 174, 160.1, 157.7, 156.9, 153.8, 143.8, 140.1, 140.0, 136.0, 130.53, 130.49, 129.4, 127.4, 127.3, 115.5, 67.7, 58.8, 56.9, 55.9, 54.9, 53.9, 51.6, 49.8, 42.7, 42.0, 35.4, 34.5, 32.4, 32.1, 29.1, 23.7.",
"Example 15 Alternative preparation of urea XII [0135] [0136] A urea of formula XII can also be prepared as described in steps a-d below.",
"[0000] a. To a slurry of carbonyldiimidazole (8.5 g, 0.052 mol, 1.2 eq.) in tetrahydrofuran (100 g) at about 10° C. was charged triethylamine (6.6 g, 0.065 mol, 1.5 eq.) while the reaction temperature was maintained at about 10° C. The resulting slurry was charged in portions with starting amino isopropylthiazole diHCl, (XVa, 10 g, 0.044 mol) with the pot temperature maintained at about 10° C. Once the addition was complete, the pot temperature was allowed to warm to ambient temperature and the reaction mixture was agitated at this temperature until the reaction was judged complete by HPLC (target: starting material≦1%).",
"Once complete, the triethylamine HCl salt was filtered off.",
"The wet filter cake was washed with THF (80 kg) and the filtrate was concentrated under vacuum at about 40° C. and co-evaporated with ethyl acetate (50 kg).",
"To the resulting slurry was charged with ethyl acetate (20 kg), then cooled to about 0° C. and agitated at this temperature for about 1 hour.",
"The product was filtered off and washed with heptane (20 kg).",
"The filter cake was pulled dry in the filter under vacuum.",
"b. The above wet filter cake was slurried up in tetrahydrofuran (80 g) and the pot temperature was adjusted to about 0° C. To this slurry, tert-BuOK (6.9 g, 0.061 mol, 1.4 eq.) was slowly charged while the reaction temperature was maintained at about 0° C., followed by addition of methyl iodide (8.7 g, 0.061 mol, 1.4 eq.) at about 0° C. Once the addition was complete, the reaction mixture was allowed to warm to ambient temperature and agitated at this temperature until the reaction was judged complete by HPLC (target: product≧70%).",
"Once complete, the reaction mixture was adjusted to about 3° C. and agitated at this temperature for about 1 hour.",
"The potassium iodide salt was filtered off and the filter cake was washed with THF (20 g).",
"The mother-liquor containing product was collected and carried forward to the next step.",
"c. To the above mother-liquor, methyl iodide was charged (18.6 g, 0.131 mol, 3 eq.) and the reaction mixture was warmed to about 35° C. and agitated at this temperature until the reaction was judged complete by HPLC (target: starting material≦1%, approximately 24 hours).",
"Once complete, the reaction mixture was adjusted to ambient temperature and filtered.",
"The product filter cake was washed with THF (20 g).",
"The filter cake was pulled dry in the filter under vacuum.",
"d. To the above wet filter cake was charged THF (80 g), followed by portion-wise addition of L-amino lactone, XI (7 g, 0.038 mol, 0.9 eq.).",
"To the resulting mixture, diisopropylethylamine (8.5 g, 0.066 mol, 1.5 eq.) was charged slowly while the reaction temperature was maintained below 30° C. Once the addition was complete the reaction temperature was adjusted to ambient and agitated until the reaction was judged complete by HPLC (target: starting material≦1%, approximately 48 hours).",
"Once complete, the reaction mixture was concentrated under vacuum to approximately 3 volumes with the bath temperature set at maximum (40° C.).",
"The concentrate was then adjusted to ambient and charged with methylene chloride (50 g).",
"The resulting organic solution was washed with 20% citric acid solution (30 g) and then water (30 g).",
"The aqueous layers were combined and back extracted with methylene chloride (50 g).",
"The organic layers were combined and concentrated under reduced pressure to about 3 volumes with bath temperature set at ≦40° C. The concentration was repeated until KF limit was met (target: KF≦0.5%).",
"Once KF limit was met, the product XII was discharged as a stock solution in methylene chloride (5.8 g, 45% yield).",
"1 H NMR (CDCl 3 ) 7.02 (s, 1H), 4.55-4.41 (m, 4H), 4.27 (m, 1H), 3.29 (septets, 1H), 2.98 (s, 3H), 2.78 (m, 1H), 2.20 (m, 1H), 1.38 (d, 6H).",
"[0137] All publications, patents, and patent documents are incorporated by reference herein, as though individually incorporated by reference.",
"The invention has been described with reference to various specific and preferred embodiments and techniques.",
"However, it should be understood that many variations and modifications may be made while remaining within the spirit and scope of the invention."
] |
Priority is claimed of provisional patent application SN 60/109,612 filed Nov. 23, 1998, for an “Advanced Rescue Vision System”. Said provisional application is hereby incorporated by reference and made a part hereof as though fully set forth.
The invention was made with Government support under a contract awarded by the Department of the Air Force. The Government has certain rights in this invention.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The inventions relate to a head mounted or hand held infrared imaging system, and more particularly to an infrared imaging system for an advanced rescue vision system. One embodiment relates to a head mounted passive infrared imaging system; and another embodiment relates to an active head mounted or hand held infrared imaging system.
2. Background Information
Infrared means that the wavelength of infrared radiation is longer than visible light (from 0.38 μ to 0.78 μ). Infrared light shares many of the properties of visible light, but its different wavelength has several unique characteristics. For instance, materials that are opaque to visible light may be transparent to infrared, and vice-versa. Infrared is much less subject to scattering and absorption by smoke or dust than visible, and infrared cannot be seen by human eye.
Also, unlike visible light, which is given off by ordinary objects only at very high temperatures, infrared energy is emitted by all objects at ordinary temperatures higher than 0° K. This means that infrared energy is all around us all the time, even in the dark. Different objects give off varying amounts of infrared energy, depending on the temperature of the object and their emissivity. Passive IR cameras are designed to sense differing amounts of infrared energy coming from the various areas of a scene by focal plane array detector and to convert them to corresponding intensities of visible light by electronics for display purposes. This permits true see-in-the-dark capability as well as the ability to observe the thermal properties in all light conditions.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
Passive System
A feature of the invention is a head mounted passive infrared imaging system for use in an advanced rescue vision system.
Objects of the invention include eliminating the operational deficiencies in hand held infrared imaging devices, reduce the cost and weight, provide for unimpeded wireless imagery signal transmission, have the imaging device voice activated, and provide for images that can be colored and identified by neural network chips.
Fire creates smoke and dust. A fire fighter can not see the fire and human being through smoke and dust, because the visible light with wavelength less than 0.78 μ is created by smoke and dust. However if a fire fighter has an Infrared Imager, he is able to see the fire and human being through smoke and dust because the smoke and dust can not scatter the infrared light with a wavelength longer than 1 μ emitted from fire and human being. In addition the IR imager also can see objects in complete darkness.
The system according to the invention uses cutting edge technologies such as Uncooled Staring Focal Plane detector Array, Hot Pressed Polycrystal Objective Lens, Helmet Mounted Display Using Transparent Image Combiner, and Neural Network Image Colorization and Recognition to dramatically enhance the system performance and reduce the weight and cost.
The helmet mounted infrared imaging system can:
Detect and recognize flames, humans and other objects,
Reduce the weight of the helmet components (including camera head and combiner) to less than 0.5 pounds,
View simultaneously visible and invisible surroundings without hindering operations.
Operate the imaging system hands-off; and
Transmit the imaging data to and receive the map from a remote sight.
Alternative Embodiment
In an alternative embodiment, the infrared camera is mounted centered in front of the display.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING
FIG. 1 is a pictorial view of a helmet mounted infrared imaging system;
FIG. 1A is a block diagram of the passive infrared imaging system configuration shown in FIG. 1;
FIG. 2 is an alternative embodiment of the imaging system of FIG. 1, in which the infrared camera is mounted in front of the display apparatus;
FIG. 2A is an alternative embodiment of the block diagram of FIG. 1A, for use with FIG. 2;
FIG. 3 is a block diagram of an IR camera;
FIG. 4 is a functional Block Diagram of the Staring FPA circuit including interface with processing unit and display module;
FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram of the objective lens 102 of FIG. 3;
FIG. 6 is a block diagram of a generic uncooled IR imaging system;
FIG. 7 is a video processing block diagram;
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
Passive System
A. INTRODUCTION
FIGS. 1 and 1A show a passive infrared imaging system configuration for fire-fighting applications; with FIG. 1 showing a helmet 10 having a visor 12 , and FIG. 1A being a block diagram of the system. The system includes the following major components: Uncooled Infrared Imager, Video Processor, Neural Image Recognition Network, Helmet Mounted Display and Combiner, Voice Control and Wireless Image Transmission Unit.
Principle of Operation
The camera block diagram is shown in FIG. 3 . The incoming infrared radiation is focused by the camera optics 102 on a focal plane detector array 106 . The electronic output of the detector goes via line 108 to a video processor and controller 110 , which converts into video signals for display. The video processor and controller 110 provides bias and control signals via line 112 to the detector array 106 and also operates a rotating mechanical chopper wheel 104 . The chopper periodically interrupts the IR radiation to the detector array 106 . The interruption is timed for and synchronized with the production of each video frame. The polarity signal from the head goes to the video processor, which uses it to determine when to invert the video output.
Helmet Mounted Display and Voice Control
An IR camera head 20 (FIGS. 1 & 1A) which has an objective lens, focal plane array and preamplifier with an approximate weight of 0.25 pound, and a combiner 32 is mounted on the helmet 10 . the power supply, main amplifier, electronic board and controller are located within the fireman's uniform. The two elements are connected via a two-way cable 22 , and the apparatus in the uniform is connected via a cable 26 to a CRT or LCD display unit 28 mounted on the helmet.
Relay optics 30 projects the IR image from the monitor 28 to the combiner 32 . The fire fighter sees not only the IR image but also the visible scene. This allows the fire fighter to operate without the hindrance of a hand held device. To inhance the operation of the display a voice control chip 40 has been added to allow the fireman to choose whether or not he/she wants the IR image projected on the combiner. All operations are hand-free. A microphone 42 is connected to the voice control chip 40 via a cable 44 . Headphones 46 are also connected to the system.
Automatic Object Recognition
A neural network on a chip 36 is used to automatically detect and recognize humans, flames, and objects. The human image is displayed in flashing blue color (low temperature) and the fire image is displayed in flashing red color (high temperature). After the image is found, the device will give a beep.
Wireless Image Transmission
The IR images can be sent to the fire truck and headquarters 50 by an antenna 36 on the transmitter and receiver 34 , and a transmitter and receiver 54 at the fire station 52 . The fire truck and headquarters also can send the building plan, operation manual and instructions to the fire fighter through the antenna and display them on the combiner 32 .
Alternative Embodiment of the Helmet Mounted Display
An alternative embodiment of the helmet mounted display is shown in FIGS. 2 and 2A. In this embodiment, on the helmet 10 a , the infrared camera 20 a is mounted in front of the display 31 a and centered, which eliminates a problem with parallax. The infrared unit is connected to an electronic package and power supply 200 a.
FIG. 2 a shows the infrared camera head 20 a connected to a electronics and controller unit 24 a , which in turn is connected to a micro image processor and software unit 38 a . A neural net chip 36 a and a voice chip 40 a are connected between the unit 38 a and the electronics and controller unit 24 a . As in FIG. 1, transmitter and receiver units 34 a and 54 a are used to connect couple the helmet system to a fire station 52 a and headquarters 50 a.
B. SYSTEM DESIGN
FIGS. 1 and 1A show a passive infrared imaging system configuration for fire-fighting applications; with FIG. 1 showing a helmet 10 having a visor 12 , and FIG. 2 being a block diagram of the system. The system includes the following major components: Uncooled Infrared Imager, Video Processor, Neural Image Recognition Network, Helmet Mounted Display and Combiner, Voice Control and Wireless Image Transmission Unit.
Uncooled Infrared Imager
A block diagram of the uncooled infrared imager system is shown in FIG. 1A. A description of the major components are as follows:
Waveband—In order to detect and recognize flames and human beings in the presence of heavy smoke and dust, the waveband of the infrared radiation is selected from 2 μm to 12 μm. The materials of the objective lens and the detector window must be transparent for this waveband.
Chopper—The IR radiation signal from flames and human beings must be converted to an AC signal to increase the signal to noise ratio (S/N). Current choppers are opaque chopper made of thin metal or plastic and have an open spiral pattern. The detector views the scene through the cut-out and views the chopper itself during the closed mode, therefore the detector can generate a signal that represents the difference in temperature between the apparent chopper temperature and the scene temperature during one video field time period (60 Hz). The resulting signal is the opposite polarity in adjacent fields.
Detector—The required uncooled detector is Focal Plane Array (FPA) with 120×160 pixels. The basis for selecting a low resolution format was to reduce the weight and cost of the imager. The IR imager must be mounted on a helmet. The IR imager must not require cooling, therefore an uncooled thermal FPA made of Barium Strontium Titanate (BST) should meet the requirements for fire fighting applications. The detector sensitivity can be enhanced by fast optics (such as F≈1). A one-stage Thermoelectric Cooling (TEC) device and a temperature sensor are used for temperature stabilization at the optimum detector operating temperature (near room temperature 295 K) for peak performance.
Staring Focal Plane Array (FPA) Circuit
A functional Block Diagram of the Staring FPA circuit including interface with processing unit and display module is shown in FIG. 4 . Infrared energy 202 from the target after passing through the radiation collecting Optics 204 (window, objective lens and detector interface lens), Dither 206 (optional) and controlled Aperture Modulator 208 (CAM optional) goes to the staring FPA Detector 210 (uncooled or thermally cooled). The FPA signals are multiplexed and sent to the Detector Buffer 212 where they are separated into two paths. The analog signals are sent to the FLIR Processing Electronics 300 . The Sensor Interface Circuit converts the analog signals to digital signals and are paired. In the Processor 304 , the pixel pair of raw signals are converted into processed and scaled images and are stored into video memory. The images are produced in RS-170 format by reading the images from video memory and converting the digital signals to analog format on the Video and Boot circuit. The RS-170 formatted video is available for external display via a BNC connector. The digital image data from the video memory, and formatted in video format, can be available in lieu of analog video.
The functions and specification for the other components of the Staring FPA circuit are:
Power Regulator 230 supplies operating voltages: +12 VDC, −12 VDC, +5 VDC, −5 VDC, and +5 VDC digital. This device has two switching regulators, two linear regulators, input balun and filtering, and output filtering. The outputs are analog supply and digital supply voltages.
Controlled Aperture Modulator (CAM) 208 is an optional device. It provides continuous non-uniformity correction. The CAM is programmed and controlled by the FLIR programmable processing electronics mentioned above.
Dither Assemble 206 is also an optional device. It is a micro-scanning device that can be programmed with various dither patterns to improve the effective performance of relatively “sparse” FPAs. As an example, a 120×160 array can be dithered to provide the approximate performance of a 240×320 array. The Dither also can be used to accomplish the “dead” pixel replacement.
Neural image Recognition Network
To distinguish between a human and burning object is a challenging problem that a fireman has to face. The human eye is incapable of identifying a human surrounded by other objects in the presence of smoke and dust.
In a conventional pattern recognition, the feature extractor extracts features from the raw scene. These features are then classified using a pattern classifier such as a Bayesian classifier. Based on this classification of features the object is recognized as being belonging to a certain class.
A more convenient approach is to use a neural network. The network will take the raw data in some form and then use it to extract the features from the raw data automatically. Thus a neural network discovers the algorithm for feature extraction and classification at the same time.
A neural network based identification of humans surrounded by other objects in the presence of smoke and dust from image data is described in a later section.
Helmet Mounted Display
The relative position of the sensor (IR Imager 20 ) and the display (Combiner 32 ) is shown in FIG. 1 . The majority of the electronic and wireless transmission circuits are installed in a small pocket size package to reduce the weight of the helmet mounted devices. A voice control chip 40 is used to have a hand-free operation.
Wireless Image Transmission
A set of transmitter and receiver 34 are mounted on the fire fighter's shoulder to send the images to the fire truck and receive data from the truck.
C. OPTICAL SYSTEM DESIGN
The camera optics 102 of FIG. 3 is shown in FIG. 5 . By using computer automatic lens design software, an objective lens was designed which comprises two separated lenses 402 and 404 . The first lens 402 is constructed by hot pressed CaF 2 The second lens 404 is made by hot pressed ZnS. The two lenses are separated by an air gap to enhance the performance of the objective lens.
The lens design software allows the selection of ten basic lens design parameters for this objective lens formed by the combination of two lenses. These parameters are:
1. curvature r 1 of the first face 1 of the first lens 402 ,
2. spacing d 1 of the first lens,
3. refraction index n 1 of the first lens,
4. curvature r 2 of the second face 2 of the first lens 402 ,
5. air gap d 2 ,
6. refraction index n 2 of the air gap,
7. curvature r 3 of the first face 1 of the second lens 404 ,
8. spacing d 3 of the second lens,
9. refraction index n 3 of the second lens,
10. curvature r 4 of the second face 4 of the second lens.
TABLE 1
The Structure Parameters of the Objective Lens
Parameter
Curvature r
Aperture D
Spacing d
Ref
Face
mm
mm
mm
Index n
Material
1
64.50
25
2.31
1.35
CaF 2
2
52.00
25
0.51
1.00
Air
3
76.90
25
2.31
2.25
ZnS
4
249.00
25
—
—
—
Since the waveband of the objective lens is large, it is very important to eliminate any chromatic aberration. By careful choosing of the parameters and materials, the designed objective lens is almost chromatic aberration free.
Interface Design of Relay Optics
The infrared image is normally displayed on a cathode ray tube (CRT) or liquid crystal display (LCD) rather than on a combiner. therefore, a optical interface between the cathode ray tube and the combiner is needed.
A shown in FIGS. 1 and 1A, the infrared image is displayed on a CRT or LCD display. The addition of a mirror and a display relay optics between the display and the combiner allows the image to be reflected by 90° from the display to the combiner. The display relay optics component is similar to the optics in an overhead projector. In this case the CRT screen or LCD display becomes the objective plane and the combiner the image plane.
Thin Film coating Design For the Objective Lens
For the objective lens of FIG. 5, designs are needed for the anti-reflection coating and the cut-off reflection coating. Because the refraction index of CaF 2 is low, it is not necessary to add an anti-reflection coating on lens 402 . However, since ZnS refraction index is high, an anti-reflection coating is necessary on lens 404 . The selected anti-reflection coating materials are SrF 2 (n=1) and PbF 2 (n=1.65). Although CaF 2 lens 402 can automatically cut the objective lens wavelengths longer than 12 μm, wavelength shorter than 2 μm must be eliminated by the use of short wavelength cut-off filter.
D. ELECTRONIC SYSTEM DESIGN
The focus of the Electronic System Design comprises the circuits for: Staring Focal Plane Array (FPA) Circuit, Video Processing, Thermal Head electronics, Programmable Processor, Erasable Programmable Read Only Memory (EPROM) and Neural Network.
Staring Focal Plane Array (FPA) Circuit
This has been described above.
Video Processing
The block diagram of the generic uncooled IR imaging system is shown in FIG. 6 . The video processing block diagram is shown in FIG. 7 .
In FIG. 6, IR energy in the band 2 - 12 μ band passes through an IR imager 610 and a chopper 620 to an uncooled detector 630 . The signal from the detector 630 is processed by the system electronics 640 , and goes via an RS-170 connection to a standard monitor 650 . The system electronics 640 of FIG. 6 is shown in more detail in FIG. 7 . It comprises an amplifier 715 , a course pixel offset correction circuit 720 , a pixel gain normalization circuit 730 , an automatic gain control 740 , an analog to digital converter 750 , a delta frame circuit 760 , a digital to analog converter 770 , an automatic brightness control circuit 780 , and an RS-170 driver 790 .
A signal from the FPA is enlarged by the amplifier 715 . The uncooled FPA video signal requires unique processing. Each field time of video contains a complete readout of the array. Each pixel of this field has both a signal and an offset. The offset, fixed pattern or spatial noise is usually different for every pixel, but is the same in all fields. Each pixel has unique offset and gain characteristics.
Course Pixel Offset Correction—After the amplifier 715 , there is a course offset subtraction in circuit 720 to reduce the magnitude of the offsets. To do this, offset magnitudes for each pixel are measured, stored in memory and subtracted in real-time from the video signal. A gain normalization stage in circuit 730 is used to eliminate the gain non-uniformity. The stage multiplies the video by a stored correction coefficient. The response of each pixel to a uniform temperature source is measured, an average response for the array is determined and a correction coefficient is calculated for every pixel. This value is stored in memory and used to correct the non-uniformity in real-time. Typically, the range of adjustment is between one-half to two times the average response. Signals from dead or defective pixels are replaced with signals from adjacent good ones.
Delta Frame—In order to process and remove the unwanted detector offsets, the system uses a frame differential video processing stage called Delta Frame (circuit 760 ). This circuitry uses memory to store and subtract consecutive fields, this subtraction eliminates the offsets, doubles the remaining signal and improves the system S/N by a factor of 1.4142.
Automatic Gain Control and Brightness Control—After the pixel gain normalization there is an automatic gain control in circuit 740 , and before the video output there is an automatic brightness control in circuit 780 . The purpose of using these circuits is to get better image quality and contrast.
ADC and DAC—Before the Delta Frame circuit 760 a 8-bit Analog-to-Digital converter (ADC) 750 is adopted for image processing. After the Delta Frame, there is a 8-bit Digital-to Analog Converter (DAC) 770 —to convert the processed video back to analog and combines RS-170 timing functions for displaying on a monitor 650 .
Erasable Programmable Read Only Memory
Overview
Erasable Programmable Read Only Memory (EPROM) or an Electrically Erasable Programmable Read Only Memory (EPROM) chips are used to embed operation commands, pattern recognition, image colorization, IR Imager control and video recorder control.
An EPROM has a floating-gate MOS transistor at every bit location. Each transistor has two gates. The “floating” gate is unconnected and is surrounded by extremely high-impedance insulating material. To program an EEPROM, the programmer applies a high voltage to the nonfloating gate at each bit location where a 0 is to be stored. This causes a breakdown in the insulating material and allows a negative charge to accumulate on the floating gate. When the high voltage is removed, the negative charge remains.
During read operations, the negative charge prevents the MOS transistor from turning on when it is selected.
When the chip is exposed to the UV light through a quartz window, the insulating material surrounding the floating gate becomes slightly conductive and all instructions are erased.
EEPROMs are similar to EPROMs, except that individual stored bits can be erased electrically.
EEPROM's cost is lower that the EPROM. EEPROMs are limited to the number of reprogramming actions—typically 10,000 times.
Operation Commands and Pattern Recognition
All operation commands and pattern recognition algorithms will be embedded in EPROM or EEPROM chips.
Image Colorization
Since the temperature of fire is higher than human being and other objects, a very simple software algorithm can be programmed into the EPROM chips to automatically color the fire in red, people in blue and other objects in other colors. When the fire-fighter sees a flashing red area in the picture, he will immediately know that there is a fire in the area.
Voice Control
Existing IR imagers do not allow the fire fighter to see the infrared images and visible objects at the same time. By using a combiner similar to the “head up display” for pilots, the fire fighter will be able to detect visible images and infrared images on the combiner at the same time. To activate the IR imager system, “Voice Control” will be used through the use of a EPROM chip (e.g. HM2007 from HUALON Microelectronics Corp.) to control the IR imager switch. At the word “ON”, the switch of IR imager will be activated and the IR images will be projected from the CRT or LCD combiner. The word “OFF” will switch the IR imager off removing the IR image and returning the combiner to clear glass configuration.
Video Tape Player and Wireless Document Transmission
In addition to the IR image we will provide the addition of structural drawings, equipment manuals, fire fighting instructions and other applicable items to the display capabilities of the combiner.
Similar to the “head up display”, the preceding information can be displayed on the monitor and projected on the combiner from a small video tape recorder.
If a video tape player is not equipped, the fire fighter can ask the fire truck or headquarters to send the building map and other documents to him by antenna and display them on the combiner. | The system according to the invention uses cutting edge technologies such as Uncooled Staring Focal Plane detector Array, Hot Pressed Polycrystal Objective Lens, Helmet Mounted Display Using Transparent Image Combiner, and Neural Network Image Colorization and Recognition to dramatically enhance the system performance and reduce the weight and cost.
The helmet mounted infrared imaging system can:
Detect and recognize flames, humans and other objects,
Reduce the weight of the helmet components (including camera head and combiner) to less than 0.5 pounds,
View simultaneously visible and invisible surroundings without hindering operations.
Operate the imaging system hands-off; and
Transmit the imaging data to and receive the map from a remote sight.
Alternative Embodiment
In an alternative embodiment, the infrared camera is mounted centered in front of the display. | Briefly summarize the main idea's components and working principles as described in the context. | [
"Priority is claimed of provisional patent application SN 60/109,612 filed Nov. 23, 1998, for an “Advanced Rescue Vision System.”",
"Said provisional application is hereby incorporated by reference and made a part hereof as though fully set forth.",
"The invention was made with Government support under a contract awarded by the Department of the Air Force.",
"The Government has certain rights in this invention.",
"BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1.",
"Field of the Invention The inventions relate to a head mounted or hand held infrared imaging system, and more particularly to an infrared imaging system for an advanced rescue vision system.",
"One embodiment relates to a head mounted passive infrared imaging system;",
"and another embodiment relates to an active head mounted or hand held infrared imaging system.",
"Background Information Infrared means that the wavelength of infrared radiation is longer than visible light (from 0.38 μ to 0.78 μ).",
"Infrared light shares many of the properties of visible light, but its different wavelength has several unique characteristics.",
"For instance, materials that are opaque to visible light may be transparent to infrared, and vice-versa.",
"Infrared is much less subject to scattering and absorption by smoke or dust than visible, and infrared cannot be seen by human eye.",
"Also, unlike visible light, which is given off by ordinary objects only at very high temperatures, infrared energy is emitted by all objects at ordinary temperatures higher than 0° K. This means that infrared energy is all around us all the time, even in the dark.",
"Different objects give off varying amounts of infrared energy, depending on the temperature of the object and their emissivity.",
"Passive IR cameras are designed to sense differing amounts of infrared energy coming from the various areas of a scene by focal plane array detector and to convert them to corresponding intensities of visible light by electronics for display purposes.",
"This permits true see-in-the-dark capability as well as the ability to observe the thermal properties in all light conditions.",
"SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Passive System A feature of the invention is a head mounted passive infrared imaging system for use in an advanced rescue vision system.",
"Objects of the invention include eliminating the operational deficiencies in hand held infrared imaging devices, reduce the cost and weight, provide for unimpeded wireless imagery signal transmission, have the imaging device voice activated, and provide for images that can be colored and identified by neural network chips.",
"Fire creates smoke and dust.",
"A fire fighter can not see the fire and human being through smoke and dust, because the visible light with wavelength less than 0.78 μ is created by smoke and dust.",
"However if a fire fighter has an Infrared Imager, he is able to see the fire and human being through smoke and dust because the smoke and dust can not scatter the infrared light with a wavelength longer than 1 μ emitted from fire and human being.",
"In addition the IR imager also can see objects in complete darkness.",
"The system according to the invention uses cutting edge technologies such as Uncooled Staring Focal Plane detector Array, Hot Pressed Polycrystal Objective Lens, Helmet Mounted Display Using Transparent Image Combiner, and Neural Network Image Colorization and Recognition to dramatically enhance the system performance and reduce the weight and cost.",
"The helmet mounted infrared imaging system can: Detect and recognize flames, humans and other objects, Reduce the weight of the helmet components (including camera head and combiner) to less than 0.5 pounds, View simultaneously visible and invisible surroundings without hindering operations.",
"Operate the imaging system hands-off;",
"and Transmit the imaging data to and receive the map from a remote sight.",
"Alternative Embodiment In an alternative embodiment, the infrared camera is mounted centered in front of the display.",
"BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING FIG. 1 is a pictorial view of a helmet mounted infrared imaging system;",
"FIG. 1A is a block diagram of the passive infrared imaging system configuration shown in FIG. 1;",
"FIG. 2 is an alternative embodiment of the imaging system of FIG. 1, in which the infrared camera is mounted in front of the display apparatus;",
"FIG. 2A is an alternative embodiment of the block diagram of FIG. 1A, for use with FIG. 2;",
"FIG. 3 is a block diagram of an IR camera;",
"FIG. 4 is a functional Block Diagram of the Staring FPA circuit including interface with processing unit and display module;",
"FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram of the objective lens 102 of FIG. 3;",
"FIG. 6 is a block diagram of a generic uncooled IR imaging system;",
"FIG. 7 is a video processing block diagram;",
"DETAILED DESCRIPTION Passive System A. INTRODUCTION FIGS. 1 and 1A show a passive infrared imaging system configuration for fire-fighting applications;",
"with FIG. 1 showing a helmet 10 having a visor 12 , and FIG. 1A being a block diagram of the system.",
"The system includes the following major components: Uncooled Infrared Imager, Video Processor, Neural Image Recognition Network, Helmet Mounted Display and Combiner, Voice Control and Wireless Image Transmission Unit.",
"Principle of Operation The camera block diagram is shown in FIG. 3 .",
"The incoming infrared radiation is focused by the camera optics 102 on a focal plane detector array 106 .",
"The electronic output of the detector goes via line 108 to a video processor and controller 110 , which converts into video signals for display.",
"The video processor and controller 110 provides bias and control signals via line 112 to the detector array 106 and also operates a rotating mechanical chopper wheel 104 .",
"The chopper periodically interrupts the IR radiation to the detector array 106 .",
"The interruption is timed for and synchronized with the production of each video frame.",
"The polarity signal from the head goes to the video processor, which uses it to determine when to invert the video output.",
"Helmet Mounted Display and Voice Control An IR camera head 20 (FIGS.",
"1 &",
"1A) which has an objective lens, focal plane array and preamplifier with an approximate weight of 0.25 pound, and a combiner 32 is mounted on the helmet 10 .",
"the power supply, main amplifier, electronic board and controller are located within the fireman's uniform.",
"The two elements are connected via a two-way cable 22 , and the apparatus in the uniform is connected via a cable 26 to a CRT or LCD display unit 28 mounted on the helmet.",
"Relay optics 30 projects the IR image from the monitor 28 to the combiner 32 .",
"The fire fighter sees not only the IR image but also the visible scene.",
"This allows the fire fighter to operate without the hindrance of a hand held device.",
"To inhance the operation of the display a voice control chip 40 has been added to allow the fireman to choose whether or not he/she wants the IR image projected on the combiner.",
"All operations are hand-free.",
"A microphone 42 is connected to the voice control chip 40 via a cable 44 .",
"Headphones 46 are also connected to the system.",
"Automatic Object Recognition A neural network on a chip 36 is used to automatically detect and recognize humans, flames, and objects.",
"The human image is displayed in flashing blue color (low temperature) and the fire image is displayed in flashing red color (high temperature).",
"After the image is found, the device will give a beep.",
"Wireless Image Transmission The IR images can be sent to the fire truck and headquarters 50 by an antenna 36 on the transmitter and receiver 34 , and a transmitter and receiver 54 at the fire station 52 .",
"The fire truck and headquarters also can send the building plan, operation manual and instructions to the fire fighter through the antenna and display them on the combiner 32 .",
"Alternative Embodiment of the Helmet Mounted Display An alternative embodiment of the helmet mounted display is shown in FIGS. 2 and 2A.",
"In this embodiment, on the helmet 10 a , the infrared camera 20 a is mounted in front of the display 31 a and centered, which eliminates a problem with parallax.",
"The infrared unit is connected to an electronic package and power supply 200 a. FIG. 2 a shows the infrared camera head 20 a connected to a electronics and controller unit 24 a , which in turn is connected to a micro image processor and software unit 38 a .",
"A neural net chip 36 a and a voice chip 40 a are connected between the unit 38 a and the electronics and controller unit 24 a .",
"As in FIG. 1, transmitter and receiver units 34 a and 54 a are used to connect couple the helmet system to a fire station 52 a and headquarters 50 a. B. SYSTEM DESIGN FIGS. 1 and 1A show a passive infrared imaging system configuration for fire-fighting applications;",
"with FIG. 1 showing a helmet 10 having a visor 12 , and FIG. 2 being a block diagram of the system.",
"The system includes the following major components: Uncooled Infrared Imager, Video Processor, Neural Image Recognition Network, Helmet Mounted Display and Combiner, Voice Control and Wireless Image Transmission Unit.",
"Uncooled Infrared Imager A block diagram of the uncooled infrared imager system is shown in FIG. 1A.",
"A description of the major components are as follows: Waveband—In order to detect and recognize flames and human beings in the presence of heavy smoke and dust, the waveband of the infrared radiation is selected from 2 μm to 12 μm.",
"The materials of the objective lens and the detector window must be transparent for this waveband.",
"Chopper—The IR radiation signal from flames and human beings must be converted to an AC signal to increase the signal to noise ratio (S/N).",
"Current choppers are opaque chopper made of thin metal or plastic and have an open spiral pattern.",
"The detector views the scene through the cut-out and views the chopper itself during the closed mode, therefore the detector can generate a signal that represents the difference in temperature between the apparent chopper temperature and the scene temperature during one video field time period (60 Hz).",
"The resulting signal is the opposite polarity in adjacent fields.",
"Detector—The required uncooled detector is Focal Plane Array (FPA) with 120×160 pixels.",
"The basis for selecting a low resolution format was to reduce the weight and cost of the imager.",
"The IR imager must be mounted on a helmet.",
"The IR imager must not require cooling, therefore an uncooled thermal FPA made of Barium Strontium Titanate (BST) should meet the requirements for fire fighting applications.",
"The detector sensitivity can be enhanced by fast optics (such as F≈1).",
"A one-stage Thermoelectric Cooling (TEC) device and a temperature sensor are used for temperature stabilization at the optimum detector operating temperature (near room temperature 295 K) for peak performance.",
"Staring Focal Plane Array (FPA) Circuit A functional Block Diagram of the Staring FPA circuit including interface with processing unit and display module is shown in FIG. 4 .",
"Infrared energy 202 from the target after passing through the radiation collecting Optics 204 (window, objective lens and detector interface lens), Dither 206 (optional) and controlled Aperture Modulator 208 (CAM optional) goes to the staring FPA Detector 210 (uncooled or thermally cooled).",
"The FPA signals are multiplexed and sent to the Detector Buffer 212 where they are separated into two paths.",
"The analog signals are sent to the FLIR Processing Electronics 300 .",
"The Sensor Interface Circuit converts the analog signals to digital signals and are paired.",
"In the Processor 304 , the pixel pair of raw signals are converted into processed and scaled images and are stored into video memory.",
"The images are produced in RS-170 format by reading the images from video memory and converting the digital signals to analog format on the Video and Boot circuit.",
"The RS-170 formatted video is available for external display via a BNC connector.",
"The digital image data from the video memory, and formatted in video format, can be available in lieu of analog video.",
"The functions and specification for the other components of the Staring FPA circuit are: Power Regulator 230 supplies operating voltages: +12 VDC, −12 VDC, +5 VDC, −5 VDC, and +5 VDC digital.",
"This device has two switching regulators, two linear regulators, input balun and filtering, and output filtering.",
"The outputs are analog supply and digital supply voltages.",
"Controlled Aperture Modulator (CAM) 208 is an optional device.",
"It provides continuous non-uniformity correction.",
"The CAM is programmed and controlled by the FLIR programmable processing electronics mentioned above.",
"Dither Assemble 206 is also an optional device.",
"It is a micro-scanning device that can be programmed with various dither patterns to improve the effective performance of relatively “sparse”",
"FPAs.",
"As an example, a 120×160 array can be dithered to provide the approximate performance of a 240×320 array.",
"The Dither also can be used to accomplish the “dead”",
"pixel replacement.",
"Neural image Recognition Network To distinguish between a human and burning object is a challenging problem that a fireman has to face.",
"The human eye is incapable of identifying a human surrounded by other objects in the presence of smoke and dust.",
"In a conventional pattern recognition, the feature extractor extracts features from the raw scene.",
"These features are then classified using a pattern classifier such as a Bayesian classifier.",
"Based on this classification of features the object is recognized as being belonging to a certain class.",
"A more convenient approach is to use a neural network.",
"The network will take the raw data in some form and then use it to extract the features from the raw data automatically.",
"Thus a neural network discovers the algorithm for feature extraction and classification at the same time.",
"A neural network based identification of humans surrounded by other objects in the presence of smoke and dust from image data is described in a later section.",
"Helmet Mounted Display The relative position of the sensor (IR Imager 20 ) and the display (Combiner 32 ) is shown in FIG. 1 .",
"The majority of the electronic and wireless transmission circuits are installed in a small pocket size package to reduce the weight of the helmet mounted devices.",
"A voice control chip 40 is used to have a hand-free operation.",
"Wireless Image Transmission A set of transmitter and receiver 34 are mounted on the fire fighter's shoulder to send the images to the fire truck and receive data from the truck.",
"C. OPTICAL SYSTEM DESIGN The camera optics 102 of FIG. 3 is shown in FIG. 5 .",
"By using computer automatic lens design software, an objective lens was designed which comprises two separated lenses 402 and 404 .",
"The first lens 402 is constructed by hot pressed CaF 2 The second lens 404 is made by hot pressed ZnS.",
"The two lenses are separated by an air gap to enhance the performance of the objective lens.",
"The lens design software allows the selection of ten basic lens design parameters for this objective lens formed by the combination of two lenses.",
"These parameters are: 1.",
"curvature r 1 of the first face 1 of the first lens 402 , 2.",
"spacing d 1 of the first lens, 3.",
"refraction index n 1 of the first lens, 4.",
"curvature r 2 of the second face 2 of the first lens 402 , 5.",
"air gap d 2 , 6.",
"refraction index n 2 of the air gap, 7.",
"curvature r 3 of the first face 1 of the second lens 404 , 8.",
"spacing d 3 of the second lens, 9.",
"refraction index n 3 of the second lens, 10.",
"curvature r 4 of the second face 4 of the second lens.",
"TABLE 1 The Structure Parameters of the Objective Lens Parameter Curvature r Aperture D Spacing d Ref Face mm mm mm Index n Material 1 64.50 25 2.31 1.35 CaF 2 2 52.00 25 0.51 1.00 Air 3 76.90 25 2.31 2.25 ZnS 4 249.00 25 — — — Since the waveband of the objective lens is large, it is very important to eliminate any chromatic aberration.",
"By careful choosing of the parameters and materials, the designed objective lens is almost chromatic aberration free.",
"Interface Design of Relay Optics The infrared image is normally displayed on a cathode ray tube (CRT) or liquid crystal display (LCD) rather than on a combiner.",
"therefore, a optical interface between the cathode ray tube and the combiner is needed.",
"A shown in FIGS. 1 and 1A, the infrared image is displayed on a CRT or LCD display.",
"The addition of a mirror and a display relay optics between the display and the combiner allows the image to be reflected by 90° from the display to the combiner.",
"The display relay optics component is similar to the optics in an overhead projector.",
"In this case the CRT screen or LCD display becomes the objective plane and the combiner the image plane.",
"Thin Film coating Design For the Objective Lens For the objective lens of FIG. 5, designs are needed for the anti-reflection coating and the cut-off reflection coating.",
"Because the refraction index of CaF 2 is low, it is not necessary to add an anti-reflection coating on lens 402 .",
"However, since ZnS refraction index is high, an anti-reflection coating is necessary on lens 404 .",
"The selected anti-reflection coating materials are SrF 2 (n=1) and PbF 2 (n=1.65).",
"Although CaF 2 lens 402 can automatically cut the objective lens wavelengths longer than 12 μm, wavelength shorter than 2 μm must be eliminated by the use of short wavelength cut-off filter.",
"D. ELECTRONIC SYSTEM DESIGN The focus of the Electronic System Design comprises the circuits for: Staring Focal Plane Array (FPA) Circuit, Video Processing, Thermal Head electronics, Programmable Processor, Erasable Programmable Read Only Memory (EPROM) and Neural Network.",
"Staring Focal Plane Array (FPA) Circuit This has been described above.",
"Video Processing The block diagram of the generic uncooled IR imaging system is shown in FIG. 6 .",
"The video processing block diagram is shown in FIG. 7 .",
"In FIG. 6, IR energy in the band 2 - 12 μ band passes through an IR imager 610 and a chopper 620 to an uncooled detector 630 .",
"The signal from the detector 630 is processed by the system electronics 640 , and goes via an RS-170 connection to a standard monitor 650 .",
"The system electronics 640 of FIG. 6 is shown in more detail in FIG. 7 .",
"It comprises an amplifier 715 , a course pixel offset correction circuit 720 , a pixel gain normalization circuit 730 , an automatic gain control 740 , an analog to digital converter 750 , a delta frame circuit 760 , a digital to analog converter 770 , an automatic brightness control circuit 780 , and an RS-170 driver 790 .",
"A signal from the FPA is enlarged by the amplifier 715 .",
"The uncooled FPA video signal requires unique processing.",
"Each field time of video contains a complete readout of the array.",
"Each pixel of this field has both a signal and an offset.",
"The offset, fixed pattern or spatial noise is usually different for every pixel, but is the same in all fields.",
"Each pixel has unique offset and gain characteristics.",
"Course Pixel Offset Correction—After the amplifier 715 , there is a course offset subtraction in circuit 720 to reduce the magnitude of the offsets.",
"To do this, offset magnitudes for each pixel are measured, stored in memory and subtracted in real-time from the video signal.",
"A gain normalization stage in circuit 730 is used to eliminate the gain non-uniformity.",
"The stage multiplies the video by a stored correction coefficient.",
"The response of each pixel to a uniform temperature source is measured, an average response for the array is determined and a correction coefficient is calculated for every pixel.",
"This value is stored in memory and used to correct the non-uniformity in real-time.",
"Typically, the range of adjustment is between one-half to two times the average response.",
"Signals from dead or defective pixels are replaced with signals from adjacent good ones.",
"Delta Frame—In order to process and remove the unwanted detector offsets, the system uses a frame differential video processing stage called Delta Frame (circuit 760 ).",
"This circuitry uses memory to store and subtract consecutive fields, this subtraction eliminates the offsets, doubles the remaining signal and improves the system S/N by a factor of 1.4142.",
"Automatic Gain Control and Brightness Control—After the pixel gain normalization there is an automatic gain control in circuit 740 , and before the video output there is an automatic brightness control in circuit 780 .",
"The purpose of using these circuits is to get better image quality and contrast.",
"ADC and DAC—Before the Delta Frame circuit 760 a 8-bit Analog-to-Digital converter (ADC) 750 is adopted for image processing.",
"After the Delta Frame, there is a 8-bit Digital-to Analog Converter (DAC) 770 —to convert the processed video back to analog and combines RS-170 timing functions for displaying on a monitor 650 .",
"Erasable Programmable Read Only Memory Overview Erasable Programmable Read Only Memory (EPROM) or an Electrically Erasable Programmable Read Only Memory (EPROM) chips are used to embed operation commands, pattern recognition, image colorization, IR Imager control and video recorder control.",
"An EPROM has a floating-gate MOS transistor at every bit location.",
"Each transistor has two gates.",
"The “floating”",
"gate is unconnected and is surrounded by extremely high-impedance insulating material.",
"To program an EEPROM, the programmer applies a high voltage to the nonfloating gate at each bit location where a 0 is to be stored.",
"This causes a breakdown in the insulating material and allows a negative charge to accumulate on the floating gate.",
"When the high voltage is removed, the negative charge remains.",
"During read operations, the negative charge prevents the MOS transistor from turning on when it is selected.",
"When the chip is exposed to the UV light through a quartz window, the insulating material surrounding the floating gate becomes slightly conductive and all instructions are erased.",
"EEPROMs are similar to EPROMs, except that individual stored bits can be erased electrically.",
"EEPROM's cost is lower that the EPROM.",
"EEPROMs are limited to the number of reprogramming actions—typically 10,000 times.",
"Operation Commands and Pattern Recognition All operation commands and pattern recognition algorithms will be embedded in EPROM or EEPROM chips.",
"Image Colorization Since the temperature of fire is higher than human being and other objects, a very simple software algorithm can be programmed into the EPROM chips to automatically color the fire in red, people in blue and other objects in other colors.",
"When the fire-fighter sees a flashing red area in the picture, he will immediately know that there is a fire in the area.",
"Voice Control Existing IR imagers do not allow the fire fighter to see the infrared images and visible objects at the same time.",
"By using a combiner similar to the “head up display”",
"for pilots, the fire fighter will be able to detect visible images and infrared images on the combiner at the same time.",
"To activate the IR imager system, “Voice Control”",
"will be used through the use of a EPROM chip (e.g. HM2007 from HUALON Microelectronics Corp.) to control the IR imager switch.",
"At the word “ON”, the switch of IR imager will be activated and the IR images will be projected from the CRT or LCD combiner.",
"The word “OFF”",
"will switch the IR imager off removing the IR image and returning the combiner to clear glass configuration.",
"Video Tape Player and Wireless Document Transmission In addition to the IR image we will provide the addition of structural drawings, equipment manuals, fire fighting instructions and other applicable items to the display capabilities of the combiner.",
"Similar to the “head up display”, the preceding information can be displayed on the monitor and projected on the combiner from a small video tape recorder.",
"If a video tape player is not equipped, the fire fighter can ask the fire truck or headquarters to send the building map and other documents to him by antenna and display them on the combiner."
] |
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a highly specific anti-Caveolin-1 polyclonal antibody, an antigen and a method used for preparing said antibody, and a kit used for detecting Caveolin-1 in a specimen.
2. Description of the Related Art
Caveolin-1 is a 21-24 kDa membrane protein containing 178 amino acid residues, and it is abundant in caveolaes. Caveolaes are invaginations of the plasma membrane, and cholesterol and signal transducing molecules are accumulated in these invaginations. Both N- and C-terminal domains of Caveolin-1 are hydrophilic and oriented toward the cytoplasm, while the hydrophobic central stretch is embedded in the membrane. The N-terminal region of Caveolin-1 (amino acid residues 82-101) is necessary for its interaction with signal transducing molecules, while the C-terminal region (amino acid residues 135-178) is essential for Caveolin-1 dimer formation from its monomers, and for the membrane attachment of Caveolin-1. Caveolin-1 expression in mammals is down-regulated during late pregnancy and lactation through a prolactin signaling cascade. Overexpression of recombinant Caveolin-1 in mammary epithelial cell line HC11 inhibits the β-casein expression induced by prolactin. In addition, mammary gland development in Caveolin-1 null mice is earlier than in normal mice (Park et al., 2001). Therefore, Caveolin-1 acts as a negative regulator during mammary development and lactation. If Caveolin-1 expression in medium and large lactating animals can be detected, it may be helpful to study the role played by Caveolin-1 in the mammary gland.
In pathology studies, it has been found that Caveolin-1 expression is lost or down-regulated in many tumorous tissues of, for example, breast, ovary, prostate and colon cancers, and Caveolin-1 is regarded as an indicator for the progression of these cancers (Sloan et al., 2004; Wikman et al., 2004). Another prior study has found, using mRNA subtractive hybridization, that there is an obvious difference between Caveolin-1 gene expression in normal and tumorous human mammary epithelial cells (Sager et al., 1994). Another study found that Caveolin-1 expression in mammary adenocarcinoma-derived cells was much lower than in normal mammary epithelial cells. When Caveolin-1 was overexpressed in tumor cell lines, cell tumorigenesis was suppressed (Park et al., 2001). Ectopic expression of recombinant Caveolin-1 in mammary adenocarcinoma cells through cell transfection reduced the metastatic potential of these cells (Zhang et al., 2000). These studies have demonstrated that Caveolin-1 is anti-tumorigenic and can be used as a molecular indicator to diagnose the progression of some cancers.
The current method of detection of Caveolin-1 protein in tissues and cells is by immunochemical or immunofluorescent staining, and there are dozens of commercial anti-Caveolin-1 antibodies in the market. However, most of these commercial anti-Caveolin-1 antibodies are produced by the antigen derived from N-terminal amino acid residues 1-20 or 30-44 of Caveolin-1, and some of them are produced by the antigen derived from C-terminal of Caveolin-1. Bush et al. (2006) used five different anti-Caveolin-1 antibodies (developed by other teams) to detect the location of expressed Caveolin-1 in MDCK cells, and found that the specific locations of Caveolin-1 detected by different antibodies were different. This finding indicates that different anti-Caveolin-1 antibodies vary in their ability to label Caveolin-1 in cells, and the Caveolin-1 signals detected by these antibodies show different patterns.
Therefore, an anti-Caveolin-1 antibody with a higher efficiency to Caveolin-1 will be extremely advantageous for cancer research and the development of cancer treatments.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
To solve the above-mentioned problems, one objective of the present invention is to provide an anti-Caveolin-1 polyclonal antibody, which is prepared by the following steps: (1) providing an antigen comprising a fragment of Caveolin-1 peptide sequence SEQ ID NO: 1; and (2) subcutaneously injecting said antigen into a rabbit to produce the anti-Caveolin-1 polyclonal antibody. Said anti-Caveolin-1 polyclonal antibody recognizes Caveolin-1 of a variety of mammalian species, and it can be used to monitor the progression of a variety of cancers.
Another objective of the present invention is to provide a method for preparing the above-mentioned anti-Caveolin-1 polyclonal antibody.
A further objective of the present invention is to provide a peptide sequence for preparing the above-mentioned anti-Caveolin-1 polyclonal antibody.
Yet another objective of the present invention is to provide a kit for the detection of Caveolin-1 in a specimen, comprising the above-mentioned anti-Caveolin-1 polyclonal antibody, and this kit may further comprise a secondary antibody having a signal; in addition, this kit can be used for detecting Caveolin-1 in a variety of mammalian species and monitoring the progression of a variety of cancers.
To achieve these objectives, the present invention provides an anti-Caveolin-1 polyclonal antibody, which is prepared by the following steps:
(1) providing an antigen comprising a fragment of Caveolin-1 peptide sequence SEQ ID NO: 1; and (2) subcutaneously injecting said antigen into a rabbit to produce the anti-Caveolin-1 polyclonal antibody.
In preferred embodiments of the present invention, said antigen is listed in the sequence listing as SEQ ID NO: 2 and is of the following formula:
In preferred embodiments of the present invention, said anti-Caveolin-1 polyclonal antibody recognizes Caveolin-1 of mammals; more preferably, recognizes Caveolin-1 of human, cattle, goat, rat or mouse; and most preferably, recognizes Caveolin-1 of human, goat or mouse.
In preferred embodiments of the present invention, said anti-Caveolin-1 polyclonal antibody is used as a cancer indicator for monitoring cancer progression; more preferably, for monitoring breast or colon cancer progression.
The present invention also provides a method for preparing an anti-Caveolin-1 polyclonal antibody, comprising the following steps:
(1) providing an antigen comprising a fragment of Caveolin-1 peptide sequence SEQ ID NO: 1; and (2) subcutaneously injecting said antigen into a rabbit to produce the anti-Caveolin-1 polyclonal antibody.
In preferred embodiments of the present invention, said antigen is listed in the sequence listing as SEQ ID NO: 2 and is of the following formula:
The present invention also provides an antigen for preparing the anti-Caveolin-1 polyclonal antibody according to claim 1 , comprising a fragment of Caveolin-1 peptide sequence SEQ ID NO: 1.
In preferred embodiments of the present invention, said antigen is listed in the sequence listing as SEQ ID NO: 2 and is of the following formula:
In addition, the present invention provides a kit used for detecting Caveolin-1 in a specimen, comprising the above-mentioned anti-Caveolin-1 polyclonal antibody.
In preferred embodiments of the present invention, said kit further comprises a secondary antibody having a signal; more preferably, said signal is fluorescence- or enzyme-generated; and most preferably, said enzyme is horseradish peroxidase (HRP), and said fluorescence is FITC or Texas-Red.
In preferred embodiments of the present invention, said specimen is a tissue section or a cell sample; more preferably, said tissue section is a cancer tissue section; even more preferably, said cancer tissue section is a breast cancer or colon cancer tissue section; and most preferably, said cancer tissue section is a human breast cancer or colon cancer tissue section.
In preferred embodiments of the present invention, said specimen is obtained from human, cattle, goat, rat or mouse; more preferably, from human, goat or mouse.
In preferred embodiments of the present invention, said kit is used for detecting Caveolin-1 in a cancer tissue specimen; more preferably, for detecting Caveolin-1 in a breast or colon cancer tissue specimen.
Additionally, the present invention provides an anti-Caveolin-1 polyclonal antibody, which binds to Caveolin-1, and not to Caveolin-2 or Caveolin-3; more preferably, said Caveolin-1, Caveolin-2 or Caveolin-3 is obtained from human, cattle, goat, rat or mouse.
In summary, the present invention provides an anti-Caveolin-1 polyclonal antibody, which is a rabbit polyclonal antibody obtained by using the peptide sequence composed of N-terminal amino acid residues 50-65 of Caveolin-1 as an antigen. Said peptide sequence has a high hydrophilicity and a high immunogenicity, and it is highly conserved in the peptide sequence of Caveolin-1 in many species, such like human, monkey, orangutan, cattle, goat/sheep, horse, muntjac, dog, cat, rat, mouse, and the like. Therefore, the antibody of the present invention can broadly recognize Caveolin-1 in cells or tissues obtained from a variety of species, such as human, cattle, goat, rat, mouse, and the like. In addition, the anti-Caveolin-1 polyclonal antibody of the present invention can recognize and distinguish the expression difference of Caveolin-1 in normal and tumorous tissues from colon or breast, so it can be used as a cancer indicator for detecting the tumorigenesis and progression of tumors, and brings a great benefit to the related cancer researches.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG. 1 shows the structure of the Caveolin-1 antigen (SEQ ID NO: 2) of the present invention.
FIG. 2 demonstrates that the anti-Caveolin-1 polyclonal antibody of the present invention recognizes the Caveolin-1 antigen of the present invention, and this recognition is better than that of the commercial anti-Caveolin-1 polyclonal antibody (panel A); in addition, the anti-Caveolin-1 polyclonal antibody of the present invention recognizes the exogenous Caveolin-1 transfected into GH3 cells and the endogenous Caveolin-1 in NIH 3T3 cells (panel B), and has a better titer than the commercial anti-Caveolin-1 polyclonal antibody (panel C). Pre-immune rabbit serum is used as negative control.
FIG. 3A demonstrates that the anti-Caveolin-1 polyclonal antibody of the present invention specifically recognizes Caveolin-1, while no signal is generated by Caveolin-2 or Caveolin-3. The anti-Caveolin-1 polyclonal antibody of the present invention and commercial anti-Caveolin-1, Caveolin-2 or Caveolin-3 monoclonal antibodies are used to examine Caveolin-1, Caveolin-2 or Caveolin-3 transfected MCF-7 cells by Western blotting, wherein NIH 3T3 cells are used as positive control of Caveolin-1 and Caveolin-2, mouse muscles are used as a positive control for Caveolin-3, and un-transfected MCF-7 cells are used as a negative control. FIG. 3B demonstrates that, in mouse NIH 3T3 cells, human A431 cells, and goat GMEC cells, the anti-Caveolin-1 polyclonal antibody of the present invention is capable of cross-species detection. Pre-immune rabbit serum is used as a negative control.
FIG. 4 demonstrates that the anti-Caveolin-1 polyclonal antibody of the present invention can be used to detect the endogenous Caveolin-1 in human A431 cells (A-D) and mouse NIH 3T3 cells (E-H) by immunofluorescence cell staining; wherein the anti-Caveolin-1 polyclonal antibody of the present invention is used to stain the endogenous Caveolin-1 in said cells (A and E), and pre-immune rabbit serum is used as a negative control (C and G). Texas-red-conjugated phalloidin is used for counter stain (B, D, F and H).
FIG. 5 shows the immunoprecipitation of the protein extract of human A431 cells by the anti-Caveolin-1 polyclonal antibody of the present invention, and demonstrates that the anti-Caveolin-1 polyclonal antibody of the present invention precipitates the endogenous Caveolin-1 in human cells by immunoprecipitation.
FIG. 6A shows DAB staining of the frozen sections of normal and tumorous human breast or colon tissue obtained from breast or colon cancer patients (a: normal breast tissue; b: tumorous breast tissue; c: normal colon tissue; d: tumorous colon tissue). The expression of Cavelin-1 in tumorous tissues is lower than in normal tissues. FIG. 6B shows a statistical analysis of the red-brown precipitates in the sections under light microscopy, which are categorized according to formation time and intensity of said precipitates.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
After a long process of research and development, the applicants designed an antigen comprising a fragment of Caveolin-1 peptide sequence SEQ ID NO: 1, and subcutaneously injected said antigen into a rabbit to produce the anti-Caveolin-1 polyclonal antibody. Said anti-Caveolin-1 polyclonal antibody recognizes Caveolin-1 of a variety of mammalian species, and it can be used as a cancer indicator to monitor the progression of a variety of cancers. Details of the operation and technical features of the present invention are demonstrated in the following examples in coordination with the drawings. These examples, however, are used to further illustrate the advantages of the present invention, not to limit the scope claimed in this invention.
Examples
The Preparation of the Antigen
A fragment of peptide sequence was selected from the peptide sequence of human Caveolin-1 (GenBank, Hs. 74034; NP — 001744) by DNA Star software (DNASTAR, Inc.). Said fragment is composed of the amino acid residues 50-65 of human Caveolin-1, that is, DLVNRDPKHLNDDVVK (SEQ ID NO: 1). This fragment, which is different from other binding sites for proteins known to interact with Caveolin-1, is located on the cell surface, and it has a high hydrophilicity and a high immunogenicity. Additionally, the sequences of Caveolin-1 of at least 16 species were searched in the NCBI (National Center for Biotechnology Information) database. These sequences were aligned by DNA Star software, and we found that the amino acid residues 50-65 of Caveolin-1 are a consensus sequence, which is highly conserved in many species, such as human, monkey, orangutan, cattle, goat/sheep, horse, muntjac, dog, cat, rat, mouse, and the like.
A peptide sequence comprising said SEQ ID NO: 1 was synthesized and modified to the Caveolin-1 antigen as below (SEQ ID NO: 2) by multiple antigen peptide system, and the structure of said antigen is shown in FIG. 1 :
[(H 2 N-(DLVNRDPKHLNDDVVK)) 2 -Lys] 4 -Lys 2 -Lys-βAla-OH
Preparation of Polyclonal Antibody
1.5 kg New Zealand semi-lop white rabbits were selected to generate the antibody of the present invention. The pre-immune rabbit sera were collected; subsequently, 1.0 mg of the antigen and Freund's complete adjuvant (Sigma-Aldrich Fine Chemical, Inc.) were mixed and injected subcutaneously into the rabbits to induce a primary immune response. Four weeks later, 0.5 mg of the antigen and Freund's incomplete adjuvant (Sigma-Aldrich Fine Chemical, Inc.) were mixed and injected subcutaneously into the rabbits as the first booster. These rabbits were boosted every four weeks for a total of three boosters, and then bled to obtain the immune serum comprising the polyclonal antibody of the present invention from the third week after the second booster. All experiments hereinafter were performed with the immune serum comprising the polyclonal antibody obtained after the third booster.
Plasmid Construction
The full-length cDNA of Caveolin-1 obtained from an adult C57BL/6J mouse was amplified by RT-PCR (forward primer: CTCGAGATGTCTGGGGGCAAATACGTG (SEQ ID NO: 3); reverse primer: TCTAGATATCTCTTTCTGCGTGCTGATGCG (SEQ ID NO: 4)). The obtained PCR product was cloned into pGEM-T easy vector (Promega Inc. USA), and then subcloned into pcDNA4/myc-His A vector (Invitrogen Inc., USA) through restriction enzyme digestion to obtain a pcDNA4-Caveolin-1 construct, wherein the C-terminal of Caveolin-1 was Myc-tagged.
The full-length cDNA of Caveolin-2 obtained from the mammary gland of an ICR mouse on lactation day 15 was amplified by RT-PCR (forward primer: GAATTCGGTACCATGGGGCTGGAGACCGAGAAGGC (SEQ ID NO: 5); reverse primer: AAGCTTTCTAGAGTCGTGGCTCAGTTGCATGC (SEQ. ID NO: 6)). The obtained PCR product was cloned into pGEM-T Easy Vector, and then subcloned into pcDNA4/Myc-His A vector through restriction enzyme digestion to obtain a pcDNA4-Caveolin-2 construct.
In addition, the full-length cDNA of Caveolin-3 obtained from the muscle of an ICR mouse was amplified by RT-PCR (forward primer: CGGCAGCGGCACGAGTC (SEQ. ID NO: 7); reverse primer: CTCCCGCACCAAGTTTTCCCATCT (SEQ. ID NO: 8)). The obtained cDNA was amplified by nested PCR (forward primer: GGATCCCTCGAGATGATGACCGAAGAGCACACGG (SEQ. ID NO: 9); reverse primer AAGCTTTCTAGAGCCTTCCCTTCGCAGCACCACC (SEQ. ID NO: 10)). Later, the final PCR product was cloned into pcDNA4/Myc-His A vector through restriction enzyme digestion to obtain a pcDNA4-Caveolin-3 construct.
Cell Culture
All cell lines mentioned in this specification were purchased from American Type Culture Collection (ATCC). Mouse fibroblast cell line NIH 3T3 (ATCC CRL-1658) and human epithelial cell line A431 (ATCC CRL 1555) were cultured in Dulbecco's Modified Eagle's Medium supplemented with 10% fetal bovine serum, 2 mM L-glutamine, 100 U/mL of both penicillin and streptomycin; human mammary epithelial cell line MCF-7 (ATCC HTB-22) was cultured in α-MEM medium supplemented with 10% fetal bovine serum, 2 mM L-glutamine, 100 U/mL of both penicillin and streptomycin; and rat pituitary adenoma cell line GH3 (ATCC CCL-82.1) was cultured in F12K nutrient mix medium supplemented with 2.5% fetal bovine serum, 15% horse serum, 2 mM L-glutamine, 100 U/mL of both penicillin and streptomycin. The above-mentioned media, sera, L-glutamine and antibiotics were purchased from Life Technologies (Gaithersburg, Md., USA). In addition, goat mammary epithelial primary cells (GMEC) were maintained in MCDB 171 medium supplemented with Mammary Epithelial Growth Supplement (MEGS; Cascade Biologics Com.). The mouse muscles were removed directly from the mouse body, immersed in RIPA buffer [50 mM Tris-HCl (pH 7.0), 1% NP-40, 0.25% sodium deoxycholate, 150 mM NaCl, 1 mM PMSF, 56 μg/mL aprotinin, 10 μg/mL leupeptin, 1 μg/mL pepstatin, 1 mM Na 3 VO 4 , 1 mM NaF, 10 mM Na 4 P 2 O 7 ], and homogenized for 2 minutes at 20,000 rpm and 4° C. by a homogenizer (Model 212 Type II). Subsequently, the homogenized product was kept on ice for 20 minutes and then centrifuged at 14,000 rpm for 5 minutes by a centrifuge (KUBOTA1700). The upper liquid layer from centrifugation is the main source of Caveolin-3.
Cell Transfection
The rat pituitary adenoma cell line GH3 ( FIG. 2B ) and human mammary epithelial cell line MCF-7 ( FIG. 3 ) were transfected by using Lipofectamine Plus™ Reagent kit (Life Technologies). First, 3×10 5 cells were seeded in a 35 mm Petri dish and incubated overnight. 1 μg DNA to be transfected and 6 μL Plus™ reagent were mixed, diluted to 100 μL by serum-free medium, then mixed with 4 μL Lipofectamine and kept at room temperature for 15 minutes to let DNA, Plus™ and Lipofectamine form a complex. Next, the DNA-Plus™-Lipofectamine complex was mixed with 800 μL serum-free medium, added into the Petri dish, and incubated in an incubator (37° C., 5% CO 2 ) for 3 hours. After that, the serum-free medium was replaced with fresh complete medium, and incubated in the incubator (37° C., 5% CO 2 ) for a further 48 hours.
After 48 hours, the total protein contents of the cells were extracted, quantified by Bio-Rad protein assay kit (Bio-Rad, Hercules, Calif.), and then subjected to a protein analysis by Western blotting.
Antibody Titer Assayed by Dot Blotting
As shown in FIG. 2A , the antibody titers were determined by dot blotting. First, the Caveolin-1 antigen was serially diluted by deionized water, and the final concentration was adjusted to 10 pg, 100 pg, 1 ng, 10 ng, 100 ng and 1 μg of Caveolin-1 antigen per 1 μL solution. The antigen solution of each concentration was spotted on nitrocellulose membrane. After these dots were dried, the membrane was blocked by 5% skimmed milk powder (Anchor) in TBST buffer at room temperature for 1 hour. The nitrocellulose membrane was then rinsed in TBST buffer 3 times, each time for 5 minutes. After that, the immune serum comprising the polyclonal antibody of the present invention was diluted by TBST buffer at a variety of ratios, and allowed to react with the antigen on the nitrocellulose membrane at 4° C. for 12 hours. Pre-immune rabbit serum was used as a negative control, and a commercial antibody was used as a positive control. Finally, the membrane was developed with ECL and exposed onto an X-ray film. FIG. 2A shows that a 1:10,000 dilution of the immune serum comprising the polyclonal antibody was able to detect the Caveolin-1 antigen at the level of 10 pg which means the polyclonal antibody has an extremely high sensitivity.
Extraction of Protein Samples
Transfected or untransfected cells were harvested by adding of RIPA buffer [50 mM Tris-HCl (pH 7.0), 1% NP-40, 0.25% sodium deoxycholate, 150 mM NaCl, 1 mM PMSF, 56 μg/mL aprotinin, 10 μg/mL leupeptin, 1 μg/mL pepstatin, 1 mM Na 3 VO 4 , 1 mM NaF, 10 mM Na 4 P 2 O 7 ] and the harvested cells were centrifuged at 12,000 rpm (15,000 g) for 10 minutes at 4° C. to obtain the total protein in the supernatant. The above-mentioned cells comprised: GH3 cells expressing no Caveolin-1 (negative control); GH3 cells transfected with Myc-tagged pcDNA4-Caveolin-1 construct (positive control); MCF-7 cells transfected with pcDNA4-Caveolin-1, pcDNA4-Caveolin-2 or pcDNA4-Caveolin-3; NIH 3T3 cells expressing a large amount of Caveolin-1 (positive control); mouse muscles (positive control); and human epithelial cell line A431 and goat mammary epithelial primary cells (GMEC).
Protein Analysis by Western Blotting
The total protein solutions obtained from each of the above-mentioned cells were quantified. As for those total protein solutions to be analyzed, aliquots of 20 μg protein were taken, mixed with 1× Laemmli buffer [2% SDS, 10% glycerol, 100 mM DTT, 60 mM Tris-HCl (pH6.8) and 0.01% bromophenol blue], heated at 95° C. for 5 minutes to denature the protein, and then loaded onto a 10-15% gradient gel and separated by SDS-PAGE protein gel electrophoresis in 1× protein electrophoresis buffer [25 mM Tris-HCl (pH 8.3), 192 mM glycine, 20% methanol]. After the electrophoretic separation, the proteins in the gel were transferred onto PVDF membrane in 1× wet transfer buffer [25 mM Tris-HCl, 190 mM glycine, 20% methanol], then the PVDF membrane was soaked in amido black staining solution (0.1% amido black, 40% methanol and 10% acetic acid in deionized water) for 5 minutes to check the transfer efficiency and the protein positions marked thereon, then the membrane was destained by immersion in the destaining solution (40% methanol and 10% acetic acid in deionized water) for 3 times, each time for 5 minutes. Subsequently, the PVDF membrane was washed in deionized water until no oily substance remained on the surface of the membrane. The membrane was blocked in 50 mL blocking solution (5% skimmed milk powder (Anchor) in TBST buffer [20 mM Tris-HCl (pH 7.5), 150 mM NaCl, 0.05% Tween-20]) at room temperature for 1.5 hours, and then washed in TBST buffer. A 1:3,000 dilution of primary antibody described hereinafter in TBST buffer was applied to the PVDF membrane and allowed to react at 4° C. for 12 hours, and then the membrane was washed in TBST buffer for three times. Later, a 1:3,000 dilution of HRP-conjugated anti-rabbit IgG antibody (Amersham Biosciences) in TBST buffer was added to the PVDF membrane as a secondary antibody and allowed to react at room temperature for 2 hours under constant rotational agitation, and then the membrane was washed in TBST buffer three times. Finally, ECL reagents (Amersham Biosciences) were added to develop signals, and the signals were exposed onto an X-ray film.
a. Antibody Sensitivity Test by Western Blotting
Protein electrophoresis by SDS-PAGE was performed in 12% polyacrylamide gels according to the above-mentioned procedure using protein samples obtained from GH3 cells transfected with Myc-tagged pcDNA4-Caveolin-1 construct, GH3 cells (negative control) and NIH 3T3 cells (positive control). Western blotting analysis was performed by using the pre-immune rabbit serum and the immune serum comprising the polyclonal antibody of the present invention as the primary antibodies, and using the HRP-conjugated anti-rabbit IgG antibody as the secondary antibody. These results are shown in FIG. 2B . Additionally, the above-mentioned protein samples were loaded onto 10% polyacrylamide gels and separated by SDS-PAGE as above. Subsequently, another Western blotting analysis was performed by using the immune serum comprising the polyclonal antibody of the present invention and a rabbit polyclonal antibody against N-terminal amino acid residues 1-105 of human Caveolin-1 (Chemicon International Inc.) as the primary antibodies, and using the HRP-conjugated anti-rabbit IgG antibody as the secondary antibody. These results are shown in FIG. 2C , in which the X-ray film obtained by using the immune serum comprising the polyclonal antibody of the present invention as the primary antibody was exposed about 5 seconds, and the X-ray film obtained by using the commercial antibody as the primary antibody was exposed about 5 minutes. From the results shown in FIGS. 2B and 2C , it is known that the polyclonal antibody of the present invention not only recognizes the artificially synthesized Caveolin-1, but also recognizes the endogenous Caveolin-1, including Caveolin-1α and Caveolin-1β, in NIH 3T3 cells; also, it has a higher sensitivity than the commercial antibody.
b. Antibody Specificity Test by Western Blotting
Also, protein electrophoresis was performed by protein samples obtained from MCF-7 cells transfected by pcDNA4-Caveolin-1, pcDNA4-Caveolin-2 or pcDNA4-Caveolin-3, GH3 cells transfected with myc-tagged pcDNA4-Caveolin-1 construct, MCF-7 cells (negative control), and NIH 3T3 cells and mouse muscles (positive control). Western blotting analysis was performed by using the immune serum comprising the polyclonal antibody of the present invention, and commercial Caveolin-1 monoclonal antibody (clone 2297), Caveolin-2 monoclonal antibody (clone 65) and Caveolin-3 monoclonal antibody (clone 26) (purchased from BD Biosciences) as the primary antibodies, and using the HRP-conjugated anti-rabbit IgG antibody as the secondary antibody. The results are shown in FIG. 3A . From these results, it is known that the polyclonal antibody of the present invention is specific to Caveolin-1, and it does not cross-react with Caveolin-2 or Caveolin-3.
c. Cross-Species Analysis by Western Blotting
Protein electrophoresis by SDS-PAGE was performed in 10% polyacrylamide gels according to the above-mentioned procedure using protein samples obtained from mouse NIH 3T3 cells, human A431 cells and goat GMEC cells. Western blotting analysis was performed by using the pre-immune rabbit serum (negative control) and the immune serum comprising the polyclonal antibody of the present invention as the primary antibodies, and using the HRP-conjugated anti-rabbit IgG antibody as the secondary antibody. The results are shown in FIG. 3B . From these results, it is known that the polyclonal antibody of the present invention recognizes Caveolin-1 of a variety of species and can be used in a cross-species analysis.
Detection of Endogenous Caveolin-1 in Cells by Immunostaining
Mouse NIH 3T3 cell culture and human A431 cell culture were respectively added on a 22×22 mm cover glass at the concentration of 3×10 5 cells/mL, and incubated for 24 hours. The cells were fixed in 4% paraformaldehyde for 15 minutes, then washed in 1× phosphate buffered saline (PBS) 3 times, each time for 5 minutes. 0.5% Triton X-100 was added and kept at room temperature for 10 minutes to permeate the cells, then the cells were again washed in 1×PBS 3 times, each time for 5 minutes. Next, the cells were blocked with 10% normal goat serum (Jackson Immunoresearch Laboratories, USA) in 1×PBS at room temperature for 1 hour, then washed in 1×PBS 3 times, each time for 5 minutes. After that, a 1:300 dilution of the immune serum comprising the polyclonal antibody of the present invention in PBS was applied to the cell-coated cover glass, and kept at 4° C. overnight, the cells were then washed 3 times in 1×PBS, each time for 5 minutes. Subsequently, a 1:300 dilution of FITC-conjugated donkey anti-rabbit IgG secondary antibody (Jackson Immunoresearch Laboratories, USA) was applied to the cover glass, and incubated in the dark for 2 hours, the cells were then washed 3 times in 1×PBS, each time for 5 minutes. The cells were counter-stained by 10 ng/mL Hoechst 33342 (Sigma-Aldrich Fine Chemical, Inc.) and 2.5 μg/mL Texas-red-conjugated phalloidin (Sigma-Aldrich Fine Chemical, Inc.) at room temperature for 10 minutes, and then washed in PBS 3 times. Finally, the stained cells were mounted in mounting medium Mowiol 4-88 (Calbiochem, Germany), sealed with transparent nail polish, and observed under laser scanning confocal microscopy (LSM 510; Zeiss). The cell staining results are shown in FIG. 4 . From these results, it is known that the polyclonal antibody of the present invention recognizes Caveolin-1 naturally produced in human and mouse cells.
Immunoprecipitation
Human A431 cell extract was used in an immunoprecipitation test. 500 μL RIPA buffer was added to 3×10 6 A431 cells to extract the total protein of the cells, and the concentration of the protein was adjusted to 1 μg/μL. 500 μL of the protein was mixed with 1 μL of pre-immune rabbit serum or the immune serum comprising the polyclonal antibody of the present invention, then rotationally mixed at 4° C. for 30 minutes. 20 μL Protein A-Sepharose slurry was added, then the mixture was rotated at 4° C. for a further 30 minutes. Next, the mixture was centrifuged at 12,000 rpm (15,000 g) for 5 minutes at 4° C. The supernatant from this step was removed and discarded, and the pellet was washed in NET buffer [150 mM NaCl, 1 mM EDTA, 50 mM Tris (pH 8)] 3 times, and centrifuged at 12,000 rpm for 5 minutes at 4° C. after each wash. After the last wash, the supernatant was completely removed, 50 μL 2× Laemmli buffer was added to the pellet and mixed well, and the mixture was heated at 95° C. for 5 minutes. After that, the mixture was centrifuged at 12,000 rpm for 5 minutes at room temperature, and the supernatant was collected as a protein sample to perform Western blotting. The results are shown in FIG. 5 . From these results, it is known that the polyclonal antibody of the present invention can successfully immunoprecipitate the endogenous Caveolin-1 in A431 cells.
Since the polyclonal antibody of the present invention can successfully purify the endogenous Caveolin-1 by immunoprecipitation, the position of the antigen peptide sequence that binds the polyclonal antibody of the present invention can be used to confirm whether the antibody produced by said peptide sequence can purify Caveolin-1 by immunoprecipitation or immunoabsorption, or whether it can be used as a co-immunoprecipitation tool to study proteins that interact with Caveolin-1.
Estimation of Caveolin-1 Expression in Biopsy
It is well-known that Caveolin-1 is expressed in normal human breast and colon tissue. Therefore, normal and tumorous human breast tissue (from 25 patients) and colon tissue (from 25 patients) were derived from 50 breast or colon cancer patients, wherein these specimens were obtained from National Taiwan University Hospital. The normal tissue, which was used as a control, was derived from the peripheral region of the tumorous tissue from the corresponding patient.
The above-mentioned normal and tumorous human breast or colon tissue was cryo-sectioned into 7 μm-thick sections and fixed with 4% paraformaldehyde, then washed in 1×PBS 3 times, each time for 5 minutes. These sections were then treated with 0.3% H 2 O 2 at room temperature for 30 minutes to inactivate endogenous peroxidase activity, then washed in 1×PBS 3 times, each time for 5 minutes. After that, these sections were blocked in 10% normal goat serum at room temperature for 1 hour, then washed in 1×PBS 3 times, each time for 5 minutes. A 100 μL dilution of the immune serum comprising the polyclonal antibody of the present invention (1:100, in PBS) was added onto the sections in a sealed humid container to hybridize for 12-24 hours, then the sections were washed in 1×PBS 3 times. These treated sections were then soaked in 100 μL dilution of HRP-conjugated anti-rabbit IgG antibody (1:300, in PBS) at room temperature for 2 hours, then the sections were washed in 1×PBS 3 times, each time for 5 minutes. After that, ABC kit (Vectastain Elite), H 2 O 2 and diaminobenzidine tetrahydrochloride (DAB) reagent were used to form reddish precipitate. The sections were dried, mounted with 90% glycerol/PBS, and sealed by transparent nail polish. The results are shown in FIG. 6A . From these results, it is known that the polyclonal antibody of the present invention can distinguish the difference of the Caveolin-1 expressions between normal and tumorous tissues.
In addition, the reddish precipitate formed in these sections can be categorized into 6 grades by the formation time and the color strength. Statistical analysis by paired t-test (using SAS, version 9.1) confirmed that the polyclonal antibody of the present invention can effectively distinguish between the different levels of Caveolin-1 expression found in normal and tumorous tissues. These results are shown in FIG. 6B . From these results, it is known that the polyclonal antibody of the present invention can be used to distinguish between normal and tumorous tissues of breast or colon, and can be used to monitor the disease progression of breast or colon cancer. | The present invention provides a highly specific anti-Caveolin-1 polyclonal antibody, which is prepared by the following steps: (1) providing an antigen comprising a fragment of Caveolin-1 peptide sequence SEQ ID NO: 1; and (2) subcutaneously injecting said antigen into a rabbit to produce the anti-Caveolin-1 polyclonal antibody. The present invention also provides an antigen and a method used for preparing the anti-Caveolin-1 polyclonal antibody, and a kit used for detecting Caveolin-1 in a specimen. | Identify the most important aspect in the document and summarize the concept accordingly. | [
"BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1.",
"Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a highly specific anti-Caveolin-1 polyclonal antibody, an antigen and a method used for preparing said antibody, and a kit used for detecting Caveolin-1 in a specimen.",
"Description of the Related Art Caveolin-1 is a 21-24 kDa membrane protein containing 178 amino acid residues, and it is abundant in caveolaes.",
"Caveolaes are invaginations of the plasma membrane, and cholesterol and signal transducing molecules are accumulated in these invaginations.",
"Both N- and C-terminal domains of Caveolin-1 are hydrophilic and oriented toward the cytoplasm, while the hydrophobic central stretch is embedded in the membrane.",
"The N-terminal region of Caveolin-1 (amino acid residues 82-101) is necessary for its interaction with signal transducing molecules, while the C-terminal region (amino acid residues 135-178) is essential for Caveolin-1 dimer formation from its monomers, and for the membrane attachment of Caveolin-1.",
"Caveolin-1 expression in mammals is down-regulated during late pregnancy and lactation through a prolactin signaling cascade.",
"Overexpression of recombinant Caveolin-1 in mammary epithelial cell line HC11 inhibits the β-casein expression induced by prolactin.",
"In addition, mammary gland development in Caveolin-1 null mice is earlier than in normal mice (Park et al.",
", 2001).",
"Therefore, Caveolin-1 acts as a negative regulator during mammary development and lactation.",
"If Caveolin-1 expression in medium and large lactating animals can be detected, it may be helpful to study the role played by Caveolin-1 in the mammary gland.",
"In pathology studies, it has been found that Caveolin-1 expression is lost or down-regulated in many tumorous tissues of, for example, breast, ovary, prostate and colon cancers, and Caveolin-1 is regarded as an indicator for the progression of these cancers (Sloan et al.",
", 2004;",
"Wikman et al.",
", 2004).",
"Another prior study has found, using mRNA subtractive hybridization, that there is an obvious difference between Caveolin-1 gene expression in normal and tumorous human mammary epithelial cells (Sager et al.",
", 1994).",
"Another study found that Caveolin-1 expression in mammary adenocarcinoma-derived cells was much lower than in normal mammary epithelial cells.",
"When Caveolin-1 was overexpressed in tumor cell lines, cell tumorigenesis was suppressed (Park et al.",
", 2001).",
"Ectopic expression of recombinant Caveolin-1 in mammary adenocarcinoma cells through cell transfection reduced the metastatic potential of these cells (Zhang et al.",
", 2000).",
"These studies have demonstrated that Caveolin-1 is anti-tumorigenic and can be used as a molecular indicator to diagnose the progression of some cancers.",
"The current method of detection of Caveolin-1 protein in tissues and cells is by immunochemical or immunofluorescent staining, and there are dozens of commercial anti-Caveolin-1 antibodies in the market.",
"However, most of these commercial anti-Caveolin-1 antibodies are produced by the antigen derived from N-terminal amino acid residues 1-20 or 30-44 of Caveolin-1, and some of them are produced by the antigen derived from C-terminal of Caveolin-1.",
"Bush et al.",
"(2006) used five different anti-Caveolin-1 antibodies (developed by other teams) to detect the location of expressed Caveolin-1 in MDCK cells, and found that the specific locations of Caveolin-1 detected by different antibodies were different.",
"This finding indicates that different anti-Caveolin-1 antibodies vary in their ability to label Caveolin-1 in cells, and the Caveolin-1 signals detected by these antibodies show different patterns.",
"Therefore, an anti-Caveolin-1 antibody with a higher efficiency to Caveolin-1 will be extremely advantageous for cancer research and the development of cancer treatments.",
"SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION To solve the above-mentioned problems, one objective of the present invention is to provide an anti-Caveolin-1 polyclonal antibody, which is prepared by the following steps: (1) providing an antigen comprising a fragment of Caveolin-1 peptide sequence SEQ ID NO: 1;",
"and (2) subcutaneously injecting said antigen into a rabbit to produce the anti-Caveolin-1 polyclonal antibody.",
"Said anti-Caveolin-1 polyclonal antibody recognizes Caveolin-1 of a variety of mammalian species, and it can be used to monitor the progression of a variety of cancers.",
"Another objective of the present invention is to provide a method for preparing the above-mentioned anti-Caveolin-1 polyclonal antibody.",
"A further objective of the present invention is to provide a peptide sequence for preparing the above-mentioned anti-Caveolin-1 polyclonal antibody.",
"Yet another objective of the present invention is to provide a kit for the detection of Caveolin-1 in a specimen, comprising the above-mentioned anti-Caveolin-1 polyclonal antibody, and this kit may further comprise a secondary antibody having a signal;",
"in addition, this kit can be used for detecting Caveolin-1 in a variety of mammalian species and monitoring the progression of a variety of cancers.",
"To achieve these objectives, the present invention provides an anti-Caveolin-1 polyclonal antibody, which is prepared by the following steps: (1) providing an antigen comprising a fragment of Caveolin-1 peptide sequence SEQ ID NO: 1;",
"and (2) subcutaneously injecting said antigen into a rabbit to produce the anti-Caveolin-1 polyclonal antibody.",
"In preferred embodiments of the present invention, said antigen is listed in the sequence listing as SEQ ID NO: 2 and is of the following formula: In preferred embodiments of the present invention, said anti-Caveolin-1 polyclonal antibody recognizes Caveolin-1 of mammals;",
"more preferably, recognizes Caveolin-1 of human, cattle, goat, rat or mouse;",
"and most preferably, recognizes Caveolin-1 of human, goat or mouse.",
"In preferred embodiments of the present invention, said anti-Caveolin-1 polyclonal antibody is used as a cancer indicator for monitoring cancer progression;",
"more preferably, for monitoring breast or colon cancer progression.",
"The present invention also provides a method for preparing an anti-Caveolin-1 polyclonal antibody, comprising the following steps: (1) providing an antigen comprising a fragment of Caveolin-1 peptide sequence SEQ ID NO: 1;",
"and (2) subcutaneously injecting said antigen into a rabbit to produce the anti-Caveolin-1 polyclonal antibody.",
"In preferred embodiments of the present invention, said antigen is listed in the sequence listing as SEQ ID NO: 2 and is of the following formula: The present invention also provides an antigen for preparing the anti-Caveolin-1 polyclonal antibody according to claim 1 , comprising a fragment of Caveolin-1 peptide sequence SEQ ID NO: 1.",
"In preferred embodiments of the present invention, said antigen is listed in the sequence listing as SEQ ID NO: 2 and is of the following formula: In addition, the present invention provides a kit used for detecting Caveolin-1 in a specimen, comprising the above-mentioned anti-Caveolin-1 polyclonal antibody.",
"In preferred embodiments of the present invention, said kit further comprises a secondary antibody having a signal;",
"more preferably, said signal is fluorescence- or enzyme-generated;",
"and most preferably, said enzyme is horseradish peroxidase (HRP), and said fluorescence is FITC or Texas-Red.",
"In preferred embodiments of the present invention, said specimen is a tissue section or a cell sample;",
"more preferably, said tissue section is a cancer tissue section;",
"even more preferably, said cancer tissue section is a breast cancer or colon cancer tissue section;",
"and most preferably, said cancer tissue section is a human breast cancer or colon cancer tissue section.",
"In preferred embodiments of the present invention, said specimen is obtained from human, cattle, goat, rat or mouse;",
"more preferably, from human, goat or mouse.",
"In preferred embodiments of the present invention, said kit is used for detecting Caveolin-1 in a cancer tissue specimen;",
"more preferably, for detecting Caveolin-1 in a breast or colon cancer tissue specimen.",
"Additionally, the present invention provides an anti-Caveolin-1 polyclonal antibody, which binds to Caveolin-1, and not to Caveolin-2 or Caveolin-3;",
"more preferably, said Caveolin-1, Caveolin-2 or Caveolin-3 is obtained from human, cattle, goat, rat or mouse.",
"In summary, the present invention provides an anti-Caveolin-1 polyclonal antibody, which is a rabbit polyclonal antibody obtained by using the peptide sequence composed of N-terminal amino acid residues 50-65 of Caveolin-1 as an antigen.",
"Said peptide sequence has a high hydrophilicity and a high immunogenicity, and it is highly conserved in the peptide sequence of Caveolin-1 in many species, such like human, monkey, orangutan, cattle, goat/sheep, horse, muntjac, dog, cat, rat, mouse, and the like.",
"Therefore, the antibody of the present invention can broadly recognize Caveolin-1 in cells or tissues obtained from a variety of species, such as human, cattle, goat, rat, mouse, and the like.",
"In addition, the anti-Caveolin-1 polyclonal antibody of the present invention can recognize and distinguish the expression difference of Caveolin-1 in normal and tumorous tissues from colon or breast, so it can be used as a cancer indicator for detecting the tumorigenesis and progression of tumors, and brings a great benefit to the related cancer researches.",
"BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 shows the structure of the Caveolin-1 antigen (SEQ ID NO: 2) of the present invention.",
"FIG. 2 demonstrates that the anti-Caveolin-1 polyclonal antibody of the present invention recognizes the Caveolin-1 antigen of the present invention, and this recognition is better than that of the commercial anti-Caveolin-1 polyclonal antibody (panel A);",
"in addition, the anti-Caveolin-1 polyclonal antibody of the present invention recognizes the exogenous Caveolin-1 transfected into GH3 cells and the endogenous Caveolin-1 in NIH 3T3 cells (panel B), and has a better titer than the commercial anti-Caveolin-1 polyclonal antibody (panel C).",
"Pre-immune rabbit serum is used as negative control.",
"FIG. 3A demonstrates that the anti-Caveolin-1 polyclonal antibody of the present invention specifically recognizes Caveolin-1, while no signal is generated by Caveolin-2 or Caveolin-3.",
"The anti-Caveolin-1 polyclonal antibody of the present invention and commercial anti-Caveolin-1, Caveolin-2 or Caveolin-3 monoclonal antibodies are used to examine Caveolin-1, Caveolin-2 or Caveolin-3 transfected MCF-7 cells by Western blotting, wherein NIH 3T3 cells are used as positive control of Caveolin-1 and Caveolin-2, mouse muscles are used as a positive control for Caveolin-3, and un-transfected MCF-7 cells are used as a negative control.",
"FIG. 3B demonstrates that, in mouse NIH 3T3 cells, human A431 cells, and goat GMEC cells, the anti-Caveolin-1 polyclonal antibody of the present invention is capable of cross-species detection.",
"Pre-immune rabbit serum is used as a negative control.",
"FIG. 4 demonstrates that the anti-Caveolin-1 polyclonal antibody of the present invention can be used to detect the endogenous Caveolin-1 in human A431 cells (A-D) and mouse NIH 3T3 cells (E-H) by immunofluorescence cell staining;",
"wherein the anti-Caveolin-1 polyclonal antibody of the present invention is used to stain the endogenous Caveolin-1 in said cells (A and E), and pre-immune rabbit serum is used as a negative control (C and G).",
"Texas-red-conjugated phalloidin is used for counter stain (B, D, F and H).",
"FIG. 5 shows the immunoprecipitation of the protein extract of human A431 cells by the anti-Caveolin-1 polyclonal antibody of the present invention, and demonstrates that the anti-Caveolin-1 polyclonal antibody of the present invention precipitates the endogenous Caveolin-1 in human cells by immunoprecipitation.",
"FIG. 6A shows DAB staining of the frozen sections of normal and tumorous human breast or colon tissue obtained from breast or colon cancer patients (a: normal breast tissue;",
"b: tumorous breast tissue;",
"c: normal colon tissue;",
"d: tumorous colon tissue).",
"The expression of Cavelin-1 in tumorous tissues is lower than in normal tissues.",
"FIG. 6B shows a statistical analysis of the red-brown precipitates in the sections under light microscopy, which are categorized according to formation time and intensity of said precipitates.",
"DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS After a long process of research and development, the applicants designed an antigen comprising a fragment of Caveolin-1 peptide sequence SEQ ID NO: 1, and subcutaneously injected said antigen into a rabbit to produce the anti-Caveolin-1 polyclonal antibody.",
"Said anti-Caveolin-1 polyclonal antibody recognizes Caveolin-1 of a variety of mammalian species, and it can be used as a cancer indicator to monitor the progression of a variety of cancers.",
"Details of the operation and technical features of the present invention are demonstrated in the following examples in coordination with the drawings.",
"These examples, however, are used to further illustrate the advantages of the present invention, not to limit the scope claimed in this invention.",
"Examples The Preparation of the Antigen A fragment of peptide sequence was selected from the peptide sequence of human Caveolin-1 (GenBank, Hs.",
"74034;",
"NP — 001744) by DNA Star software (DNASTAR, Inc.).",
"Said fragment is composed of the amino acid residues 50-65 of human Caveolin-1, that is, DLVNRDPKHLNDDVVK (SEQ ID NO: 1).",
"This fragment, which is different from other binding sites for proteins known to interact with Caveolin-1, is located on the cell surface, and it has a high hydrophilicity and a high immunogenicity.",
"Additionally, the sequences of Caveolin-1 of at least 16 species were searched in the NCBI (National Center for Biotechnology Information) database.",
"These sequences were aligned by DNA Star software, and we found that the amino acid residues 50-65 of Caveolin-1 are a consensus sequence, which is highly conserved in many species, such as human, monkey, orangutan, cattle, goat/sheep, horse, muntjac, dog, cat, rat, mouse, and the like.",
"A peptide sequence comprising said SEQ ID NO: 1 was synthesized and modified to the Caveolin-1 antigen as below (SEQ ID NO: 2) by multiple antigen peptide system, and the structure of said antigen is shown in FIG. 1 : [(H 2 N-(DLVNRDPKHLNDDVVK)) 2 -Lys] 4 -Lys 2 -Lys-βAla-OH Preparation of Polyclonal Antibody 1.5 kg New Zealand semi-lop white rabbits were selected to generate the antibody of the present invention.",
"The pre-immune rabbit sera were collected;",
"subsequently, 1.0 mg of the antigen and Freund's complete adjuvant (Sigma-Aldrich Fine Chemical, Inc.) were mixed and injected subcutaneously into the rabbits to induce a primary immune response.",
"Four weeks later, 0.5 mg of the antigen and Freund's incomplete adjuvant (Sigma-Aldrich Fine Chemical, Inc.) were mixed and injected subcutaneously into the rabbits as the first booster.",
"These rabbits were boosted every four weeks for a total of three boosters, and then bled to obtain the immune serum comprising the polyclonal antibody of the present invention from the third week after the second booster.",
"All experiments hereinafter were performed with the immune serum comprising the polyclonal antibody obtained after the third booster.",
"Plasmid Construction The full-length cDNA of Caveolin-1 obtained from an adult C57BL/6J mouse was amplified by RT-PCR (forward primer: CTCGAGATGTCTGGGGGCAAATACGTG (SEQ ID NO: 3);",
"reverse primer: TCTAGATATCTCTTTCTGCGTGCTGATGCG (SEQ ID NO: 4)).",
"The obtained PCR product was cloned into pGEM-T easy vector (Promega Inc. USA), and then subcloned into pcDNA4/myc-His A vector (Invitrogen Inc., USA) through restriction enzyme digestion to obtain a pcDNA4-Caveolin-1 construct, wherein the C-terminal of Caveolin-1 was Myc-tagged.",
"The full-length cDNA of Caveolin-2 obtained from the mammary gland of an ICR mouse on lactation day 15 was amplified by RT-PCR (forward primer: GAATTCGGTACCATGGGGCTGGAGACCGAGAAGGC (SEQ ID NO: 5);",
"reverse primer: AAGCTTTCTAGAGTCGTGGCTCAGTTGCATGC (SEQ.",
"ID NO: 6)).",
"The obtained PCR product was cloned into pGEM-T Easy Vector, and then subcloned into pcDNA4/Myc-His A vector through restriction enzyme digestion to obtain a pcDNA4-Caveolin-2 construct.",
"In addition, the full-length cDNA of Caveolin-3 obtained from the muscle of an ICR mouse was amplified by RT-PCR (forward primer: CGGCAGCGGCACGAGTC (SEQ.",
"ID NO: 7);",
"reverse primer: CTCCCGCACCAAGTTTTCCCATCT (SEQ.",
"ID NO: 8)).",
"The obtained cDNA was amplified by nested PCR (forward primer: GGATCCCTCGAGATGATGACCGAAGAGCACACGG (SEQ.",
"ID NO: 9);",
"reverse primer AAGCTTTCTAGAGCCTTCCCTTCGCAGCACCACC (SEQ.",
"ID NO: 10)).",
"Later, the final PCR product was cloned into pcDNA4/Myc-His A vector through restriction enzyme digestion to obtain a pcDNA4-Caveolin-3 construct.",
"Cell Culture All cell lines mentioned in this specification were purchased from American Type Culture Collection (ATCC).",
"Mouse fibroblast cell line NIH 3T3 (ATCC CRL-1658) and human epithelial cell line A431 (ATCC CRL 1555) were cultured in Dulbecco's Modified Eagle's Medium supplemented with 10% fetal bovine serum, 2 mM L-glutamine, 100 U/mL of both penicillin and streptomycin;",
"human mammary epithelial cell line MCF-7 (ATCC HTB-22) was cultured in α-MEM medium supplemented with 10% fetal bovine serum, 2 mM L-glutamine, 100 U/mL of both penicillin and streptomycin;",
"and rat pituitary adenoma cell line GH3 (ATCC CCL-82.1) was cultured in F12K nutrient mix medium supplemented with 2.5% fetal bovine serum, 15% horse serum, 2 mM L-glutamine, 100 U/mL of both penicillin and streptomycin.",
"The above-mentioned media, sera, L-glutamine and antibiotics were purchased from Life Technologies (Gaithersburg, Md.",
", USA).",
"In addition, goat mammary epithelial primary cells (GMEC) were maintained in MCDB 171 medium supplemented with Mammary Epithelial Growth Supplement (MEGS;",
"Cascade Biologics Com.).",
"The mouse muscles were removed directly from the mouse body, immersed in RIPA buffer [50 mM Tris-HCl (pH 7.0), 1% NP-40, 0.25% sodium deoxycholate, 150 mM NaCl, 1 mM PMSF, 56 μg/mL aprotinin, 10 μg/mL leupeptin, 1 μg/mL pepstatin, 1 mM Na 3 VO 4 , 1 mM NaF, 10 mM Na 4 P 2 O 7 ], and homogenized for 2 minutes at 20,000 rpm and 4° C. by a homogenizer (Model 212 Type II).",
"Subsequently, the homogenized product was kept on ice for 20 minutes and then centrifuged at 14,000 rpm for 5 minutes by a centrifuge (KUBOTA1700).",
"The upper liquid layer from centrifugation is the main source of Caveolin-3.",
"Cell Transfection The rat pituitary adenoma cell line GH3 ( FIG. 2B ) and human mammary epithelial cell line MCF-7 ( FIG. 3 ) were transfected by using Lipofectamine Plus™ Reagent kit (Life Technologies).",
"First, 3×10 5 cells were seeded in a 35 mm Petri dish and incubated overnight.",
"1 μg DNA to be transfected and 6 μL Plus™ reagent were mixed, diluted to 100 μL by serum-free medium, then mixed with 4 μL Lipofectamine and kept at room temperature for 15 minutes to let DNA, Plus™ and Lipofectamine form a complex.",
"Next, the DNA-Plus™-Lipofectamine complex was mixed with 800 μL serum-free medium, added into the Petri dish, and incubated in an incubator (37° C., 5% CO 2 ) for 3 hours.",
"After that, the serum-free medium was replaced with fresh complete medium, and incubated in the incubator (37° C., 5% CO 2 ) for a further 48 hours.",
"After 48 hours, the total protein contents of the cells were extracted, quantified by Bio-Rad protein assay kit (Bio-Rad, Hercules, Calif.), and then subjected to a protein analysis by Western blotting.",
"Antibody Titer Assayed by Dot Blotting As shown in FIG. 2A , the antibody titers were determined by dot blotting.",
"First, the Caveolin-1 antigen was serially diluted by deionized water, and the final concentration was adjusted to 10 pg, 100 pg, 1 ng, 10 ng, 100 ng and 1 μg of Caveolin-1 antigen per 1 μL solution.",
"The antigen solution of each concentration was spotted on nitrocellulose membrane.",
"After these dots were dried, the membrane was blocked by 5% skimmed milk powder (Anchor) in TBST buffer at room temperature for 1 hour.",
"The nitrocellulose membrane was then rinsed in TBST buffer 3 times, each time for 5 minutes.",
"After that, the immune serum comprising the polyclonal antibody of the present invention was diluted by TBST buffer at a variety of ratios, and allowed to react with the antigen on the nitrocellulose membrane at 4° C. for 12 hours.",
"Pre-immune rabbit serum was used as a negative control, and a commercial antibody was used as a positive control.",
"Finally, the membrane was developed with ECL and exposed onto an X-ray film.",
"FIG. 2A shows that a 1:10,000 dilution of the immune serum comprising the polyclonal antibody was able to detect the Caveolin-1 antigen at the level of 10 pg which means the polyclonal antibody has an extremely high sensitivity.",
"Extraction of Protein Samples Transfected or untransfected cells were harvested by adding of RIPA buffer [50 mM Tris-HCl (pH 7.0), 1% NP-40, 0.25% sodium deoxycholate, 150 mM NaCl, 1 mM PMSF, 56 μg/mL aprotinin, 10 μg/mL leupeptin, 1 μg/mL pepstatin, 1 mM Na 3 VO 4 , 1 mM NaF, 10 mM Na 4 P 2 O 7 ] and the harvested cells were centrifuged at 12,000 rpm (15,000 g) for 10 minutes at 4° C. to obtain the total protein in the supernatant.",
"The above-mentioned cells comprised: GH3 cells expressing no Caveolin-1 (negative control);",
"GH3 cells transfected with Myc-tagged pcDNA4-Caveolin-1 construct (positive control);",
"MCF-7 cells transfected with pcDNA4-Caveolin-1, pcDNA4-Caveolin-2 or pcDNA4-Caveolin-3;",
"NIH 3T3 cells expressing a large amount of Caveolin-1 (positive control);",
"mouse muscles (positive control);",
"and human epithelial cell line A431 and goat mammary epithelial primary cells (GMEC).",
"Protein Analysis by Western Blotting The total protein solutions obtained from each of the above-mentioned cells were quantified.",
"As for those total protein solutions to be analyzed, aliquots of 20 μg protein were taken, mixed with 1× Laemmli buffer [2% SDS, 10% glycerol, 100 mM DTT, 60 mM Tris-HCl (pH6.8) and 0.01% bromophenol blue], heated at 95° C. for 5 minutes to denature the protein, and then loaded onto a 10-15% gradient gel and separated by SDS-PAGE protein gel electrophoresis in 1× protein electrophoresis buffer [25 mM Tris-HCl (pH 8.3), 192 mM glycine, 20% methanol].",
"After the electrophoretic separation, the proteins in the gel were transferred onto PVDF membrane in 1× wet transfer buffer [25 mM Tris-HCl, 190 mM glycine, 20% methanol], then the PVDF membrane was soaked in amido black staining solution (0.1% amido black, 40% methanol and 10% acetic acid in deionized water) for 5 minutes to check the transfer efficiency and the protein positions marked thereon, then the membrane was destained by immersion in the destaining solution (40% methanol and 10% acetic acid in deionized water) for 3 times, each time for 5 minutes.",
"Subsequently, the PVDF membrane was washed in deionized water until no oily substance remained on the surface of the membrane.",
"The membrane was blocked in 50 mL blocking solution (5% skimmed milk powder (Anchor) in TBST buffer [20 mM Tris-HCl (pH 7.5), 150 mM NaCl, 0.05% Tween-20]) at room temperature for 1.5 hours, and then washed in TBST buffer.",
"A 1:3,000 dilution of primary antibody described hereinafter in TBST buffer was applied to the PVDF membrane and allowed to react at 4° C. for 12 hours, and then the membrane was washed in TBST buffer for three times.",
"Later, a 1:3,000 dilution of HRP-conjugated anti-rabbit IgG antibody (Amersham Biosciences) in TBST buffer was added to the PVDF membrane as a secondary antibody and allowed to react at room temperature for 2 hours under constant rotational agitation, and then the membrane was washed in TBST buffer three times.",
"Finally, ECL reagents (Amersham Biosciences) were added to develop signals, and the signals were exposed onto an X-ray film.",
"a. Antibody Sensitivity Test by Western Blotting Protein electrophoresis by SDS-PAGE was performed in 12% polyacrylamide gels according to the above-mentioned procedure using protein samples obtained from GH3 cells transfected with Myc-tagged pcDNA4-Caveolin-1 construct, GH3 cells (negative control) and NIH 3T3 cells (positive control).",
"Western blotting analysis was performed by using the pre-immune rabbit serum and the immune serum comprising the polyclonal antibody of the present invention as the primary antibodies, and using the HRP-conjugated anti-rabbit IgG antibody as the secondary antibody.",
"These results are shown in FIG. 2B .",
"Additionally, the above-mentioned protein samples were loaded onto 10% polyacrylamide gels and separated by SDS-PAGE as above.",
"Subsequently, another Western blotting analysis was performed by using the immune serum comprising the polyclonal antibody of the present invention and a rabbit polyclonal antibody against N-terminal amino acid residues 1-105 of human Caveolin-1 (Chemicon International Inc.) as the primary antibodies, and using the HRP-conjugated anti-rabbit IgG antibody as the secondary antibody.",
"These results are shown in FIG. 2C , in which the X-ray film obtained by using the immune serum comprising the polyclonal antibody of the present invention as the primary antibody was exposed about 5 seconds, and the X-ray film obtained by using the commercial antibody as the primary antibody was exposed about 5 minutes.",
"From the results shown in FIGS. 2B and 2C , it is known that the polyclonal antibody of the present invention not only recognizes the artificially synthesized Caveolin-1, but also recognizes the endogenous Caveolin-1, including Caveolin-1α and Caveolin-1β, in NIH 3T3 cells;",
"also, it has a higher sensitivity than the commercial antibody.",
"b. Antibody Specificity Test by Western Blotting Also, protein electrophoresis was performed by protein samples obtained from MCF-7 cells transfected by pcDNA4-Caveolin-1, pcDNA4-Caveolin-2 or pcDNA4-Caveolin-3, GH3 cells transfected with myc-tagged pcDNA4-Caveolin-1 construct, MCF-7 cells (negative control), and NIH 3T3 cells and mouse muscles (positive control).",
"Western blotting analysis was performed by using the immune serum comprising the polyclonal antibody of the present invention, and commercial Caveolin-1 monoclonal antibody (clone 2297), Caveolin-2 monoclonal antibody (clone 65) and Caveolin-3 monoclonal antibody (clone 26) (purchased from BD Biosciences) as the primary antibodies, and using the HRP-conjugated anti-rabbit IgG antibody as the secondary antibody.",
"The results are shown in FIG. 3A .",
"From these results, it is known that the polyclonal antibody of the present invention is specific to Caveolin-1, and it does not cross-react with Caveolin-2 or Caveolin-3.",
"c. Cross-Species Analysis by Western Blotting Protein electrophoresis by SDS-PAGE was performed in 10% polyacrylamide gels according to the above-mentioned procedure using protein samples obtained from mouse NIH 3T3 cells, human A431 cells and goat GMEC cells.",
"Western blotting analysis was performed by using the pre-immune rabbit serum (negative control) and the immune serum comprising the polyclonal antibody of the present invention as the primary antibodies, and using the HRP-conjugated anti-rabbit IgG antibody as the secondary antibody.",
"The results are shown in FIG. 3B .",
"From these results, it is known that the polyclonal antibody of the present invention recognizes Caveolin-1 of a variety of species and can be used in a cross-species analysis.",
"Detection of Endogenous Caveolin-1 in Cells by Immunostaining Mouse NIH 3T3 cell culture and human A431 cell culture were respectively added on a 22×22 mm cover glass at the concentration of 3×10 5 cells/mL, and incubated for 24 hours.",
"The cells were fixed in 4% paraformaldehyde for 15 minutes, then washed in 1× phosphate buffered saline (PBS) 3 times, each time for 5 minutes.",
"0.5% Triton X-100 was added and kept at room temperature for 10 minutes to permeate the cells, then the cells were again washed in 1×PBS 3 times, each time for 5 minutes.",
"Next, the cells were blocked with 10% normal goat serum (Jackson Immunoresearch Laboratories, USA) in 1×PBS at room temperature for 1 hour, then washed in 1×PBS 3 times, each time for 5 minutes.",
"After that, a 1:300 dilution of the immune serum comprising the polyclonal antibody of the present invention in PBS was applied to the cell-coated cover glass, and kept at 4° C. overnight, the cells were then washed 3 times in 1×PBS, each time for 5 minutes.",
"Subsequently, a 1:300 dilution of FITC-conjugated donkey anti-rabbit IgG secondary antibody (Jackson Immunoresearch Laboratories, USA) was applied to the cover glass, and incubated in the dark for 2 hours, the cells were then washed 3 times in 1×PBS, each time for 5 minutes.",
"The cells were counter-stained by 10 ng/mL Hoechst 33342 (Sigma-Aldrich Fine Chemical, Inc.) and 2.5 μg/mL Texas-red-conjugated phalloidin (Sigma-Aldrich Fine Chemical, Inc.) at room temperature for 10 minutes, and then washed in PBS 3 times.",
"Finally, the stained cells were mounted in mounting medium Mowiol 4-88 (Calbiochem, Germany), sealed with transparent nail polish, and observed under laser scanning confocal microscopy (LSM 510;",
"Zeiss).",
"The cell staining results are shown in FIG. 4 .",
"From these results, it is known that the polyclonal antibody of the present invention recognizes Caveolin-1 naturally produced in human and mouse cells.",
"Immunoprecipitation Human A431 cell extract was used in an immunoprecipitation test.",
"500 μL RIPA buffer was added to 3×10 6 A431 cells to extract the total protein of the cells, and the concentration of the protein was adjusted to 1 μg/μL.",
"500 μL of the protein was mixed with 1 μL of pre-immune rabbit serum or the immune serum comprising the polyclonal antibody of the present invention, then rotationally mixed at 4° C. for 30 minutes.",
"20 μL Protein A-Sepharose slurry was added, then the mixture was rotated at 4° C. for a further 30 minutes.",
"Next, the mixture was centrifuged at 12,000 rpm (15,000 g) for 5 minutes at 4° C. The supernatant from this step was removed and discarded, and the pellet was washed in NET buffer [150 mM NaCl, 1 mM EDTA, 50 mM Tris (pH 8)] 3 times, and centrifuged at 12,000 rpm for 5 minutes at 4° C. after each wash.",
"After the last wash, the supernatant was completely removed, 50 μL 2× Laemmli buffer was added to the pellet and mixed well, and the mixture was heated at 95° C. for 5 minutes.",
"After that, the mixture was centrifuged at 12,000 rpm for 5 minutes at room temperature, and the supernatant was collected as a protein sample to perform Western blotting.",
"The results are shown in FIG. 5 .",
"From these results, it is known that the polyclonal antibody of the present invention can successfully immunoprecipitate the endogenous Caveolin-1 in A431 cells.",
"Since the polyclonal antibody of the present invention can successfully purify the endogenous Caveolin-1 by immunoprecipitation, the position of the antigen peptide sequence that binds the polyclonal antibody of the present invention can be used to confirm whether the antibody produced by said peptide sequence can purify Caveolin-1 by immunoprecipitation or immunoabsorption, or whether it can be used as a co-immunoprecipitation tool to study proteins that interact with Caveolin-1.",
"Estimation of Caveolin-1 Expression in Biopsy It is well-known that Caveolin-1 is expressed in normal human breast and colon tissue.",
"Therefore, normal and tumorous human breast tissue (from 25 patients) and colon tissue (from 25 patients) were derived from 50 breast or colon cancer patients, wherein these specimens were obtained from National Taiwan University Hospital.",
"The normal tissue, which was used as a control, was derived from the peripheral region of the tumorous tissue from the corresponding patient.",
"The above-mentioned normal and tumorous human breast or colon tissue was cryo-sectioned into 7 μm-thick sections and fixed with 4% paraformaldehyde, then washed in 1×PBS 3 times, each time for 5 minutes.",
"These sections were then treated with 0.3% H 2 O 2 at room temperature for 30 minutes to inactivate endogenous peroxidase activity, then washed in 1×PBS 3 times, each time for 5 minutes.",
"After that, these sections were blocked in 10% normal goat serum at room temperature for 1 hour, then washed in 1×PBS 3 times, each time for 5 minutes.",
"A 100 μL dilution of the immune serum comprising the polyclonal antibody of the present invention (1:100, in PBS) was added onto the sections in a sealed humid container to hybridize for 12-24 hours, then the sections were washed in 1×PBS 3 times.",
"These treated sections were then soaked in 100 μL dilution of HRP-conjugated anti-rabbit IgG antibody (1:300, in PBS) at room temperature for 2 hours, then the sections were washed in 1×PBS 3 times, each time for 5 minutes.",
"After that, ABC kit (Vectastain Elite), H 2 O 2 and diaminobenzidine tetrahydrochloride (DAB) reagent were used to form reddish precipitate.",
"The sections were dried, mounted with 90% glycerol/PBS, and sealed by transparent nail polish.",
"The results are shown in FIG. 6A .",
"From these results, it is known that the polyclonal antibody of the present invention can distinguish the difference of the Caveolin-1 expressions between normal and tumorous tissues.",
"In addition, the reddish precipitate formed in these sections can be categorized into 6 grades by the formation time and the color strength.",
"Statistical analysis by paired t-test (using SAS, version 9.1) confirmed that the polyclonal antibody of the present invention can effectively distinguish between the different levels of Caveolin-1 expression found in normal and tumorous tissues.",
"These results are shown in FIG. 6B .",
"From these results, it is known that the polyclonal antibody of the present invention can be used to distinguish between normal and tumorous tissues of breast or colon, and can be used to monitor the disease progression of breast or colon cancer."
] |
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Technical Field
The invention relates to a system and a method for securing the communication of components within self-service automats, in particular automated teller machines.
2. Discussion
Self-service automats often have a series of components that have to be linked to each other. Usually, these automats have a standardized PC platform that meets special security requirements. Keypads, cash dispensing automats, card readers, monitors and other devices are connected to this PC platform (motherboard), by USB interfaces for example.
These automats further include the possibility of connecting to another computer so that a maintenance engineer, for example, can connect to the self-service automat using his laptop.
A situation of this type exists, for example, when the engineer would like to test the money dispensing unit. Using a test program that is installed on the laptop, he can connect to the dispensing unit in order to dispense bills for test purposes. In addition, instances are known in which persons use this technology in order to procure cash in an unauthorized fashion. This latter is achieved by circumventing or manipulating physical security mechanisms.
Furthermore, security-sensitive cases are known in which a person using a USB tracer (a device that listens in on the traffic on the USB interface) switches to the line of the dispensing unit and the PC for the purpose of analyzing control commands, manipulating them and re-entering commands overheard in order to obtain cash in an unauthorized manner in this way. Furthermore, cases are known in which a person using a USB tracer interposes himself between the line for the card reader and the PC in order to obtain card data in an unauthorized manner.
The present invention is not categorically restricted to USB; however, USB is a dominant standard for peripheral devices on computers so that in what follows the discussion will center essentially on USB. However, it should be noted that all other connecting standards that may similarly be wireless and follow a similar concept to USB, are to be covered by the invention.
USB is a serial-bit bus, the individual bits of the data package are transmitted sequentially. Data transmission takes place symmetrically over two twisted wires, one of which transmits the data signal unchanged, the other the inverted signal. The signal receiver creates the voltage differential between the two signals; the voltage swing between levels 1 and 0 is consequently twice as great, irradiated interference is largely eliminated. This increases transmission security, suppresses interference and improves electromagnetic compatibility. Two additional wires are used for the power feed to the attached devices. By using only four strands in one cable, said strands can be made thinner and more economically than with parallel interfaces. A high data transmission rate can be achieved at relatively low cost since it is not necessary to transmit several signals with identical electrical and chronological profiles.
The bus specification provides for a central host controller (master) that assumes coordination of the connected peripheral devices (the slave clients). Theoretically, up to 127 different devices can be connected to the host controller. Only one USB device can be connected to a USB port at a time. If several devices are to be connected to a host, a distributor (hub) must handle the connection. The result of using hubs is the creation of tree structures that all end in the host controller.
In spite of its name—Universal Serial Bus—the USB is not a physical data bus. In a bus of this kind, several devices are connected in parallel to one line. The designation “bus” refers to the logical networking, the actual electrical implementation is carried out using only point-to-point connections.
A USB stack on which the appropriate USB drivers for the devices sit is used to manage information and data transmitted over the USB bus. The USB stack is responsible for the assignment of information to the individual device drivers.
FIG. 1 shows a stack structure of this kind for two devices. The left column represents the stack structure for a system PC that basically controls the automated teller machine. The RM3 device is a peripheral device that is connected to the system PC over a USB bus for example. This peripheral device may be, for example, an automated teller machine or a card reader in which in turn an operating system is similarly located that manages the USB interface. It can be seen that the system PC has a JDD (Java device driver) layer that is responsible for loading the drivers. Below said JDD is located an object request broker (ORB). The USB transport layer, which in turn sits on the USB driver, is located below said ORB.
It must be noted that the USB technology has no form of security functions so that the manipulations described above can occur.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
An object of the present invention is to ensure the security of a connecting channel that connects a main control unit (PC module) to peripheral devices. In real terms, the authenticity and the confidentiality of messages on this channel are realized using a combination method. A further object is to provide error tolerance and to prevent old messages from being re-entered.
The preferred embodiment of the invention concerns methods for securing the communication of components within self-service automats that are connected to each other via a bus system. Such components may be the main board (usually a PC-based motherboard), the card reader, the keypad, the cash dispensing system, screen, etc. A basic distinction is made between an active component (transmitter) and a passive component (receiver). These components are preferably connected by a serial bus system, such as the USB bus. Naturally, no restriction regarding the bus system should exist. Both wireless and wired bus systems can be used. With the USB bus system, for example, encryption is not specified by the standard so that said encryption has to take place at the transport level of the bus system. In so doing, the data are exchanged as tuples (C, A, R, N, Z). The tuple may be configured as a binary record in different forms. The data can also be transmitted in a different sequence or in separate packages. The tuple is intended solely to express the logical relationship. In this tuple, C are the message data M encoded with an encryption key, A are the message data M authenticated with an authentication key, R represents the role of a component on the bus system as active or passive participant (transmitter or receiver), N represents a message counter, Z represents a session counter. The function of the session counter is to see that the key is changed regularly for a new session. Known algorithms can be used on both sides for implementation. Examples from the prior art are:
AES, DES and any other block ciphers in corresponding operating modes. Details are known to one skilled in the art. In a further embodiment, the above named tuple is expanded so that it now reads (C, A, R, N, Z, {circumflex over (N)}, {circumflex over (Z)}), where {circumflex over (N)} is a message counter of the Δ-last messages N, {circumflex over (Z)} is a last session counter of the Δ-last messages. Through Δ, it can always be specified that the last messages in the transmission are allowed be lost without the need to inform the application layer above it. The transmitter of a channel notes the session number {circumflex over (Z)} and message number {circumflex over (N)} of the last Δ-last messages and, in addition to the pair (N, Z), also sends the pair ({circumflex over (Z)} {circumflex over (N)}) as the current session counter in each message so that a check is possible at the receiver. If fewer than Δ messages have now been lost, no error message is generated. This is always possible when redundancies in data transmission exist. The Δ can be set as a parameter, e.g. by the layer above. A loss of information can occur, for example, when cables are pulled out or other manipulations are carried out to the connection.
The security measures are based on a key for authentication and a key for encryption. Keys are used that are created when the self-service automats are produced and assembled, and filed securely in the components.
The keys can be filed in a Trusted Platform Module (TPM), for example, such as is known commercially. The Trusted Platform Module (TPM) is a chip that, as part of the TCG specification (formerly TCPA), restricts computers or other devices that can execute the commands of the TPM. This serves the purposes of license protection and data protection (privacy) for example. The chip is the equivalent of a permanently installed smartcard with the important difference that it is not tied to a specific user (user instance) but to a single computer (hardware instance). Besides its use in PCs, the TPM can be integrated into PDAs, mobile telephones, and entertainment electronics. A device with TPA can no longer be used counter to the interests of the hardware maker, the operator of the licenses or the owner of data by means of software that carries out the commands of the TPM. A benefit for the individual user of a computer is not defined, except in protection against misuse by unauthorized third parties.
The chip is passive and cannot affect either the booting process or operation directly. It contains an unambiguous code and serves to identify the computer.
Authentication is made on the basis of a known authentication algorithm by A:=Auth[K auth R , N, M, |M|], where K auth R is the result of a secure key generation procedure using a common key K and C:=ENC[K enc R , Z, N, M], where K enc R is the result of a secure key generation procedure using a common key K. In the preferred embodiment, said keys are determined by a hash function. Details can be found farther below.
To ensure that no data of any kind is lost, a message counter is used that is incremented up to a predetermined natural number at each transmission.
In detail, the following steps should be carried out when transmitting, check whether the message counter N<N max , if this is given, set N:=N+1.
When receiving, the following steps are performed, assuming that the last session counter is Z and the last message counter is N .
Check whether session number Z≦Z max , Check whether message number N≦N max Compare the tuples (Z,N) and ( Z , N ), if more than Δ messages have been lost, an error is generated, otherwise, Carry out decryption Carry out authentication
At the receiver, the decryption is carried out as follows M′:=DEC[K dec R ,C]; authentication is given if A=A′ where A′:=Auth[K ver R , N, M′, |C|],
The method can be used with self-service automats that were mentioned previously, where the component may be both the receiver and the transmitter. Usually, the communication is bi-directional so that receiver and transmitter assume both functions.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
The figures show possible embodiments that are not to be construed in a restrictive sense but are intended only to improve understanding of the invention.
FIG. 1 shows the stack structure of two self-service components, in this case, a system PC is involved on the one side and an RM3 card reader on the other side;
FIG. 2 shows the communication of the devices from FIG. 1 across the layers of the software;
FIG. 3 shows communication over the USB bus system;
FIG. 4 shows the encrypted communication over the bus system;
FIG. 5 shows the steps when generating the common key when the PC motherboard is started up, and when filing in the TPM;
FIG. 6 shows the steps from FIG. 5 for the card reader;
FIG. 7 shows the initialization of the keys between the card reader and the PC.
DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
The encrypting model is explained in detail below for a better understanding.
In the first step a description is given of the designator or variables for the secure channel protocol:
A, B
Participants in the protocol
R ∈ {A, B}
Designator of the active protocol participant
R′ ∈ {A, B}\{R}
Designator of the passive protocol participant
N max
Maximum number of messages per session
Z max
Maximum number of sessions
HASH [.]
Cryptographically secure hash function, for example
SHA 1, SHA 256, MD5, etc.
AUTH [.]
Cryptographically secure message authentication, for
example by means of HMAC, CBC, MAC ISO9797-1
ENC [.]
Cryptographically secure encryption procedure, for
example by means of AES, DES,
K
Common, long-life key of A and B
A → B
Session in which A sends messages to B
B → A
Session in which B sends messages to A
Z A→B A
Session counter of A for the session A → B
(persistent)
Z B→A A
Session counter of A for the session B → A
(persistent)
Z A→B B
Session counter of B for the session A → B
(persistent)
Z B→A B
Session counter of B for the session B → A
(persistent)
N A→B A
Message counter of A for the session A → B
N A→B B
Message counter of B for the session A → B
N B→A A
Message counter of A for the session B → A
N B→A B
Message counter of B for the session B → A
Δ ∈ N
Tolerated length of a sequence of messages that do not
reach their recipient
Functions can be derived from the RC4 algorithm, Temporal Key Integral protocol, MD2, MD4, MD5, SHA, RIPEMD-160, Tiger HAVAL Whirlpool, LM hash NTLM (hash). RSA, AES, etc. can be used as encrypting procedures.
Basically there is a data dependency. After all the messages sent from transmitter A have arrived at the respective receiver B, the following conditions apply:
A
B
K =
K
Z A→B A =(≧)
Z A→B B
Z B→A A =(≦)
Z B→A B
N A→B A =(≧)
N A→B B
N B→A A =(≦)
N B→A B
This table means that the common key is identical, the session counter is the same or greater. If packages are lost, or if the key was just incremented, the session counter may be higher, the same applies to the message counter.
Basically, two cases have to be differentiated. In the first case, a package loss is not allowed (thus Δ=0) in the second case a package loss is allowed because of redundancy (Δ≧0)
Case Δ=0
First a Common Session Counter is Calculated
Entry: Common key K, role Rε{A,B}
Session Sε{‘A→B’,‘B→A’}, session counter Z S R
KS S R :=HASH [K, ‘ENC’, S, Z S R ]
KA S R :=HASH [K, ‘AUTH’, S, Z S R ]
If R=A and S=‘A→B’
1. K enc A :=KS S R
2. K auth A :=KA S R
If R=A and S=‘B→A’
1. K dec A :=K S R
2. K ver A :=KA S R
If R=B and S=‘A→B’
1. K dec B :=K S R
2. K ver B :=KA S R
If R=B and S=‘B→A’
1. K enc B :=KS S R
2. K auth B :=KA S R
When starting a new session, the following must be taken into account:
Entry: Common key K, role Rε{A,B},
Session Sε{‘A→B’,‘B→A’} (i.e. data from A towards B and vice versa) new session counter Z
1. Z S R :=Z//default Z=Z R S +1
2. Calculate common session key
3. N R→R′ R :=0
Send Message:
Entry: Message M, role Rε{A, B}, message counter N R→R′ R , session counter Z R→R′ R
1. Check message counter N R→R′ R <N max
2. Increment message counter N R→R′ R :=N R→R′ R +1
3. Z:=Z R→R′ R ,
4. N:=N R→R′ R
5. A:=AUTH[K auth R , N, M, |M|]
6. C:=ENC[K enc R , N, M]
7. Send (C, A, R, N, Z)
Receive Message:
Entry: Cipher text C. authentication A, role Rε{A, B}, message number N,
Session number Z, message counter N R→R′ R
session counter Z R→R′ R
1. Check session number [Z≦N max ], [Z≧Z R→R′ R ]→start new session
2. Check message number [N≦N max ;], [N=N R→R′ R +1]
3. Calculate M′:=DEC [K dec R , C, N]
4. Calculate A′:=AUTH[K ver R , N, M′, |C|]
5. Check A=A′
In the following, the protocol for Δ>0, in which packages are allowed to be lost because of the redundancy in the higher layer will be described.
In the following it is to be permissible that sequences from Δ>0 of successive messages may be lost during transmission without an error being displayed. The transmitter for a channel notes the session number {circumflex over (Z)} and message number {circumflex over (N)} of the last Δ messages and also includes in each message, in addition to the pair (current session counter, current message counter), the pair ({circumflex over (Z)},{circumflex over (N)}). The receiver on the other side notes the session counter Z and message counter N of the respective last message that it received. In order to check whether a sequence of more than Δ successive messages has been lost, the receiver compares the pairs ({circumflex over (Z)},{circumflex over (N)}) and ( Z , N ) component by component. It can then decide whether, after the last message received, the transmitter sent still more than Δ many messages or not.
Start New Session
Entry: Common key K, role Rε{A,B},
Session Sε{‘A→B’,‘B→A’}
1. Z S R ←Z S R +1//larger jumps should not be permitted
2. Calculate common session key
3. N S R :=1//Initialization of message counter
The following steps are performed at the transmitter.
Send Message
Entry: Message M, role Rε{A, B}, message counter N R→R′ R , session counter Z R→R′ R
Old message counter for the Δ-last message {circumflex over (N)} R→R′ R
Last session counter for Δ-last message {circumflex over (Z)} R→R′ R
Steps that Run
1. Check message counter N R→R′ R <N max , otherwise start new session
2. Advance message counter N R→R′ R :=N R→R′ R +1
3. A:=AUTH[K auth R , N R→R′ R , Z R→R′ R , {circumflex over (N)} R→R′ R , {circumflex over (Z)} R→R′ R , |M|, M]
4. C:=ENC[K enc R , Z, N, M]
5. Send (C, A, R, N R→R′ R Z R→R′ R , {circumflex over (N)} R→R′ R , {circumflex over (Z)} R→R′ R )
The following steps are performed at the receiver.
Receive Message:
Entry:
Cipher text C, authentication A, role R,
Current message counter N R→R′ R , current session counter Z R→R′ R
Δ-last message counter {circumflex over (N)} R→R′ R , Δ-last session counter {circumflex over (Z)} R→R′ R
Last session counter Z , last message counter N
Steps that Run
1. Check session number [Z≦Z max ]
2. Check message number [N≦N max ]
3. Compare tuples ({circumflex over (Z)} R→R′ R , {circumflex over (N)} R→R′ R ) with ( Z , N ) error, more than Δ messages lost
4. Calculate M′:=DEC [K dec R , C, N]
5. Calculate A′:=AUTH[K auth R , N R→R′ R , Z R→R′ R , {circumflex over (N)} R→R′ R , {circumflex over (Z)} R→R′ R , |M|, M]
6. Check A=A′
In the following, the Figures that were mentioned above will be described in more detail.
FIG. 1 shows a system PC that is connected over a USB interface to a peripheral device, in this case a card reading device, or alternatively to a cash dispensing device (RM3). The system PC has different layers. First, the USB driver that sits directly on the hardware must be named. Then, above that is the USB transport layer that serves to transmit data and at which level encryption takes place. Above that, is an object request broker (ORB). A Java driver manager (JDD/Java device driver) is disposed thereon in turn. Furthermore, there is an encryption module that has access to a session key and thus prepares a secure channel. The session key is derived from a base key. The card reading device in turn similarly derives its session key from a base key and has a similar structure.
FIG. 2 shows the data flow between the two devices with reference to FIG. 1 . Up to the USB transport layer, the data are unencrypted in order to have them encrypted by the encryption module. Then these data are transmitted encrypted in order for them to be decrypted again at the receiving device.
FIG. 3 shows the USB data connection with the different active and passive alignment of the components. This session EP 0 is, for example, unencrypted. Sessions EP 1 and EP 2 are encrypted, where the PC is the client (passive) and the RM3 is the server (active). Sessions EP 3 and EP 4 in turn are similarly encrypted, where here the PC is the active participant and the card reading device is the passive participant.
On the basis of FIG. 3 , FIG. 4 shows the encrypted information that is exchanged between the devices, where an appropriate encryption key and an authentication key are used. Details are described above.
FIGS. 5-7 shows the generation of the common key K that is generated at the time the apparatus is originally assembled.
FIG. 5 shows the initialization of the PC with a TPM module. On the basis of a PKI (public key infrastructure), an authentication key is generated, and said key is then signed publicly. Then the public key and a suitable certificate are imported. Then the root certificate is imported from the PKI. All this information is deposited in the TPM.
In the RM3 module, or in the chip card reader, a key pair is generated, and a request is made to the PKI to certify a public key. Then this public key is certified, and in the next step said key is imported again into the component of the self-service automat. Further, the CA root certificate of the PKI is imported. After both components have been prepared, said components are connected to each other, and the steps described in FIG. 7 are performed. A technician authenticates himself to the system and requests the system to carry out a key initialization. Then the components communicate with each other. The two components exchange their certificates and inspect said certificates. If it turns out that the certificates are correct, a secret base key is transmitted in code. The above named algorithms build on this common base key. | Method to secure the communication of components within self-service automats that are linked to each other by a bus system, having a transmitter and a receiver, characterized in that data are exchanged as tuples (C, A, R, N, Z) on the transport layer of the bus system where
C are the message data M encrypted with an encryption key, A are the message data M authenticated with an authentication key, R represents the role of a component on the bus system of active or passive participants, N represents a message counter, Z represents a session counter. | Provide a concise summary of the essential information conveyed in the context. | [
"BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1.",
"Technical Field The invention relates to a system and a method for securing the communication of components within self-service automats, in particular automated teller machines.",
"Discussion Self-service automats often have a series of components that have to be linked to each other.",
"Usually, these automats have a standardized PC platform that meets special security requirements.",
"Keypads, cash dispensing automats, card readers, monitors and other devices are connected to this PC platform (motherboard), by USB interfaces for example.",
"These automats further include the possibility of connecting to another computer so that a maintenance engineer, for example, can connect to the self-service automat using his laptop.",
"A situation of this type exists, for example, when the engineer would like to test the money dispensing unit.",
"Using a test program that is installed on the laptop, he can connect to the dispensing unit in order to dispense bills for test purposes.",
"In addition, instances are known in which persons use this technology in order to procure cash in an unauthorized fashion.",
"This latter is achieved by circumventing or manipulating physical security mechanisms.",
"Furthermore, security-sensitive cases are known in which a person using a USB tracer (a device that listens in on the traffic on the USB interface) switches to the line of the dispensing unit and the PC for the purpose of analyzing control commands, manipulating them and re-entering commands overheard in order to obtain cash in an unauthorized manner in this way.",
"Furthermore, cases are known in which a person using a USB tracer interposes himself between the line for the card reader and the PC in order to obtain card data in an unauthorized manner.",
"The present invention is not categorically restricted to USB;",
"however, USB is a dominant standard for peripheral devices on computers so that in what follows the discussion will center essentially on USB.",
"However, it should be noted that all other connecting standards that may similarly be wireless and follow a similar concept to USB, are to be covered by the invention.",
"USB is a serial-bit bus, the individual bits of the data package are transmitted sequentially.",
"Data transmission takes place symmetrically over two twisted wires, one of which transmits the data signal unchanged, the other the inverted signal.",
"The signal receiver creates the voltage differential between the two signals;",
"the voltage swing between levels 1 and 0 is consequently twice as great, irradiated interference is largely eliminated.",
"This increases transmission security, suppresses interference and improves electromagnetic compatibility.",
"Two additional wires are used for the power feed to the attached devices.",
"By using only four strands in one cable, said strands can be made thinner and more economically than with parallel interfaces.",
"A high data transmission rate can be achieved at relatively low cost since it is not necessary to transmit several signals with identical electrical and chronological profiles.",
"The bus specification provides for a central host controller (master) that assumes coordination of the connected peripheral devices (the slave clients).",
"Theoretically, up to 127 different devices can be connected to the host controller.",
"Only one USB device can be connected to a USB port at a time.",
"If several devices are to be connected to a host, a distributor (hub) must handle the connection.",
"The result of using hubs is the creation of tree structures that all end in the host controller.",
"In spite of its name—Universal Serial Bus—the USB is not a physical data bus.",
"In a bus of this kind, several devices are connected in parallel to one line.",
"The designation “bus”",
"refers to the logical networking, the actual electrical implementation is carried out using only point-to-point connections.",
"A USB stack on which the appropriate USB drivers for the devices sit is used to manage information and data transmitted over the USB bus.",
"The USB stack is responsible for the assignment of information to the individual device drivers.",
"FIG. 1 shows a stack structure of this kind for two devices.",
"The left column represents the stack structure for a system PC that basically controls the automated teller machine.",
"The RM3 device is a peripheral device that is connected to the system PC over a USB bus for example.",
"This peripheral device may be, for example, an automated teller machine or a card reader in which in turn an operating system is similarly located that manages the USB interface.",
"It can be seen that the system PC has a JDD (Java device driver) layer that is responsible for loading the drivers.",
"Below said JDD is located an object request broker (ORB).",
"The USB transport layer, which in turn sits on the USB driver, is located below said ORB.",
"It must be noted that the USB technology has no form of security functions so that the manipulations described above can occur.",
"SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to ensure the security of a connecting channel that connects a main control unit (PC module) to peripheral devices.",
"In real terms, the authenticity and the confidentiality of messages on this channel are realized using a combination method.",
"A further object is to provide error tolerance and to prevent old messages from being re-entered.",
"The preferred embodiment of the invention concerns methods for securing the communication of components within self-service automats that are connected to each other via a bus system.",
"Such components may be the main board (usually a PC-based motherboard), the card reader, the keypad, the cash dispensing system, screen, etc.",
"A basic distinction is made between an active component (transmitter) and a passive component (receiver).",
"These components are preferably connected by a serial bus system, such as the USB bus.",
"Naturally, no restriction regarding the bus system should exist.",
"Both wireless and wired bus systems can be used.",
"With the USB bus system, for example, encryption is not specified by the standard so that said encryption has to take place at the transport level of the bus system.",
"In so doing, the data are exchanged as tuples (C, A, R, N, Z).",
"The tuple may be configured as a binary record in different forms.",
"The data can also be transmitted in a different sequence or in separate packages.",
"The tuple is intended solely to express the logical relationship.",
"In this tuple, C are the message data M encoded with an encryption key, A are the message data M authenticated with an authentication key, R represents the role of a component on the bus system as active or passive participant (transmitter or receiver), N represents a message counter, Z represents a session counter.",
"The function of the session counter is to see that the key is changed regularly for a new session.",
"Known algorithms can be used on both sides for implementation.",
"Examples from the prior art are: AES, DES and any other block ciphers in corresponding operating modes.",
"Details are known to one skilled in the art.",
"In a further embodiment, the above named tuple is expanded so that it now reads (C, A, R, N, Z, {circumflex over (N)}, {circumflex over (Z)}), where {circumflex over (N)} is a message counter of the Δ-last messages N, {circumflex over (Z)} is a last session counter of the Δ-last messages.",
"Through Δ, it can always be specified that the last messages in the transmission are allowed be lost without the need to inform the application layer above it.",
"The transmitter of a channel notes the session number {circumflex over (Z)} and message number {circumflex over (N)} of the last Δ-last messages and, in addition to the pair (N, Z), also sends the pair ({circumflex over (Z)} {circumflex over (N)}) as the current session counter in each message so that a check is possible at the receiver.",
"If fewer than Δ messages have now been lost, no error message is generated.",
"This is always possible when redundancies in data transmission exist.",
"The Δ can be set as a parameter, e.g. by the layer above.",
"A loss of information can occur, for example, when cables are pulled out or other manipulations are carried out to the connection.",
"The security measures are based on a key for authentication and a key for encryption.",
"Keys are used that are created when the self-service automats are produced and assembled, and filed securely in the components.",
"The keys can be filed in a Trusted Platform Module (TPM), for example, such as is known commercially.",
"The Trusted Platform Module (TPM) is a chip that, as part of the TCG specification (formerly TCPA), restricts computers or other devices that can execute the commands of the TPM.",
"This serves the purposes of license protection and data protection (privacy) for example.",
"The chip is the equivalent of a permanently installed smartcard with the important difference that it is not tied to a specific user (user instance) but to a single computer (hardware instance).",
"Besides its use in PCs, the TPM can be integrated into PDAs, mobile telephones, and entertainment electronics.",
"A device with TPA can no longer be used counter to the interests of the hardware maker, the operator of the licenses or the owner of data by means of software that carries out the commands of the TPM.",
"A benefit for the individual user of a computer is not defined, except in protection against misuse by unauthorized third parties.",
"The chip is passive and cannot affect either the booting process or operation directly.",
"It contains an unambiguous code and serves to identify the computer.",
"Authentication is made on the basis of a known authentication algorithm by A:=Auth[K auth R , N, M, |M|], where K auth R is the result of a secure key generation procedure using a common key K and C:=ENC[K enc R , Z, N, M], where K enc R is the result of a secure key generation procedure using a common key K. In the preferred embodiment, said keys are determined by a hash function.",
"Details can be found farther below.",
"To ensure that no data of any kind is lost, a message counter is used that is incremented up to a predetermined natural number at each transmission.",
"In detail, the following steps should be carried out when transmitting, check whether the message counter N<N max , if this is given, set N:=N+1.",
"When receiving, the following steps are performed, assuming that the last session counter is Z and the last message counter is N .",
"Check whether session number Z≦Z max , Check whether message number N≦N max Compare the tuples (Z,N) and ( Z , N ), if more than Δ messages have been lost, an error is generated, otherwise, Carry out decryption Carry out authentication At the receiver, the decryption is carried out as follows M′:=DEC[K dec R ,C];",
"authentication is given if A=A′ where A′:=Auth[K ver R , N, M′, |C|], The method can be used with self-service automats that were mentioned previously, where the component may be both the receiver and the transmitter.",
"Usually, the communication is bi-directional so that receiver and transmitter assume both functions.",
"BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS The figures show possible embodiments that are not to be construed in a restrictive sense but are intended only to improve understanding of the invention.",
"FIG. 1 shows the stack structure of two self-service components, in this case, a system PC is involved on the one side and an RM3 card reader on the other side;",
"FIG. 2 shows the communication of the devices from FIG. 1 across the layers of the software;",
"FIG. 3 shows communication over the USB bus system;",
"FIG. 4 shows the encrypted communication over the bus system;",
"FIG. 5 shows the steps when generating the common key when the PC motherboard is started up, and when filing in the TPM;",
"FIG. 6 shows the steps from FIG. 5 for the card reader;",
"FIG. 7 shows the initialization of the keys between the card reader and the PC.",
"DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS The encrypting model is explained in detail below for a better understanding.",
"In the first step a description is given of the designator or variables for the secure channel protocol: A, B Participants in the protocol R ∈ {A, B} Designator of the active protocol participant R′ ∈ {A, B}\\{R} Designator of the passive protocol participant N max Maximum number of messages per session Z max Maximum number of sessions HASH [.",
"] Cryptographically secure hash function, for example SHA 1, SHA 256, MD5, etc.",
"AUTH [.",
"] Cryptographically secure message authentication, for example by means of HMAC, CBC, MAC ISO9797-1 ENC [.",
"] Cryptographically secure encryption procedure, for example by means of AES, DES, K Common, long-life key of A and B A → B Session in which A sends messages to B B → A Session in which B sends messages to A Z A→B A Session counter of A for the session A → B (persistent) Z B→A A Session counter of A for the session B → A (persistent) Z A→B B Session counter of B for the session A → B (persistent) Z B→A B Session counter of B for the session B → A (persistent) N A→B A Message counter of A for the session A → B N A→B B Message counter of B for the session A → B N B→A A Message counter of A for the session B → A N B→A B Message counter of B for the session B → A Δ ∈ N Tolerated length of a sequence of messages that do not reach their recipient Functions can be derived from the RC4 algorithm, Temporal Key Integral protocol, MD2, MD4, MD5, SHA, RIPEMD-160, Tiger HAVAL Whirlpool, LM hash NTLM (hash).",
"RSA, AES, etc.",
"can be used as encrypting procedures.",
"Basically there is a data dependency.",
"After all the messages sent from transmitter A have arrived at the respective receiver B, the following conditions apply: A B K = K Z A→B A =(≧) Z A→B B Z B→A A =(≦) Z B→A B N A→B A =(≧) N A→B B N B→A A =(≦) N B→A B This table means that the common key is identical, the session counter is the same or greater.",
"If packages are lost, or if the key was just incremented, the session counter may be higher, the same applies to the message counter.",
"Basically, two cases have to be differentiated.",
"In the first case, a package loss is not allowed (thus Δ=0) in the second case a package loss is allowed because of redundancy (Δ≧0) Case Δ=0 First a Common Session Counter is Calculated Entry: Common key K, role Rε{A,B} Session Sε{‘A→B’,‘B→A’}, session counter Z S R KS S R :=HASH [K, ‘ENC’, S, Z S R ] KA S R :=HASH [K, ‘AUTH’, S, Z S R ] If R=A and S=‘A→B’ 1.",
"K enc A :=KS S R 2.",
"K auth A :=KA S R If R=A and S=‘B→A’ 1.",
"K dec A :=K S R 2.",
"K ver A :=KA S R If R=B and S=‘A→B’ 1.",
"K dec B :=K S R 2.",
"K ver B :=KA S R If R=B and S=‘B→A’ 1.",
"K enc B :=KS S R 2.",
"K auth B :=KA S R When starting a new session, the following must be taken into account: Entry: Common key K, role Rε{A,B}, Session Sε{‘A→B’,‘B→A’} (i.e. data from A towards B and vice versa) new session counter Z 1.",
"Z S R :=Z//default Z=Z R S +1 2.",
"Calculate common session key 3.",
"N R→R′ R :=0 Send Message: Entry: Message M, role Rε{A, B}, message counter N R→R′ R , session counter Z R→R′ R 1.",
"Check message counter N R→R′ R <N max 2.",
"Increment message counter N R→R′ R :=N R→R′ R +1 3.",
"Z:=Z R→R′ R , 4.",
"N:=N R→R′ R 5.",
"A:=AUTH[K auth R , N, M, |M|] 6.",
"C:=ENC[K enc R , N, M] 7.",
"Send (C, A, R, N, Z) Receive Message: Entry: Cipher text C. authentication A, role Rε{A, B}, message number N, Session number Z, message counter N R→R′ R session counter Z R→R′ R 1.",
"Check session number [Z≦N max ], [Z≧Z R→R′ R ]→start new session 2.",
"Check message number [N≦N max ;], [N=N R→R′ R +1] 3.",
"Calculate M′:=DEC [K dec R , C, N] 4.",
"Calculate A′:=AUTH[K ver R , N, M′, |C|] 5.",
"Check A=A′ In the following, the protocol for Δ>0, in which packages are allowed to be lost because of the redundancy in the higher layer will be described.",
"In the following it is to be permissible that sequences from Δ>0 of successive messages may be lost during transmission without an error being displayed.",
"The transmitter for a channel notes the session number {circumflex over (Z)} and message number {circumflex over (N)} of the last Δ messages and also includes in each message, in addition to the pair (current session counter, current message counter), the pair ({circumflex over (Z)},{circumflex over (N)}).",
"The receiver on the other side notes the session counter Z and message counter N of the respective last message that it received.",
"In order to check whether a sequence of more than Δ successive messages has been lost, the receiver compares the pairs ({circumflex over (Z)},{circumflex over (N)}) and ( Z , N ) component by component.",
"It can then decide whether, after the last message received, the transmitter sent still more than Δ many messages or not.",
"Start New Session Entry: Common key K, role Rε{A,B}, Session Sε{‘A→B’,‘B→A’} 1.",
"Z S R ←Z S R +1//larger jumps should not be permitted 2.",
"Calculate common session key 3.",
"N S R :=1//Initialization of message counter The following steps are performed at the transmitter.",
"Send Message Entry: Message M, role Rε{A, B}, message counter N R→R′ R , session counter Z R→R′ R Old message counter for the Δ-last message {circumflex over (N)} R→R′ R Last session counter for Δ-last message {circumflex over (Z)} R→R′ R Steps that Run 1.",
"Check message counter N R→R′ R <N max , otherwise start new session 2.",
"Advance message counter N R→R′ R :=N R→R′ R +1 3.",
"A:=AUTH[K auth R , N R→R′ R , Z R→R′ R , {circumflex over (N)} R→R′ R , {circumflex over (Z)} R→R′ R , |M|, M] 4.",
"C:=ENC[K enc R , Z, N, M] 5.",
"Send (C, A, R, N R→R′ R Z R→R′ R , {circumflex over (N)} R→R′ R , {circumflex over (Z)} R→R′ R ) The following steps are performed at the receiver.",
"Receive Message: Entry: Cipher text C, authentication A, role R, Current message counter N R→R′ R , current session counter Z R→R′ R Δ-last message counter {circumflex over (N)} R→R′ R , Δ-last session counter {circumflex over (Z)} R→R′ R Last session counter Z , last message counter N Steps that Run 1.",
"Check session number [Z≦Z max ] 2.",
"Check message number [N≦N max ] 3.",
"Compare tuples ({circumflex over (Z)} R→R′ R , {circumflex over (N)} R→R′ R ) with ( Z , N ) error, more than Δ messages lost 4.",
"Calculate M′:=DEC [K dec R , C, N] 5.",
"Calculate A′:=AUTH[K auth R , N R→R′ R , Z R→R′ R , {circumflex over (N)} R→R′ R , {circumflex over (Z)} R→R′ R , |M|, M] 6.",
"Check A=A′ In the following, the Figures that were mentioned above will be described in more detail.",
"FIG. 1 shows a system PC that is connected over a USB interface to a peripheral device, in this case a card reading device, or alternatively to a cash dispensing device (RM3).",
"The system PC has different layers.",
"First, the USB driver that sits directly on the hardware must be named.",
"Then, above that is the USB transport layer that serves to transmit data and at which level encryption takes place.",
"Above that, is an object request broker (ORB).",
"A Java driver manager (JDD/Java device driver) is disposed thereon in turn.",
"Furthermore, there is an encryption module that has access to a session key and thus prepares a secure channel.",
"The session key is derived from a base key.",
"The card reading device in turn similarly derives its session key from a base key and has a similar structure.",
"FIG. 2 shows the data flow between the two devices with reference to FIG. 1 .",
"Up to the USB transport layer, the data are unencrypted in order to have them encrypted by the encryption module.",
"Then these data are transmitted encrypted in order for them to be decrypted again at the receiving device.",
"FIG. 3 shows the USB data connection with the different active and passive alignment of the components.",
"This session EP 0 is, for example, unencrypted.",
"Sessions EP 1 and EP 2 are encrypted, where the PC is the client (passive) and the RM3 is the server (active).",
"Sessions EP 3 and EP 4 in turn are similarly encrypted, where here the PC is the active participant and the card reading device is the passive participant.",
"On the basis of FIG. 3 , FIG. 4 shows the encrypted information that is exchanged between the devices, where an appropriate encryption key and an authentication key are used.",
"Details are described above.",
"FIGS. 5-7 shows the generation of the common key K that is generated at the time the apparatus is originally assembled.",
"FIG. 5 shows the initialization of the PC with a TPM module.",
"On the basis of a PKI (public key infrastructure), an authentication key is generated, and said key is then signed publicly.",
"Then the public key and a suitable certificate are imported.",
"Then the root certificate is imported from the PKI.",
"All this information is deposited in the TPM.",
"In the RM3 module, or in the chip card reader, a key pair is generated, and a request is made to the PKI to certify a public key.",
"Then this public key is certified, and in the next step said key is imported again into the component of the self-service automat.",
"Further, the CA root certificate of the PKI is imported.",
"After both components have been prepared, said components are connected to each other, and the steps described in FIG. 7 are performed.",
"A technician authenticates himself to the system and requests the system to carry out a key initialization.",
"Then the components communicate with each other.",
"The two components exchange their certificates and inspect said certificates.",
"If it turns out that the certificates are correct, a secret base key is transmitted in code.",
"The above named algorithms build on this common base key."
] |
BACKGROUND 0 F THE INVENTION
[0001] Consumers have grown increasingly to prefer laundry detergents in the form of liquids. Thus, the need is as great as ever for a convenient container for dispensing such products, yet which is also easier and less costly to manufacture than current versions. Such containers preferably include a combination pour spout/drainback fitment and a closure which also serves as a measuring cup. Numerous dispensers have been disclosed in the patent literature.
[0002] Bengtsson, U.S. Pat. No. 5,498,149 discloses a device for thermoforming a pouring spout.
[0003] Greehow et al., U.S. Pat. No. 4,111,340 discloses a pouring spout for threaded neck containers. At least portions may be thermoformed.
[0004] Malmberg, U.S. Pat. No. 5,564,603 discloses a thermoformed pour spout.
[0005] Christian, U.S. Pat. No. 3,895,743 discloses a lid including a pour spout. Preferably, the closures are vacuum thermoformed.
[0006] Reid, U.S. Pat. No. 5,603,787 discloses a plastic container for pourable liquids such as detergents which has a drainback feature. The container is formed in two pieces, a container body and a separately formed pour spout which is assembled to the container finish preferably by ultrasonic welding. A lip of the pour spout component is pressed and welded down onto an annular top surface of the container finish. The pour spout component includes internal threads which mate with external threads on the closure, which also serves as a measuring cup.
[0007] Reidel, U.S. Pat. No. 5,598,877 is directed to a liquid dispenser having a botcher with a holder.
[0008] Leahy, U.S. Pat. No. 5,597,090 is directed to an apparatus for pouring liquids which includes a cap having internal threads mated with external threads on the container finish, and a fitment which has a flange 39 which mates with the open end of the container at the neck.
[0009] Haffner et al., U.S. Pat. No. 5,566,862 is directed to a liquid dispensing fitment for use on a container. The container finish includes external threads which mate with internal threads on a closure. The fitment includes a peripheral flange adapted to engaged the upper surface of the neck.
[0010] Haffner et al., U.S. Pat. No. 5,462,202 discloses a liquid dispensing fitment for use on a container having a neck. The finish of the container includes external threads which mate with internal threads on a closure. The fitment includes a flange adapted to engage the upper surface. The fitment includes vertical ribs which are said to facilitate stacking of the fitments.
[0011] Ekkert et al., U.S. Pat. No. 5,435,467 discloses a pouring spout configured to permit orientation-specific stacking. A container is illustrated having an externally threaded finish mating with an internally threaded closure. A peripheral flange on the fitment fits atop the neck of the finish.
[0012] Reid, U.S. Pat. No. 5,431,306 discloses a fitment having internal threads and a flange which rests on the upper edge of the container finish.
[0013] Krall, U.S. Pat. No. 5,429,789 discloses a self-draining container. Located within an annular wall is a spout. A closure include a skirt which has external threads which engage the internal threads of the annular wall. Extending radially outwardly from the skirt of the closure above the threads is a ledge adapted to seat against the top of the annular wall to seal the container when the threads are fully engaged.
[0014] Adams et al., U.S. Pat. No. 5,303,837 discloses a tamper evident device which comprises a fitment attached around an aperture in a container and having a flange from which extends an internally threaded spout. The spout is closed by an initially integrally molded externally threaded plug.
[0015] Krall, U.S. Pat. No. 5,207,356 discloses a self draining container including an integral dispensing spout. An integral wall extends upwardly from the body and encircles the spout and an integral web joins the wail on the dispensing spout to form a drain channel. A cap having a depending skirt with external threads mates with an internal thread on the container wall. The cap also includes a radially outwardly extending sealing ring.
[0016] Meyer et al., U.S. Pat. No. 4,929,410 discloses a closure with external threads and a shoulder and, in FIG. 8, an internally threaded neck of a plastic bottle in which a pouring adapter insert has been mounted. It is said that the details of the pouring adapter and of the internal attachment means may be varied, but FIGS. 7 and 8 illustrate the pouring adapter insert as having a snap flange designed to fit within a groove of the internal attachment means.
[0017] Yeager, U.S. Pat. No. 5,207,341 discloses a container which includes a closure having a concentric inner skirt and outer skirt, the outer skirt covering and protecting the outer circumference area of the bottle neck thereby protecting it from the environment outside the bottle.
[0018] Bavegems, U.S. Pat. No. 5,131,566 is directed to a package for flowable products incorporating a refill facilitating pouring spout structure. Internal screw threads on the pouring spout structure mate with external screw threads on the package.
[0019] Krall, U.S. Pat. No. 5,114,659 discloses a self draining container. The container includes a body having a wall extending upwardly from a body opening. The wall surrounds a dispensing spout. A web joins the wall on the dispensing spout to form a drain channel. A closure has a depending skirt having external threads which mate with internal threads on the wall. The closure also includes an outwardly extending radial sealing ring.
[0020] Segati, U.S. Pat. No. 5,060,827 relates to a low profile closure which includes a coupling member which is mounted on a container dispensing opening. The coupling member includes a top peripheral edge which defines an outwardly projecting spout. The cap has external threads which mate with internal threads on the coupling member.
[0021] Darr, U.S. Pat. No. 5,020,692 discloses a container having a unitary plastic blow-molded bottle which has a dispensing spout projecting upwardly from a hollow body portion. In one embodiment, an annular insert surrounds the spout and has internal retainers which secure external retainers on the cap to provide sealing. The cap also includes a round sealing surface that faces downwardly in alignment with a round sealing surface on the annular insert.
[0022] Krall, U.S. Pat. No. 4,989,757 discloses a self draining container having a dispensing spout and a wall surrounding the dispensing spout. A web joins the wall on the dispensing spout to form a drain channel. A closure has a depending skirt with external threads which mate with internal threads on the container wall. The closure also includes a ledge adapted to seat against the top of the annular wall.
[0023] Cappel et al., U.S. Pat. No. 4,981,239 is directed to a container for liquids which comprises a closure having external threads which mate with internal attachment means on an annular skirt. The skirt includes means for attachment to the container. The lower end of a fluid retaining means, which includes a spout, is fused to the container in a liquid tight relation.
[0024] Fuchs et al., U.S. Pat. No. 4,917,269 discloses a container having a neck with an upwardly extending integral dispensing spout, an integral web extending radially outwardly from the lower end of the dispensing spout and a cylindrical wall spaced radially outwardly of the spout and encircling the spout. The cylindrical wall has an internal thread and a closure has external threads which mate with the internal threads. The closure includes an annular flexible sealing ring above the threads which engages an inner surface of the cylindrical wall and flexes upwardly to provide a seal. A sealing ring above the annular flexible sealing ring extends radially outwardly on the closure and engages the top of the cylindrical wall when the closure is threaded onto the container.
[0025] Robinson, U.S. Pat. No. 4,890,768 is directed to a self draining container having a body and an upper integral pouring spout. A ring member is attached to and surrounds the pouring spout. The ring member includes internal threads which mate with threads on a closure.
[0026] Fomby, U.S. Pat. No. 4,711,365 discloses a container having internal threads which mate with external threads on a closure. As the closure member is twisted to engage the threads of the container, an annular face of the container rim engages a complementarily configured annular recess in the closure member.
[0027] Muckenfuhs et al., U.S. Pat. No. 4,696,416 discloses a container having a finish with external threads, a transition collar including a pour spout having internal threads for mating with the external threads of the bottle finish, the transition collar also including internal threads for mating with external threads of a closure. The closure also includes a shoulder projecting outwardly and providing a sealing surface adapted to contact a sealing ring on an upper surface of the circumscribing wall of the collar.
[0028] Reiber et al., U.S. Pat. No. 4,671,421 discloses a plastic container having an insert positioned in the finish. The insert has internal threads for receiving a closure which has external threads. The closure also includes a peripheral flange sealingly engaging the free end of the finish. The insert includes a pour spout. The insert may be placed in position while the finish is hot and when the finish is cooled it shrinks into sealing engagement with the insert. Alternatively, the insert may be spin welded into sealing engagement with the finish. Another option is the use of an adhesive. The spout may be supported by a groove of the insert. In another embodiment the insert has a spout integrally formed within.
[0029] St Clair, U.S. Pat. No. 4,640,855 discloses a plastic container with an integral spout. An inner wall of the container neck includes internal threads. The internal threads can receive a threaded closure for closing the package.
[0030] Barker et al., U.S. Pat. No. 4,550,862 discloses a package similar to that disclosed in the Muchenfuhs patent mentioned above.
[0031] Beckerer, Jr., U.S. Pat. No. 4,280,434 discloses a threaded access cover plate construction for boat decks.
[0032] Rausing, U.S. Pat. No. 3,935,968 discloses a container having a threaded neck closed by an externally threaded plug.
[0033] Gundel, U.S. Pat. No. 3,391,838 discloses a container said to have anti drip means. A closure has external threads mating with internal threads on the container. The closure also includes an upper umbrella-like concave wall provided to engage and seal the upper edge of the bottle including the pouring spout.
[0034] Payson et al., U.S. Pat. No. 3,017,047 discloses a combination vacuum bottle and closure means.
[0035] Moy, U.S. Pat. No. 2,549,225 is directed to a non-drip dispensing bottle stopper having external threads mating with internal threads on a bottle.
[0036] Kanzaki, U.S. Pat. No. 2,341,102 discloses a bottle having a cap with external threads which cooperate with internal threads on the bottle.
[0037] Duffy, U.S. Pat. No. 2,019,402 discloses a bottle having internal and external threads mating with the internal and external threads of a cap.
[0038] Grunberg, U.S. Pat. No. 1,617,842 discloses a perfume bottle having internal threads mating with the external threads of a cap.
[0039] Tofting, U.S. Pat. No. 1,415,908 is directed to a jar having internal threads mating with external threads on a closure.
[0040] Spooner, U.S. Pat. No. 1,351,496 is directed to jar closures having threads mating with those on jars.
[0041] Warren, U.S. Pat. No. 1,014,427 is directed to a bottle stopper which has external threads mating with internal threads on the bottle.
[0042] Taylor, U.S. Pat. No. 328,533 is directed to a bottle having internal threads mating with external threads on a stopper.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0043] In accordance with the invention, a fitment having a circumscribing wall, a floor leading inwardly from the wall and a pour spout ascending from said floor is advantageously made by thermoforming. In particular, a bottle with blown inside threads advantageously utilizes a thermoformed spout of the above type.
[0044] There are many advantages to the use of a thermoformed spout, including substantially reduced costs, and the possibility of a transparent spout, which would permit an unobstructed view inside the bottle so that a consumer can easily see when it is time to purchase more. In addition, thermoforming facilitates the manufacture of a horizontal anti-drip lip on the spout in the direction of pour and offers the opportunity to widen the anti-drip lip so that a U-shaped notch can be added to control pour onto stains. Moreover, the spout can be made with a larger curved radius so that almost 100% of the liquid contents can be dispensed. Additionally, it is believed that a thermoformed spout would enjoy faster production cycles. And, its significantly lower part weight should result in a much lower piece price.
[0045] Preferably, the thermoformed fitment is used in a container which includes a neck having an inwardly extending ridge and/or wall suitable for retaining the fitment and a finish extending above the ridge and having internal fasteners. Preferably the inwardly extending ridge and/or wall is/are annular. The internal fasteners of the finish are adapted to cooperate with external fasteners on a closure. The closure is preferably suitable to serve also as a measuring cup.
[0046] Externally threaded closures are perceived by some to permit cleaner dispensing of product than internally threaded closures. Advantageously, the fitment includes both a pour spout and drainage area which facilitates drainback of unused product into the container. The use of external fasteners on the closure in conjunction with internal fasteners in the finish also facilitates drainback from the closure.
[0047] In accordance with another particularly preferred feature of the invention, a fitment-retaining structure on the bottle finish comprising the inwardly extending ridge extends solely below and lateral to the flange, which can be expected to facilitate insertion of the flange.
[0048] The fitment of the invention may have a height of its outer wall which is reduced as compared to that of some previous fitments.
[0049] The fitment of the invention preferably includes a peripheral flange which, when the fitment is in place in the bottle, is disposed on or above a shoulder above the inwardly extending ridge of the neck. Preferably, the fitment is friction fit within the inwardly extending ridge of the container neck and/or the flange of the fitment is friction fit within the inwardly extending wall.
[0050] The fitment of the invention preferably has a circumscribing wall which desirably extends downwardly from the fitment flange, a floor extending inwardly and downwardly from the circumscribing wall and sloping toward a product exit opening in the floor and a spout extending upwardly from the floor. The closure includes outer threads which mate with the inner threads of the container finish. Preferably, above the outer threads is a horizontal flexible radially, outwardly extending flange which helps provide a seal when the closure is threaded onto the container finish. Also, the closure preferably includes a peripheral shoulder above the external fasteners and above the flexible flange, which shoulder is imposed against a top surface of the bottle finish when the closure is in a closed position. Alternatively, the bottle land could be internally beveled and the tapered edge could seal directly on the underside of the closure.
[0051] The bottle can be prepared by blowing on the inside wall of a bottle neck finish a continuous thread which is capable of mating with the externally threaded closure. The internal threads also could be formed by a secondary operation immediately after blow molding. An example would be a hot, “reaming/forming” metal form that is screwed into the bottle neck.
[0052] The thermoformed spout of the invention also could be used with a bottle that has outside threads as long as the internal ridge inside the bottle neck which stops the spout from being pushed in too far is low enough so that there is no closure contact with the spout.
[0053] For a more complete understanding of the above and other features and advantages of the invention, reference should be made to the following detailed description of the preferred embodiments and to the accompanying drawings.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0054] [0054]FIG. 1 is a side, partial elevational view of the package of the invention showing the closure in the open position and showing the bottle in cross section.
[0055] [0055]FIG. 2 is a top elevational view of the fitment of the invention.
[0056] [0056]FIG. 3 is a view of an alternative finish similar to that of FIG. 1 with the rest of the container omitted.
[0057] [0057]FIG. 4 is a view similar to FIG. 1 showing an alternate embodiment.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
[0058] Package 10 comprises bottle 12 and closure 14 . Bottle 12 includes bottle body 16 and ends in neck 18 which includes finish 20 at its upper end.
[0059] The first portion of neck 18 includes an inwardly extending circumscribing ridge 22 above which is disposed shoulder 24 . Shoulder 24 leads radially outwardly to upwardly extended finish 20 . Disposed on the inner walls of finish 20 are threads 26 or other fastener, which cooperate with fasteners on closure 14 when the container is closed, as will be discussed shortly.
[0060] Friction fit into the mouth 30 of bottle 12 defined by inwardly extending ridge 22 is fitment 28 . Fitment 28 comprises circumferentially extending wall 32 which terminates at outwardly extending flange 34 . Extending downwardly from wall 32 is downwardly sloping floor 36 which includes a product exit aperture 40 . Ascending upwardly from floor 36 is pour spout 42 . The outer surface of pour spout 42 , the inner surface of circumscribing wall 32 , the downwardly sloping floor 36 and the product exit aperture 40 combine to permit excess product retained by the fitment to flow back into the bottle 12 .
[0061] Closure 14 includes an open mouth 50 which may have an anti-drip lip, a downwardly depending skirt 52 leading to the mouth and a cylindrical body 54 . The exterior of downwardly depending skirt 52 includes thread 56 or a plurality of threads, or one or more other fasteners such as lugs and grooves. Located above threads 56 is a flexible peripheral flange 60 which serves to aid in sealing when the closure is fastened to the finish of the bottle. Disposed above flexible flange 60 is annular shoulder 62 which is forced into contact with annular upper surface 64 of finish 20 when the closure is fastened to the bottle in its closed position. The upper surface of the finish may be beveled as seen for finish 120 in FIG. 3 (bevel 164 ). Closure 14 doubles as a measuring cup wherein product is poured into opening 50 . Indicia such as fill lines may be engraved in the mold for determining the correct amount of product, if so desired.
[0062] Fitment 28 is preferably friction fit within inwardly extending ridge 22 . Moreover, peripheral fitment flange 34 may rest atop shoulder 24 as at 70 . Whether in fact flange 34 actually touches shoulder 24 will depend in part on the friction fit of the circumscribing wall 32 against inwardly extending ridge 22 . In the event that flange 34 does not actually touch shoulder 24 , it still tends to prevent the fitment from being pushed through the container opening 30 all the way into the bottle in the event that excess axial force is applied.
[0063] [0063]FIG. 4 shows an alternative embodiment of bottle 312 wherein finish 320 includes a wall 325 which is lateral to flange 334 . Flange 334 is friction fit within wall 325 . Preferably, the inside diameter of wall 325 is less than the inside diameter of the threads. However, as can be seen in both FIGS. 1 and 4, the retaining structure is lateral to and/or below the flange. The retaining structure is not above the flange so as to block or partially block the flange when the fitment is inserted or removed. In particular, the flange is not retained in a groove in the finish.
[0064] The bottle preferably is made of high density polyethylene, but also could be made of polypropylene, low density polyethylene, medium density polyethylene, polyvinyl chloride, or polyethylene terephthlate. Moreover, the bottle could be made with a monolayer wall structure, but preferably the bottle would be multilayer. For instance, a trilayer bottle could employ a natural, virgin resin, unpigmented inner layer, a pigmented virgin resin outer layer, and a middle layer combination of 25% post consumer recycled resin, in-process trim and virgin resin. Preferably, the bottle would have a handle and would be extrusion blow molded where an extruded parison would be captured and clamped within a bottle mold and injected air pressure would blow the melted plastic against the bottle mold walls, thereby forming the shape of the bottle.
[0065] Preferably the bottle is fabricated from a high density polyethylene. Another resin sold by U.S.I. under the designation 0.955 density, OI-388-2 is a suitable material.
[0066] The drain back fitment may be formed from a plastic such as low or high density polyethylene, polypropylene or PET. Or the polyethylene may be the product of a 50:50 blend of a high density resin and a low density resin. The high density resin can be U.S.I. LS 506 or a similar resin. The low density resin can be U.S.I. LS 208 or the like. Instead of a mix of resins, a high density polyethylene or a low density polyethylene such as U.S.I. 241 or even a stiffer material such as polypropylene may be used to form the fitment. Advantageously, the fitments may comprise recycled plastic such as PET. A PET fitment would permit easier pouring as the liquid could be seen through the spout. Other plastic resins having chemical and physical properties similar to the aforementioned resins can be used to form the plastic suitable for use in fabricating the drainback fitment.
[0067] In accordance with the invention, the spout is thermoformed and preferably trimmed. The spout may have a “horizontal” anti-drip lip naturally formed by the trimming operation. The thermoformed spout may have a large anti-rotational/stacking lug.
[0068] The closure may be formed of a harder material than that used in the drainback fitment. Preferably, the plastic material from which the closure is made is a homopolymer polypropylene such as that sold by Phillips Petroleum Company under the designation Phillips HLV 120-01. The closure also could be made of polypropylene copolymer.
[0069] If desired, the spout may be made with a shallow drainback slope and be designed to maximize “drain-out” and minimize product retainage.
[0070] The pour spout and preferably all of the fitment of the invention are preferably thermoformed.
[0071] The thermoforming operation includes heating up a sheet of plastic material to its softening point, and then drawing the material into a “female” mold via vacuum preferably using a “male” assist plug to help push the material into the mold.
[0072] The multicavity spout forms then would be trimmed to provide the dispensing orifice and drainback hole and also trimmed around the annular perimeter to release the spout from the sheet. Trimmed spouts would then be collated and placed into stacks for packing and shipment.
[0073] The thermoformed spout may be trimmed with a continuous opening from the top to the drainback hole or, particularly if the thermoformed spout is clear, there may only be a top opening to dispense the liquid and a separate bottom hole to drain back the liquid. This would simplify the trimming operation.
[0074] The thermoformed spout and/or fitment of the invention is preferably made of polyethylene terepthalate (PET). PET is preferred because it is transparent and clear and permits an unobstructed view. It is preferred that the fitment be sufficiently transparent so that the consumer can see the product through the fitment during pouring and measuring. Moreover, the inside of the measuring cup can be seen through the spout and this helps fill to the correct level. The thermoformed spout of the invention may also be made of polystyrene, LDPE, MDPE, PP, HDPE, PVC, or recycled green-tinted PET.
[0075] An important advantage of use of a thermoformed spout is that the part weight may be much lower with a thermoformed spout as described (4.3 grams versus 14.3 grams for our current spout). This is due not only to the thinner starting sheet material but the elimination of much of the outer wall on the thermoformed spout.
[0076] While the circumscribing fitment wall illustrated herein is an outer wall, it will be apparent that the circumscribing wall leading to the floor need not be an outer wall. That is, the circumscribing wall circumscribes the spout, but is not necessarily the outer boundary of the fitment.
[0077] If desired, the neck of the bottle may be tapered (narrower toward the container mouth), e.g. by reaming or beveling to facilitate insertion of the fitment. For example, the internal surface of ridge 11 may be beveled to narrow downwardly. Likewise, the internal diameter of the finish at the threads may be larger than the internal diameter at the fitment.
[0078] The spout may be made of a material that is softer, equal to or harder than the bottle resin material.
[0079] It should be understood, of course, that the specific forms of the invention herein illustrated and described are intended to be representative only, as certain changes may be made therein without departing from the clear teachings of the disclosure. Accordingly reference should be made to the following appended claims in determining the full scope of the invention. | A spout, especially suitable for a heavy duty liquid detergent container fitment, is made by thermoforming. Preferably the spout is part of a fitment which includes a bottom wall extending from the bottom of the spout wall, a circumscribing wall surrounding the spout and extending from the bottom of the bottom wall and a peripheral radially extending flange extending from the top of the circumscribing wall. The thermoformed spout/fitment finds special use in plastic containers having inside blown threads. The inside blown threads mate with external threads on a closure. | Summarize the patent document, focusing on the invention's functionality and advantages. | [
"BACKGROUND 0 F THE INVENTION [0001] Consumers have grown increasingly to prefer laundry detergents in the form of liquids.",
"Thus, the need is as great as ever for a convenient container for dispensing such products, yet which is also easier and less costly to manufacture than current versions.",
"Such containers preferably include a combination pour spout/drainback fitment and a closure which also serves as a measuring cup.",
"Numerous dispensers have been disclosed in the patent literature.",
"[0002] Bengtsson, U.S. Pat. No. 5,498,149 discloses a device for thermoforming a pouring spout.",
"[0003] Greehow et al.",
", U.S. Pat. No. 4,111,340 discloses a pouring spout for threaded neck containers.",
"At least portions may be thermoformed.",
"[0004] Malmberg, U.S. Pat. No. 5,564,603 discloses a thermoformed pour spout.",
"[0005] Christian, U.S. Pat. No. 3,895,743 discloses a lid including a pour spout.",
"Preferably, the closures are vacuum thermoformed.",
"[0006] Reid, U.S. Pat. No. 5,603,787 discloses a plastic container for pourable liquids such as detergents which has a drainback feature.",
"The container is formed in two pieces, a container body and a separately formed pour spout which is assembled to the container finish preferably by ultrasonic welding.",
"A lip of the pour spout component is pressed and welded down onto an annular top surface of the container finish.",
"The pour spout component includes internal threads which mate with external threads on the closure, which also serves as a measuring cup.",
"[0007] Reidel, U.S. Pat. No. 5,598,877 is directed to a liquid dispenser having a botcher with a holder.",
"[0008] Leahy, U.S. Pat. No. 5,597,090 is directed to an apparatus for pouring liquids which includes a cap having internal threads mated with external threads on the container finish, and a fitment which has a flange 39 which mates with the open end of the container at the neck.",
"[0009] Haffner et al.",
", U.S. Pat. No. 5,566,862 is directed to a liquid dispensing fitment for use on a container.",
"The container finish includes external threads which mate with internal threads on a closure.",
"The fitment includes a peripheral flange adapted to engaged the upper surface of the neck.",
"[0010] Haffner et al.",
", U.S. Pat. No. 5,462,202 discloses a liquid dispensing fitment for use on a container having a neck.",
"The finish of the container includes external threads which mate with internal threads on a closure.",
"The fitment includes a flange adapted to engage the upper surface.",
"The fitment includes vertical ribs which are said to facilitate stacking of the fitments.",
"[0011] Ekkert et al.",
", U.S. Pat. No. 5,435,467 discloses a pouring spout configured to permit orientation-specific stacking.",
"A container is illustrated having an externally threaded finish mating with an internally threaded closure.",
"A peripheral flange on the fitment fits atop the neck of the finish.",
"[0012] Reid, U.S. Pat. No. 5,431,306 discloses a fitment having internal threads and a flange which rests on the upper edge of the container finish.",
"[0013] Krall, U.S. Pat. No. 5,429,789 discloses a self-draining container.",
"Located within an annular wall is a spout.",
"A closure include a skirt which has external threads which engage the internal threads of the annular wall.",
"Extending radially outwardly from the skirt of the closure above the threads is a ledge adapted to seat against the top of the annular wall to seal the container when the threads are fully engaged.",
"[0014] Adams et al.",
", U.S. Pat. No. 5,303,837 discloses a tamper evident device which comprises a fitment attached around an aperture in a container and having a flange from which extends an internally threaded spout.",
"The spout is closed by an initially integrally molded externally threaded plug.",
"[0015] Krall, U.S. Pat. No. 5,207,356 discloses a self draining container including an integral dispensing spout.",
"An integral wall extends upwardly from the body and encircles the spout and an integral web joins the wail on the dispensing spout to form a drain channel.",
"A cap having a depending skirt with external threads mates with an internal thread on the container wall.",
"The cap also includes a radially outwardly extending sealing ring.",
"[0016] Meyer et al.",
", U.S. Pat. No. 4,929,410 discloses a closure with external threads and a shoulder and, in FIG. 8, an internally threaded neck of a plastic bottle in which a pouring adapter insert has been mounted.",
"It is said that the details of the pouring adapter and of the internal attachment means may be varied, but FIGS. 7 and 8 illustrate the pouring adapter insert as having a snap flange designed to fit within a groove of the internal attachment means.",
"[0017] Yeager, U.S. Pat. No. 5,207,341 discloses a container which includes a closure having a concentric inner skirt and outer skirt, the outer skirt covering and protecting the outer circumference area of the bottle neck thereby protecting it from the environment outside the bottle.",
"[0018] Bavegems, U.S. Pat. No. 5,131,566 is directed to a package for flowable products incorporating a refill facilitating pouring spout structure.",
"Internal screw threads on the pouring spout structure mate with external screw threads on the package.",
"[0019] Krall, U.S. Pat. No. 5,114,659 discloses a self draining container.",
"The container includes a body having a wall extending upwardly from a body opening.",
"The wall surrounds a dispensing spout.",
"A web joins the wall on the dispensing spout to form a drain channel.",
"A closure has a depending skirt having external threads which mate with internal threads on the wall.",
"The closure also includes an outwardly extending radial sealing ring.",
"[0020] Segati, U.S. Pat. No. 5,060,827 relates to a low profile closure which includes a coupling member which is mounted on a container dispensing opening.",
"The coupling member includes a top peripheral edge which defines an outwardly projecting spout.",
"The cap has external threads which mate with internal threads on the coupling member.",
"[0021] Darr, U.S. Pat. No. 5,020,692 discloses a container having a unitary plastic blow-molded bottle which has a dispensing spout projecting upwardly from a hollow body portion.",
"In one embodiment, an annular insert surrounds the spout and has internal retainers which secure external retainers on the cap to provide sealing.",
"The cap also includes a round sealing surface that faces downwardly in alignment with a round sealing surface on the annular insert.",
"[0022] Krall, U.S. Pat. No. 4,989,757 discloses a self draining container having a dispensing spout and a wall surrounding the dispensing spout.",
"A web joins the wall on the dispensing spout to form a drain channel.",
"A closure has a depending skirt with external threads which mate with internal threads on the container wall.",
"The closure also includes a ledge adapted to seat against the top of the annular wall.",
"[0023] Cappel et al.",
", U.S. Pat. No. 4,981,239 is directed to a container for liquids which comprises a closure having external threads which mate with internal attachment means on an annular skirt.",
"The skirt includes means for attachment to the container.",
"The lower end of a fluid retaining means, which includes a spout, is fused to the container in a liquid tight relation.",
"[0024] Fuchs et al.",
", U.S. Pat. No. 4,917,269 discloses a container having a neck with an upwardly extending integral dispensing spout, an integral web extending radially outwardly from the lower end of the dispensing spout and a cylindrical wall spaced radially outwardly of the spout and encircling the spout.",
"The cylindrical wall has an internal thread and a closure has external threads which mate with the internal threads.",
"The closure includes an annular flexible sealing ring above the threads which engages an inner surface of the cylindrical wall and flexes upwardly to provide a seal.",
"A sealing ring above the annular flexible sealing ring extends radially outwardly on the closure and engages the top of the cylindrical wall when the closure is threaded onto the container.",
"[0025] Robinson, U.S. Pat. No. 4,890,768 is directed to a self draining container having a body and an upper integral pouring spout.",
"A ring member is attached to and surrounds the pouring spout.",
"The ring member includes internal threads which mate with threads on a closure.",
"[0026] Fomby, U.S. Pat. No. 4,711,365 discloses a container having internal threads which mate with external threads on a closure.",
"As the closure member is twisted to engage the threads of the container, an annular face of the container rim engages a complementarily configured annular recess in the closure member.",
"[0027] Muckenfuhs et al.",
", U.S. Pat. No. 4,696,416 discloses a container having a finish with external threads, a transition collar including a pour spout having internal threads for mating with the external threads of the bottle finish, the transition collar also including internal threads for mating with external threads of a closure.",
"The closure also includes a shoulder projecting outwardly and providing a sealing surface adapted to contact a sealing ring on an upper surface of the circumscribing wall of the collar.",
"[0028] Reiber et al.",
", U.S. Pat. No. 4,671,421 discloses a plastic container having an insert positioned in the finish.",
"The insert has internal threads for receiving a closure which has external threads.",
"The closure also includes a peripheral flange sealingly engaging the free end of the finish.",
"The insert includes a pour spout.",
"The insert may be placed in position while the finish is hot and when the finish is cooled it shrinks into sealing engagement with the insert.",
"Alternatively, the insert may be spin welded into sealing engagement with the finish.",
"Another option is the use of an adhesive.",
"The spout may be supported by a groove of the insert.",
"In another embodiment the insert has a spout integrally formed within.",
"[0029] St Clair, U.S. Pat. No. 4,640,855 discloses a plastic container with an integral spout.",
"An inner wall of the container neck includes internal threads.",
"The internal threads can receive a threaded closure for closing the package.",
"[0030] Barker et al.",
", U.S. Pat. No. 4,550,862 discloses a package similar to that disclosed in the Muchenfuhs patent mentioned above.",
"[0031] Beckerer, Jr., U.S. Pat. No. 4,280,434 discloses a threaded access cover plate construction for boat decks.",
"[0032] Rausing, U.S. Pat. No. 3,935,968 discloses a container having a threaded neck closed by an externally threaded plug.",
"[0033] Gundel, U.S. Pat. No. 3,391,838 discloses a container said to have anti drip means.",
"A closure has external threads mating with internal threads on the container.",
"The closure also includes an upper umbrella-like concave wall provided to engage and seal the upper edge of the bottle including the pouring spout.",
"[0034] Payson et al.",
", U.S. Pat. No. 3,017,047 discloses a combination vacuum bottle and closure means.",
"[0035] Moy, U.S. Pat. No. 2,549,225 is directed to a non-drip dispensing bottle stopper having external threads mating with internal threads on a bottle.",
"[0036] Kanzaki, U.S. Pat. No. 2,341,102 discloses a bottle having a cap with external threads which cooperate with internal threads on the bottle.",
"[0037] Duffy, U.S. Pat. No. 2,019,402 discloses a bottle having internal and external threads mating with the internal and external threads of a cap.",
"[0038] Grunberg, U.S. Pat. No. 1,617,842 discloses a perfume bottle having internal threads mating with the external threads of a cap.",
"[0039] Tofting, U.S. Pat. No. 1,415,908 is directed to a jar having internal threads mating with external threads on a closure.",
"[0040] Spooner, U.S. Pat. No. 1,351,496 is directed to jar closures having threads mating with those on jars.",
"[0041] Warren, U.S. Pat. No. 1,014,427 is directed to a bottle stopper which has external threads mating with internal threads on the bottle.",
"[0042] Taylor, U.S. Pat. No. 328,533 is directed to a bottle having internal threads mating with external threads on a stopper.",
"SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION [0043] In accordance with the invention, a fitment having a circumscribing wall, a floor leading inwardly from the wall and a pour spout ascending from said floor is advantageously made by thermoforming.",
"In particular, a bottle with blown inside threads advantageously utilizes a thermoformed spout of the above type.",
"[0044] There are many advantages to the use of a thermoformed spout, including substantially reduced costs, and the possibility of a transparent spout, which would permit an unobstructed view inside the bottle so that a consumer can easily see when it is time to purchase more.",
"In addition, thermoforming facilitates the manufacture of a horizontal anti-drip lip on the spout in the direction of pour and offers the opportunity to widen the anti-drip lip so that a U-shaped notch can be added to control pour onto stains.",
"Moreover, the spout can be made with a larger curved radius so that almost 100% of the liquid contents can be dispensed.",
"Additionally, it is believed that a thermoformed spout would enjoy faster production cycles.",
"And, its significantly lower part weight should result in a much lower piece price.",
"[0045] Preferably, the thermoformed fitment is used in a container which includes a neck having an inwardly extending ridge and/or wall suitable for retaining the fitment and a finish extending above the ridge and having internal fasteners.",
"Preferably the inwardly extending ridge and/or wall is/are annular.",
"The internal fasteners of the finish are adapted to cooperate with external fasteners on a closure.",
"The closure is preferably suitable to serve also as a measuring cup.",
"[0046] Externally threaded closures are perceived by some to permit cleaner dispensing of product than internally threaded closures.",
"Advantageously, the fitment includes both a pour spout and drainage area which facilitates drainback of unused product into the container.",
"The use of external fasteners on the closure in conjunction with internal fasteners in the finish also facilitates drainback from the closure.",
"[0047] In accordance with another particularly preferred feature of the invention, a fitment-retaining structure on the bottle finish comprising the inwardly extending ridge extends solely below and lateral to the flange, which can be expected to facilitate insertion of the flange.",
"[0048] The fitment of the invention may have a height of its outer wall which is reduced as compared to that of some previous fitments.",
"[0049] The fitment of the invention preferably includes a peripheral flange which, when the fitment is in place in the bottle, is disposed on or above a shoulder above the inwardly extending ridge of the neck.",
"Preferably, the fitment is friction fit within the inwardly extending ridge of the container neck and/or the flange of the fitment is friction fit within the inwardly extending wall.",
"[0050] The fitment of the invention preferably has a circumscribing wall which desirably extends downwardly from the fitment flange, a floor extending inwardly and downwardly from the circumscribing wall and sloping toward a product exit opening in the floor and a spout extending upwardly from the floor.",
"The closure includes outer threads which mate with the inner threads of the container finish.",
"Preferably, above the outer threads is a horizontal flexible radially, outwardly extending flange which helps provide a seal when the closure is threaded onto the container finish.",
"Also, the closure preferably includes a peripheral shoulder above the external fasteners and above the flexible flange, which shoulder is imposed against a top surface of the bottle finish when the closure is in a closed position.",
"Alternatively, the bottle land could be internally beveled and the tapered edge could seal directly on the underside of the closure.",
"[0051] The bottle can be prepared by blowing on the inside wall of a bottle neck finish a continuous thread which is capable of mating with the externally threaded closure.",
"The internal threads also could be formed by a secondary operation immediately after blow molding.",
"An example would be a hot, “reaming/forming”",
"metal form that is screwed into the bottle neck.",
"[0052] The thermoformed spout of the invention also could be used with a bottle that has outside threads as long as the internal ridge inside the bottle neck which stops the spout from being pushed in too far is low enough so that there is no closure contact with the spout.",
"[0053] For a more complete understanding of the above and other features and advantages of the invention, reference should be made to the following detailed description of the preferred embodiments and to the accompanying drawings.",
"BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS [0054] [0054 ]FIG. 1 is a side, partial elevational view of the package of the invention showing the closure in the open position and showing the bottle in cross section.",
"[0055] [0055 ]FIG. 2 is a top elevational view of the fitment of the invention.",
"[0056] [0056 ]FIG. 3 is a view of an alternative finish similar to that of FIG. 1 with the rest of the container omitted.",
"[0057] [0057 ]FIG. 4 is a view similar to FIG. 1 showing an alternate embodiment.",
"DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [0058] Package 10 comprises bottle 12 and closure 14 .",
"Bottle 12 includes bottle body 16 and ends in neck 18 which includes finish 20 at its upper end.",
"[0059] The first portion of neck 18 includes an inwardly extending circumscribing ridge 22 above which is disposed shoulder 24 .",
"Shoulder 24 leads radially outwardly to upwardly extended finish 20 .",
"Disposed on the inner walls of finish 20 are threads 26 or other fastener, which cooperate with fasteners on closure 14 when the container is closed, as will be discussed shortly.",
"[0060] Friction fit into the mouth 30 of bottle 12 defined by inwardly extending ridge 22 is fitment 28 .",
"Fitment 28 comprises circumferentially extending wall 32 which terminates at outwardly extending flange 34 .",
"Extending downwardly from wall 32 is downwardly sloping floor 36 which includes a product exit aperture 40 .",
"Ascending upwardly from floor 36 is pour spout 42 .",
"The outer surface of pour spout 42 , the inner surface of circumscribing wall 32 , the downwardly sloping floor 36 and the product exit aperture 40 combine to permit excess product retained by the fitment to flow back into the bottle 12 .",
"[0061] Closure 14 includes an open mouth 50 which may have an anti-drip lip, a downwardly depending skirt 52 leading to the mouth and a cylindrical body 54 .",
"The exterior of downwardly depending skirt 52 includes thread 56 or a plurality of threads, or one or more other fasteners such as lugs and grooves.",
"Located above threads 56 is a flexible peripheral flange 60 which serves to aid in sealing when the closure is fastened to the finish of the bottle.",
"Disposed above flexible flange 60 is annular shoulder 62 which is forced into contact with annular upper surface 64 of finish 20 when the closure is fastened to the bottle in its closed position.",
"The upper surface of the finish may be beveled as seen for finish 120 in FIG. 3 (bevel 164 ).",
"Closure 14 doubles as a measuring cup wherein product is poured into opening 50 .",
"Indicia such as fill lines may be engraved in the mold for determining the correct amount of product, if so desired.",
"[0062] Fitment 28 is preferably friction fit within inwardly extending ridge 22 .",
"Moreover, peripheral fitment flange 34 may rest atop shoulder 24 as at 70 .",
"Whether in fact flange 34 actually touches shoulder 24 will depend in part on the friction fit of the circumscribing wall 32 against inwardly extending ridge 22 .",
"In the event that flange 34 does not actually touch shoulder 24 , it still tends to prevent the fitment from being pushed through the container opening 30 all the way into the bottle in the event that excess axial force is applied.",
"[0063] [0063 ]FIG. 4 shows an alternative embodiment of bottle 312 wherein finish 320 includes a wall 325 which is lateral to flange 334 .",
"Flange 334 is friction fit within wall 325 .",
"Preferably, the inside diameter of wall 325 is less than the inside diameter of the threads.",
"However, as can be seen in both FIGS. 1 and 4, the retaining structure is lateral to and/or below the flange.",
"The retaining structure is not above the flange so as to block or partially block the flange when the fitment is inserted or removed.",
"In particular, the flange is not retained in a groove in the finish.",
"[0064] The bottle preferably is made of high density polyethylene, but also could be made of polypropylene, low density polyethylene, medium density polyethylene, polyvinyl chloride, or polyethylene terephthlate.",
"Moreover, the bottle could be made with a monolayer wall structure, but preferably the bottle would be multilayer.",
"For instance, a trilayer bottle could employ a natural, virgin resin, unpigmented inner layer, a pigmented virgin resin outer layer, and a middle layer combination of 25% post consumer recycled resin, in-process trim and virgin resin.",
"Preferably, the bottle would have a handle and would be extrusion blow molded where an extruded parison would be captured and clamped within a bottle mold and injected air pressure would blow the melted plastic against the bottle mold walls, thereby forming the shape of the bottle.",
"[0065] Preferably the bottle is fabricated from a high density polyethylene.",
"Another resin sold by U.S.I. under the designation 0.955 density, OI-388-2 is a suitable material.",
"[0066] The drain back fitment may be formed from a plastic such as low or high density polyethylene, polypropylene or PET.",
"Or the polyethylene may be the product of a 50:50 blend of a high density resin and a low density resin.",
"The high density resin can be U.S.I. LS 506 or a similar resin.",
"The low density resin can be U.S.I. LS 208 or the like.",
"Instead of a mix of resins, a high density polyethylene or a low density polyethylene such as U.S.I. 241 or even a stiffer material such as polypropylene may be used to form the fitment.",
"Advantageously, the fitments may comprise recycled plastic such as PET.",
"A PET fitment would permit easier pouring as the liquid could be seen through the spout.",
"Other plastic resins having chemical and physical properties similar to the aforementioned resins can be used to form the plastic suitable for use in fabricating the drainback fitment.",
"[0067] In accordance with the invention, the spout is thermoformed and preferably trimmed.",
"The spout may have a “horizontal”",
"anti-drip lip naturally formed by the trimming operation.",
"The thermoformed spout may have a large anti-rotational/stacking lug.",
"[0068] The closure may be formed of a harder material than that used in the drainback fitment.",
"Preferably, the plastic material from which the closure is made is a homopolymer polypropylene such as that sold by Phillips Petroleum Company under the designation Phillips HLV 120-01.",
"The closure also could be made of polypropylene copolymer.",
"[0069] If desired, the spout may be made with a shallow drainback slope and be designed to maximize “drain-out”",
"and minimize product retainage.",
"[0070] The pour spout and preferably all of the fitment of the invention are preferably thermoformed.",
"[0071] The thermoforming operation includes heating up a sheet of plastic material to its softening point, and then drawing the material into a “female”",
"mold via vacuum preferably using a “male”",
"assist plug to help push the material into the mold.",
"[0072] The multicavity spout forms then would be trimmed to provide the dispensing orifice and drainback hole and also trimmed around the annular perimeter to release the spout from the sheet.",
"Trimmed spouts would then be collated and placed into stacks for packing and shipment.",
"[0073] The thermoformed spout may be trimmed with a continuous opening from the top to the drainback hole or, particularly if the thermoformed spout is clear, there may only be a top opening to dispense the liquid and a separate bottom hole to drain back the liquid.",
"This would simplify the trimming operation.",
"[0074] The thermoformed spout and/or fitment of the invention is preferably made of polyethylene terepthalate (PET).",
"PET is preferred because it is transparent and clear and permits an unobstructed view.",
"It is preferred that the fitment be sufficiently transparent so that the consumer can see the product through the fitment during pouring and measuring.",
"Moreover, the inside of the measuring cup can be seen through the spout and this helps fill to the correct level.",
"The thermoformed spout of the invention may also be made of polystyrene, LDPE, MDPE, PP, HDPE, PVC, or recycled green-tinted PET.",
"[0075] An important advantage of use of a thermoformed spout is that the part weight may be much lower with a thermoformed spout as described (4.3 grams versus 14.3 grams for our current spout).",
"This is due not only to the thinner starting sheet material but the elimination of much of the outer wall on the thermoformed spout.",
"[0076] While the circumscribing fitment wall illustrated herein is an outer wall, it will be apparent that the circumscribing wall leading to the floor need not be an outer wall.",
"That is, the circumscribing wall circumscribes the spout, but is not necessarily the outer boundary of the fitment.",
"[0077] If desired, the neck of the bottle may be tapered (narrower toward the container mouth), e.g. by reaming or beveling to facilitate insertion of the fitment.",
"For example, the internal surface of ridge 11 may be beveled to narrow downwardly.",
"Likewise, the internal diameter of the finish at the threads may be larger than the internal diameter at the fitment.",
"[0078] The spout may be made of a material that is softer, equal to or harder than the bottle resin material.",
"[0079] It should be understood, of course, that the specific forms of the invention herein illustrated and described are intended to be representative only, as certain changes may be made therein without departing from the clear teachings of the disclosure.",
"Accordingly reference should be made to the following appended claims in determining the full scope of the invention."
] |
BACKGROUND
[0001] This application is a continuation of application Ser. No. 09/939,410, filed Aug. 24, 2001.
[0002] The present invention relates to wireless communication systems. More particularly, it relates to a modification to such systems by employing a physical layer (PHY) automatic repeat request (ARQ) scheme.
[0003] Proposed broadband fixed wireless access (BFWA) communication systems, using either single carrier-frequency domain equalization (SC-FDE) or orthogonal frequency division multiplex (OFDM) plan on using a high speed downlink packet access (HSDPA) application. This application will transmit downlink packet data at high speeds. In BFWA, a building or group of buildings are connected, either wirelessly or wired, and operate as a single subscriber site. The data demand for such a system is quite high for the single site's multiple end users requiring large bandwidths.
[0004] The current proposed system employs a layer 2 automatic repeat request (ARQ) system. Data blocks unsuccessfully transmitted to the subscribers are buffered and retransmitted from layer 2 . The data blocks stored in layer 2 are typically large, are transmitted for high signal to noise ratio (SNR) reception, are received with a low block error rate (BLER), and are infrequently retransmitted. Additionally, layer 2 ARQ signaling is typically slow requiring large buffers and long retransmission intervals.
[0005] Accordingly, it is desirable to have alternatives in addition to a layer 2 ARQ system.
SUMMARY
[0006] A physical automatic request repeat system comprises a transmitter and a receiver. A physical layer transmitter, at the transmitter, receives data and formats the received data into packets having a particular encoding/data modulation. The physical layer transmitter contains n channels which transmit the packets and retransmits packets in response to not receiving a corresponding acknowledgment for a given packet. An adaptive modulation and coding controller in the transmitter collects retransmission statistics and adjusts the particular encoding/data modulations using the collected statistics. The receiver has a physical layer n-channel receiver for receiving the packets. The receiver contains an n-channel hybrid ARQ combiner/decoder which combines packet transmissions, decodes packets and detects packet errors. The receiver contains an acknowledgment transmitter which transmits an acknowledgment for each packet, if that packet has an acceptable error rate. The receiver contains an in-sequence delivery element which delivers acceptable packets to higher layers.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0007] [0007]FIGS. 1 a and 1 b are simplified block diagrams of downlink and uplink physical ARQs.
[0008] [0008]FIG. 2 is a flow chart for using retransmission statistics for adaptive modulation and coding.
[0009] [0009]FIG. 3 is block diagram showing a multi-channel stop and wait architecture.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
[0010] [0010]FIGS. 1 a and 1 b respectively show a downlink physical ARQ 10 and uplink physical ARQ 20 .
[0011] The downlink physical ARQ 10 comprises a base station 12 receiving packets from the higher layer ARQ transmitter 14 a provided in network 14 . The packets from transmitter 14 a are applied to the physical layer ARQ transmitter 12 a in base station 12 . The ARQ transmitter 12 a encodes the data with a forward error correcting code (FEC), appends error check sequences (ECSs), modulates the data as directed by the adaptive modulation and coding (AMC) controller 12 c , such as by using binary phase shift keying (BPSK), quadrature phase shift keying (QPSK) or m-ary quadrature amplitude modulation (i.e. 16-QAM or 64QAM). Additionally, for orthogonal frequency division multiple access (OFDMA), the AMC controller 12 a may vary the subchannels used to carry the packet data. The physical layer ARQ transmitter 12 a transmits packets to the subscriber unit 16 through air interface 14 by way of switch, circulator or duplexor 12 d and antenna 13 . The transmitter 12 a also temporarily stores the message for retransmission, if necessary, in a buffer memory incorporated in the transmitter 12 a.
[0012] Antenna 15 of subscriber unit 16 receives the packet. The packet is input into physical layer ARQ receiver 16 a through switch, circulator or duplexor 16 b . At the receiver 16 a , the packet is FEC decoded and checked for errors using the ECS. The receiver 16 a then controls acknowledgment transmitter 16 c to either acknowledge (ACK) receipt of a packet with an acceptable error rate or to request retransmission by, preferably, withholding an acknowledgment signal or transmitting a negative acknowledgment (NAK).
[0013] The ACK is sent by ACK transmitter 16 c to the base station 12 through switch 16 b and antenna 15 . The ACK is sent via the air interface 14 to antenna 13 of base station 12 . The received ACK is processed by an acknowledgment receiver 12 b in the base station. The ACK receiver 12 b delivers the ACK/NAKs to the adaptive modulation and coding (AMC) controller 12 c and to the transmitter 12 a . The AMC controller 12 c analyzes the channel quality to the subscriber unit 16 using statistics of the received ACKs and may vary the FEC encoding and modulation techniques of subsequent transmissions of the message, as will be described in more detail. If the subscriber unit 16 acknowledges receipt of the packet, receipt of this ACK at base station 12 causes the original packet, which was temporarily stored in a buffer memory, to be cleared in readiness for the next packet.
[0014] If no ACK is received or a NAK is received, the physical layer transmitter 12 a retransmits the original message or selectively modified version of the original message to subscriber 16 . At the subscriber unit 16 , the retransmission is combined with the original transmission, if available. This technique facilitates receipt of a correct message by use of data redundancy or selective repeat combining. The packets having an acceptable error rate are transferred to higher layers 16 d for further processing. The acceptable received packets are delivered to the higher layers 16 d in the same data order in which the data was provided to transmitter 12 a in the base station (i.e. in-sequence delivery). The maximum number of retransmissions is limited to an operator-defined integer value, such as in the range of 1 to 8. After the maximum number of retransmissions are attempted, the buffer memory is cleared for use by the next packet. Decoding an acknowledgment using small packets at the physical layer reduces transmission delays and message handling time.
[0015] Since PHY ARQ occurs at the physical layer, the number of retransmission occurrences for a particular channel, retransmission statistics, is a good measure of that channel's quality. Using the retransmission statistics, the AMC controller 12 c may vary the modulation and coding schemes for that channel, as shown in FIG. 2. Additionally, the retransmission statistics can also be combined with other link quality measurements, such as bit error rates (BERs) and block error rates (BLERs), by the AMC controller 12 c to gauge the channel quality and determine whether a change in the modulation and coding scheme is required.
[0016] To illustrate for SC-FDE, the retransmission occurrences for a particular channel are measured to produce retransmission statistics, ( 60 ). A decision on whether to change the modulation scheme is made using the retransmission statistics, ( 62 ). If the retransmissions are excessive, a more robust coding and modulation scheme is used, ( 64 ), usually at a reduced data transfer rate. The AMC controller 12 c may increase the spreading factor and use more codes to transfer the packet data. Alternately or additionally, the AMC controller may switch from a high data throughput modulation scheme to a lower one, such as from 64-QAM to 16-QAM or QPSK. If the rate of retransmissions is low, a switch to a higher capacity modulation scheme is made, such as from QPSK to 16-ary QAM or 64-ary QAM, ( 66 ). The decision preferably uses both the retransmission rate and other link quality measurements signaled from the receiver, such as BER or BLER, ( 62 ). The decision limits are preferably set by the system operator.
[0017] For OFDMA, the retransmission occurrences are used to monitor the channel quality of each subchannel. If the retransmission rate or retransmission rate/link quality for a particular subchannel indicates poor quality, that subchannel may be selectively nulled from the OFDM frequency set, ( 64 ), in order to preclude use of such poor quality subchannels for some future period. If the retransmission rate or retransmission rate/link quality indicates high quality, a previously nulled subchannels may be added back to the OFDM frequency set, ( 66 ).
[0018] Using the retransmission occurrences as a basis for AMC provides a flexibility to match the modulation and coding scheme to the average channel conditions for each user. Additionally, the retransmission rate is insensitive to measurement error and reporting delay from the subscriber unit 16 .
[0019] The uplink ARQ 20 is similar in nature to the downlink ARQ 10 and is comprised of a subscriber unit 26 in which packets from a higher layer ARQ transmitter 28 a of the higher layers 28 are transferred to physical layer ARQ transmitter 26 a . The message is transmitted to the base station antenna through switch 26 d , subscriber antenna 25 and air interface 24 . The AMC controller, likewise, may vary the modulation and coding scheme using the retransmission statistics of a channel.
[0020] Physical layer ARQ receiver 22 a , similar to receiver 16 a of FIG. 1 a , determines if the message has an acceptable error rate requiring retransmission. The acknowledgment transmitter reports status to subscriber unit 26 , causing the transmitter 26 a to retransmit or alternatively to clear the original message temporarily stored at transmitter 26 a in readiness to receive the next message from the higher layers 28 . Successfully received packets are sent to the network 24 for further processing.
[0021] Although not shown for purposes of simplicity, the system is preferably used for a HSDPA application in a BFWA system, although other implementations may be used. The BFWA system may use frequency division duplex or time division duplex SC-FDE or OFDMA. In such a system, the base station and all of the subscribers are in fixed locations. The system may comprise a base station and a large number of subscriber units. Each subscriber unit may serve multiple users within one building or several neighboring buildings, for example. These applications typically require a large bandwidth due to the large number of end users at one subscriber unit site.
[0022] A PHY ARQ deployed in such a system is transparent to the higher layers, such as the medium access controllers (MACs). As a result, PHY ARQ can be used in conjunction with higher layer ARQs, such as layer 2 . In such cases, the PHY ARQ reduces the retransmission overhead of the higher layer ARQs.
[0023] [0023]FIG. 3 is an illustration of an N-channel stop and wait architecture for a PHYARQ 30 . The Physical Layer ARQ transmit function 38 may be located at the base station, subscriber unit or both depending on whether downlink, uplink or both PHYARQs are used. Blocks 34 a of data arrive from the network. The network blocks are placed in a queue 34 for transmission over the data channel 41 of the air interface 43 . An N-channel sequencer 36 sends data of the blocks sequentially to the N transmitters 40 - 1 to 40 -n. Each transmitter 40 - 1 to 40 -n is associated with a transmit sequence in the data channel 41 . Each transmitter 40 - 1 to 40 -n FEC encodes and provides ECS for the block data to produce packets for AMC modulation and transmission in the data channel 41 . The FEC encoded/ECS data is stored in a buffer of the transmitter 40 - 1 to 40 -n for possible retransmission. Additionally, control information is sent from the PHYARQ transmitter 38 to synchronize reception, demodulation and decoding at the receivers 46 - 1 to 46 -n.
[0024] Each of the N receivers 46 - 1 to 46 -n receives the packet in its associated timeslot. The received packet is sent to a respective hybrid ARQ decoder 50 - 1 to 50 -n ( 50 ). The hybrid ARQ decoder 50 determines the error rate, such as BER or BLER, for the received packet. If the packet has an acceptable error rate, it is released to the higher levels for further processing and an ACK is sent by the ACK transmitter 54 . If the error rate is unacceptable or no packet was received, no ACK is sent or a NAK is sent. Packets with unacceptable error rates are buffered at the decoder 50 for potential combining with a retransmitted packet.
[0025] One approach for combining packets using turbo codes is as follows. If a turbo encoded packet is received with an unacceptable error rate, the packet data is retransmitted to facilitate code combining. The packet containing the same data is encoded differently. To decode the packet data, both packets are processed by the turbo decoder to recover the original data. Since the second packet has a different encoding, its soft symbols are mapped to different points in the decoding scheme. Using two packets with different encoding adds coding diversity and transmission diversity to improve the overall BER. In another approach, the identical signal is transmitted. The two received packets are combined using a maximum ratio combining of symbols. The combined signal is subsequently decoded.
[0026] The ACK for each receiver 46 - 1 to 46 -n is sent in a fast feedback channel (FFC) 45 . The fast feedback channel 45 is preferably a low latency channel. For a time division duplex system, the ACKs may be sent in idle periods between upstream and downstream transmissions. The FFC 45 is preferably a low speed, high bandwidth CDMA channel overlaying other in-band transmissions. The FFC CDMA codes and modulations are selected to minimize interference to other in-band transmissions. To increase the capacity of such a FFC 45 , multiple codes may be used.
[0027] The ACK receiver 56 detects the ACKs and indicates to the corresponding transmitter 40 - 1 to 40 -n whether the ACK was received. If the ACK was not received, the packet is retransmitted. The retransmitted packet may have a different modulation and coding scheme as directed by the AMC controller 12 c , 26 c . If the ACK is received, the transmitter 40 - 1 to 40 -n clears the previous packet from the buffer and accepts a subsequent packet for transmission.
[0028] The number of transmitters and receivers N is based on various design considerations, such as the channel capacity and ACK response time. For the preferred system previously described, a 2-channel architecture is preferably utilized, with even and odd transmitters and receivers.
[0029] The PHY ARQ technique of the preferred embodiment provides a 7 db gain in signal to noise ratio (SNR) as compared to a system using only higher layer ARQ. This occurs by operating at higher block error rates (BLERs) (5-20% BLER) and using smaller block sizes for layer 1 than is practical with higher layer ARQ alone. The decreased SNR requirement allows for: increased capacity by switching to high order modulation employing an adaptive modulation and coding (AMC) technique; lower customer premise equipment (CPE) costs by using lower grade RF (radio frequency) components with the PHY ARQ compensating for reduced implementation performance; increased downlink range which extends the cell radius; reduced downlink power in the base station (BS) to minimize cell-cell interference; and increased power amplifier (PA) back-off when employing a multi-carrier technique. | A base station implementing physical layer automatic repeat request includes a transmitter and a receiver. The transmitter has a physical layer transmitter for receiving data, formatting the received data into packets transmitting the packets and retransmitting packets in response to failure to receive a corresponding acknowledgment for a given packet; an acknowledgment receiver for receiving the corresponding acknowledgment; and an adaptive modulation and coding controller for collecting retransmission statistics and adjusting the particular data encoding/modulation using the collected statistics. The receiver has a physical layer receiver for demodulating the packets; a combiner/decoder for buffering, decoding and detecting packet errors; and an acknowledgment generator for generating an acknowledgment for each packet if that packet has an acceptable error rate. | Summarize the key points of the given document. | [
"BACKGROUND [0001] This application is a continuation of application Ser.",
"No. 09/939,410, filed Aug. 24, 2001.",
"[0002] The present invention relates to wireless communication systems.",
"More particularly, it relates to a modification to such systems by employing a physical layer (PHY) automatic repeat request (ARQ) scheme.",
"[0003] Proposed broadband fixed wireless access (BFWA) communication systems, using either single carrier-frequency domain equalization (SC-FDE) or orthogonal frequency division multiplex (OFDM) plan on using a high speed downlink packet access (HSDPA) application.",
"This application will transmit downlink packet data at high speeds.",
"In BFWA, a building or group of buildings are connected, either wirelessly or wired, and operate as a single subscriber site.",
"The data demand for such a system is quite high for the single site's multiple end users requiring large bandwidths.",
"[0004] The current proposed system employs a layer 2 automatic repeat request (ARQ) system.",
"Data blocks unsuccessfully transmitted to the subscribers are buffered and retransmitted from layer 2 .",
"The data blocks stored in layer 2 are typically large, are transmitted for high signal to noise ratio (SNR) reception, are received with a low block error rate (BLER), and are infrequently retransmitted.",
"Additionally, layer 2 ARQ signaling is typically slow requiring large buffers and long retransmission intervals.",
"[0005] Accordingly, it is desirable to have alternatives in addition to a layer 2 ARQ system.",
"SUMMARY [0006] A physical automatic request repeat system comprises a transmitter and a receiver.",
"A physical layer transmitter, at the transmitter, receives data and formats the received data into packets having a particular encoding/data modulation.",
"The physical layer transmitter contains n channels which transmit the packets and retransmits packets in response to not receiving a corresponding acknowledgment for a given packet.",
"An adaptive modulation and coding controller in the transmitter collects retransmission statistics and adjusts the particular encoding/data modulations using the collected statistics.",
"The receiver has a physical layer n-channel receiver for receiving the packets.",
"The receiver contains an n-channel hybrid ARQ combiner/decoder which combines packet transmissions, decodes packets and detects packet errors.",
"The receiver contains an acknowledgment transmitter which transmits an acknowledgment for each packet, if that packet has an acceptable error rate.",
"The receiver contains an in-sequence delivery element which delivers acceptable packets to higher layers.",
"BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS [0007] [0007 ]FIGS. 1 a and 1 b are simplified block diagrams of downlink and uplink physical ARQs.",
"[0008] [0008 ]FIG. 2 is a flow chart for using retransmission statistics for adaptive modulation and coding.",
"[0009] [0009 ]FIG. 3 is block diagram showing a multi-channel stop and wait architecture.",
"DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS [0010] [0010 ]FIGS. 1 a and 1 b respectively show a downlink physical ARQ 10 and uplink physical ARQ 20 .",
"[0011] The downlink physical ARQ 10 comprises a base station 12 receiving packets from the higher layer ARQ transmitter 14 a provided in network 14 .",
"The packets from transmitter 14 a are applied to the physical layer ARQ transmitter 12 a in base station 12 .",
"The ARQ transmitter 12 a encodes the data with a forward error correcting code (FEC), appends error check sequences (ECSs), modulates the data as directed by the adaptive modulation and coding (AMC) controller 12 c , such as by using binary phase shift keying (BPSK), quadrature phase shift keying (QPSK) or m-ary quadrature amplitude modulation (i.e. 16-QAM or 64QAM).",
"Additionally, for orthogonal frequency division multiple access (OFDMA), the AMC controller 12 a may vary the subchannels used to carry the packet data.",
"The physical layer ARQ transmitter 12 a transmits packets to the subscriber unit 16 through air interface 14 by way of switch, circulator or duplexor 12 d and antenna 13 .",
"The transmitter 12 a also temporarily stores the message for retransmission, if necessary, in a buffer memory incorporated in the transmitter 12 a. [0012] Antenna 15 of subscriber unit 16 receives the packet.",
"The packet is input into physical layer ARQ receiver 16 a through switch, circulator or duplexor 16 b .",
"At the receiver 16 a , the packet is FEC decoded and checked for errors using the ECS.",
"The receiver 16 a then controls acknowledgment transmitter 16 c to either acknowledge (ACK) receipt of a packet with an acceptable error rate or to request retransmission by, preferably, withholding an acknowledgment signal or transmitting a negative acknowledgment (NAK).",
"[0013] The ACK is sent by ACK transmitter 16 c to the base station 12 through switch 16 b and antenna 15 .",
"The ACK is sent via the air interface 14 to antenna 13 of base station 12 .",
"The received ACK is processed by an acknowledgment receiver 12 b in the base station.",
"The ACK receiver 12 b delivers the ACK/NAKs to the adaptive modulation and coding (AMC) controller 12 c and to the transmitter 12 a .",
"The AMC controller 12 c analyzes the channel quality to the subscriber unit 16 using statistics of the received ACKs and may vary the FEC encoding and modulation techniques of subsequent transmissions of the message, as will be described in more detail.",
"If the subscriber unit 16 acknowledges receipt of the packet, receipt of this ACK at base station 12 causes the original packet, which was temporarily stored in a buffer memory, to be cleared in readiness for the next packet.",
"[0014] If no ACK is received or a NAK is received, the physical layer transmitter 12 a retransmits the original message or selectively modified version of the original message to subscriber 16 .",
"At the subscriber unit 16 , the retransmission is combined with the original transmission, if available.",
"This technique facilitates receipt of a correct message by use of data redundancy or selective repeat combining.",
"The packets having an acceptable error rate are transferred to higher layers 16 d for further processing.",
"The acceptable received packets are delivered to the higher layers 16 d in the same data order in which the data was provided to transmitter 12 a in the base station (i.e. in-sequence delivery).",
"The maximum number of retransmissions is limited to an operator-defined integer value, such as in the range of 1 to 8.",
"After the maximum number of retransmissions are attempted, the buffer memory is cleared for use by the next packet.",
"Decoding an acknowledgment using small packets at the physical layer reduces transmission delays and message handling time.",
"[0015] Since PHY ARQ occurs at the physical layer, the number of retransmission occurrences for a particular channel, retransmission statistics, is a good measure of that channel's quality.",
"Using the retransmission statistics, the AMC controller 12 c may vary the modulation and coding schemes for that channel, as shown in FIG. 2. Additionally, the retransmission statistics can also be combined with other link quality measurements, such as bit error rates (BERs) and block error rates (BLERs), by the AMC controller 12 c to gauge the channel quality and determine whether a change in the modulation and coding scheme is required.",
"[0016] To illustrate for SC-FDE, the retransmission occurrences for a particular channel are measured to produce retransmission statistics, ( 60 ).",
"A decision on whether to change the modulation scheme is made using the retransmission statistics, ( 62 ).",
"If the retransmissions are excessive, a more robust coding and modulation scheme is used, ( 64 ), usually at a reduced data transfer rate.",
"The AMC controller 12 c may increase the spreading factor and use more codes to transfer the packet data.",
"Alternately or additionally, the AMC controller may switch from a high data throughput modulation scheme to a lower one, such as from 64-QAM to 16-QAM or QPSK.",
"If the rate of retransmissions is low, a switch to a higher capacity modulation scheme is made, such as from QPSK to 16-ary QAM or 64-ary QAM, ( 66 ).",
"The decision preferably uses both the retransmission rate and other link quality measurements signaled from the receiver, such as BER or BLER, ( 62 ).",
"The decision limits are preferably set by the system operator.",
"[0017] For OFDMA, the retransmission occurrences are used to monitor the channel quality of each subchannel.",
"If the retransmission rate or retransmission rate/link quality for a particular subchannel indicates poor quality, that subchannel may be selectively nulled from the OFDM frequency set, ( 64 ), in order to preclude use of such poor quality subchannels for some future period.",
"If the retransmission rate or retransmission rate/link quality indicates high quality, a previously nulled subchannels may be added back to the OFDM frequency set, ( 66 ).",
"[0018] Using the retransmission occurrences as a basis for AMC provides a flexibility to match the modulation and coding scheme to the average channel conditions for each user.",
"Additionally, the retransmission rate is insensitive to measurement error and reporting delay from the subscriber unit 16 .",
"[0019] The uplink ARQ 20 is similar in nature to the downlink ARQ 10 and is comprised of a subscriber unit 26 in which packets from a higher layer ARQ transmitter 28 a of the higher layers 28 are transferred to physical layer ARQ transmitter 26 a .",
"The message is transmitted to the base station antenna through switch 26 d , subscriber antenna 25 and air interface 24 .",
"The AMC controller, likewise, may vary the modulation and coding scheme using the retransmission statistics of a channel.",
"[0020] Physical layer ARQ receiver 22 a , similar to receiver 16 a of FIG. 1 a , determines if the message has an acceptable error rate requiring retransmission.",
"The acknowledgment transmitter reports status to subscriber unit 26 , causing the transmitter 26 a to retransmit or alternatively to clear the original message temporarily stored at transmitter 26 a in readiness to receive the next message from the higher layers 28 .",
"Successfully received packets are sent to the network 24 for further processing.",
"[0021] Although not shown for purposes of simplicity, the system is preferably used for a HSDPA application in a BFWA system, although other implementations may be used.",
"The BFWA system may use frequency division duplex or time division duplex SC-FDE or OFDMA.",
"In such a system, the base station and all of the subscribers are in fixed locations.",
"The system may comprise a base station and a large number of subscriber units.",
"Each subscriber unit may serve multiple users within one building or several neighboring buildings, for example.",
"These applications typically require a large bandwidth due to the large number of end users at one subscriber unit site.",
"[0022] A PHY ARQ deployed in such a system is transparent to the higher layers, such as the medium access controllers (MACs).",
"As a result, PHY ARQ can be used in conjunction with higher layer ARQs, such as layer 2 .",
"In such cases, the PHY ARQ reduces the retransmission overhead of the higher layer ARQs.",
"[0023] [0023 ]FIG. 3 is an illustration of an N-channel stop and wait architecture for a PHYARQ 30 .",
"The Physical Layer ARQ transmit function 38 may be located at the base station, subscriber unit or both depending on whether downlink, uplink or both PHYARQs are used.",
"Blocks 34 a of data arrive from the network.",
"The network blocks are placed in a queue 34 for transmission over the data channel 41 of the air interface 43 .",
"An N-channel sequencer 36 sends data of the blocks sequentially to the N transmitters 40 - 1 to 40 -n.",
"Each transmitter 40 - 1 to 40 -n is associated with a transmit sequence in the data channel 41 .",
"Each transmitter 40 - 1 to 40 -n FEC encodes and provides ECS for the block data to produce packets for AMC modulation and transmission in the data channel 41 .",
"The FEC encoded/ECS data is stored in a buffer of the transmitter 40 - 1 to 40 -n for possible retransmission.",
"Additionally, control information is sent from the PHYARQ transmitter 38 to synchronize reception, demodulation and decoding at the receivers 46 - 1 to 46 -n.",
"[0024] Each of the N receivers 46 - 1 to 46 -n receives the packet in its associated timeslot.",
"The received packet is sent to a respective hybrid ARQ decoder 50 - 1 to 50 -n ( 50 ).",
"The hybrid ARQ decoder 50 determines the error rate, such as BER or BLER, for the received packet.",
"If the packet has an acceptable error rate, it is released to the higher levels for further processing and an ACK is sent by the ACK transmitter 54 .",
"If the error rate is unacceptable or no packet was received, no ACK is sent or a NAK is sent.",
"Packets with unacceptable error rates are buffered at the decoder 50 for potential combining with a retransmitted packet.",
"[0025] One approach for combining packets using turbo codes is as follows.",
"If a turbo encoded packet is received with an unacceptable error rate, the packet data is retransmitted to facilitate code combining.",
"The packet containing the same data is encoded differently.",
"To decode the packet data, both packets are processed by the turbo decoder to recover the original data.",
"Since the second packet has a different encoding, its soft symbols are mapped to different points in the decoding scheme.",
"Using two packets with different encoding adds coding diversity and transmission diversity to improve the overall BER.",
"In another approach, the identical signal is transmitted.",
"The two received packets are combined using a maximum ratio combining of symbols.",
"The combined signal is subsequently decoded.",
"[0026] The ACK for each receiver 46 - 1 to 46 -n is sent in a fast feedback channel (FFC) 45 .",
"The fast feedback channel 45 is preferably a low latency channel.",
"For a time division duplex system, the ACKs may be sent in idle periods between upstream and downstream transmissions.",
"The FFC 45 is preferably a low speed, high bandwidth CDMA channel overlaying other in-band transmissions.",
"The FFC CDMA codes and modulations are selected to minimize interference to other in-band transmissions.",
"To increase the capacity of such a FFC 45 , multiple codes may be used.",
"[0027] The ACK receiver 56 detects the ACKs and indicates to the corresponding transmitter 40 - 1 to 40 -n whether the ACK was received.",
"If the ACK was not received, the packet is retransmitted.",
"The retransmitted packet may have a different modulation and coding scheme as directed by the AMC controller 12 c , 26 c .",
"If the ACK is received, the transmitter 40 - 1 to 40 -n clears the previous packet from the buffer and accepts a subsequent packet for transmission.",
"[0028] The number of transmitters and receivers N is based on various design considerations, such as the channel capacity and ACK response time.",
"For the preferred system previously described, a 2-channel architecture is preferably utilized, with even and odd transmitters and receivers.",
"[0029] The PHY ARQ technique of the preferred embodiment provides a 7 db gain in signal to noise ratio (SNR) as compared to a system using only higher layer ARQ.",
"This occurs by operating at higher block error rates (BLERs) (5-20% BLER) and using smaller block sizes for layer 1 than is practical with higher layer ARQ alone.",
"The decreased SNR requirement allows for: increased capacity by switching to high order modulation employing an adaptive modulation and coding (AMC) technique;",
"lower customer premise equipment (CPE) costs by using lower grade RF (radio frequency) components with the PHY ARQ compensating for reduced implementation performance;",
"increased downlink range which extends the cell radius;",
"reduced downlink power in the base station (BS) to minimize cell-cell interference;",
"and increased power amplifier (PA) back-off when employing a multi-carrier technique."
] |
CROSS REFERENCES TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
This application is a division of Ser. No. 14,005 filed Feb. 21, 1979 now abandoned which was a continuation of Ser. No. 851,651 filed Nov. 15, 1977 now abandoned, which was a continuation-in-part of Ser. No. 673,567 filed Apr. 5, 1976 now abandoned.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
In one aspect, this invention relates to vacuum distillation systems. In another aspect, this invention relates to closed loop waste treating systems. In yet a further aspect, this invention relates to methods of using distillation systems.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Prior art distillation systems wherein a variable speed compressor is used to put energy into a vapor which is in turn condensed to give off latent heat of vaporization to a distilland are known in the art. One example of such a system is shown by U.S. Pat. No. 2,446,880. These systems have been primarily used for water desalinization and operate at temperatures near or even above the boiling point of water at atmospheric pressure.
Such systems are not desirable for distilling fruit juices or plating solutions; since they must be concentrated at temperatures well below the boiling point of water to prevent degradation of the organic materials present.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
It is an object of this invention to provide an improved method of controlling the vapor compression process. The vapor compression system of this invention has an evaporation chamber maintained at a reduced pressure, a concentration chamber for holding the distilland to be concentrated, a density measuring means for measuring distilland density, and an evaporation surface connecting to the concentration and evaporation chambers. This configuration allows the distilland to be retained within the concentration chamber until the desired distilland concentration measured as a function of density is obtained.
As a further feature of this invention, the compressor capacity is increased until the compressor reaches a surge condition and the compressor capacity is reduced an incremental amount to bring the compressor into the desired operating range.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
In the accompanying drawing:
FIG. 1 is a schematic drawing of a plating line which includes a vapor compression unit of this invention and is adapted for closed loop operation;
FIG. 2 is a side elevation view in partial section of a vapor compression unit incorporating features of this invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
A typical plating schematic using a vapor compression still is shown in FIG. 1. Parts to be plated are placed in a plating tank 12 which contains a solution of ions to be deposited on the parts as a metal layer. After a metal layer has been deposited on the parts, the plated parts are moved successively to rinse tanks 14, 16, 18 where any plating solution clinging to the plated part is rinsed off.
A substantial amount of plating solution, containing valuable metal ions and organic additives, is carried into the rinse tanks. Also, some water is carried from tank to tank by the parts as they are rinsed. The carry over and evaporation from the rinse tanks depletes the water in the rinse tanks and the concentration of plating solution will steadily rise, especially in the first rinse tank 14.
A portion of the water in the first rinse tank 14 is periodically withdrawn from the bottom of the tank and sufficient water from the second tank 16 is transferred via line 15 to refill tank 14. The tank 16 is refilled from tank 18 via line 17 and tank 18 is in turn filled by purified water from a vapor compression still 20 via line 19. Additional water can be added from an outside source of fresh water 21 when needed.
As shown, the rinse water or distilland from the first rinse tank 14, is withdrawn at outlet 22 by opening valve 24. The contaminated rinse water is conveyed by a pipe 26 to a heat exchanger 28 where the rinse water extracts some heat from purified water condensed in the vapor compression still 20. The preheated rinse water passes through a three-way valve 30 and is fed to the vapor compression still from the rinse water. The rinse water is concentrated to a density suitable for return to the plating tank 12. The concentrated solution is withdrawn from the concentration chamber through a valve 32 and pumped to the plating tank 12 via a line 34.
The pure water resulting from the vapor compression cycle is withdrawn through valve 36 into the heat exchanger 28 via line 38 and then is returned to rinse tank 18 by line 19.
If desired, the vapor compression system can be used to purify water before it enters the plating cycle. Treatment of the water before it enters the system removes the calcium, magnesium, and other undesired metal ions which are present in every source of water. These metal ions will concentrate in the plating bath as water is lost and settle out as solid salts to form a sludge at the bottom of the tank 12 or remain in the plating solution. In either case, the increasing concentration of undesired metal ions reduces plating efficiency. Eventually the plating solution must be discarded, resulting in a loss of valuable metal ions in the solution discarded, or the sludge must be removed from the plating tank requiring that plating operations be suspended. Accumulation of this sludge would be particularly pronounced where the process cycle is a closed loop as shown. Purification of the incoming fresh water would lessen or eliminate this problem.
FIG. 2 shows a detailed view of one vapor compression apparatus useful in the practice of this invention. The operation of this unit is described with reference to plating rinse water. The system could also be used to treat other liquids such as fruit juices, organic solvents or sea water. A generally cylindrical, vertically oriented housing 39 defines an evaporation chamber 40 which collects vaporized water from the inside of the tubes 54 located at one end of the housing near a compressor 42. The compressor 42 comprises generally a compressor wheel 43, volute 45 and driving means 46. As shown, the driving means is an electric motor 47 mounted on a bracket 48 attached to the housing 39. The motor 47 drives a V-belt drive 49 which in turn rotates the compressor wheel 43. The compressor wheel 43 withdraws vapor from the evaporation chamber maintaining the evaporation chamber at a reduced pressure e.g., 0.5 to 1.5 pisa. As shown, cross-tubes 50 transport compressed vapor from the volute 45 to a condensation-heat exchanger chamber 52.
At the lower end of the housing 39, distal the compressor 42, are a number of concentration chambers (three being shown) 44a, 44b, 44c which are filled with rinse water to be concentrated or incoming fresh water to be purified. Each concentration chamber is fluidly connected to the evaporation chamber 40 by an evaporation surface. As shown, the fluid connection is by means of capillary tubes 54 which extend from the lower portion of their respective concentration chambers and terminate in the plate 56 which forms the floor of the evaporation chamber 40. In general there will be a plurality of tubes extending from each concentration chamber into the evaporation chamber, only one tube per concentration chamber being shown for clarity. The interior walls of the capillary tubes 54 are wet by the liquid being concentrated and provide a large surface area for the formation of water vapor which passes into the evaporation chamber 40.
Sensing means 58a, 58b, and 58c are installed in each concentration chamber to measure the concentration of the remaining liquid. As shown, the various sensing means generate an electrical signal which is fed to a control means 60. The control means 60 activates the three-way valve 32 so that the concentration chambers can be emptied when the liquid in the chambers reaches the desired concentration. In one aspect of this invention the concentration of the remaining liquid is determined by measuring its density. Suitable density measuring devices are known in the liquid measuring art. One general method of density measurement, which could be used in practicing this invention, is displacement measurement using a float. Such devices operate by submerging a float in the liquid to be measured. The float's movement up and down within the liquid generates a continuously variable signal proportional to the density of the surrounding liquid. A full description can be found in Chemical Engineers Handbook, 5th Ed., McGraw-Hill, New York, 1973, especially pages 22-48, and 49, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference.
In general, pumps (not shown) would be associated with the various valves to move the liquid within the system as needed. The chamber would be replenished via valve 30 with more liquid to be concentrated as needed.
A large diameter vertically oriented duct 51 extends longitudinally along the middle of housing 39. Overflow liquid from tubes 54 flows into the duct and down into a reservoir 65.
The liquid in reservoir 65 can in turn be pumped by a pump 66 through a valve 68 to the inlet of valve 30, returning the overflow liquid into the concentration chamber.
OPERATION
In general, as with stills of this type, vapor from the liquid being treated will be generated on an evaporation surface. The vapor generated will be drawn into a compressor, compressed, and the compressed vapor is condensed. Generally the vapor is condensed so that the latent heat of condensation is transferred to the liquid being treated thereby creating more vapor to be compressed.
In greater detail, vapor exiting from the upper end of tubes 54 will enter the evaporation chamber 40, passing over the cross tubes 50. As the vapor passes the cross tubes 50, it will remove some heat from the cross tubes which super heats the vapor and lowers the heat in the compressed vapor. The rising vapor enters a liquid carrier 74 which will remove any remaining liquid droplets entrained in the vapor stream. The barrier is shown as a screen but can be other materials known in the art, one barrier material being porous agglomerated plate.
The vapor, free from liquid, enters the housing surrounding the rotating compressor wheel 43, is accelerated by the wheel and is pushed into the volute 45 where the vapor's velocity decreases and the pressure increases.
The vapor from volute 45 enters the cross tubes 50 and passes through the tubes to a plenum 76 located within the housing. From the plenum, the compressed vapor enters a variable capacity heat exchange chamber. The heat exchange chamber comprises the chamber 52 defined by the plate 56, the upper surface of concentration chamber 44a, and the housing 39. Vapor entering the chamber 52 will be exposed to the exterior walls of the tubes 54 and, being at a higher temperature and pressure than the liquid inside the tubes, will condense to form a liquid. As shown, the chamber 52 contains a quantity of liquid and a vapor filled space 66 above the liquid. The heat transfer to the capillary tubes is different for the vapor filled phase and the liquid phase. By varying the liquid level within the heat exchange chamber 52, the amount of heat transferred to the liquid within the tubes 36 and thus the amount of additional vapor created can be controlled. The heat transfer and thereby the amount of vapor can also be controlled by varying the height of solvent within the tubes, a lower liquid level resulting in a lower heat transfer.
Of course, control of the vapor compression still involves several variables in addition to the liquid level in the chamber 52 or tubes 54. With a given compressor wheel, the amount of liquid withdrawn from the concentration chambers will vary as a function of: compressor wheel speed, inlet geometry and guide vane angle. In general, if the liquid level in the heat exchange chamber is increased, the amount of heat available to evaporate solvent and concentrate liquid is decreased.
The inlet geometry can be changed to vary the compressor's operating capacity. Such variable inlet geometries are well known in the art and a further description is omitted in the interest of brevity.
Because of changes in the distilland or variations in the production process to which this system is attached changes are necessary from time to time. One method of operating the compressor of this system is to increase the compressor capacity, such as by increasing compressor wheel speed until the compressor crosses the surge line and begins to surge. The compressor capacity could then be reduced by a fixed amount, such as by changing compressor speed or inlet geometry, to bring the capacity to the desired point on the efficiency curve. The operating efficiency curves are determined by the variables present in the system each system being individualistic but the operating characteristic curve as easily calculated or emperically determined. Such charts showing efficiency islands as a function of pressure ratio versus flow at a constant impeller tip speed are so well known that a detailed example is omitted. One example of a centrifugal compressor performance chart can be found in Gas Turbines, Sorenson, Ronald Press Co., New York, 1951, especially page 267.
Ordinarily causing a centrifugal compressor wheel to surge would not be a viable means of controlling a process. However, because the compressor wheel is operating at a reduced pressure, the amount of energy applied to the wheel during surge is minimal. Using the surge point of the compressor as a control measurement provides a quick and easy method of determining the operating conditions at a given time since the pressure ratio changes markedly when the compressor surges. Pressure sensing devices are well known in the art and a detailed description is omitted in the interest of brevity. The surge control can be used in combination with the variable heat exchanger to further increase the efficient operating range of the system.
The operating steps detailed above could be performed by a microprocessor which would receive relevant data and determine the operating condition of the system by comparison with a predetermined performance chart. If the system needed correction, the microprocessor would be programmed to drive the system into the surge condition and adjust the compressor capacity as discussed hereinbefore.
Where the liquid in one of the concentration chambers 44a, 44b, and 44c reaches the desired concentration, the sensing means in the associated chamber will activate the control means 60 which in turn activates the valve 32 to empty the concentration chambers. The emptied chamber is refilled and the process continues.
Various modifications and alterations of this invention will become obvious to those skilled in the art without departing from the scope and spirit of this invention. For example, the still of this invention can be used to concentrate fruit juice and for disalinization of water in addition to treating plating rinse water. | A liquid containing a solvent to be evaporated is fed to a concentration chamber which is fluidly connected to an evaporation chamber maintained at a reduced pressure. A vapor compression means withdraws solvent vapor from the evaporation chamber, compresses the vapor and forces the compressed vapor to a liquification chamber. Regulator means responsive to the density of the liquid remaining within the concentration chamber will regulate the rate of solvent evaporation to provide a concentrate suitable for recycling.
A method of operating the still of this invention utilizes the technique of increasing the compressor capacity until the compressor begins to surge and then reducing the capacity a fixed amount to provide the desired efficiency. | Concisely explain the essential features and purpose of the concept presented in the passage. | [
"CROSS REFERENCES TO RELATED APPLICATIONS This application is a division of Ser.",
"No. 14,005 filed Feb. 21, 1979 now abandoned which was a continuation of Ser.",
"No. 851,651 filed Nov. 15, 1977 now abandoned, which was a continuation-in-part of Ser.",
"No. 673,567 filed Apr. 5, 1976 now abandoned.",
"BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1.",
"Field of the Invention In one aspect, this invention relates to vacuum distillation systems.",
"In another aspect, this invention relates to closed loop waste treating systems.",
"In yet a further aspect, this invention relates to methods of using distillation systems.",
"Description of the Prior Art Prior art distillation systems wherein a variable speed compressor is used to put energy into a vapor which is in turn condensed to give off latent heat of vaporization to a distilland are known in the art.",
"One example of such a system is shown by U.S. Pat. No. 2,446,880.",
"These systems have been primarily used for water desalinization and operate at temperatures near or even above the boiling point of water at atmospheric pressure.",
"Such systems are not desirable for distilling fruit juices or plating solutions;",
"since they must be concentrated at temperatures well below the boiling point of water to prevent degradation of the organic materials present.",
"SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is an object of this invention to provide an improved method of controlling the vapor compression process.",
"The vapor compression system of this invention has an evaporation chamber maintained at a reduced pressure, a concentration chamber for holding the distilland to be concentrated, a density measuring means for measuring distilland density, and an evaporation surface connecting to the concentration and evaporation chambers.",
"This configuration allows the distilland to be retained within the concentration chamber until the desired distilland concentration measured as a function of density is obtained.",
"As a further feature of this invention, the compressor capacity is increased until the compressor reaches a surge condition and the compressor capacity is reduced an incremental amount to bring the compressor into the desired operating range.",
"BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS In the accompanying drawing: FIG. 1 is a schematic drawing of a plating line which includes a vapor compression unit of this invention and is adapted for closed loop operation;",
"FIG. 2 is a side elevation view in partial section of a vapor compression unit incorporating features of this invention.",
"DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS A typical plating schematic using a vapor compression still is shown in FIG. 1. Parts to be plated are placed in a plating tank 12 which contains a solution of ions to be deposited on the parts as a metal layer.",
"After a metal layer has been deposited on the parts, the plated parts are moved successively to rinse tanks 14, 16, 18 where any plating solution clinging to the plated part is rinsed off.",
"A substantial amount of plating solution, containing valuable metal ions and organic additives, is carried into the rinse tanks.",
"Also, some water is carried from tank to tank by the parts as they are rinsed.",
"The carry over and evaporation from the rinse tanks depletes the water in the rinse tanks and the concentration of plating solution will steadily rise, especially in the first rinse tank 14.",
"A portion of the water in the first rinse tank 14 is periodically withdrawn from the bottom of the tank and sufficient water from the second tank 16 is transferred via line 15 to refill tank 14.",
"The tank 16 is refilled from tank 18 via line 17 and tank 18 is in turn filled by purified water from a vapor compression still 20 via line 19.",
"Additional water can be added from an outside source of fresh water 21 when needed.",
"As shown, the rinse water or distilland from the first rinse tank 14, is withdrawn at outlet 22 by opening valve 24.",
"The contaminated rinse water is conveyed by a pipe 26 to a heat exchanger 28 where the rinse water extracts some heat from purified water condensed in the vapor compression still 20.",
"The preheated rinse water passes through a three-way valve 30 and is fed to the vapor compression still from the rinse water.",
"The rinse water is concentrated to a density suitable for return to the plating tank 12.",
"The concentrated solution is withdrawn from the concentration chamber through a valve 32 and pumped to the plating tank 12 via a line 34.",
"The pure water resulting from the vapor compression cycle is withdrawn through valve 36 into the heat exchanger 28 via line 38 and then is returned to rinse tank 18 by line 19.",
"If desired, the vapor compression system can be used to purify water before it enters the plating cycle.",
"Treatment of the water before it enters the system removes the calcium, magnesium, and other undesired metal ions which are present in every source of water.",
"These metal ions will concentrate in the plating bath as water is lost and settle out as solid salts to form a sludge at the bottom of the tank 12 or remain in the plating solution.",
"In either case, the increasing concentration of undesired metal ions reduces plating efficiency.",
"Eventually the plating solution must be discarded, resulting in a loss of valuable metal ions in the solution discarded, or the sludge must be removed from the plating tank requiring that plating operations be suspended.",
"Accumulation of this sludge would be particularly pronounced where the process cycle is a closed loop as shown.",
"Purification of the incoming fresh water would lessen or eliminate this problem.",
"FIG. 2 shows a detailed view of one vapor compression apparatus useful in the practice of this invention.",
"The operation of this unit is described with reference to plating rinse water.",
"The system could also be used to treat other liquids such as fruit juices, organic solvents or sea water.",
"A generally cylindrical, vertically oriented housing 39 defines an evaporation chamber 40 which collects vaporized water from the inside of the tubes 54 located at one end of the housing near a compressor 42.",
"The compressor 42 comprises generally a compressor wheel 43, volute 45 and driving means 46.",
"As shown, the driving means is an electric motor 47 mounted on a bracket 48 attached to the housing 39.",
"The motor 47 drives a V-belt drive 49 which in turn rotates the compressor wheel 43.",
"The compressor wheel 43 withdraws vapor from the evaporation chamber maintaining the evaporation chamber at a reduced pressure e.g., 0.5 to 1.5 pisa.",
"As shown, cross-tubes 50 transport compressed vapor from the volute 45 to a condensation-heat exchanger chamber 52.",
"At the lower end of the housing 39, distal the compressor 42, are a number of concentration chambers (three being shown) 44a, 44b, 44c which are filled with rinse water to be concentrated or incoming fresh water to be purified.",
"Each concentration chamber is fluidly connected to the evaporation chamber 40 by an evaporation surface.",
"As shown, the fluid connection is by means of capillary tubes 54 which extend from the lower portion of their respective concentration chambers and terminate in the plate 56 which forms the floor of the evaporation chamber 40.",
"In general there will be a plurality of tubes extending from each concentration chamber into the evaporation chamber, only one tube per concentration chamber being shown for clarity.",
"The interior walls of the capillary tubes 54 are wet by the liquid being concentrated and provide a large surface area for the formation of water vapor which passes into the evaporation chamber 40.",
"Sensing means 58a, 58b, and 58c are installed in each concentration chamber to measure the concentration of the remaining liquid.",
"As shown, the various sensing means generate an electrical signal which is fed to a control means 60.",
"The control means 60 activates the three-way valve 32 so that the concentration chambers can be emptied when the liquid in the chambers reaches the desired concentration.",
"In one aspect of this invention the concentration of the remaining liquid is determined by measuring its density.",
"Suitable density measuring devices are known in the liquid measuring art.",
"One general method of density measurement, which could be used in practicing this invention, is displacement measurement using a float.",
"Such devices operate by submerging a float in the liquid to be measured.",
"The float's movement up and down within the liquid generates a continuously variable signal proportional to the density of the surrounding liquid.",
"A full description can be found in Chemical Engineers Handbook, 5th Ed.",
", McGraw-Hill, New York, 1973, especially pages 22-48, and 49, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference.",
"In general, pumps (not shown) would be associated with the various valves to move the liquid within the system as needed.",
"The chamber would be replenished via valve 30 with more liquid to be concentrated as needed.",
"A large diameter vertically oriented duct 51 extends longitudinally along the middle of housing 39.",
"Overflow liquid from tubes 54 flows into the duct and down into a reservoir 65.",
"The liquid in reservoir 65 can in turn be pumped by a pump 66 through a valve 68 to the inlet of valve 30, returning the overflow liquid into the concentration chamber.",
"OPERATION In general, as with stills of this type, vapor from the liquid being treated will be generated on an evaporation surface.",
"The vapor generated will be drawn into a compressor, compressed, and the compressed vapor is condensed.",
"Generally the vapor is condensed so that the latent heat of condensation is transferred to the liquid being treated thereby creating more vapor to be compressed.",
"In greater detail, vapor exiting from the upper end of tubes 54 will enter the evaporation chamber 40, passing over the cross tubes 50.",
"As the vapor passes the cross tubes 50, it will remove some heat from the cross tubes which super heats the vapor and lowers the heat in the compressed vapor.",
"The rising vapor enters a liquid carrier 74 which will remove any remaining liquid droplets entrained in the vapor stream.",
"The barrier is shown as a screen but can be other materials known in the art, one barrier material being porous agglomerated plate.",
"The vapor, free from liquid, enters the housing surrounding the rotating compressor wheel 43, is accelerated by the wheel and is pushed into the volute 45 where the vapor's velocity decreases and the pressure increases.",
"The vapor from volute 45 enters the cross tubes 50 and passes through the tubes to a plenum 76 located within the housing.",
"From the plenum, the compressed vapor enters a variable capacity heat exchange chamber.",
"The heat exchange chamber comprises the chamber 52 defined by the plate 56, the upper surface of concentration chamber 44a, and the housing 39.",
"Vapor entering the chamber 52 will be exposed to the exterior walls of the tubes 54 and, being at a higher temperature and pressure than the liquid inside the tubes, will condense to form a liquid.",
"As shown, the chamber 52 contains a quantity of liquid and a vapor filled space 66 above the liquid.",
"The heat transfer to the capillary tubes is different for the vapor filled phase and the liquid phase.",
"By varying the liquid level within the heat exchange chamber 52, the amount of heat transferred to the liquid within the tubes 36 and thus the amount of additional vapor created can be controlled.",
"The heat transfer and thereby the amount of vapor can also be controlled by varying the height of solvent within the tubes, a lower liquid level resulting in a lower heat transfer.",
"Of course, control of the vapor compression still involves several variables in addition to the liquid level in the chamber 52 or tubes 54.",
"With a given compressor wheel, the amount of liquid withdrawn from the concentration chambers will vary as a function of: compressor wheel speed, inlet geometry and guide vane angle.",
"In general, if the liquid level in the heat exchange chamber is increased, the amount of heat available to evaporate solvent and concentrate liquid is decreased.",
"The inlet geometry can be changed to vary the compressor's operating capacity.",
"Such variable inlet geometries are well known in the art and a further description is omitted in the interest of brevity.",
"Because of changes in the distilland or variations in the production process to which this system is attached changes are necessary from time to time.",
"One method of operating the compressor of this system is to increase the compressor capacity, such as by increasing compressor wheel speed until the compressor crosses the surge line and begins to surge.",
"The compressor capacity could then be reduced by a fixed amount, such as by changing compressor speed or inlet geometry, to bring the capacity to the desired point on the efficiency curve.",
"The operating efficiency curves are determined by the variables present in the system each system being individualistic but the operating characteristic curve as easily calculated or emperically determined.",
"Such charts showing efficiency islands as a function of pressure ratio versus flow at a constant impeller tip speed are so well known that a detailed example is omitted.",
"One example of a centrifugal compressor performance chart can be found in Gas Turbines, Sorenson, Ronald Press Co., New York, 1951, especially page 267.",
"Ordinarily causing a centrifugal compressor wheel to surge would not be a viable means of controlling a process.",
"However, because the compressor wheel is operating at a reduced pressure, the amount of energy applied to the wheel during surge is minimal.",
"Using the surge point of the compressor as a control measurement provides a quick and easy method of determining the operating conditions at a given time since the pressure ratio changes markedly when the compressor surges.",
"Pressure sensing devices are well known in the art and a detailed description is omitted in the interest of brevity.",
"The surge control can be used in combination with the variable heat exchanger to further increase the efficient operating range of the system.",
"The operating steps detailed above could be performed by a microprocessor which would receive relevant data and determine the operating condition of the system by comparison with a predetermined performance chart.",
"If the system needed correction, the microprocessor would be programmed to drive the system into the surge condition and adjust the compressor capacity as discussed hereinbefore.",
"Where the liquid in one of the concentration chambers 44a, 44b, and 44c reaches the desired concentration, the sensing means in the associated chamber will activate the control means 60 which in turn activates the valve 32 to empty the concentration chambers.",
"The emptied chamber is refilled and the process continues.",
"Various modifications and alterations of this invention will become obvious to those skilled in the art without departing from the scope and spirit of this invention.",
"For example, the still of this invention can be used to concentrate fruit juice and for disalinization of water in addition to treating plating rinse water."
] |
INCORPORATION BY REFERENCE TO ANY PRIORITY APPLICATIONS
[0001] Any and all applications for which a foreign or domestic priority claim is identified in the Application Data Sheet as filed with the present application are hereby incorporated by reference under 37 CFR 1 . 57 .
BACKGROUND
[0002] 1. Field
[0003] The present disclose relates to a dispensing pump, and more particularly, to a dispensing pump that may be used in a process of manufacturing an electronic product and may dispense an accurate amount of a liquid, such as a liquid synthetic resin, at high speed.
[0004] 2. Discussion of Related Technology
[0005] Pumps for dispensing liquid are used in various technical fields, such as processes of manufacturing electronic products by using semiconductor chips, and the like.
[0006] In particular, dispensing pumps are widely used in an underfill process of a semiconductor process. The underfill process is usually used in a surface mounting technique, such as a flip chip in which a plurality of metal balls are formed on a surface facing a substrate and which electrically connects the substrate and a semiconductor chip via the plurality of metal balls. If a liquid synthetic resin is applied onto a circumference of the semiconductor chip, the resin is dispersed into a space between the semiconductor chip and the substrate by a capillary phenomenon and is filled in a space between the metal balls. The resin that fills the space between the semiconductor chip and the substrate is hardened so that adhesive strength between the semiconductor chip and the substrate can be improved. In addition, the hardened resin serves as a shock absorber and dissipates heat generated in the semiconductor chip.
[0007] A function of dispensing a liquid at high speed of such dispensing pumps becomes significant. Korean Patent Laid-open Publication Nos. 10-2005-0093935 and 10-2010-0045678 disclose a structure of a pump for dispensing a resin by ascending/descending a valve due to interaction between a cam and a cam follower. Such dispensing pumps according to the related art have excellent performance but have a limitation in speed at which a valve rod descends due to a structure of cam protrusions of a cam member and a structure of a roller. Thus, there are some difficulties in dispensing the liquid at high speed, and in particular, it is difficult to dispense a liquid with high viscosity at high speed.
SUMMARY
[0008] One aspect of the present invention provides a valve accelerating type dispensing pump that may descend a valve rod at high speed and thus may dispense a liquid with high viscosity at high speed.
[0009] Another aspect of the present invention provides a valve accelerating type dispensing pump including: a pump body; a valve body including an inlet path on which a liquid from an outside is supplied, a reservoir in which the liquid supplied via the inlet path is stored, and a discharge path on which the liquid stored in the reservoir is discharged, the valve body being installed at the pump body; a valve rod pressurizing the liquid stored in the reservoir of the valve body and inserted in the reservoir of the valve body so that the liquid is discharged via the discharge path; an operating rod connected to the valve rod and allowing the valve rod to move relative to the valve body; a cam member including a through hole through which the operating rod passes and cam protrusions formed along a circumferential direction of the cam member based on the through hole and having inclined surfaces formed so that a height of the cam protrusions increases, the cam member being installed at the pump body so that the cam member rotates around the through hole; a rotating unit rotating the cam member; a cam follower including rollers that roll on the inclined surfaces of the cam protrusions when the cam member rotates, the cam follower coupled to the operating rod and allowing the valve rod to move relative to the valve body; an accelerating member assembled with the cam follower to allow relative rotation of the cam follower within a predetermined angle range and installed at the pump body so as to make a linear motion approaching the cam member; and an elastic member installed between the pump body and the accelerating member and providing an elastic force to the accelerating member so that the accelerating member approaches the cam member.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0010] The above and other features and advantages of the present invention will become more apparent by describing in detail embodiments thereof with reference to the attached drawings in which:
[0011] FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a valve accelerating type dispensing pump according to an embodiment of the present invention;
[0012] FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view of main elements of the valve accelerating type dispensing pump illustrated in FIG. 1 ;
[0013] FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view taken along a line of the valve accelerating type dispensing pump of FIG. 1 ;
[0014] FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view taken along a line IV-IV of the valve accelerating type dispensing pump of FIG. 1 ;
[0015] FIGS. 5A , 5 B, 6 A, 6 B, 7 A, and 7 B are schematic views for explaining an operation of the valve accelerating type dispensing pump of FIG. 1 ; and
[0016] FIG. 8 is an exploded perspective view of main elements of a valve accelerating type dispensing pump according to another embodiment of the present invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS
[0017] Embodiments of the present invention will now be described more fully with reference to the accompanying drawings in which embodiments of the invention are shown.
[0018] FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a valve accelerating type dispensing pump according to an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view of main elements of the valve accelerating type dispensing pump illustrated in FIG. 1 , and FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view taken along a line of the valve accelerating type dispensing pump of FIG. 1 .
[0019] Referring to FIGS. 1 through 3 , the valve accelerating type dispensing pump according to the present embodiment includes a pump body 100 , a valve body 110 , a valve rod 210 , an operating rod 220 , a cam member 300 , and a cam follower 400 .
[0020] The pump body 100 serves as a housing that supports the entire structure of the valve accelerating type dispensing pump. The pump body 100 is installed at a transfer device and is moved by the transfer device to allow a liquid to be dispensed.
[0021] The valve body 110 is installed at the pump body 100 . The valve body 110 includes an inlet path 111 , a reservoir 112 , and a discharge path 113 . The liquid stored in an external syringe (not shown) flows to the reservoir 112 via the inlet path 111 . The liquid stored in the reservoir 112 is discharged via the discharge path 113 due to an operation of the valve rod 210 that ascends/descends with respect to the reservoir 112 . A nozzle 120 is connected to the discharge path 113 so as to adjust dispensing characteristics of the liquid.
[0022] The valve rod 210 is inserted in the reservoir 112 and pressurizes the liquid stored in the reservoir 112 so as to discharge the liquid via the discharge path 113 .
[0023] The cam member 300 is disposed above the valve body 110 and the valve rod 210 and is installed at the pump body 100 . The cam member 300 is installed at the pump body 100 so as to rotate around a virtual central axis that extends in a lengthwise direction of the valve rod 210 . A bearing 130 is installed between the cam member 300 and the pump body 100 so that the cam member 300 may rotate with respect to the pump body 100 .
[0024] The cam member 300 rotates by a rotating unit 900 . The rotating unit 900 includes a motor 910 , a driving pulley 920 , a timing belt 930 , and a driven pulley 940 . The motor 910 is installed at the pump body 100 , and the driven pulley 940 is installed at the cam member 300 . The timing belt 930 connects the driving pulley 920 and the driven pulley 940 . If the motor 910 allows the driving pulley 920 to rotate, the driven pulley 940 rotates due to the timing belt 930 . As a result, the cam member 300 rotates.
[0025] The cam member 300 includes a through hole 320 and a plurality of cam protrusions 310 . The through hole 320 is formed to penetrate the center of the disc-shaped cam member 300 in a vertical direction. The plurality of cam protrusions 310 are arranged in a circumferential direction of the cam member 300 so that eight cam protrusions 310 are at the same angle intervals (i.e., at intervals of 45 degrees). The cam protrusions 310 are inclined in the same rotation direction along the circumferential direction of the cam member 300 . That is, the cam protrusions 310 include inclined surfaces 311 that are inclined so that the height of the cam protrusions 310 may increase gradually clockwise, as illustrated in FIG. 2 . Cross-sections of the cam protrusions 310 may be formed so that the inclined surfaces 311 are steeply bent from their tops to lower portions. In the present embodiment, the inclined surfaces 311 of the cam protrusions 310 are formed to be bent from their tops in the vertical direction, as illustrated in FIGS. 2 , 5 A, and 5 B.
[0026] The operating rod 220 is disposed in the through hole 320 of the cam member 300 and is coupled to the valve rod 210 . The operating rod 220 is coupled to the cam follower 400 and ascends or descends and allows the valve rod 210 to be moved up and down relative to the valve body 110 .
[0027] The cam follower 400 faces a surface on which the cam protrusions 310 of the cam member 300 are formed and ascends/descends with respect to the cam member 300 due to interaction between the cam protrusions 310 and the cam follower 400 . The cam follower 400 includes two rollers 420 that roll on the inclined surfaces 311 of the cam protrusions 310 . Two rollers 420 of the cam follower 400 are disposed at intervals of 180 degrees.
[0028] The cam follower 400 is assembled with an accelerating member 500 and is installed at the pump body 100 . The accelerating member 500 includes a spline boss 530 and is coupled to the pump body 100 via a spline shaft 520 so as to make a linear motion (ascending/descending motion in the present embodiment) approaching the cam member 400 and not to allow relative rotation of the cam follower 400 . An elastic member 600 is disposed between the accelerating member 500 and the pump body 100 and provides an elastic force so that the elastic member 600 may be moved relative to the accelerating member 500 to approach the cam member 300 . In the present embodiment, the elastic member 600 having a shape of a spring 600 is used. The cam follower 400 that is disposed between the accelerating member 500 and the cam member 300 , receives the elastic force of the elastic member 600 from the accelerating member 500 and is maintained to be closely adhered to the cam member 300 .
[0029] The accelerating member 500 and the cam follower 400 are assembled with each other so that they may rotate relative to each other within a predetermined angle range. Due to interaction between accelerating protrusions 410 formed on the cam follower 400 and angle limiting portions 510 formed on the accelerating member 500 , the accelerating member 500 and the cam follower 400 may be rotated relative to each other within the predetermined angle range. In the present embodiment, the angle limiting portions 510 are long holes that extend in the circumferential direction of the accelerating member 500 . Two angle limiting portions 510 having a shape of long holes face each other in a state where a central axis (operating rod 220 ) of the cam follower 400 is interposed between two angle limiting portions 510 . The accelerating protrusions 410 of the cam follower 400 are formed in the form of rods that extend in a radial direction of the cam follower 400 and protrude from the cam follower 400 . Like the angle limiting portions 510 , two accelerating protrusions 410 are disposed and face each other in a state where the central axis of the cam follower 400 is interposed between two accelerating protrusions 410 . The accelerating protrusions 410 are respectively inserted in the angle limiting portions 510 of the accelerating member 500 . Since the accelerating protrusions 410 are caught in inner walls of the angle limiting portions 510 , the cam follower 400 rotates with respect to the accelerating member 500 within an angle range that is allowed by the angle limiting portions 510 . That is, a relative rotational angle of the cam follower 400 with respect to the accelerating member 500 is limited by interference between the accelerating protrusions 410 and the angle limiting portions 510 . A range of the relative rotational angle of the cam follower 400 with respect to the accelerating member 500 that is limited by interaction between the accelerating protrusions 410 and the angle limiting portions 510 may be greater than 0 degree and less than angle intervals between the cam protrusions 310 . In the present embodiment, a rotatable angle of the cam follower 400 may be greater than 0 degree and less than 90 degrees. The rollers 420 are installed at ends of the accelerating protrusions 410 according to the present embodiment and roll on the inclined surfaces 311 of the cam protrusions 310 of the cam member 300 .
[0030] Hereinafter, an operation of the valve accelerating type dispensing pump having the above structure of FIGS. 1 through 3 will be described.
[0031] FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view taken along a line IV-IV of the valve accelerating type dispensing pump of FIG. 1 , and FIGS. 5A , 5 B, 6 A, 6 B, 7 A, and 7 B are schematic views for explaining an operation of the valve accelerating type dispensing pump of FIG. 1
[0032] Referring to FIG. 4 , the liquid stored in the external syringe flows to the reservoir 112 of the valve body 110 via the inlet path 111 under uniform pressure.
[0033] If the motor 910 operates in this state, the motor 910 rotates with the driving pulley 920 , and the driven pulley 940 that is connected to the driving pulley 920 via the timing belt 930 , also rotates. The cam member 300 that is coupled to the driven pulley 940 rotates with the driven pulley 940 .
[0034] If the cam member 300 rotates, the rollers 420 of the cam follower 400 roll along the inclined surfaces 311 of the cam protrusions 310 , and the cam follower 400 ascends. Since the accelerating member 500 is spline-coupled to the pump body 100 via the spline shaft 520 , the accelerating member 500 does not rotate but the rollers 420 roll along the inclined surfaces 311 of the cam protrusions 310 so that the accelerating member 500 and the cam follower 400 ascend. When the accelerating member 500 ascends, the elastic member 600 is pressurized while applying the elastic force to the accelerating member 500 in a downward direction. Due to the elastic force of the elastic member 600 , the rollers 420 of the cam follower 400 are maintained in contact with a top surface of the cam member 300 . The operating rod 220 that is coupled to the cam follower 400 , ascends with the valve rod 210 . When the valve rod 210 ascends, the liquid flows in a space formed in the reservoir 112 , and the space is filled with the liquid.
[0035] Referring to FIGS. 1 , 5 A, and 5 B, when the cam member 300 rotates, the accelerating protrusions 410 of the cam follower 400 are slid along the angle limiting portions 510 of the accelerating member 500 and are caught in left walls of the angle limiting portions 500 based on FIGS. 5A and 5B . Thus, rotation of the cam follower 400 does not proceed any more. That is, even when the cam member 300 rotates, the cam follower 400 does not rotate with respect to the accelerating member 500 . A concept of a state of force balance between the cam follower 400 and the cam member 300 is as shown in FIGS. 5A and 5B . A vertical resistance F R applied to the rollers 420 on the inclined surfaces 311 of the cam protrusions 310 is balanced with a horizontal component force F H and a vertical component force F V that are applied to the rollers 420 . The vertical component force F V is provided by the elastic member 600 and is transferred to the rollers 420 via the accelerating member 500 . The horizontal component force F H is transferred to the rollers 420 via the pump body 100 —the accelerating member 500 —the cam follower 400 , because the accelerating protrusions 410 are caught in the angle limiting portions 510 .
[0036] If the rollers 420 roll up to tops of the inclined surfaces 311 of the cam protrusions 310 and ascend, the horizontal component of the vertical resistance F R that is balanced with the horizontal component force F H applied to the rollers 420 becomes extinct, as illustrated in FIGS. 6A and 6B . That is, on the inclined surfaces 311 of the cam protrusions 310 , a force is applied to the rollers 420 in the horizontal direction, and any force other than a frictional force is not applied to the rollers 420 in the vertical direction. As a result, due to the horizontal component force F H applied by the angle limiting portions 510 to the accelerating protrusions 410 , the rollers 420 bounce off the cam protrusions 310 in the circumferential direction (right direction in FIGS. 5A , 5 B, 6 A, 6 B, 7 A, and 7 B) of the cam member 300 , as illustrated in FIGS. 7A and 7B . As described above, since the cam follower 400 may rotate with respect to the accelerating member 500 within the angle range that is allowed by the angle limiting portions 510 , the cam follower 400 rotates with respect to the accelerating member 500 that does not rotate, in an opposite direction to a rotation direction of the cam member 300 , and the rollers 420 escape from the tops of the cam protrusions 310 at high speed. In this case, due to the elastic force of the elastic member 600 , the accelerating member 500 , the cam follower 400 , the operating rod 220 , and the valve rod 210 descend. As a result, the liquid filled in the reservoir 112 is pressurized by the valve rod 210 and is discharged via the discharge path 113 .
[0037] If the cam member 300 rotates consecutively and the rollers 420 ascend and descend along the cam protrusions 310 repeatedly, the valve rod 210 ascends and descends consecutively so that the liquid may be discharged via the discharge path 113 .
[0038] In the above liquid-pumping mechanism, the descending speed of the valve rod 210 greatly affects the discharge amount and discharge speed of the liquid. In order to adjust an accurate discharge amount, an inner diameter of the discharge path 113 may be relatively small. As the descending speed of the valve rod 210 increases, the liquid having high viscosity may be quickly dispensed via the discharge path 113 having a small inner diameter. In particular, when the viscosity of the liquid is high, if the descending speed of the valve rod 210 is not sufficiently high, due to resistance caused by viscosity and resistance of the discharge path 113 , the liquid may not be discharged. However, like in embodiments of the present invention, the accelerating member 500 is used so that a liquid having high viscosity may be dispensed. In this way, by using the valve accelerating type dispensing pump according to embodiments of the present invention, the range of the liquid that may be dispersed, may be greatly increased.
[0039] When there is no interaction between the accelerating protrusions 410 and the angle limiting portions 510 as described above, the descending speed of the valve rod 210 is determined by a rotational speed of the cam member 300 . As illustrated in FIGS. 6A and 6B , the rollers 420 should roll toward the cam member 300 by a distance D indicated in FIG. 7A so that the rollers 420 may be moved from the tops of the cam protrusions 310 to the lowermost portion of the top surface of the cam member 300 , as illustrated in FIGS. 7A and 7B . In a valve dispensing pump having no accelerating member including angle limiting portions according to the related art, since a cam member should rotate in a state where a cam follower is fixed and rollers should roll up to a bottom surface of the cam member, the descending speed of the valve rod is determined by the rotational speed of the cam member. Even when an elastic member that provides a strong elastic force is used, the descending speed of the valve rod is substantially determined by the rotational speed of the cam member rather than the elastic force of the elastic member. In particular, when an outer diameter of each roller increases, a distance that is required for the rollers to contact the lowermost portion of the top surface of the cam member, increases so that the descending speed of the valve rod is also decreased by the distance.
[0040] However, in the valve accelerating type dispensing pump according to the present embodiment, when the rollers 420 roll along the inclined surfaces 311 of the cam protrusions 310 , the angle limiting portions 510 push the accelerating protrusions 410 in an opposite direction to the rotation direction of the cam member 300 by using the horizontal component force F H applied to the rollers 420 , as illustrated in FIGS. 6A and 6B . The cam follower 400 rotates with respect to the accelerating member 500 due to a force applied by the angle limiting portions 510 to the accelerating protrusions 410 and rotates instantaneously in an opposite direction to the rotation direction of the cam member 300 , as illustrated in FIGS. 7A and 7B . As a result, the rollers 420 and the cam member 300 are moved in opposite directions, and the rollers 420 roll at much higher speed compared to the related art by the distance D at which the rollers 420 contact the lowermost portion of the top surface of the cam member 300 . Even when the rollers 420 having a relatively large outer diameter are used, due to interaction between the accelerating protrusions 410 and the angle limiting portions 510 , the rollers 420 may be moved relative to the cam member 300 at high speed, and the valve rods 210 may descend due to the elastic member 600 at very high speed. Since the momentum and kinetic energy of the valve rod 210 are proportional to a descending speed of the valve rod 210 and a square of the descending speed, the liquid may be dispensed at much higher speed compared to the related art. In particular, a liquid having high viscosity may be dispensed by a sufficient force via the discharge path 113 having a relatively small inner diameter.
[0041] If the rollers 420 contact next cam protrusion 310 , the cam follower 400 that rotates with respect to the accelerating member 500 in an opposite direction to the cam member 300 , rotates in the same direction as the rotation direction of the cam protrusions 310 due to the vertical resistance F R of the cam protrusions 310 , and the accelerating protrusions 410 are caught in the angle limiting portions 510 in a progressive direction. When the angle range of the angle limiting portions 510 is less than the angle range between the cam protrusions 310 , the accelerating protrusions 410 are first caught in inner walls of the angle limiting portions 510 , and rotation of the cam follower 400 with respect to the accelerating member 500 stops. If the rollers 420 contact next cam protrusion 310 , the cam follower 400 rotates in the same direction as the cam member 300 so that the accelerating protrusions 410 are caught in opposite inner walls of the angle limiting portions 510 and rotation of the cam follower 400 stops.
[0042] To sum up, in the related art, even when an elastic force of an elastic member is strong, the descending speed of the valve rod is determined by the size of an outer diameter of a roller and a rotational speed of a cam member. However, in the valve accelerating type dispensing pump according to embodiments of the present invention, due to interaction between the angle limiting portions 510 and the accelerating protrusions 410 , the descending speed of the valve rod 210 may be increased using a sufficient elastic force of the elastic member 600 .
[0043] Although embodiments of the present invention have been described as above, the scope of the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments.
[0044] For example, the accelerating protrusions 410 are formed on the cam follower 400 , and the angle limiting portions 510 are formed on the accelerating member 500 . However, the accelerating protrusions 410 may be formed on the accelerating member 500 , and the angle limiting portions 510 may be formed on the cam follower 400 .
[0045] Also, a bearing that rolls along the inner walls of the angle limiting portion 510 may be installed at the accelerating protrusions 410 so as to reduce friction between the accelerating protrusion 410 and the angle limiting portion 510 .
[0046] In addition, the angle limiting portions 510 have the shape of long holes, as described above. However, the angle limiting portions 510 may also be formed in the form of long grooves. The accelerating protrusions 410 and the angle limiting portions 510 may be formed in various shapes in which the accelerating member 500 and the cam follower 400 may rotate relative to each other within a predetermined angle range due to interference between the accelerating protrusions 410 and the angle limiting portions 510 .
[0047] Furthermore, the rollers 420 are installed at the accelerating protrusions 410 , as described above. However, the rollers 420 may be configured in different ways. The accelerating protrusions 410 interfere with the angle limiting portions 510 independently from the rollers 420 so that the rotational angle of the cam follower 400 may be limited, and the rollers 420 may be configured to be coupled to the cam follower 400 separately from the accelerating protrusions 410 .
[0048] FIG. 8 illustrates another example of accelerating protrusions 551 and angle limiting portions 452 .
[0049] The accelerating protrusions 551 are formed on an accelerating member 550 , and the angle limiting portions 452 are formed on a cam follower 450 . The angle limiting portions 452 of the cam follower 450 are formed in the form of long grooves having a circular arc shape on a surface that faces the accelerating member 550 along a circumferential direction of the accelerating member 550 . The accelerating protrusions 551 of the accelerating member 550 are formed in the form of rods that extend in a bottom surface of the accelerating member 550 and are inserted in the angle limiting portions 452 of the cam follower 450 . The cam follower 450 rotates with respect to the accelerating member 550 slightly, and the accelerating protrusions 551 are caught in the inner walls of the angle limiting portions 452 such that the cam follower 450 does not rotate any more. The remaining configuration of the accelerating protrusions 551 and the angle limiting portions 452 excluding the above configuration is the same as FIGS. 1 through 7A and 7 B. If rollers 451 of the cam follower 450 roll along cam protrusions 310 in a state where the angle limiting portions 452 are caught in the accelerating protrusions 551 and the cam follower 450 cannot rotate, the angle limiting portions 452 are pushed by the accelerating protrusions 551 so that the cam follower 450 rotates with respect to the accelerating member 550 . As such, the relative speed between the rollers 451 and the cam member 300 increases, and the valve rod 210 may descend at high speed.
[0050] In the present embodiment, eight cam protrusions 310 and two rollers 420 are disposed. However, the number of cam protrusions 310 and the number of rollers 420 may be diverse. The shape of the cam protrusions 310 may vary according to their inclined angles and curvatures of inclined surfaces.
[0051] As described above, in a valve accelerating type dispensing pump according to embodiments of the present invention, an accurate amount of a liquid may be dispensed at high speed.
[0052] Also, the valve accelerating type dispensing pump according to embodiments of the present invention may dispense a liquid having high viscosity at high speed due to a fast descending speed of a valve rod.
[0053] While embodiments of the present invention have been particularly shown and described, it will be understood by those of ordinary skill in the art that various changes in form and details may be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention as defined by the following claims. | A dispensing pump, and more particularly, a valve accelerating type dispensing pump that may be used in a process of manufacturing an electronic product and may dispense an accurate amount of a liquid, such as a liquid synthetic resin, at high speed. The valve accelerating type dispensing pump can descend a valve rod at high speed and thus can dispense a liquid with high viscosity at high speed. The valve accelerating type dispensing pump can dispense an accurate amount of a liquid at high speed. Also, the valve accelerating type dispensing pump can dispense a liquid having high viscosity at high speed due to a fast descending speed of a valve rod. | Briefly describe the main invention outlined in the provided context. | [
"INCORPORATION BY REFERENCE TO ANY PRIORITY APPLICATIONS [0001] Any and all applications for which a foreign or domestic priority claim is identified in the Application Data Sheet as filed with the present application are hereby incorporated by reference under 37 CFR 1 .",
"57 .",
"BACKGROUND [0002] 1.",
"Field [0003] The present disclose relates to a dispensing pump, and more particularly, to a dispensing pump that may be used in a process of manufacturing an electronic product and may dispense an accurate amount of a liquid, such as a liquid synthetic resin, at high speed.",
"[0004] 2.",
"Discussion of Related Technology [0005] Pumps for dispensing liquid are used in various technical fields, such as processes of manufacturing electronic products by using semiconductor chips, and the like.",
"[0006] In particular, dispensing pumps are widely used in an underfill process of a semiconductor process.",
"The underfill process is usually used in a surface mounting technique, such as a flip chip in which a plurality of metal balls are formed on a surface facing a substrate and which electrically connects the substrate and a semiconductor chip via the plurality of metal balls.",
"If a liquid synthetic resin is applied onto a circumference of the semiconductor chip, the resin is dispersed into a space between the semiconductor chip and the substrate by a capillary phenomenon and is filled in a space between the metal balls.",
"The resin that fills the space between the semiconductor chip and the substrate is hardened so that adhesive strength between the semiconductor chip and the substrate can be improved.",
"In addition, the hardened resin serves as a shock absorber and dissipates heat generated in the semiconductor chip.",
"[0007] A function of dispensing a liquid at high speed of such dispensing pumps becomes significant.",
"Korean Patent Laid-open Publication Nos. 10-2005-0093935 and 10-2010-0045678 disclose a structure of a pump for dispensing a resin by ascending/descending a valve due to interaction between a cam and a cam follower.",
"Such dispensing pumps according to the related art have excellent performance but have a limitation in speed at which a valve rod descends due to a structure of cam protrusions of a cam member and a structure of a roller.",
"Thus, there are some difficulties in dispensing the liquid at high speed, and in particular, it is difficult to dispense a liquid with high viscosity at high speed.",
"SUMMARY [0008] One aspect of the present invention provides a valve accelerating type dispensing pump that may descend a valve rod at high speed and thus may dispense a liquid with high viscosity at high speed.",
"[0009] Another aspect of the present invention provides a valve accelerating type dispensing pump including: a pump body;",
"a valve body including an inlet path on which a liquid from an outside is supplied, a reservoir in which the liquid supplied via the inlet path is stored, and a discharge path on which the liquid stored in the reservoir is discharged, the valve body being installed at the pump body;",
"a valve rod pressurizing the liquid stored in the reservoir of the valve body and inserted in the reservoir of the valve body so that the liquid is discharged via the discharge path;",
"an operating rod connected to the valve rod and allowing the valve rod to move relative to the valve body;",
"a cam member including a through hole through which the operating rod passes and cam protrusions formed along a circumferential direction of the cam member based on the through hole and having inclined surfaces formed so that a height of the cam protrusions increases, the cam member being installed at the pump body so that the cam member rotates around the through hole;",
"a rotating unit rotating the cam member;",
"a cam follower including rollers that roll on the inclined surfaces of the cam protrusions when the cam member rotates, the cam follower coupled to the operating rod and allowing the valve rod to move relative to the valve body;",
"an accelerating member assembled with the cam follower to allow relative rotation of the cam follower within a predetermined angle range and installed at the pump body so as to make a linear motion approaching the cam member;",
"and an elastic member installed between the pump body and the accelerating member and providing an elastic force to the accelerating member so that the accelerating member approaches the cam member.",
"BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS [0010] The above and other features and advantages of the present invention will become more apparent by describing in detail embodiments thereof with reference to the attached drawings in which: [0011] FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a valve accelerating type dispensing pump according to an embodiment of the present invention;",
"[0012] FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view of main elements of the valve accelerating type dispensing pump illustrated in FIG. 1 ;",
"[0013] FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view taken along a line of the valve accelerating type dispensing pump of FIG. 1 ;",
"[0014] FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view taken along a line IV-IV of the valve accelerating type dispensing pump of FIG. 1 ;",
"[0015] FIGS. 5A , 5 B, 6 A, 6 B, 7 A, and 7 B are schematic views for explaining an operation of the valve accelerating type dispensing pump of FIG. 1 ;",
"and [0016] FIG. 8 is an exploded perspective view of main elements of a valve accelerating type dispensing pump according to another embodiment of the present invention.",
"DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS [0017] Embodiments of the present invention will now be described more fully with reference to the accompanying drawings in which embodiments of the invention are shown.",
"[0018] FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a valve accelerating type dispensing pump according to an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view of main elements of the valve accelerating type dispensing pump illustrated in FIG. 1 , and FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view taken along a line of the valve accelerating type dispensing pump of FIG. 1 .",
"[0019] Referring to FIGS. 1 through 3 , the valve accelerating type dispensing pump according to the present embodiment includes a pump body 100 , a valve body 110 , a valve rod 210 , an operating rod 220 , a cam member 300 , and a cam follower 400 .",
"[0020] The pump body 100 serves as a housing that supports the entire structure of the valve accelerating type dispensing pump.",
"The pump body 100 is installed at a transfer device and is moved by the transfer device to allow a liquid to be dispensed.",
"[0021] The valve body 110 is installed at the pump body 100 .",
"The valve body 110 includes an inlet path 111 , a reservoir 112 , and a discharge path 113 .",
"The liquid stored in an external syringe (not shown) flows to the reservoir 112 via the inlet path 111 .",
"The liquid stored in the reservoir 112 is discharged via the discharge path 113 due to an operation of the valve rod 210 that ascends/descends with respect to the reservoir 112 .",
"A nozzle 120 is connected to the discharge path 113 so as to adjust dispensing characteristics of the liquid.",
"[0022] The valve rod 210 is inserted in the reservoir 112 and pressurizes the liquid stored in the reservoir 112 so as to discharge the liquid via the discharge path 113 .",
"[0023] The cam member 300 is disposed above the valve body 110 and the valve rod 210 and is installed at the pump body 100 .",
"The cam member 300 is installed at the pump body 100 so as to rotate around a virtual central axis that extends in a lengthwise direction of the valve rod 210 .",
"A bearing 130 is installed between the cam member 300 and the pump body 100 so that the cam member 300 may rotate with respect to the pump body 100 .",
"[0024] The cam member 300 rotates by a rotating unit 900 .",
"The rotating unit 900 includes a motor 910 , a driving pulley 920 , a timing belt 930 , and a driven pulley 940 .",
"The motor 910 is installed at the pump body 100 , and the driven pulley 940 is installed at the cam member 300 .",
"The timing belt 930 connects the driving pulley 920 and the driven pulley 940 .",
"If the motor 910 allows the driving pulley 920 to rotate, the driven pulley 940 rotates due to the timing belt 930 .",
"As a result, the cam member 300 rotates.",
"[0025] The cam member 300 includes a through hole 320 and a plurality of cam protrusions 310 .",
"The through hole 320 is formed to penetrate the center of the disc-shaped cam member 300 in a vertical direction.",
"The plurality of cam protrusions 310 are arranged in a circumferential direction of the cam member 300 so that eight cam protrusions 310 are at the same angle intervals (i.e., at intervals of 45 degrees).",
"The cam protrusions 310 are inclined in the same rotation direction along the circumferential direction of the cam member 300 .",
"That is, the cam protrusions 310 include inclined surfaces 311 that are inclined so that the height of the cam protrusions 310 may increase gradually clockwise, as illustrated in FIG. 2 .",
"Cross-sections of the cam protrusions 310 may be formed so that the inclined surfaces 311 are steeply bent from their tops to lower portions.",
"In the present embodiment, the inclined surfaces 311 of the cam protrusions 310 are formed to be bent from their tops in the vertical direction, as illustrated in FIGS. 2 , 5 A, and 5 B. [0026] The operating rod 220 is disposed in the through hole 320 of the cam member 300 and is coupled to the valve rod 210 .",
"The operating rod 220 is coupled to the cam follower 400 and ascends or descends and allows the valve rod 210 to be moved up and down relative to the valve body 110 .",
"[0027] The cam follower 400 faces a surface on which the cam protrusions 310 of the cam member 300 are formed and ascends/descends with respect to the cam member 300 due to interaction between the cam protrusions 310 and the cam follower 400 .",
"The cam follower 400 includes two rollers 420 that roll on the inclined surfaces 311 of the cam protrusions 310 .",
"Two rollers 420 of the cam follower 400 are disposed at intervals of 180 degrees.",
"[0028] The cam follower 400 is assembled with an accelerating member 500 and is installed at the pump body 100 .",
"The accelerating member 500 includes a spline boss 530 and is coupled to the pump body 100 via a spline shaft 520 so as to make a linear motion (ascending/descending motion in the present embodiment) approaching the cam member 400 and not to allow relative rotation of the cam follower 400 .",
"An elastic member 600 is disposed between the accelerating member 500 and the pump body 100 and provides an elastic force so that the elastic member 600 may be moved relative to the accelerating member 500 to approach the cam member 300 .",
"In the present embodiment, the elastic member 600 having a shape of a spring 600 is used.",
"The cam follower 400 that is disposed between the accelerating member 500 and the cam member 300 , receives the elastic force of the elastic member 600 from the accelerating member 500 and is maintained to be closely adhered to the cam member 300 .",
"[0029] The accelerating member 500 and the cam follower 400 are assembled with each other so that they may rotate relative to each other within a predetermined angle range.",
"Due to interaction between accelerating protrusions 410 formed on the cam follower 400 and angle limiting portions 510 formed on the accelerating member 500 , the accelerating member 500 and the cam follower 400 may be rotated relative to each other within the predetermined angle range.",
"In the present embodiment, the angle limiting portions 510 are long holes that extend in the circumferential direction of the accelerating member 500 .",
"Two angle limiting portions 510 having a shape of long holes face each other in a state where a central axis (operating rod 220 ) of the cam follower 400 is interposed between two angle limiting portions 510 .",
"The accelerating protrusions 410 of the cam follower 400 are formed in the form of rods that extend in a radial direction of the cam follower 400 and protrude from the cam follower 400 .",
"Like the angle limiting portions 510 , two accelerating protrusions 410 are disposed and face each other in a state where the central axis of the cam follower 400 is interposed between two accelerating protrusions 410 .",
"The accelerating protrusions 410 are respectively inserted in the angle limiting portions 510 of the accelerating member 500 .",
"Since the accelerating protrusions 410 are caught in inner walls of the angle limiting portions 510 , the cam follower 400 rotates with respect to the accelerating member 500 within an angle range that is allowed by the angle limiting portions 510 .",
"That is, a relative rotational angle of the cam follower 400 with respect to the accelerating member 500 is limited by interference between the accelerating protrusions 410 and the angle limiting portions 510 .",
"A range of the relative rotational angle of the cam follower 400 with respect to the accelerating member 500 that is limited by interaction between the accelerating protrusions 410 and the angle limiting portions 510 may be greater than 0 degree and less than angle intervals between the cam protrusions 310 .",
"In the present embodiment, a rotatable angle of the cam follower 400 may be greater than 0 degree and less than 90 degrees.",
"The rollers 420 are installed at ends of the accelerating protrusions 410 according to the present embodiment and roll on the inclined surfaces 311 of the cam protrusions 310 of the cam member 300 .",
"[0030] Hereinafter, an operation of the valve accelerating type dispensing pump having the above structure of FIGS. 1 through 3 will be described.",
"[0031] FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view taken along a line IV-IV of the valve accelerating type dispensing pump of FIG. 1 , and FIGS. 5A , 5 B, 6 A, 6 B, 7 A, and 7 B are schematic views for explaining an operation of the valve accelerating type dispensing pump of FIG. 1 [0032] Referring to FIG. 4 , the liquid stored in the external syringe flows to the reservoir 112 of the valve body 110 via the inlet path 111 under uniform pressure.",
"[0033] If the motor 910 operates in this state, the motor 910 rotates with the driving pulley 920 , and the driven pulley 940 that is connected to the driving pulley 920 via the timing belt 930 , also rotates.",
"The cam member 300 that is coupled to the driven pulley 940 rotates with the driven pulley 940 .",
"[0034] If the cam member 300 rotates, the rollers 420 of the cam follower 400 roll along the inclined surfaces 311 of the cam protrusions 310 , and the cam follower 400 ascends.",
"Since the accelerating member 500 is spline-coupled to the pump body 100 via the spline shaft 520 , the accelerating member 500 does not rotate but the rollers 420 roll along the inclined surfaces 311 of the cam protrusions 310 so that the accelerating member 500 and the cam follower 400 ascend.",
"When the accelerating member 500 ascends, the elastic member 600 is pressurized while applying the elastic force to the accelerating member 500 in a downward direction.",
"Due to the elastic force of the elastic member 600 , the rollers 420 of the cam follower 400 are maintained in contact with a top surface of the cam member 300 .",
"The operating rod 220 that is coupled to the cam follower 400 , ascends with the valve rod 210 .",
"When the valve rod 210 ascends, the liquid flows in a space formed in the reservoir 112 , and the space is filled with the liquid.",
"[0035] Referring to FIGS. 1 , 5 A, and 5 B, when the cam member 300 rotates, the accelerating protrusions 410 of the cam follower 400 are slid along the angle limiting portions 510 of the accelerating member 500 and are caught in left walls of the angle limiting portions 500 based on FIGS. 5A and 5B .",
"Thus, rotation of the cam follower 400 does not proceed any more.",
"That is, even when the cam member 300 rotates, the cam follower 400 does not rotate with respect to the accelerating member 500 .",
"A concept of a state of force balance between the cam follower 400 and the cam member 300 is as shown in FIGS. 5A and 5B .",
"A vertical resistance F R applied to the rollers 420 on the inclined surfaces 311 of the cam protrusions 310 is balanced with a horizontal component force F H and a vertical component force F V that are applied to the rollers 420 .",
"The vertical component force F V is provided by the elastic member 600 and is transferred to the rollers 420 via the accelerating member 500 .",
"The horizontal component force F H is transferred to the rollers 420 via the pump body 100 —the accelerating member 500 —the cam follower 400 , because the accelerating protrusions 410 are caught in the angle limiting portions 510 .",
"[0036] If the rollers 420 roll up to tops of the inclined surfaces 311 of the cam protrusions 310 and ascend, the horizontal component of the vertical resistance F R that is balanced with the horizontal component force F H applied to the rollers 420 becomes extinct, as illustrated in FIGS. 6A and 6B .",
"That is, on the inclined surfaces 311 of the cam protrusions 310 , a force is applied to the rollers 420 in the horizontal direction, and any force other than a frictional force is not applied to the rollers 420 in the vertical direction.",
"As a result, due to the horizontal component force F H applied by the angle limiting portions 510 to the accelerating protrusions 410 , the rollers 420 bounce off the cam protrusions 310 in the circumferential direction (right direction in FIGS. 5A , 5 B, 6 A, 6 B, 7 A, and 7 B) of the cam member 300 , as illustrated in FIGS. 7A and 7B .",
"As described above, since the cam follower 400 may rotate with respect to the accelerating member 500 within the angle range that is allowed by the angle limiting portions 510 , the cam follower 400 rotates with respect to the accelerating member 500 that does not rotate, in an opposite direction to a rotation direction of the cam member 300 , and the rollers 420 escape from the tops of the cam protrusions 310 at high speed.",
"In this case, due to the elastic force of the elastic member 600 , the accelerating member 500 , the cam follower 400 , the operating rod 220 , and the valve rod 210 descend.",
"As a result, the liquid filled in the reservoir 112 is pressurized by the valve rod 210 and is discharged via the discharge path 113 .",
"[0037] If the cam member 300 rotates consecutively and the rollers 420 ascend and descend along the cam protrusions 310 repeatedly, the valve rod 210 ascends and descends consecutively so that the liquid may be discharged via the discharge path 113 .",
"[0038] In the above liquid-pumping mechanism, the descending speed of the valve rod 210 greatly affects the discharge amount and discharge speed of the liquid.",
"In order to adjust an accurate discharge amount, an inner diameter of the discharge path 113 may be relatively small.",
"As the descending speed of the valve rod 210 increases, the liquid having high viscosity may be quickly dispensed via the discharge path 113 having a small inner diameter.",
"In particular, when the viscosity of the liquid is high, if the descending speed of the valve rod 210 is not sufficiently high, due to resistance caused by viscosity and resistance of the discharge path 113 , the liquid may not be discharged.",
"However, like in embodiments of the present invention, the accelerating member 500 is used so that a liquid having high viscosity may be dispensed.",
"In this way, by using the valve accelerating type dispensing pump according to embodiments of the present invention, the range of the liquid that may be dispersed, may be greatly increased.",
"[0039] When there is no interaction between the accelerating protrusions 410 and the angle limiting portions 510 as described above, the descending speed of the valve rod 210 is determined by a rotational speed of the cam member 300 .",
"As illustrated in FIGS. 6A and 6B , the rollers 420 should roll toward the cam member 300 by a distance D indicated in FIG. 7A so that the rollers 420 may be moved from the tops of the cam protrusions 310 to the lowermost portion of the top surface of the cam member 300 , as illustrated in FIGS. 7A and 7B .",
"In a valve dispensing pump having no accelerating member including angle limiting portions according to the related art, since a cam member should rotate in a state where a cam follower is fixed and rollers should roll up to a bottom surface of the cam member, the descending speed of the valve rod is determined by the rotational speed of the cam member.",
"Even when an elastic member that provides a strong elastic force is used, the descending speed of the valve rod is substantially determined by the rotational speed of the cam member rather than the elastic force of the elastic member.",
"In particular, when an outer diameter of each roller increases, a distance that is required for the rollers to contact the lowermost portion of the top surface of the cam member, increases so that the descending speed of the valve rod is also decreased by the distance.",
"[0040] However, in the valve accelerating type dispensing pump according to the present embodiment, when the rollers 420 roll along the inclined surfaces 311 of the cam protrusions 310 , the angle limiting portions 510 push the accelerating protrusions 410 in an opposite direction to the rotation direction of the cam member 300 by using the horizontal component force F H applied to the rollers 420 , as illustrated in FIGS. 6A and 6B .",
"The cam follower 400 rotates with respect to the accelerating member 500 due to a force applied by the angle limiting portions 510 to the accelerating protrusions 410 and rotates instantaneously in an opposite direction to the rotation direction of the cam member 300 , as illustrated in FIGS. 7A and 7B .",
"As a result, the rollers 420 and the cam member 300 are moved in opposite directions, and the rollers 420 roll at much higher speed compared to the related art by the distance D at which the rollers 420 contact the lowermost portion of the top surface of the cam member 300 .",
"Even when the rollers 420 having a relatively large outer diameter are used, due to interaction between the accelerating protrusions 410 and the angle limiting portions 510 , the rollers 420 may be moved relative to the cam member 300 at high speed, and the valve rods 210 may descend due to the elastic member 600 at very high speed.",
"Since the momentum and kinetic energy of the valve rod 210 are proportional to a descending speed of the valve rod 210 and a square of the descending speed, the liquid may be dispensed at much higher speed compared to the related art.",
"In particular, a liquid having high viscosity may be dispensed by a sufficient force via the discharge path 113 having a relatively small inner diameter.",
"[0041] If the rollers 420 contact next cam protrusion 310 , the cam follower 400 that rotates with respect to the accelerating member 500 in an opposite direction to the cam member 300 , rotates in the same direction as the rotation direction of the cam protrusions 310 due to the vertical resistance F R of the cam protrusions 310 , and the accelerating protrusions 410 are caught in the angle limiting portions 510 in a progressive direction.",
"When the angle range of the angle limiting portions 510 is less than the angle range between the cam protrusions 310 , the accelerating protrusions 410 are first caught in inner walls of the angle limiting portions 510 , and rotation of the cam follower 400 with respect to the accelerating member 500 stops.",
"If the rollers 420 contact next cam protrusion 310 , the cam follower 400 rotates in the same direction as the cam member 300 so that the accelerating protrusions 410 are caught in opposite inner walls of the angle limiting portions 510 and rotation of the cam follower 400 stops.",
"[0042] To sum up, in the related art, even when an elastic force of an elastic member is strong, the descending speed of the valve rod is determined by the size of an outer diameter of a roller and a rotational speed of a cam member.",
"However, in the valve accelerating type dispensing pump according to embodiments of the present invention, due to interaction between the angle limiting portions 510 and the accelerating protrusions 410 , the descending speed of the valve rod 210 may be increased using a sufficient elastic force of the elastic member 600 .",
"[0043] Although embodiments of the present invention have been described as above, the scope of the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments.",
"[0044] For example, the accelerating protrusions 410 are formed on the cam follower 400 , and the angle limiting portions 510 are formed on the accelerating member 500 .",
"However, the accelerating protrusions 410 may be formed on the accelerating member 500 , and the angle limiting portions 510 may be formed on the cam follower 400 .",
"[0045] Also, a bearing that rolls along the inner walls of the angle limiting portion 510 may be installed at the accelerating protrusions 410 so as to reduce friction between the accelerating protrusion 410 and the angle limiting portion 510 .",
"[0046] In addition, the angle limiting portions 510 have the shape of long holes, as described above.",
"However, the angle limiting portions 510 may also be formed in the form of long grooves.",
"The accelerating protrusions 410 and the angle limiting portions 510 may be formed in various shapes in which the accelerating member 500 and the cam follower 400 may rotate relative to each other within a predetermined angle range due to interference between the accelerating protrusions 410 and the angle limiting portions 510 .",
"[0047] Furthermore, the rollers 420 are installed at the accelerating protrusions 410 , as described above.",
"However, the rollers 420 may be configured in different ways.",
"The accelerating protrusions 410 interfere with the angle limiting portions 510 independently from the rollers 420 so that the rotational angle of the cam follower 400 may be limited, and the rollers 420 may be configured to be coupled to the cam follower 400 separately from the accelerating protrusions 410 .",
"[0048] FIG. 8 illustrates another example of accelerating protrusions 551 and angle limiting portions 452 .",
"[0049] The accelerating protrusions 551 are formed on an accelerating member 550 , and the angle limiting portions 452 are formed on a cam follower 450 .",
"The angle limiting portions 452 of the cam follower 450 are formed in the form of long grooves having a circular arc shape on a surface that faces the accelerating member 550 along a circumferential direction of the accelerating member 550 .",
"The accelerating protrusions 551 of the accelerating member 550 are formed in the form of rods that extend in a bottom surface of the accelerating member 550 and are inserted in the angle limiting portions 452 of the cam follower 450 .",
"The cam follower 450 rotates with respect to the accelerating member 550 slightly, and the accelerating protrusions 551 are caught in the inner walls of the angle limiting portions 452 such that the cam follower 450 does not rotate any more.",
"The remaining configuration of the accelerating protrusions 551 and the angle limiting portions 452 excluding the above configuration is the same as FIGS. 1 through 7A and 7 B. If rollers 451 of the cam follower 450 roll along cam protrusions 310 in a state where the angle limiting portions 452 are caught in the accelerating protrusions 551 and the cam follower 450 cannot rotate, the angle limiting portions 452 are pushed by the accelerating protrusions 551 so that the cam follower 450 rotates with respect to the accelerating member 550 .",
"As such, the relative speed between the rollers 451 and the cam member 300 increases, and the valve rod 210 may descend at high speed.",
"[0050] In the present embodiment, eight cam protrusions 310 and two rollers 420 are disposed.",
"However, the number of cam protrusions 310 and the number of rollers 420 may be diverse.",
"The shape of the cam protrusions 310 may vary according to their inclined angles and curvatures of inclined surfaces.",
"[0051] As described above, in a valve accelerating type dispensing pump according to embodiments of the present invention, an accurate amount of a liquid may be dispensed at high speed.",
"[0052] Also, the valve accelerating type dispensing pump according to embodiments of the present invention may dispense a liquid having high viscosity at high speed due to a fast descending speed of a valve rod.",
"[0053] While embodiments of the present invention have been particularly shown and described, it will be understood by those of ordinary skill in the art that various changes in form and details may be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention as defined by the following claims."
] |
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION
This is a Continuation-In-Part of patent application Ser. No. 428,771, filed Oct. 30, 1989, now abandoned.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
This invention relates to a basketball shooting aid device, and more particularly to a device for restraining the thumb of the off shooting or non-shooting hand of the basketball shooter or player against movement away from the other fingers of the non-shooting hand, in order to improve his shooting accuracy.
In the accurate shooting of a basketball, the ball is held in the palm of the strong or shooting hand of the basketball player, such as the right hand of a right-handed player. With the elbow of the shooting hand vertically beneath the hand, the shooting hand is lifted or pushed upward to project the ball accurately toward the basket. During the shooting action, the non-shooting hand or weak hand, such as the left hand of a left-handed basketball player, is usually held against the side of the ball to function as a guide during the early stages of lifting or projecting the ball upward. However, during such a shooting procedure, there is a tendency of the player to extend the thumb of his weak hand away from the other fingers in order to further guide, or even assist in lifting, the ball. Such a practice has been found to interrupt the accuracy of the shot. The non-shooting hand should be used only to balance the ball, and the entire non-shooting hand, including the thumb, should be released or removed from the ball during its early stages of projection.
In order to overcome the tendency to release the off-hand thumb too late, the basketball player must be constantly aware of this tendency and practice to avoid such practice, and/or the coach must direct his attention to the objectionable "thumbing" practice.
The only mechanical aid known to the Applicant for remedying this "thumbing" problem, is a shooting aid known as "PURE SHOT", which is commercially available, and which includes a rigid disc having an outer surface adapted to engage the ball during the shot, and an inner surface having an adjustable strap for securing the non-shooting hand against the inner surface of the disc. In the utilization of the "PURE-SHOT", there is no contact between the non-shooting hand of the player and the ball at any time, because the hand is completely separated from the ball by the disc.
Other basketball shooting or handling aids known to the Applicant, are disclosed in the following U.S. patents:
______________________________________3,640,532 Bauer Feb. 8, 19723,707,730 Slider Jan. 2, 19734,377,284 Okerlin Mar. 22, 19834,383,685 Bishop May 17, 1983______________________________________
None of the above devices are constructed to restrain the thumb of the weak hand from engaging the basketball.
The Slider U.S. Pat. No. 3,707,730 discloses a basketball practice glove for use on the shooting hand of the basketball player, as opposed to the non-shooting hand. The glove covers all the hand except the tips of the fingers and the thumb. The glove is assisted in assuming a cupped position, so that only the fingers and thumbs of the shooting hand will touch the ball during the shooting operation. This cup-shaped position is sustained by a short finger strap looped about the thumb and extending only to and about the forefinger where it is attached by VELCRO fasteners. However, the Slider device is a glove, as opposed to a single elongated tape member having a loop at one end and VELCRO fasteners at the opposite end, and is certainly not used in restraining or immobilizing the thumb relative to the forefinger or any of the other fingers of the non-shooting hand of the basketball player. The Slider glove incorporates many superfluous elements unnecessary to the restraint of the thumb of the weak hand, and in fact, impairs the full use of the other fingers and the rest of the weak hand for other basketball functions, as well as for comfort.
The Eisenberg U.S. Pat. No. 4,787,376, issued Nov. 29, 1988, for "RETAINER FOR GLOVE" discloses a thumb pocket attached to a glove and secured by a strap to the wrist of the glove, in which the thumb pocket is articulated in order to receive and protect the thumb to prevent damage to certain ligaments of the thumb. The purpose of the Eisenberg device is to prevent the thumb from being bent away from the other fingers, such bending causing a stretching of the ulnar collateral ligament, and to prevent the ligament from rupturing. The Eisenberg thumb pocket is made of rigid material having one piece which is hinged to prevent normal function of the thumb joint. The Eisenberg thumb retainer for a glove could not successfully function in restraining the thumb of the weak hand of a basketball player and still permit the weak hand to perform its other normal functions of the basketball player.
The Wasko U.S. Pat. No. 4,684,559 for "HAND IMPLEMENT SUPPORT APPARATUS" issued Aug. 4, 1987, discloses an elongated, large tape member having a loop member at one end and VELCRO fasteners on opposite sides of the opposite end for use in supporting the wrist of a tennis player about the racket handle, by wrapping the wrist loosely about the racket handle. Moreover, and very functionally important for the operation of the Wasko device is the fact that the tape material is not only flexible, but must be resilient and elastic, in order to successfully carry out the function of the device. It is emphasized in col. 2, lines 35-37 that the flexible band is woven or knitted fabric having an elasticized loop of a size to receive and firmly grip the butt end of a racket handle. The wrapped band thus supplements the grip of the user on the racket handle by providing additional support while absorbing a portion of the reaction forces encountered in striking the tennis ball.
In col 3, lines 41-49 of the Wasko patent, the webb 12 is defined as having a loop of elastic material such as a length of rubberized elastic. In lines 50-53, it is stated that the loop material is elasticized because it must be stretched significantly to pass over the butt end of the racket handle.
The Wasko webb not only provides a support for the wrist, bust must also facilitate maneuvering to a variety of orientations, including frequent re-positioning of the racket for different grips by the user for forehand and backhand shots, (Col. 1, 11. 55-59; Col. 2, 11. 9-13).
The only sports implement referred to in the Wasko patent for use with the elastic support webb are sports rackets for tennis, squash, racketball, badminton, paddle tennis, or deck tennis, only.
The device disclosed in the Wasko U.S. Pat. No. 4,684,559, because of this highly elasticized material used in the webb material, would fail to adequately restrain and confine the thumb of the weak hand of a basketball player against lateral movement away from the other fingers.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The basketball shooting aid device made in accordance with this invention is designed to restrain the weak, non-shooting or off hand of the basketball player during the act of shooting the ball, by confining the thumb of the weak hand to a position proximate to the other fingers of the hand.
The basketball shooting aid device made in accordance with this invention includes an elongated tape member having a loop adapted to be fitted and received about the thumb of the weak hand of the basketball player, with the remaining portion of the tape member being long enough to be wrapped about the hand and wrist of the weak hand, and provided with cooperating fastener members in order to secure the thumb in a restrained position.
More specifically, the basketball shooting aid device includes an elongated unitary tape member having a loop member at one end adapted to fit over the thumb or forefinger of the non-shooting hand, a fastener device on the outside surface of the tape member, and a cooperating fastener member on the opposite or inside surface at the opposite end portion of the tape member to permit the tape member to be wrapped about the back of the non-shooting hand and secured around the wrist of the player to confine or restrain the thumb in an operative position.
Another object of this invention is to provide an elongated unitary tape member of a totally inelastic or inextensible material having a loop member at one end, made of the same inelastic or inextensible material, which is adapted to fit over the thumb or forefinger of the non-shooting hand, with cooperating fastener members at the opposite end of the tape, and with sufficient length for the intermediate portion of the tape member to wrap about the back of the non-shooting hand and for securement around the wrist of the player to totally immobilize the movement of the thumb laterally away from the forefinger or other fingers, so that there will be no interference with the thumb of the off-shooting hand and the basketball during the shot process.
By restraining the thumb of the non-shooting or off hand with the device made in accordance with this invention, the thumb of the off hand will not interfere with the basketball as it is being projected upward and forward by the shooting hand of the player, yet the off hand will be permitted to touch the ball sufficiently to guide and balance the ball in its initial shooting stage.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG. 1 is a side elevation of a basketball player wearing the shooting aid device about his left or non-shooting hand, while shooting the basketball, the loop being fitted over the forefinger;
FIG. 2 is an enlarged perspective view of the basketball player's hands holding the basketball preparatory for shooting, while wearing the shooting aid device on the left or non-shooting hand, with the loop being fitted over the thumb;
FIG. 3 is a side perspective view of the elongated tape used in the construction of the shooting aid device, with portions broken away;
FIG. 4 is a side perspective view of the shooting aid device in an extended inoperative position, with portions broken away;
FIG. 5 is a view of the back of the non-shooting left hand of the basketball player, upon which the shooting aid device has been secured in its operative position, with the loop fitted over the forefinger, and the adjacent portion of the tape member looped around the thumb;
FIG. 6 is a front view of the non-shooting left hand with the shooting aid device mounted, as disclosed in FIG. 5; and
FIG. 7 is a view similar to FIG. 5 of the shooting aid device in its operative secured position, illustrating the loop fitted over the thumb of the non-shooting left hand.
DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
Referring now to the drawings in more detail, FIGS. 1, 2, 5, 6, and 7 disclose a basketball shooting aid device 10 made in accordance with this invention mounted upon the non-shooting, weak hand 11 of a basketball player 12. In this case, the non-shooting or weak hand 11 is the left hand of the right-handed basketball player 12 disclosed in FIG. 1. In the drawings, the weak hand 11 is disclosed as having a back surface 13 (FIGS. 5 and 7), a palm 14 (FIG. 6), a thumb 15, a forefinger 16, and the other three fingers 17. The wrist 18 is also disclosed at the base of the hand 11.
The basketball shooting aid device 10 made in accordance with this invention includes an elongated tape 20 of an inelastic or inextensible material, and preferably a totally inelastic or inextensible material, having a first end portion 21, a second end portion 22, an intermediate portion 23, an outer surface 24, and an inner surface 25.
In order to form a tape member 26, having a loop member 27 formed in the first end portion 21, the first end 28 of the tape 20 is folded upon itself about a fold line 29 (FIG. 3), which preferably is about two inches from the first end 28. After the first end 28 is folded upon itself, it is fixed upon the adjacent and abutting inner surface 25 of the tape 20 by means of a transverse line of stitching 30 to form a closed loop 31 having an opening 32 large enough to freely receive only a digital extremity, namely, any of the fingers 16 and 17 or the thumb 15, of the non-shooting hand 11.
Fixedly secured to the inner surface 25 of the tape member 26 adjacent the second end portion 22 is a first fastener device 33, such as an elongated strip of filament loops or loop pile 34. Preferably, the first fastener strip 33 terminates with the free end 35 of the tape member 26.
Fixedly mounted or formed on the outer surface 24 of the intermediate portion 23 of the tape member 26 is a second fastener device 36 adapted to cooperate with the first fastener device 33. Preferably, the second fastener device 36 includes an elongated strip of filament hook members 37 adapted to intermingle with and catch the loops in the loop pile surface 34. The filament loop pile surface 34 and the hook pile surface 37 may be cooperative fastener elements known in the trade as "VELCRO".
Although the second fastener device 36 is disclosed extending the entire length of the tape 20 in FIG. 4, nevertheless it must be long enough to occupy positions in which it overlaps and engages the loop pile surface 34 when the tape member 26 is in its operative wrapped position.
The length of the tape member 26 is great enough that when the loop 31 is received over the forefinger 16, as illustrated in FIG. 5, the remainder of the tape member 26 may be wrapped around the thumb 15 to form the loop member 27 and across the back surface 13 of the weak hand 11, then around the front of the hand adjacent the wrist 18 and back cross the back of the wrist until the first fastener strip or device 33 overlies and cooperates with the second fastener device 36, as best disclosed in FIGS. 5 and 6. The tape member 26 could of course be longer, if it is desired to wrap the tape member 26 several times about the wrist.
In an alternative method of mounting the device 10 upon the weak hand 11, as shown in FIG. 7, the loop 31 may be slipped over the thumb 15 to form the loop member 27, and the remaining portion of the tape member 26 is wrapped about the back 13 of the hand 11 and thence around the wrist 18, and secured in the same manner as the tape member 26 is secured in FIG. 5. In this case, the tape member 26 may be slightly shorter than it would be when the loop 31 is slipped over the forefinger 16 in order to form the loop member 27.
After the loop 31 is fitted over the forefinger 16 or the thumb 15, the inextensible tape member 26 is drawn tightly to pull the thumb 15 to a desired position proximate to the forefinger 16 so that the thumb 15 will be restrained and confined against lateral movement away from the other fingers, when the weak hand 11 is used in guiding the basketball 40 as the basketball 40 is being shot by the shooting or strong hand 41, which is the right hand illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2. After the thumb 15 is pulled in to its desired confined position, the tape member 26 is drawn tightly across the back 13 of the hand 11 and around the wrist 18 and then secured in its operative position by the fastener strips 33 and 36. Thus, before the thumb 15 can move laterally outward to an undesired position away from the forefinger 16, the thumb 15 will be restrained or immobilized against such movement by the tape member 26.
In the mounting procedure of the tape member 26 disclosed in FIGS. 5 and 6, the loop 31 per se is fitted around the forefinger 16, but the adjacent portion of the tape member 26 forms an open loop 27 about the thumb 15 before the intermediate portion 23 of the tape extends around the back 13 of the hand 11. In FIG. 7, the loop 31 itself forms the loop member 27' fitting directly over the thumb 15.
It will be noted, particularly in FIG. 6, that the device 10 does not interfere with other functions of the weak hand 11, such as in dribbling. The palm 14 of the weak hand 11 is completely exposed, as illustrated in FIG. 2, so that it may come in direct contact with the basketball 40. Moreover, when the device 10 is in its operative position as disclosed in FIG. 7, only the thumb 15 is confined, but all of the remaining fingers 16 and 17 are completely free to touch and feel the basketball 40, in shooting, passing, or dribbling.
Accordingly, a basketball shooting device 10 has been developed which is not only effective in restraining, confining and immobilizing the thumb 15 of the weak hand 11 during the shooting procedure, but also does not interfere with the function of the rest of the weak hand, and even the thumb 15, to some degree, in the other basketball handling procedures, such as passing and dribbling.
Furthermore, the device 10 is of simple and inexpensive construction, and is lightweight. Moreover, the device 10 is easily and quickly mounted upon the weak hand 11 with a minimum of effort, and may be just as easily and quickly adjusted to change the position of the thumb 15 if it is desired.
It will also be understood, that the device 10 can be assembled and mounted upon the right hand of a basketball player, if the right hand is the weak hand of a left-handed basketball player. The operation of mounting the device 10 upon the right hand is identical to the operation of mounting the device upon the left hand.
From the above description of the basketball shooting device 10, it will be apparent that a player wearing this device will not need to concentrate upon willfully holding his thumb in a position close to the other fingers while he is shooting, which is distracting. Moreover, the player's coach may spend less time in observing and correcting the "thumbing" error of the player, since the device itself will overcome this harmful tendency, or bad habit.
In using the shooting aid device 10, a basketball player 12 will develop in his shot, a better backspin, a higher release point and an improvement in the grip upon the ball with both the strong and the weak hand. Furthermore, the elbow of the strong arm will tend to stay vertically beneath the ball during the shooting when the device 10 is used. The use of the device 10 will also strengthen the muscles in the wrist and arm of the strong hand and the player is freer to work within his natural shooting range. Moreover, the player's follow-through in his shooting will improve.
Another advantage of the shooting aid device 10 is that it may be made from any type of inelastic or inextensible textile fabric, or even plastics which will form a loop member 27 or 27' capable of restraining the thumb 15 against lateral movement from the forefinger 16 or other fingers, so that there will be no hard or rigid parts which might tend to injure the player. | A basketball shooting aid device including an elongated tape member having a loop at one end adapted to fit over the thumb, or a finger adjacent the thumb, and being long enough to wrap around the thumb and the wrist of the weak or non-shooting hand of a basketball player, and fastener devices for securing the free end of the tape member about the wrist of the weak hand when the loop member secures the thumb in a restrained position relative to the fingers on the weak hand. | Summarize the patent document, focusing on the invention's functionality and advantages. | [
"CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION This is a Continuation-In-Part of patent application Ser.",
"No. 428,771, filed Oct. 30, 1989, now abandoned.",
"BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION This invention relates to a basketball shooting aid device, and more particularly to a device for restraining the thumb of the off shooting or non-shooting hand of the basketball shooter or player against movement away from the other fingers of the non-shooting hand, in order to improve his shooting accuracy.",
"In the accurate shooting of a basketball, the ball is held in the palm of the strong or shooting hand of the basketball player, such as the right hand of a right-handed player.",
"With the elbow of the shooting hand vertically beneath the hand, the shooting hand is lifted or pushed upward to project the ball accurately toward the basket.",
"During the shooting action, the non-shooting hand or weak hand, such as the left hand of a left-handed basketball player, is usually held against the side of the ball to function as a guide during the early stages of lifting or projecting the ball upward.",
"However, during such a shooting procedure, there is a tendency of the player to extend the thumb of his weak hand away from the other fingers in order to further guide, or even assist in lifting, the ball.",
"Such a practice has been found to interrupt the accuracy of the shot.",
"The non-shooting hand should be used only to balance the ball, and the entire non-shooting hand, including the thumb, should be released or removed from the ball during its early stages of projection.",
"In order to overcome the tendency to release the off-hand thumb too late, the basketball player must be constantly aware of this tendency and practice to avoid such practice, and/or the coach must direct his attention to the objectionable "thumbing"",
"practice.",
"The only mechanical aid known to the Applicant for remedying this "thumbing"",
"problem, is a shooting aid known as "PURE SHOT", which is commercially available, and which includes a rigid disc having an outer surface adapted to engage the ball during the shot, and an inner surface having an adjustable strap for securing the non-shooting hand against the inner surface of the disc.",
"In the utilization of the "PURE-SHOT", there is no contact between the non-shooting hand of the player and the ball at any time, because the hand is completely separated from the ball by the disc.",
"Other basketball shooting or handling aids known to the Applicant, are disclosed in the following U.S. patents: ______________________________________3,640,532 Bauer Feb. 8, 19723,707,730 Slider Jan. 2, 19734,377,284 Okerlin Mar. 22, 19834,383,685 Bishop May 17, 1983______________________________________ None of the above devices are constructed to restrain the thumb of the weak hand from engaging the basketball.",
"The Slider U.S. Pat. No. 3,707,730 discloses a basketball practice glove for use on the shooting hand of the basketball player, as opposed to the non-shooting hand.",
"The glove covers all the hand except the tips of the fingers and the thumb.",
"The glove is assisted in assuming a cupped position, so that only the fingers and thumbs of the shooting hand will touch the ball during the shooting operation.",
"This cup-shaped position is sustained by a short finger strap looped about the thumb and extending only to and about the forefinger where it is attached by VELCRO fasteners.",
"However, the Slider device is a glove, as opposed to a single elongated tape member having a loop at one end and VELCRO fasteners at the opposite end, and is certainly not used in restraining or immobilizing the thumb relative to the forefinger or any of the other fingers of the non-shooting hand of the basketball player.",
"The Slider glove incorporates many superfluous elements unnecessary to the restraint of the thumb of the weak hand, and in fact, impairs the full use of the other fingers and the rest of the weak hand for other basketball functions, as well as for comfort.",
"The Eisenberg U.S. Pat. No. 4,787,376, issued Nov. 29, 1988, for "RETAINER FOR GLOVE"",
"discloses a thumb pocket attached to a glove and secured by a strap to the wrist of the glove, in which the thumb pocket is articulated in order to receive and protect the thumb to prevent damage to certain ligaments of the thumb.",
"The purpose of the Eisenberg device is to prevent the thumb from being bent away from the other fingers, such bending causing a stretching of the ulnar collateral ligament, and to prevent the ligament from rupturing.",
"The Eisenberg thumb pocket is made of rigid material having one piece which is hinged to prevent normal function of the thumb joint.",
"The Eisenberg thumb retainer for a glove could not successfully function in restraining the thumb of the weak hand of a basketball player and still permit the weak hand to perform its other normal functions of the basketball player.",
"The Wasko U.S. Pat. No. 4,684,559 for "HAND IMPLEMENT SUPPORT APPARATUS"",
"issued Aug. 4, 1987, discloses an elongated, large tape member having a loop member at one end and VELCRO fasteners on opposite sides of the opposite end for use in supporting the wrist of a tennis player about the racket handle, by wrapping the wrist loosely about the racket handle.",
"Moreover, and very functionally important for the operation of the Wasko device is the fact that the tape material is not only flexible, but must be resilient and elastic, in order to successfully carry out the function of the device.",
"It is emphasized in col.",
"2, lines 35-37 that the flexible band is woven or knitted fabric having an elasticized loop of a size to receive and firmly grip the butt end of a racket handle.",
"The wrapped band thus supplements the grip of the user on the racket handle by providing additional support while absorbing a portion of the reaction forces encountered in striking the tennis ball.",
"In col 3, lines 41-49 of the Wasko patent, the webb 12 is defined as having a loop of elastic material such as a length of rubberized elastic.",
"In lines 50-53, it is stated that the loop material is elasticized because it must be stretched significantly to pass over the butt end of the racket handle.",
"The Wasko webb not only provides a support for the wrist, bust must also facilitate maneuvering to a variety of orientations, including frequent re-positioning of the racket for different grips by the user for forehand and backhand shots, (Col.",
"1, 11.",
"55-59;",
"Col.",
"2, 11.",
"9-13).",
"The only sports implement referred to in the Wasko patent for use with the elastic support webb are sports rackets for tennis, squash, racketball, badminton, paddle tennis, or deck tennis, only.",
"The device disclosed in the Wasko U.S. Pat. No. 4,684,559, because of this highly elasticized material used in the webb material, would fail to adequately restrain and confine the thumb of the weak hand of a basketball player against lateral movement away from the other fingers.",
"SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The basketball shooting aid device made in accordance with this invention is designed to restrain the weak, non-shooting or off hand of the basketball player during the act of shooting the ball, by confining the thumb of the weak hand to a position proximate to the other fingers of the hand.",
"The basketball shooting aid device made in accordance with this invention includes an elongated tape member having a loop adapted to be fitted and received about the thumb of the weak hand of the basketball player, with the remaining portion of the tape member being long enough to be wrapped about the hand and wrist of the weak hand, and provided with cooperating fastener members in order to secure the thumb in a restrained position.",
"More specifically, the basketball shooting aid device includes an elongated unitary tape member having a loop member at one end adapted to fit over the thumb or forefinger of the non-shooting hand, a fastener device on the outside surface of the tape member, and a cooperating fastener member on the opposite or inside surface at the opposite end portion of the tape member to permit the tape member to be wrapped about the back of the non-shooting hand and secured around the wrist of the player to confine or restrain the thumb in an operative position.",
"Another object of this invention is to provide an elongated unitary tape member of a totally inelastic or inextensible material having a loop member at one end, made of the same inelastic or inextensible material, which is adapted to fit over the thumb or forefinger of the non-shooting hand, with cooperating fastener members at the opposite end of the tape, and with sufficient length for the intermediate portion of the tape member to wrap about the back of the non-shooting hand and for securement around the wrist of the player to totally immobilize the movement of the thumb laterally away from the forefinger or other fingers, so that there will be no interference with the thumb of the off-shooting hand and the basketball during the shot process.",
"By restraining the thumb of the non-shooting or off hand with the device made in accordance with this invention, the thumb of the off hand will not interfere with the basketball as it is being projected upward and forward by the shooting hand of the player, yet the off hand will be permitted to touch the ball sufficiently to guide and balance the ball in its initial shooting stage.",
"BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a side elevation of a basketball player wearing the shooting aid device about his left or non-shooting hand, while shooting the basketball, the loop being fitted over the forefinger;",
"FIG. 2 is an enlarged perspective view of the basketball player's hands holding the basketball preparatory for shooting, while wearing the shooting aid device on the left or non-shooting hand, with the loop being fitted over the thumb;",
"FIG. 3 is a side perspective view of the elongated tape used in the construction of the shooting aid device, with portions broken away;",
"FIG. 4 is a side perspective view of the shooting aid device in an extended inoperative position, with portions broken away;",
"FIG. 5 is a view of the back of the non-shooting left hand of the basketball player, upon which the shooting aid device has been secured in its operative position, with the loop fitted over the forefinger, and the adjacent portion of the tape member looped around the thumb;",
"FIG. 6 is a front view of the non-shooting left hand with the shooting aid device mounted, as disclosed in FIG. 5;",
"and FIG. 7 is a view similar to FIG. 5 of the shooting aid device in its operative secured position, illustrating the loop fitted over the thumb of the non-shooting left hand.",
"DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Referring now to the drawings in more detail, FIGS. 1, 2, 5, 6, and 7 disclose a basketball shooting aid device 10 made in accordance with this invention mounted upon the non-shooting, weak hand 11 of a basketball player 12.",
"In this case, the non-shooting or weak hand 11 is the left hand of the right-handed basketball player 12 disclosed in FIG. 1. In the drawings, the weak hand 11 is disclosed as having a back surface 13 (FIGS.",
"5 and 7), a palm 14 (FIG.",
"6), a thumb 15, a forefinger 16, and the other three fingers 17.",
"The wrist 18 is also disclosed at the base of the hand 11.",
"The basketball shooting aid device 10 made in accordance with this invention includes an elongated tape 20 of an inelastic or inextensible material, and preferably a totally inelastic or inextensible material, having a first end portion 21, a second end portion 22, an intermediate portion 23, an outer surface 24, and an inner surface 25.",
"In order to form a tape member 26, having a loop member 27 formed in the first end portion 21, the first end 28 of the tape 20 is folded upon itself about a fold line 29 (FIG.",
"3), which preferably is about two inches from the first end 28.",
"After the first end 28 is folded upon itself, it is fixed upon the adjacent and abutting inner surface 25 of the tape 20 by means of a transverse line of stitching 30 to form a closed loop 31 having an opening 32 large enough to freely receive only a digital extremity, namely, any of the fingers 16 and 17 or the thumb 15, of the non-shooting hand 11.",
"Fixedly secured to the inner surface 25 of the tape member 26 adjacent the second end portion 22 is a first fastener device 33, such as an elongated strip of filament loops or loop pile 34.",
"Preferably, the first fastener strip 33 terminates with the free end 35 of the tape member 26.",
"Fixedly mounted or formed on the outer surface 24 of the intermediate portion 23 of the tape member 26 is a second fastener device 36 adapted to cooperate with the first fastener device 33.",
"Preferably, the second fastener device 36 includes an elongated strip of filament hook members 37 adapted to intermingle with and catch the loops in the loop pile surface 34.",
"The filament loop pile surface 34 and the hook pile surface 37 may be cooperative fastener elements known in the trade as "VELCRO".",
"Although the second fastener device 36 is disclosed extending the entire length of the tape 20 in FIG. 4, nevertheless it must be long enough to occupy positions in which it overlaps and engages the loop pile surface 34 when the tape member 26 is in its operative wrapped position.",
"The length of the tape member 26 is great enough that when the loop 31 is received over the forefinger 16, as illustrated in FIG. 5, the remainder of the tape member 26 may be wrapped around the thumb 15 to form the loop member 27 and across the back surface 13 of the weak hand 11, then around the front of the hand adjacent the wrist 18 and back cross the back of the wrist until the first fastener strip or device 33 overlies and cooperates with the second fastener device 36, as best disclosed in FIGS. 5 and 6.",
"The tape member 26 could of course be longer, if it is desired to wrap the tape member 26 several times about the wrist.",
"In an alternative method of mounting the device 10 upon the weak hand 11, as shown in FIG. 7, the loop 31 may be slipped over the thumb 15 to form the loop member 27, and the remaining portion of the tape member 26 is wrapped about the back 13 of the hand 11 and thence around the wrist 18, and secured in the same manner as the tape member 26 is secured in FIG. 5. In this case, the tape member 26 may be slightly shorter than it would be when the loop 31 is slipped over the forefinger 16 in order to form the loop member 27.",
"After the loop 31 is fitted over the forefinger 16 or the thumb 15, the inextensible tape member 26 is drawn tightly to pull the thumb 15 to a desired position proximate to the forefinger 16 so that the thumb 15 will be restrained and confined against lateral movement away from the other fingers, when the weak hand 11 is used in guiding the basketball 40 as the basketball 40 is being shot by the shooting or strong hand 41, which is the right hand illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2.",
"After the thumb 15 is pulled in to its desired confined position, the tape member 26 is drawn tightly across the back 13 of the hand 11 and around the wrist 18 and then secured in its operative position by the fastener strips 33 and 36.",
"Thus, before the thumb 15 can move laterally outward to an undesired position away from the forefinger 16, the thumb 15 will be restrained or immobilized against such movement by the tape member 26.",
"In the mounting procedure of the tape member 26 disclosed in FIGS. 5 and 6, the loop 31 per se is fitted around the forefinger 16, but the adjacent portion of the tape member 26 forms an open loop 27 about the thumb 15 before the intermediate portion 23 of the tape extends around the back 13 of the hand 11.",
"In FIG. 7, the loop 31 itself forms the loop member 27'",
"fitting directly over the thumb 15.",
"It will be noted, particularly in FIG. 6, that the device 10 does not interfere with other functions of the weak hand 11, such as in dribbling.",
"The palm 14 of the weak hand 11 is completely exposed, as illustrated in FIG. 2, so that it may come in direct contact with the basketball 40.",
"Moreover, when the device 10 is in its operative position as disclosed in FIG. 7, only the thumb 15 is confined, but all of the remaining fingers 16 and 17 are completely free to touch and feel the basketball 40, in shooting, passing, or dribbling.",
"Accordingly, a basketball shooting device 10 has been developed which is not only effective in restraining, confining and immobilizing the thumb 15 of the weak hand 11 during the shooting procedure, but also does not interfere with the function of the rest of the weak hand, and even the thumb 15, to some degree, in the other basketball handling procedures, such as passing and dribbling.",
"Furthermore, the device 10 is of simple and inexpensive construction, and is lightweight.",
"Moreover, the device 10 is easily and quickly mounted upon the weak hand 11 with a minimum of effort, and may be just as easily and quickly adjusted to change the position of the thumb 15 if it is desired.",
"It will also be understood, that the device 10 can be assembled and mounted upon the right hand of a basketball player, if the right hand is the weak hand of a left-handed basketball player.",
"The operation of mounting the device 10 upon the right hand is identical to the operation of mounting the device upon the left hand.",
"From the above description of the basketball shooting device 10, it will be apparent that a player wearing this device will not need to concentrate upon willfully holding his thumb in a position close to the other fingers while he is shooting, which is distracting.",
"Moreover, the player's coach may spend less time in observing and correcting the "thumbing"",
"error of the player, since the device itself will overcome this harmful tendency, or bad habit.",
"In using the shooting aid device 10, a basketball player 12 will develop in his shot, a better backspin, a higher release point and an improvement in the grip upon the ball with both the strong and the weak hand.",
"Furthermore, the elbow of the strong arm will tend to stay vertically beneath the ball during the shooting when the device 10 is used.",
"The use of the device 10 will also strengthen the muscles in the wrist and arm of the strong hand and the player is freer to work within his natural shooting range.",
"Moreover, the player's follow-through in his shooting will improve.",
"Another advantage of the shooting aid device 10 is that it may be made from any type of inelastic or inextensible textile fabric, or even plastics which will form a loop member 27 or 27'",
"capable of restraining the thumb 15 against lateral movement from the forefinger 16 or other fingers, so that there will be no hard or rigid parts which might tend to injure the player."
] |
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION
This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 61/463,981, filed by the present applicant on Feb. 25, 2011.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates broadly to service carts and is more particularly concerned with a medi-spa service cart construction specifically adapted for use in massage therapy. While the service cart described in detail hereinafter is specifically directed to the delivery of massage therapy, it will be obvious to those of skill in the art that it may also be used to good and beneficial effect in the delivery of other therapies or treatments to the human or animal body, such as physical therapy, manual therapy, bodywork and the like.
In the performance of therapeutic massage the subject conventionally sits on a chair or lies on a table and the therapist stands or sits proximate the subject and obtains the necessaries for the massage, such as lotions, gels, creams, cleansing agents, towels, napkins, various implements and the like from a conveniently stationed service cart. The conventional service carts of the prior art are generally in the nature of wheeled cabinets, stacked shelves, drawers, or combinations of these which are bulky and often present difficulties in movement over the floor surface, convenient storage after the massage session ends and, further, lack portability for offsite visits. In accordance with the present invention, however, many of these problems have been resolved or at least greatly ameliorated.
OBJECTS OF THE INVENTION
It is a principal object of the invention to provide a new and novel medi-spa service cart.
It is another object of the invention to provide a medi-spa service cart of substantially lesser bulk, easier mobility, greater adjustability for proper body mechanics, greater portability for office/offsite visits and more facile storability than those of the prior art.
It is yet another object of the invention to provide a medi-spa service cart having the foregoing benefits and advantages and which is especially adapted for massage therapy service.
Other objects and advantages of the invention will, in part, be obvious and will, in part, appear hereinafter.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
In accordance with the invention the medi-spa cart broadly comprises a castered base, a selectively extensible vertical support member comprising at least two telescoping tubular elements extending upwardly from said base and, mounted to the uppermost end of said support member, a principal service tray. In one preferred embodiment of the invention the cart construction comprises means whereby the overall cart length may be temporarily manually shortened by a few inches. In another preferred embodiment, the principal service tray element of the construction is provided with at least one and, most preferably, a plurality, of recesses each being of a size and shape to closely receive and retain the containers for the goods used in service.
DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWING
A fuller understanding of the present invention may be had by referring to the following description and drawings wherein, in the drawings:
FIG. 1 is a schematic isometric view of one embodiment of the medi-spa service cart of the invention.
FIG. 2 is a schematic isometric view showing the upper portion of another embodiment of the invention comprising a preferred form of principal service tray element.
FIG. 3 is an exploded, schematic, isometric view showing the upper portion of another embodiment of the invention comprising an alternative preferred form of principal service tray element.
FIG. 4 is an exploded, schematic, isometric, view showing the upper portion of yet another embodiment of the invention comprising means whereby the cart, while secured at its preselected length, may be temporarily manually shortened by the operator without disturbing the setting of its preselected length.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
Referring now to FIG. 1 , the service cart of the invention broadly comprises castered base 1 , selectively extensible vertical support member 10 comprising at least two telescoping tubular elements and, affixed to the upper end of the uppermost tubular element of said support member 10 , a principal service tray 20 .
Castered base 1 preferably comprises a central hub 18 and a plurality of at least three and, of even greater preference, five, radially and equiangularly spaced legs 2 extending therefrom. Depending from and pivotally affixed to the outer end of each of said legs 2 is a caster wheel or roller 3 . The resulting array of caster wheels or rollers 3 serves, of course, to facilitate movement of the cart over a floor support surface. Desirably, one or more of the wheels or rollers 3 is provided with a releasable brake whereby the cart is enabled to be held in a fixed location.
Affixed to the central hub 18 of the base 1 is a selectively extensible vertical support member 10 . Said support member 10 comprises at least two telescoping tubular elements and can, for example, take the form of a telescoping tubular structure comprising a lowermost tube element 11 and, slidably nesting thereover, an uppermost tube element 12 . Latch means 13 serves to controllably lock the uppermost tube element 12 to the lowermost tube element 11 at a selected length of extension of the support member 10 . The particular construction of the latch means 13 is generally non-critical and many suitable constructions thereof will be obvious to those of skill in the art. For instance, latch means 13 can be in the nature of a simple thumb screw threaded through the uppermost tube element 12 and which locks the support member 10 at its pre-selected length by bearing on the surface of the lowermost tube element 11 . Also suitable are various known spring latches which cooperate with a linear array of notches, teeth or cogs on the lowermost tube element 11 and which, without manipulation thereof, permit extension of the support member 10 and automatic latching of the tube elements 11 and 12 together at the selected length of extension, but which does require manipulation to permit retraction of said support member. Thus, in use, the operator first releases latch means 13 , then extends the support member 10 to the desired length and, finally, re-engages the latch 13 so as to secure the cart construction at its preselected overall length.
The dimensioning of the tubular support member 10 is subject to considerable variation and will, in general, be obvious to those of skill in the art. A principal consideration in the selection of said dimensioning will, of course, reside in the specific purpose for which the cart is to be employed. As previously mentioned, a massage therapist works from both sitting and standing positions. Thus, for this service, I have found that a support member 10 which is dimensioned to as to provides an overall cart length range of from about 18 inches to about 42 inches to be suitable.
Affixed to the upper end of the uppermost tube element 12 is a principal service tray 20 which, desirably, is of circular geometry. It is further preferred that the principal service tray 20 be affixed to the upper end of the uppermost tube element 12 in a detachable manner, thereby to enable facile removal and such cleansing of the tray as may be required. This can be accomplished, for example, by providing the bottom of the tray with a collar dimensioned so as to define a snugly fitting socket to receive the upper end of the uppermost tube element 12 .
It is highly desirable that the cart of the invention include means to provide sufficient vertical elasticity thereto such that, without disturbance of its preselected length, the overall cart length may be temporarily shortened by a few inches simply by manually biasing it downwardly. In this manually induced temporary shortened condition the cart may then be moved under a table for convenient storage. This capability may be achieved by judicious selection of design parameters and/or material of construction of the castered base 1 and/or support member 10 . For example, in the embodiment of the invention of FIG. 1 the base legs 2 may be conformed as downwardly arcuate leaf springs and the material of construction thereof may be in the nature of an elastic polymeric composition such as glass fiber filled nylon or a metal such as spring steel or aluminum alloy. Referring now to FIG. 4 , there is shown an alternative scheme whereby said means to provide vertical elasticity takes the form of a gas spring 60 c comprising a gas chamber 61 c and piston 62 c . The gas chamber 61 c is completely housed in the bore 14 c of uppermost tube element 12 c with the free end 68 c of piston 62 c extending several inches beyond the upper end 15 c of said uppermost tube element. Principal service tray 20 c is affixed to the free end 68 c of the piston 62 c . In use, the operator simply manually depresses the principal service tray 20 c , thereby forcing the extended piston 62 c of gas spring 60 c to retract into the gas chamber 61 c and temporarily shortening the overall length of the cart. Upon release of the manual pressure exerted by the operator, the operation of the gas spring 60 c returns the piston 62 c to its extended position, thereby returning the cart to its preselected overall length without the necessity for readjustment of the extensible tubular support member 10 c.
Again referring to FIG. 1 , I much prefer that the principal service tray 20 be provided with at least one and, of even greater preference, a plurality of recesses of sizes and shapes to closely receive the containers for the goods used in service and to thereby prevent them from sliding and slipping over the surface of the tray during use or movement of the cart. One manner of providing such recesses is shown in FIG. 2 wherein said recesses are defined by one or more suitably sized and shaped depressions 22 a formed in the floor 21 a of principal service tray 20 a . The depth of said depressions 22 a required for any particular service will, in general, be obvious to those of skill in art and can vary from, say, about ¼ inch to about 3 inches. In the case of a principal service tray 20 a formed of sheet metal, said depressions can be formed by deep drawing. In the case of a principal service tray 20 a formed of a thermoplastic, such as ABS, the depressions can be formed by any of several molding techniques, such as injection molding, drape molding, vacuum forming and the like. An alternative scheme for providing such recesses is shown in FIG. 3 . In this case, the principal service tray 20 b is provided with lid 25 b which, when assembled to the service tray, defines a space between the floor 21 b of service tray 20 b and the lid 25 b . Said lid 25 b is provided with one or more suitably sized and shaped apertures 26 b , thereby to define the container-receiving recesses.
The service cart of the invention may also comprise additional elements which can contribute to its utility in service. Referring once again to FIG. 1 , such additional elements are generally affixed to or suspended from the uppermost tube element 12 of the vertical support member 10 . For example, as shown, an auxiliary or secondary service tray or shelf 30 , spaced below the principal tray 20 , can be affixed to the uppermost tube element 12 . Preferably, this attachment will be of detachable or pivotal nature. Too, I prefer that the auxiliary tray or shelf 30 be of rectangular geometry and, further, that it be of a length sufficient to project substantially beyond the rim of the principal service tray 20 . Yet another helpful additional element of the invention affixed to or suspended from the uppermost tube element 12 is a detachable container, pail or bucket 50 which, alternatively, provides either a convenient waste disposal site for such waste as may be generated during the course of a service session or a storage receptacle for transiently used equipment, such as a goniometer, sphygmomanometer, stethoscope or the like. Additionally, the uppermost tube element 12 may also have affixed thereto a towel hook 40 .
Although the invention has been described and illustrated above with respect to certain specific embodiments thereof it should be recognized and understood that various alterations and modifications in the details of construction may be made without departing from the essential spirit and scope of the invention as indicated by the appended claims. | Disclosed herein is a medi-spa service cart having improved storage, convenience and portability properties. The cart includes a castered base, a selectively extensible tubular vertical support and, affixed to the upper end of the support, a principal service tray. | Concisely explain the essential features and purpose of the concept presented in the passage. | [
"CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application Ser.",
"No. 61/463,981, filed by the present applicant on Feb. 25, 2011.",
"BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates broadly to service carts and is more particularly concerned with a medi-spa service cart construction specifically adapted for use in massage therapy.",
"While the service cart described in detail hereinafter is specifically directed to the delivery of massage therapy, it will be obvious to those of skill in the art that it may also be used to good and beneficial effect in the delivery of other therapies or treatments to the human or animal body, such as physical therapy, manual therapy, bodywork and the like.",
"In the performance of therapeutic massage the subject conventionally sits on a chair or lies on a table and the therapist stands or sits proximate the subject and obtains the necessaries for the massage, such as lotions, gels, creams, cleansing agents, towels, napkins, various implements and the like from a conveniently stationed service cart.",
"The conventional service carts of the prior art are generally in the nature of wheeled cabinets, stacked shelves, drawers, or combinations of these which are bulky and often present difficulties in movement over the floor surface, convenient storage after the massage session ends and, further, lack portability for offsite visits.",
"In accordance with the present invention, however, many of these problems have been resolved or at least greatly ameliorated.",
"OBJECTS OF THE INVENTION It is a principal object of the invention to provide a new and novel medi-spa service cart.",
"It is another object of the invention to provide a medi-spa service cart of substantially lesser bulk, easier mobility, greater adjustability for proper body mechanics, greater portability for office/offsite visits and more facile storability than those of the prior art.",
"It is yet another object of the invention to provide a medi-spa service cart having the foregoing benefits and advantages and which is especially adapted for massage therapy service.",
"Other objects and advantages of the invention will, in part, be obvious and will, in part, appear hereinafter.",
"SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In accordance with the invention the medi-spa cart broadly comprises a castered base, a selectively extensible vertical support member comprising at least two telescoping tubular elements extending upwardly from said base and, mounted to the uppermost end of said support member, a principal service tray.",
"In one preferred embodiment of the invention the cart construction comprises means whereby the overall cart length may be temporarily manually shortened by a few inches.",
"In another preferred embodiment, the principal service tray element of the construction is provided with at least one and, most preferably, a plurality, of recesses each being of a size and shape to closely receive and retain the containers for the goods used in service.",
"DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWING A fuller understanding of the present invention may be had by referring to the following description and drawings wherein, in the drawings: FIG. 1 is a schematic isometric view of one embodiment of the medi-spa service cart of the invention.",
"FIG. 2 is a schematic isometric view showing the upper portion of another embodiment of the invention comprising a preferred form of principal service tray element.",
"FIG. 3 is an exploded, schematic, isometric view showing the upper portion of another embodiment of the invention comprising an alternative preferred form of principal service tray element.",
"FIG. 4 is an exploded, schematic, isometric, view showing the upper portion of yet another embodiment of the invention comprising means whereby the cart, while secured at its preselected length, may be temporarily manually shortened by the operator without disturbing the setting of its preselected length.",
"DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION Referring now to FIG. 1 , the service cart of the invention broadly comprises castered base 1 , selectively extensible vertical support member 10 comprising at least two telescoping tubular elements and, affixed to the upper end of the uppermost tubular element of said support member 10 , a principal service tray 20 .",
"Castered base 1 preferably comprises a central hub 18 and a plurality of at least three and, of even greater preference, five, radially and equiangularly spaced legs 2 extending therefrom.",
"Depending from and pivotally affixed to the outer end of each of said legs 2 is a caster wheel or roller 3 .",
"The resulting array of caster wheels or rollers 3 serves, of course, to facilitate movement of the cart over a floor support surface.",
"Desirably, one or more of the wheels or rollers 3 is provided with a releasable brake whereby the cart is enabled to be held in a fixed location.",
"Affixed to the central hub 18 of the base 1 is a selectively extensible vertical support member 10 .",
"Said support member 10 comprises at least two telescoping tubular elements and can, for example, take the form of a telescoping tubular structure comprising a lowermost tube element 11 and, slidably nesting thereover, an uppermost tube element 12 .",
"Latch means 13 serves to controllably lock the uppermost tube element 12 to the lowermost tube element 11 at a selected length of extension of the support member 10 .",
"The particular construction of the latch means 13 is generally non-critical and many suitable constructions thereof will be obvious to those of skill in the art.",
"For instance, latch means 13 can be in the nature of a simple thumb screw threaded through the uppermost tube element 12 and which locks the support member 10 at its pre-selected length by bearing on the surface of the lowermost tube element 11 .",
"Also suitable are various known spring latches which cooperate with a linear array of notches, teeth or cogs on the lowermost tube element 11 and which, without manipulation thereof, permit extension of the support member 10 and automatic latching of the tube elements 11 and 12 together at the selected length of extension, but which does require manipulation to permit retraction of said support member.",
"Thus, in use, the operator first releases latch means 13 , then extends the support member 10 to the desired length and, finally, re-engages the latch 13 so as to secure the cart construction at its preselected overall length.",
"The dimensioning of the tubular support member 10 is subject to considerable variation and will, in general, be obvious to those of skill in the art.",
"A principal consideration in the selection of said dimensioning will, of course, reside in the specific purpose for which the cart is to be employed.",
"As previously mentioned, a massage therapist works from both sitting and standing positions.",
"Thus, for this service, I have found that a support member 10 which is dimensioned to as to provides an overall cart length range of from about 18 inches to about 42 inches to be suitable.",
"Affixed to the upper end of the uppermost tube element 12 is a principal service tray 20 which, desirably, is of circular geometry.",
"It is further preferred that the principal service tray 20 be affixed to the upper end of the uppermost tube element 12 in a detachable manner, thereby to enable facile removal and such cleansing of the tray as may be required.",
"This can be accomplished, for example, by providing the bottom of the tray with a collar dimensioned so as to define a snugly fitting socket to receive the upper end of the uppermost tube element 12 .",
"It is highly desirable that the cart of the invention include means to provide sufficient vertical elasticity thereto such that, without disturbance of its preselected length, the overall cart length may be temporarily shortened by a few inches simply by manually biasing it downwardly.",
"In this manually induced temporary shortened condition the cart may then be moved under a table for convenient storage.",
"This capability may be achieved by judicious selection of design parameters and/or material of construction of the castered base 1 and/or support member 10 .",
"For example, in the embodiment of the invention of FIG. 1 the base legs 2 may be conformed as downwardly arcuate leaf springs and the material of construction thereof may be in the nature of an elastic polymeric composition such as glass fiber filled nylon or a metal such as spring steel or aluminum alloy.",
"Referring now to FIG. 4 , there is shown an alternative scheme whereby said means to provide vertical elasticity takes the form of a gas spring 60 c comprising a gas chamber 61 c and piston 62 c .",
"The gas chamber 61 c is completely housed in the bore 14 c of uppermost tube element 12 c with the free end 68 c of piston 62 c extending several inches beyond the upper end 15 c of said uppermost tube element.",
"Principal service tray 20 c is affixed to the free end 68 c of the piston 62 c .",
"In use, the operator simply manually depresses the principal service tray 20 c , thereby forcing the extended piston 62 c of gas spring 60 c to retract into the gas chamber 61 c and temporarily shortening the overall length of the cart.",
"Upon release of the manual pressure exerted by the operator, the operation of the gas spring 60 c returns the piston 62 c to its extended position, thereby returning the cart to its preselected overall length without the necessity for readjustment of the extensible tubular support member 10 c. Again referring to FIG. 1 , I much prefer that the principal service tray 20 be provided with at least one and, of even greater preference, a plurality of recesses of sizes and shapes to closely receive the containers for the goods used in service and to thereby prevent them from sliding and slipping over the surface of the tray during use or movement of the cart.",
"One manner of providing such recesses is shown in FIG. 2 wherein said recesses are defined by one or more suitably sized and shaped depressions 22 a formed in the floor 21 a of principal service tray 20 a .",
"The depth of said depressions 22 a required for any particular service will, in general, be obvious to those of skill in art and can vary from, say, about ¼ inch to about 3 inches.",
"In the case of a principal service tray 20 a formed of sheet metal, said depressions can be formed by deep drawing.",
"In the case of a principal service tray 20 a formed of a thermoplastic, such as ABS, the depressions can be formed by any of several molding techniques, such as injection molding, drape molding, vacuum forming and the like.",
"An alternative scheme for providing such recesses is shown in FIG. 3 .",
"In this case, the principal service tray 20 b is provided with lid 25 b which, when assembled to the service tray, defines a space between the floor 21 b of service tray 20 b and the lid 25 b .",
"Said lid 25 b is provided with one or more suitably sized and shaped apertures 26 b , thereby to define the container-receiving recesses.",
"The service cart of the invention may also comprise additional elements which can contribute to its utility in service.",
"Referring once again to FIG. 1 , such additional elements are generally affixed to or suspended from the uppermost tube element 12 of the vertical support member 10 .",
"For example, as shown, an auxiliary or secondary service tray or shelf 30 , spaced below the principal tray 20 , can be affixed to the uppermost tube element 12 .",
"Preferably, this attachment will be of detachable or pivotal nature.",
"Too, I prefer that the auxiliary tray or shelf 30 be of rectangular geometry and, further, that it be of a length sufficient to project substantially beyond the rim of the principal service tray 20 .",
"Yet another helpful additional element of the invention affixed to or suspended from the uppermost tube element 12 is a detachable container, pail or bucket 50 which, alternatively, provides either a convenient waste disposal site for such waste as may be generated during the course of a service session or a storage receptacle for transiently used equipment, such as a goniometer, sphygmomanometer, stethoscope or the like.",
"Additionally, the uppermost tube element 12 may also have affixed thereto a towel hook 40 .",
"Although the invention has been described and illustrated above with respect to certain specific embodiments thereof it should be recognized and understood that various alterations and modifications in the details of construction may be made without departing from the essential spirit and scope of the invention as indicated by the appended claims."
] |
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The process for preparing the antibiotic steffimycin, and the description of its various biological properties, are disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,309,273. The antibiotic at that time was known as steffisburgensimycin.
The process for preparing steffimycin B and its characterization are disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,794,721.
The structures of steffimycin and steffimycin B can be shown as follows: ##SPC1##
R = h (steffimycin)
R = ch 3 (steffimycin B)
BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
Steffimycinone can be prepared by acid hydrolysis of steffimycin or steffimycin B. 7-Deoxysteffimycinone can be prepared by hydrogenolysis, using a suitable catalyst, of steffimycin or steffimycin B. Both antibiotics are biologically active, as disclosed above, and can be used in various environments to inhibit the growth of susceptible microorganisms. For example, steffimycinone can be used for treating breeding places of silkworms, to prevent or minimize infections which are well known to be caused by Bacillus subtilis. Further, steffimycinone can be used in papermill operations to control the contamination of wool by the microorganism Bacillus cereus. 7-Deoxysteffimycinone can be used to control Mycobacterium avium which is a known producer of generalized tuberculosis in birds and rabbits.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
Steffimycinone can be shown by the following structure: ##SPC2##
Steffimycinone can be prepared by acid hydrolysis of steffimycin or steffimycin B. The hydrolysis can be conducted with a mineral acid ranging from 0.1 to 3 N. Examples of acids which can be used are hydrochloric, sulfuric, and phosphoric.
The reaction can be conducted at a temperature of 0°C. to reflux. Reflux is preferred since lower temperatures prolong the completion of the reaction. The aglycon steffimycinone is recovered from the reaction mixture as crystals which form as the reaction is completed. Generally, crystals begin to appear after about 23 hours reaction time when the reaction is conducted at reflux.
7-Deoxysteffimycinone can be shown by the following structure: ##SPC3##
7-Deoxysteffimycinone can be prepared by hydrogenolysis using a suitable catalyst, for example, palladium, platinum, rhodium, or activated nickel. The reaction can be conducted at pressures ranging from atmospheric to 1000 psi. the lower the pressure, the longer the reaction time. A pressure of 45 to 50 psi is preferred.
Steffimycinone and 7-deoxysteffimycinone can be acylated under standard acylating conditions with an appropriate acid halide or anhydride to give the acylated compounds. Under these standard conditions, steffimycinone is acylated at the 4, 6 and 7 hydroxyls and 7-deoxysteffimycinone is acylated at the 4 and 6 hydroxyls. The acylation is carried out in the presence of an acid-binding agent. Suitable acid-binding agents include: amines such as pyridine, quinoline, and isoquinoline, and buffer salts such as sodium acetate. The preferred base is pyridine. Carboxylic acids suitable for acylation include (a) saturated or unsaturated, straight or branched chain aliphatic carboxylic acids, for example, acetic, propionic, butyric, isobutyric, tertbutylacetec, valeric, isovaleric, caproic, caprylic, decanoic, dodecanoic, lauric, tridecanoic, myristic, pentadecanoic, plamitic, margaric, stearic, acrylic, crotonic, undecylenic, oleic, hexynoic, heptynoic, octynoic acids, and the like; (b) saturated or unsaturated, alicyclic carboxylic acids, for example, cyclobutanecarboxylic acid, cyclopentanecarboxylic acid, cyclopentenecarboxylic acid, methylcyclopentenecarboxylic acid, cyclohexanecarboxylic acid, dimethylcyclohexanecarboxylic acid, dipropylcyclohexanecarboxylic acid, and the like; (c) saturated or unsaturated, alicyclic aliphatic carboxylic acids, for example, cyclopentaneacetic acid, cyclopentanepropionic acid, cyclohexaneacetic acid, cyclohexanebutyric acid, methylcyclohexaneacetic acid, and the like; (d) aromatic carboxylic acids, for example, benzoic acid, toluic acid, naphthoic acid, ethylbenzoic acid, isobutylbenzoic acid, methylbutylbenzoic acid, and the like; and (e) aromatic aliphatic carboxylic acids, for example, phenylacetic acid, phenylpropionic acid, phenylvaleric acid, cinnamic acid, phenylpropiolic acid, and naphthylacetic acid, and the like. Also, suitable halo-, nitro-, hydroxy-. amino-, cyano-, thiocyano-, and lower alkoxy- hydrocarbon carboxylic acids include hydrocarboncarboxylic acids as given above which are substituted by one or more of halogen, nitro, hydroxy, amino, cyano, or thiocyano, or lower alkoxy, advantageously lower alkoxy of not more than six carbon atoms, for example, methoxy, ethoxy, propoxy, butoxy, amyloxy, hexyloxy groups and isomeric forms thereof. Examples of such substituted hydrocarbon carboxylic acids are:
mono-, di- and trichloroacetic acid;
α- and β-chloropropionic acid;
α- and γ-bromobutyric acid;
α- and δ -iodovaleric acid;
mevalonic acid
2- and 4-chlorocyclohexanecarboxylic acid;
shikimic acid;
2-nitro-1-methyl-cyclobutanecarboxylic acid;
1,2,3,4,5,6-hexachlorocyclohexanecarboxylic acid;
3-bromo-2-methylcyclohexanecarboxylic acid;
4- and 5-bromo-2-methylcyclohexanecarboxylic acid;
5- and 6-bromo-2-methylcyclohexanecarboxylic acid;
2,3-dibromo-2-methylcyclohexanecarboxylic acid;
2,5-dibromo-2-methylcyclohexanecarboxylic acid;
4,5-dibromo-2-methylcyclohexanecarboxylic acid;
5,6-dibromo-2-methylcyclohexanecarboxylic acid;
3-bromo-3-methylcyclohexanecarboxylic acid;
6-bromo-3-methylcyclohexanecarboxylic acid;
1,6-dibromo-3-methylcyclohexanecarboxylic acid;
2-bromo-4-methylcyclohexanecarboxylic acid;
1,2-dibromo-4-methylcyclohexanecarboxylic acid;
3-bromo-2,2,3-trimethylcyclopentanecarboxylic acid;
1-bromo-3,5-dimethylcyclohexanecarboxylic acid;
homogentisic acid, o-, m-, and p-chlorobenzoic acid;
anisic acid;
salicyclic acid;
p-hydroxybenzoic acid;
β-resorcyclic acid;
gallic acid;
veratric acid;
trimethoxybenzoic acid;
trimethoxycinnamic acid;
4,4'-dichlorobenzilic acid;
o-, m-, and p-nitrobenzoic acid;
cyanoacetic acid;
3,4- and 3,5-dinitrobenzoic acid;
2,4,6-trinitrobenzoic acid;
thiocyanoacetic acid;
cyanopropionic acid;
lactic acid;
ethoxyformic acid (ethyl hydrogen carbonate);
and the like.
The acylated compounds, as described above, can be used in animals for the same biological purposes as disclosed above for steffimycinone and 7-deoxysteffimycinone. For example, the acylated compounds can be given in oral form to an animal possessing the necessary enzyme to remove the acyl group, thus freeing the parent antibiotic compound which then inhibits susceptible bacteria.
Steffimycinone and 7-deoxysteffimycinone form salts with alkali metals and alkaline earth metals. Metal salts can be prepared by dissolving steffimycinone or 7-deoxysteffimycinone in methanol, adding a dilute metal base until the pH of the solution is about 9 to 11, and freeze drying the solution to provide a dried residue consisting of the metal salt. Metal salts can be, for example, the sodium, potassium, and calcium salts.
Steffimycinone and 7-deoxysteffimycinone salts, as described above, can be used for the same antibacterial purposes as steffimycinone and 7-deoxysteffimycinone.
The following examples are illustrative of the process and products of the invention, but are not to be construed as limiting. All percentages are by weight and all solvent mixture proportions are by volume unless otherwise noted.
EXAMPLE 1
Steffimycinone -- U-25,055.
5.0 g. of steffimycin is heated under reflux in 500 ml. of 1N methanolic hydrochloric acid. The course of the reaction is followed by spotting 2 μl aliquots on a silica gel TLC (thin layer chromatography) plate and developing with methanol-methylene chloride (5:95). Under these conditions, the steffimycinone has an Rf of 0.31 and steffimycin an Rf of 0.12. After 23 hours, steffimycinone begins to crystallize out of the reaction mixture, and after 128 hours the reaction mixture is cooled even though a small amount of steffimycin is still detectable by TLC. The crystalline steffimycinone is collected and dried giving 2.84 g. of small orange prisms; m.p. 245°-253°. A second crop gives 0.5 g. of crystal; m.p. 228°-245°. These fractions are combined and crystallized from methanol giving 2.45 g. of crystals; m.p. 248°-250°. A second crop gives 0.74 g., m.p. 245°-249°. The total yield is 3.19 g. or 87%. A sample is prepared for analysis by two further crystallizations from methanol; m.p. 250°-251.5°.
______________________________________ C H______________________________________Found 60.14 4.77Calcd. for C.sub.21 H.sub.18 O.sub.9 +1/2CH.sub.3 OH 60.00 4.68______________________________________
Infrared Absorption Spectra: (In a mineral oil mull). The following wave lengths are expressed in reciprocal centimeters: 3500, 3070W (weak), 1710, 1675, 1625, 1600, 1560, 1315, 1250, 1200, 1160, 1105, 1035, 960, 755
Ultraviolet Absorption Spectra:
Solvent λ Max in mμ, log ε______________________________________EtOH 213 4.42 236 4.45EtOH 257 sh 4.31 sh=shoulder 279 4.31 439 4.15______________________________________
EXAMPLE 2
7-Deoxysteffimycinone -- U-25,920.
One gram of steffimycin is dissolved in methanol and 300 mg of 10% Pd on carbon is added. The mixture is shaken under hydrogen at an initial pressure of 45-50 psi for 93 hours. The mixture is filtered, and the solvent is removed from the filtrate by evaporation under reduced pressure. The residue is mixed with a mixture of water and methylene chloride. Some insoluble material is removed by filtration. The methylene chloride layer of the filtrate is removed, washed with water, then with a solution of ferric chloride in 1 N hydrochloric acid, and lastly with water again. The solvent is removed by evaporation under reduced pressure. The residue is chromatographed on 100 g of silica initially using methylene chloride-methanol (97:3) until about 180 fractions has been collected, followed by a mixture of the same solvents at a ratio of 9:1 and 1:1. Fractions 17-30 comprising the fastest moving fraction on TLC using a methylene chloride-methanol (97:3) solvent mixture are combined and evaporated to dryness under reduced pressure. The yield is 160 mg. of 7-deoxysteffimycinone. Recrystallization from methanol gives 85 mg. of 7-deoxysteffimycinone having a m.p. of 191°-194°C.
______________________________________ C H______________________________________Found 63.09 4.67Calcd. for C.sub.21 H.sub.18 O.sub.8 63.31 4.55______________________________________
Infrared Absorption Spectra: (In a mineral oil mull). The following wave lengths are expressed in reciprocal centimeters: 3500, 1705, 1675, 1620, 1605 sh (shoulder), 1560, 1305, 1240, 1160, 1100, 965, 755
Ultraviolet Absorption Spectra:
Solvent λ Max in mμ log ε______________________________________EtOH 213 4.41 236 4.45 258 sh 4.29 sh=shoulder 274 sh 4.33 283 4.37 438 4.17______________________________________
EXAMPLE 3
Upon substituting steffimycin B for steffimycin in Example 1, there is obtained steffimycinone.
EXAMPLE 4
Upon substituting steffimycin B for steffimycin in Example 2, there is obtained 7-deoxysteffimycinone.
EXAMPLE 5
Upon substituting the 1 N methanolic hydrochloric acid in Example 1 with 0.1 to 3 N mineral acid selected from the group consisting of hydrochloric acid, sulfuric acid, and phosphoric acid, there is obtained steffimycinone.
EXAMPLE 6
Upon substituting steffimycin with steffimycin B in Example 1, and 1 N methanolic hydrochloric acid with 0.1 to 3 N mineral acid selected from the group consisting of hydrochloric acid, sulfuric acid, and phosphoric acid, there is obtained steffimycinone.
Steffimycinone and 7-deoxysteffimycinone have the following antibacterial activities as determined on a standard disc (6.35 mm.) plate assay. All organisms were run at 32° except for M. avium which was 37°. They were run for 16-18 hours.
______________________________________B. subtilis mediumBeef Extract 0.15%Yeast Extract 0.3 %Gelysate Peptone.sup.1 0.6 %Agar 1.5 % .sup.1 Obtained from BBL Division of Becton, Dickinson & Co., Cockeysville, Maryland 21030 U.S.A.
S. lutea and B. cereus mediumGelysate Peptone 0.6 %Trypticase Peptone.sup.1 0.4 %Yeast Extract 0.3 %Beef Extractives 0.15%Dextrose 0.1 %Agar 1.5 % .sup.1 Obtained from BBL Division of Becton, Dickinson & Co., Cockeysville, Maryland 21030 U.S.A.
M. avium mediumBrain and Heart Infusion Agar (All wts./liter)Calf Brains, infusion from 200 gBeef Hearts, infusion from 250 gProteose Peptone, Difco 10 gBacto - Dextrose 2 gNaCl 5 gNa.sub.2 HPO.sub.4 2.5 gAgar 15 gB. subtilis synthetic mediumNa.sub.2 HPO.sub.4.sup. . 7H.sub.2 O 1.5 g/literKH.sub.2 PO.sub.4 4.3 g/liter(NH.sub.4).sub.2 SO.sub.4 1.0 g/literMgSO.sub.4 0.1 g/literGlucose 2.0 g/literAgar 15.0 g/literDistilled Water 1 literMetallic ion stock solution.sup.1 1 ml/literFinal pH 6.2 .sup.1 Metallic ion stock solution
Compound ConcentrationNaMoO.sub.4.sup.. 2H.sub.2 O 200 mcg/mlCoCl.sub.2 100 mcg/mlCuSO.sub.4 100 mcg/mlMnSO.sub.4 2 mg/mlCaCl.sub.2 25 mg/mlFeCl.sub.2.sup.. 4H.sub.2 O 5 mg/mlZnCl.sub.2 * 5 mg/ml *ZnCl.sub.2 has to be dissolved separately using a drop of 0.1 N HCl for 10 ml of water.
Antibiotic Tested Organism Zone Size (mm)______________________________________Steffimycinone: B. subtilis 22 (synthetic agar) M. avium 17 B. subtilis 15 B. cereus 137-Deoxysteffimycinone: S. lutea 23 M. avium 14______________________________________ | Antibiotic steffimycinone (U-25,055), produced by acid hydrolysis or methanolysis of antibiotic steffimycin (U-20,661), or steffimycin B, and 7-deoxysteffimycinone (U-25,920) produced by hydrogenolysis of steffimycin or steffimycin B (U-40,615). Steffimycinone is active against various microorganisms, for example, Bacillus subtilis, Mycobacterium avium and Bacillus cereus; 7-deoxysteffimycinone is active against Sarcina lutea and Mycobacterium avium. Thus, these antibiotics can be used to inhibit the growth of the above microorganisms in various environments. | Summarize the patent document, focusing on the invention's functionality and advantages. | [
"BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION The process for preparing the antibiotic steffimycin, and the description of its various biological properties, are disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,309,273.",
"The antibiotic at that time was known as steffisburgensimycin.",
"The process for preparing steffimycin B and its characterization are disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,794,721.",
"The structures of steffimycin and steffimycin B can be shown as follows: ##SPC1## R = h (steffimycin) R = ch 3 (steffimycin B) BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Steffimycinone can be prepared by acid hydrolysis of steffimycin or steffimycin B. 7-Deoxysteffimycinone can be prepared by hydrogenolysis, using a suitable catalyst, of steffimycin or steffimycin B. Both antibiotics are biologically active, as disclosed above, and can be used in various environments to inhibit the growth of susceptible microorganisms.",
"For example, steffimycinone can be used for treating breeding places of silkworms, to prevent or minimize infections which are well known to be caused by Bacillus subtilis.",
"Further, steffimycinone can be used in papermill operations to control the contamination of wool by the microorganism Bacillus cereus.",
"7-Deoxysteffimycinone can be used to control Mycobacterium avium which is a known producer of generalized tuberculosis in birds and rabbits.",
"DETAILED DESCRIPTION Steffimycinone can be shown by the following structure: ##SPC2## Steffimycinone can be prepared by acid hydrolysis of steffimycin or steffimycin B. The hydrolysis can be conducted with a mineral acid ranging from 0.1 to 3 N. Examples of acids which can be used are hydrochloric, sulfuric, and phosphoric.",
"The reaction can be conducted at a temperature of 0°C.",
"to reflux.",
"Reflux is preferred since lower temperatures prolong the completion of the reaction.",
"The aglycon steffimycinone is recovered from the reaction mixture as crystals which form as the reaction is completed.",
"Generally, crystals begin to appear after about 23 hours reaction time when the reaction is conducted at reflux.",
"7-Deoxysteffimycinone can be shown by the following structure: ##SPC3## 7-Deoxysteffimycinone can be prepared by hydrogenolysis using a suitable catalyst, for example, palladium, platinum, rhodium, or activated nickel.",
"The reaction can be conducted at pressures ranging from atmospheric to 1000 psi.",
"the lower the pressure, the longer the reaction time.",
"A pressure of 45 to 50 psi is preferred.",
"Steffimycinone and 7-deoxysteffimycinone can be acylated under standard acylating conditions with an appropriate acid halide or anhydride to give the acylated compounds.",
"Under these standard conditions, steffimycinone is acylated at the 4, 6 and 7 hydroxyls and 7-deoxysteffimycinone is acylated at the 4 and 6 hydroxyls.",
"The acylation is carried out in the presence of an acid-binding agent.",
"Suitable acid-binding agents include: amines such as pyridine, quinoline, and isoquinoline, and buffer salts such as sodium acetate.",
"The preferred base is pyridine.",
"Carboxylic acids suitable for acylation include (a) saturated or unsaturated, straight or branched chain aliphatic carboxylic acids, for example, acetic, propionic, butyric, isobutyric, tertbutylacetec, valeric, isovaleric, caproic, caprylic, decanoic, dodecanoic, lauric, tridecanoic, myristic, pentadecanoic, plamitic, margaric, stearic, acrylic, crotonic, undecylenic, oleic, hexynoic, heptynoic, octynoic acids, and the like;",
"(b) saturated or unsaturated, alicyclic carboxylic acids, for example, cyclobutanecarboxylic acid, cyclopentanecarboxylic acid, cyclopentenecarboxylic acid, methylcyclopentenecarboxylic acid, cyclohexanecarboxylic acid, dimethylcyclohexanecarboxylic acid, dipropylcyclohexanecarboxylic acid, and the like;",
"(c) saturated or unsaturated, alicyclic aliphatic carboxylic acids, for example, cyclopentaneacetic acid, cyclopentanepropionic acid, cyclohexaneacetic acid, cyclohexanebutyric acid, methylcyclohexaneacetic acid, and the like;",
"(d) aromatic carboxylic acids, for example, benzoic acid, toluic acid, naphthoic acid, ethylbenzoic acid, isobutylbenzoic acid, methylbutylbenzoic acid, and the like;",
"and (e) aromatic aliphatic carboxylic acids, for example, phenylacetic acid, phenylpropionic acid, phenylvaleric acid, cinnamic acid, phenylpropiolic acid, and naphthylacetic acid, and the like.",
"Also, suitable halo-, nitro-, hydroxy-.",
"amino-, cyano-, thiocyano-, and lower alkoxy- hydrocarbon carboxylic acids include hydrocarboncarboxylic acids as given above which are substituted by one or more of halogen, nitro, hydroxy, amino, cyano, or thiocyano, or lower alkoxy, advantageously lower alkoxy of not more than six carbon atoms, for example, methoxy, ethoxy, propoxy, butoxy, amyloxy, hexyloxy groups and isomeric forms thereof.",
"Examples of such substituted hydrocarbon carboxylic acids are: mono-, di- and trichloroacetic acid;",
"α- and β-chloropropionic acid;",
"α- and γ-bromobutyric acid;",
"α- and δ -iodovaleric acid;",
"mevalonic acid 2- and 4-chlorocyclohexanecarboxylic acid;",
"shikimic acid;",
"2-nitro-1-methyl-cyclobutanecarboxylic acid;",
"1,2,3,4,5,6-hexachlorocyclohexanecarboxylic acid;",
"3-bromo-2-methylcyclohexanecarboxylic acid;",
"4- and 5-bromo-2-methylcyclohexanecarboxylic acid;",
"5- and 6-bromo-2-methylcyclohexanecarboxylic acid;",
"2,3-dibromo-2-methylcyclohexanecarboxylic acid;",
"2,5-dibromo-2-methylcyclohexanecarboxylic acid;",
"4,5-dibromo-2-methylcyclohexanecarboxylic acid;",
"5,6-dibromo-2-methylcyclohexanecarboxylic acid;",
"3-bromo-3-methylcyclohexanecarboxylic acid;",
"6-bromo-3-methylcyclohexanecarboxylic acid;",
"1,6-dibromo-3-methylcyclohexanecarboxylic acid;",
"2-bromo-4-methylcyclohexanecarboxylic acid;",
"1,2-dibromo-4-methylcyclohexanecarboxylic acid;",
"3-bromo-2,2,3-trimethylcyclopentanecarboxylic acid;",
"1-bromo-3,5-dimethylcyclohexanecarboxylic acid;",
"homogentisic acid, o-, m-, and p-chlorobenzoic acid;",
"anisic acid;",
"salicyclic acid;",
"p-hydroxybenzoic acid;",
"β-resorcyclic acid;",
"gallic acid;",
"veratric acid;",
"trimethoxybenzoic acid;",
"trimethoxycinnamic acid;",
"4,4'-dichlorobenzilic acid;",
"o-, m-, and p-nitrobenzoic acid;",
"cyanoacetic acid;",
"3,4- and 3,5-dinitrobenzoic acid;",
"2,4,6-trinitrobenzoic acid;",
"thiocyanoacetic acid;",
"cyanopropionic acid;",
"lactic acid;",
"ethoxyformic acid (ethyl hydrogen carbonate);",
"and the like.",
"The acylated compounds, as described above, can be used in animals for the same biological purposes as disclosed above for steffimycinone and 7-deoxysteffimycinone.",
"For example, the acylated compounds can be given in oral form to an animal possessing the necessary enzyme to remove the acyl group, thus freeing the parent antibiotic compound which then inhibits susceptible bacteria.",
"Steffimycinone and 7-deoxysteffimycinone form salts with alkali metals and alkaline earth metals.",
"Metal salts can be prepared by dissolving steffimycinone or 7-deoxysteffimycinone in methanol, adding a dilute metal base until the pH of the solution is about 9 to 11, and freeze drying the solution to provide a dried residue consisting of the metal salt.",
"Metal salts can be, for example, the sodium, potassium, and calcium salts.",
"Steffimycinone and 7-deoxysteffimycinone salts, as described above, can be used for the same antibacterial purposes as steffimycinone and 7-deoxysteffimycinone.",
"The following examples are illustrative of the process and products of the invention, but are not to be construed as limiting.",
"All percentages are by weight and all solvent mixture proportions are by volume unless otherwise noted.",
"EXAMPLE 1 Steffimycinone -- U-25,055.",
"5.0 g. of steffimycin is heated under reflux in 500 ml.",
"of 1N methanolic hydrochloric acid.",
"The course of the reaction is followed by spotting 2 μl aliquots on a silica gel TLC (thin layer chromatography) plate and developing with methanol-methylene chloride (5:95).",
"Under these conditions, the steffimycinone has an Rf of 0.31 and steffimycin an Rf of 0.12.",
"After 23 hours, steffimycinone begins to crystallize out of the reaction mixture, and after 128 hours the reaction mixture is cooled even though a small amount of steffimycin is still detectable by TLC.",
"The crystalline steffimycinone is collected and dried giving 2.84 g. of small orange prisms;",
"m.p. 245°-253°.",
"A second crop gives 0.5 g. of crystal;",
"m.p. 228°-245°.",
"These fractions are combined and crystallized from methanol giving 2.45 g. of crystals;",
"m.p. 248°-250°.",
"A second crop gives 0.74 g., m.p. 245°-249°.",
"The total yield is 3.19 g. or 87%.",
"A sample is prepared for analysis by two further crystallizations from methanol;",
"m.p. 250°-251.5°.",
"______________________________________ C H______________________________________Found 60.14 4.77Calcd.",
"for C.sub[.",
"].21 H.sub[.",
"].18 O.sub[.",
"].9 +1/2CH.",
"sub[.",
"].3 OH 60.00 4.68______________________________________ Infrared Absorption Spectra: (In a mineral oil mull).",
"The following wave lengths are expressed in reciprocal centimeters: 3500, 3070W (weak), 1710, 1675, 1625, 1600, 1560, 1315, 1250, 1200, 1160, 1105, 1035, 960, 755 Ultraviolet Absorption Spectra: Solvent λ Max in mμ, log ε______________________________________EtOH 213 4.42 236 4.45EtOH 257 sh 4.31 sh=shoulder 279 4.31 439 4.15______________________________________ EXAMPLE 2 7-Deoxysteffimycinone -- U-25,920.",
"One gram of steffimycin is dissolved in methanol and 300 mg of 10% Pd on carbon is added.",
"The mixture is shaken under hydrogen at an initial pressure of 45-50 psi for 93 hours.",
"The mixture is filtered, and the solvent is removed from the filtrate by evaporation under reduced pressure.",
"The residue is mixed with a mixture of water and methylene chloride.",
"Some insoluble material is removed by filtration.",
"The methylene chloride layer of the filtrate is removed, washed with water, then with a solution of ferric chloride in 1 N hydrochloric acid, and lastly with water again.",
"The solvent is removed by evaporation under reduced pressure.",
"The residue is chromatographed on 100 g of silica initially using methylene chloride-methanol (97:3) until about 180 fractions has been collected, followed by a mixture of the same solvents at a ratio of 9:1 and 1:1.",
"Fractions 17-30 comprising the fastest moving fraction on TLC using a methylene chloride-methanol (97:3) solvent mixture are combined and evaporated to dryness under reduced pressure.",
"The yield is 160 mg.",
"of 7-deoxysteffimycinone.",
"Recrystallization from methanol gives 85 mg.",
"of 7-deoxysteffimycinone having a m.p. of 191°-194°C.",
"______________________________________ C H______________________________________Found 63.09 4.67Calcd.",
"for C.sub[.",
"].21 H.sub[.",
"].18 O.sub[.",
"].8 63.31 4.55______________________________________ Infrared Absorption Spectra: (In a mineral oil mull).",
"The following wave lengths are expressed in reciprocal centimeters: 3500, 1705, 1675, 1620, 1605 sh (shoulder), 1560, 1305, 1240, 1160, 1100, 965, 755 Ultraviolet Absorption Spectra: Solvent λ Max in mμ log ε______________________________________EtOH 213 4.41 236 4.45 258 sh 4.29 sh=shoulder 274 sh 4.33 283 4.37 438 4.17______________________________________ EXAMPLE 3 Upon substituting steffimycin B for steffimycin in Example 1, there is obtained steffimycinone.",
"EXAMPLE 4 Upon substituting steffimycin B for steffimycin in Example 2, there is obtained 7-deoxysteffimycinone.",
"EXAMPLE 5 Upon substituting the 1 N methanolic hydrochloric acid in Example 1 with 0.1 to 3 N mineral acid selected from the group consisting of hydrochloric acid, sulfuric acid, and phosphoric acid, there is obtained steffimycinone.",
"EXAMPLE 6 Upon substituting steffimycin with steffimycin B in Example 1, and 1 N methanolic hydrochloric acid with 0.1 to 3 N mineral acid selected from the group consisting of hydrochloric acid, sulfuric acid, and phosphoric acid, there is obtained steffimycinone.",
"Steffimycinone and 7-deoxysteffimycinone have the following antibacterial activities as determined on a standard disc (6.35 mm.) plate assay.",
"All organisms were run at 32° except for M. avium which was 37°.",
"They were run for 16-18 hours.",
"______________________________________B.",
"subtilis mediumBeef Extract 0.15%Yeast Extract 0.3 %Gelysate Peptone.",
"sup[.",
"].1 0.6 %Agar 1.5 % .",
"sup[.",
"].1 Obtained from BBL Division of Becton, Dickinson &",
"Co., Cockeysville, Maryland 21030 U.S.A. S. lutea and B. cereus mediumGelysate Peptone 0.6 %Trypticase Peptone.",
"sup[.",
"].1 0.4 %Yeast Extract 0.3 %Beef Extractives 0.15%Dextrose 0.1 %Agar 1.5 % .",
"sup[.",
"].1 Obtained from BBL Division of Becton, Dickinson &",
"Co., Cockeysville, Maryland 21030 U.S.A. M. avium mediumBrain and Heart Infusion Agar (All wts.",
"/liter)Calf Brains, infusion from 200 gBeef Hearts, infusion from 250 gProteose Peptone, Difco 10 gBacto - Dextrose 2 gNaCl 5 gNa.",
"sub[.",
"].2 HPO.",
"sub[.",
"].4 2.5 gAgar 15 gB.",
"subtilis synthetic mediumNa.",
"sub[.",
"].2 HPO.",
"sub[.",
"].4.",
"sup.",
"7H.",
"sub[.",
"].2 O 1.5 g/literKH.",
"sub[.",
"].2 PO.",
"sub[.",
"].4 4.3 g/liter(NH.",
"sub[.",
"].4).",
"sub[.",
"].2 SO.",
"sub[.",
"].4 1.0 g/literMgSO.",
"sub[.",
"].4 0.1 g/literGlucose 2.0 g/literAgar 15.0 g/literDistilled Water 1 literMetallic ion stock solution.",
"sup[.",
"].1 1 ml/literFinal pH 6.2 .",
"sup[.",
"].1 Metallic ion stock solution Compound ConcentrationNaMoO.",
"sub[.",
"].4.",
"sup..",
"2H.",
"sub[.",
"].2 O 200 mcg/mlCoCl.",
"sub[.",
"].2 100 mcg/mlCuSO.",
"sub[.",
"].4 100 mcg/mlMnSO.",
"sub[.",
"].4 2 mg/mlCaCl.",
"sub[.",
"].2 25 mg/mlFeCl.",
"sub[.",
"].2.",
"sup..",
"4H.",
"sub[.",
"].2 O 5 mg/mlZnCl.",
"sub[.",
"].2 * 5 mg/ml *ZnCl.",
"sub[.",
"].2 has to be dissolved separately using a drop of 0.1 N HCl for 10 ml of water.",
"Antibiotic Tested Organism Zone Size (mm)______________________________________Steffimycinone: B. subtilis 22 (synthetic agar) M. avium 17 B. subtilis 15 B. cereus 137-Deoxysteffimycinone: S. lutea 23 M. avium 14______________________________________"
] |
This is a 371 of PCT/EP2010/050984 filed 28 Jan. 2010 (international filing date), and claiming priority of German Application 10 2009 008 323.5, filed Feb. 10, 2009.
The invention relates to films and membranes produced therefrom for acoustic signal converters made from a polyester containing the structural unit of the formula (I):
wherein R 1 and R 2 independently of each other represent halogen, C1-C8 alkyl, C5-C6 cycloalkyl, C6-C10 aryl, C7-C12 aralkyl or preferably hydrogen and R 3 either corresponds to the following formula (A) or preferably is a carbonyl group.
The film according to the invention can be produced by thermoplastic processes or preferably as a solvent cast film. It is preferably deep-drawn to a membrane for acoustic signal converters such as a microphone or loudspeakers. For the production of small membranes with a diameter of up to ca. 10 cm for acoustic signal converters for use in mobile devices such as microphones, mobile telephones, laptops, personal digital assistants (PDAs), headphones or as signal transmitters for example in automobiles, stretched polyester films (PET, PEN) have until now been used, and films of bisphenol A polycarbonate (PC) for high grade applications. The construction of such membranes from PC is described in JP 2002044781 A and JP 11205894 A.
In order to reduce the oscillating mass of the membranes, ensure exact formation of embossed structures during the deep-drawing and to enable further miniaturization, the membranes should be as thin as possible. Films of said plastics are mechanically very durable, but have the disadvantage that during use as loudspeaker membranes they create a “metallic” tone or cannot be adequately shaped for the formation of complicated embossed structures, since the orientation through the extrusion process leads to anisotropic shrinkage. As a consequence thereof, acoustic signals, in particular music and/or speech signals, are adversely altered during the conversion into electrical signals and vice versa. The production of small microphone and loudspeaker membranes for the aforesaid application fields is usually effected in deep-drawing processes. In these, the film is heated to soften it before the deep-drawing, for example by irradiation with infrared light. Because of anisotropic shrinkage, uniform heating of particularly thin films before the deep-drawing process and uniform softening resulting therefrom is harder to control the more strongly anisotropic the film is. Films of extruded bisphenol A polycarbonate, stretched polyethylene naphthalate (PEN) or polyethylene terephthalate (PET) tend to anisotropic deformation and the stretched films above all to severe shrinkage. However because of the lack of solubility of polyesters the production of cast films is not possible. Polyether sulfones (PES), polyether imides (PEI) and polyesters of bisphenol A with iso- and/or terephthalic acid or carbonic acid (that is bisphenol A polycarbonate) are only soluble in very environmentally harmful and toxic solvents such as methylene chloride or chloro-benzene. Hence not only is the production of membranes from such polymers in the cast film process disadvantageous, but also the membranes after their production still contain residues of such solvents. The membranes according to the invention can be produced by thermoplastic processes such as extrusion or calendering. In an embodiment as a calendered film, the membrane according to the invention is less anisotropic than in an embodiment as an extruded film. For this reason, the calendering process is preferred over the extrusion process. Particularly preferred is the cast film process, wherein the polymer is dissolved in a solvent, then spread over a ribbon of metal, a coated paper or a film and then dried. This process not only advantageously creates an isotropic membrane, but it is also possible to produce this much thinner than is possible with a thermoplastic process, i.e. for example in the thickness range from 5 to 20 μm, which as stated above is advantageous. Also for this reason, the problem was to find a polymer for such a membrane which is soluble in a less harmful solvent than a halogen-containing solvent. Other important requirements for membranes for acoustic applications are deep-drawing quality, high elastic modulus, good water resistance and high thermal stability. The latter can be characterized by the glass transition temperature, Vicat softening point (ISO 306 at 50 N and 120 K/hr) or heat distortion temperature HDT Af (ISO 75-1, -2 at 1.8 MPa). The thickness of the film for the membrane is determined in accordance with DIN 53370.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The purpose of the invention was to provide films for the production of membranes for acoustic applications which have a high elastic modulus and a high heat distortion temperature and also as far as possible consist of a polymer which is soluble in a halogen-free solvent. In addition, these membranes should exhibit good speech intelligibility and enable the reproduction of music in good quality and adequate volume and exhibit high mechanical stability at high temperature.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
Surprisingly, it has been found that membranes of special films exhibit markedly better acoustic properties than membranes which were produced from extruded bisphenol A polycarbonate or polyester films. Such special films are those, in particular from the cast film process, made of a polyester containing the structural unit of the formula (I)
wherein R 1 and R 2 independently of each other represent halogen, C1-C8 alkyl, C5-C6 cycloalkyl, C6-C10 aryl, C7-C12 aralkyl or preferably hydrogen and R 3 either corresponds to the following formula (A) or preferably is a carbonyl group.
Even compared to bisphenol A polycarbonate from the cast film process, significant advantages are obtained. Through the use of a special bisphenol, as can be seen from formula (I), an aromatic polyester with a solubility in halogen-free solvents can be obtained. Because of their less favorable properties, normal polycarbonates from bisphenol A (PC) or aromatic polyesters (AP) from tere- and isophthalic acid and bisphenol A are not according to the invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
As well as the structural unit (I), a further structural unit can be contained. Preferably the polyester contains the structural unit (I) and the structural unit with the formula (II):
While PC and AP based on bisphenol A have to be dissolved in methylene chloride or chlorobenzene, the polyesters according to the invention are for example soluble in acetone, toluene and tetrahydrofuran, provided that the proportion of the structural unit (I) based on the structural units (I) and (II) amounts to at least 60 weight %. A low content of bisphenol A avoids film brittleness. Hence the membrane preferably contains a polyester with 60 to 90 weight %, particularly preferably 65 to 85 weight %, of the structural unit (I) and 10 to 40 weight %, particularly preferably 15 to 35 weight %, of the structural unit (II). The good solubility in halogen-free solvents hence makes it possible to produce shrink-free and isotropic films for deep-drawn membranes and at the same time to create particularly thin membranes. Both advantages have a favorable effect on the acoustic properties. The polyester according to the invention which is contained in film or membrane according to the invention preferably has a bending modulus of at least 2350 MPa and/or preferably a yield stress of at least 75 MPa. The heat distortion temperature HDT Af of the polyester is preferably at least 173° C., particularly preferably at least 180° C., and/or the Vicat softening point is preferably at least 203° C.
The improved thermal stability compared to polycarbonate from bisphenol A (PC) or aromatic polyester (AP) from tere- and isophthalic acid and bisphenol A also leads to higher thermal stability of the membranes. This means that the acoustic signal converter has less tendency to warp (reversal of formation of deep-drawn structure) in the heat. Surprisingly, the lifetime under normal conditions is also increased. Presumably the membranes according to the invention have less tendency to “go baggy” which impairs the sound quality. Possibly this is due to the better mechanical properties such as bending modulus or yield stress. Thinner membranes have less strength and resistance to deformation than thick ones, which in the membranes according to the invention can be compensated by the higher bending modulus. Aromatic polyesters from tere- and isophthalic acid and bisphenol A exhibit a tendency to crystallization, hence aggregates form in solutions. These lead to ever-increasing viscosities and hence to deviations in the coating process, which leads to unstable film quality. The problem can be solved through the addition of surfactants, but this is in exchange for the disadvantages of poorer adhesion and moisture sensitivity. Surprisingly, solutions of the polyester according to the invention are stable. The polyester according to the invention combines the advantages of PC (viscosity stability) and AP (modulus and thermal stability).
Glass transition
Heat distortion
Vicat softening
temperature [° C.]
temperature [° C.]
point [° C.]
Acc. to invention
up to 239
173-187
203-218
PC
135
123-130
138-145
AP
188
174
195
Bending modulus
Yield stress
Viscosity stability of
[MPa]
[MPa]
solutions
Acc. to invention
2400
76-78
yes
PC
2300
61-67
yes
AP
2100
69
no
Polymers as contained in the membranes according to the invention are distinguished by high transparency, thermal stability, refractive index and toughness and were until now used exclusively for optical applications such as automobile lamp housing or light covers in household appliances and in medical technology such as syringe attachments or sterilizable transparent vessels. Until now, these products have been produced exclusively by thermoplastic processing and not by a solvent process such as cast film technology.
Further, it has been found that the membranes according to the invention exhibit a high damping factor and essentially linear acoustic properties over a large frequency and volume range and can therefore be used directly for acoustic applications. They exhibit outstanding transient response and attenuation behavior, and uniform oscillation behavior over a large frequency and volume range and enable good speech intelligibility. Owing to their excellent damping properties (“internal loss”), the membranes according to the invention are particularly suitable for the production of deep-drawn membranes as sound converters for acoustic applications, preferably as microphone and/or loudspeaker membranes. They exhibit less “metallic” tone than known membranes made of other polymers. They are particularly suitable in case of high requirements for speech intelligibility, such as for example during use as microphone and loudspeaker membranes in microphone capsules, mobile telephones, hands-free speech units, radio equipment, hearing aids, headphones, miniature radios, computers and PDAs or as signal transmitters.
For the deep-drawing of the film to the membrane this must be heated. Preferably the heating is effected by an infrared lamp. Hence the film preferably contains a dye, a pigment or an IR absorber. Examples of these are organic dyes such as CAS No. 4702-90-3, carbon black, such as toner or IR absorbers such as SDA 7257 (H.W. Sands Corp.), vanadyl 5,14,23,32-tetraphenyl-2,3-naphthalocyanine, copper(II) 1,4,8,11,15,18,22,25-octabutoxy-29H,31H-phthalocyanine and ITO (indium-tin oxide, e.g. ITO containing more than 94% indium oxide from Nanogate Co.). Preferably an additive which exhibits an absorption in the range from 0.75 to 4.0 μm, particularly preferably in the range from 1.0 to 2.0 μm, is contained in the film.
The finished shaped membranes can then be cut out from the film by means of a mechanical process, for example with a knife or a punch, or contactless, for example by means of a water jet or a laser. Preferably, the shaped membranes are punched out or cut with a laser. Next, the membranes can be bonded at the outer circumference with a support ring of plastic or metal and with a coil with connector contacts and incorporated as a microphone or loudspeaker membrane together with a permanent magnet in appropriate devices for the conversion or generation of acoustic signals.
For the avoidance of dust deposition, the film preferably also contains an antistatic agent such as glycerin monostearate, cetyltrimethylammonium bromide or a nonionic or anionic surfactant.
Further additives are those which are commonly used for the production of films, such as for example antioxidants, lubricants, light stabilizers or antihydrolysis agents.
For the production of cast films according to the invention, the solutions, which preferably have a solids content of 10 to 40%, particularly preferably 15 to 25%, are applied onto a support for example with a feeder head, a nozzle, a doctor knife, or a gravure cylinder and dried in one or more stages. The film according to the invention can then be stripped off. In another embodiment, before the stripping, other layers such as for example lacquer, laminating adhesives or adhesive tape are applied. As supports, for example rollers and endless bands of metal, siliconized paper or films are suitable, and preferably non-siliconized biaxially stretched polypropylene and polyester films, particularly preferably of polyethylene terephthalate. The use of such a biaxially stretched polypropylene or polyester film yields a defect-free coating pattern and the adhesion of the film according to the invention on this support material is high enough that the film according to the invention is strengthened for further process steps or transport/storage. In addition, the adhesion is also not too high, so that the film can be stripped off with no problems at the desired time. The film also protects the film according to the invention from contamination and mechanical damage. The film is preferably matt on at least one side so that it can more easily be rolled up and unrolled. The matt effect can be attained by a matt surface of the support or the addition of a matting agent (e.g. polyolefin balls).
Thicker films (beyond 20, in particular 40 μm) can be more simply produced by extrusion such as in the flat film process or calendering process. Before rolling, the film is preferably shrink-relieved on a number of annealing rollers, in order to eliminate tensions and anisotropy of the properties. Shrink-relief can also be attained by storage of the film in an oven. In this case, the film should previously be covered with a separating paper, a separating film or another film in order to avoid blocking.
The following examples are to illustrate the invention without wishing to limit it.
EXAMPLE 1
A polyester with 69 weight % of structural element (I) and 31 weight % of structural element (II) is used.
Properties:
Vicat softening point 203° C. (ISO 306, 50 N, 120 K/min), bending modulus 2400 MPa (ISO 178, 2 mm/min), yield stress 76 MPa (ISO 527-1 and 2, 50 mm/min), yield strain 6.9% (ISO 527-1 and 2, 50 mm/min), melt mass flow rate 8 g/10 min (MVR, ISO 1133, 330° C., 2.16 kg), heat distortion temperature HDT, Af 173° C. (ISO 75-1 and 2 at 1.8 MPa).
100 g of this polyester are dissolved in 400 g of dry tetrahydrofuran at room temperature with stirring. Further, 0.01 g of glycerin monostearate and 0.001 g of copper(II) 1,4,8,11,15,18,22,25-octabutoxy-29H,31H-phthalocyanine are added. The solution is coated onto a 23 μm thick biaxially stretched polyethylene terephthalate film with a “knife over roll” and then dried. The adhesive tape tesa 4389 (12 μm polyester film, coated on each side with 9 g/m 2 of a solvent acrylate adhesive composition and covered on one side with a liner) is laminated onto the 10 μm thick polymer layer. A further polymer layer according to the invention is laminated onto this composite on the adhesive side so that the following structure is obtained:
polyethylene terephthalate 23 μm
polyester film according to the invention 10 μm
acrylate composition 8 μm
polyethylene terephthalate 12 μm
acrylate composition 8 μm
polyester film according to the invention 10 μm
Before the deep drawing and punching out, the 23 μm thick polyester film is stripped off.
EXAMPLE 2
A polyester with 83 weight % of structural element (I) and 17 weight % of structural element (II) is used.
Properties:
Vicat softening point 218° C., bending modulus 2400 MPa, yield stress 78 MPa, yield strain 6.9%, melt mass flow rate 5 g/10 min, heat distortion temperature HDT, Af 187° C.
The polymer is treated with 0.05 weight % of a color batch (carbon black in standard polycarbonate) and processed to a film with a thickness of 25 μm on a flat film plant (nozzle temperature 280° C., chill roll temperature 150° C.). The film is then shrink-relieved at 150° C.
Comparative Example 1
A polycarbonate with the following properties is used:
Vicat softening point 145° C., bending modulus 2300 MPa, yield stress 66 MPa, yield strain 6.1%, melt mass flow rate 11 g/10 min (MVR, ISO 1133, 300° C., 1.2 kg), heat distortion temperature HDT, Af 125° C.
It is dissolved in methylene chloride and without addition of further additives is processed into a 10 μm thick film and then to the composite with adhesive tape analogously to Example 1.
Comparative Example 2
Without addition of a color batch, the polycarbonate from comparative example 1 is processed into a film with a thickness of 25 μm on a flat film plant (nozzle temperature 260° C., chill roll temperature 130° C.) and not shrink-relieved.
Comparative Example 3
A polyester of bisphenol A with equal proportions of iso- and terephthalic acid with the following properties is used:
Vicat softening point 195° C., bending modulus 2100 MPa, yield stress 69 MPa, yield strain 60%, heat distortion temperature HDT, Af 175° C.
It is dissolved in methylene chloride and without addition of further additives is processed into a 10 μm thick film and then to the composite with adhesive tape analogously to Example 1. Because of increasing solution viscosity, the film thickness does not remain constant during manufacture.
Assessment of the Films Produced
With the exception of that from example 1, the films are rapidly contaminated on the surface by dust. The films are heated with an infrared lamp. The films from examples 1 and 2 rapidly heat up and with those from the comparative examples supplementary use of hot air was necessary in order to reach a sufficiently high temperature for the deep-drawing. The finished shaped membranes are cut out to 13 mm diameter with a punch and bonded on the outer diameter with the support ring and with a coil with connection terminals. Together with permanent magnets, loudspeakers are thus produced. These are subjected to a durability test based on DIN ETS 300019. Under load, the loudspeakers are subjected to various tests such as for example multiple exposure to temperature cycles (−40° C. to 85° C.) at high atmospheric humidity or continuous exposure to 85° C. Each loudspeaker is loaded with an electrical loading with “pink noise” at the nominal capacity of the loudspeaker for 500 hours. At the beginning and end of the 500 hours, the sound quality is subjectively assessed:
Sound quality of the membrane from
0 hours
500 hours
Example 1
1
1
Example 2
1
1
Comparative example 1
1
3
Comparative example 2
2
3
Comparative example 3
1
1
1 very good,
2 with limitations,
3 failed. | Deep-drawn membranes formed of polyester or polycarbonate films, comprising units of Formula (I) and (II), useful for acoustic signal converters as microphones and speakers. The film can be produced by thermoplastic processes or solvent cast processes. Especially suitable for the production of small membranes with a diameter of up to 10 cm useful in mobile devices as microphones, mobile telephones, laptops, personal digital assistants (PDAs), headphones or as signal transmitters | Condense the core contents of the given document. | [
"This is a 371 of PCT/EP2010/050984 filed 28 Jan. 2010 (international filing date), and claiming priority of German Application 10 2009 008 323.5, filed Feb. 10, 2009.",
"The invention relates to films and membranes produced therefrom for acoustic signal converters made from a polyester containing the structural unit of the formula (I): wherein R 1 and R 2 independently of each other represent halogen, C1-C8 alkyl, C5-C6 cycloalkyl, C6-C10 aryl, C7-C12 aralkyl or preferably hydrogen and R 3 either corresponds to the following formula (A) or preferably is a carbonyl group.",
"The film according to the invention can be produced by thermoplastic processes or preferably as a solvent cast film.",
"It is preferably deep-drawn to a membrane for acoustic signal converters such as a microphone or loudspeakers.",
"For the production of small membranes with a diameter of up to ca.",
"10 cm for acoustic signal converters for use in mobile devices such as microphones, mobile telephones, laptops, personal digital assistants (PDAs), headphones or as signal transmitters for example in automobiles, stretched polyester films (PET, PEN) have until now been used, and films of bisphenol A polycarbonate (PC) for high grade applications.",
"The construction of such membranes from PC is described in JP 2002044781 A and JP 11205894 A. In order to reduce the oscillating mass of the membranes, ensure exact formation of embossed structures during the deep-drawing and to enable further miniaturization, the membranes should be as thin as possible.",
"Films of said plastics are mechanically very durable, but have the disadvantage that during use as loudspeaker membranes they create a “metallic”",
"tone or cannot be adequately shaped for the formation of complicated embossed structures, since the orientation through the extrusion process leads to anisotropic shrinkage.",
"As a consequence thereof, acoustic signals, in particular music and/or speech signals, are adversely altered during the conversion into electrical signals and vice versa.",
"The production of small microphone and loudspeaker membranes for the aforesaid application fields is usually effected in deep-drawing processes.",
"In these, the film is heated to soften it before the deep-drawing, for example by irradiation with infrared light.",
"Because of anisotropic shrinkage, uniform heating of particularly thin films before the deep-drawing process and uniform softening resulting therefrom is harder to control the more strongly anisotropic the film is.",
"Films of extruded bisphenol A polycarbonate, stretched polyethylene naphthalate (PEN) or polyethylene terephthalate (PET) tend to anisotropic deformation and the stretched films above all to severe shrinkage.",
"However because of the lack of solubility of polyesters the production of cast films is not possible.",
"Polyether sulfones (PES), polyether imides (PEI) and polyesters of bisphenol A with iso- and/or terephthalic acid or carbonic acid (that is bisphenol A polycarbonate) are only soluble in very environmentally harmful and toxic solvents such as methylene chloride or chloro-benzene.",
"Hence not only is the production of membranes from such polymers in the cast film process disadvantageous, but also the membranes after their production still contain residues of such solvents.",
"The membranes according to the invention can be produced by thermoplastic processes such as extrusion or calendering.",
"In an embodiment as a calendered film, the membrane according to the invention is less anisotropic than in an embodiment as an extruded film.",
"For this reason, the calendering process is preferred over the extrusion process.",
"Particularly preferred is the cast film process, wherein the polymer is dissolved in a solvent, then spread over a ribbon of metal, a coated paper or a film and then dried.",
"This process not only advantageously creates an isotropic membrane, but it is also possible to produce this much thinner than is possible with a thermoplastic process, i.e. for example in the thickness range from 5 to 20 μm, which as stated above is advantageous.",
"Also for this reason, the problem was to find a polymer for such a membrane which is soluble in a less harmful solvent than a halogen-containing solvent.",
"Other important requirements for membranes for acoustic applications are deep-drawing quality, high elastic modulus, good water resistance and high thermal stability.",
"The latter can be characterized by the glass transition temperature, Vicat softening point (ISO 306 at 50 N and 120 K/hr) or heat distortion temperature HDT Af (ISO 75-1, -2 at 1.8 MPa).",
"The thickness of the film for the membrane is determined in accordance with DIN 53370.",
"BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION The purpose of the invention was to provide films for the production of membranes for acoustic applications which have a high elastic modulus and a high heat distortion temperature and also as far as possible consist of a polymer which is soluble in a halogen-free solvent.",
"In addition, these membranes should exhibit good speech intelligibility and enable the reproduction of music in good quality and adequate volume and exhibit high mechanical stability at high temperature.",
"SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Surprisingly, it has been found that membranes of special films exhibit markedly better acoustic properties than membranes which were produced from extruded bisphenol A polycarbonate or polyester films.",
"Such special films are those, in particular from the cast film process, made of a polyester containing the structural unit of the formula (I) wherein R 1 and R 2 independently of each other represent halogen, C1-C8 alkyl, C5-C6 cycloalkyl, C6-C10 aryl, C7-C12 aralkyl or preferably hydrogen and R 3 either corresponds to the following formula (A) or preferably is a carbonyl group.",
"Even compared to bisphenol A polycarbonate from the cast film process, significant advantages are obtained.",
"Through the use of a special bisphenol, as can be seen from formula (I), an aromatic polyester with a solubility in halogen-free solvents can be obtained.",
"Because of their less favorable properties, normal polycarbonates from bisphenol A (PC) or aromatic polyesters (AP) from tere- and isophthalic acid and bisphenol A are not according to the invention.",
"DETAILED DESCRIPTION As well as the structural unit (I), a further structural unit can be contained.",
"Preferably the polyester contains the structural unit (I) and the structural unit with the formula (II): While PC and AP based on bisphenol A have to be dissolved in methylene chloride or chlorobenzene, the polyesters according to the invention are for example soluble in acetone, toluene and tetrahydrofuran, provided that the proportion of the structural unit (I) based on the structural units (I) and (II) amounts to at least 60 weight %.",
"A low content of bisphenol A avoids film brittleness.",
"Hence the membrane preferably contains a polyester with 60 to 90 weight %, particularly preferably 65 to 85 weight %, of the structural unit (I) and 10 to 40 weight %, particularly preferably 15 to 35 weight %, of the structural unit (II).",
"The good solubility in halogen-free solvents hence makes it possible to produce shrink-free and isotropic films for deep-drawn membranes and at the same time to create particularly thin membranes.",
"Both advantages have a favorable effect on the acoustic properties.",
"The polyester according to the invention which is contained in film or membrane according to the invention preferably has a bending modulus of at least 2350 MPa and/or preferably a yield stress of at least 75 MPa.",
"The heat distortion temperature HDT Af of the polyester is preferably at least 173° C., particularly preferably at least 180° C., and/or the Vicat softening point is preferably at least 203° C. The improved thermal stability compared to polycarbonate from bisphenol A (PC) or aromatic polyester (AP) from tere- and isophthalic acid and bisphenol A also leads to higher thermal stability of the membranes.",
"This means that the acoustic signal converter has less tendency to warp (reversal of formation of deep-drawn structure) in the heat.",
"Surprisingly, the lifetime under normal conditions is also increased.",
"Presumably the membranes according to the invention have less tendency to “go baggy”",
"which impairs the sound quality.",
"Possibly this is due to the better mechanical properties such as bending modulus or yield stress.",
"Thinner membranes have less strength and resistance to deformation than thick ones, which in the membranes according to the invention can be compensated by the higher bending modulus.",
"Aromatic polyesters from tere- and isophthalic acid and bisphenol A exhibit a tendency to crystallization, hence aggregates form in solutions.",
"These lead to ever-increasing viscosities and hence to deviations in the coating process, which leads to unstable film quality.",
"The problem can be solved through the addition of surfactants, but this is in exchange for the disadvantages of poorer adhesion and moisture sensitivity.",
"Surprisingly, solutions of the polyester according to the invention are stable.",
"The polyester according to the invention combines the advantages of PC (viscosity stability) and AP (modulus and thermal stability).",
"Glass transition Heat distortion Vicat softening temperature [° C.] temperature [° C.] point [° C.] Acc.",
"to invention up to 239 173-187 203-218 PC 135 123-130 138-145 AP 188 174 195 Bending modulus Yield stress Viscosity stability of [MPa] [MPa] solutions Acc.",
"to invention 2400 76-78 yes PC 2300 61-67 yes AP 2100 69 no Polymers as contained in the membranes according to the invention are distinguished by high transparency, thermal stability, refractive index and toughness and were until now used exclusively for optical applications such as automobile lamp housing or light covers in household appliances and in medical technology such as syringe attachments or sterilizable transparent vessels.",
"Until now, these products have been produced exclusively by thermoplastic processing and not by a solvent process such as cast film technology.",
"Further, it has been found that the membranes according to the invention exhibit a high damping factor and essentially linear acoustic properties over a large frequency and volume range and can therefore be used directly for acoustic applications.",
"They exhibit outstanding transient response and attenuation behavior, and uniform oscillation behavior over a large frequency and volume range and enable good speech intelligibility.",
"Owing to their excellent damping properties (“internal loss”), the membranes according to the invention are particularly suitable for the production of deep-drawn membranes as sound converters for acoustic applications, preferably as microphone and/or loudspeaker membranes.",
"They exhibit less “metallic”",
"tone than known membranes made of other polymers.",
"They are particularly suitable in case of high requirements for speech intelligibility, such as for example during use as microphone and loudspeaker membranes in microphone capsules, mobile telephones, hands-free speech units, radio equipment, hearing aids, headphones, miniature radios, computers and PDAs or as signal transmitters.",
"For the deep-drawing of the film to the membrane this must be heated.",
"Preferably the heating is effected by an infrared lamp.",
"Hence the film preferably contains a dye, a pigment or an IR absorber.",
"Examples of these are organic dyes such as CAS No. 4702-90-3, carbon black, such as toner or IR absorbers such as SDA 7257 (H.W. Sands Corp.), vanadyl 5,14,23,32-tetraphenyl-2,3-naphthalocyanine, copper(II) 1,4,8,11,15,18,22,25-octabutoxy-29H,31H-phthalocyanine and ITO (indium-tin oxide, e.g. ITO containing more than 94% indium oxide from Nanogate Co.).",
"Preferably an additive which exhibits an absorption in the range from 0.75 to 4.0 μm, particularly preferably in the range from 1.0 to 2.0 μm, is contained in the film.",
"The finished shaped membranes can then be cut out from the film by means of a mechanical process, for example with a knife or a punch, or contactless, for example by means of a water jet or a laser.",
"Preferably, the shaped membranes are punched out or cut with a laser.",
"Next, the membranes can be bonded at the outer circumference with a support ring of plastic or metal and with a coil with connector contacts and incorporated as a microphone or loudspeaker membrane together with a permanent magnet in appropriate devices for the conversion or generation of acoustic signals.",
"For the avoidance of dust deposition, the film preferably also contains an antistatic agent such as glycerin monostearate, cetyltrimethylammonium bromide or a nonionic or anionic surfactant.",
"Further additives are those which are commonly used for the production of films, such as for example antioxidants, lubricants, light stabilizers or antihydrolysis agents.",
"For the production of cast films according to the invention, the solutions, which preferably have a solids content of 10 to 40%, particularly preferably 15 to 25%, are applied onto a support for example with a feeder head, a nozzle, a doctor knife, or a gravure cylinder and dried in one or more stages.",
"The film according to the invention can then be stripped off.",
"In another embodiment, before the stripping, other layers such as for example lacquer, laminating adhesives or adhesive tape are applied.",
"As supports, for example rollers and endless bands of metal, siliconized paper or films are suitable, and preferably non-siliconized biaxially stretched polypropylene and polyester films, particularly preferably of polyethylene terephthalate.",
"The use of such a biaxially stretched polypropylene or polyester film yields a defect-free coating pattern and the adhesion of the film according to the invention on this support material is high enough that the film according to the invention is strengthened for further process steps or transport/storage.",
"In addition, the adhesion is also not too high, so that the film can be stripped off with no problems at the desired time.",
"The film also protects the film according to the invention from contamination and mechanical damage.",
"The film is preferably matt on at least one side so that it can more easily be rolled up and unrolled.",
"The matt effect can be attained by a matt surface of the support or the addition of a matting agent (e.g. polyolefin balls).",
"Thicker films (beyond 20, in particular 40 μm) can be more simply produced by extrusion such as in the flat film process or calendering process.",
"Before rolling, the film is preferably shrink-relieved on a number of annealing rollers, in order to eliminate tensions and anisotropy of the properties.",
"Shrink-relief can also be attained by storage of the film in an oven.",
"In this case, the film should previously be covered with a separating paper, a separating film or another film in order to avoid blocking.",
"The following examples are to illustrate the invention without wishing to limit it.",
"EXAMPLE 1 A polyester with 69 weight % of structural element (I) and 31 weight % of structural element (II) is used.",
"Properties: Vicat softening point 203° C. (ISO 306, 50 N, 120 K/min), bending modulus 2400 MPa (ISO 178, 2 mm/min), yield stress 76 MPa (ISO 527-1 and 2, 50 mm/min), yield strain 6.9% (ISO 527-1 and 2, 50 mm/min), melt mass flow rate 8 g/10 min (MVR, ISO 1133, 330° C., 2.16 kg), heat distortion temperature HDT, Af 173° C. (ISO 75-1 and 2 at 1.8 MPa).",
"100 g of this polyester are dissolved in 400 g of dry tetrahydrofuran at room temperature with stirring.",
"Further, 0.01 g of glycerin monostearate and 0.001 g of copper(II) 1,4,8,11,15,18,22,25-octabutoxy-29H,31H-phthalocyanine are added.",
"The solution is coated onto a 23 μm thick biaxially stretched polyethylene terephthalate film with a “knife over roll”",
"and then dried.",
"The adhesive tape tesa 4389 (12 μm polyester film, coated on each side with 9 g/m 2 of a solvent acrylate adhesive composition and covered on one side with a liner) is laminated onto the 10 μm thick polymer layer.",
"A further polymer layer according to the invention is laminated onto this composite on the adhesive side so that the following structure is obtained: polyethylene terephthalate 23 μm polyester film according to the invention 10 μm acrylate composition 8 μm polyethylene terephthalate 12 μm acrylate composition 8 μm polyester film according to the invention 10 μm Before the deep drawing and punching out, the 23 μm thick polyester film is stripped off.",
"EXAMPLE 2 A polyester with 83 weight % of structural element (I) and 17 weight % of structural element (II) is used.",
"Properties: Vicat softening point 218° C., bending modulus 2400 MPa, yield stress 78 MPa, yield strain 6.9%, melt mass flow rate 5 g/10 min, heat distortion temperature HDT, Af 187° C. The polymer is treated with 0.05 weight % of a color batch (carbon black in standard polycarbonate) and processed to a film with a thickness of 25 μm on a flat film plant (nozzle temperature 280° C., chill roll temperature 150° C.).",
"The film is then shrink-relieved at 150° C. Comparative Example 1 A polycarbonate with the following properties is used: Vicat softening point 145° C., bending modulus 2300 MPa, yield stress 66 MPa, yield strain 6.1%, melt mass flow rate 11 g/10 min (MVR, ISO 1133, 300° C., 1.2 kg), heat distortion temperature HDT, Af 125° C. It is dissolved in methylene chloride and without addition of further additives is processed into a 10 μm thick film and then to the composite with adhesive tape analogously to Example 1.",
"Comparative Example 2 Without addition of a color batch, the polycarbonate from comparative example 1 is processed into a film with a thickness of 25 μm on a flat film plant (nozzle temperature 260° C., chill roll temperature 130° C.) and not shrink-relieved.",
"Comparative Example 3 A polyester of bisphenol A with equal proportions of iso- and terephthalic acid with the following properties is used: Vicat softening point 195° C., bending modulus 2100 MPa, yield stress 69 MPa, yield strain 60%, heat distortion temperature HDT, Af 175° C. It is dissolved in methylene chloride and without addition of further additives is processed into a 10 μm thick film and then to the composite with adhesive tape analogously to Example 1.",
"Because of increasing solution viscosity, the film thickness does not remain constant during manufacture.",
"Assessment of the Films Produced With the exception of that from example 1, the films are rapidly contaminated on the surface by dust.",
"The films are heated with an infrared lamp.",
"The films from examples 1 and 2 rapidly heat up and with those from the comparative examples supplementary use of hot air was necessary in order to reach a sufficiently high temperature for the deep-drawing.",
"The finished shaped membranes are cut out to 13 mm diameter with a punch and bonded on the outer diameter with the support ring and with a coil with connection terminals.",
"Together with permanent magnets, loudspeakers are thus produced.",
"These are subjected to a durability test based on DIN ETS 300019.",
"Under load, the loudspeakers are subjected to various tests such as for example multiple exposure to temperature cycles (−40° C. to 85° C.) at high atmospheric humidity or continuous exposure to 85° C. Each loudspeaker is loaded with an electrical loading with “pink noise”",
"at the nominal capacity of the loudspeaker for 500 hours.",
"At the beginning and end of the 500 hours, the sound quality is subjectively assessed: Sound quality of the membrane from 0 hours 500 hours Example 1 1 1 Example 2 1 1 Comparative example 1 1 3 Comparative example 2 2 3 Comparative example 3 1 1 1 very good, 2 with limitations, 3 failed."
] |
BACKGROUND INFORMATION
[0001] Chip modules are generally familiar. For example, German Patent Application No. DE 102 50 321 describes an array of sensors, the sensors being disposed in part on a plane that is oriented at an incline with respect to a plane defined by a sensor platform, so that an acute angle is provided between the sensor platform and the main plane of extension of the sensor disposed on the inclined plane. In this context, the sensor platform includes in particular the surface of a printed circuit board.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0002] In comparison with the related art, the chip module according to the present invention and the method according to the present invention for producing a chip module have the advantage that it is possible to dispose a chip at an acute angle relative to the first main plane of extension of the chip module in a comparatively simple and cost-effective manner and at the same time the chip is packaged by the mold housing and thus is protected from damaging external influences. The substrate thus simultaneously functions as a chip carrier and connector element on the one hand, and as chip packaging on the other hand. In an advantageous manner, this allows for a chip array that may be implemented in a cost-effective manner, and in which an inclined position of at least one chip relative to the first main plane of extension is required or advantageous. For example, in a magnet module, a magnetic field measurement in different planes is necessary in order to measure a spatial magnetic field. Furthermore, the inclined position of the chip makes it possible to save space parallel to the first main plane of extension. In accordance with the present invention, the first main plane of extension comprises in particular the plane in which the substrate features its main extension. Furthermore, the first main plane of extension also comprises the plane that functions as the connector plane of the substrate. The first main plane of extension is thus also defined by the disposition of bond contacts on the substrate and/or by the main extension of a printed circuit board, on which the substrate is bonded, for example. In an extreme case, the position of the first main plane of extension could also deviate from the position of the main extension of the substrate. The chip includes in particular an electronic and/or microelectronic sensor, preferably an acceleration sensor, a rotation rate sensor, a magnetic field sensor, a pressure sensor, a photo sensor, and/or an electromagnetic antenna. In this context, the sensor includes a sensor substrate of semiconductor material, while the mold housing includes a plastic in particular. The acute angle preferably lies between 5 degrees and 40 degrees, particularly preferably between 10 and 30 degrees and particularly preferably essentially at 25 degrees.
[0003] In accordance with a preferred refinement, it is provided that the chip and/or the chip module comprises an SMD component, the chip featuring in particular contact surfaces that are disposed on a side of the chip facing away from the substrate. Thus, particularly advantageously, it is possible to fit the chip module to printed circuit boards, for example, in a relatively simple and cost-effective manner, in particular in automatic fitting methods. The solderable connection surfaces (in the following, also called contact surfaces) of the chip are preferably connected in an electrically conductive manner to the solderable connection surfaces (in the following, also called bond contacts) of the chip module, so that preferably it is possible to solder the connection surfaces of the chip module to a printed circuit board in a simple manner via soldering globules, and thus an electrical contacting of the chip is made possible. Alternatively, it is conceivable to bond the connection surfaces of the chip module to a printed circuit board via an electrically conductive adhesive agent.
[0004] According to an additional preferred refinement, it is provided that the chip is embedded at least partially in the substrate, in particular the contact surfaces being provided in an exposed manner with regard to the substrate. In this context, the chip is particularly advantageously fixed mechanically by the substrate and protected from external influences, such as dirt, mechanical stress, gases, and chemicals. At the same time, an electrical contacting of the chip is made possible via the contact surfaces that are exposed with regard to the substrate. In this context, exposed with regard to the substrate means in particular that only the substrate does not cover the contact surfaces. However, for contacting, routing, and protection of the contact surfaces, an at least partial covering of the chip is preferably provided and in particular an at least partial covering of the contact surfaces through insulation layers, protective layers, conductive layers, and/or dielectric layers.
[0005] According to an additional preferred refinement, it is provided that the substrate features bond contacts that are preferably connected to a printed circuit board in an electrically conductive manner, so that in an advantageous manner, it is possible to produce a mechanically stable, electrically conductive, and/or machine-manufacturable contact between the printed circuit board and the substrate.
[0006] According to an additional preferred refinement, it is provided that the substrate features at least one additional chip, a third main plane of extension of the additional chip being oriented essentially parallel to the first main plane of extension. Thus, it is particularly advantageously possible to implement in a simple manner an array of chips and additional chips, which include sensors in particular, in different planes, so that it is possible to measure a spatial magnetic field via chips and additional chips in the form of magnetic field sensors, for example. Furthermore, it is conceivable that the additional chip additionally also or alternatively exclusively includes an electronic read-out element, evaluation element, control element, calculation element, storage element, transmission element, and/or receiving element.
[0007] According to an additional preferred refinement, it is provided that the chip module features a conductive layer that in particular is disposed on the side of the substrate featuring the chip and in particular comprises an electrically conductive connection between a contact surface and a bond contact and/or between a contact surface and an additional contact surface of the additional chip, so that in an advantageous manner an electrical evaluation or control of the chip or of the additional chip is made possible via the contacting of the bond contacts. Furthermore, it is possible to network a plurality of chips and/or a plurality of additional chips. The conductive layer includes in particular a conductive coating, which coats the chip module, the substrate, the chip, and/or the additional chip. Preferably, the thickness of the conductive layer is substantially thinner than the chip or the substrate thickness.
[0008] An additional subject matter of the present invention is a method for producing a chip module, a prepatterned carrier element being fitted with at least one chip in a first method step, a molding mass for producing the substrate being disposed on the chip in a second method step such that an acute angle is provided between a first main plane of extension of the substrate and a second main plane of extension of the chip, and the substrate along with the chip being detached from the carrier element in a third method step. In an advantageous manner, the method according to the present invention allows for the sensor module to be manufactured in a significantly simpler and more cost-effective manner as compared to the related art. In particular, in the second method step, both a substrate for mechanically mounting and fixing the chip and a packaging for protection and for insulating the chip from external influences are manufactured in only one single step, in a standardized manufacturing method that is relatively easy to control and is cost-effective. At the same time, an inclination of the second main plane of extension relative to the connection plane is implemented, with the advantages discussed in detail above. In an advantageous manner, the carrier element may be reused to manufacture additional sensor modules according to the present invention. Furthermore, the method according to the present invention allows for chips to be disposed at different angles to the connection plane in a mold housing that features standard housing dimensions and that thus may be used in standard fitting methods or on standard printed circuit boards. In the second method step, an epoxy resin is preferably used as a molding mass, which is preferably deposited and cured in a molding method, such as transfer molding, compression molding, or liquid molding, particularly for the production of the substrate. Alternatively, a resin composite is laminated on as a cohesive layer (sheet molding), so that a coherent composite of a carrier plate and a plastic layer having embedded chips forms in an advantageous manner.
[0009] In accordance with a preferred refinement, it is provided that in a zeroth method step, which temporally is performed before the first method step, the carrier element is prepatterned in such a manner that a surface region to be fitted with the chip features an acute angle relative to a fourth main plane of extension of the carrier element. In an advantageous manner, the chip is thus to be disposed at any angle to the first main plane of extension and/or a plurality of chips is to be disposed in any three-dimensional pattern.
[0010] In accordance with an additional preferred refinement, it is provided that in the zeroth method step, the surface region of the carrier element that is to be fitted with the chip is coated with a film, in particular in a lamination procedure, and/or the carrier element is manufactured from a film that is prepatterned, in particular by hot stamping. In a particularly advantageous manner, the film comprises a film that adheres in particular on both sides, via which the chip is pre-fixed to the carrier element. In order to prevent the film from creasing, the film is advantageously preformed by hot stamping. If the strength or thickness of the film is sufficient, the three-dimensional pattern is produced preferably only in the film, by hot stamping. In this case, the carrier element includes either only the prepatterned film, or the prepatterned film is alternatively additionally deposited on a planar carrier, so that the carrier element includes both the film and the planar carrier. In a particularly preferable manner, the carrier element includes a three-dimensional prepatterned semiconductor wafer that is particularly preferably processed in standard semiconductor methods.
[0011] According to an additional preferred refinement, it is provided that the carrier element is fitted with at least one additional chip in the first method step, preferably a third main plane of extension of the additional chip being oriented essentially parallel to the first and/or fourth main plane of extension. Thus, it is advantageously possible to dispose a plurality of chips and/or additional chips in a three-dimensional pattern, which is preferably oversprayed as the total package along with the molding mass for forming the substrate.
[0012] In accordance with an additional preferred refinement, it is provided that a conductive layer is disposed on the substrate, the chip, and/or the additional chip in a fourth method step, and/or that the substrate is bonded to a printed circuit board in a fifth method step. Particularly advantageously, a plurality of chips and/or additional chips are thus connected together to the printed circuit board in an electrically conductive manner. The conductive layer is preferably deposited and/or patterned in standard semiconductor methods or using commercial standard thin-layer technology.
[0013] In accordance with an additional preferred refinement, it is provided that the carrier element is fitted with a plurality of chips and/or additional chips in the first method step, and/or that the substrate is divided to separate a plurality of chip modules in a sixth method step that is performed temporally in particular before the fifth method step. In an advantageous manner, it is thus possible to manufacture the chip module according to the present invention in a relatively large quantity in a particularly cost-effective manner. Preferably, the fifth method step includes a sawing and/or a laser separation process.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0014] FIGS. 1-4 show schematic sectional views of a first, second, third, and fourth precursor pattern for manufacturing a chip module according to the present invention in accordance with a first specific embodiment of the present invention.
[0015] FIG. 5 shows a schematic sectional view of a chip module according to the present invention in accordance with the first specific embodiment of the present invention.
[0016] FIG. 6 shows a schematic sectional view of a chip module according to the present invention in accordance with a second specific embodiment of the present invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0017] In the various figures, the same parts are always denoted by the same reference numerals and, therefore, are also typically only named or mentioned once in each case.
[0018] In FIGS. 1 through 4 , schematic sectional views of a first, second, third, and fourth precursor pattern for manufacturing a chip module 1 according to the present invention in accordance with a first specific embodiment of the present invention are shown, a first method step being illustrated with the aid of the first specific embodiment shown in FIG. 1 , in which a prepatterned carrier element 8 is fitted with chips 3 and additional chips 30 . Chips 3 and additional chips 30 are respectively designed as SMD components and feature contact surfaces 5 and additional contact surfaces 50 on their sides facing carrier element 8 . Carrier element 8 has a three-dimensional pattern 20 , which is manufactured in particular by hot stamping of a foil in a preceding zeroth method step not shown, on its side fitted with chips 3 and additional chips 30 . Patterns 20 are designed such that a second main plane of extension 3 ′ of chips 3 forms an acute angle 4 with a fourth main plane of extension 8 ′ of carrier element 8 , while third main plane of extension 30 ′ of additional chips 30 is essentially oriented parallel to fourth main plane of extension 8 ′. Chips 3 and additional chips 30 are in particular bonded to carrier element 8 by a foil that adheres on both sides.
[0019] A second method step is shown with the aid of the second precursor pattern illustrated in FIG. 2 , carrier element 8 , chips 3 , and additional chips 30 being sprayed with a molding mass to form a substrate 2 . Chips 3 and additional chips 30 are embedded in substrate 2 in such a manner that only the sides of chips 3 and of additional chips 30 ′ that face carrier element 8 , and thus also contact surfaces 5 and additional contact surfaces 50 , are not covered by the molding mass. Second main plane of extension 3 ′ of chips 3 also forms an obtuse angle 4 with a first main plane of extension 2 ′ of substrate 2 . With the aid of the third precursor pattern illustrated in FIG. 3 , a third method step is illustrated, in which substrate 2 is detached from carrier element 8 along with chips 3 and additional chips 30 after the hardening of the molding mass. The foil that adheres on both sides is designed in a relatively weakly adhering way, so that contact surfaces 5 and additional contact surfaces 50 are now exposed, and in a subsequent fourth method step, which is illustrated with the aid of the fourth precursor pattern illustrated in FIG. 4 , they are covered with a conductive layer 7 and possibly with additional protective layers, insulation layers, and/or dielectric layers. Conductive layer 7 is preferably patterned in such a manner that on the side of substrate 2 featuring chips 3 and additional chips 30 , bond contacts 6 are produced that are connected in an electrically conductive manner to contact surfaces 5 of chips 3 and of additional chips 30 . For routing, a dielectric, such as a polymide, for example, is also optionally deposited on substrate 2 , and is patterned using a photolithographic process. Bond contacts 6 form an SMD component from the fourth precursor pattern, which can be mechanically fitted to a printed circuit board. Additionally, electrically conductive connections between contact surfaces 5 of chips 3 and contact surfaces 5 of additional chips 30 are optionally produced.
[0020] FIG. 5 illustrates schematic sectional views of three chip modules 1 according to the present invention in accordance with the first specific embodiment of the present invention, the first specific embodiment essentially being equivalent to the fourth precursor pattern shown in FIG. 4 , substrate 2 being cut apart in a fifth method step, in a sawing or laser separation process, for example, so that three identical chip modules 1 are produced. Bond contacts 6 of three chip modules 1 are respectively provided with soldering globules 6 ′, so that chip modules 1 may be soldered onto a printed circuit board as an SMD component in a sixth method step, which is not shown. In this context, each chip module 1 has two chips 3 and an additional chip 30 , the two chips 3 being disposed on different pattern surfaces, so that all three modules have a different orientation to each other.
[0021] FIG. 6 shows a schematic sectional view of a chip module 1 according to the present invention, in accordance with a second specific embodiment of the present invention, the second specific embodiment essentially being identical to the first specific embodiment illustrated in FIG. 5 , the second specific embodiment featuring only one single chip 3 and no additional chips 30 , in contrast to the first specific embodiment. | A chip module having a substrate and at least one chip connected to the substrate is provided, the substrate featuring a first main plane of extension and the chip featuring a second main plane of extension, and an acute angle being provided between the first main plane of extension and the second main plane of extension, and the substrate also comprising a mold housing. | Provide a concise summary of the essential information conveyed in the given context. | [
"BACKGROUND INFORMATION [0001] Chip modules are generally familiar.",
"For example, German Patent Application No. DE 102 50 321 describes an array of sensors, the sensors being disposed in part on a plane that is oriented at an incline with respect to a plane defined by a sensor platform, so that an acute angle is provided between the sensor platform and the main plane of extension of the sensor disposed on the inclined plane.",
"In this context, the sensor platform includes in particular the surface of a printed circuit board.",
"SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION [0002] In comparison with the related art, the chip module according to the present invention and the method according to the present invention for producing a chip module have the advantage that it is possible to dispose a chip at an acute angle relative to the first main plane of extension of the chip module in a comparatively simple and cost-effective manner and at the same time the chip is packaged by the mold housing and thus is protected from damaging external influences.",
"The substrate thus simultaneously functions as a chip carrier and connector element on the one hand, and as chip packaging on the other hand.",
"In an advantageous manner, this allows for a chip array that may be implemented in a cost-effective manner, and in which an inclined position of at least one chip relative to the first main plane of extension is required or advantageous.",
"For example, in a magnet module, a magnetic field measurement in different planes is necessary in order to measure a spatial magnetic field.",
"Furthermore, the inclined position of the chip makes it possible to save space parallel to the first main plane of extension.",
"In accordance with the present invention, the first main plane of extension comprises in particular the plane in which the substrate features its main extension.",
"Furthermore, the first main plane of extension also comprises the plane that functions as the connector plane of the substrate.",
"The first main plane of extension is thus also defined by the disposition of bond contacts on the substrate and/or by the main extension of a printed circuit board, on which the substrate is bonded, for example.",
"In an extreme case, the position of the first main plane of extension could also deviate from the position of the main extension of the substrate.",
"The chip includes in particular an electronic and/or microelectronic sensor, preferably an acceleration sensor, a rotation rate sensor, a magnetic field sensor, a pressure sensor, a photo sensor, and/or an electromagnetic antenna.",
"In this context, the sensor includes a sensor substrate of semiconductor material, while the mold housing includes a plastic in particular.",
"The acute angle preferably lies between 5 degrees and 40 degrees, particularly preferably between 10 and 30 degrees and particularly preferably essentially at 25 degrees.",
"[0003] In accordance with a preferred refinement, it is provided that the chip and/or the chip module comprises an SMD component, the chip featuring in particular contact surfaces that are disposed on a side of the chip facing away from the substrate.",
"Thus, particularly advantageously, it is possible to fit the chip module to printed circuit boards, for example, in a relatively simple and cost-effective manner, in particular in automatic fitting methods.",
"The solderable connection surfaces (in the following, also called contact surfaces) of the chip are preferably connected in an electrically conductive manner to the solderable connection surfaces (in the following, also called bond contacts) of the chip module, so that preferably it is possible to solder the connection surfaces of the chip module to a printed circuit board in a simple manner via soldering globules, and thus an electrical contacting of the chip is made possible.",
"Alternatively, it is conceivable to bond the connection surfaces of the chip module to a printed circuit board via an electrically conductive adhesive agent.",
"[0004] According to an additional preferred refinement, it is provided that the chip is embedded at least partially in the substrate, in particular the contact surfaces being provided in an exposed manner with regard to the substrate.",
"In this context, the chip is particularly advantageously fixed mechanically by the substrate and protected from external influences, such as dirt, mechanical stress, gases, and chemicals.",
"At the same time, an electrical contacting of the chip is made possible via the contact surfaces that are exposed with regard to the substrate.",
"In this context, exposed with regard to the substrate means in particular that only the substrate does not cover the contact surfaces.",
"However, for contacting, routing, and protection of the contact surfaces, an at least partial covering of the chip is preferably provided and in particular an at least partial covering of the contact surfaces through insulation layers, protective layers, conductive layers, and/or dielectric layers.",
"[0005] According to an additional preferred refinement, it is provided that the substrate features bond contacts that are preferably connected to a printed circuit board in an electrically conductive manner, so that in an advantageous manner, it is possible to produce a mechanically stable, electrically conductive, and/or machine-manufacturable contact between the printed circuit board and the substrate.",
"[0006] According to an additional preferred refinement, it is provided that the substrate features at least one additional chip, a third main plane of extension of the additional chip being oriented essentially parallel to the first main plane of extension.",
"Thus, it is particularly advantageously possible to implement in a simple manner an array of chips and additional chips, which include sensors in particular, in different planes, so that it is possible to measure a spatial magnetic field via chips and additional chips in the form of magnetic field sensors, for example.",
"Furthermore, it is conceivable that the additional chip additionally also or alternatively exclusively includes an electronic read-out element, evaluation element, control element, calculation element, storage element, transmission element, and/or receiving element.",
"[0007] According to an additional preferred refinement, it is provided that the chip module features a conductive layer that in particular is disposed on the side of the substrate featuring the chip and in particular comprises an electrically conductive connection between a contact surface and a bond contact and/or between a contact surface and an additional contact surface of the additional chip, so that in an advantageous manner an electrical evaluation or control of the chip or of the additional chip is made possible via the contacting of the bond contacts.",
"Furthermore, it is possible to network a plurality of chips and/or a plurality of additional chips.",
"The conductive layer includes in particular a conductive coating, which coats the chip module, the substrate, the chip, and/or the additional chip.",
"Preferably, the thickness of the conductive layer is substantially thinner than the chip or the substrate thickness.",
"[0008] An additional subject matter of the present invention is a method for producing a chip module, a prepatterned carrier element being fitted with at least one chip in a first method step, a molding mass for producing the substrate being disposed on the chip in a second method step such that an acute angle is provided between a first main plane of extension of the substrate and a second main plane of extension of the chip, and the substrate along with the chip being detached from the carrier element in a third method step.",
"In an advantageous manner, the method according to the present invention allows for the sensor module to be manufactured in a significantly simpler and more cost-effective manner as compared to the related art.",
"In particular, in the second method step, both a substrate for mechanically mounting and fixing the chip and a packaging for protection and for insulating the chip from external influences are manufactured in only one single step, in a standardized manufacturing method that is relatively easy to control and is cost-effective.",
"At the same time, an inclination of the second main plane of extension relative to the connection plane is implemented, with the advantages discussed in detail above.",
"In an advantageous manner, the carrier element may be reused to manufacture additional sensor modules according to the present invention.",
"Furthermore, the method according to the present invention allows for chips to be disposed at different angles to the connection plane in a mold housing that features standard housing dimensions and that thus may be used in standard fitting methods or on standard printed circuit boards.",
"In the second method step, an epoxy resin is preferably used as a molding mass, which is preferably deposited and cured in a molding method, such as transfer molding, compression molding, or liquid molding, particularly for the production of the substrate.",
"Alternatively, a resin composite is laminated on as a cohesive layer (sheet molding), so that a coherent composite of a carrier plate and a plastic layer having embedded chips forms in an advantageous manner.",
"[0009] In accordance with a preferred refinement, it is provided that in a zeroth method step, which temporally is performed before the first method step, the carrier element is prepatterned in such a manner that a surface region to be fitted with the chip features an acute angle relative to a fourth main plane of extension of the carrier element.",
"In an advantageous manner, the chip is thus to be disposed at any angle to the first main plane of extension and/or a plurality of chips is to be disposed in any three-dimensional pattern.",
"[0010] In accordance with an additional preferred refinement, it is provided that in the zeroth method step, the surface region of the carrier element that is to be fitted with the chip is coated with a film, in particular in a lamination procedure, and/or the carrier element is manufactured from a film that is prepatterned, in particular by hot stamping.",
"In a particularly advantageous manner, the film comprises a film that adheres in particular on both sides, via which the chip is pre-fixed to the carrier element.",
"In order to prevent the film from creasing, the film is advantageously preformed by hot stamping.",
"If the strength or thickness of the film is sufficient, the three-dimensional pattern is produced preferably only in the film, by hot stamping.",
"In this case, the carrier element includes either only the prepatterned film, or the prepatterned film is alternatively additionally deposited on a planar carrier, so that the carrier element includes both the film and the planar carrier.",
"In a particularly preferable manner, the carrier element includes a three-dimensional prepatterned semiconductor wafer that is particularly preferably processed in standard semiconductor methods.",
"[0011] According to an additional preferred refinement, it is provided that the carrier element is fitted with at least one additional chip in the first method step, preferably a third main plane of extension of the additional chip being oriented essentially parallel to the first and/or fourth main plane of extension.",
"Thus, it is advantageously possible to dispose a plurality of chips and/or additional chips in a three-dimensional pattern, which is preferably oversprayed as the total package along with the molding mass for forming the substrate.",
"[0012] In accordance with an additional preferred refinement, it is provided that a conductive layer is disposed on the substrate, the chip, and/or the additional chip in a fourth method step, and/or that the substrate is bonded to a printed circuit board in a fifth method step.",
"Particularly advantageously, a plurality of chips and/or additional chips are thus connected together to the printed circuit board in an electrically conductive manner.",
"The conductive layer is preferably deposited and/or patterned in standard semiconductor methods or using commercial standard thin-layer technology.",
"[0013] In accordance with an additional preferred refinement, it is provided that the carrier element is fitted with a plurality of chips and/or additional chips in the first method step, and/or that the substrate is divided to separate a plurality of chip modules in a sixth method step that is performed temporally in particular before the fifth method step.",
"In an advantageous manner, it is thus possible to manufacture the chip module according to the present invention in a relatively large quantity in a particularly cost-effective manner.",
"Preferably, the fifth method step includes a sawing and/or a laser separation process.",
"BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS [0014] FIGS. 1-4 show schematic sectional views of a first, second, third, and fourth precursor pattern for manufacturing a chip module according to the present invention in accordance with a first specific embodiment of the present invention.",
"[0015] FIG. 5 shows a schematic sectional view of a chip module according to the present invention in accordance with the first specific embodiment of the present invention.",
"[0016] FIG. 6 shows a schematic sectional view of a chip module according to the present invention in accordance with a second specific embodiment of the present invention.",
"DETAILED DESCRIPTION [0017] In the various figures, the same parts are always denoted by the same reference numerals and, therefore, are also typically only named or mentioned once in each case.",
"[0018] In FIGS. 1 through 4 , schematic sectional views of a first, second, third, and fourth precursor pattern for manufacturing a chip module 1 according to the present invention in accordance with a first specific embodiment of the present invention are shown, a first method step being illustrated with the aid of the first specific embodiment shown in FIG. 1 , in which a prepatterned carrier element 8 is fitted with chips 3 and additional chips 30 .",
"Chips 3 and additional chips 30 are respectively designed as SMD components and feature contact surfaces 5 and additional contact surfaces 50 on their sides facing carrier element 8 .",
"Carrier element 8 has a three-dimensional pattern 20 , which is manufactured in particular by hot stamping of a foil in a preceding zeroth method step not shown, on its side fitted with chips 3 and additional chips 30 .",
"Patterns 20 are designed such that a second main plane of extension 3 ′ of chips 3 forms an acute angle 4 with a fourth main plane of extension 8 ′ of carrier element 8 , while third main plane of extension 30 ′ of additional chips 30 is essentially oriented parallel to fourth main plane of extension 8 ′.",
"Chips 3 and additional chips 30 are in particular bonded to carrier element 8 by a foil that adheres on both sides.",
"[0019] A second method step is shown with the aid of the second precursor pattern illustrated in FIG. 2 , carrier element 8 , chips 3 , and additional chips 30 being sprayed with a molding mass to form a substrate 2 .",
"Chips 3 and additional chips 30 are embedded in substrate 2 in such a manner that only the sides of chips 3 and of additional chips 30 ′ that face carrier element 8 , and thus also contact surfaces 5 and additional contact surfaces 50 , are not covered by the molding mass.",
"Second main plane of extension 3 ′ of chips 3 also forms an obtuse angle 4 with a first main plane of extension 2 ′ of substrate 2 .",
"With the aid of the third precursor pattern illustrated in FIG. 3 , a third method step is illustrated, in which substrate 2 is detached from carrier element 8 along with chips 3 and additional chips 30 after the hardening of the molding mass.",
"The foil that adheres on both sides is designed in a relatively weakly adhering way, so that contact surfaces 5 and additional contact surfaces 50 are now exposed, and in a subsequent fourth method step, which is illustrated with the aid of the fourth precursor pattern illustrated in FIG. 4 , they are covered with a conductive layer 7 and possibly with additional protective layers, insulation layers, and/or dielectric layers.",
"Conductive layer 7 is preferably patterned in such a manner that on the side of substrate 2 featuring chips 3 and additional chips 30 , bond contacts 6 are produced that are connected in an electrically conductive manner to contact surfaces 5 of chips 3 and of additional chips 30 .",
"For routing, a dielectric, such as a polymide, for example, is also optionally deposited on substrate 2 , and is patterned using a photolithographic process.",
"Bond contacts 6 form an SMD component from the fourth precursor pattern, which can be mechanically fitted to a printed circuit board.",
"Additionally, electrically conductive connections between contact surfaces 5 of chips 3 and contact surfaces 5 of additional chips 30 are optionally produced.",
"[0020] FIG. 5 illustrates schematic sectional views of three chip modules 1 according to the present invention in accordance with the first specific embodiment of the present invention, the first specific embodiment essentially being equivalent to the fourth precursor pattern shown in FIG. 4 , substrate 2 being cut apart in a fifth method step, in a sawing or laser separation process, for example, so that three identical chip modules 1 are produced.",
"Bond contacts 6 of three chip modules 1 are respectively provided with soldering globules 6 ′, so that chip modules 1 may be soldered onto a printed circuit board as an SMD component in a sixth method step, which is not shown.",
"In this context, each chip module 1 has two chips 3 and an additional chip 30 , the two chips 3 being disposed on different pattern surfaces, so that all three modules have a different orientation to each other.",
"[0021] FIG. 6 shows a schematic sectional view of a chip module 1 according to the present invention, in accordance with a second specific embodiment of the present invention, the second specific embodiment essentially being identical to the first specific embodiment illustrated in FIG. 5 , the second specific embodiment featuring only one single chip 3 and no additional chips 30 , in contrast to the first specific embodiment."
] |
[0001] This application is a continuation-in-part of application Ser. No. 10/695,299, filed Oct. 27, 2003, which claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 60/423,026, filed Nov. 1, 2002, the full disclosures of which are incorporated herein by reference.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0002] 1. Field of the Invention
[0003] The present invention relates generally to medical methods and systems. More particularly, the present invention relates to methods and systems for facilitating, accelerating, and stabilizing tooth movement before, during and after orthodontic procedures.
[0004] Orthodontic procedures suffer from four major problems. First, the braces or other appliances which effect the tooth movement must be worn for long periods of time. Second, even after a successful orthodontic treatment, the teeth often relapse towards their original positions once the braces or other treatment appliances are removed. Third, the mechanically induced movement of teeth can cause significant discomfort to the patient. Fourth, the wearing of braces is esthetically displeasing, uncomfortable, and compromises oral hygiene. While recently introduced clear plastic visible “aligners” largely overcome the latter problems, such aligners are not suitable for all patients. Moreover, the aligners do not reduce treatment time, do not reduce the risk of relapse, and do not lessen the pain associated with tooth movement in the jaw.
[0005] For these reasons, it would be desirable to provide improved orthodontic technologies for moving teeth which overcome at least some of the problems noted above. In particular, it would be desirable to provide orthodontic methods and systems which can reduce the time necessary to effect a desired tooth movement, which can reduce the pain associated with tooth movement, which can reduce the tendency of teeth to relapse to their original positions after the orthodontic treatment is stopped, and/or which can reduce the time in which unsightly braces need to be worn.
[0006] 2. Description of Background Art
[0007] Nicozisis et al. (2000) Clin. Orthod. Res. 3:192-201, describe experiments which demonstrate the presence of endogenous relaxin in cranial tissue of mice and speculate that relaxin may be used as an adjunct to orthodontic or surgical therapy to promote manipulation of sutural tissues or affect stability. The application of electrical current to stimulate bone growth and remodeling in orthodontic procedures is described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,854,865; 4,519,779; and 4,153,060. Appliances for local and systematic drug delivery to the gingival tissues are described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,159,498, 5,633,000; 5,616,315; 5,575,655; 5,447,725; 5,294,004; 4,959,220; 4,933,183; 4,892,736; 4,685,883; and Re. 34,656. Polymeric shell appliances for repositioning teeth are described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,975,893. The full disclosures of each of the above publications and U.S. patents are incorporated herein by reference.
BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0008] The present invention provides improved methods and systems for repositioning teeth in patients, including orthodontic tooth movement. In addition, the present invention provides improved methods and systems for stabilizing teeth which have already been repositioned in order to reduce or eliminate the tendency of the repositioned teeth to relapse, i.e., move back toward their prior positions. Furthermore, the present invention provides orthodontic kits. The methods for repositioning teeth comprise applying force to at least one tooth, and typically to more than one tooth and/or to different teeth over time, in the jaw of the subject (e.g., a patient). For both repositioning or stabilizing, tissue remodeling and/or treating relapse an angiogenic substance is administered to the patient to promote remodeling of the periodontal tissue surrounding the root(s) of the tooth or teeth to be moved. Preferred substance(s) will bind to and activate the relaxin receptor in the tissues which anchor the teeth or other craniofacial structures. Most preferred is relaxin or an analog or mimetic thereof which combines tissue remodeling activity with angiogenic activity. Analogs include peptides, oligomers, fragments, and the like which comprise the active region of native relaxin. Mimetics of relaxin include small molecule drugs, typically below 2 kD, designed to mimic the activity of native relaxin. Alternatively, substance(s) with predominantly angiogenic activity could be selected, such as VEGF, bFGF, estrogen, nitric oxide (NO), naltrexone, or the like. Further alternatively, collagenases or other tissue-softening enzymes could be utilized to promote periodontal tissue remodeling according to the present invention. In some instances, it may be desirable to combine two or more tissue remodeling and/or angiogenic substance(s) having differing activities. In other instances it may be desirable to deliver different tissue remodeling and/or angiogenic substance(s) at different times during the orthodontic treatment and/or to different regions of the periodontal tissue.
[0009] One aspect of the present invention provides a method for treating relapse in a subject, the method comprising optionally applying force to at least one tooth in a jaw of the subject, and administering at least one tissue remodeling and/or an angiogenic substance to the subject to promote remodeling of periodontal tissue surrounding a root of the tooth, wherein the method results in at least 10% less relapse in the subject compared to treatment with a placebo. In one embodiment, the method results in at least 10% less rotational relapse in the subject compared to treatment with a placebo. In another embodiment, the method results in at least 10% to 40% less relapse (e.g., rotational relapse) in the subject compared to treatment with a placebo. In another embodiment, the method results in at least 40% to 80% less relapse (e.g., rotational relapse) in the subject compared to treatment with a placebo. In yet another embodiment, the method results in about 10%-100% less relapse (e.g., rotational relapse) in the subject compared to treatment with a placebo. Preferably, the substance is relaxin or an analog or mimetic thereof. Relaxin can be administered, for example, locally or systemically. In this method, the substance can be administered before the force is applied, while the force is applied, and/or after the force is applied. Preferably, the force is applied over a continuous time period. Generally, force can be applied in a variety of ways, for example, providing the subject with a removable appliance (e.g., positioners, aligners, retainers, trays, etc.) or fixed appliance (e.g., brackets, bands, wires, auxiliaries, tubing, springs, coil springs, elastomeric ties, elastomaric modules, power chains, elastomeric threads, magnets, etc.)
[0010] Another aspect of the invention provides a method for accelerating orthodontic tooth movement in a subject, the method comprising applying force to at least one tooth in a jaw of the subject, and administering at least one tissue remodeling and/or an angiogenic substance to the subject to promote remodeling of periodontal tissue surrounding a root of the tooth, thereby accelerating said orthodontic tooth movement. Preferably, the substance is relaxin or an analog or mimetic thereof and can be administered, for example, locally or systemically. Similarly, in this method, the substance can be administered before the force is applied, while the force is applied, and/or after the force is applied. Preferably, the force is applied over a continuous time period. Further, force can be applied by providing the subject with a removable or fixed appliance (supra) or other methods.
[0011] The term “placebo” refers to a drug with no active ingredient, i.e., an inactive substance or treatment that looks the same as, and is given the same way as, an active drug or treatment being tested. The effects of the active drug or treatment are compared to the effects of the placebo.
[0012] The term “relapse” refers to the movement of teeth back to their original position. This includes all types of movement such as tipping, rotations, extrusions, intrusions, bodily movement, crowded up again/broken interproximal contacts, spaces opening, intruding back up after being pulled down, etc. A relapse of space opening may occur after the closure of an extraction space due to the compression of the gingiva. When looking at relapse it is possible to measure the lower anterior cuspid to cuspid using the irregularity index (see below) and to measure the crowding of the teeth (i.e., how much mesial-distal overlapping there is between contact points, usually measured in millimeters). Orthodontic rotation usually refers to motion around the long axis of the tooth. Orthodontically rotated teeth have a tendency to relapse (i.e., rotational relapse). The tendency of rotated teeth to relapse after treatment following retention is partially because of the supracrestal fibers which are stretched during rotational correction and which remodel extremely slowly. The elastic supracrestal fibers can exert forces capable of displacing a tooth over one year, or more, following orthodontic appliance removal. For a detailed description of the various types of orthodontic tooth movement, see William R. Proffit, Contemporary Orthodontics (1999), Chapter 18, Elsevier Science, which is incorporated herein by reference.
[0013] Another aspect of the invention provides an orthodontic kit which comprises a structure mountable on or over at least a portion of at least one tooth in a jaw of a subject, wherein the structure applies force to at least one tooth in the jaw; a tissue remodeling and/or an angiogenic substance capable of remodeling the periodontium (e.g., gingiva, periodontal ligament (PDL), bone) near a root of the tooth; and instructions for delivery of the substance to the subject. The instructions can be provided with the kit or separately. In one embodiment, the structure is mountable over at least a portion of at least two teeth. The structure can be selected from a variety of appliances such as positioners, aligners, retainers, trays, brackets, bands, wires, auxiliaries, tubing, springs, coil springs, elastomeric ties, elastomaric modules, power chains, elastomeric threads, magnets and the like. The structure can be positioned over a portion of the jaw, over the entire jaw, over at least two teeth in the jaw, over all teeth in the jaw, or combination or variations thereof. Preferably, the substance is relaxin or an analog or mimetic thereof. As such, the substance can be stored in a separate container or within the structure itself. The structure may comprise a porous material (e.g., chamber) which releases the substance at a controlled rate over time.
[0014] The term “relaxin” means human relaxin, including intact full length relaxin or a portion of the relaxin molecule that retains biological activity (as described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,023,321, preferably recombinant human relaxin (H2)) and other active agents with relaxin-like activity, such as Relaxin and portions that retain biological activity as Relaxin-like factor (as described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,911,997 at SEQ ID NOS: 3 and 4, and column 5, line 27-column 6, line 4), relaxin analogs and portions that retain biological activity (as described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,811,395 at SEQ ID NOS: 1 and 2, and column 3, lines 16-40), and agents that competitively displace bound relaxin from a receptor. Relaxin can be made by any method known to those skilled in the art, for example, as described in any of U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,759,807; 4,835,251 and co-pending U.S. Ser. Nos. 07/908,766 (PCT US90/02085) and 08/080,354 (PCT US94/0699).
[0015] The tissue remodeling and/or angiogenic substance(s) will be delivered at a delivery rate and a total dosage which are selected to facilitate tooth repositioning and tissue remodeling. Typically, the dosage rates will be in the range from 1 ng to 500 μg per day, usually from 10 ng/day to 20 μg/day, preferably from 20 ng/day to 10 μg/day. When treating relapse, relaxin can be administered, for example, locally. Local administration includes, but is not limited to, topical delivery of relaxin on gingival tissue near the tooth and gingival injection. Topical delivery can be accomplished, for example, by releasing relaxin from a controlled release device engaged against the gingival tissue or by spreading a fluid substance over the gingival tissue. For example, relaxin can be topically delivered at about 50 μg or more per treated tooth, such that enough relaxin is delivered to all the proper tissues. As such, relaxin can be topically delivered by spreading a fluid substance over the gingival tissue or by supplying relaxin to the gingival tissue via a patch. Local administration can also be accomplished via gingival injection. In one embodiment, relaxin is injected into gingival tissue at about 100 ng to 1 mg per treated tooth. In another embodiment, relaxin is injected into gingival tissue at 50 μg per treated tooth. Relaxin can also be locally administering via an implantable pump. For example, with an implantable pump, relaxin can be delivered at a rate of administration of about 10 μg per hour which may last for about 8 hours. Relaxin may also be administered systemically which includes administration of relaxin to the blood stream. The dosage and other aspects of any type of relaxin delivery may be adjusted from time-to-time in response to the effectiveness of treatment, such as the resistance of a particular tooth or group of teeth, where the dosage might be increased if resistance is not sufficiently reduced in response to an initial dosage. When accelerating orthodontic tooth movement, relaxin may also be administered locally or systemically.
[0016] The substance(s) may be delivered at any point during the orthodontic treatment where tooth repositioning and/or tissue remodeling may be promoted. For example, the substance(s) may be applied prior to any application of force intended to move the teeth. Additionally or alternatively, the substance(s) may be applied during all or any portion of the time during which force is being applied to move the teeth. Further additionally or alternatively, the substance(s) may be applied after the teeth have been repositioned to a final desired configuration. In the latter case, application of the substance(s) may be particularly effective for promoting tissue remodeling in order to reduce the risk of relapse. In such instances, the substance(s) may be delivered using retainers or other appliances intended to help maintain the teeth in their desired final configuration. When being delivered to inhibit relapse, the remodeling and/or angiogenic substance(s) may be delivered for a limited period of time in a limited period before and/or immediately following the end of the orthodontic procedure or may be delivered continuously or periodically for long periods of time or indefinitely following the end of the orthodontic procedure. For example, the substance(s) may be delivered to some or preferably all of the regions of the gingiva where teeth have been moved in order to promote stabilization and remodeling of the tissue, usually over a period of one to eight weeks, more usually two to six weeks prior to the end of treatment.
[0017] The teeth may be repositioned by any conventional orthodontic appliance intended for applying force to move teeth. In particular, the present invention is compatible with both the use of wire and bracket systems, commonly referred to as “braces,” as well as with newer systems employing removable appliances for repositioning teeth, such as the Invisalign® System (available from Align Technology, Inc., Santa Clara, Calif.) and the “Red White & and Blue Retainer” system (available from Sybron Dental Specialties, Inc., Irvine, Calif.). The present invention will also be useful with dental “positioners” which are elastomeric appliances having pre-formed tooth-receiving cavities where the patient bites into the elastomeric appliance in order to force tooth movement. The present invention may be used with dental retainers which are polymeric shell appliances typically used to maintain a final, desired tooth configuration and prevent relapse (e.g., the Essix™ retainer or appliance by Raintree Essix, LLC). When used with dental repositioning appliances of any type, the application of the tissue remodeling and/or angiogenic substance(s) according to the present invention will usually both facilitate tooth movement by modifying the tissue structures within the periodontal tissue which anchor the teeth and also promoting tissue remodeling which allows such tissue structures to accommodate the repositioned teeth with less tendency toward relapse. The present invention may be used with any one or more of the following appliances including, but not limited to positioners, aligners, retainers, trays, brackets, bands, wires, auxiliaries, tubing, springs, coil springs, elastomeric ties, elastomeric modules, power chains, elastomeric threads, magnets and implants (including microimplants). For example, implants and micro implants can be used in orthodontics to act as anchorage means. As such, elastomeric threads and/or chains and coil springs are tied from these implants to one or more teeth in order to move the teeth. The implants provide anchorage and do not tax the posterior teeth when retracting anterior teeth. The implants also provide anchorage for intruding teeth that are super-erupted. Additionally, implants can be surface coated for the purpose of improving their oseo-integration (fusion to alveolar bone).
[0018] The substance(s) of the present invention may be applied and administered in a wide variety of ways. Most simply, the substance(s) could be “painted” or otherwise topically applied to the patient's gingiva using a conventional single-use applicator such as a swab, brush, syringe, or the like. The substance(s) may be prepared in a conventional form of topical composition, such as a gel, cream, ointment, or other fluid or liquid substance. Alternatively, the substance(s) could be administered by injecting into the periodontal tissue. Additionally, the substance(s) could be delivered using a patch or other appliance which is worn on the teeth or gingiva, optionally being formed as part of the same appliance which is used to move the teeth, e.g., a bracket or removable appliance (e.g., shell applicance) or retainer. In such instances, the substance(s) may be incorporated into conventional reservoirs (e.g., drug reservoir) which both maintain a supply of the substance(s) and which release the substance(s) at a controlled rate, over time, to target sites on the gingiva. Suitable drug delivery structures for delivering the substance(s) to the patient gingiva are described in the patent and medical literature, see, e.g., U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,159,498, 5,575,655; 5,194,003; 4,933,182; and 4,685,883, the full disclosures of which are incorporated herein by reference.
[0019] In some instances, it may be desirable to provide for enhanced penetration of the substance(s) into the gingiva. For example, the substance(s) could be formulated with tissue penetration or permeation enhancers, such as dimethylsulfoxide (DMSO). Alternatively or additionally, the substance(s) can be delivered while applying energy in a manner to promote tissue penetration, including the application of an electric current in order to achieve electroporation or iontophoresis, and/or the application of ultrasound energy. The currents needed to provide for electroporation are relatively low, typically around 0.1 mA or lower can be provided by batteries contained within the delivery structure or alternatively by external structures which are periodically applied to the gingiva or appliances present over the gingiva. For example, the methods of the present invention may comprise applying an electric current to the periodontal tissue surrounding the root of a tooth, wherein the applied current has a current density in the range from from 0.5 μA/mm 2 to 6 μA/mm 2 . Similarly, ultrasound-enhanced substance delivery can be effected by transducers incorporated into the delivery appliances and/or provided by external appliances. Suitable ultrasound conditions are from 20 kHz to 100 kHz at energy levels of one to ten J/cm 2 .
[0020] A particular advantage of the present invention is that particular teeth can be treated with the substance(s) while other teeth in the same jaw remain untreated. In this way, those teeth which are to be moved at any point during the course of orthodontic treatment may be “relaxed” and prepared for movement while other teeth which are needed as “anchor teeth” remain untreated. In this way, the wire and bracket system, removable aligner, or the like, may be anchored on those teeth which have not been treated with the substance(s), while those teeth which are intended to be moved may be treated and more readily moved. Of course, during a normal orthodontic treatment, different teeth will be targeted for movement at different times. The present invention allows only those teeth which are intended to be moved at any particular time to be treated at that time while other teeth in the dentition remain untreated during that time and available as anchor teeth for performing the orthodontic treatment.
[0021] The present invention may also advantageously be combined with other orthodontic treatment protocols, such as electroosteogenesis where a small electrical current is applied to the gingiva or jaw to stimulate the tissues. The combination of the substance(s) with such electroosteogenesis could provide tooth movement which may be improved over that achieved with either approach alone. Moreover, the application of the electric current might act to provide “electroporation” and enhance the uptake of the substance(s) into the periodontal tissues, as described above.
[0022] In a further aspect of the present invention, improved orthodontic treatment methods are provided. The orthodontic treatment methods are of the type where at least one tooth in a patient jaw is repositioned. The improvement comprises administering at least one tissue remodeling and/or an angiogenic substance to the patient before, during, or after the force has been applied. The preferred aspects of this method are generally the same as described above.
[0023] The present invention still further provides oral delivery appliances comprising a structure and a tissue remodeling and/or an angiogenic substance(s). The structure is mountable on or over at least a portion of a patient gingiva, and the substance(s) is carried by the structure so that said substance(s) is release into at least a region of the gingiva while the structure is mounted on or over the gingiva. Typically, the delivery appliance mounts over the gingiva of an entire jaw, but in some instances it may mount over the gingiva of less than the entire jaw. Typically, the structure will include at least a portion which engages or mounts over the gingiva adjacent the roots of the target teeth, typically from one to twelve teeth, usually from one to six teeth, often from one to five teeth, and sometimes only a single tooth. The appliance may be in the form of a patch which adheres to the gingiva, a shell which is removably placeable over the teeth in the gingiva, or the like. The use of patches for delivery of the substance(s) may be particularly advantageous since the patches can be cut to size in order to control dosage and/or delivery area to the gingiva. Such modified patches may be applied or adhered directly to the gingiva or alternatively may be positioned beneath a retainer which is worn to maintain the positions of the teeth. When wire and bracket orthodontic appliances are used, the delivery appliance may be formed to mount on the wire or onto the bracket, may be incorporated as part of the bracket or wire, or may be some combination thereof. The relaxin or other tissue remodeling and/or angiogenic substance may be incorporated into the oral delivery appliance in a variety of ways. Most commonly, the relaxin will be in a liquid, gel, or other releasable form which is incorporated into a time-release structure to apply the substance to the gingiva at a desired dosage rate. For example, the substance(s) may be incorporated into a porous structure and/or in a reservoir which is covered by a porous structure. In either case, the porous structure acts as a rate-controlling membrane or barrier to achieve the desired delivery rate. Alternatively, the substance(s) may be present in a biodegradable matrix which degrades in the oral environment over time to achieve a desired release rate of the substance. Suitable degradable substances include polymers, such as glycolic acid polymers and related materials.
[0024] In a still further aspect of the present invention, topical oral compositions comprise a carrier and a tissue remodeling and/or an angiogenic substance(s). The carrier is of the type which may be topically applied to a patient's gingiva, typically being in the form of a gel, cream, ointment, microemulsion or other liquid. The tissue remodeling and/or an angiogenic substance(s) may be any of the substance(s) listed above. The composition may be provided in any conventional applicator, such as a tube, syringe, bottle, or the like, and will be maintained in a sterile condition within the applicator.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0025] FIG. 1 illustrates an oral tissue remodeling and/or an angiogenic substance(s) delivery appliance constructed in accordance with the principles of the present invention, in the form of a patch.
[0026] FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view taken along line 2 - 2 of FIG. 1 .
[0027] FIG. 3 illustrates the use of the patch of FIG. 1 in a first exemplary protocol according to the present invention.
[0028] FIG. 4 illustrates the use of the patch of FIG. 1 in a second exemplary protocol according to the present invention.
[0029] FIG. 5 illustrates the use of a polymeric shell appliance for repositioning teeth and delivering a tissue remodeling and/or an angiogenic substance(s) according to the principles of the present invention.
[0030] FIG. 6 is a photograph illustrating the section of the incisor which was excised for use in the push out testing described in the Experimental Section.
[0031] FIG. 7 is a photograph illustrating the test equipment used for the push out testing.
[0032] FIG. 8 is a graph showing the results of the push out testing.
[0033] FIG. 9 is a photograph showing how the tooth wiggle testing was performed.
[0034] FIGS. 10-13 are graphs showing the results of the pull out testing.
[0035] FIG. 14 is a graph showing the results of the tooth wiggle testing.
[0036] FIG. 15 illustrates the results of the dose response testing.
[0037] FIG. 16 depicts landmark metal pins in the bone of the roof of the mouth and in the incisors of a rat (e.g., the 1st molar is pulled forward by an appliance connecting the 1st molar and incisor).
[0038] FIG. 17 shows a graph of the data from two relaxin treated groups (pump vs. injection). The data from the two groups was combined and compared to vehicle control.
[0039] FIG. 18 shows a diagram of the appliance used in a dog.
[0040] FIG. 19 shows an activated appliance in a dog.
[0041] FIG. 20 illustrates a procedure called fiberotomy in which the gingival fibers attached to the tooth are cut down to the alveolar bone.
[0042] FIG. 21 shows a graph that compares individual animals from a gingival injection group (i.e., injected with relaxin) to a group treated with fiberotomy (positive control) and a negative control group. As shown, five out of eight animals provided similar results as the fiberotomy group while three out of eight animals were above the controls. (See legend on FIG. 23 .)
[0043] FIG. 22 shows a graph that compares the mean of the gingival injection group from FIG. 21 with the fiberotomy group (positive control) and the negative control group. As shown, the positive control group had significantly less relapse than the negative control group. The group injected with relaxin showed results intermediate between the negative and positive control groups.
[0044] FIG. 23 shows a reevaluation of FIG. 22 . The data were plotted as medians instead of means (i.e., as shown in FIG. 22 ). This reduces the influence of outliers and allows trends to be seen better.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
[0045] The present invention provides improved and facilitated orthodontic treatment by delivering tissue remodeling and/or an angiogenic substance(s) to periodontal tissue in which the teeth to be moved are rooted or anchored. As used hereinafter, “periodontal tissue” or “periodontium” will refer to the connective tissue within the periodontal tissues, specifically including the gingiva and periodontal ligaments (PDL) which anchor the teeth in the bone. The periodontium also includes the bone near the root of a tooth. The application of the tissue remodeling and/or an angiogenic substance(s) to the periodontium will both loosen the tissue and ligaments as well as promote remodeling of the tissue during and after orthodontic treatment.
[0046] The tissue remodeling and/or angiogenic substance(s) may be delivered to the periodontal tissue in a variety of ways, including local administration. For example, the substance can be administered through topical delivery by spreading a fluid substance over the gingival tissue, topical delivery via a patch, topical delivery to the gingival tissue near the tooth from a controlled release device engaged against the gingival tissue, topical delivery via an implantable pump, gingival injection, and the like, continuously, periodically, and combinations thereof. Thus, topical delivery may be achieved using a conventional surface applicator, such as a brush, swab, syringe, squeeze tube, sponge, or other similar device or by using various controlled release devices, such as retainers, patches, orthodontic brackets and wires, and other appliances (e.g., a removable or fixed appliance, that comprises a reservoir which releases a substance to gingival tissue, such as positioners, aligners, retainers, trays, brackets, bands, wires, auxiliaries, tubing, springs, coil springs, elastomeric ties, elastomaric modules, power chains, elastomeric threads, magnets and the like) which may be positioned on or over the teeth and which have been modified in order to release the substance(s) to the gingiva. In some cases, it will be desired to deliver the drug into the gingival margin which is the line or groove along the gingiva-tooth interface. Substances may be applied as part of formulations which are delivered over the gingiva and/or into the sulcus. In some instances, it may be desirable to plant small substance delivery structures directly into the sulcus in a manner analogous to the delivery of antibiotics using systems (e.g., the PerioChip® available from Dexcel Pharma, Inc.). The following specific examples of patches and structures for delivering the tissue remodeling and/or angiogenic substance(s) of the present invention are meant to be exemplary and not limiting.
[0047] Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2 , the substance(s) may be applied in a variety of ways, including using a patch 10 which typically comprises a reservoir layer 12 , a rate controlling membrane 14 , and an adhesive layer 16 . A patch 10 may be cut into strips, smaller patches, or the like, and may be applied to the gingiva in order to effect topical delivery of the substance(s) from the reservoir into the tissue.
[0048] As shown in FIG. 3 , the patch 10 of FIG. 1 may be cut into smaller strips or pieces 20 which may be placed over the gingiva overlying individual teeth. In this way, the teeth T 1 and T 2 , for example, may be treated to facilitate movement and promote periodontal tissue remodeling, according to the present invention, while adjacent teeth T 3 and T 4 , as well as other non-treated teeth, remain available as anchor teeth for effecting orthodontic treatment, typically using conventional wire and bracket systems (not shown). In FIG. 3B , the positioning of the patches 20 over the roots of the teeth is shown.
[0049] In FIG. 4 , a continuous strip 30 of the patch material 10 is shown placed over the gingiva of eight adjacent teeth. The strip 30 , of course, could extend around the entire gingiva of one jaw. In this way, the substance(s) can be delivered to all teeth at once. Such treatment might be preferred, for example, for treating teeth after the teeth have reached their final position in order to promote tissue remodeling. Alternatively, the strip 30 could be configured so that the tissue remodeling and/or an angiogenic substance(s) are released only from particular locations on the strip to treat individual target teeth, achieving the same type of treatment as shown in FIG. 3 . Although patch and strip placement in FIGS. 3 and 4 is shown only on the labial side of the gingiva, the strips could be placed additionally or alternatively on the lingual side of the gingiva.
[0050] Referring now to FIG. 5 , a dental retainer or aligner 40 is shown for placement over the dentition of a single jaw 42 . A crown portion 44 of a retainer/aligner 40 is configured to be removably positionable over the teeth, while a skirt portion 46 is configured to lie over the gingiva, usually both the labial and lingual sides of the gingiva. The skirt is configured to retain and release the tissue remodeling and/or an angiogenic substance(s), either over its entire surface or over selected regions 48 as shown. In this way, the substance(s) may be selectively delivered to individual teeth or to the entire dentition in a single jaw, depending on the particular treatment protocol.
[0051] The orthodontic kits of the instant invention apply to acceleration of orthodontic tooth movement and treatment of relapse. The kits include a structure that applies force to at least one tooth in the jaw. The optimal force levels for orthodontic tooth movement are just high enough to stimulate cellular activity without occluding blood vessels in the PDL. Generally, tooth movement is more efficient when necrosis of the PDL is avoided. The PDL response is not simply determined by how much force is applied, but more specifically, by the force applied per unit area (i.e., pressure). The distribution of force (and the pressure) differs with different types of tooth movement. For example, the simplest form of orthodontic tooth movement is tipping. Tipping occurs when a single force is applied against the crown of a tooth such that the tooth rotates around its center of resistance (i.e., a point located about halfway down the root). The force that is used to tip teeth should be kept low, about 35-60 gm, and should preferably not exceed 50 gm. When two forces are applied simultaneously to the crown of a tooth, then bodily movement or translation may occur (i.e., the root apex and crown move in the same direction the same amount). In comparison to tipping, twice as much force is required for bodily movement. Thus, the required force for bodily movement is about 70-120 gm. Other types of orthodontic tooth movement include root uprighting (50-100 gm); rotation (35-16 gm); extrusion (35-60 gm); and intrusion (10-20 gm). For a detailed description of the various types of orthodontic tooth movement, see William R. Proffit (supra) which is incorporated herein by reference.
[0052] The orthodontic kit of the invention includes a structure that is mountable on or over at least a portion of at least one tooth in a jaw of a subject. The structure applies force to at least one tooth in the jaw (supra) and can be selected from a variety of appliances such as positioners, aligners, retainers, trays, brackets, bands, wires, auxiliaries, tubing, springs, coil springs, elastomeric ties, elastomaric modules, power chains, elastomeric threads, magnets and the like. The choice of the particular structure, i.e., the functional and/or corrective appliance, may depend on the subject and type and length of the treatment. Generally, the structure of the invention can be positioned over a portion of the jaw, over the entire jaw, over at least two teeth in the jaw, over all teeth in the jaw, or combination or variations thereof. In one embodiment, the structure is mountable over at least a portion of at least two teeth. In some instances, the structure may include a porous material (e.g., chamber) which releases a remodeling and/or an angiogenic substance at a controlled rate over time. Thus, the kits further contain a tissue remodeling and/or an angiogenic substance capable of remodeling the periodontium (e.g., gingiva, PDL, bone) near a root of the tooth. Preferably, the substance is relaxin or an analog or mimetic thereof. As such, the substance may be stored in a separate container or within the structure itself. The kits may include instructions for delivery of the substance to the subject. The instructions can be provided with the kit (e.g., instruction material provided in a package together with the kit) or separately (e.g., instruction material provided via a separate booklet, via a video or DVD, via remote access such as the Internet, etc.).
[0053] The kits of the instant invention are useful for treating a variety of orthodontic problems, including malocclusion (i.e., the improper alignment of teeth) and relapse (i.e., the movement of teeth back to their original position). There are many different types of malocclusions as shown below. However, the instant invention is not limited to these examples. Incisor irregularity is expressed as the irregularity index (i.e., the total of the millimeter distances from the contact point on each tooth to the contact point that it should touch). A space between adjacent teeth is called a diastema. During childhood, a maxillary midline diastema is relatively common. Howerver, a midline diastema that is greater than 2 mm rarely closes spontaneously with further development. A posterior cross bite exists when the maxillary posterior teeth are lingually positioned relative to the mandibular teeth. Overjet is defined as a horizontal overlap of the incisors. Normally, the incisors are in contact, with the upper incisors ahead of the lower by only the thickness of the upper edges (i.e., 2-3 mm overjet is the normal relationship). If the lower incisors are in front of the upper incisors, the condition is called reverse overjet or anterior crossbite. Another form of malocclusion is overbite. Overbite is defined as vertical overlap of the incisors. Normally, the lower incisal edges contact the lingual surface of the upper incisors at or above the cingulum (i.e., there is normally a 1-2 mm overbite). In a condition called open bite, there is no vertical overlap, and the vertical separation is measured (see Proffit, supra). Since only 34 percent of American adults have well-aligned lower incisors, there is a constant need for improved orthodontic methods and kits to correct improperly aligned teeth. The instant invention meets this need.
[0054] The following examples are offered by way of illustration, not by way of limitation.
Experimental
[0055] Four studies are presented, one examining properties of the periodontal and gingival tissues to relaxin; a second one on dose finding; a third one on orthodontic tooth movement; and a forth one on prevention of relapse.
[0056] I. In vivo Studies of the Periodontal Ligament
[0057] A rat model was utilized because the rat has been historically used for many orthodontic studies. There were five animals per treatment group. Rats were treated for 1 or 3 days with human relaxin (H2 gene product) or vehicle control (Table 1 below). Relaxin or control vehicle was administered via Alzet implanted minipumps. In addition, relaxin treated rats received a 0.5 mg bolus injection (1.43 mg/kg) of relaxin at the time pumps were placed.
TABLE 1 Days of Treatment Control Relaxin 1 Day C1 (n = 5) R1 (n = 5) 3 Days C3 (n = 5) R3 (n = 5)
[0058] The jaws were collected for transport to the University of Washington for analysis. The day 1 jaws were delivered fresh, and the day 3 jaws were delivered frozen. Teeth from each treatment group were tested for “looseness” using a material testing device (MTD), and the periodontal ligament (PDL) was tested in a “push-out” test. The rest of the jaw was saved for histological analysis.
[0059] II. Objectives
[0060] These tests evaluated the ability of human relaxin (H2) to accelerate tooth movement during orthodontic procedures in a rat model. These studies examined the short term effects of relaxin on tooth looseness using circulating relaxin and a material testing device (MTD).
[0061] A. Tooth Looseness Tooth displacement measured in response to a known force was measured.
[0062] B. Push-Out Test The material properties of the PDL were measured in a material testing device to obtain force/displacement curves.
[0063] C. Histological Analysis The contralateral jaw was used for histological analysis. Staining techniques were used to visualize collagen and elastin.
[0064] III. Protocol
[0065] A. Treatment Groups
[0066] Adult male Sprague-Dawley rate (89-94 days old) were purchased from Animal Technologies, Ltd, Livermore, Calif. There were five animals per treatment group having body weights of 300-350 grams. Rats were treated for 1 or 3 days with human relaxin (H2 gene product) or vehicle control (Table 1). Relaxin or control vehicle is administered via Alzet implanted minipumps. In addition, relaxin treated rats received a 0.5 mg bolus injection (1.43 mg/kg) at the time pumps were placed.
[0067] B. Relaxin Administration
[0068] Human relaxin (H2) produced by Connetics, Corp was administered using Alzet osmotic pumps as previously described in the rat (Garber et al. (2001) Kidney Int. 59: 1184-85). Relaxin was administered at a rate of approximately 8 μg/kg/hr. This delivery rate has been shown to result in a blood concentration of approximately 150 ng/ml (Garber, Microchnik et al. 2001). To ensure relaxin levels rapidly achieved effective concentrations, rats were given a bolus subcutaneous injection of 0.5 mg relaxin at the time of pump implant. Control animals received the same volume of vehicle.
[0069] C. Animal Manipulations
[0070] Animals were euthanized with anesthesia overdose at each of the specified time intervals. Maxillae were dissected into halves. One hemimaxilla was fixed in 10% formalin for 24 hours followed by decalcification in 10% EDTA for two weeks with daily changes of the solution, dehydration in increasing concentrations of ethanol, and embedding in paraffin for immunohistochemical and histomorphometric analyses. The other hemimaxilla was fixed, decalcified and frozen for the immunohistochemical analyses. Calvarias were saved for examination of sutures by similar procedures.
[0071] D. Measuring Tooth Movement
[0072] 1. Push Out Test Gingival tissues were dissected away, and a 2 mm disk was cut through the alveolar bone and incisor ( FIG. 6 ). The resulting disk had alveolar bone, periodontal ligament (PDL), tooth, and pulp and was embedded in paraffin. The embedded tissue block was loaded onto a material testing device ( FIG. 7 ) to produce the stress-strain curve shown in FIG. 8 .
Stress = load cross - sectional area = kg / mm 2
Strain = elongation original length = % elongation
[0073] 2. Wiggle Test The second premolar tooth was embedded in paraffin and wiggled in place ( FIG. 9 ). The amount of movement was recorded.
[0074] The resulting amount of displacement was measured repeatedly and averaged for each specimen.
[0075] IV. Results and Analysis
[0076] A. Material Testing The material testing of the rat jaws included two different tests. These were the “push-out” test, and the “wiggle” test. Separate teeth were used for each of these tests, as explained below. The Day 1 specimens were delivered fresh while the Day 3 were frozen so are only directly comparable with the controls for that day.
[0077] 1. Push-Out Test The push-out test resulted in many different parameters of a stress strain curve. Several of the more relevant parameters were selected for the following graphs.
[0078] Referring to FIG. 10 , peak load is a measure of the maximum load (kilograms) that the PDL can withstand before breaking. The PDL appears to be “weaker” with relaxin treatment, either at day 1 or day 3 of treatment.
[0079] Referring to FIG. 11 , break load is the force in kilograms needed to break the PDL. It was observed that the force was less with relaxin treatment, indicating a softening of the ligament.
[0080] Referring to FIG. 12 , energy is the area under the curve of the force needed to break the PDL. Again, relaxin resulted in less energy needed to break the PDL indicating its lessened resistance to force.
[0081] Referring to FIG. 13 , yield stress is the amount of stress (kilograms/square mm) needed to cause the PDL to yield. The effect of relaxin was to lower this parameter, indicating the ligament was softer.
[0082] 2. Tooth Wiggle Referring to FIG. 14 , the tooth wiggle test demonstrated that the tooth was looser in the relaxin treated animals. This was especially prominent in the day 1 treated animals. The smaller difference seen on day 3 may be due to freezing the tissue.
[0083] B. Histological Analysis The specimens were decalcified, embedded, sectioned and strained with a variety of histological stains. The PDL and gingival connective tissue were examined for a reduction and/or reorganization in the collagen. Collagen normally has a highly regular structure, which can be observed under a microscope using polarized light. Intact collagen demonstrates a birefringence or glow which is lost upon breakdown of the collagen.
[0084] Comparison of the treated collagen with the untreated control, under polarized label, demonstrated that the relaxin had broken down the collagen. In the relaxin treated animals, the collagen fibers have been shortened and no longer have the parallel arrangement.
[0085] V. Dose Finding Experiment
[0086] The following test helps determine an effective dose of relaxin for modification of collagen in the PDL and gingival tissues. Relaxin was administered in different doses to the rat for 5 days via Alzet subcutaneous pumps. Again the material testing device was used for measurement of the effects of relaxin. The results are shown in FIG. 15 .
[0087] The modulus is the slope of the stress strain graph. This figure suggests a dose relationship of relaxin with the softening of the PDL. It appears that even the lowest dose had modest effects on the PDL, indicating that a small amount of relaxin would be effective.
[0088] VI. Summary of Data
[0089] These data demonstrate for the first time that relaxin is effective in vivo in modifying the mechanical characteristics the ligaments that hold the tooth in the jaw. Major effects appear to be on the collagen which comprises a large portion of the PDL and gingival fibers. Relaxin affects these fibers as demonstrated by histological and physical measurements. The result of this modification of PDL and gingival fibers is to accelerate tooth movement and prevent relapse. Our data on dose indicate that even small amounts of relaxin may be effective in achieving these effects.
[0090] VII. Orthodontic Tooth Movement
[0091] This third study demonstrates that treatment with relaxin ultimately leads to a significant increase in the rate of tooth movement. A rat model was used. Landmark metal pins were placed in the bone of the roof of the mouth and pins were installed in the incisors of the rat as shown in FIG. 16 (e.g., the 1 st molar is pulled forward by an appliance connecting the 1 st molar and incisor). This was done several days prior to the application of orthodontic appliances. A set force of 40 grams was used for activation. The animals had pumps installed or were injected with relaxin. Rats were treated for 14 days with vehicle or relaxin administered in one of two ways. One group of rats received a continuous system administration (5.3 μg/kg/hr) with an implantable pump. A second group of treated rats received a subcutaneous injection of relaxin (0.5 mg/kg) in sodium acetate buffer on day 1 and day 7 of the treatment period. The data from a dose finding study indicated that the pump supplied a steady state of about 20 ng/ml of relaxin during the experiment.
[0092] Digital photographs were taken of the molar teeth at the end of the treatment period. The distance between the 1 st molar, which was being orthodontically moved, and the 2 nd molar which was stationary was measured. This distance is a measure of the total amount the tooth moved during the 14 day period. The two relaxin treated groups (pump vs. injection) were similar and the data from the two groups was combined to result in the following graph as shown below in FIG. 17 (i.e., this graph depicts the combined relaxin treatment groups compared with vehicle control). As shown in FIG. 17 , the relaxin treatment resulted in a significantly greater space between the molars in the relaxin treated animals compared to the control animals (p=0.0323). This indicates that relaxin treatment helped move the tooth further in the same amount of time than in the control animals. These results confirmed the hypothesis that relaxin would significantly increase the rate of tooth movement. In summary, the measurement of the gap between the molars was found to be significantly increased with relaxin treatment and other measurements tended in the direction of increased movement with relaxin. This strongly supports the findings that relaxin treatment with applied force can significantly speed orthodontic tooth movement.
[0093] VIII. Prevention of Relapse This forth study shows that relaxin prevents relapse. Dogs were used in this study. FIG. 18 shows a diagram of the appliance used in the dog. Impressions in the dog were made at specific time lines during this 105 day study. Eight individual animals per group were used (see FIG. 21 ). One group (i.e., injected group) had gingival relaxin injections on days 50 and 55. Another group (i.e., control group) had placebo injections. The last group (i.e., fiberotomy group and positive control group) had a gingival fiberotomy on day 55. The individual animals in the gingival injection group were compared with the mean control and fiberotomy groups (see FIG. 21 ). Fiberotomy is a procedure in which the gingival fibers attached to the tooth are cut down to the alveolar bone as shown in FIG. 20 . Fiberotomy has been effective in prevention of relapse in dogs as well as in clinical practice and was, thus, used as positive control.
[0094] Alignate impressions were taken from the dogs and models were cast from them. Digital pictures of the models were used to measure the amount of rotation of the second maxillary incisor and its relapse. An average of 45 degrees of rotation was placed on the second maxillary incisor during the rotation phase. As shown on the graph in FIG. 22 , the control group had relapse (˜30%) as expected. The fiberotomy and positive control group had significantly less relapse (p=0.014) than the control group as expected. The reduction in relapse is attributed to cutting the gingival fibers and relieving the stress. The injected group had results intermediate between the negative (control group) and positive (fiberotomomy and positive control group) groups when expressed as mean total percent relapse. This effect occurred with only two doses of relaxin which indicates that a slightly higher dose of relaxin administration will lead to an even more effective treatment in preventing relapse.
[0095] When the data shown above were expressed as median percent relapse, the results were even more promising. The data were plotted as medians instead of means in order to balance the groups better. This reduced the influence of outliers and allowed trends to be better visualized.
[0096] Control and Fiberotomy: these two control groups did not change in any noticeable way when using medians instead of means. There was still a difference between the two groups and the medians were similar to the means. This indicated that there was a uniform spread of the individual animals.
[0097] Relaxin Pump/Injected: expressing the data with medians made the Pump/Inject group virtually identical with the control group.
[0098] Relaxin Gingival Injection: expressing the data as medians instead of means caused the greatest change in the gingival injection group. While the mean of this group appeared midway between the two controls groups, the median appeared very similar with the fiberotomy group. This reflects the influence of three animals (the outliers) on the other five animals which showed promising results.
[0099] The fact that most animals were like the fiberotomy group suggested that this dose and schedule (i.e., two treatments 5 days apart) was sufficient to cause substantial remodeling similar to a gingival fiberotomy which is quite remarkable. The existence of three outliers (i.e., the failure of three animals to respond to the treatment) indicated most likely a delivery artifact or a failure to effectively target all the fibers in these particular three animals. It also suggested that normal delivery (i.e., when most or all fibers are targeted) is likely to assure the efficacy of this treatment since the overall results were promising (i.e., as seen with five out of eight animals).
[0100] While the above is a complete description of the preferred embodiments of the invention, various alternatives, modifications, and equivalents may be used. Therefore, the above description should not be taken as limiting the scope of the invention which is defined by the appended claims. | The present invention provides methods for accelerating orthodontic tooth movement and for treating relapse. The orthodontic methods comprise applying force to reposition teeth and administering a tissue remodeling and/or an angiogenic substance to the periodontal tissue surrounding the teeth to be moved. The substance may be delivered before, during, or after the teeth are moved, and the substance may be selectively applied only to those teeth undergoing movement at any particular time. The substance may be applied from the dental repositioning appliance or may be applied separately, either locally or systemically. Orthodontic kits are also encompassed by the instant invention. | Summarize the key points of the given patent document. | [
"[0001] This application is a continuation-in-part of application Ser.",
"No. 10/695,299, filed Oct. 27, 2003, which claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 60/423,026, filed Nov. 1, 2002, the full disclosures of which are incorporated herein by reference.",
"BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION [0002] 1.",
"Field of the Invention [0003] The present invention relates generally to medical methods and systems.",
"More particularly, the present invention relates to methods and systems for facilitating, accelerating, and stabilizing tooth movement before, during and after orthodontic procedures.",
"[0004] Orthodontic procedures suffer from four major problems.",
"First, the braces or other appliances which effect the tooth movement must be worn for long periods of time.",
"Second, even after a successful orthodontic treatment, the teeth often relapse towards their original positions once the braces or other treatment appliances are removed.",
"Third, the mechanically induced movement of teeth can cause significant discomfort to the patient.",
"Fourth, the wearing of braces is esthetically displeasing, uncomfortable, and compromises oral hygiene.",
"While recently introduced clear plastic visible “aligners”",
"largely overcome the latter problems, such aligners are not suitable for all patients.",
"Moreover, the aligners do not reduce treatment time, do not reduce the risk of relapse, and do not lessen the pain associated with tooth movement in the jaw.",
"[0005] For these reasons, it would be desirable to provide improved orthodontic technologies for moving teeth which overcome at least some of the problems noted above.",
"In particular, it would be desirable to provide orthodontic methods and systems which can reduce the time necessary to effect a desired tooth movement, which can reduce the pain associated with tooth movement, which can reduce the tendency of teeth to relapse to their original positions after the orthodontic treatment is stopped, and/or which can reduce the time in which unsightly braces need to be worn.",
"[0006] 2.",
"Description of Background Art [0007] Nicozisis et al.",
"(2000) Clin.",
"Orthod.",
"Res.",
"3:192-201, describe experiments which demonstrate the presence of endogenous relaxin in cranial tissue of mice and speculate that relaxin may be used as an adjunct to orthodontic or surgical therapy to promote manipulation of sutural tissues or affect stability.",
"The application of electrical current to stimulate bone growth and remodeling in orthodontic procedures is described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,854,865;",
"4,519,779;",
"and 4,153,060.",
"Appliances for local and systematic drug delivery to the gingival tissues are described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,159,498, 5,633,000;",
"5,616,315;",
"5,575,655;",
"5,447,725;",
"5,294,004;",
"4,959,220;",
"4,933,183;",
"4,892,736;",
"4,685,883;",
"and Re.",
"34,656.",
"Polymeric shell appliances for repositioning teeth are described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,975,893.",
"The full disclosures of each of the above publications and U.S. patents are incorporated herein by reference.",
"BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION [0008] The present invention provides improved methods and systems for repositioning teeth in patients, including orthodontic tooth movement.",
"In addition, the present invention provides improved methods and systems for stabilizing teeth which have already been repositioned in order to reduce or eliminate the tendency of the repositioned teeth to relapse, i.e., move back toward their prior positions.",
"Furthermore, the present invention provides orthodontic kits.",
"The methods for repositioning teeth comprise applying force to at least one tooth, and typically to more than one tooth and/or to different teeth over time, in the jaw of the subject (e.g., a patient).",
"For both repositioning or stabilizing, tissue remodeling and/or treating relapse an angiogenic substance is administered to the patient to promote remodeling of the periodontal tissue surrounding the root(s) of the tooth or teeth to be moved.",
"Preferred substance(s) will bind to and activate the relaxin receptor in the tissues which anchor the teeth or other craniofacial structures.",
"Most preferred is relaxin or an analog or mimetic thereof which combines tissue remodeling activity with angiogenic activity.",
"Analogs include peptides, oligomers, fragments, and the like which comprise the active region of native relaxin.",
"Mimetics of relaxin include small molecule drugs, typically below 2 kD, designed to mimic the activity of native relaxin.",
"Alternatively, substance(s) with predominantly angiogenic activity could be selected, such as VEGF, bFGF, estrogen, nitric oxide (NO), naltrexone, or the like.",
"Further alternatively, collagenases or other tissue-softening enzymes could be utilized to promote periodontal tissue remodeling according to the present invention.",
"In some instances, it may be desirable to combine two or more tissue remodeling and/or angiogenic substance(s) having differing activities.",
"In other instances it may be desirable to deliver different tissue remodeling and/or angiogenic substance(s) at different times during the orthodontic treatment and/or to different regions of the periodontal tissue.",
"[0009] One aspect of the present invention provides a method for treating relapse in a subject, the method comprising optionally applying force to at least one tooth in a jaw of the subject, and administering at least one tissue remodeling and/or an angiogenic substance to the subject to promote remodeling of periodontal tissue surrounding a root of the tooth, wherein the method results in at least 10% less relapse in the subject compared to treatment with a placebo.",
"In one embodiment, the method results in at least 10% less rotational relapse in the subject compared to treatment with a placebo.",
"In another embodiment, the method results in at least 10% to 40% less relapse (e.g., rotational relapse) in the subject compared to treatment with a placebo.",
"In another embodiment, the method results in at least 40% to 80% less relapse (e.g., rotational relapse) in the subject compared to treatment with a placebo.",
"In yet another embodiment, the method results in about 10%-100% less relapse (e.g., rotational relapse) in the subject compared to treatment with a placebo.",
"Preferably, the substance is relaxin or an analog or mimetic thereof.",
"Relaxin can be administered, for example, locally or systemically.",
"In this method, the substance can be administered before the force is applied, while the force is applied, and/or after the force is applied.",
"Preferably, the force is applied over a continuous time period.",
"Generally, force can be applied in a variety of ways, for example, providing the subject with a removable appliance (e.g., positioners, aligners, retainers, trays, etc.) or fixed appliance (e.g., brackets, bands, wires, auxiliaries, tubing, springs, coil springs, elastomeric ties, elastomaric modules, power chains, elastomeric threads, magnets, etc.) [0010] Another aspect of the invention provides a method for accelerating orthodontic tooth movement in a subject, the method comprising applying force to at least one tooth in a jaw of the subject, and administering at least one tissue remodeling and/or an angiogenic substance to the subject to promote remodeling of periodontal tissue surrounding a root of the tooth, thereby accelerating said orthodontic tooth movement.",
"Preferably, the substance is relaxin or an analog or mimetic thereof and can be administered, for example, locally or systemically.",
"Similarly, in this method, the substance can be administered before the force is applied, while the force is applied, and/or after the force is applied.",
"Preferably, the force is applied over a continuous time period.",
"Further, force can be applied by providing the subject with a removable or fixed appliance (supra) or other methods.",
"[0011] The term “placebo”",
"refers to a drug with no active ingredient, i.e., an inactive substance or treatment that looks the same as, and is given the same way as, an active drug or treatment being tested.",
"The effects of the active drug or treatment are compared to the effects of the placebo.",
"[0012] The term “relapse”",
"refers to the movement of teeth back to their original position.",
"This includes all types of movement such as tipping, rotations, extrusions, intrusions, bodily movement, crowded up again/broken interproximal contacts, spaces opening, intruding back up after being pulled down, etc.",
"A relapse of space opening may occur after the closure of an extraction space due to the compression of the gingiva.",
"When looking at relapse it is possible to measure the lower anterior cuspid to cuspid using the irregularity index (see below) and to measure the crowding of the teeth (i.e., how much mesial-distal overlapping there is between contact points, usually measured in millimeters).",
"Orthodontic rotation usually refers to motion around the long axis of the tooth.",
"Orthodontically rotated teeth have a tendency to relapse (i.e., rotational relapse).",
"The tendency of rotated teeth to relapse after treatment following retention is partially because of the supracrestal fibers which are stretched during rotational correction and which remodel extremely slowly.",
"The elastic supracrestal fibers can exert forces capable of displacing a tooth over one year, or more, following orthodontic appliance removal.",
"For a detailed description of the various types of orthodontic tooth movement, see William R. Proffit, Contemporary Orthodontics (1999), Chapter 18, Elsevier Science, which is incorporated herein by reference.",
"[0013] Another aspect of the invention provides an orthodontic kit which comprises a structure mountable on or over at least a portion of at least one tooth in a jaw of a subject, wherein the structure applies force to at least one tooth in the jaw;",
"a tissue remodeling and/or an angiogenic substance capable of remodeling the periodontium (e.g., gingiva, periodontal ligament (PDL), bone) near a root of the tooth;",
"and instructions for delivery of the substance to the subject.",
"The instructions can be provided with the kit or separately.",
"In one embodiment, the structure is mountable over at least a portion of at least two teeth.",
"The structure can be selected from a variety of appliances such as positioners, aligners, retainers, trays, brackets, bands, wires, auxiliaries, tubing, springs, coil springs, elastomeric ties, elastomaric modules, power chains, elastomeric threads, magnets and the like.",
"The structure can be positioned over a portion of the jaw, over the entire jaw, over at least two teeth in the jaw, over all teeth in the jaw, or combination or variations thereof.",
"Preferably, the substance is relaxin or an analog or mimetic thereof.",
"As such, the substance can be stored in a separate container or within the structure itself.",
"The structure may comprise a porous material (e.g., chamber) which releases the substance at a controlled rate over time.",
"[0014] The term “relaxin”",
"means human relaxin, including intact full length relaxin or a portion of the relaxin molecule that retains biological activity (as described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,023,321, preferably recombinant human relaxin (H2)) and other active agents with relaxin-like activity, such as Relaxin and portions that retain biological activity as Relaxin-like factor (as described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,911,997 at SEQ ID NOS: 3 and 4, and column 5, line 27-column 6, line 4), relaxin analogs and portions that retain biological activity (as described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,811,395 at SEQ ID NOS: 1 and 2, and column 3, lines 16-40), and agents that competitively displace bound relaxin from a receptor.",
"Relaxin can be made by any method known to those skilled in the art, for example, as described in any of U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,759,807;",
"4,835,251 and co-pending U.S. Ser.",
"Nos. 07/908,766 (PCT US90/02085) and 08/080,354 (PCT US94/0699).",
"[0015] The tissue remodeling and/or angiogenic substance(s) will be delivered at a delivery rate and a total dosage which are selected to facilitate tooth repositioning and tissue remodeling.",
"Typically, the dosage rates will be in the range from 1 ng to 500 μg per day, usually from 10 ng/day to 20 μg/day, preferably from 20 ng/day to 10 μg/day.",
"When treating relapse, relaxin can be administered, for example, locally.",
"Local administration includes, but is not limited to, topical delivery of relaxin on gingival tissue near the tooth and gingival injection.",
"Topical delivery can be accomplished, for example, by releasing relaxin from a controlled release device engaged against the gingival tissue or by spreading a fluid substance over the gingival tissue.",
"For example, relaxin can be topically delivered at about 50 μg or more per treated tooth, such that enough relaxin is delivered to all the proper tissues.",
"As such, relaxin can be topically delivered by spreading a fluid substance over the gingival tissue or by supplying relaxin to the gingival tissue via a patch.",
"Local administration can also be accomplished via gingival injection.",
"In one embodiment, relaxin is injected into gingival tissue at about 100 ng to 1 mg per treated tooth.",
"In another embodiment, relaxin is injected into gingival tissue at 50 μg per treated tooth.",
"Relaxin can also be locally administering via an implantable pump.",
"For example, with an implantable pump, relaxin can be delivered at a rate of administration of about 10 μg per hour which may last for about 8 hours.",
"Relaxin may also be administered systemically which includes administration of relaxin to the blood stream.",
"The dosage and other aspects of any type of relaxin delivery may be adjusted from time-to-time in response to the effectiveness of treatment, such as the resistance of a particular tooth or group of teeth, where the dosage might be increased if resistance is not sufficiently reduced in response to an initial dosage.",
"When accelerating orthodontic tooth movement, relaxin may also be administered locally or systemically.",
"[0016] The substance(s) may be delivered at any point during the orthodontic treatment where tooth repositioning and/or tissue remodeling may be promoted.",
"For example, the substance(s) may be applied prior to any application of force intended to move the teeth.",
"Additionally or alternatively, the substance(s) may be applied during all or any portion of the time during which force is being applied to move the teeth.",
"Further additionally or alternatively, the substance(s) may be applied after the teeth have been repositioned to a final desired configuration.",
"In the latter case, application of the substance(s) may be particularly effective for promoting tissue remodeling in order to reduce the risk of relapse.",
"In such instances, the substance(s) may be delivered using retainers or other appliances intended to help maintain the teeth in their desired final configuration.",
"When being delivered to inhibit relapse, the remodeling and/or angiogenic substance(s) may be delivered for a limited period of time in a limited period before and/or immediately following the end of the orthodontic procedure or may be delivered continuously or periodically for long periods of time or indefinitely following the end of the orthodontic procedure.",
"For example, the substance(s) may be delivered to some or preferably all of the regions of the gingiva where teeth have been moved in order to promote stabilization and remodeling of the tissue, usually over a period of one to eight weeks, more usually two to six weeks prior to the end of treatment.",
"[0017] The teeth may be repositioned by any conventional orthodontic appliance intended for applying force to move teeth.",
"In particular, the present invention is compatible with both the use of wire and bracket systems, commonly referred to as “braces,” as well as with newer systems employing removable appliances for repositioning teeth, such as the Invisalign® System (available from Align Technology, Inc., Santa Clara, Calif.) and the “Red White &",
"and Blue Retainer”",
"system (available from Sybron Dental Specialties, Inc., Irvine, Calif.).",
"The present invention will also be useful with dental “positioners”",
"which are elastomeric appliances having pre-formed tooth-receiving cavities where the patient bites into the elastomeric appliance in order to force tooth movement.",
"The present invention may be used with dental retainers which are polymeric shell appliances typically used to maintain a final, desired tooth configuration and prevent relapse (e.g., the Essix™ retainer or appliance by Raintree Essix, LLC).",
"When used with dental repositioning appliances of any type, the application of the tissue remodeling and/or angiogenic substance(s) according to the present invention will usually both facilitate tooth movement by modifying the tissue structures within the periodontal tissue which anchor the teeth and also promoting tissue remodeling which allows such tissue structures to accommodate the repositioned teeth with less tendency toward relapse.",
"The present invention may be used with any one or more of the following appliances including, but not limited to positioners, aligners, retainers, trays, brackets, bands, wires, auxiliaries, tubing, springs, coil springs, elastomeric ties, elastomeric modules, power chains, elastomeric threads, magnets and implants (including microimplants).",
"For example, implants and micro implants can be used in orthodontics to act as anchorage means.",
"As such, elastomeric threads and/or chains and coil springs are tied from these implants to one or more teeth in order to move the teeth.",
"The implants provide anchorage and do not tax the posterior teeth when retracting anterior teeth.",
"The implants also provide anchorage for intruding teeth that are super-erupted.",
"Additionally, implants can be surface coated for the purpose of improving their oseo-integration (fusion to alveolar bone).",
"[0018] The substance(s) of the present invention may be applied and administered in a wide variety of ways.",
"Most simply, the substance(s) could be “painted”",
"or otherwise topically applied to the patient's gingiva using a conventional single-use applicator such as a swab, brush, syringe, or the like.",
"The substance(s) may be prepared in a conventional form of topical composition, such as a gel, cream, ointment, or other fluid or liquid substance.",
"Alternatively, the substance(s) could be administered by injecting into the periodontal tissue.",
"Additionally, the substance(s) could be delivered using a patch or other appliance which is worn on the teeth or gingiva, optionally being formed as part of the same appliance which is used to move the teeth, e.g., a bracket or removable appliance (e.g., shell applicance) or retainer.",
"In such instances, the substance(s) may be incorporated into conventional reservoirs (e.g., drug reservoir) which both maintain a supply of the substance(s) and which release the substance(s) at a controlled rate, over time, to target sites on the gingiva.",
"Suitable drug delivery structures for delivering the substance(s) to the patient gingiva are described in the patent and medical literature, see, e.g., U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,159,498, 5,575,655;",
"5,194,003;",
"4,933,182;",
"and 4,685,883, the full disclosures of which are incorporated herein by reference.",
"[0019] In some instances, it may be desirable to provide for enhanced penetration of the substance(s) into the gingiva.",
"For example, the substance(s) could be formulated with tissue penetration or permeation enhancers, such as dimethylsulfoxide (DMSO).",
"Alternatively or additionally, the substance(s) can be delivered while applying energy in a manner to promote tissue penetration, including the application of an electric current in order to achieve electroporation or iontophoresis, and/or the application of ultrasound energy.",
"The currents needed to provide for electroporation are relatively low, typically around 0.1 mA or lower can be provided by batteries contained within the delivery structure or alternatively by external structures which are periodically applied to the gingiva or appliances present over the gingiva.",
"For example, the methods of the present invention may comprise applying an electric current to the periodontal tissue surrounding the root of a tooth, wherein the applied current has a current density in the range from from 0.5 μA/mm 2 to 6 μA/mm 2 .",
"Similarly, ultrasound-enhanced substance delivery can be effected by transducers incorporated into the delivery appliances and/or provided by external appliances.",
"Suitable ultrasound conditions are from 20 kHz to 100 kHz at energy levels of one to ten J/cm 2 .",
"[0020] A particular advantage of the present invention is that particular teeth can be treated with the substance(s) while other teeth in the same jaw remain untreated.",
"In this way, those teeth which are to be moved at any point during the course of orthodontic treatment may be “relaxed”",
"and prepared for movement while other teeth which are needed as “anchor teeth”",
"remain untreated.",
"In this way, the wire and bracket system, removable aligner, or the like, may be anchored on those teeth which have not been treated with the substance(s), while those teeth which are intended to be moved may be treated and more readily moved.",
"Of course, during a normal orthodontic treatment, different teeth will be targeted for movement at different times.",
"The present invention allows only those teeth which are intended to be moved at any particular time to be treated at that time while other teeth in the dentition remain untreated during that time and available as anchor teeth for performing the orthodontic treatment.",
"[0021] The present invention may also advantageously be combined with other orthodontic treatment protocols, such as electroosteogenesis where a small electrical current is applied to the gingiva or jaw to stimulate the tissues.",
"The combination of the substance(s) with such electroosteogenesis could provide tooth movement which may be improved over that achieved with either approach alone.",
"Moreover, the application of the electric current might act to provide “electroporation”",
"and enhance the uptake of the substance(s) into the periodontal tissues, as described above.",
"[0022] In a further aspect of the present invention, improved orthodontic treatment methods are provided.",
"The orthodontic treatment methods are of the type where at least one tooth in a patient jaw is repositioned.",
"The improvement comprises administering at least one tissue remodeling and/or an angiogenic substance to the patient before, during, or after the force has been applied.",
"The preferred aspects of this method are generally the same as described above.",
"[0023] The present invention still further provides oral delivery appliances comprising a structure and a tissue remodeling and/or an angiogenic substance(s).",
"The structure is mountable on or over at least a portion of a patient gingiva, and the substance(s) is carried by the structure so that said substance(s) is release into at least a region of the gingiva while the structure is mounted on or over the gingiva.",
"Typically, the delivery appliance mounts over the gingiva of an entire jaw, but in some instances it may mount over the gingiva of less than the entire jaw.",
"Typically, the structure will include at least a portion which engages or mounts over the gingiva adjacent the roots of the target teeth, typically from one to twelve teeth, usually from one to six teeth, often from one to five teeth, and sometimes only a single tooth.",
"The appliance may be in the form of a patch which adheres to the gingiva, a shell which is removably placeable over the teeth in the gingiva, or the like.",
"The use of patches for delivery of the substance(s) may be particularly advantageous since the patches can be cut to size in order to control dosage and/or delivery area to the gingiva.",
"Such modified patches may be applied or adhered directly to the gingiva or alternatively may be positioned beneath a retainer which is worn to maintain the positions of the teeth.",
"When wire and bracket orthodontic appliances are used, the delivery appliance may be formed to mount on the wire or onto the bracket, may be incorporated as part of the bracket or wire, or may be some combination thereof.",
"The relaxin or other tissue remodeling and/or angiogenic substance may be incorporated into the oral delivery appliance in a variety of ways.",
"Most commonly, the relaxin will be in a liquid, gel, or other releasable form which is incorporated into a time-release structure to apply the substance to the gingiva at a desired dosage rate.",
"For example, the substance(s) may be incorporated into a porous structure and/or in a reservoir which is covered by a porous structure.",
"In either case, the porous structure acts as a rate-controlling membrane or barrier to achieve the desired delivery rate.",
"Alternatively, the substance(s) may be present in a biodegradable matrix which degrades in the oral environment over time to achieve a desired release rate of the substance.",
"Suitable degradable substances include polymers, such as glycolic acid polymers and related materials.",
"[0024] In a still further aspect of the present invention, topical oral compositions comprise a carrier and a tissue remodeling and/or an angiogenic substance(s).",
"The carrier is of the type which may be topically applied to a patient's gingiva, typically being in the form of a gel, cream, ointment, microemulsion or other liquid.",
"The tissue remodeling and/or an angiogenic substance(s) may be any of the substance(s) listed above.",
"The composition may be provided in any conventional applicator, such as a tube, syringe, bottle, or the like, and will be maintained in a sterile condition within the applicator.",
"BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS [0025] FIG. 1 illustrates an oral tissue remodeling and/or an angiogenic substance(s) delivery appliance constructed in accordance with the principles of the present invention, in the form of a patch.",
"[0026] FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view taken along line 2 - 2 of FIG. 1 .",
"[0027] FIG. 3 illustrates the use of the patch of FIG. 1 in a first exemplary protocol according to the present invention.",
"[0028] FIG. 4 illustrates the use of the patch of FIG. 1 in a second exemplary protocol according to the present invention.",
"[0029] FIG. 5 illustrates the use of a polymeric shell appliance for repositioning teeth and delivering a tissue remodeling and/or an angiogenic substance(s) according to the principles of the present invention.",
"[0030] FIG. 6 is a photograph illustrating the section of the incisor which was excised for use in the push out testing described in the Experimental Section.",
"[0031] FIG. 7 is a photograph illustrating the test equipment used for the push out testing.",
"[0032] FIG. 8 is a graph showing the results of the push out testing.",
"[0033] FIG. 9 is a photograph showing how the tooth wiggle testing was performed.",
"[0034] FIGS. 10-13 are graphs showing the results of the pull out testing.",
"[0035] FIG. 14 is a graph showing the results of the tooth wiggle testing.",
"[0036] FIG. 15 illustrates the results of the dose response testing.",
"[0037] FIG. 16 depicts landmark metal pins in the bone of the roof of the mouth and in the incisors of a rat (e.g., the 1st molar is pulled forward by an appliance connecting the 1st molar and incisor).",
"[0038] FIG. 17 shows a graph of the data from two relaxin treated groups (pump vs.",
"injection).",
"The data from the two groups was combined and compared to vehicle control.",
"[0039] FIG. 18 shows a diagram of the appliance used in a dog.",
"[0040] FIG. 19 shows an activated appliance in a dog.",
"[0041] FIG. 20 illustrates a procedure called fiberotomy in which the gingival fibers attached to the tooth are cut down to the alveolar bone.",
"[0042] FIG. 21 shows a graph that compares individual animals from a gingival injection group (i.e., injected with relaxin) to a group treated with fiberotomy (positive control) and a negative control group.",
"As shown, five out of eight animals provided similar results as the fiberotomy group while three out of eight animals were above the controls.",
"(See legend on FIG. 23 .) [0043] FIG. 22 shows a graph that compares the mean of the gingival injection group from FIG. 21 with the fiberotomy group (positive control) and the negative control group.",
"As shown, the positive control group had significantly less relapse than the negative control group.",
"The group injected with relaxin showed results intermediate between the negative and positive control groups.",
"[0044] FIG. 23 shows a reevaluation of FIG. 22 .",
"The data were plotted as medians instead of means (i.e., as shown in FIG. 22 ).",
"This reduces the influence of outliers and allows trends to be seen better.",
"DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [0045] The present invention provides improved and facilitated orthodontic treatment by delivering tissue remodeling and/or an angiogenic substance(s) to periodontal tissue in which the teeth to be moved are rooted or anchored.",
"As used hereinafter, “periodontal tissue”",
"or “periodontium”",
"will refer to the connective tissue within the periodontal tissues, specifically including the gingiva and periodontal ligaments (PDL) which anchor the teeth in the bone.",
"The periodontium also includes the bone near the root of a tooth.",
"The application of the tissue remodeling and/or an angiogenic substance(s) to the periodontium will both loosen the tissue and ligaments as well as promote remodeling of the tissue during and after orthodontic treatment.",
"[0046] The tissue remodeling and/or angiogenic substance(s) may be delivered to the periodontal tissue in a variety of ways, including local administration.",
"For example, the substance can be administered through topical delivery by spreading a fluid substance over the gingival tissue, topical delivery via a patch, topical delivery to the gingival tissue near the tooth from a controlled release device engaged against the gingival tissue, topical delivery via an implantable pump, gingival injection, and the like, continuously, periodically, and combinations thereof.",
"Thus, topical delivery may be achieved using a conventional surface applicator, such as a brush, swab, syringe, squeeze tube, sponge, or other similar device or by using various controlled release devices, such as retainers, patches, orthodontic brackets and wires, and other appliances (e.g., a removable or fixed appliance, that comprises a reservoir which releases a substance to gingival tissue, such as positioners, aligners, retainers, trays, brackets, bands, wires, auxiliaries, tubing, springs, coil springs, elastomeric ties, elastomaric modules, power chains, elastomeric threads, magnets and the like) which may be positioned on or over the teeth and which have been modified in order to release the substance(s) to the gingiva.",
"In some cases, it will be desired to deliver the drug into the gingival margin which is the line or groove along the gingiva-tooth interface.",
"Substances may be applied as part of formulations which are delivered over the gingiva and/or into the sulcus.",
"In some instances, it may be desirable to plant small substance delivery structures directly into the sulcus in a manner analogous to the delivery of antibiotics using systems (e.g., the PerioChip® available from Dexcel Pharma, Inc.).",
"The following specific examples of patches and structures for delivering the tissue remodeling and/or angiogenic substance(s) of the present invention are meant to be exemplary and not limiting.",
"[0047] Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2 , the substance(s) may be applied in a variety of ways, including using a patch 10 which typically comprises a reservoir layer 12 , a rate controlling membrane 14 , and an adhesive layer 16 .",
"A patch 10 may be cut into strips, smaller patches, or the like, and may be applied to the gingiva in order to effect topical delivery of the substance(s) from the reservoir into the tissue.",
"[0048] As shown in FIG. 3 , the patch 10 of FIG. 1 may be cut into smaller strips or pieces 20 which may be placed over the gingiva overlying individual teeth.",
"In this way, the teeth T 1 and T 2 , for example, may be treated to facilitate movement and promote periodontal tissue remodeling, according to the present invention, while adjacent teeth T 3 and T 4 , as well as other non-treated teeth, remain available as anchor teeth for effecting orthodontic treatment, typically using conventional wire and bracket systems (not shown).",
"In FIG. 3B , the positioning of the patches 20 over the roots of the teeth is shown.",
"[0049] In FIG. 4 , a continuous strip 30 of the patch material 10 is shown placed over the gingiva of eight adjacent teeth.",
"The strip 30 , of course, could extend around the entire gingiva of one jaw.",
"In this way, the substance(s) can be delivered to all teeth at once.",
"Such treatment might be preferred, for example, for treating teeth after the teeth have reached their final position in order to promote tissue remodeling.",
"Alternatively, the strip 30 could be configured so that the tissue remodeling and/or an angiogenic substance(s) are released only from particular locations on the strip to treat individual target teeth, achieving the same type of treatment as shown in FIG. 3 .",
"Although patch and strip placement in FIGS. 3 and 4 is shown only on the labial side of the gingiva, the strips could be placed additionally or alternatively on the lingual side of the gingiva.",
"[0050] Referring now to FIG. 5 , a dental retainer or aligner 40 is shown for placement over the dentition of a single jaw 42 .",
"A crown portion 44 of a retainer/aligner 40 is configured to be removably positionable over the teeth, while a skirt portion 46 is configured to lie over the gingiva, usually both the labial and lingual sides of the gingiva.",
"The skirt is configured to retain and release the tissue remodeling and/or an angiogenic substance(s), either over its entire surface or over selected regions 48 as shown.",
"In this way, the substance(s) may be selectively delivered to individual teeth or to the entire dentition in a single jaw, depending on the particular treatment protocol.",
"[0051] The orthodontic kits of the instant invention apply to acceleration of orthodontic tooth movement and treatment of relapse.",
"The kits include a structure that applies force to at least one tooth in the jaw.",
"The optimal force levels for orthodontic tooth movement are just high enough to stimulate cellular activity without occluding blood vessels in the PDL.",
"Generally, tooth movement is more efficient when necrosis of the PDL is avoided.",
"The PDL response is not simply determined by how much force is applied, but more specifically, by the force applied per unit area (i.e., pressure).",
"The distribution of force (and the pressure) differs with different types of tooth movement.",
"For example, the simplest form of orthodontic tooth movement is tipping.",
"Tipping occurs when a single force is applied against the crown of a tooth such that the tooth rotates around its center of resistance (i.e., a point located about halfway down the root).",
"The force that is used to tip teeth should be kept low, about 35-60 gm, and should preferably not exceed 50 gm.",
"When two forces are applied simultaneously to the crown of a tooth, then bodily movement or translation may occur (i.e., the root apex and crown move in the same direction the same amount).",
"In comparison to tipping, twice as much force is required for bodily movement.",
"Thus, the required force for bodily movement is about 70-120 gm.",
"Other types of orthodontic tooth movement include root uprighting (50-100 gm);",
"rotation (35-16 gm);",
"extrusion (35-60 gm);",
"and intrusion (10-20 gm).",
"For a detailed description of the various types of orthodontic tooth movement, see William R. Proffit (supra) which is incorporated herein by reference.",
"[0052] The orthodontic kit of the invention includes a structure that is mountable on or over at least a portion of at least one tooth in a jaw of a subject.",
"The structure applies force to at least one tooth in the jaw (supra) and can be selected from a variety of appliances such as positioners, aligners, retainers, trays, brackets, bands, wires, auxiliaries, tubing, springs, coil springs, elastomeric ties, elastomaric modules, power chains, elastomeric threads, magnets and the like.",
"The choice of the particular structure, i.e., the functional and/or corrective appliance, may depend on the subject and type and length of the treatment.",
"Generally, the structure of the invention can be positioned over a portion of the jaw, over the entire jaw, over at least two teeth in the jaw, over all teeth in the jaw, or combination or variations thereof.",
"In one embodiment, the structure is mountable over at least a portion of at least two teeth.",
"In some instances, the structure may include a porous material (e.g., chamber) which releases a remodeling and/or an angiogenic substance at a controlled rate over time.",
"Thus, the kits further contain a tissue remodeling and/or an angiogenic substance capable of remodeling the periodontium (e.g., gingiva, PDL, bone) near a root of the tooth.",
"Preferably, the substance is relaxin or an analog or mimetic thereof.",
"As such, the substance may be stored in a separate container or within the structure itself.",
"The kits may include instructions for delivery of the substance to the subject.",
"The instructions can be provided with the kit (e.g., instruction material provided in a package together with the kit) or separately (e.g., instruction material provided via a separate booklet, via a video or DVD, via remote access such as the Internet, etc.).",
"[0053] The kits of the instant invention are useful for treating a variety of orthodontic problems, including malocclusion (i.e., the improper alignment of teeth) and relapse (i.e., the movement of teeth back to their original position).",
"There are many different types of malocclusions as shown below.",
"However, the instant invention is not limited to these examples.",
"Incisor irregularity is expressed as the irregularity index (i.e., the total of the millimeter distances from the contact point on each tooth to the contact point that it should touch).",
"A space between adjacent teeth is called a diastema.",
"During childhood, a maxillary midline diastema is relatively common.",
"Howerver, a midline diastema that is greater than 2 mm rarely closes spontaneously with further development.",
"A posterior cross bite exists when the maxillary posterior teeth are lingually positioned relative to the mandibular teeth.",
"Overjet is defined as a horizontal overlap of the incisors.",
"Normally, the incisors are in contact, with the upper incisors ahead of the lower by only the thickness of the upper edges (i.e., 2-3 mm overjet is the normal relationship).",
"If the lower incisors are in front of the upper incisors, the condition is called reverse overjet or anterior crossbite.",
"Another form of malocclusion is overbite.",
"Overbite is defined as vertical overlap of the incisors.",
"Normally, the lower incisal edges contact the lingual surface of the upper incisors at or above the cingulum (i.e., there is normally a 1-2 mm overbite).",
"In a condition called open bite, there is no vertical overlap, and the vertical separation is measured (see Proffit, supra).",
"Since only 34 percent of American adults have well-aligned lower incisors, there is a constant need for improved orthodontic methods and kits to correct improperly aligned teeth.",
"The instant invention meets this need.",
"[0054] The following examples are offered by way of illustration, not by way of limitation.",
"Experimental [0055] Four studies are presented, one examining properties of the periodontal and gingival tissues to relaxin;",
"a second one on dose finding;",
"a third one on orthodontic tooth movement;",
"and a forth one on prevention of relapse.",
"[0056] I. In vivo Studies of the Periodontal Ligament [0057] A rat model was utilized because the rat has been historically used for many orthodontic studies.",
"There were five animals per treatment group.",
"Rats were treated for 1 or 3 days with human relaxin (H2 gene product) or vehicle control (Table 1 below).",
"Relaxin or control vehicle was administered via Alzet implanted minipumps.",
"In addition, relaxin treated rats received a 0.5 mg bolus injection (1.43 mg/kg) of relaxin at the time pumps were placed.",
"TABLE 1 Days of Treatment Control Relaxin 1 Day C1 (n = 5) R1 (n = 5) 3 Days C3 (n = 5) R3 (n = 5) [0058] The jaws were collected for transport to the University of Washington for analysis.",
"The day 1 jaws were delivered fresh, and the day 3 jaws were delivered frozen.",
"Teeth from each treatment group were tested for “looseness”",
"using a material testing device (MTD), and the periodontal ligament (PDL) was tested in a “push-out”",
"test.",
"The rest of the jaw was saved for histological analysis.",
"[0059] II.",
"Objectives [0060] These tests evaluated the ability of human relaxin (H2) to accelerate tooth movement during orthodontic procedures in a rat model.",
"These studies examined the short term effects of relaxin on tooth looseness using circulating relaxin and a material testing device (MTD).",
"[0061] A. Tooth Looseness Tooth displacement measured in response to a known force was measured.",
"[0062] B. Push-Out Test The material properties of the PDL were measured in a material testing device to obtain force/displacement curves.",
"[0063] C. Histological Analysis The contralateral jaw was used for histological analysis.",
"Staining techniques were used to visualize collagen and elastin.",
"[0064] III.",
"Protocol [0065] A. Treatment Groups [0066] Adult male Sprague-Dawley rate (89-94 days old) were purchased from Animal Technologies, Ltd, Livermore, Calif.",
"There were five animals per treatment group having body weights of 300-350 grams.",
"Rats were treated for 1 or 3 days with human relaxin (H2 gene product) or vehicle control (Table 1).",
"Relaxin or control vehicle is administered via Alzet implanted minipumps.",
"In addition, relaxin treated rats received a 0.5 mg bolus injection (1.43 mg/kg) at the time pumps were placed.",
"[0067] B. Relaxin Administration [0068] Human relaxin (H2) produced by Connetics, Corp was administered using Alzet osmotic pumps as previously described in the rat (Garber et al.",
"(2001) Kidney Int.",
"59: 1184-85).",
"Relaxin was administered at a rate of approximately 8 μg/kg/hr.",
"This delivery rate has been shown to result in a blood concentration of approximately 150 ng/ml (Garber, Microchnik et al.",
"2001).",
"To ensure relaxin levels rapidly achieved effective concentrations, rats were given a bolus subcutaneous injection of 0.5 mg relaxin at the time of pump implant.",
"Control animals received the same volume of vehicle.",
"[0069] C. Animal Manipulations [0070] Animals were euthanized with anesthesia overdose at each of the specified time intervals.",
"Maxillae were dissected into halves.",
"One hemimaxilla was fixed in 10% formalin for 24 hours followed by decalcification in 10% EDTA for two weeks with daily changes of the solution, dehydration in increasing concentrations of ethanol, and embedding in paraffin for immunohistochemical and histomorphometric analyses.",
"The other hemimaxilla was fixed, decalcified and frozen for the immunohistochemical analyses.",
"Calvarias were saved for examination of sutures by similar procedures.",
"[0071] D. Measuring Tooth Movement [0072] 1.",
"Push Out Test Gingival tissues were dissected away, and a 2 mm disk was cut through the alveolar bone and incisor ( FIG. 6 ).",
"The resulting disk had alveolar bone, periodontal ligament (PDL), tooth, and pulp and was embedded in paraffin.",
"The embedded tissue block was loaded onto a material testing device ( FIG. 7 ) to produce the stress-strain curve shown in FIG. 8 .",
"Stress = load cross - sectional area = kg / mm 2 Strain = elongation original length = % elongation [0073] 2.",
"Wiggle Test The second premolar tooth was embedded in paraffin and wiggled in place ( FIG. 9 ).",
"The amount of movement was recorded.",
"[0074] The resulting amount of displacement was measured repeatedly and averaged for each specimen.",
"[0075] IV.",
"Results and Analysis [0076] A. Material Testing The material testing of the rat jaws included two different tests.",
"These were the “push-out”",
"test, and the “wiggle”",
"test.",
"Separate teeth were used for each of these tests, as explained below.",
"The Day 1 specimens were delivered fresh while the Day 3 were frozen so are only directly comparable with the controls for that day.",
"[0077] 1.",
"Push-Out Test The push-out test resulted in many different parameters of a stress strain curve.",
"Several of the more relevant parameters were selected for the following graphs.",
"[0078] Referring to FIG. 10 , peak load is a measure of the maximum load (kilograms) that the PDL can withstand before breaking.",
"The PDL appears to be “weaker”",
"with relaxin treatment, either at day 1 or day 3 of treatment.",
"[0079] Referring to FIG. 11 , break load is the force in kilograms needed to break the PDL.",
"It was observed that the force was less with relaxin treatment, indicating a softening of the ligament.",
"[0080] Referring to FIG. 12 , energy is the area under the curve of the force needed to break the PDL.",
"Again, relaxin resulted in less energy needed to break the PDL indicating its lessened resistance to force.",
"[0081] Referring to FIG. 13 , yield stress is the amount of stress (kilograms/square mm) needed to cause the PDL to yield.",
"The effect of relaxin was to lower this parameter, indicating the ligament was softer.",
"[0082] 2.",
"Tooth Wiggle Referring to FIG. 14 , the tooth wiggle test demonstrated that the tooth was looser in the relaxin treated animals.",
"This was especially prominent in the day 1 treated animals.",
"The smaller difference seen on day 3 may be due to freezing the tissue.",
"[0083] B. Histological Analysis The specimens were decalcified, embedded, sectioned and strained with a variety of histological stains.",
"The PDL and gingival connective tissue were examined for a reduction and/or reorganization in the collagen.",
"Collagen normally has a highly regular structure, which can be observed under a microscope using polarized light.",
"Intact collagen demonstrates a birefringence or glow which is lost upon breakdown of the collagen.",
"[0084] Comparison of the treated collagen with the untreated control, under polarized label, demonstrated that the relaxin had broken down the collagen.",
"In the relaxin treated animals, the collagen fibers have been shortened and no longer have the parallel arrangement.",
"[0085] V. Dose Finding Experiment [0086] The following test helps determine an effective dose of relaxin for modification of collagen in the PDL and gingival tissues.",
"Relaxin was administered in different doses to the rat for 5 days via Alzet subcutaneous pumps.",
"Again the material testing device was used for measurement of the effects of relaxin.",
"The results are shown in FIG. 15 .",
"[0087] The modulus is the slope of the stress strain graph.",
"This figure suggests a dose relationship of relaxin with the softening of the PDL.",
"It appears that even the lowest dose had modest effects on the PDL, indicating that a small amount of relaxin would be effective.",
"[0088] VI.",
"Summary of Data [0089] These data demonstrate for the first time that relaxin is effective in vivo in modifying the mechanical characteristics the ligaments that hold the tooth in the jaw.",
"Major effects appear to be on the collagen which comprises a large portion of the PDL and gingival fibers.",
"Relaxin affects these fibers as demonstrated by histological and physical measurements.",
"The result of this modification of PDL and gingival fibers is to accelerate tooth movement and prevent relapse.",
"Our data on dose indicate that even small amounts of relaxin may be effective in achieving these effects.",
"[0090] VII.",
"Orthodontic Tooth Movement [0091] This third study demonstrates that treatment with relaxin ultimately leads to a significant increase in the rate of tooth movement.",
"A rat model was used.",
"Landmark metal pins were placed in the bone of the roof of the mouth and pins were installed in the incisors of the rat as shown in FIG. 16 (e.g., the 1 st molar is pulled forward by an appliance connecting the 1 st molar and incisor).",
"This was done several days prior to the application of orthodontic appliances.",
"A set force of 40 grams was used for activation.",
"The animals had pumps installed or were injected with relaxin.",
"Rats were treated for 14 days with vehicle or relaxin administered in one of two ways.",
"One group of rats received a continuous system administration (5.3 μg/kg/hr) with an implantable pump.",
"A second group of treated rats received a subcutaneous injection of relaxin (0.5 mg/kg) in sodium acetate buffer on day 1 and day 7 of the treatment period.",
"The data from a dose finding study indicated that the pump supplied a steady state of about 20 ng/ml of relaxin during the experiment.",
"[0092] Digital photographs were taken of the molar teeth at the end of the treatment period.",
"The distance between the 1 st molar, which was being orthodontically moved, and the 2 nd molar which was stationary was measured.",
"This distance is a measure of the total amount the tooth moved during the 14 day period.",
"The two relaxin treated groups (pump vs.",
"injection) were similar and the data from the two groups was combined to result in the following graph as shown below in FIG. 17 (i.e., this graph depicts the combined relaxin treatment groups compared with vehicle control).",
"As shown in FIG. 17 , the relaxin treatment resulted in a significantly greater space between the molars in the relaxin treated animals compared to the control animals (p=0.0323).",
"This indicates that relaxin treatment helped move the tooth further in the same amount of time than in the control animals.",
"These results confirmed the hypothesis that relaxin would significantly increase the rate of tooth movement.",
"In summary, the measurement of the gap between the molars was found to be significantly increased with relaxin treatment and other measurements tended in the direction of increased movement with relaxin.",
"This strongly supports the findings that relaxin treatment with applied force can significantly speed orthodontic tooth movement.",
"[0093] VIII.",
"Prevention of Relapse This forth study shows that relaxin prevents relapse.",
"Dogs were used in this study.",
"FIG. 18 shows a diagram of the appliance used in the dog.",
"Impressions in the dog were made at specific time lines during this 105 day study.",
"Eight individual animals per group were used (see FIG. 21 ).",
"One group (i.e., injected group) had gingival relaxin injections on days 50 and 55.",
"Another group (i.e., control group) had placebo injections.",
"The last group (i.e., fiberotomy group and positive control group) had a gingival fiberotomy on day 55.",
"The individual animals in the gingival injection group were compared with the mean control and fiberotomy groups (see FIG. 21 ).",
"Fiberotomy is a procedure in which the gingival fibers attached to the tooth are cut down to the alveolar bone as shown in FIG. 20 .",
"Fiberotomy has been effective in prevention of relapse in dogs as well as in clinical practice and was, thus, used as positive control.",
"[0094] Alignate impressions were taken from the dogs and models were cast from them.",
"Digital pictures of the models were used to measure the amount of rotation of the second maxillary incisor and its relapse.",
"An average of 45 degrees of rotation was placed on the second maxillary incisor during the rotation phase.",
"As shown on the graph in FIG. 22 , the control group had relapse (˜30%) as expected.",
"The fiberotomy and positive control group had significantly less relapse (p=0.014) than the control group as expected.",
"The reduction in relapse is attributed to cutting the gingival fibers and relieving the stress.",
"The injected group had results intermediate between the negative (control group) and positive (fiberotomomy and positive control group) groups when expressed as mean total percent relapse.",
"This effect occurred with only two doses of relaxin which indicates that a slightly higher dose of relaxin administration will lead to an even more effective treatment in preventing relapse.",
"[0095] When the data shown above were expressed as median percent relapse, the results were even more promising.",
"The data were plotted as medians instead of means in order to balance the groups better.",
"This reduced the influence of outliers and allowed trends to be better visualized.",
"[0096] Control and Fiberotomy: these two control groups did not change in any noticeable way when using medians instead of means.",
"There was still a difference between the two groups and the medians were similar to the means.",
"This indicated that there was a uniform spread of the individual animals.",
"[0097] Relaxin Pump/Injected: expressing the data with medians made the Pump/Inject group virtually identical with the control group.",
"[0098] Relaxin Gingival Injection: expressing the data as medians instead of means caused the greatest change in the gingival injection group.",
"While the mean of this group appeared midway between the two controls groups, the median appeared very similar with the fiberotomy group.",
"This reflects the influence of three animals (the outliers) on the other five animals which showed promising results.",
"[0099] The fact that most animals were like the fiberotomy group suggested that this dose and schedule (i.e., two treatments 5 days apart) was sufficient to cause substantial remodeling similar to a gingival fiberotomy which is quite remarkable.",
"The existence of three outliers (i.e., the failure of three animals to respond to the treatment) indicated most likely a delivery artifact or a failure to effectively target all the fibers in these particular three animals.",
"It also suggested that normal delivery (i.e., when most or all fibers are targeted) is likely to assure the efficacy of this treatment since the overall results were promising (i.e., as seen with five out of eight animals).",
"[0100] While the above is a complete description of the preferred embodiments of the invention, various alternatives, modifications, and equivalents may be used.",
"Therefore, the above description should not be taken as limiting the scope of the invention which is defined by the appended claims."
] |
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to hydraulic couplings used in undersea drilling and production applications. More particularly, the invention involves an undersea hydraulic coupling member with a primary poppet valve and a secondary poppet valve for higher reliability against leakage when the coupling is not mated.
2. Description of Related Art
Subsea hydraulic couplings are old in the art. The couplings generally consist of a male member and a female member, with soft seals positioned within the female member to seal the junction between the male and female members. The female member is generally a cylindrical body with a relatively large diameter longitudinal bore at one end and a relatively small diameter longitudinal bore at the other. The small bore facilitates connections to hydraulic lines, while the large bore contains soft seals and receives the male portion of the coupling. The male member includes a cylindrical portion, or probe, at one end having a diameter approximately equal to the diameter of the large bore of the female portion of the coupling. The male member also includes a connection at its other end to facilitate connection to hydraulic lines. When the cylindrical portion of the male member is inserted into the large bore of the female member, according to the various embodiments of the device, the soft seals, or O-rings, either abut the end or face of the male member or engage the cylindrical probe wall about its outer circumference. The hydraulic fluid is then free to flow through the female and male members of the coupling and seals prevent that flow from escaping about the joint and the coupling.
Poppet valves may be installed in the female member and in the male member of the coupling. Each poppet valve closes when the coupling is broken so as to prevent fluid from leaking out of the system of which the coupling is a part. Springs or other bias means have been used to urge the poppet valves into the normally closed position.
Recently, one or more pressure energized metal seals have been used in undersea hydraulic couplings of the foregoing type. For example, U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,694,859 and 5,762,106 to Robert E. Smith III, assigned to National Coupling Company, Inc. show undersea hydraulic couplings with radial metal seals that engage the diameter of the probe or male member.
In subsea hydraulic systems of the foregoing type, it is important to prevent or minimize leakage of hydraulic fluid from each of the couplings and hydraulic systems of which the couplings are a part. It also is important to prevent or minimize the entry of seawater into the couplings and hydraulic systems. While pressure energized metal seals have been effectively used to stop leakage when the couplings are mated, it is nevertheless possible that leakage may occur around the poppet valve of one or both coupling members when they are not mated. For example, debris external to the hydraulic system, or in the hydraulic system, may become lodged in or around the poppet valve when the coupling members are separated. If that occurs, there is a potential for leakage of hydraulic fluid through the coupling member because the poppet valve has not closed and sealed properly against the valve seat in the coupling member.
Leakage of hydraulic fluid from one or both coupling members poses potential serious environmental risks as well as loss of subsea system hydraulic function. Therefore, efforts have been made to reduce or eliminate leakage by assuring that the valves are closed and sealed when the coupling members are not mated. For example, U.S. Pat. Ser. No. 09/293,554 to Robert E. Smith III assigned to National Coupling Company, Inc. discloses and undersea hydraulic coupling that includes a larger spring to help urge the poppet valve closed against the seal seat and prevent or minimize leakage when the coupling members are disconnected.
It is desirable to provide an improved apparatus for ensuring that hydraulic fluid does not leak out of one or both coupling members when coupling members are separated. It is also desirable to provide an undersea hydraulic coupling with higher reliability for shutting off the flow of hydraulic fluid when the coupling members are disconnected subsea.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention resides in an undersea hydraulic coupling of the foregoing type including a male member, or probe, having a primary poppet valve and a secondary poppet valve to provide higher reliability against leakage of hydraulic fluid when the male and female coupling members are separated. The primary, or first poppet valve is urged into the closed position by a first spring. A first valve actuator urges the first poppet valve open and compresses the first spring. The secondary poppet valve, which is urged into the closed position by a second spring, is opened by a second valve actuator in response to compression of the first spring. The first spring is connected between the first valve and the second actuator. The pair of valves may be positioned in either the male or female coupling member. The secondary poppet valve may have a larger diameter, and be positioned in a larger diameter section of the coupling member bore or, if desired, both the primary and secondary poppet valves may positioned in the same diameter bore.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
The following drawings form part of the present specification and are included to further demonstrate certain aspects of the present invention. The invention may be better understood by reference to one or more of these drawings in combination with the detailed description of specific embodiments presented herein.
FIG. 1 is a cross-section view of a male member of the coupling according to a first preferred embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 2 is a cross-section view of a male member of the coupling according to a second preferred embodiment of the present invention.
DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
FIG. 1 is a cross-section view of a male coupling member 10 including a cylindrical body section 15 which terminates at shoulder 18 , and a cylindrical probe section 16 . The probe section 16 preferably has a stepped external diameter and terminates at leading face 17 of the male coupling member. The male member preferably has a cylindrical bore therethrough with a first section 21 extending to conical valve seat 24 adjacent the leading face, and a second, smaller diameter section 20 extending to conical valve seat 23 .
The first, or primary, poppet valve 30 of the male member is slideably positioned within the first section 21 of the bore. The poppet valve includes a cylindrical, hollow valve body with apertures 33 . The face of the valve is generally conical in shape and is dimensioned to seat and seal with valve seat 24 . First spring 32 urges the first poppet valve into the closed position against the valve seat. First valve actuator 31 extends from the first poppet valve. Preferably, the actuator 31 is a stem extending longitudinally from the apex of the conical valve face.
The first spring 32 extends between and connects the first poppet valve 30 and the second actuator 34 . The second actuator slides in the smaller section 21 of the bore and preferably includes a sleeve shaped body 35 with a conical face having apertures 36 and a stem extending from the apex of the conical face of the actuator. In the embodiment shown in FIG. 1, when the first poppet valve 30 is closed and sealed against the first valve seat 24 , first spring 32 urges the second actuator longitudinally to a position adjacent, or abutting, leading face 46 of the second poppet valve 40 . In the first embodiment, the second poppet valve has a diameter greater than the first poppet valve and is slideably positioned in the second section 20 of the coupling bore. The second spring 41 urges the second poppet valve 40 into the closed or sealed position against seal seat 23 . The second spring 41 is anchored by spring collar 42 which is held by clip 44 in the wall of the second section 20 of the bore. In the first embodiment, the second spring 41 has a greater diameter and a greater force constant then the first spring 32 .
When the coupling member according to the first embodiment of the invention is mated with the opposing coupling member, first actuator 31 is moved axially or longitudinally to open the first poppet valve 30 and compress the first spring 32 . Compressing the first spring moves the second actuator longitudinally or axially against the leading face 46 of the second poppet valve to urge the second poppet valve off valve seat 23 This compresses the second spring 41 . When the second poppet valve 40 opens, it slides axially until it touches the spring collar 42 .
As shown in the first embodiment, the second poppet valve remains sealed to prevent leakage of hydraulic fluid unless the first poppet valve is fully opened. For example, the first poppet valve may be open slightly, and will not be sealed, due to debris lodged in the space between the first poppet valve and valve seat. If this occurs, the second poppet valve will be sealed to prevent leakage of hydraulic fluid through the coupling member and remain sealed unless the first actuator urges the first poppet valve open and the first spring, between the first poppet valve and the second actuator, is compressed sufficiently to open the second poppet valve. The second poppet valve remains closed and sealed even if there is leakage because the first poppet valve is slightly open.
In a second preferred embodiment of the present invention, the second poppet valve is positioned within a sleeve in the coupling member bore. As shown, male coupling member 50 has a body section 52 and a probe section 53 terminating at leading face 54 . The internal bore has a first section 57 and a second section 56 having a diameter greater than the first section. Conical valve seat 58 is located adjacent the leading face 54 . First poppet valve 59 slides within the first section 57 of the bore and has an actuator 60 extending from its conical face. First spring 61 urges the first poppet valve into a closed position against seat 58 . The first poppet valve has valve body aperture 62 extending there through. First spring 61 is connected between the first poppet valve 59 and the second actuator 63 . The second actuator 63 has a sleeve shaped body 64 and a conical face with apertures 65 and a stem extending therefrom to abut or touch the face 71 of the second poppet valve. As in the first embodiment, the second actuator may abut or be spaced from the face 71 of the second poppet valve when the first poppet valve is sealed.
The large diameter section 56 of the bore terminates at shoulder 66 . Preferably, an O-ring 74 or other seal seals the junction between the shoulder 66 and the sleeve 73 . The sleeve 73 has an internal bore for receiving the second poppet valve 67 which, in the normally closed position, seals with second valve seat 75 which is preferably conical in shape. The second poppet valve is urged against seat 75 by second spring 69 which is held in place by spring collar 72 and clip 70 . In the embodiment of FIG. 2, the sleeve 73 is held in the second section of the bore by threads 76 .
Accordingly, the second embodiment of the invention provides an assembly that is insertable into the bore of the coupling member, allowing both the first and second poppet valves to be the same size to reduce the axial force to open the poppet valves in certain applications. As in the first embodiment, the secondary poppet valve remains closed to prevent leakage through the coupling, unless the first poppet valve is fully opened and the first spring is fully compressed. The invention improves the reliability of subsea hydraulic coupling members and prevents leakage by providing a backup or secondary poppet valve. If debris or other material prevents the first poppet valve from fully closing and sealing against the valve seat, the secondary or backup poppet valve remains closed to prevent leakage of hydraulic fluid or entry of seawater into the hydraulic system of which the coupling is a part. The present invention may be used in either the male or female coupling member or both coupling members if desired.
Although variations in the embodiment of the present invention may not each realize all of the advantages of the invention, certain features may become more important than others in various applications of the device. The invention, accordingly, should be understood to be limited only by the scope of the appended claims. | An undersea hydraulic coupling member is disclosed having a primary poppet valve and a secondary poppet valve to improve reliability against leakage when the coupling members are separated. A spring extends between the first poppet valve and the actuator for the second poppet valve. The secondary poppet valve remains closed unless the first poppet valve is fully opened, so that debris or other material that could prevent sealing of the first poppet valve will not cause leakage of hydraulic fluid through the second poppet valve. | Provide a concise summary of the essential information conveyed in the context. | [
"BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1.",
"Field of the Invention The present invention relates generally to hydraulic couplings used in undersea drilling and production applications.",
"More particularly, the invention involves an undersea hydraulic coupling member with a primary poppet valve and a secondary poppet valve for higher reliability against leakage when the coupling is not mated.",
"Description of Related Art Subsea hydraulic couplings are old in the art.",
"The couplings generally consist of a male member and a female member, with soft seals positioned within the female member to seal the junction between the male and female members.",
"The female member is generally a cylindrical body with a relatively large diameter longitudinal bore at one end and a relatively small diameter longitudinal bore at the other.",
"The small bore facilitates connections to hydraulic lines, while the large bore contains soft seals and receives the male portion of the coupling.",
"The male member includes a cylindrical portion, or probe, at one end having a diameter approximately equal to the diameter of the large bore of the female portion of the coupling.",
"The male member also includes a connection at its other end to facilitate connection to hydraulic lines.",
"When the cylindrical portion of the male member is inserted into the large bore of the female member, according to the various embodiments of the device, the soft seals, or O-rings, either abut the end or face of the male member or engage the cylindrical probe wall about its outer circumference.",
"The hydraulic fluid is then free to flow through the female and male members of the coupling and seals prevent that flow from escaping about the joint and the coupling.",
"Poppet valves may be installed in the female member and in the male member of the coupling.",
"Each poppet valve closes when the coupling is broken so as to prevent fluid from leaking out of the system of which the coupling is a part.",
"Springs or other bias means have been used to urge the poppet valves into the normally closed position.",
"Recently, one or more pressure energized metal seals have been used in undersea hydraulic couplings of the foregoing type.",
"For example, U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,694,859 and 5,762,106 to Robert E. Smith III, assigned to National Coupling Company, Inc. show undersea hydraulic couplings with radial metal seals that engage the diameter of the probe or male member.",
"In subsea hydraulic systems of the foregoing type, it is important to prevent or minimize leakage of hydraulic fluid from each of the couplings and hydraulic systems of which the couplings are a part.",
"It also is important to prevent or minimize the entry of seawater into the couplings and hydraulic systems.",
"While pressure energized metal seals have been effectively used to stop leakage when the couplings are mated, it is nevertheless possible that leakage may occur around the poppet valve of one or both coupling members when they are not mated.",
"For example, debris external to the hydraulic system, or in the hydraulic system, may become lodged in or around the poppet valve when the coupling members are separated.",
"If that occurs, there is a potential for leakage of hydraulic fluid through the coupling member because the poppet valve has not closed and sealed properly against the valve seat in the coupling member.",
"Leakage of hydraulic fluid from one or both coupling members poses potential serious environmental risks as well as loss of subsea system hydraulic function.",
"Therefore, efforts have been made to reduce or eliminate leakage by assuring that the valves are closed and sealed when the coupling members are not mated.",
"For example, U.S. Pat. Ser.",
"No. 09/293,554 to Robert E. Smith III assigned to National Coupling Company, Inc. discloses and undersea hydraulic coupling that includes a larger spring to help urge the poppet valve closed against the seal seat and prevent or minimize leakage when the coupling members are disconnected.",
"It is desirable to provide an improved apparatus for ensuring that hydraulic fluid does not leak out of one or both coupling members when coupling members are separated.",
"It is also desirable to provide an undersea hydraulic coupling with higher reliability for shutting off the flow of hydraulic fluid when the coupling members are disconnected subsea.",
"SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention resides in an undersea hydraulic coupling of the foregoing type including a male member, or probe, having a primary poppet valve and a secondary poppet valve to provide higher reliability against leakage of hydraulic fluid when the male and female coupling members are separated.",
"The primary, or first poppet valve is urged into the closed position by a first spring.",
"A first valve actuator urges the first poppet valve open and compresses the first spring.",
"The secondary poppet valve, which is urged into the closed position by a second spring, is opened by a second valve actuator in response to compression of the first spring.",
"The first spring is connected between the first valve and the second actuator.",
"The pair of valves may be positioned in either the male or female coupling member.",
"The secondary poppet valve may have a larger diameter, and be positioned in a larger diameter section of the coupling member bore or, if desired, both the primary and secondary poppet valves may positioned in the same diameter bore.",
"BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS The following drawings form part of the present specification and are included to further demonstrate certain aspects of the present invention.",
"The invention may be better understood by reference to one or more of these drawings in combination with the detailed description of specific embodiments presented herein.",
"FIG. 1 is a cross-section view of a male member of the coupling according to a first preferred embodiment of the present invention.",
"FIG. 2 is a cross-section view of a male member of the coupling according to a second preferred embodiment of the present invention.",
"DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS FIG. 1 is a cross-section view of a male coupling member 10 including a cylindrical body section 15 which terminates at shoulder 18 , and a cylindrical probe section 16 .",
"The probe section 16 preferably has a stepped external diameter and terminates at leading face 17 of the male coupling member.",
"The male member preferably has a cylindrical bore therethrough with a first section 21 extending to conical valve seat 24 adjacent the leading face, and a second, smaller diameter section 20 extending to conical valve seat 23 .",
"The first, or primary, poppet valve 30 of the male member is slideably positioned within the first section 21 of the bore.",
"The poppet valve includes a cylindrical, hollow valve body with apertures 33 .",
"The face of the valve is generally conical in shape and is dimensioned to seat and seal with valve seat 24 .",
"First spring 32 urges the first poppet valve into the closed position against the valve seat.",
"First valve actuator 31 extends from the first poppet valve.",
"Preferably, the actuator 31 is a stem extending longitudinally from the apex of the conical valve face.",
"The first spring 32 extends between and connects the first poppet valve 30 and the second actuator 34 .",
"The second actuator slides in the smaller section 21 of the bore and preferably includes a sleeve shaped body 35 with a conical face having apertures 36 and a stem extending from the apex of the conical face of the actuator.",
"In the embodiment shown in FIG. 1, when the first poppet valve 30 is closed and sealed against the first valve seat 24 , first spring 32 urges the second actuator longitudinally to a position adjacent, or abutting, leading face 46 of the second poppet valve 40 .",
"In the first embodiment, the second poppet valve has a diameter greater than the first poppet valve and is slideably positioned in the second section 20 of the coupling bore.",
"The second spring 41 urges the second poppet valve 40 into the closed or sealed position against seal seat 23 .",
"The second spring 41 is anchored by spring collar 42 which is held by clip 44 in the wall of the second section 20 of the bore.",
"In the first embodiment, the second spring 41 has a greater diameter and a greater force constant then the first spring 32 .",
"When the coupling member according to the first embodiment of the invention is mated with the opposing coupling member, first actuator 31 is moved axially or longitudinally to open the first poppet valve 30 and compress the first spring 32 .",
"Compressing the first spring moves the second actuator longitudinally or axially against the leading face 46 of the second poppet valve to urge the second poppet valve off valve seat 23 This compresses the second spring 41 .",
"When the second poppet valve 40 opens, it slides axially until it touches the spring collar 42 .",
"As shown in the first embodiment, the second poppet valve remains sealed to prevent leakage of hydraulic fluid unless the first poppet valve is fully opened.",
"For example, the first poppet valve may be open slightly, and will not be sealed, due to debris lodged in the space between the first poppet valve and valve seat.",
"If this occurs, the second poppet valve will be sealed to prevent leakage of hydraulic fluid through the coupling member and remain sealed unless the first actuator urges the first poppet valve open and the first spring, between the first poppet valve and the second actuator, is compressed sufficiently to open the second poppet valve.",
"The second poppet valve remains closed and sealed even if there is leakage because the first poppet valve is slightly open.",
"In a second preferred embodiment of the present invention, the second poppet valve is positioned within a sleeve in the coupling member bore.",
"As shown, male coupling member 50 has a body section 52 and a probe section 53 terminating at leading face 54 .",
"The internal bore has a first section 57 and a second section 56 having a diameter greater than the first section.",
"Conical valve seat 58 is located adjacent the leading face 54 .",
"First poppet valve 59 slides within the first section 57 of the bore and has an actuator 60 extending from its conical face.",
"First spring 61 urges the first poppet valve into a closed position against seat 58 .",
"The first poppet valve has valve body aperture 62 extending there through.",
"First spring 61 is connected between the first poppet valve 59 and the second actuator 63 .",
"The second actuator 63 has a sleeve shaped body 64 and a conical face with apertures 65 and a stem extending therefrom to abut or touch the face 71 of the second poppet valve.",
"As in the first embodiment, the second actuator may abut or be spaced from the face 71 of the second poppet valve when the first poppet valve is sealed.",
"The large diameter section 56 of the bore terminates at shoulder 66 .",
"Preferably, an O-ring 74 or other seal seals the junction between the shoulder 66 and the sleeve 73 .",
"The sleeve 73 has an internal bore for receiving the second poppet valve 67 which, in the normally closed position, seals with second valve seat 75 which is preferably conical in shape.",
"The second poppet valve is urged against seat 75 by second spring 69 which is held in place by spring collar 72 and clip 70 .",
"In the embodiment of FIG. 2, the sleeve 73 is held in the second section of the bore by threads 76 .",
"Accordingly, the second embodiment of the invention provides an assembly that is insertable into the bore of the coupling member, allowing both the first and second poppet valves to be the same size to reduce the axial force to open the poppet valves in certain applications.",
"As in the first embodiment, the secondary poppet valve remains closed to prevent leakage through the coupling, unless the first poppet valve is fully opened and the first spring is fully compressed.",
"The invention improves the reliability of subsea hydraulic coupling members and prevents leakage by providing a backup or secondary poppet valve.",
"If debris or other material prevents the first poppet valve from fully closing and sealing against the valve seat, the secondary or backup poppet valve remains closed to prevent leakage of hydraulic fluid or entry of seawater into the hydraulic system of which the coupling is a part.",
"The present invention may be used in either the male or female coupling member or both coupling members if desired.",
"Although variations in the embodiment of the present invention may not each realize all of the advantages of the invention, certain features may become more important than others in various applications of the device.",
"The invention, accordingly, should be understood to be limited only by the scope of the appended claims."
] |
This application is a Continuation of and claims priority to U.S. application Ser. No. 08/380,598, filed Jan. 30, 1995, now U.S. Pat. No. 5,694,882.
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
This invention relates to an indicator and more particularly to a mechanism permitting a patient to determine the number of doses of medicine taken or remaining to be ingested in a designated interval.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Physicians often prescribe medications requiring periodic ingestion by a patient. Products sold to patients over-the-counter, or without a practitioner's prescription, similarly typically mandate regular intake for optimal performance. Complying with these requirements necessitates that each patient recollect that doses of the medication previously were taken, as failure to do so may result in ingestion of more or less than the specified dosage during a particular period.
Many patients, however, are unable to remember or determine the amount of medication already taken over a given duration. This is especially true of certain elderly patients, who may experience short-term memory loss or, because their infirmities require ingestion of substantial numbers of different medications, confuse the dosage previously taken of each. Empirical evidence suggests that elderly glaucoma patients in particular are plagued by these problems. Combined with their decreased abilities to view the medication containers themselves, these glaucoma patients often have no means of determining whether they have taken the mandated doses.
The concept of using indicators or "medicine minders" has existed for many years. U.S. Pat. No. 710,708 to Mcshane, for example, describes at lines 8-13 a medicine bottle having
a scale of the full, half and quarter hours from 12 to
11.45 o'clock, together with an indicator to indicate
the time of taking the medicine therein contained.
A side of the specially-molded bottle contains a "flat-topped ridge" on which a time scale is printed and having grooves to receive the "gripping claws" of an indicator. The patient is instructed to move the indicator after each dose of medication is taken, positioning its index at the point on the scale corresponding to the time for taking the next dosage. The bottle does not indicate the number of doses either taken or remaining to be taken in a particular interval, however, thus neither preventing nor inhibiting overdoses. It further fails to assist glaucoma and other patients with poor (or no) vision in appropriately positioning the indicator after ingesting each dose.
More recently, U.S. Pat. No. 5,271,353 to Besthorne issued describing a medicine reminder device in which a housing having a clock face is attached, using an elastic band, to the cylindrical body of a medicine container. Mounted to the clock face are hour and minute hands. After taking medicine from the container, the patient resets the hands to indicate the time of the next dose. As with the medicine bottle of the McShane patent, however, the reminder device of the Besthorne patent provides no indication of the doses taken or to be taken. Likewise, it furnish patients no tactile or other non-visual assistance in appropriately repositioning the hands of the clock.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,511,050 to Nicol provides yet another type of dose indicator. Embodied in a two-piece cap, the indicator includes on one piece an embossed arrow or pointer and on the other graduated indicia. The cap is useful solely with threaded containers, however, and fails to indicate to the patient that the maximum doses have been taken during any given period.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention provides a device responsive to many of these and other drawbacks of existing indicators. Unlike those discussed above, the present invention not only provides tactile assistance to patients in appropriately repositioning its indicator arm, but also is useful with a wide variety of medicine or other containers. When used correctly, moreover, the indicator of the present invention reduces the possibility of patient overdose by restricting further (improper) movement of the indicator arm.
In one embodiment of the present invention, the dose indicator is a molded plastic disc to which an indicator arm is connected. Affixed to the underside of the disc is a pressure-sensitive adhesive, allowing the disc to be attached to at least one surface of virtually all existing commercial medicine containers. When used with cylindrical bottles or containers having substantial curvatures, for example, such a disc may be attached to the (generally flat) upper surface of the cap of the container. For other containers, alternatively, the discs may be affixed to their front or rear faces or sides.
Embossed on the upper surface of the disc are indicia, typically numbers corresponding to doses of medicine intended for consumption by the patient. An annulus in the moveable indicator arm is designed to engage each embossed area, providing a positive (tactile) fit for the arm for each incremental dose. Additionally protruding above the upper surface are two pins or other projections which limit travel or placement of the indicator arm. One pin, whose location may be fixed for all discs, prevents the patient from attempting to place the arm outside its intended range of travel. The location of the other pin may vary, however, depending on the number of doses of medication the patient is prescribed in a particular interval (e.g. per twenty-four hours). Designed to be inserted (usually by the pharmacist) into one of a series of recesses in the disc and effectively locked into place, this pin prevents the indicator arm from travelling beyond an indicium corresponding to the maximum dose the patient is prescribed in the designated interval. As a result, it inhibits overdosing when the device is used properly by preventing the patient from advancing the arm after the final prescribed dose is taken.
Other embodiments of the invention may comprise separate caps or collars for placement about irregularly-shaped objects such as medicine droppers. Such devices may be adapted to provide more regular surfaces onto which discs may be affixed. Alternatively, other structures, including arches, may be utilized consistent with the present invention.
It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide an indicator furnishing tactile assistance to patients with poor or no vision (or operating in darkness).
It is another object of the present invention to provide an indicator that, when used correctly, may reduce the possibility of patient overdose.
It is also an object of the present invention to provide an indicator adapted to be affixed to surfaces of numerous containers.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide a disc having a moveable indicator arm that may engage a raised area of the disc to provide a positive, secure fit.
It is an additional object of the present invention to provide mechanisms limiting the range of movement of the indicator arm.
It is yet another object of the present invention to provide at least one such mechanism whose location depends on the number of doses or medicine to be taken by a patient during a particular interval.
Other objects, features, and advantages of the present invention will become apparent with reference to the remainder of the written portion and the drawings of this application.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG. 1 is a partially-exploded perspective view of an exemplary indicator of the present invention shown prior to attachment to a bottle.
FIG. 2 is a top plan view of the indicator of FIG. 1.
FIG. 3 is a perspective view of an alternate embodiment of the indicator of FIG. 1.
FIG. 4 is an enlarged view of a portion of the indicator of FIG. 3.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
FIGS. 1-2 illustrate indicator 10 of the present invention. As shown in FIGS. 1-2, indicator 10 has upper surface 12 including a series of raised, or embossed, nodes 14 in which indicia 18 appear. Also included as part of indicator 10 are pin 22 and recesses 26 into which pin 30 may be inserted, as well as retainer button 34. Formed as part of retainer button 34 is protrusion or shaft 38, which projects above upper surface 12 for receipt by bore 42 of arm 46.
Indicator 10 additionally comprises lower surface 50 to which pressure sensitive or other adhesive 54 is applied. If necessary or desired, removable backing 58 may be included to cover adhesive 54 prior to use of indicator 10. As a result, indicator 10 need not be specially made to fit particular bottles or containers, but rather may be adhered to virtually any surface of them. Similarly, most bottles or containers with which indicator 10 may be used need not be altered or specially made. Disc-shaped embodiments of indicator 10 consistent with FIGS. 1-2, moreover, may be molded of plastic or other suitable material, providing an inexpensive, disposable alternative to the medicine minders discussed above.
As illustrated in FIG. 1, removing backing 58 exposes adhesive 54. With adhesive 54 uncovered, indicator 10 may be affixed to a particular container CO. When formed as a disc, the diameter of indicator 10 is usually approximately identical to that of a cylindrical cap CA used with common pill or medicine containers. Consequently, indicator 10 can be attached readily to the top T of cap CA merely by aligning lower surface 50 with top T and manually exerting force on upper surface 12. Alternatively, indicator 10 may be attached to a face or side S of container CO (as shown in phantom lines in FIG. 1) or at any other appropriate location. Because positioning of indicator 10 is not dependent on the shape or structure of container CO, it may be affixed to the container at any time and by any of the manufacturer, pharmacist, physician, or patient.
Typically (although not necessarily) after lower surface 50 is attached to container CO, pin 30 and arm 46 are connected to complete indicator 10. Placement of pin 30 is made to restrict travel of arm 46 commensurate with the patient's instructions respecting the medication in container CO. As illustrated in FIG. 2, pin 30 may be positioned in any of recesses 26A-D, each recess 26 corresponding to a node 14. The exemplary indicator 10 of FIG. 1 has pin 30 inserted into recess 26D, precluding arm from moving beyond the node 14 bearing the number "5" as indicia 18. If the patient's prescription requires five doses of medication per day, for example, pin 30 would likely be inserted into recess 26D. In this manner, indicator 10 inhibits the patient from taking a sixth dose by preventing further advancement of arm 46.
Pin 30 is shown in FIG. 1 as having a spherical lower portion 62 which may be forced into a recess 26, effectively making the pin 30 irremovable by a patient. Those skilled in the art will recognize, however, that pin 30 may be fixed in place when indicator 10 is formed or assume different shapes or that other mechanisms of limiting travel of arm 46 may be employed. By contrast, pin 22 often has a fixed position, preventing the patient from pivoting or rotating arm 46 outside its intended range of motion. Like pin 30, it too may be shaped, positioned, or otherwise structured in different ways.
Arm 46 includes first and second ends 66 and 70, respectively. Formed at first end 66 is annulus 74, designed to engage each of nodes 14 as appropriate and provide a positive, tactile fit that prevents arm 46 from moving unless manually manipulated. Second end 70 of arm 46, which includes bore 42, may be bifurcated as shown in FIGS. 1-2. In use, arm 46 may be friction fitted onto shaft 38, with bore 42 receiving the shaft. Shaft 38, therefore, serves as an axle about which arm 46 may pivot between pins 22 and 30.
Although detailed in FIGS. 1-2 as raised areas, nodes 14 need not be so formed, and instead may be either recessed or flush with upper surface 12. Nodes 14 similarly need not be shaped as circles or stubby cylinders, but rather may assume other shapes as desired. In these circumstances arm 46 may either omit annulus 74 or have such an annulus shaped other than as shown in FIGS. 1-2. Alternatively, first end 66 of arm 46 may terminate in a pointer or other means for designating one of indicia 18 at any given time or be sufficiently elongated to cover an indicia 18. Likewise, notwithstanding that numerals from "1" to "5" are illustrated as indicia 18 in FIGS. 1-2, other symbols may be used instead. Moreover, if nodes 14 are somehow distinguishable from upper surface 12 (as, for example, by being raised or recessed), indicia 18 may in some cases be omitted.
In a typical scenario envisioned by the applicant, a patient receives from his or her physician a prescription requiring "X" doses of a certain medicine per day. When filling the prescription, the patient's pharmacist will affix indicator 10 to the container CO enclosing the medicine. If, for example, "X" is three (thus requiring the patient to take three doses of the medicine per day), the pharmacist inserts pin 30 into recess 26B corresponding to the node 14 bearing the numeral "3" as indicia 18. The movement of arm 46, therefore, will be limited to nodes 14 bearing the numerals "1," "2," and "3" as indicia 18.
Prior to ingesting the initial dose of medicine from container CO, the patient moves arm 46 (if necessary) to ensure that annulus 74 engages node 14A, highlighting the numeral "1" appearing on that node. The patient then ingests the initial dose and immediately rotates arm 46 so that annulus 74 engages node 14B (highlighting the numeral "2"). In this position indicator 10 thus exhibits that the first dose has been taken and that the second dose is next to be ingested. After taking the second dose, the patient moves arm 46 so that annulus 74 engages node 14C (encircling the numeral "3"). After ingesting the third dose, however, the patient cannot advance arm 46, as such movement is precluded by pin 30. Indicator 10 thus informs the patient that no further doses are required for the day, reducing the possibility of accidental overdose.
FIGS. 3-4 illustrate an alternative indicator 78 that may be used with dropper D or other containers having irregular surfaces. As shown in FIG. 3, indicator 78 includes a removable collar 82 that may be fitted about dropper D. Connected to collar 82 is arch 86, onto which indicia 90 may be printed or otherwise included. Fitted about arch 86 is arm or slide 94, which may be moved by the patient in a manner similar to the patient's movement of arm 46. Like indicator 10, arch 86 of indicator 78 may include a series of recesses 98 into which pins or other stops may be placed to restrict advancement of slide 94. Because collar 82 effectively limits movement of slide 94, it may function equivalently to pin 22 of indicator 10. In yet another embodiment for use with dropper D, the dropper may be fitted with a separate cap onto which indicator 10 is affixed.
The foregoing is provided for purposes of illustrating, explaining, and describing embodiments of the present invention. Modifications and adaptations to these embodiments will be apparent to those skilled in the art and may be made without departing from the scope or spirit of the invention. In particular, although the devices and method disclosed herein are primarily intended for use with medicine containers, their usage is not so limited, and they may be employed whenever indications such as they provide are desired. | Indicators and methods of indicating are disclosed. Intended primarily for use with medicine containers, the devices typically indicate the number of doses of medication ingested or remaining to be taken by a patient during a particular period. These devices additionally provide tactile assistance to patients in appropriately repositioning the indicator arms and, when used correctly, may reduce the possibility of patient overdose by restricting improper attempts to advance the indicator arm. | Identify the most important claim in the given context and summarize it | [
"This application is a Continuation of and claims priority to U.S. application Ser.",
"No. 08/380,598, filed Jan. 30, 1995, now U.S. Pat. No. 5,694,882.",
"FIELD OF THE INVENTION This invention relates to an indicator and more particularly to a mechanism permitting a patient to determine the number of doses of medicine taken or remaining to be ingested in a designated interval.",
"BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Physicians often prescribe medications requiring periodic ingestion by a patient.",
"Products sold to patients over-the-counter, or without a practitioner's prescription, similarly typically mandate regular intake for optimal performance.",
"Complying with these requirements necessitates that each patient recollect that doses of the medication previously were taken, as failure to do so may result in ingestion of more or less than the specified dosage during a particular period.",
"Many patients, however, are unable to remember or determine the amount of medication already taken over a given duration.",
"This is especially true of certain elderly patients, who may experience short-term memory loss or, because their infirmities require ingestion of substantial numbers of different medications, confuse the dosage previously taken of each.",
"Empirical evidence suggests that elderly glaucoma patients in particular are plagued by these problems.",
"Combined with their decreased abilities to view the medication containers themselves, these glaucoma patients often have no means of determining whether they have taken the mandated doses.",
"The concept of using indicators or "medicine minders"",
"has existed for many years.",
"U.S. Pat. No. 710,708 to Mcshane, for example, describes at lines 8-13 a medicine bottle having a scale of the full, half and quarter hours from 12 to 11.45 o'clock, together with an indicator to indicate the time of taking the medicine therein contained.",
"A side of the specially-molded bottle contains a "flat-topped ridge"",
"on which a time scale is printed and having grooves to receive the "gripping claws"",
"of an indicator.",
"The patient is instructed to move the indicator after each dose of medication is taken, positioning its index at the point on the scale corresponding to the time for taking the next dosage.",
"The bottle does not indicate the number of doses either taken or remaining to be taken in a particular interval, however, thus neither preventing nor inhibiting overdoses.",
"It further fails to assist glaucoma and other patients with poor (or no) vision in appropriately positioning the indicator after ingesting each dose.",
"More recently, U.S. Pat. No. 5,271,353 to Besthorne issued describing a medicine reminder device in which a housing having a clock face is attached, using an elastic band, to the cylindrical body of a medicine container.",
"Mounted to the clock face are hour and minute hands.",
"After taking medicine from the container, the patient resets the hands to indicate the time of the next dose.",
"As with the medicine bottle of the McShane patent, however, the reminder device of the Besthorne patent provides no indication of the doses taken or to be taken.",
"Likewise, it furnish patients no tactile or other non-visual assistance in appropriately repositioning the hands of the clock.",
"U.S. Pat. No. 4,511,050 to Nicol provides yet another type of dose indicator.",
"Embodied in a two-piece cap, the indicator includes on one piece an embossed arrow or pointer and on the other graduated indicia.",
"The cap is useful solely with threaded containers, however, and fails to indicate to the patient that the maximum doses have been taken during any given period.",
"SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention provides a device responsive to many of these and other drawbacks of existing indicators.",
"Unlike those discussed above, the present invention not only provides tactile assistance to patients in appropriately repositioning its indicator arm, but also is useful with a wide variety of medicine or other containers.",
"When used correctly, moreover, the indicator of the present invention reduces the possibility of patient overdose by restricting further (improper) movement of the indicator arm.",
"In one embodiment of the present invention, the dose indicator is a molded plastic disc to which an indicator arm is connected.",
"Affixed to the underside of the disc is a pressure-sensitive adhesive, allowing the disc to be attached to at least one surface of virtually all existing commercial medicine containers.",
"When used with cylindrical bottles or containers having substantial curvatures, for example, such a disc may be attached to the (generally flat) upper surface of the cap of the container.",
"For other containers, alternatively, the discs may be affixed to their front or rear faces or sides.",
"Embossed on the upper surface of the disc are indicia, typically numbers corresponding to doses of medicine intended for consumption by the patient.",
"An annulus in the moveable indicator arm is designed to engage each embossed area, providing a positive (tactile) fit for the arm for each incremental dose.",
"Additionally protruding above the upper surface are two pins or other projections which limit travel or placement of the indicator arm.",
"One pin, whose location may be fixed for all discs, prevents the patient from attempting to place the arm outside its intended range of travel.",
"The location of the other pin may vary, however, depending on the number of doses of medication the patient is prescribed in a particular interval (e.g. per twenty-four hours).",
"Designed to be inserted (usually by the pharmacist) into one of a series of recesses in the disc and effectively locked into place, this pin prevents the indicator arm from travelling beyond an indicium corresponding to the maximum dose the patient is prescribed in the designated interval.",
"As a result, it inhibits overdosing when the device is used properly by preventing the patient from advancing the arm after the final prescribed dose is taken.",
"Other embodiments of the invention may comprise separate caps or collars for placement about irregularly-shaped objects such as medicine droppers.",
"Such devices may be adapted to provide more regular surfaces onto which discs may be affixed.",
"Alternatively, other structures, including arches, may be utilized consistent with the present invention.",
"It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide an indicator furnishing tactile assistance to patients with poor or no vision (or operating in darkness).",
"It is another object of the present invention to provide an indicator that, when used correctly, may reduce the possibility of patient overdose.",
"It is also an object of the present invention to provide an indicator adapted to be affixed to surfaces of numerous containers.",
"It is a further object of the present invention to provide a disc having a moveable indicator arm that may engage a raised area of the disc to provide a positive, secure fit.",
"It is an additional object of the present invention to provide mechanisms limiting the range of movement of the indicator arm.",
"It is yet another object of the present invention to provide at least one such mechanism whose location depends on the number of doses or medicine to be taken by a patient during a particular interval.",
"Other objects, features, and advantages of the present invention will become apparent with reference to the remainder of the written portion and the drawings of this application.",
"BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a partially-exploded perspective view of an exemplary indicator of the present invention shown prior to attachment to a bottle.",
"FIG. 2 is a top plan view of the indicator of FIG. 1. FIG. 3 is a perspective view of an alternate embodiment of the indicator of FIG. 1. FIG. 4 is an enlarged view of a portion of the indicator of FIG. 3. DETAILED DESCRIPTION FIGS. 1-2 illustrate indicator 10 of the present invention.",
"As shown in FIGS. 1-2, indicator 10 has upper surface 12 including a series of raised, or embossed, nodes 14 in which indicia 18 appear.",
"Also included as part of indicator 10 are pin 22 and recesses 26 into which pin 30 may be inserted, as well as retainer button 34.",
"Formed as part of retainer button 34 is protrusion or shaft 38, which projects above upper surface 12 for receipt by bore 42 of arm 46.",
"Indicator 10 additionally comprises lower surface 50 to which pressure sensitive or other adhesive 54 is applied.",
"If necessary or desired, removable backing 58 may be included to cover adhesive 54 prior to use of indicator 10.",
"As a result, indicator 10 need not be specially made to fit particular bottles or containers, but rather may be adhered to virtually any surface of them.",
"Similarly, most bottles or containers with which indicator 10 may be used need not be altered or specially made.",
"Disc-shaped embodiments of indicator 10 consistent with FIGS. 1-2, moreover, may be molded of plastic or other suitable material, providing an inexpensive, disposable alternative to the medicine minders discussed above.",
"As illustrated in FIG. 1, removing backing 58 exposes adhesive 54.",
"With adhesive 54 uncovered, indicator 10 may be affixed to a particular container CO.",
"When formed as a disc, the diameter of indicator 10 is usually approximately identical to that of a cylindrical cap CA used with common pill or medicine containers.",
"Consequently, indicator 10 can be attached readily to the top T of cap CA merely by aligning lower surface 50 with top T and manually exerting force on upper surface 12.",
"Alternatively, indicator 10 may be attached to a face or side S of container CO (as shown in phantom lines in FIG. 1) or at any other appropriate location.",
"Because positioning of indicator 10 is not dependent on the shape or structure of container CO, it may be affixed to the container at any time and by any of the manufacturer, pharmacist, physician, or patient.",
"Typically (although not necessarily) after lower surface 50 is attached to container CO, pin 30 and arm 46 are connected to complete indicator 10.",
"Placement of pin 30 is made to restrict travel of arm 46 commensurate with the patient's instructions respecting the medication in container CO.",
"As illustrated in FIG. 2, pin 30 may be positioned in any of recesses 26A-D, each recess 26 corresponding to a node 14.",
"The exemplary indicator 10 of FIG. 1 has pin 30 inserted into recess 26D, precluding arm from moving beyond the node 14 bearing the number "5"",
"as indicia 18.",
"If the patient's prescription requires five doses of medication per day, for example, pin 30 would likely be inserted into recess 26D.",
"In this manner, indicator 10 inhibits the patient from taking a sixth dose by preventing further advancement of arm 46.",
"Pin 30 is shown in FIG. 1 as having a spherical lower portion 62 which may be forced into a recess 26, effectively making the pin 30 irremovable by a patient.",
"Those skilled in the art will recognize, however, that pin 30 may be fixed in place when indicator 10 is formed or assume different shapes or that other mechanisms of limiting travel of arm 46 may be employed.",
"By contrast, pin 22 often has a fixed position, preventing the patient from pivoting or rotating arm 46 outside its intended range of motion.",
"Like pin 30, it too may be shaped, positioned, or otherwise structured in different ways.",
"Arm 46 includes first and second ends 66 and 70, respectively.",
"Formed at first end 66 is annulus 74, designed to engage each of nodes 14 as appropriate and provide a positive, tactile fit that prevents arm 46 from moving unless manually manipulated.",
"Second end 70 of arm 46, which includes bore 42, may be bifurcated as shown in FIGS. 1-2.",
"In use, arm 46 may be friction fitted onto shaft 38, with bore 42 receiving the shaft.",
"Shaft 38, therefore, serves as an axle about which arm 46 may pivot between pins 22 and 30.",
"Although detailed in FIGS. 1-2 as raised areas, nodes 14 need not be so formed, and instead may be either recessed or flush with upper surface 12.",
"Nodes 14 similarly need not be shaped as circles or stubby cylinders, but rather may assume other shapes as desired.",
"In these circumstances arm 46 may either omit annulus 74 or have such an annulus shaped other than as shown in FIGS. 1-2.",
"Alternatively, first end 66 of arm 46 may terminate in a pointer or other means for designating one of indicia 18 at any given time or be sufficiently elongated to cover an indicia 18.",
"Likewise, notwithstanding that numerals from "1"",
"to "5"",
"are illustrated as indicia 18 in FIGS. 1-2, other symbols may be used instead.",
"Moreover, if nodes 14 are somehow distinguishable from upper surface 12 (as, for example, by being raised or recessed), indicia 18 may in some cases be omitted.",
"In a typical scenario envisioned by the applicant, a patient receives from his or her physician a prescription requiring "X"",
"doses of a certain medicine per day.",
"When filling the prescription, the patient's pharmacist will affix indicator 10 to the container CO enclosing the medicine.",
"If, for example, "X"",
"is three (thus requiring the patient to take three doses of the medicine per day), the pharmacist inserts pin 30 into recess 26B corresponding to the node 14 bearing the numeral "3"",
"as indicia 18.",
"The movement of arm 46, therefore, will be limited to nodes 14 bearing the numerals "1,"",
""2,"",
"and "3"",
"as indicia 18.",
"Prior to ingesting the initial dose of medicine from container CO, the patient moves arm 46 (if necessary) to ensure that annulus 74 engages node 14A, highlighting the numeral "1"",
"appearing on that node.",
"The patient then ingests the initial dose and immediately rotates arm 46 so that annulus 74 engages node 14B (highlighting the numeral "2").",
"In this position indicator 10 thus exhibits that the first dose has been taken and that the second dose is next to be ingested.",
"After taking the second dose, the patient moves arm 46 so that annulus 74 engages node 14C (encircling the numeral "3").",
"After ingesting the third dose, however, the patient cannot advance arm 46, as such movement is precluded by pin 30.",
"Indicator 10 thus informs the patient that no further doses are required for the day, reducing the possibility of accidental overdose.",
"FIGS. 3-4 illustrate an alternative indicator 78 that may be used with dropper D or other containers having irregular surfaces.",
"As shown in FIG. 3, indicator 78 includes a removable collar 82 that may be fitted about dropper D. Connected to collar 82 is arch 86, onto which indicia 90 may be printed or otherwise included.",
"Fitted about arch 86 is arm or slide 94, which may be moved by the patient in a manner similar to the patient's movement of arm 46.",
"Like indicator 10, arch 86 of indicator 78 may include a series of recesses 98 into which pins or other stops may be placed to restrict advancement of slide 94.",
"Because collar 82 effectively limits movement of slide 94, it may function equivalently to pin 22 of indicator 10.",
"In yet another embodiment for use with dropper D, the dropper may be fitted with a separate cap onto which indicator 10 is affixed.",
"The foregoing is provided for purposes of illustrating, explaining, and describing embodiments of the present invention.",
"Modifications and adaptations to these embodiments will be apparent to those skilled in the art and may be made without departing from the scope or spirit of the invention.",
"In particular, although the devices and method disclosed herein are primarily intended for use with medicine containers, their usage is not so limited, and they may be employed whenever indications such as they provide are desired."
] |
TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION
This invention pertains to an inverter unit for converting an output of a power source being comprised of a generator or the like driven by an internal combustion engine or the like into an AC voltage having a constant frequency.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
There have been used an inverter unit for obtaining an AC voltage having a constant frequency (generally a commercial frequency) by using a generator driven by a prime mover such as an internal combustion engine as a power source. As shown in FIG. 6 , an inverter unit for converting an output of an AC generator into an AC output having a constant frequency includes: an AC/DC converter CNV for converting an output of an AC generator into a DC output; an inverter INV for converting the output of the converter into an AC voltage of a constant frequency; and a filter FL. The filter FL is a low-pass filter having, for example, first and second coils L 1 , L 2 and a capacitor C 1 , and is provided for removing a high harmonic wave component from the output of the inverter INV.
FIG. 7 is a schematic diagram showing an example of a structure of a conventional inverter unit 401 of this type. In FIG. 7 , a reference numeral 402 shows a box-like case having a rectangular shaped bottom wall portion 402 a , and a side wall portion comprising side walls 402 b , 402 c facing to the longitudinal direction of the bottom wall portion 402 a and side walls 402 d , 402 e facing to the cross direction of the bottom wall portion 402 a . In the case 402 , there are housed component parts of the inverter unit, including the converter CNV, the inverter INV and the filter FL.
The first and second coils L 1 , L 2 of the filter FL are wound around first and second bobbins B 1 , B 2 mounted to first and second cores I 1 , I 2 , respectively. In order to maintain the stability of cut-off frequency of the filter with respect to the change of load current, a prismatic core being comprised of a laminated steel plate and extending straight is used as the cores I 1 , I 2 being wound with the coils L 1 , L 2 , respectively.
The coils L 1 , L 2 are arranged at a position close to the side wall portion 402 b which is one end of the case 402 so that central axes of the coils coincide with each other, and an end portion I 1 b of the core I 1 of the first coil L 1 and an end portion (not shown) of the core I 2 of the second coil L 2 are respectively arranged close to the side walls 402 d , 402 e facing to the cross direction of the case 402 . The capacitor C 1 and the component parts of the converter CNV and the inverter INV are mounted to a printed board 403 which is arranged by the coils L 1 , L 2 .
It may be possible to arrange the coils L 1 , L 2 at the central of the case 402 . However, in this case, the structure of the unit becomes complicated, an outlet of an output line from the filter becomes complex, and the cost increases because of an increase in manufacturing processes, since it becomes necessary to divide the printed board 403 into two parts.
On the other hand, if the coils L 1 , L 2 are arranged on the end portion of the case 402 as shown, it is possible to simplify the structure of the unit since it is unnecessary to divide the printed board 403 . In addition, it is possible to make the outlet of the output line from the filter FL to outside easily in the case where the coils L 1 , L 2 are arranged on the end portion of the case 402 .
The inverter unit of this type often provides a function as a heat sink to the case 402 in order to improve heat radiation from the converter and the inverter. Also, for preventing the weight of the inverter becoming heavy, it is desirable to use a case as light as possible. Therefore, the case 402 is generally made from aluminum which not only has good heat conductivity but also is light weight.
Although it is not shown in the drawings, resin is cast into the case 402 , and at least a part of the component parts of the unit is molded by the resin, so that the inverter unit has water-resisting and earthquake-resisting characteristics. An inverter unit of this type is disclosed in, for example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open Publication No. 11-122932.
An inverter unit shown in FIG. 7 includes an AC/DC converter CNV for converting an AC output of a generator into a DC output because it is assumed that an AC generator is used as power source. However, the AC/DC converter may be omitted in the case where an output of a DC power source such as a storage battery and a solar battery is converted into an AC output of constant frequency.
As shown in FIG. 7 , if the coils L 1 , L 2 are disposed at the end portion of the case 402 made of aluminum, and the end portions of the cores I 1 , I 2 being wound with the coils L 1 , L 2 , respectively, are arranged closed to the inner surface of the side walls 402 d , 402 e of the case 402 , the magnetic flux coming in and out the end portions of the cores I 1 , I 2 flows through the side walls 402 d , 402 e of the case. If an AC magnetic flux flows through the side walls 402 d , 402 d of the case, eddy current flows at the side walls 402 d , 402 e . Then, since magnetic flux generated by the eddy current prevents an AC magnetic flux flowing through the cores I 1 , I 2 from changing, magnetic resistance of the cores I 1 , I 2 is increased, and inductance of the coils L 1 , L 2 is decreased.
Therefore, it has been necessary for the conventional inverter unit of this type to make the coils L 1 , L 2 have larger inductance than their needs, with making allowance for its possible reduction of inductance of the coils L 1 , L 2 . Thus, it was inevitable for the coils L 1 , L 2 to be large and the cost to be expensive.
To avoid the reduction of inductance of the coils L 1 , L 2 , the distance between the end portions of the cores I 1 , I 2 and the inner surfaces of the side walls 402 d , 402 e of the case 402 may be enlarged. However, in this case, the case 402 becomes large, which causes the inverter unit to become large.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
Accordingly, it is a principal object of the present invention to provide an inverter unit adapted to have a smaller coil constituting a filter than a conventional type so as to make the unit light and smaller.
The present invention is applied to an inverter unit comprising component parts including at least an inverter and a filter which removes high harmonic wave component from an output of the inverter. The component parts are housed in an aluminum box-like case having a bottom wall portion and a side wall portion. The filter includes a coil which is wound around a core extending straight and is disposed at a position closed to one end of the case, and an end portion of the core being wound with the coil is arranged closed to an inner surface of the side wall portion of the case. In the present invention, there is provided, at the end portion of the core, magnetic flux guiding member which guides magnetic flux coming in and out the end portion of the core arranged closed to the side wall portion of the case so as to direct the flux to the direction along the inner surface of the side wall portion of the case.
With the inverter unit constructed as aforementioned, it is possible to decrease the magnetic flux passing through the side wall portion of the case closed to the end portion of the core and restrain eddy current flowing at the side wall portion of the case. The eddy current flowing at the side wall portion of the case is decreased, which prevents magnetic resistance from being increased and prevents inductance of the coil to be decreased. Thus, a smaller coil of the filter than the conventional type can be used, and the inverter unit can be made light and smaller.
The aforementioned magnetic flux guiding member may be constructed of a ferromagnetic plate which has a surface larger than the end surface of the core and is disposed between the end portion of the core and the inner surface of the side wall portion of the case.
Also, the aforementioned magnetic flux guiding member may be constructed of a protrusion which integrally protrudes from the end portion of the core arranged closed to the inner surface of the side wall portion of the case along the inner surface of the side wall portion of the case and extends toward the other side of the bottom wall portion of the case.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
The above and other objects and features of the invention will be apparent from the detailed description of the preferred embodiments of the invention, which are described and illustrated with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which;
FIG. 1 is a schematic perspective view of the inverter unit constructed in accordance with the first embodiment of the invention;
FIG. 2 is a plan view of a main part of the inverter unit shown in FIG. 1 ;
FIG. 3 is a sectional view taken along the line III—III of FIG. 2 ;
FIG. 4 is a plan view of a main part of the inverter unit constructed in accordance with the second embodiment of the invention;
FIG. 5 is a sectional view taken along the line V—V of FIG. 4 ;
FIG. 6 is a circuit diagram illustrating an example of an electrical construction of the inverter unit;
FIG. 7 is a schematic perspective view of a conventional inverter unit.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
FIGS. 1 to 3 show the first embodiment of an inverter unit 1 according to the present invention. The inverter unit 1 includes, as same as the inverter unit shown in FIG. 6 , a converter CNV, a inverter INV and a filter FL, and the filter FL is comprised of first and second coils L 1 , L 2 and a capacitor C 1 .
In FIG. 1 , a reference numeral 2 denotes a box-like case which is made of aluminum. The case 2 comprises a rectangular plate-like bottom wall portion 2 a and a side wall portion. The side wall portion comprises a pair of side walls 2 b , 2 c facing to the longitudinal direction of the bottom wall portion 2 a , and a pair of side walls 2 d , 2 e facing to the cross direction of the bottom wall portion 2 a . In the case 2 , there are stored component parts of the inverter unit, including the converter CNV, the inverter INV and the filter FL.
The first and second coils L 1 , L 2 of the filter FL are wound around first and second bobbins B 1 , B 2 mounted to first and second cores I 1 , I 2 , respectively. The first and second cores I 1 , I 2 are prismatic cores, which is constituted by laminating a predetermined number of steel plates.
The coils L 1 , L 2 are arranged at a position close to the side wall 2 b which is on one end side of the longitudinal direction of the case 2 , so that central axes of the coils coincide with each other and are directed to the cross direction of the case, and an end portion I 1 a of the first core I 1 and an end portion I 2 a of the core I 2 are respectively adjacent to each other. The other end portions I 1 b , I 2 b of the first and second core I 1 , I 2 are arranged so as to be close to inner surfaces of a pair of the side walls 2 d , 2 e facing to the cross direction of the case.
The capacitor C 1 and the component parts of the converter CNV and the inverter INV are mounted to a printed board 3 which is arranged on a space between the coils L 1 , L 2 and the side wall 2 c which is on the other end side of the longitudinal direction of the case 2 .
In this embodiment, a first plate 5 is arranged between the other end portion I 1 b of the first core I 1 and the side wall 2 d of the case opposed to the other end portion I 1 b of the first core I 1 , and a second plate 6 is arranged between the other end portion I 2 b of the second core I 2 and the side wall 2 d of the case opposed to the other end portion I 2 b of the second core I 2 . The plates 5 and 6 constitute a magnetic flux guiding member which guides magnetic flux φ coming in and out the end portions I 1 b , I 2 b of the first and second cores so as to direct the flux to the direction along the inner surfaces of the side walls 2 d , 2 e of the case. The first and second plates 5 , 6 are made of ferromagnetic material such as iron.
The first plate 5 is formed so as to include a portion existing between the other end portion I 1 b of the first core I 1 and the side wall 2 d of the case opposed to the other end portion I 1 b of the first core I 1 and a portion extending beyond an outer edge of an end surface of the other end of the first core I 1 . Similarly, the second plate 6 is formed so as to include a portion existing between the other end portion I 2 b of the second core I 2 and the side wall 2 e of the case opposed to the other end portion I 2 b of the second core I 2 and a portion extending beyond an outline of an end surface of the other end of the second core I 2 .
In the illustrated example, the first and second plates 5 , 6 are rectangular shaped plates having a larger surface than the end surfaces of the first and second cores I 1 , I 2 , and these plates are arranged in a condition to be put between the other end portion I 1 b of the first core I 1 and the side wall 2 d of the case and between the other end portion I 2 b of the second core I 2 and the side wall 2 e of the case, respectively.
As aforementioned, in the case where the first and second plates 5 , 6 made of ferromagnetic materials and having larger surfaces than the end surfaces of the first and second cores I 1 , I 2 are arranged between the other end portion I 1 b of the first core I 1 and the side wall 2 d of the case opposed to the other end portion I 1 b of the first core I 1 , and between the other end portion I 2 b of the second core I 2 and the side wall 2 d of the case opposed to the other end portion I 2 b of the second core I 2 , respectively, and where the plates 5 and 6 constitute a magnetic flux guiding member which guides magnetic flux φ coming in and out the end portions I 1 b , I 2 b of the first and second cores so as to direct the flux to the direction along the inner surfaces of the side walls 2 d , 2 e of the case, it is possible to decrease an amount of magnetic flux passing through the side walls of the case since it can be easier for the magnetic flux φ to flow through a magnetic path which does not penetrate the wall portion of the case 2 . Thus, eddy current flowing at the case is decreased, which can prevent magnetic resistance from being largely increased by the eddy current occurring at the case and prevent decrease in inductance of the coils which is caused by increasing magnetic resistance of the core.
As described above, according to the present invention, since it is possible to prevent that inductance of the coil is largely decreased by being affected by the eddy current flowing at the case, it is unnecessary to prepare a larger coil in anticipate that the inductance of the coil is decreased; thus, the inverter unit can be made light and smaller by using a smaller coil than the conventional type.
FIGS. 4 and 5 illustrate the second embodiment of the present invention. In this embodiment, protrusions 11 , 12 are provided at the end portions I 1 b , I 2 b of the first and second cores I 1 , I 2 opposed to a pair of the side walls 2 d , 2 e facing to the cross direction of the case 2 . The protrusions 11 , 12 are integrally protruding from the end portions I 1 b , I 2 b of the first and second cores I 1 , I 2 and extending toward the opposite side of the bottom wall portion 2 a of the case along the inner surfaces of the side walls 2 d , 2 e . The protrusions 11 , 12 constitute the magnetic flux guiding member which guides the magnetic flux coming in and out the end portions of the cores so as to direct the flux to the direction along the inner surfaces of the side walls of the case.
In the illustrated example, at end portions of steel plates respectively constituting the cores I 1 , I 2 , there are provided bent portions bending perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of the steel plates, which form, at the end portions I 1 b , I 2 b of the cores I 1 , I 2 , the protrusions 11 , 12 extending along the inner surfaces of the side walls 2 d , 2 e toward the other side of the bottom wall portion 2 a of the case.
In the embodiment shown in FIGS. 1 to 3 , there is provided a gap between the adjacent end portions of the bobbins B 1 , B 2 wound with the coils L 1 , L 2 , respectively. However, in the embodiment shown in FIGS. 4 and 5 , the adjacent end portions of the bobbins B 1 , B 2 are butted without any gap. Other constructions of the embodiment shown in FIGS. 4 and 5 are the same as the embodiment shown in FIG. 1 to 3 .
In the case where the protrusions 11 , 12 extending and protruding toward the opposite side of the bottom wall portion 2 a of the case are provided along the inner surfaces of the side walls 2 d , 2 e of the case at the end portions I 1 b , I 2 b of the cores I 1 , I 2 as shown in FIGS. 4 and 5 , it is possible to decrease an amount of magnetic flux passing through the side walls of the case since it can be easier for the magnetic flux φ to flow through a magnetic path which does not penetrate the side walls of the case 2 . Thus, eddy current flowing at the case 2 is decreased, which can prevent magnetic resistance of the cores I 1 , I 2 from being largely increased and prevent inductance of the coils to be decreased.
Furthermore, in the case where the protrusions 11 , 12 protruding toward the opposite side of the bottom wall portion 2 a of the case are provided at the end portions of the cores as shown in FIGS. 4 and 5 , it is possible to decrease an amount of magnetic flux passing to the side of the bottom wall portion 2 a of the case and decrease an eddy-current loss by decreasing the eddy current flowing at the bottom wall portion of the case, thereby restraining a generation of heat from the case.
Still, in the embodiment shown in FIGS. 4 and 5 , it may be allowed to additionally provide protrusions protruding toward the side of the bottom wall portion 2 a of the case from the end portions I 1 b , I 2 b of the cores I 1 , I 2 other than the protrusions 11 , 12 protruding toward the opposite side of the bottom wall portion 2 a of the case from the end portions I 1 b , I 2 b of the first and second cores I 1 , I 2 . However, if the protrusions protruding toward the side of the bottom wall portion 2 a of the case from the end portions I 1 b , I 2 b of the cores I 1 , I 2 are provided, it is desirable to bring the length of the protrusions protruding toward the side of the bottom wall portion shorter than the length of the protrusions protruding toward the opposite side of the bottom wall portion, and make the magnetic resistance of the magnetic path which flows the magnetic flux through the protrusions protruding toward the opposite side of the bottom wall portion 2 a from the end portions I 1 b , I 2 b of the cores I 1 , I 2 smaller than the magnetic resistance of the magnetic path which flows the magnetic flux through the protrusions protruding toward the side of the bottom wall portion 2 a from the end portions I 1 b , I 2 b of the cores I 1 , I 2 .
Although the coils L 1 , L 2 are separately wound around the core I 1 , I 2 , respectively, in each embodiment described above, these coils may be wound around a common core; that is, the coils L 1 , L 2 may be placed adjacently and wound around a long core which is a unity of the cores I 1 , I 2 .
Although some preferred embodiments of the invention have been described and illustrated with reference to the accompanying drawings, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that they are by way of example, and that various changes and modifications may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention, which is defined only to the appended claims. | An inverter unit comprising component parts including at least an inverter and a filter which removes a high harmonic wave component from an output of said inverter, wherein said component parts are housed in an aluminum case having a bottom wall portion and a side wall portion, said filter includes a coil which is wound around a core extending straight and is arranged at a position closed to one end of said case, an end portion of said core being wound with said coil is arranged closed to an inner surface of said side wall portion of the case, and a ferromagnetic plate, which leads magnetic flux coming in and out said end portion of the core arranged closed to said wall portion of the case to the direction along the inner surface of the side wall portion of the case, is disposed between said end portion of said core and said inner surface of said side wall portion of the case. | Briefly describe the main invention outlined in the provided context. | [
"TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION This invention pertains to an inverter unit for converting an output of a power source being comprised of a generator or the like driven by an internal combustion engine or the like into an AC voltage having a constant frequency.",
"BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION There have been used an inverter unit for obtaining an AC voltage having a constant frequency (generally a commercial frequency) by using a generator driven by a prime mover such as an internal combustion engine as a power source.",
"As shown in FIG. 6 , an inverter unit for converting an output of an AC generator into an AC output having a constant frequency includes: an AC/DC converter CNV for converting an output of an AC generator into a DC output;",
"an inverter INV for converting the output of the converter into an AC voltage of a constant frequency;",
"and a filter FL.",
"The filter FL is a low-pass filter having, for example, first and second coils L 1 , L 2 and a capacitor C 1 , and is provided for removing a high harmonic wave component from the output of the inverter INV.",
"FIG. 7 is a schematic diagram showing an example of a structure of a conventional inverter unit 401 of this type.",
"In FIG. 7 , a reference numeral 402 shows a box-like case having a rectangular shaped bottom wall portion 402 a , and a side wall portion comprising side walls 402 b , 402 c facing to the longitudinal direction of the bottom wall portion 402 a and side walls 402 d , 402 e facing to the cross direction of the bottom wall portion 402 a .",
"In the case 402 , there are housed component parts of the inverter unit, including the converter CNV, the inverter INV and the filter FL.",
"The first and second coils L 1 , L 2 of the filter FL are wound around first and second bobbins B 1 , B 2 mounted to first and second cores I 1 , I 2 , respectively.",
"In order to maintain the stability of cut-off frequency of the filter with respect to the change of load current, a prismatic core being comprised of a laminated steel plate and extending straight is used as the cores I 1 , I 2 being wound with the coils L 1 , L 2 , respectively.",
"The coils L 1 , L 2 are arranged at a position close to the side wall portion 402 b which is one end of the case 402 so that central axes of the coils coincide with each other, and an end portion I 1 b of the core I 1 of the first coil L 1 and an end portion (not shown) of the core I 2 of the second coil L 2 are respectively arranged close to the side walls 402 d , 402 e facing to the cross direction of the case 402 .",
"The capacitor C 1 and the component parts of the converter CNV and the inverter INV are mounted to a printed board 403 which is arranged by the coils L 1 , L 2 .",
"It may be possible to arrange the coils L 1 , L 2 at the central of the case 402 .",
"However, in this case, the structure of the unit becomes complicated, an outlet of an output line from the filter becomes complex, and the cost increases because of an increase in manufacturing processes, since it becomes necessary to divide the printed board 403 into two parts.",
"On the other hand, if the coils L 1 , L 2 are arranged on the end portion of the case 402 as shown, it is possible to simplify the structure of the unit since it is unnecessary to divide the printed board 403 .",
"In addition, it is possible to make the outlet of the output line from the filter FL to outside easily in the case where the coils L 1 , L 2 are arranged on the end portion of the case 402 .",
"The inverter unit of this type often provides a function as a heat sink to the case 402 in order to improve heat radiation from the converter and the inverter.",
"Also, for preventing the weight of the inverter becoming heavy, it is desirable to use a case as light as possible.",
"Therefore, the case 402 is generally made from aluminum which not only has good heat conductivity but also is light weight.",
"Although it is not shown in the drawings, resin is cast into the case 402 , and at least a part of the component parts of the unit is molded by the resin, so that the inverter unit has water-resisting and earthquake-resisting characteristics.",
"An inverter unit of this type is disclosed in, for example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open Publication No. 11-122932.",
"An inverter unit shown in FIG. 7 includes an AC/DC converter CNV for converting an AC output of a generator into a DC output because it is assumed that an AC generator is used as power source.",
"However, the AC/DC converter may be omitted in the case where an output of a DC power source such as a storage battery and a solar battery is converted into an AC output of constant frequency.",
"As shown in FIG. 7 , if the coils L 1 , L 2 are disposed at the end portion of the case 402 made of aluminum, and the end portions of the cores I 1 , I 2 being wound with the coils L 1 , L 2 , respectively, are arranged closed to the inner surface of the side walls 402 d , 402 e of the case 402 , the magnetic flux coming in and out the end portions of the cores I 1 , I 2 flows through the side walls 402 d , 402 e of the case.",
"If an AC magnetic flux flows through the side walls 402 d , 402 d of the case, eddy current flows at the side walls 402 d , 402 e .",
"Then, since magnetic flux generated by the eddy current prevents an AC magnetic flux flowing through the cores I 1 , I 2 from changing, magnetic resistance of the cores I 1 , I 2 is increased, and inductance of the coils L 1 , L 2 is decreased.",
"Therefore, it has been necessary for the conventional inverter unit of this type to make the coils L 1 , L 2 have larger inductance than their needs, with making allowance for its possible reduction of inductance of the coils L 1 , L 2 .",
"Thus, it was inevitable for the coils L 1 , L 2 to be large and the cost to be expensive.",
"To avoid the reduction of inductance of the coils L 1 , L 2 , the distance between the end portions of the cores I 1 , I 2 and the inner surfaces of the side walls 402 d , 402 e of the case 402 may be enlarged.",
"However, in this case, the case 402 becomes large, which causes the inverter unit to become large.",
"SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Accordingly, it is a principal object of the present invention to provide an inverter unit adapted to have a smaller coil constituting a filter than a conventional type so as to make the unit light and smaller.",
"The present invention is applied to an inverter unit comprising component parts including at least an inverter and a filter which removes high harmonic wave component from an output of the inverter.",
"The component parts are housed in an aluminum box-like case having a bottom wall portion and a side wall portion.",
"The filter includes a coil which is wound around a core extending straight and is disposed at a position closed to one end of the case, and an end portion of the core being wound with the coil is arranged closed to an inner surface of the side wall portion of the case.",
"In the present invention, there is provided, at the end portion of the core, magnetic flux guiding member which guides magnetic flux coming in and out the end portion of the core arranged closed to the side wall portion of the case so as to direct the flux to the direction along the inner surface of the side wall portion of the case.",
"With the inverter unit constructed as aforementioned, it is possible to decrease the magnetic flux passing through the side wall portion of the case closed to the end portion of the core and restrain eddy current flowing at the side wall portion of the case.",
"The eddy current flowing at the side wall portion of the case is decreased, which prevents magnetic resistance from being increased and prevents inductance of the coil to be decreased.",
"Thus, a smaller coil of the filter than the conventional type can be used, and the inverter unit can be made light and smaller.",
"The aforementioned magnetic flux guiding member may be constructed of a ferromagnetic plate which has a surface larger than the end surface of the core and is disposed between the end portion of the core and the inner surface of the side wall portion of the case.",
"Also, the aforementioned magnetic flux guiding member may be constructed of a protrusion which integrally protrudes from the end portion of the core arranged closed to the inner surface of the side wall portion of the case along the inner surface of the side wall portion of the case and extends toward the other side of the bottom wall portion of the case.",
"BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS The above and other objects and features of the invention will be apparent from the detailed description of the preferred embodiments of the invention, which are described and illustrated with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which;",
"FIG. 1 is a schematic perspective view of the inverter unit constructed in accordance with the first embodiment of the invention;",
"FIG. 2 is a plan view of a main part of the inverter unit shown in FIG. 1 ;",
"FIG. 3 is a sectional view taken along the line III—III of FIG. 2 ;",
"FIG. 4 is a plan view of a main part of the inverter unit constructed in accordance with the second embodiment of the invention;",
"FIG. 5 is a sectional view taken along the line V—V of FIG. 4 ;",
"FIG. 6 is a circuit diagram illustrating an example of an electrical construction of the inverter unit;",
"FIG. 7 is a schematic perspective view of a conventional inverter unit.",
"DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS FIGS. 1 to 3 show the first embodiment of an inverter unit 1 according to the present invention.",
"The inverter unit 1 includes, as same as the inverter unit shown in FIG. 6 , a converter CNV, a inverter INV and a filter FL, and the filter FL is comprised of first and second coils L 1 , L 2 and a capacitor C 1 .",
"In FIG. 1 , a reference numeral 2 denotes a box-like case which is made of aluminum.",
"The case 2 comprises a rectangular plate-like bottom wall portion 2 a and a side wall portion.",
"The side wall portion comprises a pair of side walls 2 b , 2 c facing to the longitudinal direction of the bottom wall portion 2 a , and a pair of side walls 2 d , 2 e facing to the cross direction of the bottom wall portion 2 a .",
"In the case 2 , there are stored component parts of the inverter unit, including the converter CNV, the inverter INV and the filter FL.",
"The first and second coils L 1 , L 2 of the filter FL are wound around first and second bobbins B 1 , B 2 mounted to first and second cores I 1 , I 2 , respectively.",
"The first and second cores I 1 , I 2 are prismatic cores, which is constituted by laminating a predetermined number of steel plates.",
"The coils L 1 , L 2 are arranged at a position close to the side wall 2 b which is on one end side of the longitudinal direction of the case 2 , so that central axes of the coils coincide with each other and are directed to the cross direction of the case, and an end portion I 1 a of the first core I 1 and an end portion I 2 a of the core I 2 are respectively adjacent to each other.",
"The other end portions I 1 b , I 2 b of the first and second core I 1 , I 2 are arranged so as to be close to inner surfaces of a pair of the side walls 2 d , 2 e facing to the cross direction of the case.",
"The capacitor C 1 and the component parts of the converter CNV and the inverter INV are mounted to a printed board 3 which is arranged on a space between the coils L 1 , L 2 and the side wall 2 c which is on the other end side of the longitudinal direction of the case 2 .",
"In this embodiment, a first plate 5 is arranged between the other end portion I 1 b of the first core I 1 and the side wall 2 d of the case opposed to the other end portion I 1 b of the first core I 1 , and a second plate 6 is arranged between the other end portion I 2 b of the second core I 2 and the side wall 2 d of the case opposed to the other end portion I 2 b of the second core I 2 .",
"The plates 5 and 6 constitute a magnetic flux guiding member which guides magnetic flux φ coming in and out the end portions I 1 b , I 2 b of the first and second cores so as to direct the flux to the direction along the inner surfaces of the side walls 2 d , 2 e of the case.",
"The first and second plates 5 , 6 are made of ferromagnetic material such as iron.",
"The first plate 5 is formed so as to include a portion existing between the other end portion I 1 b of the first core I 1 and the side wall 2 d of the case opposed to the other end portion I 1 b of the first core I 1 and a portion extending beyond an outer edge of an end surface of the other end of the first core I 1 .",
"Similarly, the second plate 6 is formed so as to include a portion existing between the other end portion I 2 b of the second core I 2 and the side wall 2 e of the case opposed to the other end portion I 2 b of the second core I 2 and a portion extending beyond an outline of an end surface of the other end of the second core I 2 .",
"In the illustrated example, the first and second plates 5 , 6 are rectangular shaped plates having a larger surface than the end surfaces of the first and second cores I 1 , I 2 , and these plates are arranged in a condition to be put between the other end portion I 1 b of the first core I 1 and the side wall 2 d of the case and between the other end portion I 2 b of the second core I 2 and the side wall 2 e of the case, respectively.",
"As aforementioned, in the case where the first and second plates 5 , 6 made of ferromagnetic materials and having larger surfaces than the end surfaces of the first and second cores I 1 , I 2 are arranged between the other end portion I 1 b of the first core I 1 and the side wall 2 d of the case opposed to the other end portion I 1 b of the first core I 1 , and between the other end portion I 2 b of the second core I 2 and the side wall 2 d of the case opposed to the other end portion I 2 b of the second core I 2 , respectively, and where the plates 5 and 6 constitute a magnetic flux guiding member which guides magnetic flux φ coming in and out the end portions I 1 b , I 2 b of the first and second cores so as to direct the flux to the direction along the inner surfaces of the side walls 2 d , 2 e of the case, it is possible to decrease an amount of magnetic flux passing through the side walls of the case since it can be easier for the magnetic flux φ to flow through a magnetic path which does not penetrate the wall portion of the case 2 .",
"Thus, eddy current flowing at the case is decreased, which can prevent magnetic resistance from being largely increased by the eddy current occurring at the case and prevent decrease in inductance of the coils which is caused by increasing magnetic resistance of the core.",
"As described above, according to the present invention, since it is possible to prevent that inductance of the coil is largely decreased by being affected by the eddy current flowing at the case, it is unnecessary to prepare a larger coil in anticipate that the inductance of the coil is decreased;",
"thus, the inverter unit can be made light and smaller by using a smaller coil than the conventional type.",
"FIGS. 4 and 5 illustrate the second embodiment of the present invention.",
"In this embodiment, protrusions 11 , 12 are provided at the end portions I 1 b , I 2 b of the first and second cores I 1 , I 2 opposed to a pair of the side walls 2 d , 2 e facing to the cross direction of the case 2 .",
"The protrusions 11 , 12 are integrally protruding from the end portions I 1 b , I 2 b of the first and second cores I 1 , I 2 and extending toward the opposite side of the bottom wall portion 2 a of the case along the inner surfaces of the side walls 2 d , 2 e .",
"The protrusions 11 , 12 constitute the magnetic flux guiding member which guides the magnetic flux coming in and out the end portions of the cores so as to direct the flux to the direction along the inner surfaces of the side walls of the case.",
"In the illustrated example, at end portions of steel plates respectively constituting the cores I 1 , I 2 , there are provided bent portions bending perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of the steel plates, which form, at the end portions I 1 b , I 2 b of the cores I 1 , I 2 , the protrusions 11 , 12 extending along the inner surfaces of the side walls 2 d , 2 e toward the other side of the bottom wall portion 2 a of the case.",
"In the embodiment shown in FIGS. 1 to 3 , there is provided a gap between the adjacent end portions of the bobbins B 1 , B 2 wound with the coils L 1 , L 2 , respectively.",
"However, in the embodiment shown in FIGS. 4 and 5 , the adjacent end portions of the bobbins B 1 , B 2 are butted without any gap.",
"Other constructions of the embodiment shown in FIGS. 4 and 5 are the same as the embodiment shown in FIG. 1 to 3 .",
"In the case where the protrusions 11 , 12 extending and protruding toward the opposite side of the bottom wall portion 2 a of the case are provided along the inner surfaces of the side walls 2 d , 2 e of the case at the end portions I 1 b , I 2 b of the cores I 1 , I 2 as shown in FIGS. 4 and 5 , it is possible to decrease an amount of magnetic flux passing through the side walls of the case since it can be easier for the magnetic flux φ to flow through a magnetic path which does not penetrate the side walls of the case 2 .",
"Thus, eddy current flowing at the case 2 is decreased, which can prevent magnetic resistance of the cores I 1 , I 2 from being largely increased and prevent inductance of the coils to be decreased.",
"Furthermore, in the case where the protrusions 11 , 12 protruding toward the opposite side of the bottom wall portion 2 a of the case are provided at the end portions of the cores as shown in FIGS. 4 and 5 , it is possible to decrease an amount of magnetic flux passing to the side of the bottom wall portion 2 a of the case and decrease an eddy-current loss by decreasing the eddy current flowing at the bottom wall portion of the case, thereby restraining a generation of heat from the case.",
"Still, in the embodiment shown in FIGS. 4 and 5 , it may be allowed to additionally provide protrusions protruding toward the side of the bottom wall portion 2 a of the case from the end portions I 1 b , I 2 b of the cores I 1 , I 2 other than the protrusions 11 , 12 protruding toward the opposite side of the bottom wall portion 2 a of the case from the end portions I 1 b , I 2 b of the first and second cores I 1 , I 2 .",
"However, if the protrusions protruding toward the side of the bottom wall portion 2 a of the case from the end portions I 1 b , I 2 b of the cores I 1 , I 2 are provided, it is desirable to bring the length of the protrusions protruding toward the side of the bottom wall portion shorter than the length of the protrusions protruding toward the opposite side of the bottom wall portion, and make the magnetic resistance of the magnetic path which flows the magnetic flux through the protrusions protruding toward the opposite side of the bottom wall portion 2 a from the end portions I 1 b , I 2 b of the cores I 1 , I 2 smaller than the magnetic resistance of the magnetic path which flows the magnetic flux through the protrusions protruding toward the side of the bottom wall portion 2 a from the end portions I 1 b , I 2 b of the cores I 1 , I 2 .",
"Although the coils L 1 , L 2 are separately wound around the core I 1 , I 2 , respectively, in each embodiment described above, these coils may be wound around a common core;",
"that is, the coils L 1 , L 2 may be placed adjacently and wound around a long core which is a unity of the cores I 1 , I 2 .",
"Although some preferred embodiments of the invention have been described and illustrated with reference to the accompanying drawings, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that they are by way of example, and that various changes and modifications may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention, which is defined only to the appended claims."
] |
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0001] 1. Field of the Invention
[0002] The present invention relates to a wireless communication apparatus, a cordless telephone, a display operation control method, a program, and a storage medium. In particular, the present invention relates to a wireless communication apparatus and a cordless telephone, which are comprised of a slave unit and a master unit, with which the slave unit located remotely from the master unit performs conversation with an opposite party by using a wireless radio wave through the master unit connected to a telephone line, a display operation control method, a program for implementing the method, and a storage medium storing the program.
[0003] 2. Description of the Related Art
[0004] A conventional wireless communication apparatus such as a cordless telephone has a function called “carrier sense” of detecting in advance whether the frequency of each conversation channel is being used, when starting communication using the communication apparatus, and selecting a vacant channel that is not currently used while avoiding other channels that are currently used by other cordless telephones, to thereby guarantee a normal communication operation.
[0005] Even if conversation is started using the channel selected by the above carrier sense function or carrier sense, if a noise that has such a low level as is not detected by the carrier sense function occurs and in particular the noise has burst-like regularity, the noise acts as an annoyance for the conversation, resulting in degraded conversation quality. Such a noise does not raise a serious problem with monochrome displaying using a small-sized display, because the amount of data transferred to the display is small. Therefore, the occurrence of noise during conversion using a wireless communication apparatus has conventionally been suppressed by the following prior art methods.
[0006] Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication (Kokai) No. 2001-332994 discloses a small-sized wireless apparatus as represented by a cellular phone, in which to suppress a noise generated from a logic circuit in a receiving section of the wireless apparatus, the power supply is stopped to a data conversion section, an LCD driver input/output control section, and the like that are not directly related to a receiving operation.
[0007] Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication (Kokai) No. 07-336520 discloses a facsimile machine having a cordless telephone, in which to prevent occurrence of a noise from a facsimile section whose operation clock has a high frequency, control is provided such that a CPU of the facsimile section is set in a non-operating mode when no facsimile operation is carried out.
[0008] Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication (Kokai) No. 08-293839 discloses a cordless telephone equipped with a facsimile, in which to prevent the intrusion of a noise from the facsimile system into the cordless telephone system, a CPU that controls the facsimile reception is put into a halt state when facsimile transmission/reception is not carried out.
[0009] Further, Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication (Kokai) No. 11-127300 discloses a facsimile machine having a cordless telephone, in which oscillation of an IC that is a source of a radiant noise is stopped in advance in order to prevent the noise from interfering with the operation of a control channel of the cordless telephone. To this end, the supply of a clock to a logic IC of an image processor is stopped when the facsimile machine is on standby, and further, the cordless telephone is inhibited from being used during a copy operation and copying is inhibited from being carried out when the control channel of the cordless telephone is used for phone conversion.
[0010] In recent years, however, with advancement of information and communication technology in the field of wireless communication apparatuses (cordless telephones, for example), communication carriers and the like have launched new services for browsing information using fixed-line phones. With such surfaces, phone displays have developed from monochrome display to color display, which has led to an increased amount of data transferred to the displays, and as a result, the above noise problem has become more serious. That is, the performance of wireless communication apparatuses (cordless telephones, for example) has been enhanced so that the amount of data required for displays has increased to several tens as large as the previously required amount. In addition, the data transfer speed has further increased and hence the data amount has increased, which results in burst-like noise occurring during wireless communication.
[0011] Also, the displays have become capable of carrying out color displaying to cope with wait screens and moving screens such as a screen saver, so that burst-like data is periodically transferred via system buses.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0012] It is an object of the present invention to provide a wireless communication apparatus, which is capable of suppressing a burst noise emitted due to data transfer during wireless communication, thereby enhancing communication quality, a cordless telephone, which is capable of suppressing a burst noise emitted due to data transfer on a master unit side thereof, thereby enhancing conversation quality, a display operation control method which has solved the above described problems, a program for implementing the method, and a storage medium storing the program.
[0013] To attain the above object, in a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a wireless communication apparatus that transmits and receives a speech signal using a radio wave, comprising a display device having a display screen, a storage device that stores data to be displayed on the display screen, a transfer device that transfers the stored data, a display control device that periodically updates data displayed on the display screen of the display device based on the transferred data, and a control device that monitors a wireless communication state of the wireless communication apparatus and stops the data transfer by the transfer device based on the monitored wireless communication state.
[0014] To attain the above object, in a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided a cordless telephone comprising a master unit having a display screen, at least one slave unit, a speech signal being transmitted and received between the master unit and the slave unit using a radio wave, a storage device that stores data to be displayed on the display screen of the master unit, a transfer device that transfers the stored data, a display control device that periodically updates data displayed on the display screen of the master unit based on the transferred data, and a control device that monitors a state of wireless communication between the master unit and the slave unit and stops the data transfer by the transfer device based on the monitored wireless communication state.
[0015] Preferably, the control device is responsive to start of conversion using the slave unit, for stopping transfer of various types of data including the data to be displayed.
[0016] Preferably, the control device stops the data transfer by the transfer device upon lapse of a predetermined delay time after the wireless communication state changes to a conversation state.
[0017] Preferably, the display control device is responsive to start of conversion using the slave unit, for updating data displayed on the display screen of the display device displayed by the master unit such that the display screen is switched from a display showing that the slave unit is receiving an incoming call to a display showing that the slave unit is busy, and wherein the control device is responsive to start of conversion using the slave unit, for stopping the data transfer by the transfer device, and is responsive to the conversion using the slave unit being ended, for resuming the data transfer.
[0018] To attain the above object, in a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method of controlling display operation of a wireless communication apparatus that transmits and receives a speech signal using a radio wave, comprising the steps of storing data to be displayed on a display screen of the wireless communication apparatus, transferring the stored data, periodically updating data displayed on the display screen of the wireless communication apparatus based on the transferred data, and monitoring a wireless communication state of the wireless communication apparatus and controlling stoppage and resumption of the data transfer based on the monitored wireless communication state.
[0019] To attain the above object, in a fourth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method of controlling display operation of a cordless telephone that transmits and receives a speech signal using a radio wave between a master unit and a slave unit thereof, comprising a storage step of storing data to be displayed on a display screen of the master unit, a transfer step of transferring the stored data, a display control step of periodically updating data displayed on the display screen of the master unit based on the transferred data, and a control step of monitoring a wireless communication state between the master unit and the slave unit and controlling stoppage and resumption of the data transfer based on the monitored wireless communication state.
[0020] Preferably, the control step comprises stopping transfer of various types of data including the data to be displayed, in response to start of conversation using the slave unit.
[0021] Preferably, the control step comprises stopping the data transfer in the transfer step upon lapse of a predetermined delay time after the wireless communication state changes to a conversation state.
[0022] Preferably, the display control step comprises updating data displayed on the display screen of the display device displayed by the master unit such that the display screen is switched from a display showing that the slave unit is receiving an incoming call to a display showing that the slave unit is busy, in response to start of conversion using the slave unit, and wherein the control step comprises stopping the data transfer by the transfer device in response to start of conversion using the slave unit, and resuming the data transfer in response to the conversion using the slave unit being ended.
[0023] To attain the above object, in a fifth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a wireless communication apparatus that transmits and receives a speech signal using a radio wave, comprising a display device having a display screen, an expanding device that expands data to be displayed on the display screen, a transfer device that transfers the expanded data, a display control device that updates data displayed on the display screen based on the transferred data, a monitoring device that monitors a wireless communication state of the wireless communication apparatus, and a stopping device that stops the data transfer, wherein when the wireless communication apparatus is in the wireless communication state, the stopping device stops the data transfer by the transfer device and the display control device causes the display device to continue displaying based on data that has been already transferred.
[0024] Preferably, the expanding device expands the data to be displayed on the display screen based on state information indicative of the wireless communication state monitored by the monitoring device, and wherein when the wireless communication apparatus is in the wireless communication state, the display control device causes the display device to carry out displaying based on the state information which has been updated, and thereafter the stopping device stops the data transfer by the transfer device.
[0025] Preferably, the monitoring device monitors states of the wireless communication apparatus including the wireless communication state, wherein the expanding device expands the data to be displayed on the display screen based on state information indicative of the wireless communication state of the wireless communication apparatus monitored by the monitoring device, and wherein when the wireless communication apparatus is in the wireless communication state, the display control device causes the display device to carry out displaying based on the state information which has been updated, and thereafter the stopping device stops the data transfer by the transfer device.
[0026] Preferably, the wireless communication apparatus is a cordless telephone comprising a master unit, and at least one slave unit, and wherein the speech signal is transmitted and received using the radio wave between the master unit and the slave unit.
[0027] More preferably, the wireless communication state is a state where conversation using the master unit and the slave unit is being carried out.
[0028] To attain the above object, in a sixth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method of controlling display operation of a wireless communication apparatus that transmits and receives a speech signal using a radio wave, comprising an expanding step of expanding data to be displayed on a display screen of the wireless communication apparatus, a transfer step of transferring the expanded data, a display control step of updating data displayed on the display screen based on the transferred data, a monitoring step of monitoring a wireless communication state of the wireless communication apparatus, and a stopping step of stopping the data transfer, wherein when the wireless communication apparatus is in the wireless communication state, the data transfer is stopped in the stopping step and displaying is continued based on data that has been already transferred in the display control step.
[0029] Preferably, the expanding step comprises expanding data to be displayed on the display screen based on state information indicative of the wireless communication state monitored in the monitoring step, and when the wireless communication apparatus is in the wireless communication state, displaying is carried out based on the state information which has been updated in the display control step, and thereafter the data transfer is stopped in the stopping step.
[0030] Preferably, the monitoring step comprises monitoring states of the wireless communication apparatus including the wireless communication state, wherein the expanding step comprises expanding data to be displayed on the display screen based on state information indicative of the wireless communication state monitored in the monitoring step, and wherein when the wireless communication apparatus is in the wireless communication state, displaying is carried out based on the state information which has been updated in the display control step, and thereafter the data transfer is stopped in the stopping step.
[0031] Preferably, the wireless communication apparatus is a cordless telephone comprising a master unit, and at least one slave unit, and wherein the speech signal is transmitted and received using the radio wave between the master unit and the slave unit.
[0032] More preferably, the wireless communication state is a state where conversation using the master unit and the slave unit is being carried out.
[0033] To attain the above object, the present invention further provides a computer-readable program for implementing the display operation control method according to any of the third, fourth and sixth aspects.
[0034] According to the present invention, it is possible to suppress a burst noise emitted due to data transfer during wireless communication by the wireless communication apparatus, thereby enhancing the communication quality. Also, during phone conversation using the cordless telephone, it is possible to suppress a burst noise emitted due to data transfer on the master unit side, thereby enhancing the conversation quality. That is, only while the slave unit is in a conversation state, the data transfer is stopped. As a result, it is possible to suppress a burst noise emitted due to data transfer.
[0035] Also, even if the state of the apparatus changes, it is possible to continue the display while suppressing a burst noise emitted due to data transfer to the display device. This provides an excellent effect that the user can easily grasp the current state of the apparatus without difficulty.
[0036] Also, the present invention provides an excellent effect that even if the state of the apparatus changes, the up-to-date state of the apparatus can be displayed while suppressing a burst noise emitted due to data transfer to the display device.
[0037] Also, the operative state (status) of the apparatus, for example, is monitored to stop transfer of various types of data and control can be provided in response to change in the operative state. Further, to prevent the phenomenon that the display screen is not switched when the data transfer is stopped simultaneously with a change in the operative state, for example, the phenomenon that the display screen continues to show that the slave unit is ringing even after the slave unit enters a conversion state, display switching control is provided to switch the display screen with a predetermined delay time. As a result, it becomes possible to satisfy all requirements.
[0038] Also, the display operation control method according to the present invention can be implemented by software, which can dispense with hardware measures such as shielding the substrate, filtering, or changing the frequencies to prevent interference.
[0039] The above and other objects, features, and advantages of the invention will become more apparent from the following detailed description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0040] [0040]FIG. 1 is a view showing the configuration of a facsimile machine (FAX) equipped with a cordless telephone as a wireless communication apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention;
[0041] [0041]FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing the internal construction of a master unit 100 appearing in FIG. 1;
[0042] [0042]FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing the internal construction of a slave unit 110 appearing in FIG. 1;
[0043] [0043]FIGS. 4A and 4B are flowcharts showing an operation process carried out by the master unit 100 and the slave unit 110 when phone conversation using the slave unit 110 is being carried out, showing processing from stoppage of transfer of display data to the process returning to a standby state after the conversation is ended, in which:
[0044] [0044]FIG. 4A shows processing carried out on the master unit 100 side; and
[0045] [0045]FIG. 4B shows processing carried out on the slave unit 110 side;
[0046] [0046]FIGS. 5A and 5B are flowcharts showing continued parts of the operation process in FIGS. 4A and 4B, which are carried out by the master unit 100 and the slave unit 110 when phone conversation using the slave unit 110 is being carried out, showing processing from the stoppage of the display data transfer to the process returning to the standby state after the conversation is ended, in which:
[0047] [0047]FIG. 5A shows processing carried out on the master unit side; and
[0048] [0048]FIG. 5B shows processing carried out on the slave unit 110 side; and
[0049] [0049]FIGS. 6A and 6B are timing charts showing a relation between data transfer via a system bus 215 and noise occurring during phone conversation, in which:
[0050] [0050]FIG. 6A shows a case where the data transfer via the system bus 215 is carried out; and
[0051] [0051]FIG. 6B shows a case where the data transfer via the system bus 215 is stopped.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
[0052] The present invention will now be described in detail with reference to the drawings showing a preferred embodiment thereof. FIG. 1 shows the configuration of a facsimile machine (FAX) equipped with a cordless telephone as a wireless communication apparatus according to the present embodiment. In FIG. 1, reference numeral 100 denotes the facsimile machine (master unit of the cordless telephone) according to the present embodiment, and reference numeral 110 denotes a slave unit of the cordless telephone.
[0053] The master unit 100 includes a display section 101 , an operating section 102 , a handset 103 , and a master unit antenna 104 , and is connected to a public line via a wire communication line 130 . The master unit antenna 104 is used for wireless communication through the slave unit 110 . The display section 101 is comprised of a color LCD. On the other hand, the slave unit 110 of the cordless telephone includes a display 111 , an operating section 112 , and a slave unit antenna 113 . The slave unit antenna 113 is used for wireless communication with the master unit 100 .
[0054] [0054]FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing the internal construction of the master unit 100 . The master unit 100 performs control of the main body of the facsimile machine, communication line control, control of wireless communication with the slave unit 110 , and the like, and is comprised of a CPU 201 , a ROM 202 , a RAM 203 , an LCD controller 204 , the display device section (display section) 101 such as a color LCD, the operating section 102 , a reading section 207 , a recording section 208 , a modem section 209 , a communication line interface (I/F) 210 , a wireless communication section 211 , a system bus 215 , and the master unit antenna 104 . The CPU 201 has incorporated therein a DMA controller for carrying out DMA transfer from the RAM 203 to the LCD controller 204 .
[0055] The ROM 202 stores a system program and display data. The RAM 203 provides a work area for operation, a work area for a display screen, and an area for backup data. The wireless communication section 211 communicates with the slave unit 110 of the cordless telephone. Also, the CPU operates in accordance with the program in the ROM 202 to monitor a wireless communication state, that is, determine whether the master unit 100 and the slave unit 110 are currently carrying out wireless communication, monitor the states of the recording section 208 , the reading section 207 , and the like to check the presence of a recording sheet, the presence of an original, the presence of a paper jam, the presence of ink in the recording section 208 , and the like.
[0056] [0056]FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing the internal construction of the slave unit 110 . The slave unit 110 is comprised of a CPU 301 , a ROM 302 , a RAM 303 , a baseband section 304 that performs speech processing, a wireless section 305 that performs modulation/demodulation, the slave unit antenna 113 , the display 111 , and the operating section 112 .
[0057] Next, a description will be given of a display operation process carried out by the master unit 100 constructed as described above. This display operation process is for displaying on the screen of the display section 101 contents (presence of a recording sheet, presence of an original, occurrence of jamming, presence of ink in the recording section 208 , etc.) to be checked by monitoring the aforementioned states (the state of wireless communication between the master unit 100 and the slave unit 110 , the states of the recording section 208 , reading section 207 and others, etc.) by the CPU 201 .
[0058] The ROM 202 stores in advance data used to display these contents on the screen of the display section 101 . Specifically, the ROM 202 stores data used to display “no paper” on the screen of the display section 101 when sheets have been exhausted, and data used to display “the slave unit is busy” on the screen of the display section 101 when the slave unit 110 enters a conversion state.
[0059] The display data is transferred from the ROM 202 to the RAM 203 (video RAM) through block transfer using the system bus 215 and is expanded as graphic data onto the RAM 203 . The RAM 203 is composed of an SDRAM. The data, which is an assembled set of data for one display screen, is transferred from the RAM 203 to the LCD controller 204 through DMA transfer. The data transferred to the LCD controller 204 is further transferred to the display section 101 to carry out drawing on the display section 101 . The above operation is repeated periodically to realize screens such as a moving wait screen and a screen saver. All screens to be displayed on the display section 101 are displayed in the same manner as mentioned above.
[0060] [0060]FIGS. 4A and 4B and FIGS. 5A and 5B are flowcharts showing an operation process carried out by the master unit 100 and the slave unit 110 when conversation using the slave unit 110 is being carried out. The flowcharts show processing from stoppage of transfer of display data to the process returning to a standby state after the conversation is ended. FIGS. 4A and 5A show processing carried out on the master unit 100 side, while FIGS. 4B and 5B show processing carried out on the slave unit 110 side. Programs that realize the present operation process are stored in the ROM 202 of the master unit 100 and the ROM 302 of the slave unit 110 and are executed by the CPUs 201 , 301 , respectively. First, it is assumed that the master unit 100 is in a standby state. Then, a wait screen is displayed on the display section 101 of the master unit 100 (step S 1 ). As an example of the wait screen, the state of the recording section 208 or the reading section 207 may be displayed. In the wait screen displaying process, the display data for the wait screen is read out from the ROM 202 , transferred from the ROM 202 to the video RAM 203 through block transfer using the system bus 215 , and expanded as graphic data onto the video RAM 203 , as described above. Then, items of the display data are assembled into data for one screen as the wait screen, and transferred to the LCD controller 204 through the next DMA transfer. The data transferred to the LCD controller 204 is further transferred to the display section 101 for drawing and displayed by the display section 101 .
[0061] Then, it is determined whether an incoming call has been detected (step S 2 ). If there is no incoming call, the process returns to the step S 1 . On the other hand, if there is an incoming call, an incoming call operation and an incoming call displaying operation are carried out at the same time (step S 3 ). In the present embodiment, upon detection of an incoming call, an incoming call ringing or the like is detected and display of the incoming call is carried out. This incoming call display process is carried out in the same manner as the wait screen display process described above.
[0062] Then, the slave unit 110 is activated by the incoming call (step S 4 ). According to an incoming call connection request from the master unit 100 to the slave unit 110 , channel search is started. Specifically, carrier detection is carried out by the wireless communication section 211 to detect whether or not another cordless telephone is currently being used, and if the detection result is affirmative, further detect whether or not an interfering wave exists within the band of the channel being used by the other cordless telephone (step S 5 ). Then, after a carrier is detected, a usable channel is determined (step S 6 ).
[0063] On the other hand, when receiving information on the usable channel from the master unit 100 , the slave unit 110 also carries out carrier detection and interference wave detection. If there is a channel that can be used by the slave unit 110 , the slave unit 110 is caused to start ringing (step S 21 ). If the slave unit 110 responds to the incoming call (step S 22 ), the master unit 100 captures the line (step S 7 ), a conversation path is formed between the master unit 100 and the slave unit 110 , and the slave unit 110 enters a conversation state.
[0064] The master unit 100 changes the screen on the display section 101 to a display screen showing that the slave unit is in a conversation state (step S 8 ). Specifically, the display screen is switched by the same method as used to display the wait screen described above. If the display operation is continued, that is, if the DMA transfer of the graphic data from the RAM 203 to the LCD controller 204 is continued, a noise that has a level too low to be detected by carrier sense occurs even if the slave unit 110 enters a conversation state. The noise forms an annoyance during conversation and is recognized by the user. The noise is generated on the system bus 215 in synchronism with timing in which the display data is transferred to the LCD controller 204 . Here, the noise generated on the system bus 215 is emitted via the entire system bus 215 and therefore exerts a greatly adverse influence on a wireless device such as the slave unit 110 .
[0065] To solve this problem, the display method is changed only during conversation using the slave unit 110 (step S 9 ). More specifically, in the display process, as described above, graphic data to be displayed during the conversation using the slave unit 110 is transferred from the ROM 202 to the video RAM 203 through block transfer, expanded onto the video RAM 203 , further transferred to the LCD controller 204 through DMA transfer, and the data transferred to the LCD controller 204 is further transferred to the display section 101 for drawing. In the step S 9 , the display data transfer timing is delayed by a predetermined time period in synchronism with the change in the status, i. e., the shifting to the conversation using the slave unit 110 , and then the transfer of the display data is stopped. Accordingly, the block transfer from the ROM 202 to the RAM 203 is stopped and the DMA transfer from the RAM 203 to the LCD controller 204 is also stopped. As a result, burst-like data transfer, which otherwise periodically takes place on the system bus 215 , ceases to take place so that no noise is generated from the system bus 215 . On the other hand, the LCD controller 204 includes a memory that accumulates the transferred data and the data transfer is carried out via a dedicated bus from the LCD controller 204 to the LCD (display section) 101 , so that displaying is continued. The influence exerted by only the transfer of display data using the dedicated bus from the LCD controller 204 to the LCD 101 on a wireless device, such as the slave unit 110 , is small. The first reason for this is that the transfer distance is short in the transfer using the dedicated bus between the LCD controller 204 and the LCD 101 and therefore the noise emission area is very narrow compared with the transfer using the system bus. The second reason is that even if a noise occurs that exerts an influence on a wireless device such as the slave unit 110 , the dedicated bus between the LCD controller 204 and the LCD 101 is usually formed by a cable, and therefore the noise occurrence can be easily coped with by merely using a noise canceling component part such as a core. The third reason is that the data transfer between the LCD controller 204 and the LCD 101 is usually not so fast as the transfer via the system bus, and therefore a large timing delay margin is allowed and hence the influence can be eliminated by taking measures to make the noise waveform blunt. Further, if the data transfer is stopped simultaneously upon the status change, i.e., the shifting to conversation using the slave unit 110 , there is a fear that the display screen is not switched. Therefore, as described above, to prevent the display screen showing that the slave unit is ringing from being continuously displayed even after the slave unit 110 enters a conversation state, control is provided such that the display data transfer is stopped with a delay of a predetermined time period, that is, the display screen showing “the slave unit is ringing” is switched to a display screen showing “the slave unit is busy” before the display data transfer is stopped. By thus stopping the display data transfer after a delay of a predetermined time period (that is, after the display screen showing “the slave unit is ringing” is switched to a display screen showing “the slave unit is busy”, it is possible to reliably switch from the display screen showing “the slave unit is ringing” to the display screen showing “the slave unit is busy”. Also, in the present embodiment, prior to stopping the transfer of display data in the step S 9 in FIG. 5A (that is, prior to stopping the transfer of the display data from the RAM 203 to the LCD controller 204 ), the process for displaying the conversation state of the slave unit is carried out in step S 8 . Due to this process, a delay is surely obtained to ensure the switching of the display screen with reliability, thus informing the user of the up-to-date state of the apparatus. Although in the present embodiment, the transfer of display data is stopped after the switching to the display screen showing “the slave unit is busy”, the present invention is not limited to such displaying of the conversation state of the slave unit 110 . Alternatively, the transfer of display data may be stopped after the up-to-date state of the apparatus after some change, for example, (“automatic-answering telephone is operating”, “no paper”, “no ink”, for example), is reflected upon the display screen. Further, although in the step S 8 , the transfer of display date is stopped after the displaying of the conversation state of the slave unit, the present invention is not limited to this, but a certain delay time period that is sufficient for switching the display screen showing “slave unit is ringing” to the display screen showing “the slave unit is busy” may be counted. and the data transfer may be stopped when the counted delay time period has elapsed.
[0066] Referring again to FIGS. 5A and 5B, since the display screen should remain unchanged during the conversation using the slave unit 110 , the current display screen is continuously displayed. When the conversation using the slave unit 110 is ended (step S 23 ), the master unit 100 releases the line (step S 10 ). Then, the apparatus returns to the standby state, the display data to be displayed is returned to data to be displayed by an ordinary display method, and an ordinary wait screen is displayed (step S 11 ). Thereafter, the present display operation process carried out by both the slave unit 110 and the master unit 100 is terminated.
[0067] [0067]FIGS. 6A and 6B are timing charts showing the relationship between data transfer via the system bus 215 and a noise occurring during conversation. As shown in FIG. 6A, at the time of data transfer via the system bus 215 , while data transfer to the display section 101 is being periodically carried out, a RSSI signal (Received Signal Strength Indicative Signal) having a waveform illustrated in the figure is output outputted from the wireless communication section 211 . In synchronism with the waveform of the RSSI signal, a noise occurs in communication data received by the master unit antenna 104 . In FIG. 6B, when the data transfer via the system bus 215 is stopped, no noise is generated in the output of the wireless communication section 211 . How the noise interferes with the reception is simply shown by the arrow in FIG. 2. The noise is caused by a change in a signal on the system bus 215 due to operations of the CPU 201 , the ROM 202 , the RAM 203 , and the LCD controller 204 , and the noise flies to the master unit antenna 104 .
[0068] In the present embodiment, an example has been given, in which data transfer to the display device of the master unit 100 is stopped during communication between the master unit 100 and the slave unit 110 of the cordless telephone. However, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, it may be configured such that during communication between these two wireless communication apparatuses, the CPU of one of the wireless communication apparatuses stops transfer of data to be displayed on the display device of the wireless communication apparatus. Further, the construction of the one wireless communication apparatuses may be changed to a construction where the recording section 208 and the reading section 207 are removed from the master unit 100 shown in FIG. 2.
[0069] The present invention is not limited to the construction of the above described embodiment and is applicable to any other construction insofar as it is possible to achieve the functions described in the appended claims or the functions provided by the construction of the above described embodiment.
[0070] For example, although in the above described embodiment, only the transfer of display data is stopped, alternatively, the transfer of various other kinds of data that can cause noise during phone conversation may be stopped.
[0071] Further, although in the above described embodiment, the present invention is applied to a facsimile machine equipped with a cordless telephone, the present invention is not limited to this, but may be applied to a cordless telephone itself or to a cordless automatic answering telephone having an automatic answering function. As a further alternative, the present invention may be applied to any other type of wireless communication apparatus insofar as it has a display device.
[0072] Furthermore, it is to be understood that the object of the present invention may also be accomplished by supplying a system or an apparatus such as the master unit 100 with a storage medium in which a program code of software which realizes the functions of the above described embodiment is stored, and causing a computer (or CPU or MPU) of the system or apparatus to read out and execute the program code stored in the storage medium.
[0073] In this case, the program code itself read from the storage medium realizes the functions of the above described embodiment, and hence the storage medium on which the program code is stored constitutes the present invention.
[0074] Examples of the storage medium for supplying the program code include a floppy (registered trademark) disk, a hard disk, an optical disk, a magnetic-optical disk, a CD-ROM, a CD-R, a CD-RW, a DVD-ROM, a DVD-RAM, a DVD-RW, a DVD+RW, a magnetic tape, a nonvolatile memory card, in addition to a ROM as used in the above described embodiment. Alternatively, the program code may be downloaded via a network.
[0075] Moreover, it also goes without saying that the functions of the embodiments described above may be realized not necessarily by causing the computer to read and execute the program code, but alternatively by causing an operating (OS) system running on the computer to perform part or all of the actual processing based on instructions in the program code. | There is provided a wireless communication apparatus, which is capable of suppressing a burst noise emitted due to data transfer during wireless communication, thereby enhancing communication quality. The wireless communication apparatus transmits and receives a speech signal using a radio wave. Data to be displayed on the display screen is stored in a storage device. The stored data is transferred to the display device. Data displayed on the display screen of the display device is periodically updated based on the transferred data. A CPU monitors a wireless communication state of the wireless communication apparatus and stops the data transfer based on the monitored wireless communication state. | Summarize the key points of the given patent document. | [
"BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION [0001] 1.",
"Field of the Invention [0002] The present invention relates to a wireless communication apparatus, a cordless telephone, a display operation control method, a program, and a storage medium.",
"In particular, the present invention relates to a wireless communication apparatus and a cordless telephone, which are comprised of a slave unit and a master unit, with which the slave unit located remotely from the master unit performs conversation with an opposite party by using a wireless radio wave through the master unit connected to a telephone line, a display operation control method, a program for implementing the method, and a storage medium storing the program.",
"[0003] 2.",
"Description of the Related Art [0004] A conventional wireless communication apparatus such as a cordless telephone has a function called “carrier sense”",
"of detecting in advance whether the frequency of each conversation channel is being used, when starting communication using the communication apparatus, and selecting a vacant channel that is not currently used while avoiding other channels that are currently used by other cordless telephones, to thereby guarantee a normal communication operation.",
"[0005] Even if conversation is started using the channel selected by the above carrier sense function or carrier sense, if a noise that has such a low level as is not detected by the carrier sense function occurs and in particular the noise has burst-like regularity, the noise acts as an annoyance for the conversation, resulting in degraded conversation quality.",
"Such a noise does not raise a serious problem with monochrome displaying using a small-sized display, because the amount of data transferred to the display is small.",
"Therefore, the occurrence of noise during conversion using a wireless communication apparatus has conventionally been suppressed by the following prior art methods.",
"[0006] Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication (Kokai) No. 2001-332994 discloses a small-sized wireless apparatus as represented by a cellular phone, in which to suppress a noise generated from a logic circuit in a receiving section of the wireless apparatus, the power supply is stopped to a data conversion section, an LCD driver input/output control section, and the like that are not directly related to a receiving operation.",
"[0007] Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication (Kokai) No. 07-336520 discloses a facsimile machine having a cordless telephone, in which to prevent occurrence of a noise from a facsimile section whose operation clock has a high frequency, control is provided such that a CPU of the facsimile section is set in a non-operating mode when no facsimile operation is carried out.",
"[0008] Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication (Kokai) No. 08-293839 discloses a cordless telephone equipped with a facsimile, in which to prevent the intrusion of a noise from the facsimile system into the cordless telephone system, a CPU that controls the facsimile reception is put into a halt state when facsimile transmission/reception is not carried out.",
"[0009] Further, Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication (Kokai) No. 11-127300 discloses a facsimile machine having a cordless telephone, in which oscillation of an IC that is a source of a radiant noise is stopped in advance in order to prevent the noise from interfering with the operation of a control channel of the cordless telephone.",
"To this end, the supply of a clock to a logic IC of an image processor is stopped when the facsimile machine is on standby, and further, the cordless telephone is inhibited from being used during a copy operation and copying is inhibited from being carried out when the control channel of the cordless telephone is used for phone conversion.",
"[0010] In recent years, however, with advancement of information and communication technology in the field of wireless communication apparatuses (cordless telephones, for example), communication carriers and the like have launched new services for browsing information using fixed-line phones.",
"With such surfaces, phone displays have developed from monochrome display to color display, which has led to an increased amount of data transferred to the displays, and as a result, the above noise problem has become more serious.",
"That is, the performance of wireless communication apparatuses (cordless telephones, for example) has been enhanced so that the amount of data required for displays has increased to several tens as large as the previously required amount.",
"In addition, the data transfer speed has further increased and hence the data amount has increased, which results in burst-like noise occurring during wireless communication.",
"[0011] Also, the displays have become capable of carrying out color displaying to cope with wait screens and moving screens such as a screen saver, so that burst-like data is periodically transferred via system buses.",
"SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION [0012] It is an object of the present invention to provide a wireless communication apparatus, which is capable of suppressing a burst noise emitted due to data transfer during wireless communication, thereby enhancing communication quality, a cordless telephone, which is capable of suppressing a burst noise emitted due to data transfer on a master unit side thereof, thereby enhancing conversation quality, a display operation control method which has solved the above described problems, a program for implementing the method, and a storage medium storing the program.",
"[0013] To attain the above object, in a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a wireless communication apparatus that transmits and receives a speech signal using a radio wave, comprising a display device having a display screen, a storage device that stores data to be displayed on the display screen, a transfer device that transfers the stored data, a display control device that periodically updates data displayed on the display screen of the display device based on the transferred data, and a control device that monitors a wireless communication state of the wireless communication apparatus and stops the data transfer by the transfer device based on the monitored wireless communication state.",
"[0014] To attain the above object, in a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided a cordless telephone comprising a master unit having a display screen, at least one slave unit, a speech signal being transmitted and received between the master unit and the slave unit using a radio wave, a storage device that stores data to be displayed on the display screen of the master unit, a transfer device that transfers the stored data, a display control device that periodically updates data displayed on the display screen of the master unit based on the transferred data, and a control device that monitors a state of wireless communication between the master unit and the slave unit and stops the data transfer by the transfer device based on the monitored wireless communication state.",
"[0015] Preferably, the control device is responsive to start of conversion using the slave unit, for stopping transfer of various types of data including the data to be displayed.",
"[0016] Preferably, the control device stops the data transfer by the transfer device upon lapse of a predetermined delay time after the wireless communication state changes to a conversation state.",
"[0017] Preferably, the display control device is responsive to start of conversion using the slave unit, for updating data displayed on the display screen of the display device displayed by the master unit such that the display screen is switched from a display showing that the slave unit is receiving an incoming call to a display showing that the slave unit is busy, and wherein the control device is responsive to start of conversion using the slave unit, for stopping the data transfer by the transfer device, and is responsive to the conversion using the slave unit being ended, for resuming the data transfer.",
"[0018] To attain the above object, in a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method of controlling display operation of a wireless communication apparatus that transmits and receives a speech signal using a radio wave, comprising the steps of storing data to be displayed on a display screen of the wireless communication apparatus, transferring the stored data, periodically updating data displayed on the display screen of the wireless communication apparatus based on the transferred data, and monitoring a wireless communication state of the wireless communication apparatus and controlling stoppage and resumption of the data transfer based on the monitored wireless communication state.",
"[0019] To attain the above object, in a fourth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method of controlling display operation of a cordless telephone that transmits and receives a speech signal using a radio wave between a master unit and a slave unit thereof, comprising a storage step of storing data to be displayed on a display screen of the master unit, a transfer step of transferring the stored data, a display control step of periodically updating data displayed on the display screen of the master unit based on the transferred data, and a control step of monitoring a wireless communication state between the master unit and the slave unit and controlling stoppage and resumption of the data transfer based on the monitored wireless communication state.",
"[0020] Preferably, the control step comprises stopping transfer of various types of data including the data to be displayed, in response to start of conversation using the slave unit.",
"[0021] Preferably, the control step comprises stopping the data transfer in the transfer step upon lapse of a predetermined delay time after the wireless communication state changes to a conversation state.",
"[0022] Preferably, the display control step comprises updating data displayed on the display screen of the display device displayed by the master unit such that the display screen is switched from a display showing that the slave unit is receiving an incoming call to a display showing that the slave unit is busy, in response to start of conversion using the slave unit, and wherein the control step comprises stopping the data transfer by the transfer device in response to start of conversion using the slave unit, and resuming the data transfer in response to the conversion using the slave unit being ended.",
"[0023] To attain the above object, in a fifth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a wireless communication apparatus that transmits and receives a speech signal using a radio wave, comprising a display device having a display screen, an expanding device that expands data to be displayed on the display screen, a transfer device that transfers the expanded data, a display control device that updates data displayed on the display screen based on the transferred data, a monitoring device that monitors a wireless communication state of the wireless communication apparatus, and a stopping device that stops the data transfer, wherein when the wireless communication apparatus is in the wireless communication state, the stopping device stops the data transfer by the transfer device and the display control device causes the display device to continue displaying based on data that has been already transferred.",
"[0024] Preferably, the expanding device expands the data to be displayed on the display screen based on state information indicative of the wireless communication state monitored by the monitoring device, and wherein when the wireless communication apparatus is in the wireless communication state, the display control device causes the display device to carry out displaying based on the state information which has been updated, and thereafter the stopping device stops the data transfer by the transfer device.",
"[0025] Preferably, the monitoring device monitors states of the wireless communication apparatus including the wireless communication state, wherein the expanding device expands the data to be displayed on the display screen based on state information indicative of the wireless communication state of the wireless communication apparatus monitored by the monitoring device, and wherein when the wireless communication apparatus is in the wireless communication state, the display control device causes the display device to carry out displaying based on the state information which has been updated, and thereafter the stopping device stops the data transfer by the transfer device.",
"[0026] Preferably, the wireless communication apparatus is a cordless telephone comprising a master unit, and at least one slave unit, and wherein the speech signal is transmitted and received using the radio wave between the master unit and the slave unit.",
"[0027] More preferably, the wireless communication state is a state where conversation using the master unit and the slave unit is being carried out.",
"[0028] To attain the above object, in a sixth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method of controlling display operation of a wireless communication apparatus that transmits and receives a speech signal using a radio wave, comprising an expanding step of expanding data to be displayed on a display screen of the wireless communication apparatus, a transfer step of transferring the expanded data, a display control step of updating data displayed on the display screen based on the transferred data, a monitoring step of monitoring a wireless communication state of the wireless communication apparatus, and a stopping step of stopping the data transfer, wherein when the wireless communication apparatus is in the wireless communication state, the data transfer is stopped in the stopping step and displaying is continued based on data that has been already transferred in the display control step.",
"[0029] Preferably, the expanding step comprises expanding data to be displayed on the display screen based on state information indicative of the wireless communication state monitored in the monitoring step, and when the wireless communication apparatus is in the wireless communication state, displaying is carried out based on the state information which has been updated in the display control step, and thereafter the data transfer is stopped in the stopping step.",
"[0030] Preferably, the monitoring step comprises monitoring states of the wireless communication apparatus including the wireless communication state, wherein the expanding step comprises expanding data to be displayed on the display screen based on state information indicative of the wireless communication state monitored in the monitoring step, and wherein when the wireless communication apparatus is in the wireless communication state, displaying is carried out based on the state information which has been updated in the display control step, and thereafter the data transfer is stopped in the stopping step.",
"[0031] Preferably, the wireless communication apparatus is a cordless telephone comprising a master unit, and at least one slave unit, and wherein the speech signal is transmitted and received using the radio wave between the master unit and the slave unit.",
"[0032] More preferably, the wireless communication state is a state where conversation using the master unit and the slave unit is being carried out.",
"[0033] To attain the above object, the present invention further provides a computer-readable program for implementing the display operation control method according to any of the third, fourth and sixth aspects.",
"[0034] According to the present invention, it is possible to suppress a burst noise emitted due to data transfer during wireless communication by the wireless communication apparatus, thereby enhancing the communication quality.",
"Also, during phone conversation using the cordless telephone, it is possible to suppress a burst noise emitted due to data transfer on the master unit side, thereby enhancing the conversation quality.",
"That is, only while the slave unit is in a conversation state, the data transfer is stopped.",
"As a result, it is possible to suppress a burst noise emitted due to data transfer.",
"[0035] Also, even if the state of the apparatus changes, it is possible to continue the display while suppressing a burst noise emitted due to data transfer to the display device.",
"This provides an excellent effect that the user can easily grasp the current state of the apparatus without difficulty.",
"[0036] Also, the present invention provides an excellent effect that even if the state of the apparatus changes, the up-to-date state of the apparatus can be displayed while suppressing a burst noise emitted due to data transfer to the display device.",
"[0037] Also, the operative state (status) of the apparatus, for example, is monitored to stop transfer of various types of data and control can be provided in response to change in the operative state.",
"Further, to prevent the phenomenon that the display screen is not switched when the data transfer is stopped simultaneously with a change in the operative state, for example, the phenomenon that the display screen continues to show that the slave unit is ringing even after the slave unit enters a conversion state, display switching control is provided to switch the display screen with a predetermined delay time.",
"As a result, it becomes possible to satisfy all requirements.",
"[0038] Also, the display operation control method according to the present invention can be implemented by software, which can dispense with hardware measures such as shielding the substrate, filtering, or changing the frequencies to prevent interference.",
"[0039] The above and other objects, features, and advantages of the invention will become more apparent from the following detailed description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.",
"BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS [0040] [0040 ]FIG. 1 is a view showing the configuration of a facsimile machine (FAX) equipped with a cordless telephone as a wireless communication apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention;",
"[0041] [0041 ]FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing the internal construction of a master unit 100 appearing in FIG. 1;",
"[0042] [0042 ]FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing the internal construction of a slave unit 110 appearing in FIG. 1;",
"[0043] [0043 ]FIGS. 4A and 4B are flowcharts showing an operation process carried out by the master unit 100 and the slave unit 110 when phone conversation using the slave unit 110 is being carried out, showing processing from stoppage of transfer of display data to the process returning to a standby state after the conversation is ended, in which: [0044] [0044 ]FIG. 4A shows processing carried out on the master unit 100 side;",
"and [0045] [0045 ]FIG. 4B shows processing carried out on the slave unit 110 side;",
"[0046] [0046 ]FIGS. 5A and 5B are flowcharts showing continued parts of the operation process in FIGS. 4A and 4B, which are carried out by the master unit 100 and the slave unit 110 when phone conversation using the slave unit 110 is being carried out, showing processing from the stoppage of the display data transfer to the process returning to the standby state after the conversation is ended, in which: [0047] [0047 ]FIG. 5A shows processing carried out on the master unit side;",
"and [0048] [0048 ]FIG. 5B shows processing carried out on the slave unit 110 side;",
"and [0049] [0049 ]FIGS. 6A and 6B are timing charts showing a relation between data transfer via a system bus 215 and noise occurring during phone conversation, in which: [0050] [0050 ]FIG. 6A shows a case where the data transfer via the system bus 215 is carried out;",
"and [0051] [0051 ]FIG. 6B shows a case where the data transfer via the system bus 215 is stopped.",
"DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS [0052] The present invention will now be described in detail with reference to the drawings showing a preferred embodiment thereof.",
"FIG. 1 shows the configuration of a facsimile machine (FAX) equipped with a cordless telephone as a wireless communication apparatus according to the present embodiment.",
"In FIG. 1, reference numeral 100 denotes the facsimile machine (master unit of the cordless telephone) according to the present embodiment, and reference numeral 110 denotes a slave unit of the cordless telephone.",
"[0053] The master unit 100 includes a display section 101 , an operating section 102 , a handset 103 , and a master unit antenna 104 , and is connected to a public line via a wire communication line 130 .",
"The master unit antenna 104 is used for wireless communication through the slave unit 110 .",
"The display section 101 is comprised of a color LCD.",
"On the other hand, the slave unit 110 of the cordless telephone includes a display 111 , an operating section 112 , and a slave unit antenna 113 .",
"The slave unit antenna 113 is used for wireless communication with the master unit 100 .",
"[0054] [0054 ]FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing the internal construction of the master unit 100 .",
"The master unit 100 performs control of the main body of the facsimile machine, communication line control, control of wireless communication with the slave unit 110 , and the like, and is comprised of a CPU 201 , a ROM 202 , a RAM 203 , an LCD controller 204 , the display device section (display section) 101 such as a color LCD, the operating section 102 , a reading section 207 , a recording section 208 , a modem section 209 , a communication line interface (I/F) 210 , a wireless communication section 211 , a system bus 215 , and the master unit antenna 104 .",
"The CPU 201 has incorporated therein a DMA controller for carrying out DMA transfer from the RAM 203 to the LCD controller 204 .",
"[0055] The ROM 202 stores a system program and display data.",
"The RAM 203 provides a work area for operation, a work area for a display screen, and an area for backup data.",
"The wireless communication section 211 communicates with the slave unit 110 of the cordless telephone.",
"Also, the CPU operates in accordance with the program in the ROM 202 to monitor a wireless communication state, that is, determine whether the master unit 100 and the slave unit 110 are currently carrying out wireless communication, monitor the states of the recording section 208 , the reading section 207 , and the like to check the presence of a recording sheet, the presence of an original, the presence of a paper jam, the presence of ink in the recording section 208 , and the like.",
"[0056] [0056 ]FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing the internal construction of the slave unit 110 .",
"The slave unit 110 is comprised of a CPU 301 , a ROM 302 , a RAM 303 , a baseband section 304 that performs speech processing, a wireless section 305 that performs modulation/demodulation, the slave unit antenna 113 , the display 111 , and the operating section 112 .",
"[0057] Next, a description will be given of a display operation process carried out by the master unit 100 constructed as described above.",
"This display operation process is for displaying on the screen of the display section 101 contents (presence of a recording sheet, presence of an original, occurrence of jamming, presence of ink in the recording section 208 , etc.) to be checked by monitoring the aforementioned states (the state of wireless communication between the master unit 100 and the slave unit 110 , the states of the recording section 208 , reading section 207 and others, etc.) by the CPU 201 .",
"[0058] The ROM 202 stores in advance data used to display these contents on the screen of the display section 101 .",
"Specifically, the ROM 202 stores data used to display “no paper”",
"on the screen of the display section 101 when sheets have been exhausted, and data used to display “the slave unit is busy”",
"on the screen of the display section 101 when the slave unit 110 enters a conversion state.",
"[0059] The display data is transferred from the ROM 202 to the RAM 203 (video RAM) through block transfer using the system bus 215 and is expanded as graphic data onto the RAM 203 .",
"The RAM 203 is composed of an SDRAM.",
"The data, which is an assembled set of data for one display screen, is transferred from the RAM 203 to the LCD controller 204 through DMA transfer.",
"The data transferred to the LCD controller 204 is further transferred to the display section 101 to carry out drawing on the display section 101 .",
"The above operation is repeated periodically to realize screens such as a moving wait screen and a screen saver.",
"All screens to be displayed on the display section 101 are displayed in the same manner as mentioned above.",
"[0060] [0060 ]FIGS. 4A and 4B and FIGS. 5A and 5B are flowcharts showing an operation process carried out by the master unit 100 and the slave unit 110 when conversation using the slave unit 110 is being carried out.",
"The flowcharts show processing from stoppage of transfer of display data to the process returning to a standby state after the conversation is ended.",
"FIGS. 4A and 5A show processing carried out on the master unit 100 side, while FIGS. 4B and 5B show processing carried out on the slave unit 110 side.",
"Programs that realize the present operation process are stored in the ROM 202 of the master unit 100 and the ROM 302 of the slave unit 110 and are executed by the CPUs 201 , 301 , respectively.",
"First, it is assumed that the master unit 100 is in a standby state.",
"Then, a wait screen is displayed on the display section 101 of the master unit 100 (step S 1 ).",
"As an example of the wait screen, the state of the recording section 208 or the reading section 207 may be displayed.",
"In the wait screen displaying process, the display data for the wait screen is read out from the ROM 202 , transferred from the ROM 202 to the video RAM 203 through block transfer using the system bus 215 , and expanded as graphic data onto the video RAM 203 , as described above.",
"Then, items of the display data are assembled into data for one screen as the wait screen, and transferred to the LCD controller 204 through the next DMA transfer.",
"The data transferred to the LCD controller 204 is further transferred to the display section 101 for drawing and displayed by the display section 101 .",
"[0061] Then, it is determined whether an incoming call has been detected (step S 2 ).",
"If there is no incoming call, the process returns to the step S 1 .",
"On the other hand, if there is an incoming call, an incoming call operation and an incoming call displaying operation are carried out at the same time (step S 3 ).",
"In the present embodiment, upon detection of an incoming call, an incoming call ringing or the like is detected and display of the incoming call is carried out.",
"This incoming call display process is carried out in the same manner as the wait screen display process described above.",
"[0062] Then, the slave unit 110 is activated by the incoming call (step S 4 ).",
"According to an incoming call connection request from the master unit 100 to the slave unit 110 , channel search is started.",
"Specifically, carrier detection is carried out by the wireless communication section 211 to detect whether or not another cordless telephone is currently being used, and if the detection result is affirmative, further detect whether or not an interfering wave exists within the band of the channel being used by the other cordless telephone (step S 5 ).",
"Then, after a carrier is detected, a usable channel is determined (step S 6 ).",
"[0063] On the other hand, when receiving information on the usable channel from the master unit 100 , the slave unit 110 also carries out carrier detection and interference wave detection.",
"If there is a channel that can be used by the slave unit 110 , the slave unit 110 is caused to start ringing (step S 21 ).",
"If the slave unit 110 responds to the incoming call (step S 22 ), the master unit 100 captures the line (step S 7 ), a conversation path is formed between the master unit 100 and the slave unit 110 , and the slave unit 110 enters a conversation state.",
"[0064] The master unit 100 changes the screen on the display section 101 to a display screen showing that the slave unit is in a conversation state (step S 8 ).",
"Specifically, the display screen is switched by the same method as used to display the wait screen described above.",
"If the display operation is continued, that is, if the DMA transfer of the graphic data from the RAM 203 to the LCD controller 204 is continued, a noise that has a level too low to be detected by carrier sense occurs even if the slave unit 110 enters a conversation state.",
"The noise forms an annoyance during conversation and is recognized by the user.",
"The noise is generated on the system bus 215 in synchronism with timing in which the display data is transferred to the LCD controller 204 .",
"Here, the noise generated on the system bus 215 is emitted via the entire system bus 215 and therefore exerts a greatly adverse influence on a wireless device such as the slave unit 110 .",
"[0065] To solve this problem, the display method is changed only during conversation using the slave unit 110 (step S 9 ).",
"More specifically, in the display process, as described above, graphic data to be displayed during the conversation using the slave unit 110 is transferred from the ROM 202 to the video RAM 203 through block transfer, expanded onto the video RAM 203 , further transferred to the LCD controller 204 through DMA transfer, and the data transferred to the LCD controller 204 is further transferred to the display section 101 for drawing.",
"In the step S 9 , the display data transfer timing is delayed by a predetermined time period in synchronism with the change in the status, i. e., the shifting to the conversation using the slave unit 110 , and then the transfer of the display data is stopped.",
"Accordingly, the block transfer from the ROM 202 to the RAM 203 is stopped and the DMA transfer from the RAM 203 to the LCD controller 204 is also stopped.",
"As a result, burst-like data transfer, which otherwise periodically takes place on the system bus 215 , ceases to take place so that no noise is generated from the system bus 215 .",
"On the other hand, the LCD controller 204 includes a memory that accumulates the transferred data and the data transfer is carried out via a dedicated bus from the LCD controller 204 to the LCD (display section) 101 , so that displaying is continued.",
"The influence exerted by only the transfer of display data using the dedicated bus from the LCD controller 204 to the LCD 101 on a wireless device, such as the slave unit 110 , is small.",
"The first reason for this is that the transfer distance is short in the transfer using the dedicated bus between the LCD controller 204 and the LCD 101 and therefore the noise emission area is very narrow compared with the transfer using the system bus.",
"The second reason is that even if a noise occurs that exerts an influence on a wireless device such as the slave unit 110 , the dedicated bus between the LCD controller 204 and the LCD 101 is usually formed by a cable, and therefore the noise occurrence can be easily coped with by merely using a noise canceling component part such as a core.",
"The third reason is that the data transfer between the LCD controller 204 and the LCD 101 is usually not so fast as the transfer via the system bus, and therefore a large timing delay margin is allowed and hence the influence can be eliminated by taking measures to make the noise waveform blunt.",
"Further, if the data transfer is stopped simultaneously upon the status change, i.e., the shifting to conversation using the slave unit 110 , there is a fear that the display screen is not switched.",
"Therefore, as described above, to prevent the display screen showing that the slave unit is ringing from being continuously displayed even after the slave unit 110 enters a conversation state, control is provided such that the display data transfer is stopped with a delay of a predetermined time period, that is, the display screen showing “the slave unit is ringing”",
"is switched to a display screen showing “the slave unit is busy”",
"before the display data transfer is stopped.",
"By thus stopping the display data transfer after a delay of a predetermined time period (that is, after the display screen showing “the slave unit is ringing”",
"is switched to a display screen showing “the slave unit is busy”, it is possible to reliably switch from the display screen showing “the slave unit is ringing”",
"to the display screen showing “the slave unit is busy.”",
"Also, in the present embodiment, prior to stopping the transfer of display data in the step S 9 in FIG. 5A (that is, prior to stopping the transfer of the display data from the RAM 203 to the LCD controller 204 ), the process for displaying the conversation state of the slave unit is carried out in step S 8 .",
"Due to this process, a delay is surely obtained to ensure the switching of the display screen with reliability, thus informing the user of the up-to-date state of the apparatus.",
"Although in the present embodiment, the transfer of display data is stopped after the switching to the display screen showing “the slave unit is busy”, the present invention is not limited to such displaying of the conversation state of the slave unit 110 .",
"Alternatively, the transfer of display data may be stopped after the up-to-date state of the apparatus after some change, for example, (“automatic-answering telephone is operating”, “no paper”, “no ink”, for example), is reflected upon the display screen.",
"Further, although in the step S 8 , the transfer of display date is stopped after the displaying of the conversation state of the slave unit, the present invention is not limited to this, but a certain delay time period that is sufficient for switching the display screen showing “slave unit is ringing”",
"to the display screen showing “the slave unit is busy”",
"may be counted.",
"and the data transfer may be stopped when the counted delay time period has elapsed.",
"[0066] Referring again to FIGS. 5A and 5B, since the display screen should remain unchanged during the conversation using the slave unit 110 , the current display screen is continuously displayed.",
"When the conversation using the slave unit 110 is ended (step S 23 ), the master unit 100 releases the line (step S 10 ).",
"Then, the apparatus returns to the standby state, the display data to be displayed is returned to data to be displayed by an ordinary display method, and an ordinary wait screen is displayed (step S 11 ).",
"Thereafter, the present display operation process carried out by both the slave unit 110 and the master unit 100 is terminated.",
"[0067] [0067 ]FIGS. 6A and 6B are timing charts showing the relationship between data transfer via the system bus 215 and a noise occurring during conversation.",
"As shown in FIG. 6A, at the time of data transfer via the system bus 215 , while data transfer to the display section 101 is being periodically carried out, a RSSI signal (Received Signal Strength Indicative Signal) having a waveform illustrated in the figure is output outputted from the wireless communication section 211 .",
"In synchronism with the waveform of the RSSI signal, a noise occurs in communication data received by the master unit antenna 104 .",
"In FIG. 6B, when the data transfer via the system bus 215 is stopped, no noise is generated in the output of the wireless communication section 211 .",
"How the noise interferes with the reception is simply shown by the arrow in FIG. 2. The noise is caused by a change in a signal on the system bus 215 due to operations of the CPU 201 , the ROM 202 , the RAM 203 , and the LCD controller 204 , and the noise flies to the master unit antenna 104 .",
"[0068] In the present embodiment, an example has been given, in which data transfer to the display device of the master unit 100 is stopped during communication between the master unit 100 and the slave unit 110 of the cordless telephone.",
"However, the present invention is not limited to this.",
"For example, it may be configured such that during communication between these two wireless communication apparatuses, the CPU of one of the wireless communication apparatuses stops transfer of data to be displayed on the display device of the wireless communication apparatus.",
"Further, the construction of the one wireless communication apparatuses may be changed to a construction where the recording section 208 and the reading section 207 are removed from the master unit 100 shown in FIG. 2. [0069] The present invention is not limited to the construction of the above described embodiment and is applicable to any other construction insofar as it is possible to achieve the functions described in the appended claims or the functions provided by the construction of the above described embodiment.",
"[0070] For example, although in the above described embodiment, only the transfer of display data is stopped, alternatively, the transfer of various other kinds of data that can cause noise during phone conversation may be stopped.",
"[0071] Further, although in the above described embodiment, the present invention is applied to a facsimile machine equipped with a cordless telephone, the present invention is not limited to this, but may be applied to a cordless telephone itself or to a cordless automatic answering telephone having an automatic answering function.",
"As a further alternative, the present invention may be applied to any other type of wireless communication apparatus insofar as it has a display device.",
"[0072] Furthermore, it is to be understood that the object of the present invention may also be accomplished by supplying a system or an apparatus such as the master unit 100 with a storage medium in which a program code of software which realizes the functions of the above described embodiment is stored, and causing a computer (or CPU or MPU) of the system or apparatus to read out and execute the program code stored in the storage medium.",
"[0073] In this case, the program code itself read from the storage medium realizes the functions of the above described embodiment, and hence the storage medium on which the program code is stored constitutes the present invention.",
"[0074] Examples of the storage medium for supplying the program code include a floppy (registered trademark) disk, a hard disk, an optical disk, a magnetic-optical disk, a CD-ROM, a CD-R, a CD-RW, a DVD-ROM, a DVD-RAM, a DVD-RW, a DVD+RW, a magnetic tape, a nonvolatile memory card, in addition to a ROM as used in the above described embodiment.",
"Alternatively, the program code may be downloaded via a network.",
"[0075] Moreover, it also goes without saying that the functions of the embodiments described above may be realized not necessarily by causing the computer to read and execute the program code, but alternatively by causing an operating (OS) system running on the computer to perform part or all of the actual processing based on instructions in the program code."
] |
[0001] The present invention belongs to the domain of improved yeast strains, specifically for the purpose of producing alcohols, e.g. bioethanol. The process according to the invention uses combined genetic and molecular biology techniques to generate recombinant microorganisms.
[0002] Proposing white biotechnology alternatives in order to generate biofuels is a considerable challenge in view of the costs of fossil energies, potential supply problems and environmental impacts. Plant biomass is a renewable raw material of choice for the production of biofuels within the context of sustainable development.
[0003] Context
[0004] Plant biomass means any biomass which can either correspond to excesses or by-products of agricultural and agro-industrial crops such as corn, sugar cane, wheat, sorghum, trees for carpentry and furniture, or correspond to specific cultures such as Miscanthus gigantheus, Panicum virgatum (switchgrass) and short and very short rotation coppices. Plant biomass is a mixture of hexose-rich cellulose, pentose-rich hemicellulose and lignin which is a polymer of hydrophobic phenolic compounds. Conventionally speaking, three steps are described for the conversion of plant biomass to bioethanol.:
Pretreatment with implementation of mechanical, chemical and/or heating processes to optimize subsequent hydrolysis of the biomass or a fraction of the biomass; hydrolysis of the biomass or a fraction of the biomass by action of reagents, solvents or enzymes with appropriate temperature and pH conditions. The objective of this hydrolysis is the release of the main fermentable monosaccharides. Enzymes used must be both stable and present acceptable hydrolysis kinetics; the fermentation of fermentable sugars which must be robust, fast, and use all of the available sugars, i.e. both C6 (hexose) sugars and C5 (pentose) sugars.
[0008] The first and the second stage or the second and the third stage can be combined or carried out separately.
[0009] Specifically, the actual fermentation step is preceded by propagation of the microorganism that will perform fermentation, and followed by distillation. The propagation is generally carried out in the liquid phase from enzymatic saccharification, for example sequentially in two tanks, the second being significantly larger than the first. These parameters vary depending on the various industrial processes, experience and habits.
[0010] Improving the process overall may be done by combining the steps and/or improving them separately, for example in optimizing the enzymes used for hydrolysis or the microorganisms responsible for fermentation. In the latter case, it is for example useful to improve the suitability for transforming sugars, specifically by allowing the transformation of both hexoses and pentoses, and/or limit their susceptibility to inhibitors present in lignocellulose hydrolysates or fermentation solutions, such as acidity or temperature. For example, Saccharomyces cerevisiae , which is a yeast commonly used by producers of bioethanol, is not capable of metabolizing D-xylose but can absorb it via non-specific carriers. It is transported by hexose transporters that have a lower affinity for D-xylose than for D-glucose. Thus, it can be attractive not only to genetically modify the cell to give it the capacity to metabolize D-xylose, but also to transform it so that it absorbs said sugar more effectively.
[0011] For a review on these topics, see for example la Grange et al., 2010, Appl. Microbiol. Biotechnol., 87: 1195-1208 or Jordan et al., 2012, Biochem. J., 442: 241-252.
[0012] The present invention relates to the transformation of a cell to address metabolic deficiencies, also giving it the ability to convert D-xylose and, advantageously, to improve the property thereof of absorption of such sugar.
STATE OF THE ART
[0013] In the domain of transformation of yeasts, patent application WO 2010000464 A1 describes yeasts for fermenting C5 sugars, particularly xylose, through a transformation of said yeasts by introduction of an exogenous gene encoding a functional xylose isomerase. In this case, the xylose isomerase is derived from Clostridium phytofermentans.
[0014] Patent application WO 2012072793 A1 by the Applicant seeks to optimize the process of transformation of xylose by a yeast to make it compatible with industrial application. For this purpose, the application describes the introduction of expression cassettes for a gene encoding an enzyme capable of transforming any carbohydrate (including D-xylose) into xylulose (D-xylulose) and for a gene encoding an enzyme capable of transforming any pentol (including xylitol) into xylulose in just one step. This makes any strain thus modified particularly effective for growing on and/or fermenting of xylose. This document describes as an example the yeast strain deposited at the CNCM (Collection Nationale de Cultures de Microorganismes, Institut Pasteur, 25 rue du Docteur Roux, 75724 Paris Cedex 15) Oct. 5, 2011 under number I-4538.
[0015] Patent application WO 201 31 7891 5 A1, also filed by the Applicant, further improves the process by transforming yeast in order to make them both able to ferment pentoses and resistant to at least one fermentation inhibitor. Said application describes obtaining a hybrid yeast by a process combining a targeted functional aspect (conversion of the pentose) and screening on acetic acid resistance of the intermediate segregants. In this case, the cells selected by the ‘acetic acid resistance’ criteria have little diversity.
[0016] Finally, patent application WO 2013178918 A1, also derived from the work of the Applicant, aims to secure the method for obtaining improved yeast strains, via the integration of at least one gene of interest in a region genetically linked to a mating-type locus of expression, then crossing with MATa segregants of interest, meaning which could provide one or more phenotypic traits of interest one might wish to see combined with the genetic modification linked to the mating locus. Thus, after sporulation of the genetically modified yeast strain, the genetic change or changes segregate jointly and are all within a corresponding mating-type segregant (MAT alpha). Specifically, the use of said process for the construction of a hybrid provides certainty of a given trait of this hybrid, for example the ‘ability to metabolize pentose’ trait. This original method is all the more interesting in that it is applicable to any gene, for any type of possible improvement and for any yeast strain that has a haplodiplontic cycle. A haplodiplontic cycle is a reproductive cycle that alternates between a haploid and a diploid phase and during which the organism considered can multiply by mitosis both in the haploid state and in the diploid state.
[0017] Following a similar approach, Demeke et al., 2013, Biotechnology for Biofuels, 6: 89 stably integrated the expression cassettes of genes allowing the use of D-xylose and L-arabinose into the yeast genome. The hybrids obtained are also subjected to mutagenesis, a single genome shuffling cycle, then selected by their ability to use D-xylose in a medium rich in inhibitors. The authors raised the question of propagation and reported that the strain they have obtained has an average propagation rate. They suggested that the genetic changes responsible for the slower propagation rate appeared during mutagenesis and genome shuffling. This does not encourage the use of mutagenesis and/or genome shuffling to improve the fitness of a strain to multiply.
[0018] Although intended to improve industrial yeast strains, the work from the prior art has not concerned itself with a crucial step for the biofuel industrial manufacturing process: propagation. Also called multiplication, proliferation or biomass production, propagation is prior to the actual fermentation phase. The purpose is to systematically obtain an optimum quantity of biomass for fermentation. It is done by the manufacturer who will ferment a juice generated during the process, usually on the complex medium to be subjected to fermentation. The propagation juice can thus be a juice rich in pentoses, hexoses juice, or a mixture of pentoses and hexoses. This fermentation medium may be slightly diluted, enriched with nutrients, aerated to allow rapid and sufficient growth and thus allow systematically satisfactory fermentation. Mineral nutrients such as a source of nitrogen and phosphorus and such as minerals are also generally supplied and in greater proportion than in fermentation. Supplying compounds such as vitamins and organic compounds such as amino acids or purine or pyrimidine acid is avoided because it is too expensive. The manufacturer generally relies on the supply by the medium itself or by recycling fermented medium. Only supplying vitamins can be considered in order to make the supply from industrial mediums reliable since they can be variable and cause a variability in the growth taking place.
[0019] Beyond the resulting amount of growth during the propagation, the speed of the growth of the yeast is also a critical point of a successful propagation. Indeed, the speed of the growth of the yeast is going to limit the length of the propagation and limit the relative enrichment of the medium by environmental contaminants such as Lactobacilli or wild yeast. Contamination of the propagation which is too great will lead to reduced yield of ethanol production by fermentation. Even though cytostatics such as Lactrol® or the acid extracts of hops can be used to limit the growth of bacteria, having a yeast with rapid and significant growth remains key to the success of the propagation and the fermentation into which the propagations are transferred.
[0020] So having a yeast with nutritional needs reduced as far as possible which has quick and significant growth in propagation is a critical point to secure the whole of the industrial process and allow it to be ultimately profitable.
[0021] Following feedback from poor propagation capacity of one of their strains, the Applicant sought to significantly improve the ability of a yeast strain to propagate, while remaining stable genetically and keeping a good capacity to use D-xylose and resisting to the inhibitors usually present in lignocellulose ‘juice’. In other words, they have sought to repair the metabolic deficiencies of a strain.
[0022] In this regard, the present invention is a method for obtaining of a yeast strain suited to propagating effectively on a medium of low nutritional potential and resisting to fermentation inhibitors, while maintaining its ability to metabolize pentoses. Effectively is understood to mean by comparison between at least two strains, a reference one being thought to not producee enough biomass compatible with an industrial process in a given time. The method includes the following steps:
a) crossing of a recombinant yeast strain with a wild yeast strain devoid of deficiencies, wherein the recombinant yeast strain includes at least one copy of an exogenous xylose isomerase gene and at least one additional copy of a D-xylulokinase gene incorporated into the genome and linked to only one of the mating traits of the strain, b) at least two cycles of genome shuffling by random sporulation and/or hybridization c) selection of the population obtained in step b) according to a criterion of fitness of the strains to metabolize xylose, and d) selection of the population obtained in step c) according to a criterion of fitness of the strains to grow in a medium low in nitrogenous bases, a low nutrient-value medium,
noting that the two stages of selection can be reversed.
[0027] The intermediate segregants obtained after sporulation are not selected, for example on their ability of inhibitor resistance as suggested by the prior art, but they are instead submitted directly to several stages of genome shuffling without selection between mixes. It is worth noting that the ability to metabolize pentoses, essential, is preserved through the insertion of genes of interest by a method according to application WO 2013/178918 A1. The final selection according to the present invention is the lifting of the nutritional deficiencies at the origin of the poor propagation performance.
[0028] The invention also relates to a strain obtained by the process, and deposited in the CNCM
[0029] (Collection Nationale de Cultures de Microorganismes, Institut Pasteur, 25 rue du Docteur Roux, 75724 Paris Cedex 15) under the number I-4749, May 16, 2013.
[0030] Advantageously, another strain according to the invention also presents an overexpression of the GAL2 gene allowing a better entry of xylose into the cell. Overexpression is made possible by the addition of an extra copy of this gene, which is additionally made dependent on the constituent pADH1 promoter. The latter usually controls the expression of the ADH1 gene. The ‘child’ strain thus obtained was deposited in the CNCM (Collection Nationale de Cultures de Microorganisms, Institut Pasteur, 25 rue du Docteur Roux, 75724 Paris Cedex 15) number I-4829, Dec. 12, 2013.
[0031] The invention relates also to the use of a strain according to the invention to transform sugars, particularly hexoses and pentoses, into ethanol.
[0032] To ensure the effective propagation of the strain obtained by the process according to the invention, inventors have defined various ‘minimum’ mediums.
[0033] A minimum medium is a medium comprising a source of carbon (CxHyOz), a source of mineral nitrogen, a source of potassium, a source of phosphorous, a source of sulfur, a source of magnesium, a source of calcium, a source of iron, a source of trace elements and of water. It is of medium to low nutritional value.
[0034] Table I below brings together the various media used by the inventors: low nutritional potential, low in nitrogenous bases, the “Pref. medium” is used in the process according to the invention. This medium may be a minimal medium for strains according to the invention, but proves to be a sub-minimal medium for strains that do not meet the invention.
[0000]
TABLE I
Culture media
Pref.
Medium
YFC (g/L)
YFX (g/L)
YFI1 (g/L)
(g/L)
Distilled water qs
1000
1000
1000
1000
Glucose
58
0
150
0
Xylose
25
70
0
20
YE type J
0
5
5
0
(NH 4 )PO 4
0
4.7
4.7
0
(NH 4 ) 2 SO 4
0
0
0
5
Protein Hydrolysate
0
0
0
3
Urea
3
0
0
0
Phosphoric acid
0.85
0
0
0
Citric acid
0
11.4
11.4
0
Trisodium citrate
0
13.5
13.5
0
Acetic acid
5
0
4
0
ZnSO 4
0.021
0.021
0.021
0.04
MgSO 4 7H 2 O
1
1
1
0.5
KH 2 PO 4
0
0
0
1
NaCl
0
0
0
0.1
CaCl 2
0
0
0
0.1
H 3 BO 3
0
0
0
0.005
CuSO 4 5 H 2 O
0
0
0
0.06
KI
0
0
0
0.001
MnSO 4 H 2 O
0
0
0
0.004
Na 2 MoO 4 2H 2 O
0
0
0
0.002
FeCl 3
0
0
0
0.0002
Folic acid
0
0
0
0
Thiamine
0.018
0.018
0.018
0.07
Pyridoxine
0.0053
0.0053
0.0053
0.002
Biotin KOH
0.0018
0.0018
0.0018
0.002
Pantothenate
0.0038
0.0038
0.0038
0.002
Nicotinic Acid
0.016
0.016
0.016
0.05
Mesoinositol
0.05
0.05
0.05
0.2
Riboflavin
0.001
0.001
0.001
0.002
Para aminobenzoate
0.0012
0.0012
0.0012
0.002
Mono-sorbate oleate
1
1
1
0
YE = yeast extract
[0035] We also mention that:
Pref. medium complemented with 3 g/L of hydrolysate of RNA of Candida utilis, hydrolyzed by addition of RNase A to 30 μg/L, referred to as Pref+nitrogenous bases in the rest of the text and figures; YFI2 medium containing: yeast extract 10 g/kg, BactoPeptone 10 g/kg, glucose 55 g/L, xylose 45 g/L, acetate 4 g/L, adjusted to pH 4.4; YEG medium containing: yeast extract 10 g/L, glucose 20 g/L, and agarose 20 g/L.
[0039] Then, the assumption is that the resulting strain will have the ability to propagate effectively in the complex media of manufacturers who will use it to produce bioethanol.
[0040] The following definitions are given in order to better understand the invention.
[0041] The expression ‘Yeast strain’ refers to a relatively homogeneous population of yeast cells. A yeast strain is obtained from the isolation of a clone. A clone gives birth to a population of cells obtained from a single yeast cell.
[0042] Segregation corresponds to the situation during which, at the end of meiosis, the ploidy level is reduced. By extension, a segregant is a viable cell coming from meiosis of a cell of a ploidy level greater than 1.
[0043] The expression ‘derived yeast strain’ refers to a yeast strain derived by one or more crosses and/or by mutation and/or by genetic transformation.
[0044] A yeast strain derived by crossing can be obtained by cross-breeding of a yeast strain according to the invention with the same yeast strain, with another yeast strain according to the invention, or with any other yeast strain (provided that it can be crossed, by which the person skilled in the art understands that it is homozygous for the MAT locus and that there is no mutation in the STE genes).
[0045] A yeast strain derived through mutation can be a yeast strain which has undergone at least one spontaneous mutation in the genome thereof or at least one mutation induced by mutagenesis. The mutation(s) of a derived strain may be silent or not.
[0046] The expression “mutagenesis” designates the process of appearance of a mutation. Classically, two methods are possible: random mutagenesis, and insertional or directed mutagenesis. The first consists of the application of physical treatment (e.g. UV radiation) or treatment by chemical mutagenic agents, which will randomly induce mutations in the genome of the organism studied. The second will use molecular biology methods to produce a specific modification (i.e. promoter, gene, terminator, etc.) either in a region of the genome or on a specific locus. Locus is used to mean a specific and invariable physical location on a chromosome.
[0047] A yeast strain derived by genetic transformation is a yeast strain in which a DNA sequence was introduced that is preferably supplied by a plasmid or incorporated directly into the genome.
[0048] Hexoses is used to mean sugars with 6 carbon atoms, also called C6 sugars or more simply
[0049] C6, used as carbon source. The main representatives of hexoses in monomer form are glucose, fructose, and galactose. By analogy, pentoses are sugars with 5 carbon atoms, also called C5 sugars or C5. The main monomer representatives of pentoses are D-xylose and L-arabinose.
[0050] Propagation refers to multiplication, proliferation or biomass production which will serve to inoculate the fermentation medium. It can be done on natural medium, for example from the transformation of plant biomass, or rich or poor synthetic medium. Generally, multiplication will be fast on a rich medium and less effective on a poor medium, requiring strong metabolic capabilities from the cell to overcome the low nutritional value (or deficiencies) of the medium. Lignocellulose hydrolysate from the transformation of plant biomass is a complex environment which can be a juice containing primarily pentoses, a juice containing primarily hexoses or a juice containing a mixture of hexoses and pentoses. From an industrial point of view, a ‘rich’ synthetic medium would certainly be the most effective choice for propagation but it would not be economically viable. A minimal medium, i.e. comprising the bare minimum would be more effective but defining its composition is not simple. For these reasons and for reasons of continuum of the industrial process, propagation is most often performed on the composition resulting from the previous step, in other words on lignocellulosic juice. For a review, see Bellissimi E, Richards C: Yeast propagation. In The alcohol textbook, a reference for the beverage, fuel and industrial alcohol industries. 5th edition. Edited by Ingledew W M, Kelsall D R, Austin G D, Kluhspies C. Nottingham: University Press; 2009:145-159.
[0051] Metabolic deficiency of a strain is understood to mean a failure of one or more metabolic pathways generating defects in growth or fermentation by yeast. Auxotrophy is understood to mean an inability to produce a metabolic intermediate and essential for the development of yeast on a given medium, i.e. a metabolic defect that means the strain will not grow if all nutrients that are essential thereto are not provided exogenously.
[0052] A prototrophic yeast strain is a strain able to grow on a minimal medium. In particular, a prototrophic yeast strain according to the invention is capable of synthesizing all the nitrogenous bases necessary for its growth.
[0053] Inhibitors is understood to mean the inhibitors present ab initio in lignocellulosic hydrolysates or formed during alcoholic fermentation, which include phenolics, furfural and its derivatives, hydroxy-methyl furfural and its derivatives, or even weak acids such as acetic acid, formic acid or lactic acid. It is also known that these inhibitors are harmful to the performance or even the survival of yeast. Alternatively, osmotic pressure, pH (especially highly acidic), temperature (greater than 35° C.), or the ethanol produced may also inhibit or at least limit the fermentation capacity of a strain.
[0054] A yeast strain able to metabolize xylose is a yeast strain capable of converting xylose into ethanol, i.e. capable of fermenting xylose.
[0055] The conversion of xylose into ethanol results from the direct or indirect isomerization of xylose into xylulose, followed by the use of the xylulose obtained in that way in the non-oxidative part of the pentose phosphate pathway.
[0056] A yeast strain able to metabolize xylose within the meaning of the invention refers to a yeast strain which converts at least 70%, preferably at least 80% and more preferably at least 90% of the xylose into ethanol in 60 hours in a fermentation medium comprising 55 g of glucose and 45 g of xylose per kg, in anaerobic conditions.
[0057] The inoculation with the yeast strain used to measure the percentage of xylose converted to ethanol is preferably 0.25 g dry matter/kg of fermentation medium.
[0058] The 60 hour duration is calculated from the inoculation of the fermentation medium with the yeast strain.
[0059] The fermentation medium used to measure the percentage of xylose converted to ethanol should preferably be a synthetic medium.
[0060] A synthetic medium is a medium whose exact chemical composition is known.
[0061] Fermentation should be conducted preferably at 32° C. under medium stirring, for example 90 rpm.
[0062] The stirring is moderate so as to not be oxygenating.
[0063] The pH of the medium should be controlled, e.g. by the buffering power of an acid/base pair, e.g. the acetic acid/acetate buffering power in the YFGX medium.
[0064] The amount of ethanol present in the fermentation medium is measured by any appropriate means known to the person skilled in the art.
[0065] It can be a direct measurement of the ethanol produced or an indirect measurement through a parameter related to ethanol production, such as the loss of mass.
[0066] For example, the production of alcohol may be measured by chromatography, including HPLC (High Performance Liquid Chromatography), an enzymatic kit (for example the determination of ethanol by Boehringer kit), or a determination by potassium dichromate.
[0067] The amount of xylose in the fermentation medium is measured by any appropriate means known to the person skilled in the art, preferably by chromatography, in particular HPLC.
[0068] By using a fermentation medium containing both glucose and xylose, the conversion of xylose to ethanol from a comparable quantity of biomass can be assessed for the various yeast strains evaluated. Indeed, yeast strains first ferment glucose from the glucose and xylose mixture, then glucose and xylose, and then xylose.
[0069] The ability to metabolize xylose in the presence of at least one fermentation inhibitor is called resistance to said fermentation inhibitor.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES
[0070] FIG. 1 shows the respective propagation of strain I-4538 (recombinant parent strain, deposited at the CNCM Oct. 5, 2011), EGAc1 deposited at the CNCM Mar. 13, 2014, under reference I-4839 (wild parent strain) and I-4749 (strain according to the invention, deposited at the CNCM May 16, 2013) on Pref. and Pref.+nitrogenous bases mediums with low nutritional value.
[0071] FIG. 2 shows the comparison between the propagation of the strain I-4749 according to the invention and the propagation of the parent strain I-4538 on a synthetic medium mimicking an industrial propagation medium.
[0072] FIG. 3 shows the production of ethanol by the wild strain EGAc1 (I-4839), the recombinant parent strain I-4538 and the strain according to the invention I-4749.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
[0073] Initially, it appeared that the strain I-4538 had metabolic deficiencies which negatively impacted the efficiency of the propagation thereof on complex media. Said strain I-4538 is one of the strains obtained according to patent WO 2012072793 A1, comprising at least one copy of an exogenous gene encoding a xylose isomerase, and a copy of one exogenous gene encoding a xylitol dehydrogenase. It also comprises at least one copy of the XKS1 gene and genes for the pentose-phosphate pathway. In practical terms, this strain has a good capacity to metabolize xylose and resists to fermentation inhibitors resulting from the hydrolysis of biomass such as phenolic products, furfural and acetic acid. Thus, the propagation phase on a medium poor in nitrogenous bases additionally containing xylose was analyzed in order to be subsequently improved. It appeared that hydrolyzed RNA, otherwise known as nitrogenous bases, was very favorable to the growth of strain I-4538. Interestingly, this auxotrophy is not present on a medium containing glucose, which indicates that the biosynthetic pathways are functional, but poorly regulated in a medium containing xylose. Since yeast is not naturally able to metabolize this sugar, it is possible that the expression of the genes required for the synthesis of the nitrogenous bases is not sufficient. Moreover, the various stages of genetic transformations and UV radiation leading to obtaining the strain are likely responsible for these deficiencies.
[0074] As a first step, strain I-4538 is hybridized with a wild strain with no deficiency (referenced strain EGAc1 deposited at the CNCM Mar. 13, 2014, under reference I-4839 in the examples and figures). A wild strain refers to a non-genetically modified strain. This step has led to a hybrid whose metabolic deficiencies were partly repaired but which had lost a significant part of the capacity to ferment xylose rapidly.
[0075] The hybridization step is carried out according to conventional techniques, such as those taught in Chapter 7, “Sporulation and Hybridization of Yeast” by R. R. Fowell, in the reference work “The Yeasts”, Volume 1, published by A. H. Rose and J. S. Harrison, 1969-Academic Press.
[0076] A second step is a random genome recombination, more specifically by four cycles of genome shuffling. The cycles are carried out without selection between the two steps. This step is done according to a method adapted from Hou, 2009, Biotechnol. Lett., 31: 671-677.
[0077] The resulting population is selected according to a criterion of suitability to metabolize xylose, then according to a criterion of ability to multiply on low nutritional value medium, especially the ability to dispense with nitrogenous bases in the propagation medium.
[0078] The two selection criteria can be inverted. In other words, it is possible to select first the ability to multiply in deficient medium then select the ability to ferment xylose or first on the capacity to ferment xylose then on the ability to multiply in deficient medium.
[0079] The resulting strain was deposited at the CNCM (Collection Nationale de Cultures de Microorganismes, Institut Pasteur, 25 rue du Docteur Roux, 75724 Paris Cedex 15) under number I-4749.
[0080] Interestingly, the removal of auxotrophy towards the nitrogenous bases on a medium containing xylose as the sole carbon source is transmissible to the strains that descend in a straight line from strain I-4749. In that way, various strains, among them the deposited strain I-4829, were obtained from strain I-4749. Indeed, it was observed that the protein Gal2p is a transporter of hexoses also capable of transporting xylose (Hamacher et al. 2002, Microbiology, 148 : 2783-2788). Thus, improving the capture of xylose by a yeast strain, e.g. Saccharomyces cerevisiae, that could have been made capable of fermenting xylose, is attractive. For this reason, a copy of the gene GAL2, made dependent on a strong and constitutive promoter (pADH1), was introduced into the genome of the strain. It encodes for a channel that promotes the entry of xylose into cells. This strain is a yeast strain according to the invention. The strain obtained by this additional genetic modification has been deposited at the CNCM (Collection Nationale de Cultures de Microorganismes, Institut Pasteur, 25 rue du Docteur Roux, 75724 Paris Cedex 15) under reference I-4829.
[0081] Yeasts are obtained by culture of a yeast strain according to the invention or of a yeast strain derived according to the invention, in particular as described in the book of reference “Yeast Technology”, 2nd edition, 1991, G. Reed, and T. W. Nagodawithana, published by Van Nostrand Reinhold, ISBN 0-442-31892-8.
[0082] The multiplication of yeasts, on an industrial scale, generally includes at least the first two steps from the following set of steps:
multiplication of a yeast strain in several stages, first in semi-anaerobios, and then in aerobios, separation of the yeast produced from its culture medium by centrifuging, in order to obtain a liquid yeast cream containing between about 12 and 25% of dry matter, or even a higher quantity of dried material if the yeast cream is mixed with osmolytic products, filtration of the liquid yeast cream obtained, in general on a rotary vacuum filter, to get a fresh dehydrated yeast containing 26-35% dry matter, mixing of said fresh dehydrated yeast in order to obtain a homogeneous mass, extrusion of the yeast thus obtained, in order to obtain:
a pressed yeast in the form of fresh cake yeast or crumbled fresh yeast containing about 30% dry matter, or a yeast in the form of particles, granules in general, if the yeast is intended to be dried,
possibly controlled drying, in a current of hot air, e.g. by fluidization, particles of yeast obtained by extrusion in order to obtain dry yeast.
[0091] The drying step is preferably fast controlled drying in the presence of an emulsifier.
[0092] Among the emulsifiers which can be used during the drying stage, it is possible to choose sorbitan monostearate, used for example at a concentration of about 1.0% (by weight over the weight of dry yeast).
[0093] Yeast according to the invention can be used in any possible form.
[0094] For example, the subject of the present invention is a yeast such as defined above, characterized in that it is in the form of yeast cream, pressed yeast, dry yeast or frozen yeast.
[0095] The subject of the present invention is also a method of producing at least one fermentation product comprising a step of fermentation in anaerobic or semi-anaerobic conditions by a yeast such as defined above in a fermentation medium.
[0096] The fermentation product is especially chosen from ethanol, a metabolite obtained from ethanol or a secondary metabolite.
[0097] A preferred fermentation product according to the invention is ethanol.
[0098] Ethanol production results from alcoholic fermentation.
[0099] The person skilled in the art knows how to determine the appropriate conditions for alcoholic fermentation.
[0100] For example, one can refer to the alcoholic fermentation conditions described in the reference book “Yeast Technology”, 2nd edition, 1991, G. Reed and T. W. Nagodawithana, published by Van Nostrand Reinhold, ISBN 0-442-31892-8.
[0101] The fermentation medium includes the following elements: at least one source of fermentable carbon, at least one source of nitrogen, at least one source of sulfur, at least one source of phosphorus, at least one source of vitamins and/or at least one source of minerals.
[0102] The carbon source is for example supplied in the form of a sugar immediately available to the yeast, a pentose such as xylose, of glycerol, ethanol or a combination thereof.
[0103] A sugar immediately available to the yeast is for example a simple sugar of glucose, fructose or galactose type, a disaccharide of sucrose type or a mixture of these sugars.
[0104] The carbon source can be supplied in the form of a glucose syrup, a fructose syrup, a saccharose syrup, molasses, hydrol (spent mother liquor from 2nd sugar crystallization), a hydrolysate of all or part of a plant material or a mixture thereof.
[0105] The nitrogen source is for example provided in the form of ammonium sulfate, ammonium hydroxide, di-ammonium phosphate, ammonia, urea, or a combination thereof.
[0106] The sulfur source is for example provided in the form of ammonium sulfate, magnesium sulfate, sulfuric acid, and/or a combination thereof.
[0107] The source of phosphorus is for example provided in the form of phosphoric acid, potassium phosphate, di-ammonium phosphate, mono-ammonium phosphate, and/or a combination thereof.
[0108] The source of vitamins is for example provided in the form of molasses, yeast hydrolysate, a solution of pure vitamins or a mixture of pure vitamins and/or a combination thereof.
[0109] The source of vitamins supplies the yeast with all vitamins in amounts at least equivalent to those recommended in reference books. Several sources of vitamins can be combined.
[0110] The source of minerals is for example provided in the form of molasses, a mixture of mineral salts and/or a combination thereof.
[0111] The mineral source supplies yeast with all macronutrients and trace minerals in amounts at least equivalent to those recommended in reference books. Several mineral sources can be combined.
[0112] The same substance may supply several different elements.
[0113] The subject of the present invention is a process as defined above for the production of at least one fermentation product, preferably ethanol, comprising a step of fermentation in anaerobic or semi-anaerobic conditions, by a yeast such as defined above in a medium fermentation comprising xylose and/or at least one fermentation inhibitor. Preferentially, the fermentation medium includes at least one hydrolysate of all or part of a plant material.
[0114] A hydrolysate of all or part of a plant material can be obtained by a step of pre-treatment of the plant material, e.g. at a high temperature and in the presence of acids or organic solvents, which could be followed by a total or partial hydrolysis of sugar polymers, by enzymatic and/or chemical and/or thermal routes.
[0115] The hydrolysate of all or part of a plant material therefore includes a mix of sugar from the hydrolysis of sugar polymers, such as cellulose, hemicellulose, and starch.
[0116] The fermentation inhibitor is for example selected from among an organic acid, furfural, HMF (hydroxy-methyl-furfural), one or more phenolic compounds and osmotic pressure.
[0117] The organic acid is for example selected from among acetic acid, lactic acid, formic acid and levulinic acid.
[0118] The subject of the present invention is also the use of a yeast such as defined above for the production of at least one fermentation product, preferably in a fermentation medium containing xylose and at least one fermentation inhibitor. In other words, the use of a yeast according to the invention allows conversion and the metabolism of a material of plant origin comprising xylose.
[0119] The fermentation product is as defined above.
[0120] Preferably, the fermentation product should be ethanol.
[0121] The fermentation medium is as defined above.
[0122] The following examples are intended to better understand the invention but are in no way limiting.
EXAMPLES
[0123] Crossing a Recombinant Strain with a Wild Strain then Sporulation.
[0124] The recombinant strain deposited at CNCM (Collection Nationale de Cultures de
[0125] Microorganismes, Institut Pasteur, 25 rue du Docteur Roux, 75724 Paris Cedex 15) under number I-4538 was crossed with a wild strain, in this case the strain of the applicant EGAc1 (I-4839). This step was carried out according to conventional techniques, such as those taught in Chapter 7 “Sporulation and Hybridization of Yeast” by R. R. Fowell, in the reference work “The Yeasts”, Volume 1, edited by A. H. Rose and J. S. Harrison, 1969-Academic Press.
[0126] The EGAc2 strain deposited with the CNCM under reference I-4840 on Mar. 13, 2014 was thus obtained. This strain showed good performance metabolizing xylose and only partially repaired deficiencies. Indeed, the quality of the propagation remained poor on a low nutritional value medium comprising essentially xylose and a protein hydrolysate.
[0127] Sporulation was carried out in liquid media without nitrogen source and containing a non-fermentable carbon source, preferably an acetate salt, ideally potassium acetate.
[0128] Establishment of a Rapid Method of Segregant Enrichment
[0129] Insofar as it did not seem possible to obtain 100% of segregants, it was necessary to eliminate the diploids that had not completed meiosis.
[0130] To do this, the asci dissection method is usually implemented but has the disadvantage of being very time-consuming. Thus, the Applicant has used a distinctive characteristic of spores, namely that they are renowned for their greater resistance to temperature (Williams, 1936, J. Bacteriol., 32 (6): 589-597), the lack of certain nutrients (Ho & Miller, 1978, Can. J. Microbiol., 24 (3): 312-320) or some organic solvents (Dawes and Hardie, 1974, Mol. Gen. Genet., 131 (4): 281-289).
[0131] In this case, a method based on ether enrichment described by Dawes and Hardie (supra) was used. Indeed, this approach is simple and effective.
[0132] Indeed, due to the formation of the segregants in the membrane of the diploid, they are not surrounded by one phospholipid bilayer, but two. On the other hand, the diploids have only one. When it is used with an optimal contact time (variable from one strain to another) ether breaks down diploid membranes. The ether is therefore attractive for two reasons. Firstly, it kills the diploids without affecting the segregants if the contact time is not too long. On the other hand, it degrades the phospholipid bilayer of the asci that holds the segregants in the form of tetrads, of which the result is releasing them and allowing them to germinate.
[0133] This method was suited to the industrial strains of the Applicant. The contact time between the yeast suspension and the ether must then be closely monitored. To do this, 2 mL of ether is brought into contact with 2 mL of the yeast suspension containing approximately 2×10 7 sporulation structures. Sporulation is obtained after 5 days in sporulation conditions. The whole is then vortex stirred during total contact time ranging from 30 seconds to 2 minutes.
[0134] An aliquot containing 1000 cells/mL is immediately spread at the 100 μL/dish level on a medium containing:
[0135] Yeast extract 5 g/L, glucose 20 g/L, agar 30 g/L, water qs 1 L. After 48 hours of growth, the colonies are used to make a “PCR on colony” by using SEQ ID no. 1, SEQ ID no. 2 and SEQ ID no. 3 primers corresponding respectively to the Mat1, Mat2 and Mat3 primers such as described in application WO2013/178918 A1. This PCR analysis aims to differentiate haploid strains from diploid strains.
[0136] Different contact time trials show that, in the case of strain EGAc2 (I-4840), exposure of 1 minute is sufficient for enrichment to over 98% in haploid strains.
[0137] Establishment of the Bulk Hybridization Protocol
[0138] New hybrids were generated from suspensions enriched in segregants by performing a bulk-phase hybridization. To do this, 1 mL of the suspension of segregants was inoculated in 50 mL of YPG medium containing yeast extract 10 g/L, Bactopeptone 20 g/L, glucose 20 g/L and distilled water qs 1 L. After 16 hours in this medium, microscopic observation confirmed the formation of zygotes. In order to promote the development of these hybrids, every 24 hours, 200 μL of the culture was inoculated into 50 mL of fresh YEG medium. After 5 days of subculture, the new hybrids can be reintroduced in a mass sporulation cycle.
[0139] In order to ensure the efficiency of this bulk hybridization step, 100 cells are distributed per Petri dish containing the YEG. The reproduction characteristic of the cells constituting 139 of the formed colonies were then analyzed by PCR on DNAg. These colonies were selected randomly. The PCR performed using primers SEQ ID N o 1, SEQ ID N o 2 and SEQ ID N o 3 (supra) showed that only 2 colonies of the 139 tested were haploid.
[0140] Validation of Genome Shuffling in the Resulting Population of Hybrids
[0141] Analysis of the Genotype of the Starting Hybrid.
[0142] One of the methods to validate the quality of genome shuffling consists of studying the distribution of alleles from two loci linked to the gene GRE3. Indeed, the deletion of both copies of the gene GRE3 corresponding to a “gre3 null” genotype was conducted in C5 strains leading to strain I-4538. This disruption was transmitted to the strain EGAc2 (I-4840) which, because of the non-deletion of GRE3 in EGAc1 (I-4839), is therefore heterozygous.
[0143] The possible transmission of this trait in the derived segregants of strain EGAc2 (I-4840) has been sought. This PCR were done with a pGRE3 TAGTTGTCAGTGCAATCCTTC promoter-specific primer (SEQ ID N o 4) and a tGRE3 TATACACATATACAGCATCGGA terminator-specific Primer (SEQ ID no. 5) of GRE3. The results showed that it was possible to differentiate wild copies of the gene GRE3 which give a 1200 BP (base pair) fragment, from deleted forms that give a 200 BP fragment.
[0144] So some segregants of strain EGAc2 (I-4840) presented exclusively the deleted version while others presented only the wild copy of GRE3. More surprisingly, a third category of segregants had 2 copies of the gene GRE3, one wild type, and the other deleted. This result is explained by the fact that there are not two, but four copies of the GRE3 gene in strain EGAc1 (I-4839). In this case, there are two copies of GRE3 in the EGAc1 segregant (I-4839) which gave EGAc2 (I-4840). So the genotype of strain EGAc2 (I-4840) is the following:
[0000]
GRE
3
gre
4
Δ
;
GRE
3
–
[0145] Such a genotype is due to the presence of GRE3 at two different loci in strain EGAc1 (I-4839) against 1 single locus in the strain I-4538. In addition in strain I-4538, the GRE3 gene has been deleted. Thus, among 137 diploid strains obtained at the end of a first round of genome shuffling of strain EGAc2 (I-4840), the GRE3 gene and the dispersion of alleles among hybrids have been studied.
[0146] Determination of Expected Segregants
[0147] In relation to the GRE3 genotype, a hybrid like EGAc2 (I-4840) can therefore give 4 types of segregants. These segregants are listed in table II below. The segregants with genotype gre3Δ;—and GRE3; GRE3 are so-called parental genotypes because all their alleles originate from a single parent. In contrast, segregants GRE3;—and gre3Δ; GRE3 are referred to as recombinant. For each case, there is a MATa form and a MAT alpha form.
[0000]
TABLE II
Genotype of the various obtainable segregants
[0148] A way to analyze the quality of genome shuffling consisted of looking for the distribution of alleles from the parental hybrid in the segregants. Thus, under the assumption that the loci are independent, the probability of obtaining a parental segregant is equal to that for a recombinant segregant.
[0149] However, the approach seeks to work without selecting the segregants. Indeed, the purpose was to determine the spores that had actually been involved in the formation of the hybrids. The genetic analysis was therefore performed from the hybrids.
[0150] Analysis of Resulting Hybrids
[0151] Hybrids which may result at the end of this genome shuffling are shown in table III. The genotypes of each type of hybrid are referenced in the corresponding box. These genotypes are divided into 3 groups with respect to the PCR profiles with pGRE3 (SEQ ID N o 4) and tGRE3 (SEQ ID N o 5) primers:
Group 1: A single band at a 200 BP size (white cell in the table) Group 2: Two bands of 200 BP and 1200 BP (light gray cells in the table) Group 3: A single band of 1200 BP (dark grey cells in the table) Table III: Genotype of the various hybrids that can be obtained. Row 2 and column 2, these are segregants, the other boxes are hybrids.
[0000]
TABLE III
Genotype of the various hybrids that can be obtained.
Row 2 and column 2, these are segregants, the other boxes are hybrids.
[0156] Group 1 hybrids can be easily identified because they present a PCR profile comparable to that of the I-4538 strain when the pGRE3 and tGRE3 primers are used. It is worth noting that all hybrids with this genotype are from the MATa; gre3Δ;—and MAT alpha; gre3Δ;—segregants.
[0157] Under the assumption of a genetic independence, these hybrids should represent 1/16 or 6.25% of the population. To test this assumption, the genotypes of the 137 previously mentioned hybrids were analyzed by PCR. The results are shown in table IV below.
[0000]
TABLE IV
Results of PCR analysis of the genotype of the resulting hybrids
[0158] The over-representation of the hybrids from Group 1 (11.6% instead of 6.25%) shows that the two loci of GRE3 are not independent. In other words, this means that in meiosis, the probability of having a parental-type segregant is greater than having a recombinant type segregant. This result furthermore allows determination of the genetic distance in cM. This genetic distance is obtained via the following equation:
[0000]
Genetic
distance
(
cM
)
=
(
number
of
recombinant
segregants
number
of
total
segregants
)
×
100
[0159] In this analysis, the total number of segregants is the number of hybrids multiplied by 2 (being 274).
[0160] The number of recombinant segregants is obtained by subtracting the number of parental segregants from the total number of segregants. As shown above, group 1 hybrids consist exclusively of parental segregants. This implies that the probability of having gre3Δ;—parental segregants is equal to the square root of the probability of having a hybrid from Group 1. In addition, the parental segregants are equiprobable during meiosis. The number of recombinant segregants can therefore be determined by the following equation:
[0000]
number
of
recombinant
segregants
=
total
number
of
segregants
-
number
of
parental
segregants
with
:
number
of
parental
segregants
=
total
number
of
hybrids
×
4
×
number
of
hybrids
in
Group
1
total
number
of
hybrids
[0161] Thus, the number of parental segregants is 186 and therefore the number of recombinant segregants is 88. This result implies that the genetic distance between two loci would be 32 cM. This genetic distance calculation serves to measure the probability of having each type of segregants.
[0162] Estimate of the Number of Starting Cells found in the End Population
[0163] An important point related to the measurement of the quality of the diversification of the population is the determination of the number of starting hybrids which survived the entire treatment to stay in the final population. It is possible to estimate their number based on the results of the determination of the GRE3 genotype. Indeed, cells whose PCR profile presents two bands (200 BP and 1200 BP) are either hybrids obtained by genome shuffling, or starting cells that were not killed during the enrichment with ether.
[0000] Strains of Group 2=real hybrids of group 2+surviving starting cells
[0164] The results obtained in the preceding paragraph allow determination of both the number of real hybrids from Group 2 and the number of strains from Group 2.
[0165] To determine the number of real hybrids from Group 2, the proportion of each type of hybrid that makes up this group must be added together. Table V below lists various hybrids, as well as the probability of obtaining them. The probability of obtaining a type of hybrid is based on the product of the probabilities of obtaining the two segregants which go into it. It is indicated in the previous sub-section that the parental segregants represent 68% of the segregants (or 34% for each parental segregant). Consequently, the recombinant segregants represent 32% of all segregants (i.e. 16% for each recombinant segregant).
[0000]
TABLE V
Probability of obtaining each type of hybrid. The color code for the hybrids
of group 1, and group 2 and 3 respectively is identical in tables III and IV.
[0166] The results presented in table V suggest that the proportion of Group 2 hybrids (in light grey) is 63.4%. At the same time, the proportion of strains of Group 2 represents 64.5% of the population. It seems therefore that in the population tested, about 1% of hybrids are starting strains that were not killed during ether enrichment.
[0167] Summary on the Construction of the Population
[0168] In summary: it was possible to build a population of strains from a single starting hybrid. It was shown that this new population, that was generated after 4 phases of bulk hybridization and sporulation, is the product of an broad genome shuffling.
[0169] Selection of Individuals of Interest in the Resulting Population
[0170] After verification of the quality of genome shuffling, resulting yeasts were selected on their ability to ferment xylose while resisting to inhibitors.
[0171] To do this, they were cultured for 48 hours on medium YFI1 and then transferred for a 72-hour culture on a YFX medium. (NB. The compositions of mediums are shown in table I (supra) or in the text that follows the table). Samples of this second population were spread over a YEG medium (supra). This last step has led, among others, to the isolation of the strain deposited at the CNCM (Collection Nationale de Cultures de Microorganismes, Institut Pasteur, 25 rue du Docteur Roux, 75724 Paris Cedex 15) under number I-4749.
[0172] Validation of Optimized Propagation
[0173] Initially, the propagation of strains was tested on a Pref. medium, and Pref. +nitrogenous bases medium. This is illustrated in FIG. 1 . These results indicate that:
strain I-4538, recombinant strain used for the present invention, propagates efficiently on Pref. +nitrogenous bases medium, but propagates very poorly on Pref. medium; strain EGAc1 (I-4839), wild strain crossed according to the present invention with the strain I-4538, does not propagate efficiently on Pref. or Pref.+nitrogenous bases medium; strain I-4749 according to the invention effectively propagates on Pref. medium.
[0177] Validation of Propagation on Industrial Type Medium
[0178] A YFC medium (shown in table I supra) has been defined as mimicking the conditions of an industrial medium type mixture of hexoses (e.g. glucose, galactose, etc.) and pentoses (e.g. xylose, arabinose, etc.). The respective propagation of strains I-4538 (parent strain) and I-4749 (strain according to the invention) has been validated on this medium. FIG. 2 shows these results and demonstrates an efficiency of propagation of more than double for the strain according to the invention.
[0179] Validation of Fermentation Suitability
[0180] The strain according to the invention has been used for fermentation in a medium close to the actual medium. The YFI2 medium used for this purpose comprises both glucose and xylose so C6 and C5 sugars. The result of monitoring loss of mass during fermentation is shown in FIG. 3 . In the case of all strains implemented, fermentation is biphasic.
[0181] In the first phase, strains EGAc1 (I-4839) and EGAc2 (I-4840) behave in the same way. The same goes for strain I-4749 according to the present invention. However strain I-4538 is slower during this first phase. Considering the principle of catabolite repression by glucose, it is likely that this first part of the fermentation corresponds to the consumption of glucose.
[0182] During the second phase of fermentation, it is worth noting a significant slowdown for all strains. However, the most effective strains are strains I-4538 and I-4749. This second phase probably corresponds to the consumption of xylose which is suggested by the fact that strain EGAc1 (I-4839) (of [Xylose-] phenotype) does not ferment.
[0183] The record shows that the best compromise between all strains implemented is I-4749 obtained according to the invention. | The present invention relates to a method for obtaining a strain capable of efficiently propagating in a low nutritive potential medium, capable of metabolising pentoses and of resisting fermentation inhibitors, comprising the following steps; a) growth of a strain of recombinant yeast with a strain of wild yeast lacking any impairments, the recombinant yeast strain comprising at least one copy of an exogenous gene of xylose isomerase and at least one additional copy of a gene of D-xylulokinase included in the genome and linked to a single sexual characteristic of the strain, b) at least two cycles of genome shuffling by sporulation and or random hybridization, c) selection of the population obtained in step b) according to a suitability criterion of the strains to metabolize xylose, d) selection of the population obtained in step c) according to a suitability criterion of the strains to grow in a Pref type medium, a medium with low nutritive value. The invention also relates to a cell, a yeast or a strain of recombinant yeast obtained according to the method, and to the use of such a cell for the production of bioethanol. | Summarize the document in concise, focusing on the main idea's functionality and advantages. | [
"[0001] The present invention belongs to the domain of improved yeast strains, specifically for the purpose of producing alcohols, e.g. bioethanol.",
"The process according to the invention uses combined genetic and molecular biology techniques to generate recombinant microorganisms.",
"[0002] Proposing white biotechnology alternatives in order to generate biofuels is a considerable challenge in view of the costs of fossil energies, potential supply problems and environmental impacts.",
"Plant biomass is a renewable raw material of choice for the production of biofuels within the context of sustainable development.",
"[0003] Context [0004] Plant biomass means any biomass which can either correspond to excesses or by-products of agricultural and agro-industrial crops such as corn, sugar cane, wheat, sorghum, trees for carpentry and furniture, or correspond to specific cultures such as Miscanthus gigantheus, Panicum virgatum (switchgrass) and short and very short rotation coppices.",
"Plant biomass is a mixture of hexose-rich cellulose, pentose-rich hemicellulose and lignin which is a polymer of hydrophobic phenolic compounds.",
"Conventionally speaking, three steps are described for the conversion of plant biomass to bioethanol.",
": Pretreatment with implementation of mechanical, chemical and/or heating processes to optimize subsequent hydrolysis of the biomass or a fraction of the biomass;",
"hydrolysis of the biomass or a fraction of the biomass by action of reagents, solvents or enzymes with appropriate temperature and pH conditions.",
"The objective of this hydrolysis is the release of the main fermentable monosaccharides.",
"Enzymes used must be both stable and present acceptable hydrolysis kinetics;",
"the fermentation of fermentable sugars which must be robust, fast, and use all of the available sugars, i.e. both C6 (hexose) sugars and C5 (pentose) sugars.",
"[0008] The first and the second stage or the second and the third stage can be combined or carried out separately.",
"[0009] Specifically, the actual fermentation step is preceded by propagation of the microorganism that will perform fermentation, and followed by distillation.",
"The propagation is generally carried out in the liquid phase from enzymatic saccharification, for example sequentially in two tanks, the second being significantly larger than the first.",
"These parameters vary depending on the various industrial processes, experience and habits.",
"[0010] Improving the process overall may be done by combining the steps and/or improving them separately, for example in optimizing the enzymes used for hydrolysis or the microorganisms responsible for fermentation.",
"In the latter case, it is for example useful to improve the suitability for transforming sugars, specifically by allowing the transformation of both hexoses and pentoses, and/or limit their susceptibility to inhibitors present in lignocellulose hydrolysates or fermentation solutions, such as acidity or temperature.",
"For example, Saccharomyces cerevisiae , which is a yeast commonly used by producers of bioethanol, is not capable of metabolizing D-xylose but can absorb it via non-specific carriers.",
"It is transported by hexose transporters that have a lower affinity for D-xylose than for D-glucose.",
"Thus, it can be attractive not only to genetically modify the cell to give it the capacity to metabolize D-xylose, but also to transform it so that it absorbs said sugar more effectively.",
"[0011] For a review on these topics, see for example la Grange et al.",
", 2010, Appl.",
"Microbiol.",
"Biotechnol.",
", 87: 1195-1208 or Jordan et al.",
", 2012, Biochem.",
"J., 442: 241-252.",
"[0012] The present invention relates to the transformation of a cell to address metabolic deficiencies, also giving it the ability to convert D-xylose and, advantageously, to improve the property thereof of absorption of such sugar.",
"STATE OF THE ART [0013] In the domain of transformation of yeasts, patent application WO 2010000464 A1 describes yeasts for fermenting C5 sugars, particularly xylose, through a transformation of said yeasts by introduction of an exogenous gene encoding a functional xylose isomerase.",
"In this case, the xylose isomerase is derived from Clostridium phytofermentans.",
"[0014] Patent application WO 2012072793 A1 by the Applicant seeks to optimize the process of transformation of xylose by a yeast to make it compatible with industrial application.",
"For this purpose, the application describes the introduction of expression cassettes for a gene encoding an enzyme capable of transforming any carbohydrate (including D-xylose) into xylulose (D-xylulose) and for a gene encoding an enzyme capable of transforming any pentol (including xylitol) into xylulose in just one step.",
"This makes any strain thus modified particularly effective for growing on and/or fermenting of xylose.",
"This document describes as an example the yeast strain deposited at the CNCM (Collection Nationale de Cultures de Microorganismes, Institut Pasteur, 25 rue du Docteur Roux, 75724 Paris Cedex 15) Oct. 5, 2011 under number I-4538.",
"[0015] Patent application WO 201 31 7891 5 A1, also filed by the Applicant, further improves the process by transforming yeast in order to make them both able to ferment pentoses and resistant to at least one fermentation inhibitor.",
"Said application describes obtaining a hybrid yeast by a process combining a targeted functional aspect (conversion of the pentose) and screening on acetic acid resistance of the intermediate segregants.",
"In this case, the cells selected by the ‘acetic acid resistance’ criteria have little diversity.",
"[0016] Finally, patent application WO 2013178918 A1, also derived from the work of the Applicant, aims to secure the method for obtaining improved yeast strains, via the integration of at least one gene of interest in a region genetically linked to a mating-type locus of expression, then crossing with MATa segregants of interest, meaning which could provide one or more phenotypic traits of interest one might wish to see combined with the genetic modification linked to the mating locus.",
"Thus, after sporulation of the genetically modified yeast strain, the genetic change or changes segregate jointly and are all within a corresponding mating-type segregant (MAT alpha).",
"Specifically, the use of said process for the construction of a hybrid provides certainty of a given trait of this hybrid, for example the ‘ability to metabolize pentose’ trait.",
"This original method is all the more interesting in that it is applicable to any gene, for any type of possible improvement and for any yeast strain that has a haplodiplontic cycle.",
"A haplodiplontic cycle is a reproductive cycle that alternates between a haploid and a diploid phase and during which the organism considered can multiply by mitosis both in the haploid state and in the diploid state.",
"[0017] Following a similar approach, Demeke et al.",
", 2013, Biotechnology for Biofuels, 6: 89 stably integrated the expression cassettes of genes allowing the use of D-xylose and L-arabinose into the yeast genome.",
"The hybrids obtained are also subjected to mutagenesis, a single genome shuffling cycle, then selected by their ability to use D-xylose in a medium rich in inhibitors.",
"The authors raised the question of propagation and reported that the strain they have obtained has an average propagation rate.",
"They suggested that the genetic changes responsible for the slower propagation rate appeared during mutagenesis and genome shuffling.",
"This does not encourage the use of mutagenesis and/or genome shuffling to improve the fitness of a strain to multiply.",
"[0018] Although intended to improve industrial yeast strains, the work from the prior art has not concerned itself with a crucial step for the biofuel industrial manufacturing process: propagation.",
"Also called multiplication, proliferation or biomass production, propagation is prior to the actual fermentation phase.",
"The purpose is to systematically obtain an optimum quantity of biomass for fermentation.",
"It is done by the manufacturer who will ferment a juice generated during the process, usually on the complex medium to be subjected to fermentation.",
"The propagation juice can thus be a juice rich in pentoses, hexoses juice, or a mixture of pentoses and hexoses.",
"This fermentation medium may be slightly diluted, enriched with nutrients, aerated to allow rapid and sufficient growth and thus allow systematically satisfactory fermentation.",
"Mineral nutrients such as a source of nitrogen and phosphorus and such as minerals are also generally supplied and in greater proportion than in fermentation.",
"Supplying compounds such as vitamins and organic compounds such as amino acids or purine or pyrimidine acid is avoided because it is too expensive.",
"The manufacturer generally relies on the supply by the medium itself or by recycling fermented medium.",
"Only supplying vitamins can be considered in order to make the supply from industrial mediums reliable since they can be variable and cause a variability in the growth taking place.",
"[0019] Beyond the resulting amount of growth during the propagation, the speed of the growth of the yeast is also a critical point of a successful propagation.",
"Indeed, the speed of the growth of the yeast is going to limit the length of the propagation and limit the relative enrichment of the medium by environmental contaminants such as Lactobacilli or wild yeast.",
"Contamination of the propagation which is too great will lead to reduced yield of ethanol production by fermentation.",
"Even though cytostatics such as Lactrol® or the acid extracts of hops can be used to limit the growth of bacteria, having a yeast with rapid and significant growth remains key to the success of the propagation and the fermentation into which the propagations are transferred.",
"[0020] So having a yeast with nutritional needs reduced as far as possible which has quick and significant growth in propagation is a critical point to secure the whole of the industrial process and allow it to be ultimately profitable.",
"[0021] Following feedback from poor propagation capacity of one of their strains, the Applicant sought to significantly improve the ability of a yeast strain to propagate, while remaining stable genetically and keeping a good capacity to use D-xylose and resisting to the inhibitors usually present in lignocellulose ‘juice’.",
"In other words, they have sought to repair the metabolic deficiencies of a strain.",
"[0022] In this regard, the present invention is a method for obtaining of a yeast strain suited to propagating effectively on a medium of low nutritional potential and resisting to fermentation inhibitors, while maintaining its ability to metabolize pentoses.",
"Effectively is understood to mean by comparison between at least two strains, a reference one being thought to not producee enough biomass compatible with an industrial process in a given time.",
"The method includes the following steps: a) crossing of a recombinant yeast strain with a wild yeast strain devoid of deficiencies, wherein the recombinant yeast strain includes at least one copy of an exogenous xylose isomerase gene and at least one additional copy of a D-xylulokinase gene incorporated into the genome and linked to only one of the mating traits of the strain, b) at least two cycles of genome shuffling by random sporulation and/or hybridization c) selection of the population obtained in step b) according to a criterion of fitness of the strains to metabolize xylose, and d) selection of the population obtained in step c) according to a criterion of fitness of the strains to grow in a medium low in nitrogenous bases, a low nutrient-value medium, noting that the two stages of selection can be reversed.",
"[0027] The intermediate segregants obtained after sporulation are not selected, for example on their ability of inhibitor resistance as suggested by the prior art, but they are instead submitted directly to several stages of genome shuffling without selection between mixes.",
"It is worth noting that the ability to metabolize pentoses, essential, is preserved through the insertion of genes of interest by a method according to application WO 2013/178918 A1.",
"The final selection according to the present invention is the lifting of the nutritional deficiencies at the origin of the poor propagation performance.",
"[0028] The invention also relates to a strain obtained by the process, and deposited in the CNCM [0029] (Collection Nationale de Cultures de Microorganismes, Institut Pasteur, 25 rue du Docteur Roux, 75724 Paris Cedex 15) under the number I-4749, May 16, 2013.",
"[0030] Advantageously, another strain according to the invention also presents an overexpression of the GAL2 gene allowing a better entry of xylose into the cell.",
"Overexpression is made possible by the addition of an extra copy of this gene, which is additionally made dependent on the constituent pADH1 promoter.",
"The latter usually controls the expression of the ADH1 gene.",
"The ‘child’ strain thus obtained was deposited in the CNCM (Collection Nationale de Cultures de Microorganisms, Institut Pasteur, 25 rue du Docteur Roux, 75724 Paris Cedex 15) number I-4829, Dec. 12, 2013.",
"[0031] The invention relates also to the use of a strain according to the invention to transform sugars, particularly hexoses and pentoses, into ethanol.",
"[0032] To ensure the effective propagation of the strain obtained by the process according to the invention, inventors have defined various ‘minimum’ mediums.",
"[0033] A minimum medium is a medium comprising a source of carbon (CxHyOz), a source of mineral nitrogen, a source of potassium, a source of phosphorous, a source of sulfur, a source of magnesium, a source of calcium, a source of iron, a source of trace elements and of water.",
"It is of medium to low nutritional value.",
"[0034] Table I below brings together the various media used by the inventors: low nutritional potential, low in nitrogenous bases, the “Pref. medium”",
"is used in the process according to the invention.",
"This medium may be a minimal medium for strains according to the invention, but proves to be a sub-minimal medium for strains that do not meet the invention.",
"[0000] TABLE I Culture media Pref.",
"Medium YFC (g/L) YFX (g/L) YFI1 (g/L) (g/L) Distilled water qs 1000 1000 1000 1000 Glucose 58 0 150 0 Xylose 25 70 0 20 YE type J 0 5 5 0 (NH 4 )PO 4 0 4.7 4.7 0 (NH 4 ) 2 SO 4 0 0 0 5 Protein Hydrolysate 0 0 0 3 Urea 3 0 0 0 Phosphoric acid 0.85 0 0 0 Citric acid 0 11.4 11.4 0 Trisodium citrate 0 13.5 13.5 0 Acetic acid 5 0 4 0 ZnSO 4 0.021 0.021 0.021 0.04 MgSO 4 7H 2 O 1 1 1 0.5 KH 2 PO 4 0 0 0 1 NaCl 0 0 0 0.1 CaCl 2 0 0 0 0.1 H 3 BO 3 0 0 0 0.005 CuSO 4 5 H 2 O 0 0 0 0.06 KI 0 0 0 0.001 MnSO 4 H 2 O 0 0 0 0.004 Na 2 MoO 4 2H 2 O 0 0 0 0.002 FeCl 3 0 0 0 0.0002 Folic acid 0 0 0 0 Thiamine 0.018 0.018 0.018 0.07 Pyridoxine 0.0053 0.0053 0.0053 0.002 Biotin KOH 0.0018 0.0018 0.0018 0.002 Pantothenate 0.0038 0.0038 0.0038 0.002 Nicotinic Acid 0.016 0.016 0.016 0.05 Mesoinositol 0.05 0.05 0.05 0.2 Riboflavin 0.001 0.001 0.001 0.002 Para aminobenzoate 0.0012 0.0012 0.0012 0.002 Mono-sorbate oleate 1 1 1 0 YE = yeast extract [0035] We also mention that: Pref.",
"medium complemented with 3 g/L of hydrolysate of RNA of Candida utilis, hydrolyzed by addition of RNase A to 30 μg/L, referred to as Pref+nitrogenous bases in the rest of the text and figures;",
"YFI2 medium containing: yeast extract 10 g/kg, BactoPeptone 10 g/kg, glucose 55 g/L, xylose 45 g/L, acetate 4 g/L, adjusted to pH 4.4;",
"YEG medium containing: yeast extract 10 g/L, glucose 20 g/L, and agarose 20 g/L.",
"[0039] Then, the assumption is that the resulting strain will have the ability to propagate effectively in the complex media of manufacturers who will use it to produce bioethanol.",
"[0040] The following definitions are given in order to better understand the invention.",
"[0041] The expression ‘Yeast strain’ refers to a relatively homogeneous population of yeast cells.",
"A yeast strain is obtained from the isolation of a clone.",
"A clone gives birth to a population of cells obtained from a single yeast cell.",
"[0042] Segregation corresponds to the situation during which, at the end of meiosis, the ploidy level is reduced.",
"By extension, a segregant is a viable cell coming from meiosis of a cell of a ploidy level greater than 1.",
"[0043] The expression ‘derived yeast strain’ refers to a yeast strain derived by one or more crosses and/or by mutation and/or by genetic transformation.",
"[0044] A yeast strain derived by crossing can be obtained by cross-breeding of a yeast strain according to the invention with the same yeast strain, with another yeast strain according to the invention, or with any other yeast strain (provided that it can be crossed, by which the person skilled in the art understands that it is homozygous for the MAT locus and that there is no mutation in the STE genes).",
"[0045] A yeast strain derived through mutation can be a yeast strain which has undergone at least one spontaneous mutation in the genome thereof or at least one mutation induced by mutagenesis.",
"The mutation(s) of a derived strain may be silent or not.",
"[0046] The expression “mutagenesis”",
"designates the process of appearance of a mutation.",
"Classically, two methods are possible: random mutagenesis, and insertional or directed mutagenesis.",
"The first consists of the application of physical treatment (e.g. UV radiation) or treatment by chemical mutagenic agents, which will randomly induce mutations in the genome of the organism studied.",
"The second will use molecular biology methods to produce a specific modification (i.e. promoter, gene, terminator, etc.) either in a region of the genome or on a specific locus.",
"Locus is used to mean a specific and invariable physical location on a chromosome.",
"[0047] A yeast strain derived by genetic transformation is a yeast strain in which a DNA sequence was introduced that is preferably supplied by a plasmid or incorporated directly into the genome.",
"[0048] Hexoses is used to mean sugars with 6 carbon atoms, also called C6 sugars or more simply [0049] C6, used as carbon source.",
"The main representatives of hexoses in monomer form are glucose, fructose, and galactose.",
"By analogy, pentoses are sugars with 5 carbon atoms, also called C5 sugars or C5.",
"The main monomer representatives of pentoses are D-xylose and L-arabinose.",
"[0050] Propagation refers to multiplication, proliferation or biomass production which will serve to inoculate the fermentation medium.",
"It can be done on natural medium, for example from the transformation of plant biomass, or rich or poor synthetic medium.",
"Generally, multiplication will be fast on a rich medium and less effective on a poor medium, requiring strong metabolic capabilities from the cell to overcome the low nutritional value (or deficiencies) of the medium.",
"Lignocellulose hydrolysate from the transformation of plant biomass is a complex environment which can be a juice containing primarily pentoses, a juice containing primarily hexoses or a juice containing a mixture of hexoses and pentoses.",
"From an industrial point of view, a ‘rich’ synthetic medium would certainly be the most effective choice for propagation but it would not be economically viable.",
"A minimal medium, i.e. comprising the bare minimum would be more effective but defining its composition is not simple.",
"For these reasons and for reasons of continuum of the industrial process, propagation is most often performed on the composition resulting from the previous step, in other words on lignocellulosic juice.",
"For a review, see Bellissimi E, Richards C: Yeast propagation.",
"In The alcohol textbook, a reference for the beverage, fuel and industrial alcohol industries.",
"5th edition.",
"Edited by Ingledew W M, Kelsall D R, Austin G D, Kluhspies C. Nottingham: University Press;",
"2009:145-159.",
"[0051] Metabolic deficiency of a strain is understood to mean a failure of one or more metabolic pathways generating defects in growth or fermentation by yeast.",
"Auxotrophy is understood to mean an inability to produce a metabolic intermediate and essential for the development of yeast on a given medium, i.e. a metabolic defect that means the strain will not grow if all nutrients that are essential thereto are not provided exogenously.",
"[0052] A prototrophic yeast strain is a strain able to grow on a minimal medium.",
"In particular, a prototrophic yeast strain according to the invention is capable of synthesizing all the nitrogenous bases necessary for its growth.",
"[0053] Inhibitors is understood to mean the inhibitors present ab initio in lignocellulosic hydrolysates or formed during alcoholic fermentation, which include phenolics, furfural and its derivatives, hydroxy-methyl furfural and its derivatives, or even weak acids such as acetic acid, formic acid or lactic acid.",
"It is also known that these inhibitors are harmful to the performance or even the survival of yeast.",
"Alternatively, osmotic pressure, pH (especially highly acidic), temperature (greater than 35° C.), or the ethanol produced may also inhibit or at least limit the fermentation capacity of a strain.",
"[0054] A yeast strain able to metabolize xylose is a yeast strain capable of converting xylose into ethanol, i.e. capable of fermenting xylose.",
"[0055] The conversion of xylose into ethanol results from the direct or indirect isomerization of xylose into xylulose, followed by the use of the xylulose obtained in that way in the non-oxidative part of the pentose phosphate pathway.",
"[0056] A yeast strain able to metabolize xylose within the meaning of the invention refers to a yeast strain which converts at least 70%, preferably at least 80% and more preferably at least 90% of the xylose into ethanol in 60 hours in a fermentation medium comprising 55 g of glucose and 45 g of xylose per kg, in anaerobic conditions.",
"[0057] The inoculation with the yeast strain used to measure the percentage of xylose converted to ethanol is preferably 0.25 g dry matter/kg of fermentation medium.",
"[0058] The 60 hour duration is calculated from the inoculation of the fermentation medium with the yeast strain.",
"[0059] The fermentation medium used to measure the percentage of xylose converted to ethanol should preferably be a synthetic medium.",
"[0060] A synthetic medium is a medium whose exact chemical composition is known.",
"[0061] Fermentation should be conducted preferably at 32° C. under medium stirring, for example 90 rpm.",
"[0062] The stirring is moderate so as to not be oxygenating.",
"[0063] The pH of the medium should be controlled, e.g. by the buffering power of an acid/base pair, e.g. the acetic acid/acetate buffering power in the YFGX medium.",
"[0064] The amount of ethanol present in the fermentation medium is measured by any appropriate means known to the person skilled in the art.",
"[0065] It can be a direct measurement of the ethanol produced or an indirect measurement through a parameter related to ethanol production, such as the loss of mass.",
"[0066] For example, the production of alcohol may be measured by chromatography, including HPLC (High Performance Liquid Chromatography), an enzymatic kit (for example the determination of ethanol by Boehringer kit), or a determination by potassium dichromate.",
"[0067] The amount of xylose in the fermentation medium is measured by any appropriate means known to the person skilled in the art, preferably by chromatography, in particular HPLC.",
"[0068] By using a fermentation medium containing both glucose and xylose, the conversion of xylose to ethanol from a comparable quantity of biomass can be assessed for the various yeast strains evaluated.",
"Indeed, yeast strains first ferment glucose from the glucose and xylose mixture, then glucose and xylose, and then xylose.",
"[0069] The ability to metabolize xylose in the presence of at least one fermentation inhibitor is called resistance to said fermentation inhibitor.",
"BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES [0070] FIG. 1 shows the respective propagation of strain I-4538 (recombinant parent strain, deposited at the CNCM Oct. 5, 2011), EGAc1 deposited at the CNCM Mar. 13, 2014, under reference I-4839 (wild parent strain) and I-4749 (strain according to the invention, deposited at the CNCM May 16, 2013) on Pref.",
"and Pref.",
"+nitrogenous bases mediums with low nutritional value.",
"[0071] FIG. 2 shows the comparison between the propagation of the strain I-4749 according to the invention and the propagation of the parent strain I-4538 on a synthetic medium mimicking an industrial propagation medium.",
"[0072] FIG. 3 shows the production of ethanol by the wild strain EGAc1 (I-4839), the recombinant parent strain I-4538 and the strain according to the invention I-4749.",
"DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [0073] Initially, it appeared that the strain I-4538 had metabolic deficiencies which negatively impacted the efficiency of the propagation thereof on complex media.",
"Said strain I-4538 is one of the strains obtained according to patent WO 2012072793 A1, comprising at least one copy of an exogenous gene encoding a xylose isomerase, and a copy of one exogenous gene encoding a xylitol dehydrogenase.",
"It also comprises at least one copy of the XKS1 gene and genes for the pentose-phosphate pathway.",
"In practical terms, this strain has a good capacity to metabolize xylose and resists to fermentation inhibitors resulting from the hydrolysis of biomass such as phenolic products, furfural and acetic acid.",
"Thus, the propagation phase on a medium poor in nitrogenous bases additionally containing xylose was analyzed in order to be subsequently improved.",
"It appeared that hydrolyzed RNA, otherwise known as nitrogenous bases, was very favorable to the growth of strain I-4538.",
"Interestingly, this auxotrophy is not present on a medium containing glucose, which indicates that the biosynthetic pathways are functional, but poorly regulated in a medium containing xylose.",
"Since yeast is not naturally able to metabolize this sugar, it is possible that the expression of the genes required for the synthesis of the nitrogenous bases is not sufficient.",
"Moreover, the various stages of genetic transformations and UV radiation leading to obtaining the strain are likely responsible for these deficiencies.",
"[0074] As a first step, strain I-4538 is hybridized with a wild strain with no deficiency (referenced strain EGAc1 deposited at the CNCM Mar. 13, 2014, under reference I-4839 in the examples and figures).",
"A wild strain refers to a non-genetically modified strain.",
"This step has led to a hybrid whose metabolic deficiencies were partly repaired but which had lost a significant part of the capacity to ferment xylose rapidly.",
"[0075] The hybridization step is carried out according to conventional techniques, such as those taught in Chapter 7, “Sporulation and Hybridization of Yeast”",
"by R. R. Fowell, in the reference work “The Yeasts”, Volume 1, published by A. H. Rose and J. S. Harrison, 1969-Academic Press.",
"[0076] A second step is a random genome recombination, more specifically by four cycles of genome shuffling.",
"The cycles are carried out without selection between the two steps.",
"This step is done according to a method adapted from Hou, 2009, Biotechnol.",
"Lett.",
", 31: 671-677.",
"[0077] The resulting population is selected according to a criterion of suitability to metabolize xylose, then according to a criterion of ability to multiply on low nutritional value medium, especially the ability to dispense with nitrogenous bases in the propagation medium.",
"[0078] The two selection criteria can be inverted.",
"In other words, it is possible to select first the ability to multiply in deficient medium then select the ability to ferment xylose or first on the capacity to ferment xylose then on the ability to multiply in deficient medium.",
"[0079] The resulting strain was deposited at the CNCM (Collection Nationale de Cultures de Microorganismes, Institut Pasteur, 25 rue du Docteur Roux, 75724 Paris Cedex 15) under number I-4749.",
"[0080] Interestingly, the removal of auxotrophy towards the nitrogenous bases on a medium containing xylose as the sole carbon source is transmissible to the strains that descend in a straight line from strain I-4749.",
"In that way, various strains, among them the deposited strain I-4829, were obtained from strain I-4749.",
"Indeed, it was observed that the protein Gal2p is a transporter of hexoses also capable of transporting xylose (Hamacher et al.",
"2002, Microbiology, 148 : 2783-2788).",
"Thus, improving the capture of xylose by a yeast strain, e.g. Saccharomyces cerevisiae, that could have been made capable of fermenting xylose, is attractive.",
"For this reason, a copy of the gene GAL2, made dependent on a strong and constitutive promoter (pADH1), was introduced into the genome of the strain.",
"It encodes for a channel that promotes the entry of xylose into cells.",
"This strain is a yeast strain according to the invention.",
"The strain obtained by this additional genetic modification has been deposited at the CNCM (Collection Nationale de Cultures de Microorganismes, Institut Pasteur, 25 rue du Docteur Roux, 75724 Paris Cedex 15) under reference I-4829.",
"[0081] Yeasts are obtained by culture of a yeast strain according to the invention or of a yeast strain derived according to the invention, in particular as described in the book of reference “Yeast Technology”, 2nd edition, 1991, G. Reed, and T. W. Nagodawithana, published by Van Nostrand Reinhold, ISBN 0-442-31892-8.",
"[0082] The multiplication of yeasts, on an industrial scale, generally includes at least the first two steps from the following set of steps: multiplication of a yeast strain in several stages, first in semi-anaerobios, and then in aerobios, separation of the yeast produced from its culture medium by centrifuging, in order to obtain a liquid yeast cream containing between about 12 and 25% of dry matter, or even a higher quantity of dried material if the yeast cream is mixed with osmolytic products, filtration of the liquid yeast cream obtained, in general on a rotary vacuum filter, to get a fresh dehydrated yeast containing 26-35% dry matter, mixing of said fresh dehydrated yeast in order to obtain a homogeneous mass, extrusion of the yeast thus obtained, in order to obtain: a pressed yeast in the form of fresh cake yeast or crumbled fresh yeast containing about 30% dry matter, or a yeast in the form of particles, granules in general, if the yeast is intended to be dried, possibly controlled drying, in a current of hot air, e.g. by fluidization, particles of yeast obtained by extrusion in order to obtain dry yeast.",
"[0091] The drying step is preferably fast controlled drying in the presence of an emulsifier.",
"[0092] Among the emulsifiers which can be used during the drying stage, it is possible to choose sorbitan monostearate, used for example at a concentration of about 1.0% (by weight over the weight of dry yeast).",
"[0093] Yeast according to the invention can be used in any possible form.",
"[0094] For example, the subject of the present invention is a yeast such as defined above, characterized in that it is in the form of yeast cream, pressed yeast, dry yeast or frozen yeast.",
"[0095] The subject of the present invention is also a method of producing at least one fermentation product comprising a step of fermentation in anaerobic or semi-anaerobic conditions by a yeast such as defined above in a fermentation medium.",
"[0096] The fermentation product is especially chosen from ethanol, a metabolite obtained from ethanol or a secondary metabolite.",
"[0097] A preferred fermentation product according to the invention is ethanol.",
"[0098] Ethanol production results from alcoholic fermentation.",
"[0099] The person skilled in the art knows how to determine the appropriate conditions for alcoholic fermentation.",
"[0100] For example, one can refer to the alcoholic fermentation conditions described in the reference book “Yeast Technology”, 2nd edition, 1991, G. Reed and T. W. Nagodawithana, published by Van Nostrand Reinhold, ISBN 0-442-31892-8.",
"[0101] The fermentation medium includes the following elements: at least one source of fermentable carbon, at least one source of nitrogen, at least one source of sulfur, at least one source of phosphorus, at least one source of vitamins and/or at least one source of minerals.",
"[0102] The carbon source is for example supplied in the form of a sugar immediately available to the yeast, a pentose such as xylose, of glycerol, ethanol or a combination thereof.",
"[0103] A sugar immediately available to the yeast is for example a simple sugar of glucose, fructose or galactose type, a disaccharide of sucrose type or a mixture of these sugars.",
"[0104] The carbon source can be supplied in the form of a glucose syrup, a fructose syrup, a saccharose syrup, molasses, hydrol (spent mother liquor from 2nd sugar crystallization), a hydrolysate of all or part of a plant material or a mixture thereof.",
"[0105] The nitrogen source is for example provided in the form of ammonium sulfate, ammonium hydroxide, di-ammonium phosphate, ammonia, urea, or a combination thereof.",
"[0106] The sulfur source is for example provided in the form of ammonium sulfate, magnesium sulfate, sulfuric acid, and/or a combination thereof.",
"[0107] The source of phosphorus is for example provided in the form of phosphoric acid, potassium phosphate, di-ammonium phosphate, mono-ammonium phosphate, and/or a combination thereof.",
"[0108] The source of vitamins is for example provided in the form of molasses, yeast hydrolysate, a solution of pure vitamins or a mixture of pure vitamins and/or a combination thereof.",
"[0109] The source of vitamins supplies the yeast with all vitamins in amounts at least equivalent to those recommended in reference books.",
"Several sources of vitamins can be combined.",
"[0110] The source of minerals is for example provided in the form of molasses, a mixture of mineral salts and/or a combination thereof.",
"[0111] The mineral source supplies yeast with all macronutrients and trace minerals in amounts at least equivalent to those recommended in reference books.",
"Several mineral sources can be combined.",
"[0112] The same substance may supply several different elements.",
"[0113] The subject of the present invention is a process as defined above for the production of at least one fermentation product, preferably ethanol, comprising a step of fermentation in anaerobic or semi-anaerobic conditions, by a yeast such as defined above in a medium fermentation comprising xylose and/or at least one fermentation inhibitor.",
"Preferentially, the fermentation medium includes at least one hydrolysate of all or part of a plant material.",
"[0114] A hydrolysate of all or part of a plant material can be obtained by a step of pre-treatment of the plant material, e.g. at a high temperature and in the presence of acids or organic solvents, which could be followed by a total or partial hydrolysis of sugar polymers, by enzymatic and/or chemical and/or thermal routes.",
"[0115] The hydrolysate of all or part of a plant material therefore includes a mix of sugar from the hydrolysis of sugar polymers, such as cellulose, hemicellulose, and starch.",
"[0116] The fermentation inhibitor is for example selected from among an organic acid, furfural, HMF (hydroxy-methyl-furfural), one or more phenolic compounds and osmotic pressure.",
"[0117] The organic acid is for example selected from among acetic acid, lactic acid, formic acid and levulinic acid.",
"[0118] The subject of the present invention is also the use of a yeast such as defined above for the production of at least one fermentation product, preferably in a fermentation medium containing xylose and at least one fermentation inhibitor.",
"In other words, the use of a yeast according to the invention allows conversion and the metabolism of a material of plant origin comprising xylose.",
"[0119] The fermentation product is as defined above.",
"[0120] Preferably, the fermentation product should be ethanol.",
"[0121] The fermentation medium is as defined above.",
"[0122] The following examples are intended to better understand the invention but are in no way limiting.",
"EXAMPLES [0123] Crossing a Recombinant Strain with a Wild Strain then Sporulation.",
"[0124] The recombinant strain deposited at CNCM (Collection Nationale de Cultures de [0125] Microorganismes, Institut Pasteur, 25 rue du Docteur Roux, 75724 Paris Cedex 15) under number I-4538 was crossed with a wild strain, in this case the strain of the applicant EGAc1 (I-4839).",
"This step was carried out according to conventional techniques, such as those taught in Chapter 7 “Sporulation and Hybridization of Yeast”",
"by R. R. Fowell, in the reference work “The Yeasts”, Volume 1, edited by A. H. Rose and J. S. Harrison, 1969-Academic Press.",
"[0126] The EGAc2 strain deposited with the CNCM under reference I-4840 on Mar. 13, 2014 was thus obtained.",
"This strain showed good performance metabolizing xylose and only partially repaired deficiencies.",
"Indeed, the quality of the propagation remained poor on a low nutritional value medium comprising essentially xylose and a protein hydrolysate.",
"[0127] Sporulation was carried out in liquid media without nitrogen source and containing a non-fermentable carbon source, preferably an acetate salt, ideally potassium acetate.",
"[0128] Establishment of a Rapid Method of Segregant Enrichment [0129] Insofar as it did not seem possible to obtain 100% of segregants, it was necessary to eliminate the diploids that had not completed meiosis.",
"[0130] To do this, the asci dissection method is usually implemented but has the disadvantage of being very time-consuming.",
"Thus, the Applicant has used a distinctive characteristic of spores, namely that they are renowned for their greater resistance to temperature (Williams, 1936, J. Bacteriol.",
", 32 (6): 589-597), the lack of certain nutrients (Ho &",
"Miller, 1978, Can.",
"J. Microbiol.",
", 24 (3): 312-320) or some organic solvents (Dawes and Hardie, 1974, Mol.",
"Gen.",
"Genet.",
", 131 (4): 281-289).",
"[0131] In this case, a method based on ether enrichment described by Dawes and Hardie (supra) was used.",
"Indeed, this approach is simple and effective.",
"[0132] Indeed, due to the formation of the segregants in the membrane of the diploid, they are not surrounded by one phospholipid bilayer, but two.",
"On the other hand, the diploids have only one.",
"When it is used with an optimal contact time (variable from one strain to another) ether breaks down diploid membranes.",
"The ether is therefore attractive for two reasons.",
"Firstly, it kills the diploids without affecting the segregants if the contact time is not too long.",
"On the other hand, it degrades the phospholipid bilayer of the asci that holds the segregants in the form of tetrads, of which the result is releasing them and allowing them to germinate.",
"[0133] This method was suited to the industrial strains of the Applicant.",
"The contact time between the yeast suspension and the ether must then be closely monitored.",
"To do this, 2 mL of ether is brought into contact with 2 mL of the yeast suspension containing approximately 2×10 7 sporulation structures.",
"Sporulation is obtained after 5 days in sporulation conditions.",
"The whole is then vortex stirred during total contact time ranging from 30 seconds to 2 minutes.",
"[0134] An aliquot containing 1000 cells/mL is immediately spread at the 100 μL/dish level on a medium containing: [0135] Yeast extract 5 g/L, glucose 20 g/L, agar 30 g/L, water qs 1 L. After 48 hours of growth, the colonies are used to make a “PCR on colony”",
"by using SEQ ID no. 1, SEQ ID no. 2 and SEQ ID no. 3 primers corresponding respectively to the Mat1, Mat2 and Mat3 primers such as described in application WO2013/178918 A1.",
"This PCR analysis aims to differentiate haploid strains from diploid strains.",
"[0136] Different contact time trials show that, in the case of strain EGAc2 (I-4840), exposure of 1 minute is sufficient for enrichment to over 98% in haploid strains.",
"[0137] Establishment of the Bulk Hybridization Protocol [0138] New hybrids were generated from suspensions enriched in segregants by performing a bulk-phase hybridization.",
"To do this, 1 mL of the suspension of segregants was inoculated in 50 mL of YPG medium containing yeast extract 10 g/L, Bactopeptone 20 g/L, glucose 20 g/L and distilled water qs 1 L. After 16 hours in this medium, microscopic observation confirmed the formation of zygotes.",
"In order to promote the development of these hybrids, every 24 hours, 200 μL of the culture was inoculated into 50 mL of fresh YEG medium.",
"After 5 days of subculture, the new hybrids can be reintroduced in a mass sporulation cycle.",
"[0139] In order to ensure the efficiency of this bulk hybridization step, 100 cells are distributed per Petri dish containing the YEG.",
"The reproduction characteristic of the cells constituting 139 of the formed colonies were then analyzed by PCR on DNAg.",
"These colonies were selected randomly.",
"The PCR performed using primers SEQ ID N o 1, SEQ ID N o 2 and SEQ ID N o 3 (supra) showed that only 2 colonies of the 139 tested were haploid.",
"[0140] Validation of Genome Shuffling in the Resulting Population of Hybrids [0141] Analysis of the Genotype of the Starting Hybrid.",
"[0142] One of the methods to validate the quality of genome shuffling consists of studying the distribution of alleles from two loci linked to the gene GRE3.",
"Indeed, the deletion of both copies of the gene GRE3 corresponding to a “gre3 null”",
"genotype was conducted in C5 strains leading to strain I-4538.",
"This disruption was transmitted to the strain EGAc2 (I-4840) which, because of the non-deletion of GRE3 in EGAc1 (I-4839), is therefore heterozygous.",
"[0143] The possible transmission of this trait in the derived segregants of strain EGAc2 (I-4840) has been sought.",
"This PCR were done with a pGRE3 TAGTTGTCAGTGCAATCCTTC promoter-specific primer (SEQ ID N o 4) and a tGRE3 TATACACATATACAGCATCGGA terminator-specific Primer (SEQ ID no. 5) of GRE3.",
"The results showed that it was possible to differentiate wild copies of the gene GRE3 which give a 1200 BP (base pair) fragment, from deleted forms that give a 200 BP fragment.",
"[0144] So some segregants of strain EGAc2 (I-4840) presented exclusively the deleted version while others presented only the wild copy of GRE3.",
"More surprisingly, a third category of segregants had 2 copies of the gene GRE3, one wild type, and the other deleted.",
"This result is explained by the fact that there are not two, but four copies of the GRE3 gene in strain EGAc1 (I-4839).",
"In this case, there are two copies of GRE3 in the EGAc1 segregant (I-4839) which gave EGAc2 (I-4840).",
"So the genotype of strain EGAc2 (I-4840) is the following: [0000] GRE 3 gre 4 Δ ;",
"GRE 3 – [0145] Such a genotype is due to the presence of GRE3 at two different loci in strain EGAc1 (I-4839) against 1 single locus in the strain I-4538.",
"In addition in strain I-4538, the GRE3 gene has been deleted.",
"Thus, among 137 diploid strains obtained at the end of a first round of genome shuffling of strain EGAc2 (I-4840), the GRE3 gene and the dispersion of alleles among hybrids have been studied.",
"[0146] Determination of Expected Segregants [0147] In relation to the GRE3 genotype, a hybrid like EGAc2 (I-4840) can therefore give 4 types of segregants.",
"These segregants are listed in table II below.",
"The segregants with genotype gre3Δ;—and GRE3;",
"GRE3 are so-called parental genotypes because all their alleles originate from a single parent.",
"In contrast, segregants GRE3;—and gre3Δ;",
"GRE3 are referred to as recombinant.",
"For each case, there is a MATa form and a MAT alpha form.",
"[0000] TABLE II Genotype of the various obtainable segregants [0148] A way to analyze the quality of genome shuffling consisted of looking for the distribution of alleles from the parental hybrid in the segregants.",
"Thus, under the assumption that the loci are independent, the probability of obtaining a parental segregant is equal to that for a recombinant segregant.",
"[0149] However, the approach seeks to work without selecting the segregants.",
"Indeed, the purpose was to determine the spores that had actually been involved in the formation of the hybrids.",
"The genetic analysis was therefore performed from the hybrids.",
"[0150] Analysis of Resulting Hybrids [0151] Hybrids which may result at the end of this genome shuffling are shown in table III.",
"The genotypes of each type of hybrid are referenced in the corresponding box.",
"These genotypes are divided into 3 groups with respect to the PCR profiles with pGRE3 (SEQ ID N o 4) and tGRE3 (SEQ ID N o 5) primers: Group 1: A single band at a 200 BP size (white cell in the table) Group 2: Two bands of 200 BP and 1200 BP (light gray cells in the table) Group 3: A single band of 1200 BP (dark grey cells in the table) Table III: Genotype of the various hybrids that can be obtained.",
"Row 2 and column 2, these are segregants, the other boxes are hybrids.",
"[0000] TABLE III Genotype of the various hybrids that can be obtained.",
"Row 2 and column 2, these are segregants, the other boxes are hybrids.",
"[0156] Group 1 hybrids can be easily identified because they present a PCR profile comparable to that of the I-4538 strain when the pGRE3 and tGRE3 primers are used.",
"It is worth noting that all hybrids with this genotype are from the MATa;",
"gre3Δ;—and MAT alpha;",
"gre3Δ;—segregants.",
"[0157] Under the assumption of a genetic independence, these hybrids should represent 1/16 or 6.25% of the population.",
"To test this assumption, the genotypes of the 137 previously mentioned hybrids were analyzed by PCR.",
"The results are shown in table IV below.",
"[0000] TABLE IV Results of PCR analysis of the genotype of the resulting hybrids [0158] The over-representation of the hybrids from Group 1 (11.6% instead of 6.25%) shows that the two loci of GRE3 are not independent.",
"In other words, this means that in meiosis, the probability of having a parental-type segregant is greater than having a recombinant type segregant.",
"This result furthermore allows determination of the genetic distance in cM.",
"This genetic distance is obtained via the following equation: [0000] Genetic distance ( cM ) = ( number of recombinant segregants number of total segregants ) × 100 [0159] In this analysis, the total number of segregants is the number of hybrids multiplied by 2 (being 274).",
"[0160] The number of recombinant segregants is obtained by subtracting the number of parental segregants from the total number of segregants.",
"As shown above, group 1 hybrids consist exclusively of parental segregants.",
"This implies that the probability of having gre3Δ;—parental segregants is equal to the square root of the probability of having a hybrid from Group 1.",
"In addition, the parental segregants are equiprobable during meiosis.",
"The number of recombinant segregants can therefore be determined by the following equation: [0000] number of recombinant segregants = total number of segregants - number of parental segregants with : number of parental segregants = total number of hybrids × 4 × number of hybrids in Group 1 total number of hybrids [0161] Thus, the number of parental segregants is 186 and therefore the number of recombinant segregants is 88.",
"This result implies that the genetic distance between two loci would be 32 cM.",
"This genetic distance calculation serves to measure the probability of having each type of segregants.",
"[0162] Estimate of the Number of Starting Cells found in the End Population [0163] An important point related to the measurement of the quality of the diversification of the population is the determination of the number of starting hybrids which survived the entire treatment to stay in the final population.",
"It is possible to estimate their number based on the results of the determination of the GRE3 genotype.",
"Indeed, cells whose PCR profile presents two bands (200 BP and 1200 BP) are either hybrids obtained by genome shuffling, or starting cells that were not killed during the enrichment with ether.",
"[0000] Strains of Group 2=real hybrids of group 2+surviving starting cells [0164] The results obtained in the preceding paragraph allow determination of both the number of real hybrids from Group 2 and the number of strains from Group 2.",
"[0165] To determine the number of real hybrids from Group 2, the proportion of each type of hybrid that makes up this group must be added together.",
"Table V below lists various hybrids, as well as the probability of obtaining them.",
"The probability of obtaining a type of hybrid is based on the product of the probabilities of obtaining the two segregants which go into it.",
"It is indicated in the previous sub-section that the parental segregants represent 68% of the segregants (or 34% for each parental segregant).",
"Consequently, the recombinant segregants represent 32% of all segregants (i.e. 16% for each recombinant segregant).",
"[0000] TABLE V Probability of obtaining each type of hybrid.",
"The color code for the hybrids of group 1, and group 2 and 3 respectively is identical in tables III and IV.",
"[0166] The results presented in table V suggest that the proportion of Group 2 hybrids (in light grey) is 63.4%.",
"At the same time, the proportion of strains of Group 2 represents 64.5% of the population.",
"It seems therefore that in the population tested, about 1% of hybrids are starting strains that were not killed during ether enrichment.",
"[0167] Summary on the Construction of the Population [0168] In summary: it was possible to build a population of strains from a single starting hybrid.",
"It was shown that this new population, that was generated after 4 phases of bulk hybridization and sporulation, is the product of an broad genome shuffling.",
"[0169] Selection of Individuals of Interest in the Resulting Population [0170] After verification of the quality of genome shuffling, resulting yeasts were selected on their ability to ferment xylose while resisting to inhibitors.",
"[0171] To do this, they were cultured for 48 hours on medium YFI1 and then transferred for a 72-hour culture on a YFX medium.",
"(NB.",
"The compositions of mediums are shown in table I (supra) or in the text that follows the table).",
"Samples of this second population were spread over a YEG medium (supra).",
"This last step has led, among others, to the isolation of the strain deposited at the CNCM (Collection Nationale de Cultures de Microorganismes, Institut Pasteur, 25 rue du Docteur Roux, 75724 Paris Cedex 15) under number I-4749.",
"[0172] Validation of Optimized Propagation [0173] Initially, the propagation of strains was tested on a Pref.",
"medium, and Pref.",
"+nitrogenous bases medium.",
"This is illustrated in FIG. 1 .",
"These results indicate that: strain I-4538, recombinant strain used for the present invention, propagates efficiently on Pref.",
"+nitrogenous bases medium, but propagates very poorly on Pref.",
"medium;",
"strain EGAc1 (I-4839), wild strain crossed according to the present invention with the strain I-4538, does not propagate efficiently on Pref.",
"or Pref.",
"+nitrogenous bases medium;",
"strain I-4749 according to the invention effectively propagates on Pref.",
"medium.",
"[0177] Validation of Propagation on Industrial Type Medium [0178] A YFC medium (shown in table I supra) has been defined as mimicking the conditions of an industrial medium type mixture of hexoses (e.g. glucose, galactose, etc.) and pentoses (e.g. xylose, arabinose, etc.).",
"The respective propagation of strains I-4538 (parent strain) and I-4749 (strain according to the invention) has been validated on this medium.",
"FIG. 2 shows these results and demonstrates an efficiency of propagation of more than double for the strain according to the invention.",
"[0179] Validation of Fermentation Suitability [0180] The strain according to the invention has been used for fermentation in a medium close to the actual medium.",
"The YFI2 medium used for this purpose comprises both glucose and xylose so C6 and C5 sugars.",
"The result of monitoring loss of mass during fermentation is shown in FIG. 3 .",
"In the case of all strains implemented, fermentation is biphasic.",
"[0181] In the first phase, strains EGAc1 (I-4839) and EGAc2 (I-4840) behave in the same way.",
"The same goes for strain I-4749 according to the present invention.",
"However strain I-4538 is slower during this first phase.",
"Considering the principle of catabolite repression by glucose, it is likely that this first part of the fermentation corresponds to the consumption of glucose.",
"[0182] During the second phase of fermentation, it is worth noting a significant slowdown for all strains.",
"However, the most effective strains are strains I-4538 and I-4749.",
"This second phase probably corresponds to the consumption of xylose which is suggested by the fact that strain EGAc1 (I-4839) (of [Xylose-] phenotype) does not ferment.",
"[0183] The record shows that the best compromise between all strains implemented is I-4749 obtained according to the invention."
] |
[0001] This application claims priority from U.S. Provisional Application No. 60/398,609, filed Jul. 26, 2002. The entirety of that provisional application is incorporated herein by reference.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0002] 1. Field of the Invention
[0003] The present invention relates generally to transmission of media objects over computer networks, and more particularly to a method, system, and computer program product for automatically selecting encoding parameters for transmitting media objects.
[0004] 2. Related Art
[0005] In the field of broadcast journalism, “on location” journalist (i.e., field reporters) must often transmit media objects (i.e., audio and/or video) recorded in the field to various sites, including their “home office” broadcast centers or studios. These audio and video clips must typically be transmitted over data communications networks as file objects. This transmission process requires that the on-location journalist make a number of highly technical decisions in order to deliver a file of optimum quality by a specific deadline or in a limited time window. These decisions involve time constraints, duration, size, quality, processing time and compression time (which are explained in more detail below).
[0006] In the field of broadcast journalism, time is important because editorial content must-often be delivered in advance of air or production deadlines for appropriate review and inclusion in broadcasts. Time or age is also an inherent value of some news content.
[0007] Duration and size of the file objects' transmission is also important because of the cost of data transmission circuits from remote locations can be very high.
[0008] Similarly, the quality of the transmission is a priority, but can vary greatly depending on the durations and file sizes the journalist desires to transmit. Also, the amount of available bandwidth must be factored into this decision. (“Bandwidth” refers to the capacity to move information (i.e., data) and, in digital communications, is typically measured in bits per second (bps).) Oftentimes, large amounts of bandwidth are not available to journalists especially when reporting from remote locations.
[0009] Lastly, processing time for compression (if required) must also be considered. The time required to compress a file to a size suitable for some transmissions can be significant and depends on encoding format, duration of the full resolution media, and certain compression-related options (e.g., desired quality, image size and other like variables).
[0010] Therefore, given the above, what is needed is a system, method and computer program product for the automatic selection of encoding parameters for transmission of media objects.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0011] The present invention meets the above-identified needs by providing a system, method and computer program product for the automatic selection of encoding parameters for the purpose of transmitting media objects. The present invention assists journalists in the field with making encoding decisions about the video and audio clips they desire to transmit. It transforms the conventional process—which currently involves journalist making highly technical decisions involving such factors as time constraints, duration, size, quality, processing time and compression time—into one where automatic decisions are made in order to deliver a media file object of optimum quality by a specific deadline or in a limited time window.
[0012] An advantage of the present invention is that, unlike prior systems that allow users to select from a finite list of coding and encoding options and then transmit the file, it takes into account the context of the sender (i.e., user). Further, the present invention narrows selections for the user or makes automatic selections based on context, thus simplifying use.
[0013] Another advantage of the present invention is that it allows journalists in the field to be optimally presented with a minimum number of choices based on the editorial context in which they are operating. This is advantageous considering that journalists typically cannot consider the complex interaction of multiple variables required to optimize their transmissions for their specific contexts. That is, they often do not have the expertise, knowledge or time required to perform the otherwise required complex calculations.
[0014] Yet another advantage of the present invention is that it prevents journalists from selecting encoding options that are not optimized for their specific context. As a result, missed deadlines, inappropriate media quality and high transmission costs which cannot be properly estimated are all avoided.
[0015] Further features and advantages of the present invention, as well as the structure and operation of various embodiments of the present invention, are described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0016] The features and advantages of the present invention will become more apparent from the detailed description set forth below when taken in conjunction with the drawings.
[0017] [0017]FIG. 1 is a flowchart depicting an embodiment of the operation of an automatic selection of encoding parameters for the purpose of transmitting media objects process of the present invention.
[0018] [0018]FIG. 2 is a flowchart depicting an embodiment of the encoding and transmission queuing process of the present invention.
[0019] FIGS. 3 A-G are exemplary windows or screen shots generated by the graphical user interface of the present invention.
[0020] [0020]FIG. 4 is a block diagram of an exemplary computer system useful for implementing the present invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
I. Overall Operation
[0021] The present invention provides a system, method and computer program product for the automatic selection of encoding parameters for the purpose of transmitting such media objects. In an embodiment, users of the system of the present invention are presented with a graphical user interface (GUI) executing on any commercially-available processing device, including, but not limited to, a laptop computer, palmtop, personal digital assistant (PDA) and any other like (mobile) computing devices. As will be apparent to one skilled in the relevant art(s) after reading the description herein, such computing devices would have access to and be connected to at least one computer network (e.g., a wide area communications network such as the Internet, PSTN and the like) for transmission.
[0022] In an embodiment of the present invention, the conventional, highly complex decision-making process which has potentially thousands of resulting choices is reduced to a manageable number of choices that are appropriate to the immediate context of the operator (i.e., the journalist user). The method and computer program product perform the following steps:
[0023] (1) Asking the operator:
[0024] (a) What is your deadline?; or
[0025] (b) How much time do you have to transmit the file?
[0026] (2) Determining the running duration of the file object(s) if audio or video by:
[0027] (a) automatically determining the value; or
[0028] (b) asking the operator.
[0029] (3) Considering the amount of bandwidth available by:
[0030] (a) automatically detecting the bandwidth;
[0031] (b) asking the user; or
[0032] (c) using a pre-configured setting.
[0033] (4) Considering the cost of the available bandwidth by:
[0034] (a) looking up the value from a table which matches bandwidth to cost;
[0035] (b) using a pre-configured setting; or
[0036] (c) asking the user.
[0037] In an alternate embodiment of the present invention, steps (2), (3) and (4) can be automatically determined and thus the operator is only asked one question (i.e., step (1)): “What is your deadline?”
[0038] After performing steps (1)-(4), the present invention then is aware of the following three values related to the immediate context of the operator: (1) Time: (a) when the file transmission(s) should be complete; and (b) how much time remains between the present and the deadline; (2) Bandwidth: the expected or effective bandwidth available; and (3) Duration of the full resolution file object(s)—if audio or video.
[0039] In an embodiment, the system of the present invention is pre-configured with a table of file compression choices. Each choice reflects a variation in at least one of the following variables: (a) size of the file(s) rendered; (b) size of the image(s) rendered (if still or video); and (c) quality of the file(s) rendered (with audio and video being considered separately); (d) frame rate of the file(s) rendered (if video); and (e) the time required to compress source file(s) per unit time. The method and computer program product of the present invention then makes available to the user only those choices from the table which match the user's context (i.e., time, bandwidth and duration), including encoding and transmission time.
[0040] In an embodiment, the system of the present invention can be optionally configured to provide weight or priority in the selection process to variables (a)-(e) listed above, further reducing the number of choices to the user. In an alternate embodiment, the system of the present invention can be optionally configured to automatically select a single choice for the user, based on predefined and configurable settings which give specific weight and priority to variables (a)-(e) listed above.
[0041] Once a compression choice has been made by the user, the present invention will automatically encode the file(s) using the encoding parameters defined in the selected table choice and then automatically transmit the file. In an embodiment, the invention will also optionally separately transmit metadata which describes the file and transmission status to the receiving station.
[0042] In an embodiment, the present invention can be optionally configured to determine encoding times for each table entry based on actual results for each table entry on a specific machine (e.g., PDA, laptop, etc.). This is known as machine-specific calibration and is important because central processing units (CPUs) and other hardware-related parameters vary among computing devices.
[0043] In an embodiment, the present invention can be optionally configured to refine predictions and indexes of encoding efficiency for each table entry based on actual use (i.e., the method and computer program product “learns” over time).
[0044] In yet another embodiment, the present invention can be optionally configured to encode and transmit a very low resolution, highly compressed “thumbnail” image prior to encoding the image to the quality selected through the process described above. Encoding and transmission of the “thumbnail” media can be prior to or simultaneous with encoding and transmission of the primary file.
II. Detailed Example
[0045] The present invention is described in more detail below in terms of a user (e.g., a field broadcast journalist) being given access, via a GUI on a mobile processing device (e.g., laptop computer), to the tool the present invention provides for the automatic selection of encoding parameters for the purpose of transmitting audio and/or video media object files. This, however, is not intended to limit the application of the present invention. In fact, after reading the description herein, it will be apparent to one skilled in the relevant art(s) how to implement the invention in alternative embodiments (e.g., for use by those other than journalists, in other operating environments, etc.).
[0046] Referring to FIG. 1, a flowchart depicting an automatic selection of encoding parameters process according to an embodiment of the present invention is shown. That is process depicts the automatic selection of encoding parameters for the purpose of transmitting media objects. Process 100 begins at step 101 with control passing immediately to step 102 .
[0047] In step 102 , process 100 determines the duration of a specific media object to be encoded and transmitted according to the present invention. Step 102 is accomplished by loading the media object file into a media player available on the processing device which then returns the “play” duration of the file (if audio and/or video).
[0048] In step 104 , process 100 determines the bandwidth available to the user. In one embodiment, process 100 executes in an “Auto” setting where the processing device's network adapters are queried to determine the connection speed. In an alternate embodiment, the user is given the option of manually selecting (from, for example, a menu or drop down list) the connection type they are using which contains information about the available bandwidth. (See FIG. 3A). Process 100 then updates the available bandwidth for each connection type available after every transmission to make this determination more accurate with each successive iteration of process 100 .
[0049] In step 106 , the user is presented with an interface that displays the estimated time that it will take for a media object to be encoded and sent based on a predefined baseline quality level. The user can then change the time to reflect their actual deadline. (See FIG. 3B).
[0050] In step 108 , the user can specify to cost of each connection type based upon the time or data (i.e., media object) transferred. (See FIG. 3C). This information is then used to estimate the total cost of transmitting the media object based on either the time it will take to send the file, or the amount of data that the media object file contains.
[0051] Now that the deadline, duration, cost and bandwidth are known, it is possible to begin the calculations that will ensure the media object file arrives by the deadline specified in step 106 . In an embodiment, there are two calculations to be made.
[0052] First, in step 110 , the time it will take to encode the media file based on the central processing unit (CPU) speed of the user's processing device is calculated. In an embodiment this is done first because the time it takes to encode a file is independent of the bit rate used for the encoding and is only dependent on the resolution used for the file. The bit rates available are, however, dependent on the time remaining after the encoding of the media, as bit rate is a measurement of transfer speed over time. Using historical measurements, process 100 takes the past rate of encoding files and generates an estimated amount of time it will take to encode the current file for various resolution/frame rate choices.
[0053] In an embodiment, process 100 utilizes a table (i.e., a “Table A”) to store the amount of time it will take to apply the compression to the specified file at each resolution. (As will be appreciated by those skilled in the relevant art(s), such a table or other suitable data structure or database can be stored in the memory of user's processing device and accessible to process 100 .) The formula used to determine the encoding time is the past rate of encode stored in seconds of video/audio encoded per second of real time, multiplied by the duration of the media object file. This results in the amount of real time that it will take to encode the current file. This calculation is done for each supported resolution and frame rate.
[0054] An exemplary Table A utilized by process 100 , in an embodiment, is shown below:
TABLE A Resolution/Frame Rate Time to Encode Resolution Choice_1/Full Frame Rate Result of Formula A Resolution Choice_2/Full Frame Rate Result of Formula A Resolution Choice_3/Full Frame Rate Result of Formula A Resolution Choice_n/Full Frame Rate Result of Formula A Resolution Choice_1/Half Frame Rate Result of Formula A Resolution Choice_2/Half Frame Rate Result of Formula A Resolution Choice_3/Half Frame Rate Result of Formula A Resolution Choice_n/Half Frame Rate Result of Formula A
[0055] In an embodiment, Formula A is:
T
h
*D;
[0056] where: T h is the historical time (in seconds) it has taken to encode one second of video/audio on the user's processing device for the corresponding resolution/frame rate combination; and D is the duration (in seconds) of this media object file determined in step 102 . As will be appreciated by those skilled in the relevant art(s), in an embodiment of the present invention the resolution choices for Table A are expressed in horizontal-by-vertical pixel values (e.g., 720×480, 320×240, 160×120, etc.). As will also be appreciated by those skilled in the relevant art(s), the historical times used in Formula A can be stored in the memory of user's processing device and accessible to process 100 .
[0057] Once the time for the encode at each resolution and frame rate is known, it is possible to estimate the total amount of data that can be sent in the time remaining with the bandwidth specified in step 104 . Thus, in an embodiment, the time remaining is calculated for each supported resolution/frame rate as the difference in seconds between the deadline and the present time, minus the time to encode. Here the bandwidth supplied in step 104 is used to calculate the total quantity of data that can be transmitted in the remaining time. This calculation is time remaining in seconds multiplied by the number of bits that can be transferred per second from the bandwidth supplied in step 104 . (See Formula B below).
[0058] Now that the total quantity of data that can be transmitted in the remaining time is known for each resolution and frame rate, it is possible to determine how many bits of data can be used to represent each second of media content. This is commonly referred to as the media file's “bit rate.” The media bit rate is calculated as the total number of bits that can be transmitted in the remaining time divided by the duration of the media object file that was derived in step 102 . (See Formula B below). Generally speaking, a higher media bit rate results in a higher quality file from an audio-visual perspective.
[0059] The media bit rates that can be used for each resolution given the deadline, the encoding time and the duration of the file is then stored. In an embodiment, process 100 utilizes a second table (i.e., a “Table B”) to store such bit rates. (As will be appreciated by those skilled in the relevant art(s), such a table, like Table A or any other suitable data structure or database, can be stored in the memory of user's processing device and accessible to process 100 .)
[0060] An exemplary Table B utilized by process 100 , in an embodiment, is shown below:
TABLE B Resolution/Frame Rate Media Bit Rate Resolution Choice_1/Full Frame Rate Result of Formula B Resolution Choice_2/Full Frame Rate Result of Formula B Resolution Choice_3/Full Frame Rate Result of Formula B Resolution Choice_4/Full Frame Rate Result of Formula B Resolution Choice_1/Half Frame Rate Result of Formula B Resolution Choice_2/Half Frame Rate Result of Formula B Resolution Choice_3/Half Frame Rate Result of Formula B Resolution Choice_4/Half Frame Rate Result of Formula B
[0061] In an embodiment, Formula B is:
(( T d −T c )− T e )* P/D;
[0062] where: T d is the deadline specified by the user in step 106 ; T c is the current time; T e is the time to encode (i.e., the result of Fornula A stored in Table A); P is the bandwidth of the connection (in bits per second); and D is the duration of the media object file.
[0063] Certain resolution and frame rate settings may not be utilized given the specified bandwidth P (step 104 ) and deadline T d (step 106 ) if the media bit rate falls below a predefined minimum (e.g., a minimum bit rate defined by the user or user's broadcast organization). Thus, in step 112 , process 100 utilizes the predefined minimum value and then tags or marks any resolution/frame rate setting in Table B where the media bit rate falls below the predefined minimum as “not available.”
[0064] In an embodiment, the user may specify that a preview clip (e.g., “thumbnail”) should be rendered and transmitted in addition to the production quality product. Thus, process 100 will first estimate the encode and transmit times for the preview clip using the steps described above. Then, these times for the preview clip are subtracted from the remaining time and a new remaining time value is used for the above calculations.
[0065] In step 114 , the results listed in Table B which are not tagged “not available” in step 112 are sorted. In an embodiment, they are sorted in order of resolution and then frame rate.
[0066] In step 116 , a pre-determined top n number (e.g., n=3) of entries from Table B which were sorted in step 114 are selected for presentation to the user.
[0067] In s step 118 , the user is then presented (via a GUI) with the n options for encoding and sending the media object file based on the calculations made in steps 110 - 116 . (See FIG. 3D). This will provide the user with the ability to change one or more of the parameters if they are dissatisfied with the available choices.
[0068] In step 120 , the user may change the deadline T d or the connection to be used for transmitting data (thus changing the bandwidth P) to increase the options available to them. If the user decides to change either of these options, then process 100 returns to step 110 so that steps 110 - 116 are repeated. Otherwise, process 100 proceeds to step 122 .
[0069] In step 122 , metadata about the media object file being transmitted can be linked and also sent along with the media object file. In an embodiment, such metadata can include any definitional data such as owner name, text description and any other descriptive information about the context, quality and condition, or characteristics of the media object file. In an embodiment, such metadata are dynamic data fields that can be predefined by the user to support their organizational needs. (See FIG. 3E).
[0070] In step 124 , the selected encoding and transmission request is placed on an encoding queue within the processing device with the selected encoding properties. That is, once all selections have been made and metadata set the file can be queued for encoding and eventual transmission. The user is then presented with the status of the encode/transmission process. (See FIGS. 3 F-G).
[0071] Process 100 is then complete and returns to the beginning of its execution loop (by returning to step 101 ) as shown in FIG. 1.
[0072] Referring to FIG. 2, a flowchart depicting an encoding and transmission queuing process 200 according an embodiment of the present invention is shown. In an embodiment, process 200 executes on the user's processing device concurrently with process 100 and constantly monitor the progress of process 100 . Thus, after the selected encoding and transmission request is placed in an encoding queue in step 124 , step 202 , when ready, selects the next media object file and removes it from the queue.
[0073] In step 204 , the media object file is encoding using the properties selected during process 100 . In an embodiment, the actual time to encode the media object using the properties selected during process 100 on the processing device is stored for use in refining or updating the historical time to encode values used in step 110 (e.g., using arithmetic mean or the like of actual encoding times to update the T h values used in Formula A).
[0074] Then, in step 206 , the encoded media object file is placed on a transmit queue within the processing device. Finally, process 200 , when ready, removes the encoded file from the transmit queue (step 208 ) and transmits the file from the user's processing device across the communications network (step 210 ).
[0075] Process 200 is then complete and returns to the beginning of its execution loops (by returning to steps 202 and 208 ) as shown in FIG. 2.
[0076] In an embodiment, because process 200 constantly monitors the progress of process 100 , the user is able to receive a warning on the processing device if any media object file is in jeopardy of not making its specified deadline. In many cases, the user can then take corrective action. For example, if during encoding step 204 , the processing device's CPU is handling other intensive processes that are slowing down the encoding, the user can be warned to cease such other processes if the load of the other operations puts their deadline (specified in step 106 ) in jeopardy. Likewise, if during transmission step 210 , the processing device is using bandwidth for other applications, the user be warned to halt such operations if they begin to interfere with the transmission of the media object file.
III. Example Implementations
[0077] The present invention (i.e., process 100 , process 200 or any portion(s) or function(s) thereof) may be implemented using hardware, software or a combination thereof and may be implemented in one or more computer systems or other processing systems. In fact, in one embodiment, the invention is directed toward one or more computer systems capable of carrying out the functionality described herein. An example of a computer system 400 is shown in FIG. 4.
[0078] Computer system 400 includes one or more processors, such as processor 404 . The processor 404 is connected to a communication infrastructure 406 (e.g., a communications bus, cross-over bar, or network). Various software embodiments are described in terms of this exemplary computer system. After reading this description, it will become apparent to a person skilled in the relevant art(s) how to implement the invention using other computer systems and/or architectures.
[0079] Computer system 400 can include a display interface 402 that forwards graphics, text, and other data from the communication infrastructure 406 (or from a frame buffer not shown) for display on the display unit 430 .
[0080] Computer system 400 also includes a main memory 408 , preferably random access memory (RAM), and may also include a secondary memory 410 . The secondary memory 410 may include, for example, a hard disk drive 412 and/or a removable storage drive 414 , representing a floppy disk drive, a magnetic tape drive, an optical disk drive, etc. The removable storage drive 414 reads from and/or writes to a removable storage unit 418 in a well known manner. Removable storage unit 418 , represents a floppy disk, magnetic tape, optical disk, etc. which is read by and written to by removable storage drive 414 . As will be appreciated, the removable storage unit 418 includes a computer usable storage medium having stored therein computer software and/or data.
[0081] In alternative embodiments, secondary memory 410 may include other similar devices for allowing computer programs or other instructions to be loaded into computer system 400 . Such devices may include, for example, a removable storage unit 422 and an interface 420 . Examples of such may include a program cartridge and cartridge interface (such as that found in video game devices), a removable memory chip (such as an erasable programmable read only memory (EPROM), or programmable read only memory (PROM)) and associated socket, and other removable storage units 422 and interfaces 420 , which allow software and data to be transferred from the removable storage unit 422 to computer system 400 .
[0082] Computer system 400 may also include a communications interface 424 . Communications interface 424 allows software and data to be transferred between computer system 400 and external devices. Examples of communications interface 424 may include a modem, a network interface (such as an Ethernet card), a communications port, a Personal Computer Memory Card International Association (PCMCIA) slot and card, etc. Software and data transferred via communications interface 424 are in the form of signals 428 which maybe electronic, electromagnetic, optical or other signals capable of being received by communications interface 424 . These signals 428 are provided to communications interface 424 via a communications path (e.g., channel) 426 . This channel 426 carries signals 428 and may be implemented using wire or cable, fiber optics, a telephone line, a cellular link, an radio frequency (RF) link and other communications channels.
[0083] In this document, the terms “computer program medium” and “computer usable medium” are used to generally refer to media such as removable storage drive 414 , a hard disk installed in hard disk drive 412 , and signals 428 . These computer program products provide software to computer system 400 . The invention is directed to such computer program products.
[0084] Computer programs (also referred to as computer control logic) are stored in main memory 408 and/or secondary memory 410 . Computer programs may also be received via communications interface 424 . Such computer programs, when executed, enable the computer system 400 to perform the features of the present invention, as discussed herein. In particular, the computer programs, when executed, enable the processor 404 to perform the features of the present invention. Accordingly, such computer programs represent controllers of the computer system 400 .
[0085] In an embodiment where the invention is implemented using software, the software may be stored in a computer program product and loaded into computer system 400 using removable storage drive 414 , hard drive 412 or communications interface 424 . The control logic (software), when executed by the processor 404 , causes the processor 404 to perform the functions of the invention as described herein.
[0086] In another embodiment, the invention is implemented primarily in hardware using, for example, hardware components such as application specific integrated circuits (ASICs). Implementation of the hardware state machine so as to perform the functions described herein will be apparent to persons skilled in the relevant art(s).
[0087] In yet another embodiment, the invention is implemented using a combination of both hardware and software.
IV. Conclusion
[0088] While various embodiments of the present invention have been described above, it should be understood that they have been presented by way of example, and not limitation. It will be apparent to persons skilled in the relevant art(s) that various changes in form and detail can be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention. Thus, the present invention 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. | A system, method and computer program product for automatic selection of encoding parameters for transmission of media objects is provided. The method and computer program product involve the automatic selection of media encoding parameters based on editorial and technical contexts. Such contexts include time constraints, duration, size, quality, processing time and compression time. The media objects are then automatically encoded using these automatically selected parameters, and then transmitted from a remote site to one or more additional sites via a communications network. | Identify and summarize the most critical features from the given passage. | [
"[0001] This application claims priority from U.S. Provisional Application No. 60/398,609, filed Jul. 26, 2002.",
"The entirety of that provisional application is incorporated herein by reference.",
"BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION [0002] 1.",
"Field of the Invention [0003] The present invention relates generally to transmission of media objects over computer networks, and more particularly to a method, system, and computer program product for automatically selecting encoding parameters for transmitting media objects.",
"[0004] 2.",
"Related Art [0005] In the field of broadcast journalism, “on location”",
"journalist (i.e., field reporters) must often transmit media objects (i.e., audio and/or video) recorded in the field to various sites, including their “home office”",
"broadcast centers or studios.",
"These audio and video clips must typically be transmitted over data communications networks as file objects.",
"This transmission process requires that the on-location journalist make a number of highly technical decisions in order to deliver a file of optimum quality by a specific deadline or in a limited time window.",
"These decisions involve time constraints, duration, size, quality, processing time and compression time (which are explained in more detail below).",
"[0006] In the field of broadcast journalism, time is important because editorial content must-often be delivered in advance of air or production deadlines for appropriate review and inclusion in broadcasts.",
"Time or age is also an inherent value of some news content.",
"[0007] Duration and size of the file objects'",
"transmission is also important because of the cost of data transmission circuits from remote locations can be very high.",
"[0008] Similarly, the quality of the transmission is a priority, but can vary greatly depending on the durations and file sizes the journalist desires to transmit.",
"Also, the amount of available bandwidth must be factored into this decision.",
"(“Bandwidth”",
"refers to the capacity to move information (i.e., data) and, in digital communications, is typically measured in bits per second (bps).) Oftentimes, large amounts of bandwidth are not available to journalists especially when reporting from remote locations.",
"[0009] Lastly, processing time for compression (if required) must also be considered.",
"The time required to compress a file to a size suitable for some transmissions can be significant and depends on encoding format, duration of the full resolution media, and certain compression-related options (e.g., desired quality, image size and other like variables).",
"[0010] Therefore, given the above, what is needed is a system, method and computer program product for the automatic selection of encoding parameters for transmission of media objects.",
"SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION [0011] The present invention meets the above-identified needs by providing a system, method and computer program product for the automatic selection of encoding parameters for the purpose of transmitting media objects.",
"The present invention assists journalists in the field with making encoding decisions about the video and audio clips they desire to transmit.",
"It transforms the conventional process—which currently involves journalist making highly technical decisions involving such factors as time constraints, duration, size, quality, processing time and compression time—into one where automatic decisions are made in order to deliver a media file object of optimum quality by a specific deadline or in a limited time window.",
"[0012] An advantage of the present invention is that, unlike prior systems that allow users to select from a finite list of coding and encoding options and then transmit the file, it takes into account the context of the sender (i.e., user).",
"Further, the present invention narrows selections for the user or makes automatic selections based on context, thus simplifying use.",
"[0013] Another advantage of the present invention is that it allows journalists in the field to be optimally presented with a minimum number of choices based on the editorial context in which they are operating.",
"This is advantageous considering that journalists typically cannot consider the complex interaction of multiple variables required to optimize their transmissions for their specific contexts.",
"That is, they often do not have the expertise, knowledge or time required to perform the otherwise required complex calculations.",
"[0014] Yet another advantage of the present invention is that it prevents journalists from selecting encoding options that are not optimized for their specific context.",
"As a result, missed deadlines, inappropriate media quality and high transmission costs which cannot be properly estimated are all avoided.",
"[0015] Further features and advantages of the present invention, as well as the structure and operation of various embodiments of the present invention, are described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings.",
"BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS [0016] The features and advantages of the present invention will become more apparent from the detailed description set forth below when taken in conjunction with the drawings.",
"[0017] [0017 ]FIG. 1 is a flowchart depicting an embodiment of the operation of an automatic selection of encoding parameters for the purpose of transmitting media objects process of the present invention.",
"[0018] [0018 ]FIG. 2 is a flowchart depicting an embodiment of the encoding and transmission queuing process of the present invention.",
"[0019] FIGS. 3 A-G are exemplary windows or screen shots generated by the graphical user interface of the present invention.",
"[0020] [0020 ]FIG. 4 is a block diagram of an exemplary computer system useful for implementing the present invention.",
"DETAILED DESCRIPTION I. Overall Operation [0021] The present invention provides a system, method and computer program product for the automatic selection of encoding parameters for the purpose of transmitting such media objects.",
"In an embodiment, users of the system of the present invention are presented with a graphical user interface (GUI) executing on any commercially-available processing device, including, but not limited to, a laptop computer, palmtop, personal digital assistant (PDA) and any other like (mobile) computing devices.",
"As will be apparent to one skilled in the relevant art(s) after reading the description herein, such computing devices would have access to and be connected to at least one computer network (e.g., a wide area communications network such as the Internet, PSTN and the like) for transmission.",
"[0022] In an embodiment of the present invention, the conventional, highly complex decision-making process which has potentially thousands of resulting choices is reduced to a manageable number of choices that are appropriate to the immediate context of the operator (i.e., the journalist user).",
"The method and computer program product perform the following steps: [0023] (1) Asking the operator: [0024] (a) What is your deadline?",
"or [0025] (b) How much time do you have to transmit the file?",
"[0026] (2) Determining the running duration of the file object(s) if audio or video by: [0027] (a) automatically determining the value;",
"or [0028] (b) asking the operator.",
"[0029] (3) Considering the amount of bandwidth available by: [0030] (a) automatically detecting the bandwidth;",
"[0031] (b) asking the user;",
"or [0032] (c) using a pre-configured setting.",
"[0033] (4) Considering the cost of the available bandwidth by: [0034] (a) looking up the value from a table which matches bandwidth to cost;",
"[0035] (b) using a pre-configured setting;",
"or [0036] (c) asking the user.",
"[0037] In an alternate embodiment of the present invention, steps (2), (3) and (4) can be automatically determined and thus the operator is only asked one question (i.e., step (1)): “What is your deadline?”",
"[0038] After performing steps (1)-(4), the present invention then is aware of the following three values related to the immediate context of the operator: (1) Time: (a) when the file transmission(s) should be complete;",
"and (b) how much time remains between the present and the deadline;",
"(2) Bandwidth: the expected or effective bandwidth available;",
"and (3) Duration of the full resolution file object(s)—if audio or video.",
"[0039] In an embodiment, the system of the present invention is pre-configured with a table of file compression choices.",
"Each choice reflects a variation in at least one of the following variables: (a) size of the file(s) rendered;",
"(b) size of the image(s) rendered (if still or video);",
"and (c) quality of the file(s) rendered (with audio and video being considered separately);",
"(d) frame rate of the file(s) rendered (if video);",
"and (e) the time required to compress source file(s) per unit time.",
"The method and computer program product of the present invention then makes available to the user only those choices from the table which match the user's context (i.e., time, bandwidth and duration), including encoding and transmission time.",
"[0040] In an embodiment, the system of the present invention can be optionally configured to provide weight or priority in the selection process to variables (a)-(e) listed above, further reducing the number of choices to the user.",
"In an alternate embodiment, the system of the present invention can be optionally configured to automatically select a single choice for the user, based on predefined and configurable settings which give specific weight and priority to variables (a)-(e) listed above.",
"[0041] Once a compression choice has been made by the user, the present invention will automatically encode the file(s) using the encoding parameters defined in the selected table choice and then automatically transmit the file.",
"In an embodiment, the invention will also optionally separately transmit metadata which describes the file and transmission status to the receiving station.",
"[0042] In an embodiment, the present invention can be optionally configured to determine encoding times for each table entry based on actual results for each table entry on a specific machine (e.g., PDA, laptop, etc.).",
"This is known as machine-specific calibration and is important because central processing units (CPUs) and other hardware-related parameters vary among computing devices.",
"[0043] In an embodiment, the present invention can be optionally configured to refine predictions and indexes of encoding efficiency for each table entry based on actual use (i.e., the method and computer program product “learns”",
"over time).",
"[0044] In yet another embodiment, the present invention can be optionally configured to encode and transmit a very low resolution, highly compressed “thumbnail”",
"image prior to encoding the image to the quality selected through the process described above.",
"Encoding and transmission of the “thumbnail”",
"media can be prior to or simultaneous with encoding and transmission of the primary file.",
"II.",
"Detailed Example [0045] The present invention is described in more detail below in terms of a user (e.g., a field broadcast journalist) being given access, via a GUI on a mobile processing device (e.g., laptop computer), to the tool the present invention provides for the automatic selection of encoding parameters for the purpose of transmitting audio and/or video media object files.",
"This, however, is not intended to limit the application of the present invention.",
"In fact, after reading the description herein, it will be apparent to one skilled in the relevant art(s) how to implement the invention in alternative embodiments (e.g., for use by those other than journalists, in other operating environments, etc.).",
"[0046] Referring to FIG. 1, a flowchart depicting an automatic selection of encoding parameters process according to an embodiment of the present invention is shown.",
"That is process depicts the automatic selection of encoding parameters for the purpose of transmitting media objects.",
"Process 100 begins at step 101 with control passing immediately to step 102 .",
"[0047] In step 102 , process 100 determines the duration of a specific media object to be encoded and transmitted according to the present invention.",
"Step 102 is accomplished by loading the media object file into a media player available on the processing device which then returns the “play”",
"duration of the file (if audio and/or video).",
"[0048] In step 104 , process 100 determines the bandwidth available to the user.",
"In one embodiment, process 100 executes in an “Auto”",
"setting where the processing device's network adapters are queried to determine the connection speed.",
"In an alternate embodiment, the user is given the option of manually selecting (from, for example, a menu or drop down list) the connection type they are using which contains information about the available bandwidth.",
"(See FIG. 3A).",
"Process 100 then updates the available bandwidth for each connection type available after every transmission to make this determination more accurate with each successive iteration of process 100 .",
"[0049] In step 106 , the user is presented with an interface that displays the estimated time that it will take for a media object to be encoded and sent based on a predefined baseline quality level.",
"The user can then change the time to reflect their actual deadline.",
"(See FIG. 3B).",
"[0050] In step 108 , the user can specify to cost of each connection type based upon the time or data (i.e., media object) transferred.",
"(See FIG. 3C).",
"This information is then used to estimate the total cost of transmitting the media object based on either the time it will take to send the file, or the amount of data that the media object file contains.",
"[0051] Now that the deadline, duration, cost and bandwidth are known, it is possible to begin the calculations that will ensure the media object file arrives by the deadline specified in step 106 .",
"In an embodiment, there are two calculations to be made.",
"[0052] First, in step 110 , the time it will take to encode the media file based on the central processing unit (CPU) speed of the user's processing device is calculated.",
"In an embodiment this is done first because the time it takes to encode a file is independent of the bit rate used for the encoding and is only dependent on the resolution used for the file.",
"The bit rates available are, however, dependent on the time remaining after the encoding of the media, as bit rate is a measurement of transfer speed over time.",
"Using historical measurements, process 100 takes the past rate of encoding files and generates an estimated amount of time it will take to encode the current file for various resolution/frame rate choices.",
"[0053] In an embodiment, process 100 utilizes a table (i.e., a “Table A”) to store the amount of time it will take to apply the compression to the specified file at each resolution.",
"(As will be appreciated by those skilled in the relevant art(s), such a table or other suitable data structure or database can be stored in the memory of user's processing device and accessible to process 100 .) The formula used to determine the encoding time is the past rate of encode stored in seconds of video/audio encoded per second of real time, multiplied by the duration of the media object file.",
"This results in the amount of real time that it will take to encode the current file.",
"This calculation is done for each supported resolution and frame rate.",
"[0054] An exemplary Table A utilized by process 100 , in an embodiment, is shown below: TABLE A Resolution/Frame Rate Time to Encode Resolution Choice_1/Full Frame Rate Result of Formula A Resolution Choice_2/Full Frame Rate Result of Formula A Resolution Choice_3/Full Frame Rate Result of Formula A Resolution Choice_n/Full Frame Rate Result of Formula A Resolution Choice_1/Half Frame Rate Result of Formula A Resolution Choice_2/Half Frame Rate Result of Formula A Resolution Choice_3/Half Frame Rate Result of Formula A Resolution Choice_n/Half Frame Rate Result of Formula A [0055] In an embodiment, Formula A is: T h *D;",
"[0056] where: T h is the historical time (in seconds) it has taken to encode one second of video/audio on the user's processing device for the corresponding resolution/frame rate combination;",
"and D is the duration (in seconds) of this media object file determined in step 102 .",
"As will be appreciated by those skilled in the relevant art(s), in an embodiment of the present invention the resolution choices for Table A are expressed in horizontal-by-vertical pixel values (e.g., 720×480, 320×240, 160×120, etc.).",
"As will also be appreciated by those skilled in the relevant art(s), the historical times used in Formula A can be stored in the memory of user's processing device and accessible to process 100 .",
"[0057] Once the time for the encode at each resolution and frame rate is known, it is possible to estimate the total amount of data that can be sent in the time remaining with the bandwidth specified in step 104 .",
"Thus, in an embodiment, the time remaining is calculated for each supported resolution/frame rate as the difference in seconds between the deadline and the present time, minus the time to encode.",
"Here the bandwidth supplied in step 104 is used to calculate the total quantity of data that can be transmitted in the remaining time.",
"This calculation is time remaining in seconds multiplied by the number of bits that can be transferred per second from the bandwidth supplied in step 104 .",
"(See Formula B below).",
"[0058] Now that the total quantity of data that can be transmitted in the remaining time is known for each resolution and frame rate, it is possible to determine how many bits of data can be used to represent each second of media content.",
"This is commonly referred to as the media file's “bit rate.”",
"The media bit rate is calculated as the total number of bits that can be transmitted in the remaining time divided by the duration of the media object file that was derived in step 102 .",
"(See Formula B below).",
"Generally speaking, a higher media bit rate results in a higher quality file from an audio-visual perspective.",
"[0059] The media bit rates that can be used for each resolution given the deadline, the encoding time and the duration of the file is then stored.",
"In an embodiment, process 100 utilizes a second table (i.e., a “Table B”) to store such bit rates.",
"(As will be appreciated by those skilled in the relevant art(s), such a table, like Table A or any other suitable data structure or database, can be stored in the memory of user's processing device and accessible to process 100 .) [0060] An exemplary Table B utilized by process 100 , in an embodiment, is shown below: TABLE B Resolution/Frame Rate Media Bit Rate Resolution Choice_1/Full Frame Rate Result of Formula B Resolution Choice_2/Full Frame Rate Result of Formula B Resolution Choice_3/Full Frame Rate Result of Formula B Resolution Choice_4/Full Frame Rate Result of Formula B Resolution Choice_1/Half Frame Rate Result of Formula B Resolution Choice_2/Half Frame Rate Result of Formula B Resolution Choice_3/Half Frame Rate Result of Formula B Resolution Choice_4/Half Frame Rate Result of Formula B [0061] In an embodiment, Formula B is: (( T d −T c )− T e )* P/D;",
"[0062] where: T d is the deadline specified by the user in step 106 ;",
"T c is the current time;",
"T e is the time to encode (i.e., the result of Fornula A stored in Table A);",
"P is the bandwidth of the connection (in bits per second);",
"and D is the duration of the media object file.",
"[0063] Certain resolution and frame rate settings may not be utilized given the specified bandwidth P (step 104 ) and deadline T d (step 106 ) if the media bit rate falls below a predefined minimum (e.g., a minimum bit rate defined by the user or user's broadcast organization).",
"Thus, in step 112 , process 100 utilizes the predefined minimum value and then tags or marks any resolution/frame rate setting in Table B where the media bit rate falls below the predefined minimum as “not available.”",
"[0064] In an embodiment, the user may specify that a preview clip (e.g., “thumbnail”) should be rendered and transmitted in addition to the production quality product.",
"Thus, process 100 will first estimate the encode and transmit times for the preview clip using the steps described above.",
"Then, these times for the preview clip are subtracted from the remaining time and a new remaining time value is used for the above calculations.",
"[0065] In step 114 , the results listed in Table B which are not tagged “not available”",
"in step 112 are sorted.",
"In an embodiment, they are sorted in order of resolution and then frame rate.",
"[0066] In step 116 , a pre-determined top n number (e.g., n=3) of entries from Table B which were sorted in step 114 are selected for presentation to the user.",
"[0067] In s step 118 , the user is then presented (via a GUI) with the n options for encoding and sending the media object file based on the calculations made in steps 110 - 116 .",
"(See FIG. 3D).",
"This will provide the user with the ability to change one or more of the parameters if they are dissatisfied with the available choices.",
"[0068] In step 120 , the user may change the deadline T d or the connection to be used for transmitting data (thus changing the bandwidth P) to increase the options available to them.",
"If the user decides to change either of these options, then process 100 returns to step 110 so that steps 110 - 116 are repeated.",
"Otherwise, process 100 proceeds to step 122 .",
"[0069] In step 122 , metadata about the media object file being transmitted can be linked and also sent along with the media object file.",
"In an embodiment, such metadata can include any definitional data such as owner name, text description and any other descriptive information about the context, quality and condition, or characteristics of the media object file.",
"In an embodiment, such metadata are dynamic data fields that can be predefined by the user to support their organizational needs.",
"(See FIG. 3E).",
"[0070] In step 124 , the selected encoding and transmission request is placed on an encoding queue within the processing device with the selected encoding properties.",
"That is, once all selections have been made and metadata set the file can be queued for encoding and eventual transmission.",
"The user is then presented with the status of the encode/transmission process.",
"(See FIGS. 3 F-G).",
"[0071] Process 100 is then complete and returns to the beginning of its execution loop (by returning to step 101 ) as shown in FIG. 1. [0072] Referring to FIG. 2, a flowchart depicting an encoding and transmission queuing process 200 according an embodiment of the present invention is shown.",
"In an embodiment, process 200 executes on the user's processing device concurrently with process 100 and constantly monitor the progress of process 100 .",
"Thus, after the selected encoding and transmission request is placed in an encoding queue in step 124 , step 202 , when ready, selects the next media object file and removes it from the queue.",
"[0073] In step 204 , the media object file is encoding using the properties selected during process 100 .",
"In an embodiment, the actual time to encode the media object using the properties selected during process 100 on the processing device is stored for use in refining or updating the historical time to encode values used in step 110 (e.g., using arithmetic mean or the like of actual encoding times to update the T h values used in Formula A).",
"[0074] Then, in step 206 , the encoded media object file is placed on a transmit queue within the processing device.",
"Finally, process 200 , when ready, removes the encoded file from the transmit queue (step 208 ) and transmits the file from the user's processing device across the communications network (step 210 ).",
"[0075] Process 200 is then complete and returns to the beginning of its execution loops (by returning to steps 202 and 208 ) as shown in FIG. 2. [0076] In an embodiment, because process 200 constantly monitors the progress of process 100 , the user is able to receive a warning on the processing device if any media object file is in jeopardy of not making its specified deadline.",
"In many cases, the user can then take corrective action.",
"For example, if during encoding step 204 , the processing device's CPU is handling other intensive processes that are slowing down the encoding, the user can be warned to cease such other processes if the load of the other operations puts their deadline (specified in step 106 ) in jeopardy.",
"Likewise, if during transmission step 210 , the processing device is using bandwidth for other applications, the user be warned to halt such operations if they begin to interfere with the transmission of the media object file.",
"III.",
"Example Implementations [0077] The present invention (i.e., process 100 , process 200 or any portion(s) or function(s) thereof) may be implemented using hardware, software or a combination thereof and may be implemented in one or more computer systems or other processing systems.",
"In fact, in one embodiment, the invention is directed toward one or more computer systems capable of carrying out the functionality described herein.",
"An example of a computer system 400 is shown in FIG. 4. [0078] Computer system 400 includes one or more processors, such as processor 404 .",
"The processor 404 is connected to a communication infrastructure 406 (e.g., a communications bus, cross-over bar, or network).",
"Various software embodiments are described in terms of this exemplary computer system.",
"After reading this description, it will become apparent to a person skilled in the relevant art(s) how to implement the invention using other computer systems and/or architectures.",
"[0079] Computer system 400 can include a display interface 402 that forwards graphics, text, and other data from the communication infrastructure 406 (or from a frame buffer not shown) for display on the display unit 430 .",
"[0080] Computer system 400 also includes a main memory 408 , preferably random access memory (RAM), and may also include a secondary memory 410 .",
"The secondary memory 410 may include, for example, a hard disk drive 412 and/or a removable storage drive 414 , representing a floppy disk drive, a magnetic tape drive, an optical disk drive, etc.",
"The removable storage drive 414 reads from and/or writes to a removable storage unit 418 in a well known manner.",
"Removable storage unit 418 , represents a floppy disk, magnetic tape, optical disk, etc.",
"which is read by and written to by removable storage drive 414 .",
"As will be appreciated, the removable storage unit 418 includes a computer usable storage medium having stored therein computer software and/or data.",
"[0081] In alternative embodiments, secondary memory 410 may include other similar devices for allowing computer programs or other instructions to be loaded into computer system 400 .",
"Such devices may include, for example, a removable storage unit 422 and an interface 420 .",
"Examples of such may include a program cartridge and cartridge interface (such as that found in video game devices), a removable memory chip (such as an erasable programmable read only memory (EPROM), or programmable read only memory (PROM)) and associated socket, and other removable storage units 422 and interfaces 420 , which allow software and data to be transferred from the removable storage unit 422 to computer system 400 .",
"[0082] Computer system 400 may also include a communications interface 424 .",
"Communications interface 424 allows software and data to be transferred between computer system 400 and external devices.",
"Examples of communications interface 424 may include a modem, a network interface (such as an Ethernet card), a communications port, a Personal Computer Memory Card International Association (PCMCIA) slot and card, etc.",
"Software and data transferred via communications interface 424 are in the form of signals 428 which maybe electronic, electromagnetic, optical or other signals capable of being received by communications interface 424 .",
"These signals 428 are provided to communications interface 424 via a communications path (e.g., channel) 426 .",
"This channel 426 carries signals 428 and may be implemented using wire or cable, fiber optics, a telephone line, a cellular link, an radio frequency (RF) link and other communications channels.",
"[0083] In this document, the terms “computer program medium”",
"and “computer usable medium”",
"are used to generally refer to media such as removable storage drive 414 , a hard disk installed in hard disk drive 412 , and signals 428 .",
"These computer program products provide software to computer system 400 .",
"The invention is directed to such computer program products.",
"[0084] Computer programs (also referred to as computer control logic) are stored in main memory 408 and/or secondary memory 410 .",
"Computer programs may also be received via communications interface 424 .",
"Such computer programs, when executed, enable the computer system 400 to perform the features of the present invention, as discussed herein.",
"In particular, the computer programs, when executed, enable the processor 404 to perform the features of the present invention.",
"Accordingly, such computer programs represent controllers of the computer system 400 .",
"[0085] In an embodiment where the invention is implemented using software, the software may be stored in a computer program product and loaded into computer system 400 using removable storage drive 414 , hard drive 412 or communications interface 424 .",
"The control logic (software), when executed by the processor 404 , causes the processor 404 to perform the functions of the invention as described herein.",
"[0086] In another embodiment, the invention is implemented primarily in hardware using, for example, hardware components such as application specific integrated circuits (ASICs).",
"Implementation of the hardware state machine so as to perform the functions described herein will be apparent to persons skilled in the relevant art(s).",
"[0087] In yet another embodiment, the invention is implemented using a combination of both hardware and software.",
"IV.",
"Conclusion [0088] While various embodiments of the present invention have been described above, it should be understood that they have been presented by way of example, and not limitation.",
"It will be apparent to persons skilled in the relevant art(s) that various changes in form and detail can be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention.",
"Thus, the present invention 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."
] |
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] This non-provisional patent application claims priority from and is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/729,282 filed on Mar. 28, 2007 (now abandoned), which was a divisional application of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/726,348 filed on Dec. 3, 2003, assigned Ser. No. 10/726,348.
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
[0002] The apparatus described herein is generally applicable to the field of agricultural equipment, The embodiments shown and described herein are more particularly for improved harvesting of corn plants.
STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT
[0003] No federal funds were used to develop or create the disclosed invention.
REFERENCE TO SEQUENCE LISTING, A TABLE, OR A COMPUTER PROGRAM LISTING COMPACT DISK APPENDIX
[0004] Not Applicable
AUTHORIZATION PURSUANT TO 37 C.F.R. §1.171 (d)
[0005] A portion of the disclosure of this patent document contains material which is subject to copyright protection. The copyright owner has no objection to the facsimile reproduction by anyone of the patent document or the patent disclosure, as it appears in the Patent and Trademark Office patent file or records, but otherwise reserves all copyrights whatsoever.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0006] This invention relates to corn harvesting machinery and more particularly the corn row unit of the corn head commonly used with modern self-propelled combines. Corn heads include individual row units normally designed for harvesting a single row of crop material. To accommodate various spacings between rows of crops, these row units are usually adjustably attached to a horizontally disposed frame member. The modern trend in corn headers appears to be one of placing the row units at a low profile to the ground, closer together and providing for increasingly larger throughputs.
[0007] Each row unit contains a row crop divider, a row unit hood, gathering/conveying chain(s), two stripper plates, two stalk rolls, a row unit frame, and a gearbox. The gearbox powers the row unit for gathering corn plants then stripping, separating, and conveying ears of corn from the corn plant.
[0008] The transversely disposed power input shaft is powered by the combine and delivers rotational power to the individual row units. As can be seen in U.S. Pat. No. 3,589,110, for example, this power input shaft is commonly placed within the gearbox and continues therethough from one gearbox to the next. To save costs, reduce complexity, and provide constant lubrication the internal gears are contained in a sealed gearbox. The slip clutch for each respective gearbox is seen affixed to a member contained within the gearbox and movable therewith. Typically the operating speed relationship of the stalk rolls and gathering chains is fixed as is the size of the external sprockets and stalk rolls.
[0009] As shown in FIG. 1 , corn heads are provided with several row crop dividers for retrieving, lifting, and directing the rows of corn stalks toward there respective ear separation chambers.
[0010] FIG. 2 shows a top isolated view of the row crop divider and more particularly the gathering chains and stalk rolls of the corn row unit as typically found in the prior art.
[0011] FIG. 3 shows the side view of a row unit found in the prior art. The stalk rolls are powered by a gearbox. As the stalk rolls rotate, the flutes on the stalk rolls pull the corn stalk downward. Two stripper plates located above the stalk rolls and on both sides of the corn row are spaced wide enough to allow to the corn plant to pass between them but narrow enough to retain the ear of corn which contain grain. This causes the ears of corn to be separated from the corn plant as it is pulled downward through the stripping plates. The stalk rolls continue to rotate ejecting the unwanted portions of the corn plant below the corn head thereby returning the unwanted portions to the field. The cooperative interaction of the stalk rolls, the stripping plates and the gathering chains of the row unit are defined as the ear separation chamber.
[0012] In the past 30 years four (4) external factors have impacted corn harvesting: (1) Corn stalk harvest heights have continued to increase. (2) Corn yields have doubled through improved genetics, fertilization, populations, and row spacings. (3) Genetics also improved insect resistance, which improved plant health, stalk vigor, and increase height at harvest time. (4) Harvesting machines are larger with increased horsepower, capacity, ground speed and utilize corn heads with more row units. These factors in combination require that during ear separation modern row units must: (1) Increase the rate of ear separation. (2) Ensure that the corn plant is not severed from its roots system. (3) Increase the speed at which corn stalks are ejected from the row unit. (4) Retain minimal amounts of MOTE (material other than ears) in the heterogeneous material being delivered to the combine for threshing.
[0013] Through research, operations, and testing, applicant has found that a major evolving problem in harvesting today's corn hybrids is a large build up of plant material (MOTE plus ears) in front of the cross auger during operation of the corn head. Combine operators commonly refer to this mass of material as “trash”, “muskrat huts”, “hair ball”, or simply “a pile of fluff”. The accumulation of MOTE reduces the efficiency of the corn head. Many times operators claim this accumulation of trash or fluff will occur during the best operating times of the day. This is especially the case when the corn is extremely dry as may be found on fall afternoons with low humidity. The appearance of this fluff or trash may be severe enough to require harvesting equipment to shut down.
[0014] During field testing, several kill stop examinations of this large pile of trash confirmed that it is composed of long pieces or the top portion of the corn plant, which had been sheared off or broken off by the gathering chain paddles. When harvesting down corn it was also noticed that root balls were unnecessarily being pulled out of the ground and dragged into the corn head due to excessive gathering chain speed.
[0015] Previous to this invention, the prior art in this field has taught that to increase row unit capacity, travel speeds and reduce trash intake the gathering chain speed should be increased. U.S. Pat. No. 3,462,928 ('928) teaches a dependent drive system employing an eight (8) tooth gathering chain drive sprocket. As taught by '928, the gear means within the gear housing drives not only the stalk rolls but also the endless gathering chains. Based on applicant's experience, this (8) tooth gathering chain sprocket appears to be the predominate size still in use with John Deere dependent drive systems.
[0016] U.S. Pat. No. 5,921,070 issued to Chamberlain (“Chamberlain”) teaches that the optimum gathering belt speed is approximately equal to the ground speed of the harvester. If the ground speed of the harvester needs to be decreased due to crop or environmental conditions, the gathering belt speed must be decreased. According to Chamberlain to meet this challenge, an independent drive system allowing independent speed control of both the gathering belts and stalk rolls is required.
[0017] There are numerous disadvantages and weaknesses in the teachings found in Chamberlain. A corn head with both variable knife and gathering belt speed requires additional elements such as motors, gearboxes and driveshafts. This increase in equipment increases the weight of the corn head and the power required to drive the head, increasing both the cost of manufacture and operation. Additionally, Chamberlain does not teach a method to convert an existing corn head having a dependent drive system. Furthermore, Chamberlain teaches that for high ground speed operations, the gathering belt speed must be higher to match the ground speed.
[0018] Field testing and experimentation by the applicant have shown that in fact reduction of gathering chain speed reduces stalk shear allowing increased ground speed operations through improved ear separation and threshing efficiencies. It has been found that when the gathering chain paddle and the corn plant enter the row unit at the same time, the stalk roll flutes are going to start pulling the corn plant downward. At the same time the gathering chain paddle is pushing the stalk up the ear separation chamber. At this point the corn stalk is simultaneously moving both laterally and vertically. If the corn stalk reaches the end of the ear separation chamber before the stalk roll consumes the majority of the corn stalk, lateral movement stops because the corn plant stalk has reached the end of the stalk rolls and is lodged against the gearbox. The gathering chain paddle then shears the upper portion of the corn stalk off with the corn plant ear attached and pushes both into the cross auger.
[0019] The problem at its most basic is that the stalk roll flutes and the gathering chain paddles are applying energy to the stalk in different directions producing a shearing effect. When the corn stalk reaches the end of the stalk rolls and stops moving horizontally, the movement of the corn stalk becomes restricted. This then allows the stalk to be sheared by the gathering chain paddle resulting in the separation of the stalk from itself. Analysis of stripper plates indicates pronounced wear at the row unit separation point. This would indicate there is significant pressure and wear at this point due to stalks separating against the stripper plate.
[0020] Additionally, field testing indicates the node below the ear may be weaker than other nodes in the stalk. The weakness in this node accentuates the tendency of the prior art to separate the stalk from itself when the stalk is subjected to shear. Recently improved agronomic technology and corn genetics have produced taller corn stalks at harvest time further highlighting this problem.
BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0021] I, Marion Calmer, residing in Alpha, Ill. and being a United States citizen, do herein in this patent application disclose and claim the method of using my invention “Method to Reduce Stalk Shear.”
[0022] It is an objective to teach a method and apparatus that may allow existing corn head row units with dependent drive systems to reduce the intake of trash or material other than ears (MOTE) and increase harvester ground speed.
[0023] It is another objective to teach a method and apparatus that minimizes the corn plant stalks reaching the end of the ear separation chamber with an ear thereby allowing the gathering chain paddles to shear both the upper portion of the stalk and the corn plant ear. Shearing the upper portion of the corn plant stalk with the ear increases the amount of material other than ears (MOTE) reaching the threshing unit of the combine.
[0024] It is another objective of this invention to teach a method and apparatus to improve harvesting speeds and increase the bushels and acres a farmer may harvest per day.
[0025] It is another objective of this invention to teach a method and apparatus to reduce the intake of trash (or MOTE) in standing corn while also improving the harvesting of down or lodged corn.
[0026] It is another objective of this invention to teach a method and apparatus that reduces the loss of grain in the separation and threshing areas of a combine.
[0027] It is another objective of this invention to teach a method and apparatus that lowers horsepower requirements and reduces fuel consumption.
[0028] Through field testing it has been the found that the larger the number of inches of corn stalk consumed by the stalk rolls and ejected on the ground prior to the gathering chain paddle contacting the stalk, the less trash or MOTE being processed by the combine threshing system. Through testing and calculation, the inventor was able to establish the following formula to calculate the vertical and horizontal pull upon the corn stalk.
[0029] The formula states that the number of revolutions of a stalk roll during gathering chain paddle travel across the exposed fluted area of stalk roll multiplied by the outside circumference of the stalk roll approximates the inches of corn stalk consumed by the stalk roll while a gathering chain paddle moves from the start of the stalk roll flute to the end of the stalk roll flute.
R=number of revolutions of stalk roll during chain lug travel of the exposed fluted area of stalk roll D=diameter of stalk roll (inches) C=circumference of stalk=D*Pi (inches) R×C=Inches of Corn Stalk Consumed
[0034] Applicant has found that one of the best ways to avoid corn stalk shear while the ear is attached to the stalk is to install a smaller gathering chain drive sprocket in a row unit using a dependent drive system. This slows down just the gathering chain or chains while allowing the rest of the corn head to operate at its normal operating speed.
[0035] During field tests it was found that when gathering chain paddle speed was reduced by twenty percent (20%) in the Case/IH 800 and 1000 series corn heads, the amount of measured MOTE (by weight) was reduced by as much fifty percent (50%). In field tests on John Deere 40 and 90 series corn heads, MOTE was decreased by almost seventy-five percent (75%) when the gathering chain
[0000] speed was reduced by thirty-seven point five percent (37.5%). On average, field tests in which a direct comparison was made between the eight (8) tooth gathering chain drive sprocket and a five (5) tooth sprocket, a sixty (60%) reduction in MOTE was produced.
[0036] The formula above also allows the calculation of an ear separation speed. This speed represents how fast the ear and the corn stalk move down towards the stalk rolls and stripper plates. Ear separation speed is important because it provides an upper limit to how large the actual stalk roll velocity can be. Increasing ear separation speed reflects the increased ability of the stalk rolls to consume the necessary feet of corn stalk corresponding to both the height of the stalks and the ground speed of the combine. The upper limit for ear separation speed is reached when the ear of corn has enough kinetic energy to actually damage the ear or start the kernel shelling process upon impact with the stripper plates (e.g. butt-shelling). The upper limit of ear separation speed is dependent upon hybrid characteristics and crop conditions. Applicant has operated at ear separation velocities in the range of six to thirteen (6.0-13.0) miles per hour with good results. Equivalent ear separation velocities over thirteen (13) miles per hour have produced damage and premature shelling.
[0037] A second way to avoid corn stalk shear while the ear is attached is to change the actual number of teeth used on the internal gears of the gear box that drive the stalk engaging components. A third way to allow unrestricted simultaneous vertical and horizontal pull and reduce corn stalk shear would be to lengthen the exposed fluted area (i.e. area of engagement) of the stalk roll.
[0038] A fourth way to allow unrestricted simultaneous vertical and horizontal pull and reduce corn stalk shear would be to increase the diameter of the stalk roll used to engage the stalk of the plant.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0039] FIG. 1 Top View of Corn Head (Prior Art)
[0040] FIG. 2 Exploded Top View of Row Unit and Ear Separation Chamber (Prior Art)
[0041] FIG. 3 Side view of Row Unit (Prior Art)
[0042] FIG. 4 Row Unit Engaged with Corn Stalk—Prior to Ear Separation (Prior Art)
[0043] FIG. 5 Row Unit Engaged with Corn Stalk—Ear Separation Point (Prior Art)
[0044] FIG. 6 Row Unit Engaged with Corn Stalk—Post Ear-Separation (Prior Art)
[0045] FIG. 7 Row Unit Engaged with Corn Stalk—Prior to Ear Separation
[0046] FIG. 8 Row Unit Engaged with Corn Stalk—Ear Separation Point
[0047] FIG. 9 Row Unit Engaged with Corn Stalk—Post Ear-Separation
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
Listing of the Elements
[0048]
[0000]
Description
Number
Corn head
80
Row unit
90
Row unit dividers
100
Gathering chain paddles
110
8 tooth gathering chain drive sprocket (Prior Art)
112
5 tooth (kit) gathering chain drive sprocket
115
Gathering chain
120
Stripper plates
130
Row unit shear point
135
Ear Separation Chamber
140
Row unit covers
150
Gearbox
160
Transport vanes
170
Stalk Roll flutes
180
Stalk rolls
190
Cross Auger Trough
200
Cross Auger
220
Corn plant ear
300
Upper Portion of Corn Plant Stalk
325
Lower Portion of Corn Plant Stalk
330
[0049] The general operation of corn heads incorporating this invention in FIGS. 1 through 9 are similar to that of the operation of corn heads of the prior art as illustrated in FIGS. 1 , 2 and 3 . As shown in FIG. 1 , corn heads are provided with several row crop dividers 100 for retrieving, lifting, and directing the rows of corn stalks toward their respective ear separation chambers 140 . In FIGS. 1 and 3 the corn stalks are lifted and guided toward the row unit 90 by row unit dividers 100 . Row unit cover 150 lifts and separates the corn plants.
[0050] FIG. 2 shows a top isolated view of the ear separation chamber 140 with row crop divider 100 and more particularly the gathering chains 120 and stalk rolls 190 of the corn row unit as typically found in the prior art. The power to drive this corn head row unit arrangement is provided from a main drive shaft through a gearbox 160 as described in the prior art. See U.S. Pat. No. 3,462,928.
[0051] FIG. 3 shows the side view of a row unit 90 found in the prior art from view AA found in FIG. 1 . The stalk rolls 190 are typically powered by a gearbox 160 . In FIG. 4 as the stalk rolls 190 rotate, the flutes on the stalk rolls 180 contact the sidewalls of the lower portion of the corn stalk 330 and pull the corn stalk downward. Two stripper plates 130 located above the stalk rolls 190 and on both sides of the row of corn are spaced wide enough to allow the corn plant to pass between them but narrow enough to retain the ear of corn 300 containing the kernels of corn or grain. This causes the ears of corn 300 to be separated from the corn plant as it is pulled downward through the stripping plates 130 . The stalk rolls 190 continue to rotate ejecting the unwanted portions of the corn plant below the corn head 80 thereby returning the unwanted corn stalk portions to the field. The gathering chain paddles 110 contact the ears of corn 300 and convey them to the cross auger trough 200 . Where cross auger 220 conveys the ears of corn 300 towards the center of the corn head 80 for further conveyance through the combine feeder house and into the threshing area of the combine.
[0052] FIGS. 4-6 show an exploded cut-away view of the ear separation process as taught by the prior art from view B-B found in FIG. 1 . In these drawings, the row unit cover 150 and a portion of the stripper plate 130 have been removed to allow a better representation of the process. FIG. 4 shows the corn row unit 80 of the prior art engaged with a corn plant. As shown by FIGS. 3 and 4 of the prior art, the corn plant first enters the stalk rolls 190 through the transport vanes 170 at the ends of the stalk rolls 190 . The stalk roll flutes 180 contact the lower portion of the corn plant stalk 330 and begin to pull the corn plant stalk down towards the stripper plates 130 . At the same time the gathering chain paddles 110 also enter the row unit 90 .
[0053] In FIG. 5 the corn plant stalk is simultaneously moving both laterally and vertically. As taught by the prior art, a substantial number of corn plant stalks typically reach the end of the stalk rolls 190 before the stalk roll 190 has consumed the upper portion of the corn plant stalk 325 above the ear 300 . The corn plant stalk hits row unit shear point 135 effectively stopping or restricting the lateral movement of the corn plant stalk and positions the upper portion of the corn plant stalk 325 to be sheared along with the corn plant ear 300 by the gathering chain paddles 110 .
[0054] As shown in FIG. 6 , when the lateral movement of the corn plant stalk has stopped at the end of the ear separation chamber 140 , the gathering chain paddle 110 moves into contact with and shears off the upper portion of the corn plant stalk 325 while the corn plant ear 300 is still attached to the corn plant stalk 325 . Both the upper portion of the corn plant stalk 325 and the corn plant ear 300 are then conveyed into the cross auger trough 200 . As shown in drawings 4 - 6 , the corn stalk point of restricted movement in the ear separation chamber 140 is defined as row unit shear point 135 . Contact between the upper portion of corn stalks 325 and the row unit shear point 135 increases the amount of material other than ears (MOTE) that must be processed by the combine, reducing separation efficiencies and increasing horsepower requirements.
[0055] FIGS. 7-9 shows a similar sequence of events for the present invention with an improved result. FIG. 7 shows the side view of the improved row unit 90 powered by a gearbox 160 . As the stalk rolls 190 rotate, the flutes on the stalk rolls 180 contact the sidewalls of the lower portion of the corn plant stalk 330 and upper portion of the corn plant stalk 325 downward. The gathering chain paddles 110 enter the ear separation chamber 140 at a lower velocity than in the prior art. As shown in FIG. 8 , the rotation of the stalk rolls 190 pulls the corn plant stalk down towards the stripper plates 130 with less interference from the slower speed gathering chain paddles 110 allowing the ear of corn 300 to separate from the corn plant. After ear separation the integrity of the corn plant stalk is substantially maintained so that both the upper portion 325 and lower portion of the corn plant stalk 330 are processed through the stalk rolls 190 . As shown in FIGS. 8 and 9 , the gathering chain paddles 110 are substantially for engagement and conveyance of the corn plant ear 300 through the ear separation chamber 140 and to auger trough 200 . In operation, substantially fewer corn stalks contact the row unit shear point 135 and the gearbox 160 at the end of the ear separation chamber 140 thereby reducing the incidence of the corn stalk shear which reduces MOTE and increases separation efficiencies.
[0056] FIG. 10 provides a final view of the present invention and presents all three steps of the ear separation process as described in FIGS. 7-9 in one view. As in FIGS. 7-9 the row unit covers 150 and row unit dividers 100 have been removed from the drawings to allow a better view of the process and do not represent a change to the equipment or process. In this particular figure, the invention is applied to a dual gathering chain 120 system. The figure shows the corn plants entering the stalk rolls 190 from the left side of the figure and reflect the pre-ear separation step. The next corn plants to the right in the figure represent corn plants in the ear separation process. The post-ear separation process is represented both by the upper portion of the stalk 325 barely visible above the stripper plate 130 and row unit shear point 135 . Throughout the process of the invention, contact between the corn plant stalk and gathering chain paddles 110 is minimized. The slower speed gathering chain paddles 110 primarily contact ears 300 separated from the corn plant stalks for conveyance to the cross auger 220 and combine harvester reducing the possibility that a gathering chain paddle 110 will push into the upper portion of the corn plant stalk 325 and produce a shearing of the stalk against either the gearbox 160 or row unit shear point 135 .
[0057] Having described the preferred embodiment, other features of the present invention will undoubtedly occur to those versed in the art, as will numerous modifications and alterations in the embodiments of the invention illustrated, all of which may be achieved without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. | Four (4) methods to reduce stalk shear in a corn head row unit utilize a non-variable or dependent drive system. The four methods described include altering the gearbox ratio, increasing the lengths of the fluted portion of the stalk roll, increasing stalk roll diameter or reducing the size of the gathering chain drive sprocket. This novel idea provides an apparatus and method to which genetically improved taller and healthier corn plants can be harvested with minimal amounts of material other than ears ultimately being transferred to the threshing unit. | Analyze the document's illustrations and descriptions to summarize the main idea's core structure and function. | [
"CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS [0001] This non-provisional patent application claims priority from and is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser.",
"No. 11/729,282 filed on Mar. 28, 2007 (now abandoned), which was a divisional application of U.S. patent application Ser.",
"No. 10/726,348 filed on Dec. 3, 2003, assigned Ser.",
"No. 10/726,348.",
"FIELD OF THE INVENTION [0002] The apparatus described herein is generally applicable to the field of agricultural equipment, The embodiments shown and described herein are more particularly for improved harvesting of corn plants.",
"STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT [0003] No federal funds were used to develop or create the disclosed invention.",
"REFERENCE TO SEQUENCE LISTING, A TABLE, OR A COMPUTER PROGRAM LISTING COMPACT DISK APPENDIX [0004] Not Applicable AUTHORIZATION PURSUANT TO 37 C.F.R. §1.171 (d) [0005] A portion of the disclosure of this patent document contains material which is subject to copyright protection.",
"The copyright owner has no objection to the facsimile reproduction by anyone of the patent document or the patent disclosure, as it appears in the Patent and Trademark Office patent file or records, but otherwise reserves all copyrights whatsoever.",
"BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION [0006] This invention relates to corn harvesting machinery and more particularly the corn row unit of the corn head commonly used with modern self-propelled combines.",
"Corn heads include individual row units normally designed for harvesting a single row of crop material.",
"To accommodate various spacings between rows of crops, these row units are usually adjustably attached to a horizontally disposed frame member.",
"The modern trend in corn headers appears to be one of placing the row units at a low profile to the ground, closer together and providing for increasingly larger throughputs.",
"[0007] Each row unit contains a row crop divider, a row unit hood, gathering/conveying chain(s), two stripper plates, two stalk rolls, a row unit frame, and a gearbox.",
"The gearbox powers the row unit for gathering corn plants then stripping, separating, and conveying ears of corn from the corn plant.",
"[0008] The transversely disposed power input shaft is powered by the combine and delivers rotational power to the individual row units.",
"As can be seen in U.S. Pat. No. 3,589,110, for example, this power input shaft is commonly placed within the gearbox and continues therethough from one gearbox to the next.",
"To save costs, reduce complexity, and provide constant lubrication the internal gears are contained in a sealed gearbox.",
"The slip clutch for each respective gearbox is seen affixed to a member contained within the gearbox and movable therewith.",
"Typically the operating speed relationship of the stalk rolls and gathering chains is fixed as is the size of the external sprockets and stalk rolls.",
"[0009] As shown in FIG. 1 , corn heads are provided with several row crop dividers for retrieving, lifting, and directing the rows of corn stalks toward there respective ear separation chambers.",
"[0010] FIG. 2 shows a top isolated view of the row crop divider and more particularly the gathering chains and stalk rolls of the corn row unit as typically found in the prior art.",
"[0011] FIG. 3 shows the side view of a row unit found in the prior art.",
"The stalk rolls are powered by a gearbox.",
"As the stalk rolls rotate, the flutes on the stalk rolls pull the corn stalk downward.",
"Two stripper plates located above the stalk rolls and on both sides of the corn row are spaced wide enough to allow to the corn plant to pass between them but narrow enough to retain the ear of corn which contain grain.",
"This causes the ears of corn to be separated from the corn plant as it is pulled downward through the stripping plates.",
"The stalk rolls continue to rotate ejecting the unwanted portions of the corn plant below the corn head thereby returning the unwanted portions to the field.",
"The cooperative interaction of the stalk rolls, the stripping plates and the gathering chains of the row unit are defined as the ear separation chamber.",
"[0012] In the past 30 years four (4) external factors have impacted corn harvesting: (1) Corn stalk harvest heights have continued to increase.",
"(2) Corn yields have doubled through improved genetics, fertilization, populations, and row spacings.",
"(3) Genetics also improved insect resistance, which improved plant health, stalk vigor, and increase height at harvest time.",
"(4) Harvesting machines are larger with increased horsepower, capacity, ground speed and utilize corn heads with more row units.",
"These factors in combination require that during ear separation modern row units must: (1) Increase the rate of ear separation.",
"(2) Ensure that the corn plant is not severed from its roots system.",
"(3) Increase the speed at which corn stalks are ejected from the row unit.",
"(4) Retain minimal amounts of MOTE (material other than ears) in the heterogeneous material being delivered to the combine for threshing.",
"[0013] Through research, operations, and testing, applicant has found that a major evolving problem in harvesting today's corn hybrids is a large build up of plant material (MOTE plus ears) in front of the cross auger during operation of the corn head.",
"Combine operators commonly refer to this mass of material as “trash”, “muskrat huts”, “hair ball”, or simply “a pile of fluff.”",
"The accumulation of MOTE reduces the efficiency of the corn head.",
"Many times operators claim this accumulation of trash or fluff will occur during the best operating times of the day.",
"This is especially the case when the corn is extremely dry as may be found on fall afternoons with low humidity.",
"The appearance of this fluff or trash may be severe enough to require harvesting equipment to shut down.",
"[0014] During field testing, several kill stop examinations of this large pile of trash confirmed that it is composed of long pieces or the top portion of the corn plant, which had been sheared off or broken off by the gathering chain paddles.",
"When harvesting down corn it was also noticed that root balls were unnecessarily being pulled out of the ground and dragged into the corn head due to excessive gathering chain speed.",
"[0015] Previous to this invention, the prior art in this field has taught that to increase row unit capacity, travel speeds and reduce trash intake the gathering chain speed should be increased.",
"U.S. Pat. No. 3,462,928 ('928) teaches a dependent drive system employing an eight (8) tooth gathering chain drive sprocket.",
"As taught by '928, the gear means within the gear housing drives not only the stalk rolls but also the endless gathering chains.",
"Based on applicant's experience, this (8) tooth gathering chain sprocket appears to be the predominate size still in use with John Deere dependent drive systems.",
"[0016] U.S. Pat. No. 5,921,070 issued to Chamberlain (“Chamberlain”) teaches that the optimum gathering belt speed is approximately equal to the ground speed of the harvester.",
"If the ground speed of the harvester needs to be decreased due to crop or environmental conditions, the gathering belt speed must be decreased.",
"According to Chamberlain to meet this challenge, an independent drive system allowing independent speed control of both the gathering belts and stalk rolls is required.",
"[0017] There are numerous disadvantages and weaknesses in the teachings found in Chamberlain.",
"A corn head with both variable knife and gathering belt speed requires additional elements such as motors, gearboxes and driveshafts.",
"This increase in equipment increases the weight of the corn head and the power required to drive the head, increasing both the cost of manufacture and operation.",
"Additionally, Chamberlain does not teach a method to convert an existing corn head having a dependent drive system.",
"Furthermore, Chamberlain teaches that for high ground speed operations, the gathering belt speed must be higher to match the ground speed.",
"[0018] Field testing and experimentation by the applicant have shown that in fact reduction of gathering chain speed reduces stalk shear allowing increased ground speed operations through improved ear separation and threshing efficiencies.",
"It has been found that when the gathering chain paddle and the corn plant enter the row unit at the same time, the stalk roll flutes are going to start pulling the corn plant downward.",
"At the same time the gathering chain paddle is pushing the stalk up the ear separation chamber.",
"At this point the corn stalk is simultaneously moving both laterally and vertically.",
"If the corn stalk reaches the end of the ear separation chamber before the stalk roll consumes the majority of the corn stalk, lateral movement stops because the corn plant stalk has reached the end of the stalk rolls and is lodged against the gearbox.",
"The gathering chain paddle then shears the upper portion of the corn stalk off with the corn plant ear attached and pushes both into the cross auger.",
"[0019] The problem at its most basic is that the stalk roll flutes and the gathering chain paddles are applying energy to the stalk in different directions producing a shearing effect.",
"When the corn stalk reaches the end of the stalk rolls and stops moving horizontally, the movement of the corn stalk becomes restricted.",
"This then allows the stalk to be sheared by the gathering chain paddle resulting in the separation of the stalk from itself.",
"Analysis of stripper plates indicates pronounced wear at the row unit separation point.",
"This would indicate there is significant pressure and wear at this point due to stalks separating against the stripper plate.",
"[0020] Additionally, field testing indicates the node below the ear may be weaker than other nodes in the stalk.",
"The weakness in this node accentuates the tendency of the prior art to separate the stalk from itself when the stalk is subjected to shear.",
"Recently improved agronomic technology and corn genetics have produced taller corn stalks at harvest time further highlighting this problem.",
"BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION [0021] I, Marion Calmer, residing in Alpha, Ill.",
"and being a United States citizen, do herein in this patent application disclose and claim the method of using my invention “Method to Reduce Stalk Shear.”",
"[0022] It is an objective to teach a method and apparatus that may allow existing corn head row units with dependent drive systems to reduce the intake of trash or material other than ears (MOTE) and increase harvester ground speed.",
"[0023] It is another objective to teach a method and apparatus that minimizes the corn plant stalks reaching the end of the ear separation chamber with an ear thereby allowing the gathering chain paddles to shear both the upper portion of the stalk and the corn plant ear.",
"Shearing the upper portion of the corn plant stalk with the ear increases the amount of material other than ears (MOTE) reaching the threshing unit of the combine.",
"[0024] It is another objective of this invention to teach a method and apparatus to improve harvesting speeds and increase the bushels and acres a farmer may harvest per day.",
"[0025] It is another objective of this invention to teach a method and apparatus to reduce the intake of trash (or MOTE) in standing corn while also improving the harvesting of down or lodged corn.",
"[0026] It is another objective of this invention to teach a method and apparatus that reduces the loss of grain in the separation and threshing areas of a combine.",
"[0027] It is another objective of this invention to teach a method and apparatus that lowers horsepower requirements and reduces fuel consumption.",
"[0028] Through field testing it has been the found that the larger the number of inches of corn stalk consumed by the stalk rolls and ejected on the ground prior to the gathering chain paddle contacting the stalk, the less trash or MOTE being processed by the combine threshing system.",
"Through testing and calculation, the inventor was able to establish the following formula to calculate the vertical and horizontal pull upon the corn stalk.",
"[0029] The formula states that the number of revolutions of a stalk roll during gathering chain paddle travel across the exposed fluted area of stalk roll multiplied by the outside circumference of the stalk roll approximates the inches of corn stalk consumed by the stalk roll while a gathering chain paddle moves from the start of the stalk roll flute to the end of the stalk roll flute.",
"R=number of revolutions of stalk roll during chain lug travel of the exposed fluted area of stalk roll D=diameter of stalk roll (inches) C=circumference of stalk=D*Pi (inches) R×C=Inches of Corn Stalk Consumed [0034] Applicant has found that one of the best ways to avoid corn stalk shear while the ear is attached to the stalk is to install a smaller gathering chain drive sprocket in a row unit using a dependent drive system.",
"This slows down just the gathering chain or chains while allowing the rest of the corn head to operate at its normal operating speed.",
"[0035] During field tests it was found that when gathering chain paddle speed was reduced by twenty percent (20%) in the Case/IH 800 and 1000 series corn heads, the amount of measured MOTE (by weight) was reduced by as much fifty percent (50%).",
"In field tests on John Deere 40 and 90 series corn heads, MOTE was decreased by almost seventy-five percent (75%) when the gathering chain [0000] speed was reduced by thirty-seven point five percent (37.5%).",
"On average, field tests in which a direct comparison was made between the eight (8) tooth gathering chain drive sprocket and a five (5) tooth sprocket, a sixty (60%) reduction in MOTE was produced.",
"[0036] The formula above also allows the calculation of an ear separation speed.",
"This speed represents how fast the ear and the corn stalk move down towards the stalk rolls and stripper plates.",
"Ear separation speed is important because it provides an upper limit to how large the actual stalk roll velocity can be.",
"Increasing ear separation speed reflects the increased ability of the stalk rolls to consume the necessary feet of corn stalk corresponding to both the height of the stalks and the ground speed of the combine.",
"The upper limit for ear separation speed is reached when the ear of corn has enough kinetic energy to actually damage the ear or start the kernel shelling process upon impact with the stripper plates (e.g. butt-shelling).",
"The upper limit of ear separation speed is dependent upon hybrid characteristics and crop conditions.",
"Applicant has operated at ear separation velocities in the range of six to thirteen (6.0-13.0) miles per hour with good results.",
"Equivalent ear separation velocities over thirteen (13) miles per hour have produced damage and premature shelling.",
"[0037] A second way to avoid corn stalk shear while the ear is attached is to change the actual number of teeth used on the internal gears of the gear box that drive the stalk engaging components.",
"A third way to allow unrestricted simultaneous vertical and horizontal pull and reduce corn stalk shear would be to lengthen the exposed fluted area (i.e. area of engagement) of the stalk roll.",
"[0038] A fourth way to allow unrestricted simultaneous vertical and horizontal pull and reduce corn stalk shear would be to increase the diameter of the stalk roll used to engage the stalk of the plant.",
"BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS [0039] FIG. 1 Top View of Corn Head (Prior Art) [0040] FIG. 2 Exploded Top View of Row Unit and Ear Separation Chamber (Prior Art) [0041] FIG. 3 Side view of Row Unit (Prior Art) [0042] FIG. 4 Row Unit Engaged with Corn Stalk—Prior to Ear Separation (Prior Art) [0043] FIG. 5 Row Unit Engaged with Corn Stalk—Ear Separation Point (Prior Art) [0044] FIG. 6 Row Unit Engaged with Corn Stalk—Post Ear-Separation (Prior Art) [0045] FIG. 7 Row Unit Engaged with Corn Stalk—Prior to Ear Separation [0046] FIG. 8 Row Unit Engaged with Corn Stalk—Ear Separation Point [0047] FIG. 9 Row Unit Engaged with Corn Stalk—Post Ear-Separation DETAILED DESCRIPTION Listing of the Elements [0048] [0000] Description Number Corn head 80 Row unit 90 Row unit dividers 100 Gathering chain paddles 110 8 tooth gathering chain drive sprocket (Prior Art) 112 5 tooth (kit) gathering chain drive sprocket 115 Gathering chain 120 Stripper plates 130 Row unit shear point 135 Ear Separation Chamber 140 Row unit covers 150 Gearbox 160 Transport vanes 170 Stalk Roll flutes 180 Stalk rolls 190 Cross Auger Trough 200 Cross Auger 220 Corn plant ear 300 Upper Portion of Corn Plant Stalk 325 Lower Portion of Corn Plant Stalk 330 [0049] The general operation of corn heads incorporating this invention in FIGS. 1 through 9 are similar to that of the operation of corn heads of the prior art as illustrated in FIGS. 1 , 2 and 3 .",
"As shown in FIG. 1 , corn heads are provided with several row crop dividers 100 for retrieving, lifting, and directing the rows of corn stalks toward their respective ear separation chambers 140 .",
"In FIGS. 1 and 3 the corn stalks are lifted and guided toward the row unit 90 by row unit dividers 100 .",
"Row unit cover 150 lifts and separates the corn plants.",
"[0050] FIG. 2 shows a top isolated view of the ear separation chamber 140 with row crop divider 100 and more particularly the gathering chains 120 and stalk rolls 190 of the corn row unit as typically found in the prior art.",
"The power to drive this corn head row unit arrangement is provided from a main drive shaft through a gearbox 160 as described in the prior art.",
"See U.S. Pat. No. 3,462,928.",
"[0051] FIG. 3 shows the side view of a row unit 90 found in the prior art from view AA found in FIG. 1 .",
"The stalk rolls 190 are typically powered by a gearbox 160 .",
"In FIG. 4 as the stalk rolls 190 rotate, the flutes on the stalk rolls 180 contact the sidewalls of the lower portion of the corn stalk 330 and pull the corn stalk downward.",
"Two stripper plates 130 located above the stalk rolls 190 and on both sides of the row of corn are spaced wide enough to allow the corn plant to pass between them but narrow enough to retain the ear of corn 300 containing the kernels of corn or grain.",
"This causes the ears of corn 300 to be separated from the corn plant as it is pulled downward through the stripping plates 130 .",
"The stalk rolls 190 continue to rotate ejecting the unwanted portions of the corn plant below the corn head 80 thereby returning the unwanted corn stalk portions to the field.",
"The gathering chain paddles 110 contact the ears of corn 300 and convey them to the cross auger trough 200 .",
"Where cross auger 220 conveys the ears of corn 300 towards the center of the corn head 80 for further conveyance through the combine feeder house and into the threshing area of the combine.",
"[0052] FIGS. 4-6 show an exploded cut-away view of the ear separation process as taught by the prior art from view B-B found in FIG. 1 .",
"In these drawings, the row unit cover 150 and a portion of the stripper plate 130 have been removed to allow a better representation of the process.",
"FIG. 4 shows the corn row unit 80 of the prior art engaged with a corn plant.",
"As shown by FIGS. 3 and 4 of the prior art, the corn plant first enters the stalk rolls 190 through the transport vanes 170 at the ends of the stalk rolls 190 .",
"The stalk roll flutes 180 contact the lower portion of the corn plant stalk 330 and begin to pull the corn plant stalk down towards the stripper plates 130 .",
"At the same time the gathering chain paddles 110 also enter the row unit 90 .",
"[0053] In FIG. 5 the corn plant stalk is simultaneously moving both laterally and vertically.",
"As taught by the prior art, a substantial number of corn plant stalks typically reach the end of the stalk rolls 190 before the stalk roll 190 has consumed the upper portion of the corn plant stalk 325 above the ear 300 .",
"The corn plant stalk hits row unit shear point 135 effectively stopping or restricting the lateral movement of the corn plant stalk and positions the upper portion of the corn plant stalk 325 to be sheared along with the corn plant ear 300 by the gathering chain paddles 110 .",
"[0054] As shown in FIG. 6 , when the lateral movement of the corn plant stalk has stopped at the end of the ear separation chamber 140 , the gathering chain paddle 110 moves into contact with and shears off the upper portion of the corn plant stalk 325 while the corn plant ear 300 is still attached to the corn plant stalk 325 .",
"Both the upper portion of the corn plant stalk 325 and the corn plant ear 300 are then conveyed into the cross auger trough 200 .",
"As shown in drawings 4 - 6 , the corn stalk point of restricted movement in the ear separation chamber 140 is defined as row unit shear point 135 .",
"Contact between the upper portion of corn stalks 325 and the row unit shear point 135 increases the amount of material other than ears (MOTE) that must be processed by the combine, reducing separation efficiencies and increasing horsepower requirements.",
"[0055] FIGS. 7-9 shows a similar sequence of events for the present invention with an improved result.",
"FIG. 7 shows the side view of the improved row unit 90 powered by a gearbox 160 .",
"As the stalk rolls 190 rotate, the flutes on the stalk rolls 180 contact the sidewalls of the lower portion of the corn plant stalk 330 and upper portion of the corn plant stalk 325 downward.",
"The gathering chain paddles 110 enter the ear separation chamber 140 at a lower velocity than in the prior art.",
"As shown in FIG. 8 , the rotation of the stalk rolls 190 pulls the corn plant stalk down towards the stripper plates 130 with less interference from the slower speed gathering chain paddles 110 allowing the ear of corn 300 to separate from the corn plant.",
"After ear separation the integrity of the corn plant stalk is substantially maintained so that both the upper portion 325 and lower portion of the corn plant stalk 330 are processed through the stalk rolls 190 .",
"As shown in FIGS. 8 and 9 , the gathering chain paddles 110 are substantially for engagement and conveyance of the corn plant ear 300 through the ear separation chamber 140 and to auger trough 200 .",
"In operation, substantially fewer corn stalks contact the row unit shear point 135 and the gearbox 160 at the end of the ear separation chamber 140 thereby reducing the incidence of the corn stalk shear which reduces MOTE and increases separation efficiencies.",
"[0056] FIG. 10 provides a final view of the present invention and presents all three steps of the ear separation process as described in FIGS. 7-9 in one view.",
"As in FIGS. 7-9 the row unit covers 150 and row unit dividers 100 have been removed from the drawings to allow a better view of the process and do not represent a change to the equipment or process.",
"In this particular figure, the invention is applied to a dual gathering chain 120 system.",
"The figure shows the corn plants entering the stalk rolls 190 from the left side of the figure and reflect the pre-ear separation step.",
"The next corn plants to the right in the figure represent corn plants in the ear separation process.",
"The post-ear separation process is represented both by the upper portion of the stalk 325 barely visible above the stripper plate 130 and row unit shear point 135 .",
"Throughout the process of the invention, contact between the corn plant stalk and gathering chain paddles 110 is minimized.",
"The slower speed gathering chain paddles 110 primarily contact ears 300 separated from the corn plant stalks for conveyance to the cross auger 220 and combine harvester reducing the possibility that a gathering chain paddle 110 will push into the upper portion of the corn plant stalk 325 and produce a shearing of the stalk against either the gearbox 160 or row unit shear point 135 .",
"[0057] Having described the preferred embodiment, other features of the present invention will undoubtedly occur to those versed in the art, as will numerous modifications and alterations in the embodiments of the invention illustrated, all of which may be achieved without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention."
] |
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
[0001] This invention is directed to a seat suspension apparatus effective on rough riding vehicles to absorb high jolts with minimum fore/aft movement.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0002] Seat suspension mechanisms support a person sitting on the seat while providing maximum comfort. These mechanisms are designed to provide comfort to the occupant while minimizing and absorbing or dampening bumps and jolts due to uneven, rough or rugged terrain the vehicle encounters. Design criteria include seat vibration and frequency of the seat and suspension of the seat and the vehicle, space limitation under the seat and above the seat to overhead restraints, the type of terrain likely to be encountered, limits of seat travel up and down to absorb shocks during operation, components costs, durability, and the like. The design criteria are particularly critical and generally more complicated for off-road vehicles, such as tractors, lift-trucks, heavy equipment, earth moving vehicles, and the like. These off-road vehicles have either relatively heavy-duty or no shock absorbing suspensions between the wheels and the chassis that do not prevent jolts, bumps, vibrations, and shocks from reaching the driver. Thus for these vehicles the seat and seat suspension must safely dampen and absorb these transmitted jolts in a safe manner while providing comfort and reducing fatigue. Such prior art suspensions have not adequately provided horizontal stability to enable the driver to maintain control when encountering rough terrain. As an example, it is not safe for the driver to be thrown fore-and-aft as the seat moves up and down due to rough terrain.
[0003] Typical prior art suspension mechanisms are illustrated and described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,241,894 to Okuyama, FIGS. 3a, 3b, and /3c. Other prior art suspension mechanisms, as illustrated in FIG. 1c of Okuyama employ a parallelogram arrangement of bi-arm linkage with one pair of adjacent ends of the arms pivotally connected to a bracket extending downwardly from the cushion frame and the opposite ends of the arms pivotally connected to the deck frame of the vehicle, with all pivot connections in a single plane. Biasing springs connected to the cushion frame or to arms and to the deck provide a cushioning effect. These prior art figures and description from Okuyama are incorporated herein by reference thereto. Still other prior art suspension mechanisms employ a scissors arrangement of bi-arm linkage with one pair of adjacent ends of the arms pivotally connected to the cushion frame and the opposite ends of the arms pivotally connected to the deck frame of the vehicle. Again biasing springs provide a cushioning effect by dampening the jolting movement of vehicle caused by roadway undulations and bumps. An attempt is made to choose the spring characteristics to bias rather than match the amplitude and frequency of the road bumps, in an effort to smooth the ride to avoid a bouncing effect.
[0004] Another typical prior art seat suspension apparatus in used on KUBOTA® vehicles includes four bellcranks connecting springs to bias movement of the seat frame. As illustrated in the schematic drawing of a side view of one of the bellcranks 11 of the KUBOTA® apparatus shown in FIG. 8 , pivot point 12 is connected to and located down at the base, the angle 15 between lines from pivot point 12 to connecting point 13 to the seat frame and from point 12 to connecting point 14 to the spring bias opens upwardly, and the spring biasing connecting point 14 is on an upper directed arm form the pivot point. As the seat is lowered and raised bellcrank 11 rotates through angle β with up and down movement c of the seat frame due to the weight of the person sitting on the seat and jolts from a rough roadway, angle 15 moves counter-clockwise as the seat is compressed and unfavorably the seat also moves fore-and-aft distance b, which is common. The bellcranks of the Kubota apparatus pivot from a non-upraised pivot point on the base frame with the two arms of each of the bellcranks extending upwardly at an acute angle from each other. A spring bias pulls horizontally from a distal end of one of the ends against force applied to the distal end of the second upright arm in an opposite direction as the seat frame is depressed. No portion of this bellcrank moves into spaces between the slide rails below the lower frame or into the set cushion area and so has only about one-half as much vertical travel for similar profile height. All of these elements of these prior art bellcranks are essentially opposite or contrary to the present invention, resulting in, among other deficiencies, the substantial fore and aft movement during compression and decompression of the suspension mechanism as well as higher spring bias per distance of movement close to upper position and lower bias per distance of movement as the seat moves toward the lowest position, resulting in a harsher ride. Other limitations of these seat suspension mechanisms and the ones that follow include complexity, high weight, higher costs, and relatively high profile inasmuch as the height of the seat above the vehicle frame is almost always at a premium, either to provide space under the seat or due to restricted head room for safety of the operator. One of the reasons the prior art suspension mechanisms have a high profile is that they have separate upper and lower frames/brackets.
[0005] U.S. Pat. No. 5,014,960 to Kimura discloses a seat suspension mechanism directed to absorbing horizontal fore-and-aft impact or jolting applied to the seat. U.S. Pat. No. 4,520,986 to Liljequist et al disclosed a seat assembly with reduced elevational space requirements. U.S. Pat. No. 5,014,960 to Harney discloses a seat adjustor mechanism with bellcrank with angles between diverging lines from the pivot point to the two connecting points of the bellcranks greater than 90 degrees and a pivot point that is not raised above the seat frame. U.S. Pat. No. 5,222,709 to Culley, Jr. et al discloses a scissor-type suspension mechanism with a bellcrank used for adjustment. U.S. Pat. No. 6,264,158 to Downey et al discloses a support structure for a vehicle seat assembly with fore-aft adjustment. U.S. Pat. No. 6,520,474 to Toshida et al discloses a slice mechanism for a vehicle seat. U.S. Patent Application Publication 2003/0201660 to Janscha et al discloses a seat suspension mechanism with a bellcrank with angles between diverging lines from the pivot point to the two connecting points of the bellcranks greater than 90 degrees and a pivot point that is not raised to extend above the seat frame. U.S. Pat. No. 5,938,164 to. Kargol et al discloses a seat adjuster for vehicle seat assemblies. U.S. Pat. No. 6,695,275 to Schuler et al discloses a device for longitudinal adjustment for vehicle seats. U.S. Patent Application Publication 2005/0006937 to Takata et al discloses a lifter for adjusting the height of a vehicle seat frame with a magnetic damper. U.S. Patent Application Publication 2005/0001133 to Bostrom et al discloses a scissor-type seat suspension mechanism for motor vehicles. U.S. Pat. No. 5,794,911 to Hill discloses a suspension seat using a parallelogram suspension mechanism. U.S. Patent Application Publication 2004/0144906 to Hill et al discloses a vehicle suspension mechanism with a bellcrank that operates differently and does not include the elements of the bellcranks of the present invention. U.S. Pat. No. 6,755,469 to Akaike et al discloses a typical parallelogram suspension mechanism. U.S. Pat. No. 6,851,753 to Akaike et al discloses a suspension system similar to his prior patent except for pivot members from the seat frame to a slide connection in the base frame. U.S. Pat. No. 6,830,297 to Gordon discloses a suspension seat with a link between the spring and the suspension mechanism similar to the prior art described above. U.S. Pat. No. 6,773,049 to Rupiper et al. discloses a suspension seat using a parallelogram suspension mechanism. U.S. Pat. No. 6,776, 384 to Igarashi discloses a seat suspension using a typical scissor cross-member suspension mechanism.
[0006] None of these devices disclose or even suggest the use of the bellcranks and suspension apparatus of the present invention, nor do they satisfy the needs of the prior art described herein above or attain the objects of the present invention provided herein below.
SUMMARY OF INVENTION
[0007] Important elements of an embodiment of a vehicle seat suspension of this invention include a plurality of, preferably four in number, bellcranks, each pivotally connected at a proximate median point of the bellcrank, to a pivot member raised above and structurally connected to a base frame adapted to be attached on mounting deck of a vehicle at a pivot point which is elevated above said base frame to a height that is above a seat cushion frame when the seat cushion frame is lowered due to the weight of a person sitting on the cushion or to a jolt from the roadway. These elevated pivot points preferably require that that the pivot members be positioned laterally so as to not contact the seat cushion frame when cushion frame is lowered and each pivot member extends above the seat cushion frame, and also a hollow opened from below into the cushion for each pivot member be provided so that when the cushion frame is lowered and each pivot member extends above the seat cushion frame, the cushion will not engage the pivot member.
[0008] An embodiment of the invention is a seat suspension apparatus adapted to be attached to a mounting deck of a vehicle, said apparatus including a lower frame comprising a pair of longitudinal side members and four pivot members structurally attached and extending upwardly from the side members of the lower frame. The term “frame” is not limited as to shape and includes square rigid frames as pictured, but also other shapes. The term “longitudinal” is used to define relative directions and does not limit the length of the side members. These pivot members are generally referred to as providing elevated pivot points, centers, or connections for the median pivot connection of the bellcranks. The apparatus also includes four bellcrank members disposed to pivot or rotate in vertical planes, each bellcrank member including a median pivot section each pivotally connected to a distal end of the four pivot members an upper bellcrank arm comprising a distal end, and a lower bellcrank arm comprising a distal end. The apparatus further includes an upper seat cushion frame pivotally connected to the distal ends of the four upper bellcrank arms, and spring biasing means pivotally connected to the distal ends of the four lower bellcrank arms to provide spring biasing against downward movement of the seat cushion frame. When the upper seat cushion frame is depressed, the median pivot sections of the bellcrank members extend above an upper edge of the upper seat cushion frame and the distal ends of the lower bellcrank arms rotate to a height below a lower edge of the lower frame.
[0009] It is preferred that the distal ends of the lower bellcrank arms of the bellcranks be offset laterally inwardly. It is also preferred that the four bellcranks be physically coupled together maintaining them in a phase relationship to each other. It is further preferred that the spring biasing means pivotally connected to distal ends of the lower bellcrank arms include a pair of tension springs connected to the upper seat cushion frame, although connection to the lower frame operates well. It is also preferred that an angle between two diverging lines each from a central axis of a pivot connection on the median pivot section of the bellcrank to central axes of pivot connection points on the distal ends of the upper and lower arms be less than ninety degrees. It is more preferred that the angle between the two diverging lines be in the range of 30 to 90 degrees and most preferred in the range of 40 to 70 degrees. It is also preferred that the upper and lower arms of the bellcranks rotate through proximate equal angles relative to each other above and below a median position corresponding to median height position of the upper seat cushion frame. It is further preferred that apparatus further include an adjustment means to adjust the spring bias force. It is also preferred that the spring biasing means include a pair of springs each attached at one pair of ends to the distal ends of the lower bellcrank arms and that the apparatus further include adjustment means that includes connecting a second pair of ends of the springs to a screw shaft extending through an opening in the upper seat cushion frame and terminating in an adjustment knob to turn the shaft to adjust the spring bias. It is further preferred that apparatus further include a seat cushion attached on top of the seat cushion frame, the cushion including a hollow space above the frame to receive the median pivot sections of the bellcrank members upon downward movement of the seat cushion frame. It is also preferred that apparatus further include a seat cushion attached on top of the seat cushion frame wherein the seat cushion includes four cavities cut out from below to receive the median pivot sections of the bellcrank members upon downward movement of the seat cushion frame. It is further preferred that the apparatus further include spacer mounting means adapted to attach the lower frame to the mounting deck at a height above the mounting deck sufficient to allow the distal end of the lower arm of the bellcranks to clear the mounting deck when rotated fully downwardly. It is also preferred that apparatus further include a fore and aft slide means that includes laterally spaced longitudinal sliding rails adapted to be attached onto the mounting deck of a vehicle, said means to support the lower frame and allow said frame to slide longitudinally to a multiplicity of longitudinal positions.
[0010] A second embodiment of the invention is a seat suspension apparatus adapted to be attached to a mounting deck of a vehicle, said apparatus including a lower frame including longitudinal side members and spacer mounting means adapted to attach the lower frame to the mounting deck at a height above the mounting deck. The apparatus further includes four pivot members structurally attached to and extending upwardly from outer edges of the side members of the lower frame. The apparatus also includes four bellcrank members disposed to pivot in vertical planes, each bellcrank including a median pivot section pivotally connected to an outer surface of a distal end of the pivot members, an upper arm and a lower arm. The apparatus further includes an upper seat cushion frame pivotally connected to distal ends of the upper bellcrank arms, and spring biasing means pivotally connected to distal ends of the lower bellcrank arms to provide spring biasing against downward movement of the seat cushion frame. The height of the distal ends of the pivot members is sufficient that when the upper seat cushion frame is depressed, the median pivot sections of the bellcrank members extend above an upper edge of the upper seat cushion frame and the distal ends of the lower bellcrank arms rotate to a height below a lower edge of the lower frame. Further, the height of the lower frame above the mounting deck is sufficient to allow the distal ends of the lower arms of the bellcranks to clear the mounting deck when rotated fully downwardly. The above-preferred embodiments, where applicable, apply equally to this embodiment.
[0011] A third embodiment of this invention is a seat suspension apparatus adapted to be attached to a mounting deck of a vehicle, said apparatus including: a lower frame that includes a pair of longitudinal side members and four pivot members structurally attached and extending upwardly from the side members of the lower frame. The apparatus further includes four bellcrank members disposed to rotate in vertical planes, each bellcrank member including a median pivot section each pivotally connected to a distal end of the four pivot members an upper bellcrank arm including a distal end, and a lower bellcrank arm including a distal end offset laterally inwardly. The apparatus further includes an upper seat cushion frame pivotally connected to the distal ends of the four upper bellcrank arms, and spring biasing means pivotally connected to the distal ends of the four lower bellcrank arms to provide spring biasing against downward movement of the seat cushion frame. As the upper seat cushion frame is depressed, the median pivot sections of the bellcrank members extend above an upper edge of the upper seat cushion frame and the distal ends of the lower bellcrank arms are sufficiently offset to allow rotation to a height below a lower edge of the lower frame. The above-preferred embodiments, where applicable, apply equally to this embodiment.
[0012] Other important elements preferably include a plurality of bellcranks, each bellcrank with an angle less than ninety degrees between diverging lines from the pivot point to two separated connecting points, one point adapted to be pivotally connected to a biasing spring and the second point adapted to be pivotally connected to the seat cushion frame. It is most preferably in the range of 40 to 70 degrees. It is also preferred that the connecting point for the spring bias be on a downwardly extending arm from the pivot point. It is also preferred that the angle between the diverging lines from the pivot point to two separated connecting points of each bellcrank move pivot downwardly as the seat frame is lowered.
[0013] A fourth embodiment of this invention is a seat suspension apparatus comprising four offset bellcranks, each including an upper arm with a proximal end and a distal end and a lower arm with a proximal end and a distal end, wherein the proximal ends are structurally joined, a central pivot opening through the proximal ends, which are in a vertical first plane with the distal end of the upper arm, a first opening through the distal end of the upper arm adapted to be pivotally connected to a seat frame, a second opening through the distal end of the lower arm adapted to be pivotally connected to a spring biasing means, an offset extension of the lower arm extending from a median section proximately horizontally from the first plane to a distal section of the lower arm extending perpendicular therefrom in a second plane parallel to the first plane, and wherein a first line drawn through the center points of the central pivot opening and the first opening and a second line drawn on the first plane through the center point of the central pivot opening and the central axis of the second opening are at an angle of less than 90 degrees and greater than 30 degrees.
[0014] A fifth embodiment of this invention is a seat suspension apparatus including four offset bellcranks, each including: an upper arm with a proximal end and a distal end and a lower arm with a proximal end and a distal end, wherein the proximal ends are structurally joined, a central pivot opening through the proximal ends, which are in a vertical first plane with the distal end of the upper arm, a first opening through the distal end of the upper arm adapted to be pivotally connected to a seat frame, a second opening through the distal end of the lower arm adapted to be pivotally connected to a spring biasing means, an offset extension of the lower arm extending from a median section proximately horizontally from the first plane to a distal section of the lower arm extending perpendicular therefrom in a second plane parallel to the first plane, and wherein a first line drawn through the center points of the central pivot opening and the first opening and a second line drawn on the first plane through the center point of the central pivot opening and the central axis of the second opening are at an angle of less than 90 degrees and greater than 30 degrees.
[0015] It is an object of an embodiment of the present invention to provide a seat suspension apparatus for a vehicle that utilizes a low profile between the seat cushion and the mounting deck of the vehicle.
[0016] It is a further object of an embodiment of the present invention to provide a seat suspension apparatus for a vehicle that utilizes a low profile between the seat cushion and the mounting deck of the vehicle when it is not feasible to adjust pre-existing longitudinal fore and aft slide rails used to support the seat suspension apparatus and allow the apparatus to slide back and forth to a multiplicity of positions.
[0017] It is an additional object of an embodiment of the present invention to provide a seat suspension apparatus for a vehicle that utilizes a low profile between the seat cushion and the mounting deck of the vehicle when it is feasible to laterally adjust longitudinally aligned fore and aft slide rails used to support the seat suspension apparatus and allow the apparatus to slide back and forth to a multiplicity of positions.
[0018] It is a further object of an embodiment of the present invention to provide a seat suspension apparatus for a vehicle that dampens the jolts of a rough terrain and does not require inclusion of a standard dampening mechanism, such as a shock absorber.
[0019] It is an additional object of an embodiment of the present invention to provide a seat suspension apparatus for a vehicle wherein the stiffness of the spring bias against downward movement of the seat is reduced as the seat moves downward also reducing the strain on the spring attachments, and resulting in a softer, more comfortable ride.
[0020] It is an additional object of an embodiment of the present invention to provide a seat suspension apparatus for a vehicle wherein adjustment of the spring bias tension is handy and may be safely and easily reached by the driver while sitting on the seat.
[0021] It is a further object of an embodiment of the present invention to provide a seat suspension apparatus for a vehicle that utilizes a part of the seat, namely a standard seat frame, as part of the suspension apparatus to save parts and vertical space below the seat.
[0022] It is an additional object of an embodiment of the present invention to provide a seat suspension apparatus for a vehicle that utilizes a low profile between the seat cushion and the mounting deck of the vehicle without structural interference problems or sacrificing comfort of the driver sitting on the seat.
[0023] It is an object of an embodiment of the present invention to provide a seat suspension apparatus that allows minimal fore and aft movement as the seat frame moves up and down due to rough terrain.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0024] FIG. 1 is a front plan view of a vehicle seat with the suspension apparatus of the present invention supporting the seat.
[0025] FIG. 2 is a left side elevational view of said vehicle seat with the apparatus.
[0026] FIG. 3 is a top view of said apparatus with the seat removed.
[0027] FIG. 4 is an enlarged front plan view of said apparatus with the seat cushion and sides of knob cut-away. (note to John: the seat cushion is cross-sectioned and some of the knob is missing)
[0028] FIG. 5 is a right side plan view of said apparatus with the seat cushion in its uppermost position of travel and partially cut-away.
[0029] FIG. 6 is a right side plan view of said apparatus with the seat cushion in its almost lowermost position of travel and partially cut-away.
[0030] FIG. 7 is provided on four sheets, 7 A, 7 B, 7 C, and 7 D and is an exploded perspective view of said apparatus without seat cushions.
[0031] FIG. 8 is a perspective view of a typical bellcrank of the prior art.
[0032] FIG. 9 is an enlarged perspective view of a preferred bellcrank of the present invention.
[0033] FIG. 10 is top view diagram of a second embodiment of a seat apparatus of the present invention with the seat removed.
DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
[0034] Preloading the spring bias is to balance the weight of the particular operator so that he is statically positioned approximately at mid-height of the vertical travel limits of the seat suspension system.
[0035] Seat suspension apparatus 10 of the present invention uses seat frame 22 as the upper frame of the suspension apparatus providing a lower silhouette. As shown in FIGS. 1, 2 , and later figures, seat back 16 including a hidden frame with foam and covering and seat cushion 17 including foam and covering are all securely attached to seat frame 22 . Standard seat belt latch 19 and seat belt retractor 18 are securely attached to frame 22 . The seat is adjustable and slides 46 and 46 ′ slide frontwardly and rearwardly and locked in a chosen position using standard mechanisms with seat position release lever 28 , which disengages seat position release latch 29 pivoting on release pivot connection 30 as shown on FIG. 3 . Throughout the drawings, where there are two essentially identical parts or elements the right side part of the two is without a prime and the identical part on the left is affixed with a prime (′). Further, throughout the drawings, where there are four essentially identical parts or elements the right front side part of the four is without a prime and the identical part on the right rear is affixed with a prime (′). Continuing with the four essentially identical parts including right and left hand versions where applicable, the parts or elements the front left side of the four is affixed with a double prime (″) and the identical part on the right rear is affixed with a triple prime (′″). As shown on FIGS. 1 through 3 , four bellcranks, 25 (for the purpose of clarity and simplicity the remaining three essentially identical elements, including but not limited to the other bellcranks, 25 ′, 25 ″, and 25 ′″, are not listed but are included by the reference to “four” parts). As the seat moves up and down the four bellcranks 25 pivot on four pivot centers 24 , located on four vertical pivot posts 23 , which are securely connected to and extend upwardly from two longitudinal side members 53 and 53 ′ of base frame 21 . All of the pivot connections of the four bell cranks 25 , that is four pivotal connections to four bellcrank pivot centers 24 , four pivotal connections to four spring bias connection centers 36 , and four pivotal connections to four seat frame connection centers 38 , utilize a total of twelve shoulder bolts 37 though the respective holes and secured with twelve nuts 43 , with bushings 40 allowing the pivotal connections to freely pivot. Where the parts are not clearly shown on FIGS. 1 through 6 , they are found on the exploded views of FIG. 7 . For example the four bellcranks 25 pivotally connect through four seat frame connection central axes 38 to seat frame 22 through horizontal holes 59 in four vertical flanges 58 depending downwardly from frame 22 . While two tension support springs 31 and 31 ′ pull on four pivotal connections 36 on four lower end sections 50 of the four bellcranks 25 , the four pivotal connection central axes 38 on four upper end sections 48 of four bellcranks 25 push upward on four seat frame connection flanges 58 welded to seat frame 22 . As shown in FIG. 6 , the tension in springs 31 is increased and reduced by rotating weight adjustment knob 20 to adjust for the weight of the rider. The four bellcranks 25 are phased longitudinally by phase links 35 and 35 ′ pivotally connected at the front ends to pivot connections 36 and 36 ′ respectively and at the rear ends to pivot connections 36 ′ and 36 ′″ respectively thereby maintaining pivotal connections 38 at the same height. Similarly, as shown in FIG. 7B , rear bellcranks, 25 ′ and 25 ′″, are phased together by real lateral phase link connecting member 27 welded at its ends to bellcrank off-set sections 52 ′ and 52 ′″ and front bellcranks, 25 and 25 ″, are phased together by front lateral phase link connecting member 26 welded to bellcrank off-set sections 52 and 52 ″, to keep the four bell cranks 25 at the same angular relationship. These lateral and longitudinal phase links coordinate to always maintain a “level” seat frame 22 and seat 17 . As shown in FIGS. 7A & C, front hook ends 63 and 63 ′ of tension springs 31 and 31 ′ respectively hook into holes 61 and 61 ′ through spring connection flange 60 through which screw shaft 32 threadably extends horizontally through threaded nut 65 welded to flange 60 so that flange 60 moves forward or rearward as knob 20 is rotated. Rear hook ends 64 and 64 ′ of springs 31 and 31 ′ respectively hook into holes 62 and 62 ′ through spring attachment cross-member 33 , which is welded transversely between rear sections of longitudinal phase-link members 35 and 35 ′. Cross-member 33 moves fore/aft and up/down with seat 17 up/down motions, but it does not rotate which would cause extra, damaging stresses in the spring end hooks being frictionally urged to follow such rotation. As shown in FIG. 7D , base frame 21 may be of relatively thin gauge metal as it is supported and reinforced by upper fore/aft slides 46 and 46 ′ threadably attached by bolts 47 through base frame 21 , upper slides 46 and 46 ′ having a box-shaped cross-section with a lengthwise lower slot to slideably receive lower fore/aft lower slides 45 and 45 ′ respectively, which have a “U” cross-sectional shape with lengthwise outwardly extending flanges to engage the bottom lengthwise inward extending flanges of upper slides 46 and 46 ′. Lower fore/aft slides 45 and 45 ′ are attached by bolts 44 though vertical holes in the bottom wall of the slides to mounting deck of the vehicle, not shown. Although not shown, bumpers to provide cushioning end points by meeting phase bars and the like. Of particular interest is FIG. 9 together with FIGS. 5 and 6 showing the elements of bellcrank 25 , which is identical to rear right bellcrank 25 ′ and is the mirror image of front left bellcrank 25 ″ and rear left bellcrank 25 ′″. Bellcrank 25 rotates on pivot connection 24 located on vertical post 23 extending upwardly from lower base frame 21 . Bellcrank 25 rotates on pivot connection 24 around horizontal central axis 34 of horizontal hole 55 through the bellcrank located in median section 49 of the bellcrank. As seat frame 22 is lowered and raised bellcrank 25 rotates through angle a with up and down movement distance c′ of the seat frame due to the weight of the person sitting on the seat and jolts from a rough roadway; and most favorably the seat only moves fore-and-aft a small distance b′. Force is applied to bellcrank 25 by the downward movement of upper seat frame 22 through the arc of angle α of connection 38 and countervailing force is applied by the spring bias through the arc of angle α of connection 36 . For a suspension apparatus of the present invention a total movement up/down of about one and one-half inches results in a fore/aft movement of only about an almost negligible one-eighth inch. Bellcrank 25 is pivotally connected to the seat frame 22 through pivotal connection 38 , which is horizontal hole 57 through a distal end of upraised arm 48 of bellcrank 25 , the hole with horizontal central axis 39 . Bellcrank 25 is pivotally connected though connection 36 to the longitudinal phase-link 35 essentially connecting it to the spring bias pivotal connection 36 including horizontal hole 56 through a distal end of lower arm 50 of bellcrank 25 , the hole with horizontal central axis 54 . Lower arm 50 is off-set horizontally from the plane of pivotal connections 34 and 39 and is connected to median section 49 by horizontal arm 52 . A slot is shown cut laterally across about half the width of arm 48 proximate median section 49 to facilitate bending during some manufacturing processes, but is not necessary nor desirable in most constructions. Angle 51 is between straight line 67 drawn from bellcrank pivot central axis 34 and seat frame connection central axis 39 in the vertical plane of upright arm 48 and straight line 69 drawn in the same vertical plane parallel with straight line 68 drawn from central axis 54 of connection 36 to spring bias in the plane of arm 50 to an extension of central axis 34 is less than ninety degrees. This angle is more preferably in the range of ninety degrees to thirty degrees, and most preferably in the range of 50 to 80 degrees. For bellcranks of the present invention where arm 50 is not offset and all three connections are in one vertical plane, this angle is described as the angle between line 67 from connection pivot central axis 34 to connection seat frame central axis 39 and line 68 from connection pivot central axis 34 to connection spring bias central axis 54 . For the purpose of clarity and simplicity, in the specification and in the claims, whether on the non offset or the offset versions of the bellcranks, the said angle is defined by and named by the following language: “an angle between two diverging lines each from a central axis of a pivot connection on the median pivot section of the bellcrank to central axes of pivot connection points on the distal ends of the upper and lower arms”. Since the rotation of the bellcrank and the angular movements of the connection points are not affected by the offset, this simpler description of the relative positions of the connection axis includes the versions with the connections in the same plane, that is on a flat piece of metal, as well as the offset version illustrated in FIG. 9 . Actually, the bellcranks as illustrated in FIGS. 5 and 6 show the movement of non offset versions and the angle described above. For the sake of brevity the elements and the movement of the balance of the essentially identical bellcranks are not further described although they are illustrated in the balance of the figures. In FIG. 5 seat 17 , including foam seat cushion 42 and seat frame 22 , is in the full up position with springs 31 and 31 ′ in minimum tension and arms 48 and 48 ′ in full up-right position. As seat 17 , including seat frame 22 , is depressed in FIG. 6 to an almost full downwardly position, arms 48 and 48 ′ rotate downwardly, springs 31 and 31 ′ are in increased tension providing spring bias, and the upper ends of pivot posts 23 and 23 ′ and median sections 49 and 49 ′ of bellcranks 25 and 25 ′ now extend into cavities 41 and 41 ′ of foam seat cushion 42 . It should be observed that the fore/aft position of seat frame 22 is hardly different between FIGS. 5 and 6 . A reason for this advantage is that bellcrank 25 moves through almost equal angles from top to mid to bottom positions. Thus, the seat frame positions fore/aft in full upward and full downward positions are essentially identical and only slightly rearward of mid height position. The rotational travel of seat frame connections 38 and 38 ′ are nearly symmetrical above and below the mid height of the seat frame connection. It is preferred that line 68 never rotate more than ninety degrees from the force line of action of the spring bias in its most stretched condition, as a ninety degree angle produces the maximum restoring torque to urge the seat and rider back upwards during the oscillatory travel of the seat. If this angle of line 68 rotates past ninety degrees the restoring torque is lessened and detracts from the rider's comfort. As shown in FIG. 6 the distal ends of arms 50 and 50 ′, pivotal connections 36 and 36 ′ of the bellcrank to the spring bias, and phase link 35 all move downwardly below the upper edges of slide track 46 as the seat frame moves toward its most downward position. As it is important for the phase links and the pivotal connections be as low as possible, the offset of arm 50 inwardly by horizontal offset arm 52 allows the distal ends of arms 50 and 50 ′ and phase links 35 and 35 ′ to move unimpeded between slide tracks 46 and 46 ′ below the height of the slide tracks. These offsets of the bellcrank connection arms allow them to connect to the spring bias means and allow full vertical travel with a higher spring bias throughout the movement with the full bellcrank rotation. In the above embodiment the pairs of slide tracks 45 / 46 and 45 ′/ 46 ′ are about a foot long and about a foot apart and the offset bellcranks are preferred. An embodiment is shown in FIG. 10 , a diagram to illustrate the present invention adapted to be used on a mounting deck of a vehicle with no slide tracks to adjust the seat position longitudinally front to back. In this embodiment flat bellcranks of this invention are used. On these vehicles holes are typically provided through the deck on which to bolt the seat apparatus and here the same holes are used that were used to attach the above slide tracks. In this embodiment four spacer mounting pad washers 79 are used to raise frame 21 ′ off the deck about an inch when bolted onto the deck with bolts 47 ′. The side views of this embodiment are essentially identical to those illustrated in FIGS. 5 and 6 with the diagonal lines showing the off-set removed and the movement, attachment and connection of the various parts are essentially identical. Four vertical pivot cantilever posts 77 , essentially identical to the four posts 23 , extend upwardly from the outer edges of longitudinal side members 71 and 71 ′ of base frame 21 ′. Four vertical flat bellcranks 70 pivot in vertical planes on pivot connections at the distal ends of four posts 77 . Springs 31 ″ and 31 ′″ connect at the front ends to spring connection flange 72 , which is essentially identical to flange 60 and operates and is connected to the adjusment mechanism in the same manner as are all of the attachment members and the phase links of this embodiment. Single parts that are essentially identical to the corresponding parts of the first embodiment are marked with a prime (′) and are not called out herein. The rear ends of the springs are connected to cross-member spring attachment member 74 , which, with its extended length, is attached to longitudinal phase links 76 and 76 ′, which are pivotally connected on both ends on the outside of the bellcrank lower arm pivot connections. Front lateral phase link member 73 is rigidly connected to the lower arms of the front bell cranks 70 and 70 ″. Rear lateral phase link member 75 is rigidly attached to the lower arms of rear bellcranks 70 ′ and 70 ′″. The distal ends of the upper arms of the four bellcranks 70 are pivotally connected to upper seat frame through four connections 78 .
List of Reference Numbers Emboldened in Text 10 seat suspension apparatus of this invention 11 bellcrank of prior art 12 pivot point 13 connecting point on seat frame 14 connecting point on spring bias 15 angle between lines from pivot to connecting points 16 seat back, covered foam and frame 17 seat, covered foam and frame 18 seat-belt retractor 19 seat-belt latch 20 knob for spring tension adjustment 21 base frame 22 seat frame 23 vertical pivot posts (four) 24 pivot connections (four) 25 bellcranks (four) 26 front lateral phase-link 27 rear lateral phase-link 28 seat position release lever 29 seat position release 30 release pivot connection 31 tension support springs (two) 32 threaded spring tension rod 33 cross-member spring attachment 34 central axis for pivot connections (four) 35 longitudinal phase-links (two) 36 pivotal connections bellcrank to spring bias (four) 37 shoulder bolts (twelve) 38 pivotal connections bellcrank to seat frame (four) 39 central axis for connection 38 40 bushings on shoulder bolts to facilitate pivoting 41 cavities in foam cushion for bellcranks (four) 42 foam seat cushion 43 nuts for shoulder bolts (twelve) 44 bolt connections to vehicle floor deck 45 lower fore/aft slides (two) 46 upper fore/aft slides (two) 47 bolt/nut connection upper slide to base frame 48 arms of bellcranks connected seat frame (four) 49 central sections of bellcranks at pivot connections (four) 50 arms of bellcranks connected to spring bias (four) 51 angle on bellcranks between lines from pivot point to spring bias and seat frame connection points 52 bellcrank off-set section 53 longitudinal side members of frame 21 54 central axis of connection 36 55 holes through pivot section of bellcranks 56 holes through spring-bias section of cranks 57 holes through seat-frame section of cranks 58 seat frame connection flanges (four) 59 holes through flanges 60 spring connection flange 61 holes through flange for spring connection 62 holes through cross member for spring connection 63 hooks on front ends of springs 64 hooks on rear ends of springs 65 support for tension rod 66 horizontal holes in pivot posts 67 line from central axis 34 to central axis 39 68 line from central axis 34 to central axis 54 69 line parallel to line 68 through central axis 34 70 non off-set bellcranks (four) 71 longitudinal side members of frame 21′ (two) 72 spring connection flange 73 front lateral phase-link 74 cross-member spring attachment 75 rear lateral phase-link 76 longitudinal phase-links (two) 77 vertical pivot posts (four) 78 connections bellcrank to seat frame (four) 79 spacer mounting pads (four) b′ fore/aft movement as seat lowers and raises c′ up and down movement of seat α angle of rotation of bellcrank β angle of rotation of prior art bellcrank b fore/aft movement of prior art c up and down movement of prior art seat
[0036] While this invention has been described with reference to specific embodiments disclosed herein, it is not confined to the details set forth and the patent is intended to include modifications and changes, which may come within and extend from the following claims. | A suspension for a vehicle seat having four bellcranks which guide the seat substantially vertically, oscillate on a central pivot on elevated stationary pivots mounted on a lower frame, with upper arms of the bellcranks pivotally attached to a seat cushion upper frame and the lower arms indirectly attached to adjustable tension springs that are attached to the upper frame; the lower ends with substantial inward offsets so as to rotate downwardly toward the mounting deck of the vehicle while clearing the lower frame and adjustable sliders; the bellcranks being coupled longitudinally and laterally to stay in phase and keep the upper frame level. | Provide a concise summary of the essential information conveyed in the given context. | [
"FIELD OF THE INVENTION [0001] This invention is directed to a seat suspension apparatus effective on rough riding vehicles to absorb high jolts with minimum fore/aft movement.",
"BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION [0002] Seat suspension mechanisms support a person sitting on the seat while providing maximum comfort.",
"These mechanisms are designed to provide comfort to the occupant while minimizing and absorbing or dampening bumps and jolts due to uneven, rough or rugged terrain the vehicle encounters.",
"Design criteria include seat vibration and frequency of the seat and suspension of the seat and the vehicle, space limitation under the seat and above the seat to overhead restraints, the type of terrain likely to be encountered, limits of seat travel up and down to absorb shocks during operation, components costs, durability, and the like.",
"The design criteria are particularly critical and generally more complicated for off-road vehicles, such as tractors, lift-trucks, heavy equipment, earth moving vehicles, and the like.",
"These off-road vehicles have either relatively heavy-duty or no shock absorbing suspensions between the wheels and the chassis that do not prevent jolts, bumps, vibrations, and shocks from reaching the driver.",
"Thus for these vehicles the seat and seat suspension must safely dampen and absorb these transmitted jolts in a safe manner while providing comfort and reducing fatigue.",
"Such prior art suspensions have not adequately provided horizontal stability to enable the driver to maintain control when encountering rough terrain.",
"As an example, it is not safe for the driver to be thrown fore-and-aft as the seat moves up and down due to rough terrain.",
"[0003] Typical prior art suspension mechanisms are illustrated and described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,241,894 to Okuyama, FIGS. 3a, 3b, and /3c.",
"Other prior art suspension mechanisms, as illustrated in FIG. 1c of Okuyama employ a parallelogram arrangement of bi-arm linkage with one pair of adjacent ends of the arms pivotally connected to a bracket extending downwardly from the cushion frame and the opposite ends of the arms pivotally connected to the deck frame of the vehicle, with all pivot connections in a single plane.",
"Biasing springs connected to the cushion frame or to arms and to the deck provide a cushioning effect.",
"These prior art figures and description from Okuyama are incorporated herein by reference thereto.",
"Still other prior art suspension mechanisms employ a scissors arrangement of bi-arm linkage with one pair of adjacent ends of the arms pivotally connected to the cushion frame and the opposite ends of the arms pivotally connected to the deck frame of the vehicle.",
"Again biasing springs provide a cushioning effect by dampening the jolting movement of vehicle caused by roadway undulations and bumps.",
"An attempt is made to choose the spring characteristics to bias rather than match the amplitude and frequency of the road bumps, in an effort to smooth the ride to avoid a bouncing effect.",
"[0004] Another typical prior art seat suspension apparatus in used on KUBOTA® vehicles includes four bellcranks connecting springs to bias movement of the seat frame.",
"As illustrated in the schematic drawing of a side view of one of the bellcranks 11 of the KUBOTA® apparatus shown in FIG. 8 , pivot point 12 is connected to and located down at the base, the angle 15 between lines from pivot point 12 to connecting point 13 to the seat frame and from point 12 to connecting point 14 to the spring bias opens upwardly, and the spring biasing connecting point 14 is on an upper directed arm form the pivot point.",
"As the seat is lowered and raised bellcrank 11 rotates through angle β with up and down movement c of the seat frame due to the weight of the person sitting on the seat and jolts from a rough roadway, angle 15 moves counter-clockwise as the seat is compressed and unfavorably the seat also moves fore-and-aft distance b, which is common.",
"The bellcranks of the Kubota apparatus pivot from a non-upraised pivot point on the base frame with the two arms of each of the bellcranks extending upwardly at an acute angle from each other.",
"A spring bias pulls horizontally from a distal end of one of the ends against force applied to the distal end of the second upright arm in an opposite direction as the seat frame is depressed.",
"No portion of this bellcrank moves into spaces between the slide rails below the lower frame or into the set cushion area and so has only about one-half as much vertical travel for similar profile height.",
"All of these elements of these prior art bellcranks are essentially opposite or contrary to the present invention, resulting in, among other deficiencies, the substantial fore and aft movement during compression and decompression of the suspension mechanism as well as higher spring bias per distance of movement close to upper position and lower bias per distance of movement as the seat moves toward the lowest position, resulting in a harsher ride.",
"Other limitations of these seat suspension mechanisms and the ones that follow include complexity, high weight, higher costs, and relatively high profile inasmuch as the height of the seat above the vehicle frame is almost always at a premium, either to provide space under the seat or due to restricted head room for safety of the operator.",
"One of the reasons the prior art suspension mechanisms have a high profile is that they have separate upper and lower frames/brackets.",
"[0005] U.S. Pat. No. 5,014,960 to Kimura discloses a seat suspension mechanism directed to absorbing horizontal fore-and-aft impact or jolting applied to the seat.",
"U.S. Pat. No. 4,520,986 to Liljequist et al disclosed a seat assembly with reduced elevational space requirements.",
"U.S. Pat. No. 5,014,960 to Harney discloses a seat adjustor mechanism with bellcrank with angles between diverging lines from the pivot point to the two connecting points of the bellcranks greater than 90 degrees and a pivot point that is not raised above the seat frame.",
"U.S. Pat. No. 5,222,709 to Culley, Jr. et al discloses a scissor-type suspension mechanism with a bellcrank used for adjustment.",
"U.S. Pat. No. 6,264,158 to Downey et al discloses a support structure for a vehicle seat assembly with fore-aft adjustment.",
"U.S. Pat. No. 6,520,474 to Toshida et al discloses a slice mechanism for a vehicle seat.",
"U.S. Patent Application Publication 2003/0201660 to Janscha et al discloses a seat suspension mechanism with a bellcrank with angles between diverging lines from the pivot point to the two connecting points of the bellcranks greater than 90 degrees and a pivot point that is not raised to extend above the seat frame.",
"U.S. Pat. No. 5,938,164 to.",
"Kargol et al discloses a seat adjuster for vehicle seat assemblies.",
"U.S. Pat. No. 6,695,275 to Schuler et al discloses a device for longitudinal adjustment for vehicle seats.",
"U.S. Patent Application Publication 2005/0006937 to Takata et al discloses a lifter for adjusting the height of a vehicle seat frame with a magnetic damper.",
"U.S. Patent Application Publication 2005/0001133 to Bostrom et al discloses a scissor-type seat suspension mechanism for motor vehicles.",
"U.S. Pat. No. 5,794,911 to Hill discloses a suspension seat using a parallelogram suspension mechanism.",
"U.S. Patent Application Publication 2004/0144906 to Hill et al discloses a vehicle suspension mechanism with a bellcrank that operates differently and does not include the elements of the bellcranks of the present invention.",
"U.S. Pat. No. 6,755,469 to Akaike et al discloses a typical parallelogram suspension mechanism.",
"U.S. Pat. No. 6,851,753 to Akaike et al discloses a suspension system similar to his prior patent except for pivot members from the seat frame to a slide connection in the base frame.",
"U.S. Pat. No. 6,830,297 to Gordon discloses a suspension seat with a link between the spring and the suspension mechanism similar to the prior art described above.",
"U.S. Pat. No. 6,773,049 to Rupiper et al.",
"discloses a suspension seat using a parallelogram suspension mechanism.",
"U.S. Pat. No. 6,776, 384 to Igarashi discloses a seat suspension using a typical scissor cross-member suspension mechanism.",
"[0006] None of these devices disclose or even suggest the use of the bellcranks and suspension apparatus of the present invention, nor do they satisfy the needs of the prior art described herein above or attain the objects of the present invention provided herein below.",
"SUMMARY OF INVENTION [0007] Important elements of an embodiment of a vehicle seat suspension of this invention include a plurality of, preferably four in number, bellcranks, each pivotally connected at a proximate median point of the bellcrank, to a pivot member raised above and structurally connected to a base frame adapted to be attached on mounting deck of a vehicle at a pivot point which is elevated above said base frame to a height that is above a seat cushion frame when the seat cushion frame is lowered due to the weight of a person sitting on the cushion or to a jolt from the roadway.",
"These elevated pivot points preferably require that that the pivot members be positioned laterally so as to not contact the seat cushion frame when cushion frame is lowered and each pivot member extends above the seat cushion frame, and also a hollow opened from below into the cushion for each pivot member be provided so that when the cushion frame is lowered and each pivot member extends above the seat cushion frame, the cushion will not engage the pivot member.",
"[0008] An embodiment of the invention is a seat suspension apparatus adapted to be attached to a mounting deck of a vehicle, said apparatus including a lower frame comprising a pair of longitudinal side members and four pivot members structurally attached and extending upwardly from the side members of the lower frame.",
"The term “frame”",
"is not limited as to shape and includes square rigid frames as pictured, but also other shapes.",
"The term “longitudinal”",
"is used to define relative directions and does not limit the length of the side members.",
"These pivot members are generally referred to as providing elevated pivot points, centers, or connections for the median pivot connection of the bellcranks.",
"The apparatus also includes four bellcrank members disposed to pivot or rotate in vertical planes, each bellcrank member including a median pivot section each pivotally connected to a distal end of the four pivot members an upper bellcrank arm comprising a distal end, and a lower bellcrank arm comprising a distal end.",
"The apparatus further includes an upper seat cushion frame pivotally connected to the distal ends of the four upper bellcrank arms, and spring biasing means pivotally connected to the distal ends of the four lower bellcrank arms to provide spring biasing against downward movement of the seat cushion frame.",
"When the upper seat cushion frame is depressed, the median pivot sections of the bellcrank members extend above an upper edge of the upper seat cushion frame and the distal ends of the lower bellcrank arms rotate to a height below a lower edge of the lower frame.",
"[0009] It is preferred that the distal ends of the lower bellcrank arms of the bellcranks be offset laterally inwardly.",
"It is also preferred that the four bellcranks be physically coupled together maintaining them in a phase relationship to each other.",
"It is further preferred that the spring biasing means pivotally connected to distal ends of the lower bellcrank arms include a pair of tension springs connected to the upper seat cushion frame, although connection to the lower frame operates well.",
"It is also preferred that an angle between two diverging lines each from a central axis of a pivot connection on the median pivot section of the bellcrank to central axes of pivot connection points on the distal ends of the upper and lower arms be less than ninety degrees.",
"It is more preferred that the angle between the two diverging lines be in the range of 30 to 90 degrees and most preferred in the range of 40 to 70 degrees.",
"It is also preferred that the upper and lower arms of the bellcranks rotate through proximate equal angles relative to each other above and below a median position corresponding to median height position of the upper seat cushion frame.",
"It is further preferred that apparatus further include an adjustment means to adjust the spring bias force.",
"It is also preferred that the spring biasing means include a pair of springs each attached at one pair of ends to the distal ends of the lower bellcrank arms and that the apparatus further include adjustment means that includes connecting a second pair of ends of the springs to a screw shaft extending through an opening in the upper seat cushion frame and terminating in an adjustment knob to turn the shaft to adjust the spring bias.",
"It is further preferred that apparatus further include a seat cushion attached on top of the seat cushion frame, the cushion including a hollow space above the frame to receive the median pivot sections of the bellcrank members upon downward movement of the seat cushion frame.",
"It is also preferred that apparatus further include a seat cushion attached on top of the seat cushion frame wherein the seat cushion includes four cavities cut out from below to receive the median pivot sections of the bellcrank members upon downward movement of the seat cushion frame.",
"It is further preferred that the apparatus further include spacer mounting means adapted to attach the lower frame to the mounting deck at a height above the mounting deck sufficient to allow the distal end of the lower arm of the bellcranks to clear the mounting deck when rotated fully downwardly.",
"It is also preferred that apparatus further include a fore and aft slide means that includes laterally spaced longitudinal sliding rails adapted to be attached onto the mounting deck of a vehicle, said means to support the lower frame and allow said frame to slide longitudinally to a multiplicity of longitudinal positions.",
"[0010] A second embodiment of the invention is a seat suspension apparatus adapted to be attached to a mounting deck of a vehicle, said apparatus including a lower frame including longitudinal side members and spacer mounting means adapted to attach the lower frame to the mounting deck at a height above the mounting deck.",
"The apparatus further includes four pivot members structurally attached to and extending upwardly from outer edges of the side members of the lower frame.",
"The apparatus also includes four bellcrank members disposed to pivot in vertical planes, each bellcrank including a median pivot section pivotally connected to an outer surface of a distal end of the pivot members, an upper arm and a lower arm.",
"The apparatus further includes an upper seat cushion frame pivotally connected to distal ends of the upper bellcrank arms, and spring biasing means pivotally connected to distal ends of the lower bellcrank arms to provide spring biasing against downward movement of the seat cushion frame.",
"The height of the distal ends of the pivot members is sufficient that when the upper seat cushion frame is depressed, the median pivot sections of the bellcrank members extend above an upper edge of the upper seat cushion frame and the distal ends of the lower bellcrank arms rotate to a height below a lower edge of the lower frame.",
"Further, the height of the lower frame above the mounting deck is sufficient to allow the distal ends of the lower arms of the bellcranks to clear the mounting deck when rotated fully downwardly.",
"The above-preferred embodiments, where applicable, apply equally to this embodiment.",
"[0011] A third embodiment of this invention is a seat suspension apparatus adapted to be attached to a mounting deck of a vehicle, said apparatus including: a lower frame that includes a pair of longitudinal side members and four pivot members structurally attached and extending upwardly from the side members of the lower frame.",
"The apparatus further includes four bellcrank members disposed to rotate in vertical planes, each bellcrank member including a median pivot section each pivotally connected to a distal end of the four pivot members an upper bellcrank arm including a distal end, and a lower bellcrank arm including a distal end offset laterally inwardly.",
"The apparatus further includes an upper seat cushion frame pivotally connected to the distal ends of the four upper bellcrank arms, and spring biasing means pivotally connected to the distal ends of the four lower bellcrank arms to provide spring biasing against downward movement of the seat cushion frame.",
"As the upper seat cushion frame is depressed, the median pivot sections of the bellcrank members extend above an upper edge of the upper seat cushion frame and the distal ends of the lower bellcrank arms are sufficiently offset to allow rotation to a height below a lower edge of the lower frame.",
"The above-preferred embodiments, where applicable, apply equally to this embodiment.",
"[0012] Other important elements preferably include a plurality of bellcranks, each bellcrank with an angle less than ninety degrees between diverging lines from the pivot point to two separated connecting points, one point adapted to be pivotally connected to a biasing spring and the second point adapted to be pivotally connected to the seat cushion frame.",
"It is most preferably in the range of 40 to 70 degrees.",
"It is also preferred that the connecting point for the spring bias be on a downwardly extending arm from the pivot point.",
"It is also preferred that the angle between the diverging lines from the pivot point to two separated connecting points of each bellcrank move pivot downwardly as the seat frame is lowered.",
"[0013] A fourth embodiment of this invention is a seat suspension apparatus comprising four offset bellcranks, each including an upper arm with a proximal end and a distal end and a lower arm with a proximal end and a distal end, wherein the proximal ends are structurally joined, a central pivot opening through the proximal ends, which are in a vertical first plane with the distal end of the upper arm, a first opening through the distal end of the upper arm adapted to be pivotally connected to a seat frame, a second opening through the distal end of the lower arm adapted to be pivotally connected to a spring biasing means, an offset extension of the lower arm extending from a median section proximately horizontally from the first plane to a distal section of the lower arm extending perpendicular therefrom in a second plane parallel to the first plane, and wherein a first line drawn through the center points of the central pivot opening and the first opening and a second line drawn on the first plane through the center point of the central pivot opening and the central axis of the second opening are at an angle of less than 90 degrees and greater than 30 degrees.",
"[0014] A fifth embodiment of this invention is a seat suspension apparatus including four offset bellcranks, each including: an upper arm with a proximal end and a distal end and a lower arm with a proximal end and a distal end, wherein the proximal ends are structurally joined, a central pivot opening through the proximal ends, which are in a vertical first plane with the distal end of the upper arm, a first opening through the distal end of the upper arm adapted to be pivotally connected to a seat frame, a second opening through the distal end of the lower arm adapted to be pivotally connected to a spring biasing means, an offset extension of the lower arm extending from a median section proximately horizontally from the first plane to a distal section of the lower arm extending perpendicular therefrom in a second plane parallel to the first plane, and wherein a first line drawn through the center points of the central pivot opening and the first opening and a second line drawn on the first plane through the center point of the central pivot opening and the central axis of the second opening are at an angle of less than 90 degrees and greater than 30 degrees.",
"[0015] It is an object of an embodiment of the present invention to provide a seat suspension apparatus for a vehicle that utilizes a low profile between the seat cushion and the mounting deck of the vehicle.",
"[0016] It is a further object of an embodiment of the present invention to provide a seat suspension apparatus for a vehicle that utilizes a low profile between the seat cushion and the mounting deck of the vehicle when it is not feasible to adjust pre-existing longitudinal fore and aft slide rails used to support the seat suspension apparatus and allow the apparatus to slide back and forth to a multiplicity of positions.",
"[0017] It is an additional object of an embodiment of the present invention to provide a seat suspension apparatus for a vehicle that utilizes a low profile between the seat cushion and the mounting deck of the vehicle when it is feasible to laterally adjust longitudinally aligned fore and aft slide rails used to support the seat suspension apparatus and allow the apparatus to slide back and forth to a multiplicity of positions.",
"[0018] It is a further object of an embodiment of the present invention to provide a seat suspension apparatus for a vehicle that dampens the jolts of a rough terrain and does not require inclusion of a standard dampening mechanism, such as a shock absorber.",
"[0019] It is an additional object of an embodiment of the present invention to provide a seat suspension apparatus for a vehicle wherein the stiffness of the spring bias against downward movement of the seat is reduced as the seat moves downward also reducing the strain on the spring attachments, and resulting in a softer, more comfortable ride.",
"[0020] It is an additional object of an embodiment of the present invention to provide a seat suspension apparatus for a vehicle wherein adjustment of the spring bias tension is handy and may be safely and easily reached by the driver while sitting on the seat.",
"[0021] It is a further object of an embodiment of the present invention to provide a seat suspension apparatus for a vehicle that utilizes a part of the seat, namely a standard seat frame, as part of the suspension apparatus to save parts and vertical space below the seat.",
"[0022] It is an additional object of an embodiment of the present invention to provide a seat suspension apparatus for a vehicle that utilizes a low profile between the seat cushion and the mounting deck of the vehicle without structural interference problems or sacrificing comfort of the driver sitting on the seat.",
"[0023] It is an object of an embodiment of the present invention to provide a seat suspension apparatus that allows minimal fore and aft movement as the seat frame moves up and down due to rough terrain.",
"BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS [0024] FIG. 1 is a front plan view of a vehicle seat with the suspension apparatus of the present invention supporting the seat.",
"[0025] FIG. 2 is a left side elevational view of said vehicle seat with the apparatus.",
"[0026] FIG. 3 is a top view of said apparatus with the seat removed.",
"[0027] FIG. 4 is an enlarged front plan view of said apparatus with the seat cushion and sides of knob cut-away.",
"(note to John: the seat cushion is cross-sectioned and some of the knob is missing) [0028] FIG. 5 is a right side plan view of said apparatus with the seat cushion in its uppermost position of travel and partially cut-away.",
"[0029] FIG. 6 is a right side plan view of said apparatus with the seat cushion in its almost lowermost position of travel and partially cut-away.",
"[0030] FIG. 7 is provided on four sheets, 7 A, 7 B, 7 C, and 7 D and is an exploded perspective view of said apparatus without seat cushions.",
"[0031] FIG. 8 is a perspective view of a typical bellcrank of the prior art.",
"[0032] FIG. 9 is an enlarged perspective view of a preferred bellcrank of the present invention.",
"[0033] FIG. 10 is top view diagram of a second embodiment of a seat apparatus of the present invention with the seat removed.",
"DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS [0034] Preloading the spring bias is to balance the weight of the particular operator so that he is statically positioned approximately at mid-height of the vertical travel limits of the seat suspension system.",
"[0035] Seat suspension apparatus 10 of the present invention uses seat frame 22 as the upper frame of the suspension apparatus providing a lower silhouette.",
"As shown in FIGS. 1, 2 , and later figures, seat back 16 including a hidden frame with foam and covering and seat cushion 17 including foam and covering are all securely attached to seat frame 22 .",
"Standard seat belt latch 19 and seat belt retractor 18 are securely attached to frame 22 .",
"The seat is adjustable and slides 46 and 46 ′ slide frontwardly and rearwardly and locked in a chosen position using standard mechanisms with seat position release lever 28 , which disengages seat position release latch 29 pivoting on release pivot connection 30 as shown on FIG. 3 .",
"Throughout the drawings, where there are two essentially identical parts or elements the right side part of the two is without a prime and the identical part on the left is affixed with a prime (′).",
"Further, throughout the drawings, where there are four essentially identical parts or elements the right front side part of the four is without a prime and the identical part on the right rear is affixed with a prime (′).",
"Continuing with the four essentially identical parts including right and left hand versions where applicable, the parts or elements the front left side of the four is affixed with a double prime (″) and the identical part on the right rear is affixed with a triple prime (′″).",
"As shown on FIGS. 1 through 3 , four bellcranks, 25 (for the purpose of clarity and simplicity the remaining three essentially identical elements, including but not limited to the other bellcranks, 25 ′, 25 ″, and 25 ′″, are not listed but are included by the reference to “four”",
"parts).",
"As the seat moves up and down the four bellcranks 25 pivot on four pivot centers 24 , located on four vertical pivot posts 23 , which are securely connected to and extend upwardly from two longitudinal side members 53 and 53 ′ of base frame 21 .",
"All of the pivot connections of the four bell cranks 25 , that is four pivotal connections to four bellcrank pivot centers 24 , four pivotal connections to four spring bias connection centers 36 , and four pivotal connections to four seat frame connection centers 38 , utilize a total of twelve shoulder bolts 37 though the respective holes and secured with twelve nuts 43 , with bushings 40 allowing the pivotal connections to freely pivot.",
"Where the parts are not clearly shown on FIGS. 1 through 6 , they are found on the exploded views of FIG. 7 .",
"For example the four bellcranks 25 pivotally connect through four seat frame connection central axes 38 to seat frame 22 through horizontal holes 59 in four vertical flanges 58 depending downwardly from frame 22 .",
"While two tension support springs 31 and 31 ′ pull on four pivotal connections 36 on four lower end sections 50 of the four bellcranks 25 , the four pivotal connection central axes 38 on four upper end sections 48 of four bellcranks 25 push upward on four seat frame connection flanges 58 welded to seat frame 22 .",
"As shown in FIG. 6 , the tension in springs 31 is increased and reduced by rotating weight adjustment knob 20 to adjust for the weight of the rider.",
"The four bellcranks 25 are phased longitudinally by phase links 35 and 35 ′ pivotally connected at the front ends to pivot connections 36 and 36 ′ respectively and at the rear ends to pivot connections 36 ′ and 36 ′″ respectively thereby maintaining pivotal connections 38 at the same height.",
"Similarly, as shown in FIG. 7B , rear bellcranks, 25 ′ and 25 ′″, are phased together by real lateral phase link connecting member 27 welded at its ends to bellcrank off-set sections 52 ′ and 52 ′″ and front bellcranks, 25 and 25 ″, are phased together by front lateral phase link connecting member 26 welded to bellcrank off-set sections 52 and 52 ″, to keep the four bell cranks 25 at the same angular relationship.",
"These lateral and longitudinal phase links coordinate to always maintain a “level”",
"seat frame 22 and seat 17 .",
"As shown in FIGS. 7A &",
"C, front hook ends 63 and 63 ′ of tension springs 31 and 31 ′ respectively hook into holes 61 and 61 ′ through spring connection flange 60 through which screw shaft 32 threadably extends horizontally through threaded nut 65 welded to flange 60 so that flange 60 moves forward or rearward as knob 20 is rotated.",
"Rear hook ends 64 and 64 ′ of springs 31 and 31 ′ respectively hook into holes 62 and 62 ′ through spring attachment cross-member 33 , which is welded transversely between rear sections of longitudinal phase-link members 35 and 35 ′.",
"Cross-member 33 moves fore/aft and up/down with seat 17 up/down motions, but it does not rotate which would cause extra, damaging stresses in the spring end hooks being frictionally urged to follow such rotation.",
"As shown in FIG. 7D , base frame 21 may be of relatively thin gauge metal as it is supported and reinforced by upper fore/aft slides 46 and 46 ′ threadably attached by bolts 47 through base frame 21 , upper slides 46 and 46 ′ having a box-shaped cross-section with a lengthwise lower slot to slideably receive lower fore/aft lower slides 45 and 45 ′ respectively, which have a “U”",
"cross-sectional shape with lengthwise outwardly extending flanges to engage the bottom lengthwise inward extending flanges of upper slides 46 and 46 ′.",
"Lower fore/aft slides 45 and 45 ′ are attached by bolts 44 though vertical holes in the bottom wall of the slides to mounting deck of the vehicle, not shown.",
"Although not shown, bumpers to provide cushioning end points by meeting phase bars and the like.",
"Of particular interest is FIG. 9 together with FIGS. 5 and 6 showing the elements of bellcrank 25 , which is identical to rear right bellcrank 25 ′ and is the mirror image of front left bellcrank 25 ″ and rear left bellcrank 25 ′″.",
"Bellcrank 25 rotates on pivot connection 24 located on vertical post 23 extending upwardly from lower base frame 21 .",
"Bellcrank 25 rotates on pivot connection 24 around horizontal central axis 34 of horizontal hole 55 through the bellcrank located in median section 49 of the bellcrank.",
"As seat frame 22 is lowered and raised bellcrank 25 rotates through angle a with up and down movement distance c′ of the seat frame due to the weight of the person sitting on the seat and jolts from a rough roadway;",
"and most favorably the seat only moves fore-and-aft a small distance b′.",
"Force is applied to bellcrank 25 by the downward movement of upper seat frame 22 through the arc of angle α of connection 38 and countervailing force is applied by the spring bias through the arc of angle α of connection 36 .",
"For a suspension apparatus of the present invention a total movement up/down of about one and one-half inches results in a fore/aft movement of only about an almost negligible one-eighth inch.",
"Bellcrank 25 is pivotally connected to the seat frame 22 through pivotal connection 38 , which is horizontal hole 57 through a distal end of upraised arm 48 of bellcrank 25 , the hole with horizontal central axis 39 .",
"Bellcrank 25 is pivotally connected though connection 36 to the longitudinal phase-link 35 essentially connecting it to the spring bias pivotal connection 36 including horizontal hole 56 through a distal end of lower arm 50 of bellcrank 25 , the hole with horizontal central axis 54 .",
"Lower arm 50 is off-set horizontally from the plane of pivotal connections 34 and 39 and is connected to median section 49 by horizontal arm 52 .",
"A slot is shown cut laterally across about half the width of arm 48 proximate median section 49 to facilitate bending during some manufacturing processes, but is not necessary nor desirable in most constructions.",
"Angle 51 is between straight line 67 drawn from bellcrank pivot central axis 34 and seat frame connection central axis 39 in the vertical plane of upright arm 48 and straight line 69 drawn in the same vertical plane parallel with straight line 68 drawn from central axis 54 of connection 36 to spring bias in the plane of arm 50 to an extension of central axis 34 is less than ninety degrees.",
"This angle is more preferably in the range of ninety degrees to thirty degrees, and most preferably in the range of 50 to 80 degrees.",
"For bellcranks of the present invention where arm 50 is not offset and all three connections are in one vertical plane, this angle is described as the angle between line 67 from connection pivot central axis 34 to connection seat frame central axis 39 and line 68 from connection pivot central axis 34 to connection spring bias central axis 54 .",
"For the purpose of clarity and simplicity, in the specification and in the claims, whether on the non offset or the offset versions of the bellcranks, the said angle is defined by and named by the following language: “an angle between two diverging lines each from a central axis of a pivot connection on the median pivot section of the bellcrank to central axes of pivot connection points on the distal ends of the upper and lower arms.”",
"Since the rotation of the bellcrank and the angular movements of the connection points are not affected by the offset, this simpler description of the relative positions of the connection axis includes the versions with the connections in the same plane, that is on a flat piece of metal, as well as the offset version illustrated in FIG. 9 .",
"Actually, the bellcranks as illustrated in FIGS. 5 and 6 show the movement of non offset versions and the angle described above.",
"For the sake of brevity the elements and the movement of the balance of the essentially identical bellcranks are not further described although they are illustrated in the balance of the figures.",
"In FIG. 5 seat 17 , including foam seat cushion 42 and seat frame 22 , is in the full up position with springs 31 and 31 ′ in minimum tension and arms 48 and 48 ′ in full up-right position.",
"As seat 17 , including seat frame 22 , is depressed in FIG. 6 to an almost full downwardly position, arms 48 and 48 ′ rotate downwardly, springs 31 and 31 ′ are in increased tension providing spring bias, and the upper ends of pivot posts 23 and 23 ′ and median sections 49 and 49 ′ of bellcranks 25 and 25 ′ now extend into cavities 41 and 41 ′ of foam seat cushion 42 .",
"It should be observed that the fore/aft position of seat frame 22 is hardly different between FIGS. 5 and 6 .",
"A reason for this advantage is that bellcrank 25 moves through almost equal angles from top to mid to bottom positions.",
"Thus, the seat frame positions fore/aft in full upward and full downward positions are essentially identical and only slightly rearward of mid height position.",
"The rotational travel of seat frame connections 38 and 38 ′ are nearly symmetrical above and below the mid height of the seat frame connection.",
"It is preferred that line 68 never rotate more than ninety degrees from the force line of action of the spring bias in its most stretched condition, as a ninety degree angle produces the maximum restoring torque to urge the seat and rider back upwards during the oscillatory travel of the seat.",
"If this angle of line 68 rotates past ninety degrees the restoring torque is lessened and detracts from the rider's comfort.",
"As shown in FIG. 6 the distal ends of arms 50 and 50 ′, pivotal connections 36 and 36 ′ of the bellcrank to the spring bias, and phase link 35 all move downwardly below the upper edges of slide track 46 as the seat frame moves toward its most downward position.",
"As it is important for the phase links and the pivotal connections be as low as possible, the offset of arm 50 inwardly by horizontal offset arm 52 allows the distal ends of arms 50 and 50 ′ and phase links 35 and 35 ′ to move unimpeded between slide tracks 46 and 46 ′ below the height of the slide tracks.",
"These offsets of the bellcrank connection arms allow them to connect to the spring bias means and allow full vertical travel with a higher spring bias throughout the movement with the full bellcrank rotation.",
"In the above embodiment the pairs of slide tracks 45 / 46 and 45 ′/ 46 ′ are about a foot long and about a foot apart and the offset bellcranks are preferred.",
"An embodiment is shown in FIG. 10 , a diagram to illustrate the present invention adapted to be used on a mounting deck of a vehicle with no slide tracks to adjust the seat position longitudinally front to back.",
"In this embodiment flat bellcranks of this invention are used.",
"On these vehicles holes are typically provided through the deck on which to bolt the seat apparatus and here the same holes are used that were used to attach the above slide tracks.",
"In this embodiment four spacer mounting pad washers 79 are used to raise frame 21 ′ off the deck about an inch when bolted onto the deck with bolts 47 ′.",
"The side views of this embodiment are essentially identical to those illustrated in FIGS. 5 and 6 with the diagonal lines showing the off-set removed and the movement, attachment and connection of the various parts are essentially identical.",
"Four vertical pivot cantilever posts 77 , essentially identical to the four posts 23 , extend upwardly from the outer edges of longitudinal side members 71 and 71 ′ of base frame 21 ′.",
"Four vertical flat bellcranks 70 pivot in vertical planes on pivot connections at the distal ends of four posts 77 .",
"Springs 31 ″ and 31 ′″ connect at the front ends to spring connection flange 72 , which is essentially identical to flange 60 and operates and is connected to the adjusment mechanism in the same manner as are all of the attachment members and the phase links of this embodiment.",
"Single parts that are essentially identical to the corresponding parts of the first embodiment are marked with a prime (′) and are not called out herein.",
"The rear ends of the springs are connected to cross-member spring attachment member 74 , which, with its extended length, is attached to longitudinal phase links 76 and 76 ′, which are pivotally connected on both ends on the outside of the bellcrank lower arm pivot connections.",
"Front lateral phase link member 73 is rigidly connected to the lower arms of the front bell cranks 70 and 70 ″.",
"Rear lateral phase link member 75 is rigidly attached to the lower arms of rear bellcranks 70 ′ and 70 ′″.",
"The distal ends of the upper arms of the four bellcranks 70 are pivotally connected to upper seat frame through four connections 78 .",
"List of Reference Numbers Emboldened in Text 10 seat suspension apparatus of this invention 11 bellcrank of prior art 12 pivot point 13 connecting point on seat frame 14 connecting point on spring bias 15 angle between lines from pivot to connecting points 16 seat back, covered foam and frame 17 seat, covered foam and frame 18 seat-belt retractor 19 seat-belt latch 20 knob for spring tension adjustment 21 base frame 22 seat frame 23 vertical pivot posts (four) 24 pivot connections (four) 25 bellcranks (four) 26 front lateral phase-link 27 rear lateral phase-link 28 seat position release lever 29 seat position release 30 release pivot connection 31 tension support springs (two) 32 threaded spring tension rod 33 cross-member spring attachment 34 central axis for pivot connections (four) 35 longitudinal phase-links (two) 36 pivotal connections bellcrank to spring bias (four) 37 shoulder bolts (twelve) 38 pivotal connections bellcrank to seat frame (four) 39 central axis for connection 38 40 bushings on shoulder bolts to facilitate pivoting 41 cavities in foam cushion for bellcranks (four) 42 foam seat cushion 43 nuts for shoulder bolts (twelve) 44 bolt connections to vehicle floor deck 45 lower fore/aft slides (two) 46 upper fore/aft slides (two) 47 bolt/nut connection upper slide to base frame 48 arms of bellcranks connected seat frame (four) 49 central sections of bellcranks at pivot connections (four) 50 arms of bellcranks connected to spring bias (four) 51 angle on bellcranks between lines from pivot point to spring bias and seat frame connection points 52 bellcrank off-set section 53 longitudinal side members of frame 21 54 central axis of connection 36 55 holes through pivot section of bellcranks 56 holes through spring-bias section of cranks 57 holes through seat-frame section of cranks 58 seat frame connection flanges (four) 59 holes through flanges 60 spring connection flange 61 holes through flange for spring connection 62 holes through cross member for spring connection 63 hooks on front ends of springs 64 hooks on rear ends of springs 65 support for tension rod 66 horizontal holes in pivot posts 67 line from central axis 34 to central axis 39 68 line from central axis 34 to central axis 54 69 line parallel to line 68 through central axis 34 70 non off-set bellcranks (four) 71 longitudinal side members of frame 21′ (two) 72 spring connection flange 73 front lateral phase-link 74 cross-member spring attachment 75 rear lateral phase-link 76 longitudinal phase-links (two) 77 vertical pivot posts (four) 78 connections bellcrank to seat frame (four) 79 spacer mounting pads (four) b′ fore/aft movement as seat lowers and raises c′ up and down movement of seat α angle of rotation of bellcrank β angle of rotation of prior art bellcrank b fore/aft movement of prior art c up and down movement of prior art seat [0036] While this invention has been described with reference to specific embodiments disclosed herein, it is not confined to the details set forth and the patent is intended to include modifications and changes, which may come within and extend from the following claims."
] |
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0001] 1. Field of the Invention
[0002] The present invention relates to a scroll compressor, and more particularly, to a variable capacity scroll compressor that is designed to vary a compression volume according to an operation mode of a system where it is applied.
[0003] 2. Description of the Related Art
[0004] Generally, a cooling system is applied to an air conditioner or a refrigerator to lower the temperature of an enclosed space by absorbing and discharging heat using refrigerant circulating a cooling cycle.
[0005] Such a cooling system is configured to perform a series of cycles of compression, condensation, expansion and vaporization of refrigerant. A scroll compressor is used to perform the compression cycle among the series of cycles.
[0006] Since the scroll compressor is disclosed in a plurality of published documents, the detailed description on the general structure and operation will be omitted herein.
[0007] The reason why the compression volume of a scroll compressor should be varied will be described hereinafter.
[0008] A scroll compressor for a specific use is generally selected by considering the most disadvantageous operation condition when forecasting its use environment, for instance, the greatest compression volume-requested condition (i.e., a heating operation of an air conditioner using heat pump).
[0009] However, it is general that the most disadvantageous condition does not nearly occur in an actual operation. In an actual operation of the compressor, a condition needing a small compression volume (ex. cooling operation of air conditioner) not the most disadvantageous condition exists too.
[0010] Thus, when the compressor having a large compression volume is selected considering the worst condition, the compressor is operated under the low-load condition during an operation period of the high-compression ratio, thereby deteriorating an overall operation efficiency of the system.
[0011] Therefore, in order to improve the overall operating efficiency even under a normal operating condition and to accept the operational condition under the most disadvantageous condition, there is a need for a compressor that has a variable compression volume.
[0012] To vary the compression volume of the scroll compressor, a method for electrically controlling an RPM of the compressor has been most widely used.
[0013] Such an electrical control method has an advantage of effectively varying the compression volume. However, additional components, for instance, an inverter for accurately controlling the RPM of a motor, are required. Furthermore, when the motor rotates with a relatively high RPM, it is difficult to ensure a reliability of frictional portions.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0014] Accordingly, the present invention is directed to a variable capacity scroll compressor that substantially obviates one or more problems due to limitations and disadvantages of the related art.
[0015] An object of the present invention is to provide a variable capacity scroll compressor that can vary a compression volume using a bypass function in a state where a compressor motor rotates at a constant RPM.
[0016] Another object of the present invention is to provide a variable capacity scroll compressor that can vary a compression volume by operating a valve using either uncompressed low-pressure fluid or compressed high-pressure fluid.
[0017] Another object of the present invention is to provide a variable capacity scroll compressor that can vary a compression volume using a simple structure.
[0018] Additional advantages, objects, and features of the invention will be set forth in part in the description which follows and in part will become apparent to those having ordinary skill in the art upon examination of the following or may be learned from practice of the invention. The objectives and other advantages of the invention may be realized and attained by the structure particularly pointed out in the written description and claims hereof as well as the appended drawings.
[0019] To achieve these objects and other advantages and in accordance with the purpose of the invention, as embodied and broadly described herein, there is provided a variable capacity scroll compressor including: a stationary scroll member provided with a stationary spiral wrap; an orbiting scroll member provided with an orbiting spiral wrap, the orbiting spiral wrap orbiting while surface-contacting the stationary spiral wrap; a driving motor; a driving shaft for rotating the orbiting scroll member using power transmitted from the driving motor; a control chamber formed on a predetermined portion of the stationary spiral wrap; a pivotal block disposed in the control chamber; and a controller for controlling a position of the pivotal block.
[0020] In another aspect of the present invention, a variable capacity scroll compressor including: a stationary scroll member; an orbiting scroll member orbiting while surface-contacting the stationary scroll; a driving motor and a driving shaft for providing a rotational force to the orbiting scroll member; a control chamber formed on a compression path of the scroll member; a pivotal block disposed in the control chamber and coupled with the control chamber by a hinge; and a bypass controller for allowing pressure of an exhaust passage exhausted at least from the compressor to be selectively applied to the control chamber to control a pressure state of the control chamber.
[0021] In a further aspect of the present invention, a variable capacity scroll compressor including: a control chamber formed on a compression path of a scroll member; a pivotal block pivotally fixed by a hinge and disposed in the control chamber to control a bypass of fluid being compressed; a controller for controlling a pivotal motion of the pivotal block.
[0022] According to the present invention, the compression volume of the scroll compressor can be easily varied without adding additional components.
[0023] It is to be understood that both the foregoing general description and the following detailed description of the present invention are exemplary and explanatory and are intended to provide further explanation of the invention as claimed.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0024] The accompanying drawings, which are included to provide a further understanding of the invention and are incorporated in and constitute a part of this application, illustrate embodiment(s) of the invention and together with the description serve to explain the principle of the invention. In the drawings:
[0025] FIG. 1 is a sectional view of a scroll compressor according to a first embodiment of the present invention;
[0026] FIGS. 2 and 4 and are bottom views of a stationary scroll member depicted in FIG. 1 ;
[0027] FIGS. 3 and 5 are views conceptually illustrating a compression volume variation in accordance with a displacing state of an operational block according to the present invention; and
[0028] FIG. 6 is a sectional view of a scroll compressor according to a second embodiment of the present invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
[0029] Reference will now be made in detail to the preferred embodiments of the present invention, examples of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings. Wherever possible, the same reference numbers will be used throughout the drawings to refer to the same or like parts.
[0030] FIG. 1 shows a sectional view of a scroll compressor according to an embodiment of the present invention.
[0031] Referring to FIG. 1 , the inventive variable capacity scroll compressor includes a conventional compressing part, a bypass part for varying a compression volume, and a bypass control part for controlling the bypass part.
[0032] The conventional compressing part includes a seal case 11 for defining an enclosed chamber, a seal plate 12 disposed in the seal case 11 to divide the enclosed chamber into a low-pressure intake chamber 13 and a high-pressure exhaust chamber 14 , an intake passage 22 connected to the intake chamber 13 to supply fluid to be compressed to the intake chamber 13 , an exhaust passage 23 connected to the exhaust chamber 14 to exhaust compressed fluid out of the exhaust chamber 14 , a stationary scroll member 15 fixed on an inner circumference of the seal case 11 , a driving shaft 19 extending from a motor (not shown), an orbiting scroll member 16 associated with an eccentric pin 20 , a stationary spiral wrap 17 formed on the stationary scroll member 15 , an orbiting spiral wrap 18 defining the fluid compressing path by intermittently surface-contacting the stationary spiral wrap 17 , a bearing 21 for stably supporting the driving shaft 19 , and a central exhaust passage 26 formed through a central axis of the stationary scroll member 15 to direct the compressed fluid to the exhaust chamber 14 .
[0033] The bypass part includes a control chamber 31 defined by cutting away a portion of an outer inside-wall of the stationary spiral wrap 17 and a pivotal block 25 reciprocally disposed in the control chamber 31 to selectively close the fluid compressing path. An end of the pivotal block 25 is pivotally fixed on a hinge 43 (see FIG. 3 ) formed on a portion of the stationary spiral wrap 17 .
[0034] The pivotal block 25 is designed having an inner surface identical to a wall defining the compressing space so that the fluid can be effectively compressed.
[0035] The bypass control part includes a control passage 30 connected to the control chamber 31 to control fluid pressure applied to the control chamber 31 and a control valve 29 for allowing the control pressure formed on the control passage 30 to be selectively supplied from one of the low-pressure and high-pressure passages 27 and 28 . The control passage 30 is formed penetrating the seal plate 12 to communicate with a compressing space of the conventional compressing part.
[0036] Particularly, the low-pressure passage 27 has a first end connected to the control valve 29 and a second end connected to the intake passage 22 so that high-pressure of the intake passage 22 can be applied to the low-pressure passage 27 . The high-pressure passage 27 has a first end connected to the control valve 29 and a second end connected to the exhaust passage 23 so that low-pressure of the exhaust passage 23 can be applied to the high-pressure passage 28 .
[0037] The control valve 29 can be formed of a solenoid valve controlled by a predetermined controller. The control passage is connected to the seal plate 12 through the seal case 11 , indicating a series of passages penetrating the stationary scroll member 15 . However, the present invention is not limited to this structure. That is, any passages connecting the control valve 29 and the control chamber 31 will be possible. For example, even if a passage is directly connected to the control chamber 31 without passing through the seal plate 12 , it will not affect in realizing the present invention.
[0038] The operation of the above described variable capacity scroll compressor will be described hereinafter.
[0039] When the driving shaft 19 and the eccentric pin 20 are rotated by the motor (not shown), the orbiting scroll member 16 associated with the eccentric pin 19 orbits. At this point, the stationary scroll member 15 is in a fixed state.
[0040] When the orbiting scroll member 16 rotates, low-pressure fluid stored in the intake chamber 13 is directed into a space defined between the orbiting spiral wrap 18 formed on the orbiting scroll member 16 and the stationary spiral wrap 17 formed on the stationary scroll member 15 , and is then compressed in the space.
[0041] The compressed fluid is directed into the exhaust chamber 14 through the central exhaust passage 26 formed through the central axis of the stationary scroll member 15 , and the high-pressure fluid in the exhaust chamber 14 is exhausted through the exhaust passage 23 .
[0042] Meanwhile, the pivotal block 25 and the control chamber 31 are provided for the bypass purpose. When the pivotal block 25 is pivoted in a direction to surface-contact the orbiting spiral wrap 18 and to for a normal compression path, the fluid is compressed. However, when the pivotal block 25 is pivoted in an opposite direction to form an abnormal compression path, since the fluid being compressed is bypassed through a gap defined between the pivotal block 25 and the orbiting spiral wrap 18 , the compression is not realized. As describe above, the compression volume is varied in accordance with the orbiting operation of the pivotal block 25 .
[0043] In other words, when the pivotal block 25 pivots in a direction where the pivotal block 25 is not in surface-contact with the orbiting spiral wrap 18 , the compression volume is reduced.
[0044] Meanwhile, in order to control the operation of the pivotal block 25 , the control valve 30 , a downstream end of which is connected to the control chamber 31 , is provided to apply control pressure to the control chamber 31 . Formed on an upstream end of the control passage 30 is the control valve 29 .
[0045] By the control valve 29 , one of the fluid pressures from the low-pressure and high-pressure passages 27 and 28 is selected and applied to the control passage 30 .
[0046] Particularly, the low-pressure and high-pressure passages 27 and 28 are respectively connected to the intake and exhaust passages 22 and 23 such that low-pressure fluid that is not compressed in the conventional compressing part and high-pressure fluid that is compressed in the conventional compressing part can be respectively supplied to the low-pressure and high-pressure passages 27 and 28 .
[0047] In detail, when the high-pressure passage 28 is connected to the control passage 30 by the control valve 29 moved upward in FIG. 1 , since the control passage 30 is supplied with the high-pressure, the pivotal block 25 is pushed leftward in the drawing. At this point, since the movable block 25 surface-contacts the orbiting spiral wrap 18 , the fluid can be compressed even at a location where the pivotal block 25 is located during the orbiting movement of the orbiting spiral wrap 18 . That is, the pivotal block 25 is not completely bent even when high pressure is applied, but is moved up to a location where the wall for defining a compression space can be formed. Therefore, the displacement of the pivotal block 25 can be limited by forming a predetermined stopper structure (not shown). To realize this, a stepped surface (not shown) opposing the hinge 43 is formed on a predetermined wall defining the compression space. By this structure, when the pivotal block 25 is pivoted by high-pressure, the pivotal block 25 is caught by the stepped portion so that it cannot be pivoted above a predetermined angle.
[0048] Meanwhile, when high-pressure is applied to the control chamber 31 , a seal member (not shown) may be further formed between the pivotal block 25 and the stationary spiral wrap 17 to prevent the high-pressure fluid from leaking. By this structure, the moving direction and location setting can be reliably realized.
[0049] However, when the low-pressure passage 27 is connected to the control passage 30 by the control valve 29 moving downward in FIG. 1 , since low-pressure is applied to both the control passage 30 and the control chamber 31 , the pivotal block 25 is displaced rightwards in FIG. 1 . That is, a rotational direction of the pivotal block 25 is designed to be controlled by the pressure of the control chamber 31 and by a medium pressure of fluid being compressed in the conventional compressing part. Therefore, since the medium pressure is greater than pressure of the low-pressure passage 27 , which is pressure of an intake side of the compressing part, the pivotal block moves rightwards.
[0050] Thus, when the pivotal block 25 is opened by being moved rightwards, since a predetermined gap is formed between the orbiting spiral wrap 18 and the pivotal block 25 , the fluid being compressed is bypassed through the gap. As a result, the compression volume is reduced. In this case, the compression volume is reduced by as much as an amount of fluid bypassed.
[0051] FIGS. 2 and 4 show bottoms views of the stationary scroll member of the present invention.
[0052] Particularly, FIG. 2 shows the pivotal block 25 that is displaced clockwise (in an arrow direction of FIG. 2 . Since FIG. 2 is a bottom view of the stationary scroll member, the arrow direction indicates a counterclockwise direction). That is, FIG. 2 shows a state where the compression volume is reduced. FIG. 4 shows the pivotal block 25 that is displaced counterclockwise (in an arrow direction of FIG. 4 . Since FIG. 4 is a bottom view of the stationary scroll member, the arrow direction indicates a clockwise direction). That is, FIG. 2 shows a state where the compression volume is normal.
[0053] Referring to FIGS. 2 and 4 , the stationary spiral wrap 17 is formed on the stationary scroll member 15 , and the control chamber 31 is defined by cutting away of a portion of the outer inside-wall of the stationary spiral wrap 17 . The pivotal block 25 is pivotally fixed on the hinge 43 formed on a portion of the stationary spiral wrap 17 .
[0054] The pivotal block 25 may be disposed on the outermost of the spiral wrap 17 (i.e., the closest location to the intake side of fluid. By this structure, fluid compressed above predetermined pressure is not bypassed on a fluid compressing path, thereby reducing output loss of the motor.
[0055] In addition, the hinge 43 may be formed on a portion of the pivotal block 25 , which is farthest from the intake side of the compressing part. By this structure, the greater the distance between the gap defined between the pivotal block 25 and the orbiting spiral wrap 18 and the intake side, the smaller the output loss of the motor.
[0056] In detail, when the high-pressure is applied to the control chamber 31 , the seal between the pivotal block 25 and the orbiting spiral wrap 18 may not be perfectly realized even if the pivotal block 25 pivots rightwards (see the arrow direction of FIG. 4 ). However, when the hinge is formed as proposed above, even if there is a gap between the pivotal block 25 and the orbiting spiral wrap 18 , the gap is completely removed to allow for the fluid compression. As a result, the output loss can be reduced.
[0057] If the hinge 43 is located close to the intake side of the compressing part and the location control of the pivotal block 25 is not perfectly realized, since the fluid compressed by the operation of the orbiting spiral wrap 18 is bypassed, the motor creates useless output.
[0058] In addition, since the fluid pressure is increased as it goes inward of the spiral wraps 17 and 18 , it is preferable that the hinge 43 is formed on an inner side of the pivotal block 25 to stably support the pivotal block 25 at high-pressure.
[0059] Hereinbelow, operation of the variable capacity scroll compressor of the present invention will be described.
[0060] FIGS. 3 and 5 conceptually illustrate a compression volume variation in accordance with a displacing state of an operational block according to the present invention.
[0061] Particularly, FIG. 3 corresponds to a state depicted in FIG. 2 , illustrating a state where the pivotal block surface is separated from the orbiting scroll member, and FIG. 5 corresponds to a state depicted in FIG. 4 , illustrating a state where the pivotal block 25 contacts the orbiting scroll member.
[0062] Referring first to FIG. 3 , a space between the pivotal block 25 and the orbiting spiral wrap 18 is defined with a predetermined length, allowing the fluid being compressed to be exhausted. Since the control passage 30 and the control chamber 31 are applied with low-pressure of the intake side of the compressing part, the pivotal block 25 is designed to freely pivot by medium-pressure of the fluid being compressed.
[0063] In a state where the low-pressure is applied to the control chamber 31 , a first intake volume 41 which is a compressing space defined between the stationary spiral wrap 17 and the orbiting spiral wrap 18 starts from a location where the stationary spiral wrap 17 contacts the orbiting spiral wrap 18 over the location where the pivotal block 25 is installed (the hinge 43 is formed). Therefore, the fluid being compressed is partly bypassed to reduce the compression volume.
[0064] The intake volume will be described more in detail hereinafter.
[0065] The intake volume defined between the stationary and orbiting spiral wraps 17 and 18 contacting each other may be divided into first and second volumes.
[0066] The first volume is a first intake space defined when an inner circumference of the stationary spiral wrap 17 meets an outer circumference of the orbiting spiral wrap 18 . The first intake space can be illustrated as the first intake volume 41 depicted in FIG. 3 .
[0067] The second volume is a second intake space (not shown) when an outer circumference of the stationary spiral wrap 17 meets an inner circumference of the orbiting spiral wrap 18 . Although the second intake space is not shown in the drawing, it can be assumed that the second intake space can be formed by the orbiting operation of the orbiting spiral wrap 18 .
[0068] A start point of the first intake space is defined on a location indicated by the reference character SC 1 (Compress Start 1 ), and a start point of the second intake space is defined on a location indicated by the reference character SC 2 (Compress Start 2 . Since the start points SC 1 and SC 2 are not symmetrically located, this can be called an asymmetry operation mode. That is, when the scroll member is divided into two halves based on the central portion of the scroll member and both the start points SC 1 and SC 2 are sided to one half, this can be called the asymmetric operation mode.
[0069] Referring to FIG. 5 , since there is no space between the pivotal block 25 and the stationary spiral wrap 17 , the fluid being compressed cannot be bypassed. Since the control passage 30 and the control chamber 31 are applied with high-pressure of the exhaust side of the compressing part, the pivotal block 25 is designed not to pivot by medium-pressure of the fluid being compressed.
[0070] In a state where the high-pressure is applied to the control chamber 31 , a second intake volume 42 which is a compressing space defined between the stationary spiral wrap 17 and the orbiting spiral wrap 18 starts from a location where the stationary spiral wrap 17 contacts the orbiting spiral wrap 18 at an intake side of the pivotal block 25 .
[0071] As described above, the intake volume is varied in accordance with a variety of factors such as a connection state of the control valve 29 , a pressure state of the control chamber 31 associated with the control valve 29 , and a pivotal state of the pivotal block 25 . That is, when the pivotal block 25 is separated from the orbiting spiral wrap 18 , an initial compression space is identical to the first intake volume 41 . When the pivotal block 25 surface-contacts the orbiting spiral wrap 18 , the initial compression space is identical to second intake volume 42 .
[0072] As shown in, the drawings, since the first intake volume 41 is less than the second intake volume 42 . That is, when the second intake volume 42 is formed, the compression volume is increased. That is, the compression volume obtained when the pivotal block 25 pivots clockwise (see FIG. 5 ), when high-pressure is applied to the control chamber 31 , when high-pressure is applied to the control passage 30 , or when the control valve 29 is operated such that the exhaust passage of the compressing part is connected to the control passage 30 is greater than that when the cases are opposite states.
[0073] As a result, since there is a difference in a volume of fluid fed during an initial compressing operation of the scroll compressor, the compression volume can be varied by the volume difference of the intake space.
[0074] For example, when the control valve 29 is operated such that the high-pressure passage 28 is connected to the control passage 30 , since the pivotal block 25 is pivoted clockwise so as fluid being compressed not to be bypassed. In this case, since the compression volume is increased to be suitable for an operational mode of the air conditioner where a relatively large compression volume is required.
[0075] When the control valve 29 is displaced such that the low-pressure passage 27 is connected o the control passage 30 , the pivotal block 25 pivots counterclockwise (see FIG. 3 ) and the fluid being compressed is bypassed. In this case, since he compression volume is reduced to be suitable for an operational mode of the air conditioner where a relatively small amount of compression volume is required.
[0076] The application of the compressor of the present invention is not limited to the air conditioner that is used only for a description example. That is, the inventive compressor can be applied to any systems requiring a variable compression volume.
[0077] FIG. 7 shows a scroll compressor according to a second embodiment of the present invention.
[0078] As shown in the drawing, the scroll compressor of this embodiment is identical to that of the first embodiment except for a connection structure around the control valve.
[0079] That is, a control passage 52 , a control valve 53 , and a high-pressure passage 51 are same as those in the first embodiment. However, the low-pressure passage 27 that is selectively connected to the control passage 52 by the control valve 53 in the first embodiment is not formed in this embodiment.
[0080] When the low-pressure passage 27 is not formed, only the high-pressure is selectively applied to the control passage 52 in accordance with the operation of the control valve 53 .
[0081] The operation of this embodiment will be described hereinafter.
[0082] The operation where the high-pressure is applied to the control chamber 31 by the control valve 53 displaced upward is identical to that of the first embodiment. However, when the control valve 53 is displaced downward so that no fluid pressure is applied to the control passage 52 , since pressure of the control passage 52 is lower than medium-pressure of fluid being compressed in the compressing part, the pivotal block 25 rotates clockwise (see FIG. 3 ). That is, since a high-pressure state formed in the control passage 52 in the course of receiving the high-pressure is released through a gap formed on, for example, an outer circumference of the pivotal block 25 , the high-pressure state is not maintained. However, in order to remove the high-pressure state formed in the control passage 52 , a small hole may be formed on a juncture of the passages. In addition, even when a little amount of fluid is leaked, since there is no newly supplied high-pressure fluid, the operation of the pivotal block 25 can be perfectly controlled.
[0083] Therefore, the operation of the pivotal block 25 can be controlled even when there is no connection to the low-pressure passage 27 (see FIG. 1 ).
[0084] As described above, by simply controlling the control valve, it is possible to conveniently allow the fluid being compressed to be bypassed. Particularly, the mainspring of the control of the bypass port is to selectively use low-pressure formed by fluid that is not inhaled into the conventional compressing part and high-pressure formed by fluid compressed by the conventional compressing part.
[0085] Also, in the scroll compressor according to the present invention, it is possible to vary the compression volume in multi-stages using a bypass function, which can be realized by a simple structure, without varying the RPM of the compression motor.
[0086] In addition, since the valve for realizing the volume variation of the scroll compressor is designed to be controlled by fluid pressure that is not still compressed in the compressing part and fluid pressure that is compressed in the compressing part without adding additional components, the manufacturing cost of the scroll compressor can be saved.
[0087] It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various modifications and variations can be made in the present invention. Thus, it is intended that the present invention covers the modifications and variations of this invention provided they come within the scope of the appended claims and their equivalents. | Disclosed is a variable capacity scroll compressor including a stationary scroll member on which a stationary spiral wrap is formed, an orbiting scroll member on which an orbiting spiral wrap is formed, the orbiting scroll member rotating while surface-contacting the stationary scroll, a driving motor, a driving shaft for rotating the orbiting scroll member using power transmitted from the driving motor, a control chamber formed on a predetermined portion of the stationary spiral wrap, a pivotal block disposed in the control chamber, and a controller for controlling a pivotal motion of the pivotal block. | Identify and summarize the most critical features from the given passage. | [
"BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION [0001] 1.",
"Field of the Invention [0002] The present invention relates to a scroll compressor, and more particularly, to a variable capacity scroll compressor that is designed to vary a compression volume according to an operation mode of a system where it is applied.",
"[0003] 2.",
"Description of the Related Art [0004] Generally, a cooling system is applied to an air conditioner or a refrigerator to lower the temperature of an enclosed space by absorbing and discharging heat using refrigerant circulating a cooling cycle.",
"[0005] Such a cooling system is configured to perform a series of cycles of compression, condensation, expansion and vaporization of refrigerant.",
"A scroll compressor is used to perform the compression cycle among the series of cycles.",
"[0006] Since the scroll compressor is disclosed in a plurality of published documents, the detailed description on the general structure and operation will be omitted herein.",
"[0007] The reason why the compression volume of a scroll compressor should be varied will be described hereinafter.",
"[0008] A scroll compressor for a specific use is generally selected by considering the most disadvantageous operation condition when forecasting its use environment, for instance, the greatest compression volume-requested condition (i.e., a heating operation of an air conditioner using heat pump).",
"[0009] However, it is general that the most disadvantageous condition does not nearly occur in an actual operation.",
"In an actual operation of the compressor, a condition needing a small compression volume (ex.",
"cooling operation of air conditioner) not the most disadvantageous condition exists too.",
"[0010] Thus, when the compressor having a large compression volume is selected considering the worst condition, the compressor is operated under the low-load condition during an operation period of the high-compression ratio, thereby deteriorating an overall operation efficiency of the system.",
"[0011] Therefore, in order to improve the overall operating efficiency even under a normal operating condition and to accept the operational condition under the most disadvantageous condition, there is a need for a compressor that has a variable compression volume.",
"[0012] To vary the compression volume of the scroll compressor, a method for electrically controlling an RPM of the compressor has been most widely used.",
"[0013] Such an electrical control method has an advantage of effectively varying the compression volume.",
"However, additional components, for instance, an inverter for accurately controlling the RPM of a motor, are required.",
"Furthermore, when the motor rotates with a relatively high RPM, it is difficult to ensure a reliability of frictional portions.",
"SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION [0014] Accordingly, the present invention is directed to a variable capacity scroll compressor that substantially obviates one or more problems due to limitations and disadvantages of the related art.",
"[0015] An object of the present invention is to provide a variable capacity scroll compressor that can vary a compression volume using a bypass function in a state where a compressor motor rotates at a constant RPM.",
"[0016] Another object of the present invention is to provide a variable capacity scroll compressor that can vary a compression volume by operating a valve using either uncompressed low-pressure fluid or compressed high-pressure fluid.",
"[0017] Another object of the present invention is to provide a variable capacity scroll compressor that can vary a compression volume using a simple structure.",
"[0018] Additional advantages, objects, and features of the invention will be set forth in part in the description which follows and in part will become apparent to those having ordinary skill in the art upon examination of the following or may be learned from practice of the invention.",
"The objectives and other advantages of the invention may be realized and attained by the structure particularly pointed out in the written description and claims hereof as well as the appended drawings.",
"[0019] To achieve these objects and other advantages and in accordance with the purpose of the invention, as embodied and broadly described herein, there is provided a variable capacity scroll compressor including: a stationary scroll member provided with a stationary spiral wrap;",
"an orbiting scroll member provided with an orbiting spiral wrap, the orbiting spiral wrap orbiting while surface-contacting the stationary spiral wrap;",
"a driving motor;",
"a driving shaft for rotating the orbiting scroll member using power transmitted from the driving motor;",
"a control chamber formed on a predetermined portion of the stationary spiral wrap;",
"a pivotal block disposed in the control chamber;",
"and a controller for controlling a position of the pivotal block.",
"[0020] In another aspect of the present invention, a variable capacity scroll compressor including: a stationary scroll member;",
"an orbiting scroll member orbiting while surface-contacting the stationary scroll;",
"a driving motor and a driving shaft for providing a rotational force to the orbiting scroll member;",
"a control chamber formed on a compression path of the scroll member;",
"a pivotal block disposed in the control chamber and coupled with the control chamber by a hinge;",
"and a bypass controller for allowing pressure of an exhaust passage exhausted at least from the compressor to be selectively applied to the control chamber to control a pressure state of the control chamber.",
"[0021] In a further aspect of the present invention, a variable capacity scroll compressor including: a control chamber formed on a compression path of a scroll member;",
"a pivotal block pivotally fixed by a hinge and disposed in the control chamber to control a bypass of fluid being compressed;",
"a controller for controlling a pivotal motion of the pivotal block.",
"[0022] According to the present invention, the compression volume of the scroll compressor can be easily varied without adding additional components.",
"[0023] It is to be understood that both the foregoing general description and the following detailed description of the present invention are exemplary and explanatory and are intended to provide further explanation of the invention as claimed.",
"BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS [0024] The accompanying drawings, which are included to provide a further understanding of the invention and are incorporated in and constitute a part of this application, illustrate embodiment(s) of the invention and together with the description serve to explain the principle of the invention.",
"In the drawings: [0025] FIG. 1 is a sectional view of a scroll compressor according to a first embodiment of the present invention;",
"[0026] FIGS. 2 and 4 and are bottom views of a stationary scroll member depicted in FIG. 1 ;",
"[0027] FIGS. 3 and 5 are views conceptually illustrating a compression volume variation in accordance with a displacing state of an operational block according to the present invention;",
"and [0028] FIG. 6 is a sectional view of a scroll compressor according to a second embodiment of the present invention.",
"DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [0029] Reference will now be made in detail to the preferred embodiments of the present invention, examples of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings.",
"Wherever possible, the same reference numbers will be used throughout the drawings to refer to the same or like parts.",
"[0030] FIG. 1 shows a sectional view of a scroll compressor according to an embodiment of the present invention.",
"[0031] Referring to FIG. 1 , the inventive variable capacity scroll compressor includes a conventional compressing part, a bypass part for varying a compression volume, and a bypass control part for controlling the bypass part.",
"[0032] The conventional compressing part includes a seal case 11 for defining an enclosed chamber, a seal plate 12 disposed in the seal case 11 to divide the enclosed chamber into a low-pressure intake chamber 13 and a high-pressure exhaust chamber 14 , an intake passage 22 connected to the intake chamber 13 to supply fluid to be compressed to the intake chamber 13 , an exhaust passage 23 connected to the exhaust chamber 14 to exhaust compressed fluid out of the exhaust chamber 14 , a stationary scroll member 15 fixed on an inner circumference of the seal case 11 , a driving shaft 19 extending from a motor (not shown), an orbiting scroll member 16 associated with an eccentric pin 20 , a stationary spiral wrap 17 formed on the stationary scroll member 15 , an orbiting spiral wrap 18 defining the fluid compressing path by intermittently surface-contacting the stationary spiral wrap 17 , a bearing 21 for stably supporting the driving shaft 19 , and a central exhaust passage 26 formed through a central axis of the stationary scroll member 15 to direct the compressed fluid to the exhaust chamber 14 .",
"[0033] The bypass part includes a control chamber 31 defined by cutting away a portion of an outer inside-wall of the stationary spiral wrap 17 and a pivotal block 25 reciprocally disposed in the control chamber 31 to selectively close the fluid compressing path.",
"An end of the pivotal block 25 is pivotally fixed on a hinge 43 (see FIG. 3 ) formed on a portion of the stationary spiral wrap 17 .",
"[0034] The pivotal block 25 is designed having an inner surface identical to a wall defining the compressing space so that the fluid can be effectively compressed.",
"[0035] The bypass control part includes a control passage 30 connected to the control chamber 31 to control fluid pressure applied to the control chamber 31 and a control valve 29 for allowing the control pressure formed on the control passage 30 to be selectively supplied from one of the low-pressure and high-pressure passages 27 and 28 .",
"The control passage 30 is formed penetrating the seal plate 12 to communicate with a compressing space of the conventional compressing part.",
"[0036] Particularly, the low-pressure passage 27 has a first end connected to the control valve 29 and a second end connected to the intake passage 22 so that high-pressure of the intake passage 22 can be applied to the low-pressure passage 27 .",
"The high-pressure passage 27 has a first end connected to the control valve 29 and a second end connected to the exhaust passage 23 so that low-pressure of the exhaust passage 23 can be applied to the high-pressure passage 28 .",
"[0037] The control valve 29 can be formed of a solenoid valve controlled by a predetermined controller.",
"The control passage is connected to the seal plate 12 through the seal case 11 , indicating a series of passages penetrating the stationary scroll member 15 .",
"However, the present invention is not limited to this structure.",
"That is, any passages connecting the control valve 29 and the control chamber 31 will be possible.",
"For example, even if a passage is directly connected to the control chamber 31 without passing through the seal plate 12 , it will not affect in realizing the present invention.",
"[0038] The operation of the above described variable capacity scroll compressor will be described hereinafter.",
"[0039] When the driving shaft 19 and the eccentric pin 20 are rotated by the motor (not shown), the orbiting scroll member 16 associated with the eccentric pin 19 orbits.",
"At this point, the stationary scroll member 15 is in a fixed state.",
"[0040] When the orbiting scroll member 16 rotates, low-pressure fluid stored in the intake chamber 13 is directed into a space defined between the orbiting spiral wrap 18 formed on the orbiting scroll member 16 and the stationary spiral wrap 17 formed on the stationary scroll member 15 , and is then compressed in the space.",
"[0041] The compressed fluid is directed into the exhaust chamber 14 through the central exhaust passage 26 formed through the central axis of the stationary scroll member 15 , and the high-pressure fluid in the exhaust chamber 14 is exhausted through the exhaust passage 23 .",
"[0042] Meanwhile, the pivotal block 25 and the control chamber 31 are provided for the bypass purpose.",
"When the pivotal block 25 is pivoted in a direction to surface-contact the orbiting spiral wrap 18 and to for a normal compression path, the fluid is compressed.",
"However, when the pivotal block 25 is pivoted in an opposite direction to form an abnormal compression path, since the fluid being compressed is bypassed through a gap defined between the pivotal block 25 and the orbiting spiral wrap 18 , the compression is not realized.",
"As describe above, the compression volume is varied in accordance with the orbiting operation of the pivotal block 25 .",
"[0043] In other words, when the pivotal block 25 pivots in a direction where the pivotal block 25 is not in surface-contact with the orbiting spiral wrap 18 , the compression volume is reduced.",
"[0044] Meanwhile, in order to control the operation of the pivotal block 25 , the control valve 30 , a downstream end of which is connected to the control chamber 31 , is provided to apply control pressure to the control chamber 31 .",
"Formed on an upstream end of the control passage 30 is the control valve 29 .",
"[0045] By the control valve 29 , one of the fluid pressures from the low-pressure and high-pressure passages 27 and 28 is selected and applied to the control passage 30 .",
"[0046] Particularly, the low-pressure and high-pressure passages 27 and 28 are respectively connected to the intake and exhaust passages 22 and 23 such that low-pressure fluid that is not compressed in the conventional compressing part and high-pressure fluid that is compressed in the conventional compressing part can be respectively supplied to the low-pressure and high-pressure passages 27 and 28 .",
"[0047] In detail, when the high-pressure passage 28 is connected to the control passage 30 by the control valve 29 moved upward in FIG. 1 , since the control passage 30 is supplied with the high-pressure, the pivotal block 25 is pushed leftward in the drawing.",
"At this point, since the movable block 25 surface-contacts the orbiting spiral wrap 18 , the fluid can be compressed even at a location where the pivotal block 25 is located during the orbiting movement of the orbiting spiral wrap 18 .",
"That is, the pivotal block 25 is not completely bent even when high pressure is applied, but is moved up to a location where the wall for defining a compression space can be formed.",
"Therefore, the displacement of the pivotal block 25 can be limited by forming a predetermined stopper structure (not shown).",
"To realize this, a stepped surface (not shown) opposing the hinge 43 is formed on a predetermined wall defining the compression space.",
"By this structure, when the pivotal block 25 is pivoted by high-pressure, the pivotal block 25 is caught by the stepped portion so that it cannot be pivoted above a predetermined angle.",
"[0048] Meanwhile, when high-pressure is applied to the control chamber 31 , a seal member (not shown) may be further formed between the pivotal block 25 and the stationary spiral wrap 17 to prevent the high-pressure fluid from leaking.",
"By this structure, the moving direction and location setting can be reliably realized.",
"[0049] However, when the low-pressure passage 27 is connected to the control passage 30 by the control valve 29 moving downward in FIG. 1 , since low-pressure is applied to both the control passage 30 and the control chamber 31 , the pivotal block 25 is displaced rightwards in FIG. 1 .",
"That is, a rotational direction of the pivotal block 25 is designed to be controlled by the pressure of the control chamber 31 and by a medium pressure of fluid being compressed in the conventional compressing part.",
"Therefore, since the medium pressure is greater than pressure of the low-pressure passage 27 , which is pressure of an intake side of the compressing part, the pivotal block moves rightwards.",
"[0050] Thus, when the pivotal block 25 is opened by being moved rightwards, since a predetermined gap is formed between the orbiting spiral wrap 18 and the pivotal block 25 , the fluid being compressed is bypassed through the gap.",
"As a result, the compression volume is reduced.",
"In this case, the compression volume is reduced by as much as an amount of fluid bypassed.",
"[0051] FIGS. 2 and 4 show bottoms views of the stationary scroll member of the present invention.",
"[0052] Particularly, FIG. 2 shows the pivotal block 25 that is displaced clockwise (in an arrow direction of FIG. 2 .",
"Since FIG. 2 is a bottom view of the stationary scroll member, the arrow direction indicates a counterclockwise direction).",
"That is, FIG. 2 shows a state where the compression volume is reduced.",
"FIG. 4 shows the pivotal block 25 that is displaced counterclockwise (in an arrow direction of FIG. 4 .",
"Since FIG. 4 is a bottom view of the stationary scroll member, the arrow direction indicates a clockwise direction).",
"That is, FIG. 2 shows a state where the compression volume is normal.",
"[0053] Referring to FIGS. 2 and 4 , the stationary spiral wrap 17 is formed on the stationary scroll member 15 , and the control chamber 31 is defined by cutting away of a portion of the outer inside-wall of the stationary spiral wrap 17 .",
"The pivotal block 25 is pivotally fixed on the hinge 43 formed on a portion of the stationary spiral wrap 17 .",
"[0054] The pivotal block 25 may be disposed on the outermost of the spiral wrap 17 (i.e., the closest location to the intake side of fluid.",
"By this structure, fluid compressed above predetermined pressure is not bypassed on a fluid compressing path, thereby reducing output loss of the motor.",
"[0055] In addition, the hinge 43 may be formed on a portion of the pivotal block 25 , which is farthest from the intake side of the compressing part.",
"By this structure, the greater the distance between the gap defined between the pivotal block 25 and the orbiting spiral wrap 18 and the intake side, the smaller the output loss of the motor.",
"[0056] In detail, when the high-pressure is applied to the control chamber 31 , the seal between the pivotal block 25 and the orbiting spiral wrap 18 may not be perfectly realized even if the pivotal block 25 pivots rightwards (see the arrow direction of FIG. 4 ).",
"However, when the hinge is formed as proposed above, even if there is a gap between the pivotal block 25 and the orbiting spiral wrap 18 , the gap is completely removed to allow for the fluid compression.",
"As a result, the output loss can be reduced.",
"[0057] If the hinge 43 is located close to the intake side of the compressing part and the location control of the pivotal block 25 is not perfectly realized, since the fluid compressed by the operation of the orbiting spiral wrap 18 is bypassed, the motor creates useless output.",
"[0058] In addition, since the fluid pressure is increased as it goes inward of the spiral wraps 17 and 18 , it is preferable that the hinge 43 is formed on an inner side of the pivotal block 25 to stably support the pivotal block 25 at high-pressure.",
"[0059] Hereinbelow, operation of the variable capacity scroll compressor of the present invention will be described.",
"[0060] FIGS. 3 and 5 conceptually illustrate a compression volume variation in accordance with a displacing state of an operational block according to the present invention.",
"[0061] Particularly, FIG. 3 corresponds to a state depicted in FIG. 2 , illustrating a state where the pivotal block surface is separated from the orbiting scroll member, and FIG. 5 corresponds to a state depicted in FIG. 4 , illustrating a state where the pivotal block 25 contacts the orbiting scroll member.",
"[0062] Referring first to FIG. 3 , a space between the pivotal block 25 and the orbiting spiral wrap 18 is defined with a predetermined length, allowing the fluid being compressed to be exhausted.",
"Since the control passage 30 and the control chamber 31 are applied with low-pressure of the intake side of the compressing part, the pivotal block 25 is designed to freely pivot by medium-pressure of the fluid being compressed.",
"[0063] In a state where the low-pressure is applied to the control chamber 31 , a first intake volume 41 which is a compressing space defined between the stationary spiral wrap 17 and the orbiting spiral wrap 18 starts from a location where the stationary spiral wrap 17 contacts the orbiting spiral wrap 18 over the location where the pivotal block 25 is installed (the hinge 43 is formed).",
"Therefore, the fluid being compressed is partly bypassed to reduce the compression volume.",
"[0064] The intake volume will be described more in detail hereinafter.",
"[0065] The intake volume defined between the stationary and orbiting spiral wraps 17 and 18 contacting each other may be divided into first and second volumes.",
"[0066] The first volume is a first intake space defined when an inner circumference of the stationary spiral wrap 17 meets an outer circumference of the orbiting spiral wrap 18 .",
"The first intake space can be illustrated as the first intake volume 41 depicted in FIG. 3 .",
"[0067] The second volume is a second intake space (not shown) when an outer circumference of the stationary spiral wrap 17 meets an inner circumference of the orbiting spiral wrap 18 .",
"Although the second intake space is not shown in the drawing, it can be assumed that the second intake space can be formed by the orbiting operation of the orbiting spiral wrap 18 .",
"[0068] A start point of the first intake space is defined on a location indicated by the reference character SC 1 (Compress Start 1 ), and a start point of the second intake space is defined on a location indicated by the reference character SC 2 (Compress Start 2 .",
"Since the start points SC 1 and SC 2 are not symmetrically located, this can be called an asymmetry operation mode.",
"That is, when the scroll member is divided into two halves based on the central portion of the scroll member and both the start points SC 1 and SC 2 are sided to one half, this can be called the asymmetric operation mode.",
"[0069] Referring to FIG. 5 , since there is no space between the pivotal block 25 and the stationary spiral wrap 17 , the fluid being compressed cannot be bypassed.",
"Since the control passage 30 and the control chamber 31 are applied with high-pressure of the exhaust side of the compressing part, the pivotal block 25 is designed not to pivot by medium-pressure of the fluid being compressed.",
"[0070] In a state where the high-pressure is applied to the control chamber 31 , a second intake volume 42 which is a compressing space defined between the stationary spiral wrap 17 and the orbiting spiral wrap 18 starts from a location where the stationary spiral wrap 17 contacts the orbiting spiral wrap 18 at an intake side of the pivotal block 25 .",
"[0071] As described above, the intake volume is varied in accordance with a variety of factors such as a connection state of the control valve 29 , a pressure state of the control chamber 31 associated with the control valve 29 , and a pivotal state of the pivotal block 25 .",
"That is, when the pivotal block 25 is separated from the orbiting spiral wrap 18 , an initial compression space is identical to the first intake volume 41 .",
"When the pivotal block 25 surface-contacts the orbiting spiral wrap 18 , the initial compression space is identical to second intake volume 42 .",
"[0072] As shown in, the drawings, since the first intake volume 41 is less than the second intake volume 42 .",
"That is, when the second intake volume 42 is formed, the compression volume is increased.",
"That is, the compression volume obtained when the pivotal block 25 pivots clockwise (see FIG. 5 ), when high-pressure is applied to the control chamber 31 , when high-pressure is applied to the control passage 30 , or when the control valve 29 is operated such that the exhaust passage of the compressing part is connected to the control passage 30 is greater than that when the cases are opposite states.",
"[0073] As a result, since there is a difference in a volume of fluid fed during an initial compressing operation of the scroll compressor, the compression volume can be varied by the volume difference of the intake space.",
"[0074] For example, when the control valve 29 is operated such that the high-pressure passage 28 is connected to the control passage 30 , since the pivotal block 25 is pivoted clockwise so as fluid being compressed not to be bypassed.",
"In this case, since the compression volume is increased to be suitable for an operational mode of the air conditioner where a relatively large compression volume is required.",
"[0075] When the control valve 29 is displaced such that the low-pressure passage 27 is connected o the control passage 30 , the pivotal block 25 pivots counterclockwise (see FIG. 3 ) and the fluid being compressed is bypassed.",
"In this case, since he compression volume is reduced to be suitable for an operational mode of the air conditioner where a relatively small amount of compression volume is required.",
"[0076] The application of the compressor of the present invention is not limited to the air conditioner that is used only for a description example.",
"That is, the inventive compressor can be applied to any systems requiring a variable compression volume.",
"[0077] FIG. 7 shows a scroll compressor according to a second embodiment of the present invention.",
"[0078] As shown in the drawing, the scroll compressor of this embodiment is identical to that of the first embodiment except for a connection structure around the control valve.",
"[0079] That is, a control passage 52 , a control valve 53 , and a high-pressure passage 51 are same as those in the first embodiment.",
"However, the low-pressure passage 27 that is selectively connected to the control passage 52 by the control valve 53 in the first embodiment is not formed in this embodiment.",
"[0080] When the low-pressure passage 27 is not formed, only the high-pressure is selectively applied to the control passage 52 in accordance with the operation of the control valve 53 .",
"[0081] The operation of this embodiment will be described hereinafter.",
"[0082] The operation where the high-pressure is applied to the control chamber 31 by the control valve 53 displaced upward is identical to that of the first embodiment.",
"However, when the control valve 53 is displaced downward so that no fluid pressure is applied to the control passage 52 , since pressure of the control passage 52 is lower than medium-pressure of fluid being compressed in the compressing part, the pivotal block 25 rotates clockwise (see FIG. 3 ).",
"That is, since a high-pressure state formed in the control passage 52 in the course of receiving the high-pressure is released through a gap formed on, for example, an outer circumference of the pivotal block 25 , the high-pressure state is not maintained.",
"However, in order to remove the high-pressure state formed in the control passage 52 , a small hole may be formed on a juncture of the passages.",
"In addition, even when a little amount of fluid is leaked, since there is no newly supplied high-pressure fluid, the operation of the pivotal block 25 can be perfectly controlled.",
"[0083] Therefore, the operation of the pivotal block 25 can be controlled even when there is no connection to the low-pressure passage 27 (see FIG. 1 ).",
"[0084] As described above, by simply controlling the control valve, it is possible to conveniently allow the fluid being compressed to be bypassed.",
"Particularly, the mainspring of the control of the bypass port is to selectively use low-pressure formed by fluid that is not inhaled into the conventional compressing part and high-pressure formed by fluid compressed by the conventional compressing part.",
"[0085] Also, in the scroll compressor according to the present invention, it is possible to vary the compression volume in multi-stages using a bypass function, which can be realized by a simple structure, without varying the RPM of the compression motor.",
"[0086] In addition, since the valve for realizing the volume variation of the scroll compressor is designed to be controlled by fluid pressure that is not still compressed in the compressing part and fluid pressure that is compressed in the compressing part without adding additional components, the manufacturing cost of the scroll compressor can be saved.",
"[0087] It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various modifications and variations can be made in the present invention.",
"Thus, it is intended that the present invention covers the modifications and variations of this invention provided they come within the scope of the appended claims and their equivalents."
] |
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
There are known in the prior art bill acceptors which receive and test for genuineness bills deposited in a merchandising machine or the like. If the bill fails the test for genuineness it is returned to the customer. If the bill is acceptable, it may be sent to an escrow station whereat it remains until a purchase is complete. When the purchase is complete the bill is sent to a stacking mechanism. If, on the other hand, the customer changes his mind before the purchase is complete, he may press the return button and the bill will be returned.
The devices of the type described hereinabove function satisfactorily for individual bills. However, with the increasing price of articles being sold in merchandising machines and inflation, the cost of articles has been such that more than a single bill may be required to aggregate at least the purchase price of an article. The bill acceptors and the like of the prior art are not adapted to handle more than a single bill.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
One object of my invention is to provide a multiple bill escrow mechanism which is capable of receiving and holding in escrow more than a single bill.
Another object of my invention is to provide a multiple bill escrow system which is relatively simple in operation.
A further object of my invention is to provide a multiple bill escrow mechanism which is certain in operation.
Still another object of my invention is to provide a multiple bill escrow mechanism which can deliver a multiplicity of bills from an escrow location either to a stacker or back to the customer.
Other and further objects of my invention will appear from the following description.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
In the accompanying drawings to which reference is made in the instant specification and which are to be read in conjunction therewith and in which like reference characters indicate like parts in the various views:
FIG. 1 is a side elevation of my multiple bill escrow mechanism with parts removed and with other parts shown in section.
FIG. 2 is a rear elevation of the form of my multiple bill escrow apparatus illustrated in FIG. 1.
FIG. 3 is a fragmentary front elevation of the apparatus shown in FIG. 1 with parts removed.
FIG. 4 is a fragmentary partially diagrammatic showing of a gear coupling employed in my multiple bill escrow apparatus.
FIG. 5 is a block diagram of the control system which may be employed with my multiple bill escrow apparatus.
DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
Referring now to the drawings, my multiple bill escrow apparatus indicated generally by the reference character 10 includes a frame having a left side plate 12 and a right side plate 14. Plate 12 carries a left side bill retaining angle having a flange 18. The right side plate carries a right hand bill retaining angle 20 having a flange 22.
I mount respective front belt upper feed rollers 24 and 26 on stub shafts 28 and 30 carried by side plates 12 and 14. Respective front belt lower turn rollers 32 and 34 are supported on a shaft 36 mounted in the side plates 12 and 14. I mount a pair of front belt return rollers 38 and 40 on a shaft 42 supported in the frame plates 12 and 14. A pair of front belt tension rollers 44 and 46 are carried by respective blocks, one block 48 of which is shown. Each of the blocks 48 is adjustably positioned in a slot 50 in the associated side plate 12 or 14 to permit the tension of the front belts to be adjusted.
The front belts 56 and 58 extend from the upper roller 24 and 26 downwardly to the turn rollers 32 and 34 and forwardly to the return rollers 38 and 40. From the rollers 38 and 40, the belts 56 and 58 extend rearwardly and around the respective belt tensioning rollers 44 and 46 back to the upper rollers 24 and 26.
My apparatus includes a floating belt subassembly indicated generally by the reference character 60 comprising a central backing plate 62 provided with flanges 64 and 66 extending along the vertical edges thereof. A shaft 72 supported by the flanges 64 and 66 adjacent to the upper ends thereof carries spaced floating belt upper rollers 68 and 70. A shaft 78 supported in the flanges 64 and 66 adjacent to the lower end thereof carries spaced lower floating belt rollers 74 and 76.
Respective floating belts 80 and 82 extend around the pairs of rollers 68 and 74 and 70 and 76. Four springs, three of which, 81, 83 and 85 are shown in the drawings urge the floating belt subassembly 60 toward a position at which belts 80 and 82 engage the rear vertical extents of belts 56 and 58.
I provide a return belt assembly for cooperating with the lower horizontal extents of the belts 56 and 58 for returning bills to the customer in a manner to be described hereinbelow.
Respective rear return belt rollers 84 and 86 are supported on a shaft 87. Respective return belt front rollers 88 and 90 are supported on a shaft 91. Rollers 84 and 88 receive return belt 92 while rollers 86 and 90 receive return belt 94. I provide the shafts 87 and 91 with resilient supports, two supports 95 and 97 of which are shown in the drawings for mounting these shafts on the plates 12 and 14. As will be explained more fully hereinbelow, this arrangement facilitates the handling of a plurality of bills stacked one on top of the other.
Upper and lower guide plates 96 and 98 carried by the side panels 12 and 14 lead to an output mouth 100 from which a customer can receive return bills in a manner to be described hereinafter.
A platform 101 extending between the side panels 12 and 14 forms the bottom of a bill receiving compartment indicated generally by the reference character 103 in which bills may be received on end from a bill acceptor (not shown).
My apparatus includes an arrangement for moving bills successively received in chamber 103 from the chamber to between the contiguous extents of belts 56 and 58 and 80 and 82 so that a plurality of bills may be held therebetween in an escrow position. A ram 102 is supported on the legs 106 and 108 of a U-shaped bracket, the leg 106 of which extends inwardly over the upper edge of panel 12 and the lower leg of which extends through a slot 110 in the panel 12.
A motor and gear box unit 112 supported on the outer surface of panel 12 has an output shaft 114 carrying a crank 116 for movement therewith. A pin 118 connects the crank 116 to a link 120. Another pin 122 connects the link 120 to a slide 124, the upper and lower edges of which are provided with pairs of bearing blocks 126 and 128 and 130 and 132 which ride in tracks 134 and 136 on the outer surface of the panel 12. Two pins 135 connect the slide 124 to the bracket 104.
From the structure just described, it will readily be appreciated that when motor 112 is energized, crank 116 drives link 120 to move slide 124 to move ram 102 from the full line position shown in FIG. 1 to the fragmentary broken line position indicated in dot dash lines in the Figure and back again. In the course of this movement, a bill in chamber 103 will be carried through the space between belts 56 and 58 and into engagement with the plate 62. In the course of this movement the entire subassembly 60 will be moved to the left as viewed in FIG. 1 against the action of springs 81, 83 and 85 until the bill has moved past the left vertical extent of the belts 56 and 58. When the subassembly 60 returns to its initial position the edges of the bill will be caught between the front vertical extents of belts 80 and 82 and the rear vertical extents of belts 56 and 58.
My apparatus includes means for selectively sending a stack of bills from the escrow position to the main stacker (not shown) or to the return mouth 100. A diverter assembly indicated generally by the reference character 138 comprises a bracket 140 having a first pair of legs 142 and 144 which receive a shaft 146 supported in the side panels 12 and 14 swingably to support the bracket 140 for movement around the axis of the shaft 146. This shaft 146 also supports a pair of diverter belt upper rollers 148 and 150.
A second pair of legs 152 and 154 on the bracket 140 support a shaft 156 carrying diverter belt lower rollers 158 and 160. The pair of rollers 148 and 158 carry a first diverter belt 162 which cooperates with the belt 56. The other pair of diverter belt rollers, 150 and 160, carry a second diverter belt 164 which cooperates with the belt 58.
A shaft 170 adjustably positioned in suitable slots in the panels 12 and 14 carries respective nip rollers 166 and 168 which cooperate with the rollers 32 and 34 to form nips through which the respective pairs of belts 56 and 162 and 58 and 164 pass.
A motor 172 has a shaft 174 carrying a crank 176. A pin 178 on the end of crank 176 rides in a slot 180 formed in an arm 182 of bracket 140. Motor 172 may be energized in a manner to be described to drive the crank 176 to cause pin 178 to move the bracket 140 to position rollers 158 and 160 in the dot dash line position shown in FIG. 1 at which the belts 158 and 160 direct bills coming from the escrow position toward the return mouth 100.
Shaft 174 also carries a cam 184 adapted to actuate a switch 186 to put out a signal indicating the present position of the diverter assembly 138.
Referring now to FIG. 3, a motor 188 is adapted to be energized to drive its shaft 190 carrying a pinion 191 which drives a reduction gear 192 and a pulley 193 which receives a belt 194 which extends around a pulley 196 carried by shaft 42 for rotation therewith. This arrangement provides the belt drive system of my multiple bill escrow arrangement.
A first pair of gears 198 and 200 provide a driving connection between the shaft 72 and the shaft 28. A second pair of gears 202 and 204 provide a driving connection between shafts 42 and 91. Referring now to FIG. 4, it will be seen that the gears 198 and 200 are so configured as to maintain the driving connection between shafts 28 and 72 even after these shafts are displaced in a direction perpendicular to their axes under the action of ram 102 as a bill is moved between the pairs of belts 56 and 58 and 80 and 82. I so configure these gears as to permit a buildup of around ten bills before the driving connection is lost. It will be appreciated, moreover, that as the floating belt assembly 60 is moved away from the position to which it is biased by springs 81, 83 and 85 under the action of the ram 102, the engagement between gears 198 and 200 will be entirely lost. Owing to the configuration of the teeth, however, this driving connection will be reestablished when the floating belt assembly 60 returns. I form the gears 202 and 204 in the same manner as gears 198 and 200 to permit the return belts 92 and 94 to move away from the horizontal extents of belts 56 and 58 when a stack of bills is being returned to the customer.
Referring now to FIG. 5, my multiple bill escrow mechanism may be associated with a control processor 206, a bill acceptor 208 adapted to put out an acceptable bill signal on a line 210, and a merchandising machine 212 adapted to provide a vend signal on a line 214 and a return signal on a line 216.
In operation of my multiple bill escrow apparatus, an acceptable bill is delivered by the acceptor 208 to the chamber 103. At the same time a signal on line 210 informs the microprocessor that the bill is indeed acceptable. In response thereto the microprocessor energizes motor 112 for one revolution to cause the ram 102 to reciprocate to carry the bill from chamber 103 through the space between belts 56 and 58 and into engagement with the floating assembly 60 or a previously accepted bill. The bill being carried from the chamber 103 is moved together with the floating frame 60 through a sufficient distance to move the edges of the bill beyond the left vertical extents of belts 56 and 58 so that when the ram returns the bill is trapped between the pairs of belts 56 and 58 and 80 and 82. In this manner all the bills which have been deposited before the customer makes a buy or requests return have moved into the space between the pairs of belts 56 and 58 and 80 and 82. Thus, the ram 102 and its operating mechanism just described constitute means for moving successively received bills from the chamber 103 into the escrow position between the pairs of belts 56 and 58 and 80 and 82.
Should the customer now make a purchase, the merchandising machine 212 will put out a vend signal on line 214 to the microprocessor 206. The processor in turn checks to see whether or not the diverter assembly 138 is in its full line position, illustrated in FIG. 1, in which the bills will be sent to the main stacker (not shown) or whether it is in its dot-dash line position. In the latter case motor 172 will be energized to return the diverter assembly 138 to its full line position.
Upon receiving a vend signal the control unit 206 also will energize motor 18 to drive the belt system. This drive train can be traced as follows. Motor 188 drives belt 194 to drive shaft 42. Since the shaft 42 is driven, both of the front belts 56 and 58 will be driven. As a result, shaft 28 carrying gear 198 is driven to drive gear 200 carried by the shaft 72 to drive both of the belts 80 and 82. In this wa the effective control over the stack of bills between the pairs of belts 56 and 58 and 80 and 82 is maintained.
Under the conditions just described, since the assembly 138 is in its full line position the stack of bills being delivered from the escrow position by the pairs of belts 56 and 58 and 80 and 82 will move straight downwardly, as viewed in FIG. 1, until they leave the escrow apparatus and are received by the main stacker (not shown).
In the event that a customer wishes to have his money returned before having made a selection, he actuates the appropriate push button or the like and the merchandising machine 212 puts out a return signal on line 216 leading to the central processor 206. When that has been done, the control 206 first ensures that the diverter assembly 138 already is in its return position or is moved to that position as indicated by the dot dash lines in FIG. 1. It will be remembered that the cam 184 operating on the switch 186 informs the processor 206 of the position of the diverter assembly. With the diverter assembly in its dot dash line or return position the belts 162 and 164 wrap around the pulleys 32 and 34 to such an extent as to direct the stack of notes into the space between the pair of belts 92 and 94 and the horizontal extents of belts 56 and 58.
Upon the occurrence of a return signal, controller 206 also energizes motor 188 in the manner described hereinabove so that shaft 42 is driven. In addition to the driving train described hereinabove, gears 202 and 204 provide a driving connection between shafts 42 and 91 so that both of the belts 92 and 94 also are driven. In this manner control of the pack of notes is maintained as they move toward the exit mouth 100. It will also be remembered that shafts 87 and 91 are so mounted as to permit some movement of the belts 92 and 94 away from the horizontal extents of belts 56 and 58 to accommodate the thickness of the stack. Further, gears 202 and 204 are so constructed as to maintain their driving connection even with the stack of notes in the space between belts 92 and 94 and the horizontal extents of belts 56 and 58.
It will be seen that I have accomplished the objects of my invention. I have provided a multiple bill escrow mechanism which is adapted to receive and to hold in an escrow position a plurality of bills. My mechanism may be selectively actuated to return the stack of bills to the customer or to deliver the stack to a main escrow. It maintains effective control over the stack of notes at all times. It is simple in construction and certain in operation for the result achieved thereby.
It will be understood that certain features and subcombinations are of utility and may be employed without reference to other features and subcombinations. This is contemplated by and is within the scope of my claims. It is further obvious that various changes may be made in details within the scope of my claims without departing from the spirit of my invention. It is, therefore, to be understood that my invention is not to be limited to the specific details shown and described. | A multiple bill escrow apparatus for forming a stack of successively received bills at an escrow location and for selectively moving the stack to a stacker or to a return in which a ram moves successively received bills to between pairs of first and second belt lengths to form the stack and in which the first and second belt lengths are mounted for relative movement to accomodate said stack and are concomitantly driven to move said stack out of the escrow position. Diverter belts are actuated selectively to direct the stack to a return path formed by pairs of third and fourth belt lengths mounted for relative movement to accommodate the stack and concomitantly driven to return the stack. | Concisely explain the essential features and purpose of the concept presented in the passage. | [
"BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION There are known in the prior art bill acceptors which receive and test for genuineness bills deposited in a merchandising machine or the like.",
"If the bill fails the test for genuineness it is returned to the customer.",
"If the bill is acceptable, it may be sent to an escrow station whereat it remains until a purchase is complete.",
"When the purchase is complete the bill is sent to a stacking mechanism.",
"If, on the other hand, the customer changes his mind before the purchase is complete, he may press the return button and the bill will be returned.",
"The devices of the type described hereinabove function satisfactorily for individual bills.",
"However, with the increasing price of articles being sold in merchandising machines and inflation, the cost of articles has been such that more than a single bill may be required to aggregate at least the purchase price of an article.",
"The bill acceptors and the like of the prior art are not adapted to handle more than a single bill.",
"SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION One object of my invention is to provide a multiple bill escrow mechanism which is capable of receiving and holding in escrow more than a single bill.",
"Another object of my invention is to provide a multiple bill escrow system which is relatively simple in operation.",
"A further object of my invention is to provide a multiple bill escrow mechanism which is certain in operation.",
"Still another object of my invention is to provide a multiple bill escrow mechanism which can deliver a multiplicity of bills from an escrow location either to a stacker or back to the customer.",
"Other and further objects of my invention will appear from the following description.",
"BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS In the accompanying drawings to which reference is made in the instant specification and which are to be read in conjunction therewith and in which like reference characters indicate like parts in the various views: FIG. 1 is a side elevation of my multiple bill escrow mechanism with parts removed and with other parts shown in section.",
"FIG. 2 is a rear elevation of the form of my multiple bill escrow apparatus illustrated in FIG. 1. FIG. 3 is a fragmentary front elevation of the apparatus shown in FIG. 1 with parts removed.",
"FIG. 4 is a fragmentary partially diagrammatic showing of a gear coupling employed in my multiple bill escrow apparatus.",
"FIG. 5 is a block diagram of the control system which may be employed with my multiple bill escrow apparatus.",
"DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT Referring now to the drawings, my multiple bill escrow apparatus indicated generally by the reference character 10 includes a frame having a left side plate 12 and a right side plate 14.",
"Plate 12 carries a left side bill retaining angle having a flange 18.",
"The right side plate carries a right hand bill retaining angle 20 having a flange 22.",
"I mount respective front belt upper feed rollers 24 and 26 on stub shafts 28 and 30 carried by side plates 12 and 14.",
"Respective front belt lower turn rollers 32 and 34 are supported on a shaft 36 mounted in the side plates 12 and 14.",
"I mount a pair of front belt return rollers 38 and 40 on a shaft 42 supported in the frame plates 12 and 14.",
"A pair of front belt tension rollers 44 and 46 are carried by respective blocks, one block 48 of which is shown.",
"Each of the blocks 48 is adjustably positioned in a slot 50 in the associated side plate 12 or 14 to permit the tension of the front belts to be adjusted.",
"The front belts 56 and 58 extend from the upper roller 24 and 26 downwardly to the turn rollers 32 and 34 and forwardly to the return rollers 38 and 40.",
"From the rollers 38 and 40, the belts 56 and 58 extend rearwardly and around the respective belt tensioning rollers 44 and 46 back to the upper rollers 24 and 26.",
"My apparatus includes a floating belt subassembly indicated generally by the reference character 60 comprising a central backing plate 62 provided with flanges 64 and 66 extending along the vertical edges thereof.",
"A shaft 72 supported by the flanges 64 and 66 adjacent to the upper ends thereof carries spaced floating belt upper rollers 68 and 70.",
"A shaft 78 supported in the flanges 64 and 66 adjacent to the lower end thereof carries spaced lower floating belt rollers 74 and 76.",
"Respective floating belts 80 and 82 extend around the pairs of rollers 68 and 74 and 70 and 76.",
"Four springs, three of which, 81, 83 and 85 are shown in the drawings urge the floating belt subassembly 60 toward a position at which belts 80 and 82 engage the rear vertical extents of belts 56 and 58.",
"I provide a return belt assembly for cooperating with the lower horizontal extents of the belts 56 and 58 for returning bills to the customer in a manner to be described hereinbelow.",
"Respective rear return belt rollers 84 and 86 are supported on a shaft 87.",
"Respective return belt front rollers 88 and 90 are supported on a shaft 91.",
"Rollers 84 and 88 receive return belt 92 while rollers 86 and 90 receive return belt 94.",
"I provide the shafts 87 and 91 with resilient supports, two supports 95 and 97 of which are shown in the drawings for mounting these shafts on the plates 12 and 14.",
"As will be explained more fully hereinbelow, this arrangement facilitates the handling of a plurality of bills stacked one on top of the other.",
"Upper and lower guide plates 96 and 98 carried by the side panels 12 and 14 lead to an output mouth 100 from which a customer can receive return bills in a manner to be described hereinafter.",
"A platform 101 extending between the side panels 12 and 14 forms the bottom of a bill receiving compartment indicated generally by the reference character 103 in which bills may be received on end from a bill acceptor (not shown).",
"My apparatus includes an arrangement for moving bills successively received in chamber 103 from the chamber to between the contiguous extents of belts 56 and 58 and 80 and 82 so that a plurality of bills may be held therebetween in an escrow position.",
"A ram 102 is supported on the legs 106 and 108 of a U-shaped bracket, the leg 106 of which extends inwardly over the upper edge of panel 12 and the lower leg of which extends through a slot 110 in the panel 12.",
"A motor and gear box unit 112 supported on the outer surface of panel 12 has an output shaft 114 carrying a crank 116 for movement therewith.",
"A pin 118 connects the crank 116 to a link 120.",
"Another pin 122 connects the link 120 to a slide 124, the upper and lower edges of which are provided with pairs of bearing blocks 126 and 128 and 130 and 132 which ride in tracks 134 and 136 on the outer surface of the panel 12.",
"Two pins 135 connect the slide 124 to the bracket 104.",
"From the structure just described, it will readily be appreciated that when motor 112 is energized, crank 116 drives link 120 to move slide 124 to move ram 102 from the full line position shown in FIG. 1 to the fragmentary broken line position indicated in dot dash lines in the Figure and back again.",
"In the course of this movement, a bill in chamber 103 will be carried through the space between belts 56 and 58 and into engagement with the plate 62.",
"In the course of this movement the entire subassembly 60 will be moved to the left as viewed in FIG. 1 against the action of springs 81, 83 and 85 until the bill has moved past the left vertical extent of the belts 56 and 58.",
"When the subassembly 60 returns to its initial position the edges of the bill will be caught between the front vertical extents of belts 80 and 82 and the rear vertical extents of belts 56 and 58.",
"My apparatus includes means for selectively sending a stack of bills from the escrow position to the main stacker (not shown) or to the return mouth 100.",
"A diverter assembly indicated generally by the reference character 138 comprises a bracket 140 having a first pair of legs 142 and 144 which receive a shaft 146 supported in the side panels 12 and 14 swingably to support the bracket 140 for movement around the axis of the shaft 146.",
"This shaft 146 also supports a pair of diverter belt upper rollers 148 and 150.",
"A second pair of legs 152 and 154 on the bracket 140 support a shaft 156 carrying diverter belt lower rollers 158 and 160.",
"The pair of rollers 148 and 158 carry a first diverter belt 162 which cooperates with the belt 56.",
"The other pair of diverter belt rollers, 150 and 160, carry a second diverter belt 164 which cooperates with the belt 58.",
"A shaft 170 adjustably positioned in suitable slots in the panels 12 and 14 carries respective nip rollers 166 and 168 which cooperate with the rollers 32 and 34 to form nips through which the respective pairs of belts 56 and 162 and 58 and 164 pass.",
"A motor 172 has a shaft 174 carrying a crank 176.",
"A pin 178 on the end of crank 176 rides in a slot 180 formed in an arm 182 of bracket 140.",
"Motor 172 may be energized in a manner to be described to drive the crank 176 to cause pin 178 to move the bracket 140 to position rollers 158 and 160 in the dot dash line position shown in FIG. 1 at which the belts 158 and 160 direct bills coming from the escrow position toward the return mouth 100.",
"Shaft 174 also carries a cam 184 adapted to actuate a switch 186 to put out a signal indicating the present position of the diverter assembly 138.",
"Referring now to FIG. 3, a motor 188 is adapted to be energized to drive its shaft 190 carrying a pinion 191 which drives a reduction gear 192 and a pulley 193 which receives a belt 194 which extends around a pulley 196 carried by shaft 42 for rotation therewith.",
"This arrangement provides the belt drive system of my multiple bill escrow arrangement.",
"A first pair of gears 198 and 200 provide a driving connection between the shaft 72 and the shaft 28.",
"A second pair of gears 202 and 204 provide a driving connection between shafts 42 and 91.",
"Referring now to FIG. 4, it will be seen that the gears 198 and 200 are so configured as to maintain the driving connection between shafts 28 and 72 even after these shafts are displaced in a direction perpendicular to their axes under the action of ram 102 as a bill is moved between the pairs of belts 56 and 58 and 80 and 82.",
"I so configure these gears as to permit a buildup of around ten bills before the driving connection is lost.",
"It will be appreciated, moreover, that as the floating belt assembly 60 is moved away from the position to which it is biased by springs 81, 83 and 85 under the action of the ram 102, the engagement between gears 198 and 200 will be entirely lost.",
"Owing to the configuration of the teeth, however, this driving connection will be reestablished when the floating belt assembly 60 returns.",
"I form the gears 202 and 204 in the same manner as gears 198 and 200 to permit the return belts 92 and 94 to move away from the horizontal extents of belts 56 and 58 when a stack of bills is being returned to the customer.",
"Referring now to FIG. 5, my multiple bill escrow mechanism may be associated with a control processor 206, a bill acceptor 208 adapted to put out an acceptable bill signal on a line 210, and a merchandising machine 212 adapted to provide a vend signal on a line 214 and a return signal on a line 216.",
"In operation of my multiple bill escrow apparatus, an acceptable bill is delivered by the acceptor 208 to the chamber 103.",
"At the same time a signal on line 210 informs the microprocessor that the bill is indeed acceptable.",
"In response thereto the microprocessor energizes motor 112 for one revolution to cause the ram 102 to reciprocate to carry the bill from chamber 103 through the space between belts 56 and 58 and into engagement with the floating assembly 60 or a previously accepted bill.",
"The bill being carried from the chamber 103 is moved together with the floating frame 60 through a sufficient distance to move the edges of the bill beyond the left vertical extents of belts 56 and 58 so that when the ram returns the bill is trapped between the pairs of belts 56 and 58 and 80 and 82.",
"In this manner all the bills which have been deposited before the customer makes a buy or requests return have moved into the space between the pairs of belts 56 and 58 and 80 and 82.",
"Thus, the ram 102 and its operating mechanism just described constitute means for moving successively received bills from the chamber 103 into the escrow position between the pairs of belts 56 and 58 and 80 and 82.",
"Should the customer now make a purchase, the merchandising machine 212 will put out a vend signal on line 214 to the microprocessor 206.",
"The processor in turn checks to see whether or not the diverter assembly 138 is in its full line position, illustrated in FIG. 1, in which the bills will be sent to the main stacker (not shown) or whether it is in its dot-dash line position.",
"In the latter case motor 172 will be energized to return the diverter assembly 138 to its full line position.",
"Upon receiving a vend signal the control unit 206 also will energize motor 18 to drive the belt system.",
"This drive train can be traced as follows.",
"Motor 188 drives belt 194 to drive shaft 42.",
"Since the shaft 42 is driven, both of the front belts 56 and 58 will be driven.",
"As a result, shaft 28 carrying gear 198 is driven to drive gear 200 carried by the shaft 72 to drive both of the belts 80 and 82.",
"In this wa the effective control over the stack of bills between the pairs of belts 56 and 58 and 80 and 82 is maintained.",
"Under the conditions just described, since the assembly 138 is in its full line position the stack of bills being delivered from the escrow position by the pairs of belts 56 and 58 and 80 and 82 will move straight downwardly, as viewed in FIG. 1, until they leave the escrow apparatus and are received by the main stacker (not shown).",
"In the event that a customer wishes to have his money returned before having made a selection, he actuates the appropriate push button or the like and the merchandising machine 212 puts out a return signal on line 216 leading to the central processor 206.",
"When that has been done, the control 206 first ensures that the diverter assembly 138 already is in its return position or is moved to that position as indicated by the dot dash lines in FIG. 1. It will be remembered that the cam 184 operating on the switch 186 informs the processor 206 of the position of the diverter assembly.",
"With the diverter assembly in its dot dash line or return position the belts 162 and 164 wrap around the pulleys 32 and 34 to such an extent as to direct the stack of notes into the space between the pair of belts 92 and 94 and the horizontal extents of belts 56 and 58.",
"Upon the occurrence of a return signal, controller 206 also energizes motor 188 in the manner described hereinabove so that shaft 42 is driven.",
"In addition to the driving train described hereinabove, gears 202 and 204 provide a driving connection between shafts 42 and 91 so that both of the belts 92 and 94 also are driven.",
"In this manner control of the pack of notes is maintained as they move toward the exit mouth 100.",
"It will also be remembered that shafts 87 and 91 are so mounted as to permit some movement of the belts 92 and 94 away from the horizontal extents of belts 56 and 58 to accommodate the thickness of the stack.",
"Further, gears 202 and 204 are so constructed as to maintain their driving connection even with the stack of notes in the space between belts 92 and 94 and the horizontal extents of belts 56 and 58.",
"It will be seen that I have accomplished the objects of my invention.",
"I have provided a multiple bill escrow mechanism which is adapted to receive and to hold in an escrow position a plurality of bills.",
"My mechanism may be selectively actuated to return the stack of bills to the customer or to deliver the stack to a main escrow.",
"It maintains effective control over the stack of notes at all times.",
"It is simple in construction and certain in operation for the result achieved thereby.",
"It will be understood that certain features and subcombinations are of utility and may be employed without reference to other features and subcombinations.",
"This is contemplated by and is within the scope of my claims.",
"It is further obvious that various changes may be made in details within the scope of my claims without departing from the spirit of my invention.",
"It is, therefore, to be understood that my invention is not to be limited to the specific details shown and described."
] |
[0001] This application is a Continuation of, and claims priority under 35 U.S.C. § 120 to, International application number PCT/CH03/00045, filed 22 Jan. 2003, and claims priority under 35 U.S.C. § 119 to German application number 102 03 102.9, filed 25 Jan. 2002, and to Swiss application number 2002 0991/02, filed 10 Jun. 2002, the entireties of all of which are incorporated by reference herein.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0002] 1. Field of the Invention
[0003] The present invention relates to a method for operating a gas turbine group.
[0004] 2. Brief Description of the Related Art
[0005] The stability of combustion in modern premix burners of gas turbines is critically dependent in part on the ignitability of the fuel used, but also on other fuel properties, such as in particular the calorific value or the Wobbe index.
[0006] Premix burners of this type have been disclosed, for example, by EP 321 809, EP 780 629, WO 93/17279 or WO 92/19913. The various designs of burner are based on the common idea of introducing fuel into a swirling combustion-airstream and of generating an as far as possible homogenous and usually substoichiometric, lean fuel-air mix. When it is transferred into the combustion space, the swirling flow bursts open at a change in cross section, with the result that a backflow region which serves for flame stabilization is formed upstream of the burner mouth. The flame must not be stabilized too close to the burner mouth, in order to prevent excessive thermal loading of the burner. However, if the stabilization zone is too far downstream of the burner mouth, instability results.
[0007] The position of the combustion zone is also decisively dependent on the ignitability of the fuel used. This changes dramatically if, for example, a fuel gas contains high levels of higher saturated hydrocarbons, such as ethane, butane, propane, also known as C 2+ alkanes. Since the fuel-air mix is supplied in premixed form, there is an acute risk of flashback to the burner. Component failure is then likely.
[0008] A similar problem also manifests itself when operating spontaneous-ignition combustion chambers of the type that are known from EP 669 500, for example in a gas turbine group with sequential combustion, as has been disclosed by EP 620 362. In this case too, flashback caused by a highly ignitable fuel gas can lead to major damage.
[0009] Furthermore, a change in the fuel-gas composition also has effects on the emissions and on combustion-chamber pulsations.
[0010] In addition to the C 2+ -alkane content, the calorific value or Wobbe index also has an influence on the combustion behavior. In premix burner systems, this influence is primarily attributable to the changed pulse ratio of fuel gas and air at different Wobbe numbers. U.S. Pat No. 6,082,092 describes controlling a variable fuel-gas preheating in such a way that the Wobbe index is kept constant. Control with a view to establishing a constant Wobbe index would also be possible by variable admixing of inert components in a closed-loop control circuit. DE 197 31 209 proposes keeping the Wobbe index constant when burning residual gases of highly varying composition by the controlled admixing of natural gas and nitrogen.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0011] The invention relates to a method as initially mentioned. In one aspect the method is suitable for reacting to changes in the relevant fuel properties when a gas turbine group is operated with fuel gas. This reaction shall take place quickly enough to avoid a flashback, for example in the event of major variations in the C 2+ -alkane content.
[0012] According to the invention a device for determining fuel-gas properties, which, in one embodiment, operates in real time without delay, is arranged at the fuel-gas feed to the gas turbine group. At least one fuel-gas property is determined in this way and fed into the control system of the gas turbine group. Then, targeted actions on parameters of the gas turbine group which influence the combustion are performed as a function of the fuel-gas property.
[0013] The relevant fuel property is in one embodiment the C 2+ -alkane content of the fuel, which has a direct influence on the risk of flashback. In addition, it is also possible for the calorific value or the Wobbe index to be used directly as a supplemental fuel-gas property when the method is being carried out.
[0014] In an exemplary embodiment, an infrared measurement technique is used, as presented by Hoppe and Wolf in “IR Instrument For Gas Property Determination In Industrial Processes”, IGRC 2001, Amsterdam, 6.11.2001. This allows the measurement to be carried out very quickly and for the measured values to be available in real time. In this context, it is proposed that the infrared absorption by the fuel gas be determined in two different spectral regions. It is proposed that the absorption be determined in a first spectral region around 3.5 μm, which reacts primarily to the ethane, propane and butane content, and in a second spectral region around 7.9 μm, where the absorption substantially reacts to the methane content of the measurement gas. The cross-sensitivity between the spectral regions is low and can easily be corrected if necessary. In this way, it is possible for the C 2+ -alkane content to be determined continuously and rapidly. In principle, measurement only in the C 2+ alkane-sensitive spectral region around 3.5 μm is also sufficient to carry out the method according to the invention. This is quite sufficient for qualitative determination of a changed fuel-gas composition and for an appropriate reaction; measurement in both wavelength regions is more accurate and is in fact required for quantitative information to be obtained. In one embodiment of the method, the infrared absorption is additionally determined in a wavelength region around 4.3 μm, which reacts primarily to the CO 2 content. It is also possible to extend the method to other spectral regions which react sensitively to specific gas components. In a further preferred refinement, the thermal conductivity is measured as a measure of the nitrogen (N 2 ) content. Where appropriate, using cross-sensitivity correction algorithms, it is in this way possible to determine the fuel-gas composition very accurately, continuously and in real time. This also allows the calorific value or the Wobbe index to be determined.
[0015] The method according to the invention can for example be applied to a gas turbine group with sequential combustion, as disclosed by EP 620 362, and is moreover suitable if a self-igniting combustion chamber of the type known from EP 620 403 or EP 669 500 is provided as the second combustion chamber. Self-igniting combustion chambers are at particular risk of flashback, on account of the high mix temperature. With a gas turbine group of this type, it is possible to alter the distribution of fuel between the first and second combustion chambers as a function of the fuel properties, for example in such a manner that as the C 2+ content rises, the quantity of fuel fed to the second combustion chamber is reduced and the quantity of fuel fed to the first combustion chamber is increased accordingly.
[0016] It is known from EP 1 199 516 to make a central axial air flow variable in premix burners. In the context of the method according to the invention it is possible to control this axial flow as a function of the fuel properties determined. For example, as the C 2+ -alkane content of the fuel gas rises, it is possible to make the axial flow more intensive, in order thereby to avoid the risk of flashback into the burner interior.
[0017] Premix burners of the types which are currently used often have a plurality of fuel feeds to which fuel can be supplied independently of one another, for example for the independent application of pilot fuel, which is burnt in a diffusion combustion mode, and premix fuel. Burners of this type are described, for example, by WO 01 / 96785 , EP 193 838, EP 108 361, WO 00/12936, EP 945 677, or EP 321 809. The distribution of the fuel can be varied as a function of the measured fuel properties, in order on the one hand to ensure sufficient flame stability and at the same time to avoid flashback or component overheating and to keep the emission levels approximately constant.
[0018] In one embodiment of the invention, within a multi-burner system, with which the person skilled in the art will be familiar, the fuel distribution between individual burners and/or burner groups is varied as a function of the measured fuel properties.
[0019] It is also possible, as a function of the fuel properties, either for an inert medium to be introduced into the fuel gas, in which case this introduction may take place as close as possible to the gas turbine group to ensure short reaction times. Furthermore, an inert medium, such as steam or water, can be introduced into the combustion zone as a function of the measured fuel properties. The latter measure is suitable in particular for gas turbine groups which are already equipped with water and/or steam injection for the purpose of controlling emissions, since this measure has also proven eminently suitable for controlling the flame position and the combustion stability. In principle, by way of example, nitrogen or carbon dioxide would also be suitable inert media, but water and steam are generally more readily available.
[0020] A further control action possibility is for the gas turbine group to have means for cooling the working medium upstream of the compressor or in the compressor or between compressor stages. More intensive cooling reduces the temperature of the combustion air and thereby lowers the ignitability. Furthermore, it is known to realize the cooling by introducing a liquid, for example water, upstream of the compressor or into the compressor, in which case, for example, drops of water penetrate into the compressor and are evaporated during the compression. In recent times, this solution has become popular under the names wet compression, high fogging or overfogging, and has been described, for example, in U.S. Pat. No. 2,786,626, while FR 1,563,749 indicates the positive effects on the performance data of a gas turbine group. The humidification of the combustion air which results further reduces the ignitability.
[0021] In a further embodiment of the invention, a control action is performed directly in the protection system of the gas turbine group as a function of the measured fuel properties, in such a manner that, for example in the event of a certain C 2+ -alkane concentration being exceeded, the supply of fuel or the set power value of the gas turbine group is reduced. Furthermore, if a further limit value is exceeded, it is possible to perform a protective action in such a manner that the gas turbine group is shut down immediately.
[0022] Of course, these various ways of acting on the gas turbine group as described above can also quite readily be combined with one another. Within the scope of the invention it is also possible, for the purpose of carrying out the control actions on the operation of the gas turbine group, to combine the measured fuel-gas properties with other measured values for the gas turbine group, such as pulsation and/or measured emission values, with a measured flame position, with material temperatures and the like.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0023] The invention is explained in more detail below on the basis of exemplary embodiments in conjunction with the drawings, in which:
[0024] FIG. 1 shows a gas turbine group with sequential combustion for operation using the method according to the invention;
[0025] FIG. 2 shows a first type of burner and its operation in accordance with the method of the invention;
[0026] FIG. 3 shows a second type of burner and its operation in accordance with the method of the invention;
[0027] FIG. 4 shows a third type of burner and its operation in accordance with the method of the invention;
[0028] FIG. 5 shows a multiburner system and its operation in accordance with the method of the invention; and
[0029] FIG. 6 shows a further example of a gas turbine group which is operated in accordance with the invention.
[0030] The exemplary embodiments and the figures are to be understood as purely instructional and shall not be used to restrict the invention as described by the claims.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
[0031] FIG. 1 shows a first example of how the method according to the invention can be carried out. A compressor 1 , a first turbine 6 and a second turbine 10 are arranged on a common shaft 12 . Furthermore, a generator 13 is coupled to the same shaft section. The compressor 1 sucks in ambient air 2 , which is compressed and flows as compressed combustion air 3 to a first combustion chamber 4 . This may typically, without implying any restriction, be a combustion chamber which is equipped with premix burners of the type described above. In the combustion chamber 4 , a fuel quantity {dot over (m)} EV is added to the combustion air 3 and burnt. Hot, compressed flue gas 5 flows to the first turbine 6 , where it is partially expanded, so as to output a shaft power, typically with a pressure ratio of 2 . Partially expanded flue gas 7 emerges from the turbine 6 at still elevated temperature and flows to a second combustion chamber 8 . This may, for example, be a combustion chamber of the type which is known from EP 669 500. A further fuel quantity {dot over (m)} SEV is added to the flue gas 7 , which has an oxygen content of around 15% to 17%, and is burnt in the combustion chamber 8 . The reheated flue gas 9 flows to a second turbine 10 , and as it flows through the second turbine 10 is expanded again so as to output a shaft power, this time being expanded to approximately ambient pressure. This is basically a gas turbine group of the type which is known from EP 620 362, which document in this respect forms an integral part of the present description. The exhaust gas 11 is still at a temperature of a few hundred degrees centigrade, and this waste-heat potential can be utilized further in a manner which is known per se and is not shown here. The shaft power output of the turbines 6 and 10 is used to drive the compressor 1 and the generator 13 . The generator 13 generates a useful electric power P ACT . A useful power signal is compared with a desired power P SET in a first controller 14 . A fuel mass flow control variable Y FUEL is formed from the control deviation P SET -P ACT and acts on a fuel flow actuator 15 , in this way controlling the overall supply of fuel to the combustion chambers 4 , 8 of the gas turbine group. Two actuators 16 and 17 are responsible for dividing the overall fuel flow between the two combustion chambers 4 and 8 .
[0032] The criteria according to which this fuel flow distribution is generally carried out have been described extensively in other publications. A sensor S for determining the fuel-gas property X G is arranged in the gas feed line. In a functional block 19 , control variables Y EV , Y SEV and Y ST are formed from the fuel properties X G . The control variable Y EV acts on the actuator 16 and thereby controls the fuel quantity {dot over (m)} EV for the first combustion chamber 4 . The control variable Y SEV acts on the actuator 17 and thereby controls the fuel quantity {dot over (m)} EV for the second combustion chamber 8 . The control variable Y ST acts on an actuator 18 which meters a mass flow {dot over (m)} ST of inert medium, for example steam, to the first combustion chamber 4 . Steam injection of this type into the combustion chamber is used, for example, for emission control as prior art with which the person skilled in the art will be familiar. According to the invention, the following control sequence is carried out: in a first operating state, the gas turbine group is set to its desired power. The total fuel flow is set by means of the actuator 15 . The fuel is distributed between the two combustion chambers 4 and 8 by means of the actuators 16 and 17 in accordance with operating concepts which are described in detail elsewhere. The measuring device S measures the fuel properties X G , for example the content of higher saturated hydrocarbons with two or more carbon atoms, known as the C 2+ alkanes or saturated NMCH, continuously or quasi-continuously and virtually without any time delay. If the C 2+ alkane content in the fuel increases, the ignitability of the fuel rises, and therefore so does the risk of a flashback, in particular in a combustion chamber of the self-igniting type. Therefore, if a rise in the C 2+ alkane concentration in the fuel gas is measured, the control variables Y EV and Y SEV are used to act on the fuel distribution between the two combustion chambers 4 and 8 , in such a manner that the mass flow of fuel {dot over (m)} SEV to the second combustion chamber is reduced and the mass flow of fuel {dot over (m)} EV to the first combustion chamber 4 is increased to the same extent. This eliminates the risk of a flashback in the second combustion chamber 8 . However, depending on the operating state, the risk of a flashback in the first combustion chamber 4 then rises. Therefore, the control variable Y ST is used to open the actuator 18 , and a quantity of steam {dot over (m)} ST is introduced into the first combustion chamber 4 , with the result that the higher ignitability of the combustion chamber is taken into account here too. If the C 2+ alkane content of the fuel gas exceeds a limit value, furthermore, control action is taken on the protection systems of the gas turbine group, which are not shown but with which the person skilled in the art will be familiar, for example by the power set value P SET being automatically reduced. Furthermore, if a further limit value is exceeded, the gas turbine group can be quickly shut down.
[0033] FIG. 2 shows a first burner for a gas turbine group of a design which is known from WO 01/96785 in conjunction with an operating method according to the invention. The burner 20 comprises a cylindrical swirl generator 21 and a conical inner body 22 . Furthermore, the burner has two different groups of fuel-gas openings 23 and 25 , which can be supplied with fuel independently of one another and are supplied with fuel through separate fuel-gas connections 24 and 26 . Fuel is metered to the fuel-gas openings 23 and 25 by two actuators 27 and 28 , the feedlines of which branch off from a common fuel-gas feedline in which a measuring device S for determining the fuel-gas properties X G is arranged. Working on the basis of the fuel properties X G , control variables Y 1 and Y 2 which act on the actuators 27 and 28 are formed in a functional block 29 . When the burner illustrated is operating in a combustion chamber of a gas turbine group, the actuators 27 and 28 are controlled on the basis of specific criteria in order thereby to in each case achieve a favorable distribution of the fuel quantity between the groups of fuel-gas openings 23 and 25 . The sensor S continuously determines the fuel-gas properties X G , and in the event of corresponding changes, control actions are taken on the actuators 27 and 28 in order to change the fuel distribution within the burner in a suitable way.
[0034] FIG. 3 shows a further burner design which is known from WO 01/96185. The burner 20 has a conical swirl generator 21 , as disclosed by EP 321 809. The burner has two groups 23 and 25 of fuel-gas openings. The groups can be supplied with fuel gas independently of one another via the feed lines 24 and 26 having the actuators 27 and 28 . Upstream of the actuators 27 and 28 , the connections branch off from a common gas supply line. Furthermore, the burner illustrated has a variable central axial air feed, as disclosed by EP 1 199 516. A measuring device S which determines the fuel-gas properties and supplies them to the unit 29 is arranged in the gas supply line. For operation inside the combustion chamber of a gas turbine group, the quantitative distribution of fuel between the groups 23 and 25 and the axial air flow are preselected in a suitable way. In the event of changes to the fuel-gas properties, the control variables Y 1 and Y 2 are used to influence the fuel distribution, and the control variable Y L is used to influence the axial air flow, as a function of the measured fuel-gas properties X G . In particular as the C 2+ -alkane content rises, the central axial air flow can be boosted by means of the control variable Y L . In this way, the flame stabilization takes place further downstream of the burner mouth, and the risk of flashback is avoided.
[0035] FIG. 4 shows a burner which is known from WO 00/12936. This burner has two groups of fuel-gas openings 35 and 38 , which can be supplied with fuel independently of one another via the annular passages 36 and 37 , the feedlines 39 and 41 and the actuators 40 and 42 . In a similar way to in the examples described above, the fuel-gas properties X G are determined, and the fuel distribution between the groups of fuel-gas openings 35 and 38 is influenced as a function of these fuel-gas properties in a similar manner to the procedure described above.
[0036] FIG. 5 illustrates an excerpt from a multiburner system of a combustion chamber of a gas turbine group. The burner 51 is connected to a ring line 52 . Fuel-gas openings for premix operation of the burner are fed via this ring line. The burners 61 , 62 , 63 , 64 , 65 are connected to fuel lines 66 and 67 . First groups of fuel-gas openings of the burners 61 , 62 , 63 , 64 , 65 are supplied with fuel gas through the ring line 66 ; these fuel-gas openings are designed, for example, for the injection of gas for premix combustion. Further fuel-gas openings of the burners 61 , 62 , 63 , 64 , 65 are supplied with fuel gas through the ring line 67 ; these further fuel-gas openings are designed, for example, for the introduction of a fuel gas which is to be burnt in a diffusion combustion mode. The ring lines are for their part connected to a common gas supply. The fuel-gas mass flows which flow to the individual ring lines or their associated burners or burner groups or fuel-gas openings can be set independently of one another by means of actuators. An operating concept of this type is known, for example, from gas turbine GT13E2 produced by the assignee, with the distribution of the fuel mass flows between the ring lines being effected substantially as a function of the power. According to the invention, a sensor S for determining the fuel-gas properties X G is arranged in the common fuel-gas line. Control variables Y 1 , Y 2 and Y 3 which act on the fuel-flow actuators of the ring lines are formed from the fuel-gas properties X G . In this way it is once again possible to act on the distribution of the fuel within the burner system in the event of a change in the fuel-gas properties.
[0037] Finally, FIG. 6 shows a gas turbine group whose function need not be explained further in light of the above statements. A fuel-flow controller 14 uses the fuel-flow control variable Y FUEL and the fuel-flow actuator 15 to control the mass flow of fuel to the combustion chamber 4 in such a way that the control deviation in the power, P SET -P ACT is precisely compensated for and therefore disappears. A measuring device S for determining the fuel-gas properties X G is arranged in the fuel-gas line. A control variable Y ST which acts on the position of the actuator 18 is formed as a function of the determined values. This position in turn determines a mass flow of inert medium {dot over (m)} ST which is admixed to the fuel gas upstream of its introduction into the combustion chamber 4 . If, for example, the NMCH content of the fuel gas and/or its calorific value then rises, at this location steam or another inert medium is added in order to reduce the ignitability or calorific value of the gas. The measuring location is arranged upstream of where the medium is added thus accelerating the control. Therefore, a change in the fuel-gas properties is recorded a certain time before such a change actually becomes active in the combustion chamber. However, since the location where the inert medium is added is arranged significantly closer to the combustion chamber, the time required for the control action to become active is short. This means that the method is perfectly suitable for initiating countermeasures to prevent the threat of damage to the machine as a result of the change in fuel-gas composition.
[0038] Of course, the exemplary embodiments described can only cover a small part of the invention as characterized by the claims. In particular, the method variants presented can be employed in a wide range of appropriate combinations. It would also be possible to combine the measured fuel properties with pulsation and/or emission measured values, measured flame positions, material temperatures and the like to form the abovementioned control variables. In view of the above disclosure, a wide range of possible method variants, which are in each case to be selected on a machine-specific basis, will become apparent to the person skilled in the art.
[0039] List of designations
[0040] 1 Compressor
[0041] 2 Intake air
[0042] 3 Compressed air, combustion air
[0043] 4 Combustion chamber
[0044] 5 Compressed flue gas
[0045] 6 Turbine
[0046] 7 Partially expanded flue gas
[0047] 8 Combustion chamber
[0048] 9 Reheated flue gas
[0049] 10 Turbine
[0050] 11 Exhaust gas
[0051] 12 Shaft
[0052] 13 Generator
[0053] 14 Controller
[0054] 15 Actuator
[0055] 16 Actuator
[0056] 17 Actuator
[0057] 18 Actuator
[0058] 19 Functional block
[0059] 20 Burner
[0060] 21 Swirl generator
[0061] 22 Inner body
[0062] 23 Group of fuel-gas openings
[0063] 24 Fuel-gas feed
[0064] 25 Group of fuel-gas openings
[0065] 26 Fuel-gas feed
[0066] 27 Actuator
[0067] 28 Actuator
[0068] 29 Functional block
[0069] 30 Burner
[0070] 31 Burner inner body
[0071] 32 Burner outer casing
[0072] 33 Burner annular space
[0073] 34 Combustion-air guide vane, swirl generator
[0074] 35 Fuel-gas openings
[0075] 36 Fuel-gas ring line
[0076] 37 Fuel-gas annular space
[0077] 38 Fuel-gas openings
[0078] 39 Fuel-gas line
[0079] 40 Actuator
[0080] 41 Fuel-gas line
[0081] 42 Actuator
[0082] 51 Burner
[0083] 52 Fuel-gas ring line
[0084] 61 Burner
[0085] 62 Burner
[0086] 63 Burner
[0087] 64 Burner
[0088] 65 Burner
[0089] 66 Fuel-gas ring line
[0090] 67 Fuel-gas ring line
[0091] {dot over (m)} EV Fuel-gas mass flow
[0092] {dot over (m)} SEV Fuel-gas mass flow
[0093] {dot over (m)} G Fuel-gas mass flow
[0094] {dot over (m)} ST Inert medium mass flow, steam mass flow
[0095] P ACT Useful power
[0096] P SET Set power
[0097] S Measuring device for the fuel-gas properties
[0098] X G Measurement signal for fuel-gas properties
[0099] Y 1 Control variable
[0100] Y 2 Control variable
[0101] Y 3 Control variable
[0102] Y FUEL Fuel quantity control variable
[0103] Y EV Control variable
[0104] Y SEV Control variable
[0105] Y ST Control variable
[0106] While the invention has been described in detail with reference to preferred embodiments thereof, it will be apparent to one skilled in the art that various changes can be made, and equivalents employed, without departing from the scope of the invention. Each of the aforementioned documents is incorporated by reference herein in its entirety. | Relevant fuel-gas properties (X G ) are measured on an ongoing basis while a gas turbine group is operating. The C 2+ alkane content of the fuel gas is of particular interest in this context, since it has a significant influence on the ignitability of the fuel gas in the combustion chamber. The operating parameters of the gas turbine group are acted on directly as a function of the measured fuel-gas properties. In particular, in the case of the example of a gas turbine group with sequential combustion, the distribution of the fuel mass flows ({dot over (m)} EV , {dot over (m)} SEV ) between the combustion chambers ( 4, 8 ) of the gas turbine group is varied. Furthermore, if there is provision for inert media, such as water or steam, to be introduced, it is possible for the mass flow of inert media ({dot over (m)} ST ) to be controlled as a function of the measured fuel properties. | Condense the core contents of the given document. | [
"[0001] This application is a Continuation of, and claims priority under 35 U.S.C. § 120 to, International application number PCT/CH03/00045, filed 22 Jan. 2003, and claims priority under 35 U.S.C. § 119 to German application number 102 03 102.9, filed 25 Jan. 2002, and to Swiss application number 2002 0991/02, filed 10 Jun. 2002, the entireties of all of which are incorporated by reference herein.",
"BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION [0002] 1.",
"Field of the Invention [0003] The present invention relates to a method for operating a gas turbine group.",
"[0004] 2.",
"Brief Description of the Related Art [0005] The stability of combustion in modern premix burners of gas turbines is critically dependent in part on the ignitability of the fuel used, but also on other fuel properties, such as in particular the calorific value or the Wobbe index.",
"[0006] Premix burners of this type have been disclosed, for example, by EP 321 809, EP 780 629, WO 93/17279 or WO 92/19913.",
"The various designs of burner are based on the common idea of introducing fuel into a swirling combustion-airstream and of generating an as far as possible homogenous and usually substoichiometric, lean fuel-air mix.",
"When it is transferred into the combustion space, the swirling flow bursts open at a change in cross section, with the result that a backflow region which serves for flame stabilization is formed upstream of the burner mouth.",
"The flame must not be stabilized too close to the burner mouth, in order to prevent excessive thermal loading of the burner.",
"However, if the stabilization zone is too far downstream of the burner mouth, instability results.",
"[0007] The position of the combustion zone is also decisively dependent on the ignitability of the fuel used.",
"This changes dramatically if, for example, a fuel gas contains high levels of higher saturated hydrocarbons, such as ethane, butane, propane, also known as C 2+ alkanes.",
"Since the fuel-air mix is supplied in premixed form, there is an acute risk of flashback to the burner.",
"Component failure is then likely.",
"[0008] A similar problem also manifests itself when operating spontaneous-ignition combustion chambers of the type that are known from EP 669 500, for example in a gas turbine group with sequential combustion, as has been disclosed by EP 620 362.",
"In this case too, flashback caused by a highly ignitable fuel gas can lead to major damage.",
"[0009] Furthermore, a change in the fuel-gas composition also has effects on the emissions and on combustion-chamber pulsations.",
"[0010] In addition to the C 2+ -alkane content, the calorific value or Wobbe index also has an influence on the combustion behavior.",
"In premix burner systems, this influence is primarily attributable to the changed pulse ratio of fuel gas and air at different Wobbe numbers.",
"U.S. Pat No. 6,082,092 describes controlling a variable fuel-gas preheating in such a way that the Wobbe index is kept constant.",
"Control with a view to establishing a constant Wobbe index would also be possible by variable admixing of inert components in a closed-loop control circuit.",
"DE 197 31 209 proposes keeping the Wobbe index constant when burning residual gases of highly varying composition by the controlled admixing of natural gas and nitrogen.",
"SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION [0011] The invention relates to a method as initially mentioned.",
"In one aspect the method is suitable for reacting to changes in the relevant fuel properties when a gas turbine group is operated with fuel gas.",
"This reaction shall take place quickly enough to avoid a flashback, for example in the event of major variations in the C 2+ -alkane content.",
"[0012] According to the invention a device for determining fuel-gas properties, which, in one embodiment, operates in real time without delay, is arranged at the fuel-gas feed to the gas turbine group.",
"At least one fuel-gas property is determined in this way and fed into the control system of the gas turbine group.",
"Then, targeted actions on parameters of the gas turbine group which influence the combustion are performed as a function of the fuel-gas property.",
"[0013] The relevant fuel property is in one embodiment the C 2+ -alkane content of the fuel, which has a direct influence on the risk of flashback.",
"In addition, it is also possible for the calorific value or the Wobbe index to be used directly as a supplemental fuel-gas property when the method is being carried out.",
"[0014] In an exemplary embodiment, an infrared measurement technique is used, as presented by Hoppe and Wolf in “IR Instrument For Gas Property Determination In Industrial Processes”, IGRC 2001, Amsterdam, 6.11.2001.",
"This allows the measurement to be carried out very quickly and for the measured values to be available in real time.",
"In this context, it is proposed that the infrared absorption by the fuel gas be determined in two different spectral regions.",
"It is proposed that the absorption be determined in a first spectral region around 3.5 μm, which reacts primarily to the ethane, propane and butane content, and in a second spectral region around 7.9 μm, where the absorption substantially reacts to the methane content of the measurement gas.",
"The cross-sensitivity between the spectral regions is low and can easily be corrected if necessary.",
"In this way, it is possible for the C 2+ -alkane content to be determined continuously and rapidly.",
"In principle, measurement only in the C 2+ alkane-sensitive spectral region around 3.5 μm is also sufficient to carry out the method according to the invention.",
"This is quite sufficient for qualitative determination of a changed fuel-gas composition and for an appropriate reaction;",
"measurement in both wavelength regions is more accurate and is in fact required for quantitative information to be obtained.",
"In one embodiment of the method, the infrared absorption is additionally determined in a wavelength region around 4.3 μm, which reacts primarily to the CO 2 content.",
"It is also possible to extend the method to other spectral regions which react sensitively to specific gas components.",
"In a further preferred refinement, the thermal conductivity is measured as a measure of the nitrogen (N 2 ) content.",
"Where appropriate, using cross-sensitivity correction algorithms, it is in this way possible to determine the fuel-gas composition very accurately, continuously and in real time.",
"This also allows the calorific value or the Wobbe index to be determined.",
"[0015] The method according to the invention can for example be applied to a gas turbine group with sequential combustion, as disclosed by EP 620 362, and is moreover suitable if a self-igniting combustion chamber of the type known from EP 620 403 or EP 669 500 is provided as the second combustion chamber.",
"Self-igniting combustion chambers are at particular risk of flashback, on account of the high mix temperature.",
"With a gas turbine group of this type, it is possible to alter the distribution of fuel between the first and second combustion chambers as a function of the fuel properties, for example in such a manner that as the C 2+ content rises, the quantity of fuel fed to the second combustion chamber is reduced and the quantity of fuel fed to the first combustion chamber is increased accordingly.",
"[0016] It is known from EP 1 199 516 to make a central axial air flow variable in premix burners.",
"In the context of the method according to the invention it is possible to control this axial flow as a function of the fuel properties determined.",
"For example, as the C 2+ -alkane content of the fuel gas rises, it is possible to make the axial flow more intensive, in order thereby to avoid the risk of flashback into the burner interior.",
"[0017] Premix burners of the types which are currently used often have a plurality of fuel feeds to which fuel can be supplied independently of one another, for example for the independent application of pilot fuel, which is burnt in a diffusion combustion mode, and premix fuel.",
"Burners of this type are described, for example, by WO 01 / 96785 , EP 193 838, EP 108 361, WO 00/12936, EP 945 677, or EP 321 809.",
"The distribution of the fuel can be varied as a function of the measured fuel properties, in order on the one hand to ensure sufficient flame stability and at the same time to avoid flashback or component overheating and to keep the emission levels approximately constant.",
"[0018] In one embodiment of the invention, within a multi-burner system, with which the person skilled in the art will be familiar, the fuel distribution between individual burners and/or burner groups is varied as a function of the measured fuel properties.",
"[0019] It is also possible, as a function of the fuel properties, either for an inert medium to be introduced into the fuel gas, in which case this introduction may take place as close as possible to the gas turbine group to ensure short reaction times.",
"Furthermore, an inert medium, such as steam or water, can be introduced into the combustion zone as a function of the measured fuel properties.",
"The latter measure is suitable in particular for gas turbine groups which are already equipped with water and/or steam injection for the purpose of controlling emissions, since this measure has also proven eminently suitable for controlling the flame position and the combustion stability.",
"In principle, by way of example, nitrogen or carbon dioxide would also be suitable inert media, but water and steam are generally more readily available.",
"[0020] A further control action possibility is for the gas turbine group to have means for cooling the working medium upstream of the compressor or in the compressor or between compressor stages.",
"More intensive cooling reduces the temperature of the combustion air and thereby lowers the ignitability.",
"Furthermore, it is known to realize the cooling by introducing a liquid, for example water, upstream of the compressor or into the compressor, in which case, for example, drops of water penetrate into the compressor and are evaporated during the compression.",
"In recent times, this solution has become popular under the names wet compression, high fogging or overfogging, and has been described, for example, in U.S. Pat. No. 2,786,626, while FR 1,563,749 indicates the positive effects on the performance data of a gas turbine group.",
"The humidification of the combustion air which results further reduces the ignitability.",
"[0021] In a further embodiment of the invention, a control action is performed directly in the protection system of the gas turbine group as a function of the measured fuel properties, in such a manner that, for example in the event of a certain C 2+ -alkane concentration being exceeded, the supply of fuel or the set power value of the gas turbine group is reduced.",
"Furthermore, if a further limit value is exceeded, it is possible to perform a protective action in such a manner that the gas turbine group is shut down immediately.",
"[0022] Of course, these various ways of acting on the gas turbine group as described above can also quite readily be combined with one another.",
"Within the scope of the invention it is also possible, for the purpose of carrying out the control actions on the operation of the gas turbine group, to combine the measured fuel-gas properties with other measured values for the gas turbine group, such as pulsation and/or measured emission values, with a measured flame position, with material temperatures and the like.",
"BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS [0023] The invention is explained in more detail below on the basis of exemplary embodiments in conjunction with the drawings, in which: [0024] FIG. 1 shows a gas turbine group with sequential combustion for operation using the method according to the invention;",
"[0025] FIG. 2 shows a first type of burner and its operation in accordance with the method of the invention;",
"[0026] FIG. 3 shows a second type of burner and its operation in accordance with the method of the invention;",
"[0027] FIG. 4 shows a third type of burner and its operation in accordance with the method of the invention;",
"[0028] FIG. 5 shows a multiburner system and its operation in accordance with the method of the invention;",
"and [0029] FIG. 6 shows a further example of a gas turbine group which is operated in accordance with the invention.",
"[0030] The exemplary embodiments and the figures are to be understood as purely instructional and shall not be used to restrict the invention as described by the claims.",
"DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS [0031] FIG. 1 shows a first example of how the method according to the invention can be carried out.",
"A compressor 1 , a first turbine 6 and a second turbine 10 are arranged on a common shaft 12 .",
"Furthermore, a generator 13 is coupled to the same shaft section.",
"The compressor 1 sucks in ambient air 2 , which is compressed and flows as compressed combustion air 3 to a first combustion chamber 4 .",
"This may typically, without implying any restriction, be a combustion chamber which is equipped with premix burners of the type described above.",
"In the combustion chamber 4 , a fuel quantity {dot over (m)} EV is added to the combustion air 3 and burnt.",
"Hot, compressed flue gas 5 flows to the first turbine 6 , where it is partially expanded, so as to output a shaft power, typically with a pressure ratio of 2 .",
"Partially expanded flue gas 7 emerges from the turbine 6 at still elevated temperature and flows to a second combustion chamber 8 .",
"This may, for example, be a combustion chamber of the type which is known from EP 669 500.",
"A further fuel quantity {dot over (m)} SEV is added to the flue gas 7 , which has an oxygen content of around 15% to 17%, and is burnt in the combustion chamber 8 .",
"The reheated flue gas 9 flows to a second turbine 10 , and as it flows through the second turbine 10 is expanded again so as to output a shaft power, this time being expanded to approximately ambient pressure.",
"This is basically a gas turbine group of the type which is known from EP 620 362, which document in this respect forms an integral part of the present description.",
"The exhaust gas 11 is still at a temperature of a few hundred degrees centigrade, and this waste-heat potential can be utilized further in a manner which is known per se and is not shown here.",
"The shaft power output of the turbines 6 and 10 is used to drive the compressor 1 and the generator 13 .",
"The generator 13 generates a useful electric power P ACT .",
"A useful power signal is compared with a desired power P SET in a first controller 14 .",
"A fuel mass flow control variable Y FUEL is formed from the control deviation P SET -P ACT and acts on a fuel flow actuator 15 , in this way controlling the overall supply of fuel to the combustion chambers 4 , 8 of the gas turbine group.",
"Two actuators 16 and 17 are responsible for dividing the overall fuel flow between the two combustion chambers 4 and 8 .",
"[0032] The criteria according to which this fuel flow distribution is generally carried out have been described extensively in other publications.",
"A sensor S for determining the fuel-gas property X G is arranged in the gas feed line.",
"In a functional block 19 , control variables Y EV , Y SEV and Y ST are formed from the fuel properties X G .",
"The control variable Y EV acts on the actuator 16 and thereby controls the fuel quantity {dot over (m)} EV for the first combustion chamber 4 .",
"The control variable Y SEV acts on the actuator 17 and thereby controls the fuel quantity {dot over (m)} EV for the second combustion chamber 8 .",
"The control variable Y ST acts on an actuator 18 which meters a mass flow {dot over (m)} ST of inert medium, for example steam, to the first combustion chamber 4 .",
"Steam injection of this type into the combustion chamber is used, for example, for emission control as prior art with which the person skilled in the art will be familiar.",
"According to the invention, the following control sequence is carried out: in a first operating state, the gas turbine group is set to its desired power.",
"The total fuel flow is set by means of the actuator 15 .",
"The fuel is distributed between the two combustion chambers 4 and 8 by means of the actuators 16 and 17 in accordance with operating concepts which are described in detail elsewhere.",
"The measuring device S measures the fuel properties X G , for example the content of higher saturated hydrocarbons with two or more carbon atoms, known as the C 2+ alkanes or saturated NMCH, continuously or quasi-continuously and virtually without any time delay.",
"If the C 2+ alkane content in the fuel increases, the ignitability of the fuel rises, and therefore so does the risk of a flashback, in particular in a combustion chamber of the self-igniting type.",
"Therefore, if a rise in the C 2+ alkane concentration in the fuel gas is measured, the control variables Y EV and Y SEV are used to act on the fuel distribution between the two combustion chambers 4 and 8 , in such a manner that the mass flow of fuel {dot over (m)} SEV to the second combustion chamber is reduced and the mass flow of fuel {dot over (m)} EV to the first combustion chamber 4 is increased to the same extent.",
"This eliminates the risk of a flashback in the second combustion chamber 8 .",
"However, depending on the operating state, the risk of a flashback in the first combustion chamber 4 then rises.",
"Therefore, the control variable Y ST is used to open the actuator 18 , and a quantity of steam {dot over (m)} ST is introduced into the first combustion chamber 4 , with the result that the higher ignitability of the combustion chamber is taken into account here too.",
"If the C 2+ alkane content of the fuel gas exceeds a limit value, furthermore, control action is taken on the protection systems of the gas turbine group, which are not shown but with which the person skilled in the art will be familiar, for example by the power set value P SET being automatically reduced.",
"Furthermore, if a further limit value is exceeded, the gas turbine group can be quickly shut down.",
"[0033] FIG. 2 shows a first burner for a gas turbine group of a design which is known from WO 01/96785 in conjunction with an operating method according to the invention.",
"The burner 20 comprises a cylindrical swirl generator 21 and a conical inner body 22 .",
"Furthermore, the burner has two different groups of fuel-gas openings 23 and 25 , which can be supplied with fuel independently of one another and are supplied with fuel through separate fuel-gas connections 24 and 26 .",
"Fuel is metered to the fuel-gas openings 23 and 25 by two actuators 27 and 28 , the feedlines of which branch off from a common fuel-gas feedline in which a measuring device S for determining the fuel-gas properties X G is arranged.",
"Working on the basis of the fuel properties X G , control variables Y 1 and Y 2 which act on the actuators 27 and 28 are formed in a functional block 29 .",
"When the burner illustrated is operating in a combustion chamber of a gas turbine group, the actuators 27 and 28 are controlled on the basis of specific criteria in order thereby to in each case achieve a favorable distribution of the fuel quantity between the groups of fuel-gas openings 23 and 25 .",
"The sensor S continuously determines the fuel-gas properties X G , and in the event of corresponding changes, control actions are taken on the actuators 27 and 28 in order to change the fuel distribution within the burner in a suitable way.",
"[0034] FIG. 3 shows a further burner design which is known from WO 01/96185.",
"The burner 20 has a conical swirl generator 21 , as disclosed by EP 321 809.",
"The burner has two groups 23 and 25 of fuel-gas openings.",
"The groups can be supplied with fuel gas independently of one another via the feed lines 24 and 26 having the actuators 27 and 28 .",
"Upstream of the actuators 27 and 28 , the connections branch off from a common gas supply line.",
"Furthermore, the burner illustrated has a variable central axial air feed, as disclosed by EP 1 199 516.",
"A measuring device S which determines the fuel-gas properties and supplies them to the unit 29 is arranged in the gas supply line.",
"For operation inside the combustion chamber of a gas turbine group, the quantitative distribution of fuel between the groups 23 and 25 and the axial air flow are preselected in a suitable way.",
"In the event of changes to the fuel-gas properties, the control variables Y 1 and Y 2 are used to influence the fuel distribution, and the control variable Y L is used to influence the axial air flow, as a function of the measured fuel-gas properties X G .",
"In particular as the C 2+ -alkane content rises, the central axial air flow can be boosted by means of the control variable Y L .",
"In this way, the flame stabilization takes place further downstream of the burner mouth, and the risk of flashback is avoided.",
"[0035] FIG. 4 shows a burner which is known from WO 00/12936.",
"This burner has two groups of fuel-gas openings 35 and 38 , which can be supplied with fuel independently of one another via the annular passages 36 and 37 , the feedlines 39 and 41 and the actuators 40 and 42 .",
"In a similar way to in the examples described above, the fuel-gas properties X G are determined, and the fuel distribution between the groups of fuel-gas openings 35 and 38 is influenced as a function of these fuel-gas properties in a similar manner to the procedure described above.",
"[0036] FIG. 5 illustrates an excerpt from a multiburner system of a combustion chamber of a gas turbine group.",
"The burner 51 is connected to a ring line 52 .",
"Fuel-gas openings for premix operation of the burner are fed via this ring line.",
"The burners 61 , 62 , 63 , 64 , 65 are connected to fuel lines 66 and 67 .",
"First groups of fuel-gas openings of the burners 61 , 62 , 63 , 64 , 65 are supplied with fuel gas through the ring line 66 ;",
"these fuel-gas openings are designed, for example, for the injection of gas for premix combustion.",
"Further fuel-gas openings of the burners 61 , 62 , 63 , 64 , 65 are supplied with fuel gas through the ring line 67 ;",
"these further fuel-gas openings are designed, for example, for the introduction of a fuel gas which is to be burnt in a diffusion combustion mode.",
"The ring lines are for their part connected to a common gas supply.",
"The fuel-gas mass flows which flow to the individual ring lines or their associated burners or burner groups or fuel-gas openings can be set independently of one another by means of actuators.",
"An operating concept of this type is known, for example, from gas turbine GT13E2 produced by the assignee, with the distribution of the fuel mass flows between the ring lines being effected substantially as a function of the power.",
"According to the invention, a sensor S for determining the fuel-gas properties X G is arranged in the common fuel-gas line.",
"Control variables Y 1 , Y 2 and Y 3 which act on the fuel-flow actuators of the ring lines are formed from the fuel-gas properties X G .",
"In this way it is once again possible to act on the distribution of the fuel within the burner system in the event of a change in the fuel-gas properties.",
"[0037] Finally, FIG. 6 shows a gas turbine group whose function need not be explained further in light of the above statements.",
"A fuel-flow controller 14 uses the fuel-flow control variable Y FUEL and the fuel-flow actuator 15 to control the mass flow of fuel to the combustion chamber 4 in such a way that the control deviation in the power, P SET -P ACT is precisely compensated for and therefore disappears.",
"A measuring device S for determining the fuel-gas properties X G is arranged in the fuel-gas line.",
"A control variable Y ST which acts on the position of the actuator 18 is formed as a function of the determined values.",
"This position in turn determines a mass flow of inert medium {dot over (m)} ST which is admixed to the fuel gas upstream of its introduction into the combustion chamber 4 .",
"If, for example, the NMCH content of the fuel gas and/or its calorific value then rises, at this location steam or another inert medium is added in order to reduce the ignitability or calorific value of the gas.",
"The measuring location is arranged upstream of where the medium is added thus accelerating the control.",
"Therefore, a change in the fuel-gas properties is recorded a certain time before such a change actually becomes active in the combustion chamber.",
"However, since the location where the inert medium is added is arranged significantly closer to the combustion chamber, the time required for the control action to become active is short.",
"This means that the method is perfectly suitable for initiating countermeasures to prevent the threat of damage to the machine as a result of the change in fuel-gas composition.",
"[0038] Of course, the exemplary embodiments described can only cover a small part of the invention as characterized by the claims.",
"In particular, the method variants presented can be employed in a wide range of appropriate combinations.",
"It would also be possible to combine the measured fuel properties with pulsation and/or emission measured values, measured flame positions, material temperatures and the like to form the abovementioned control variables.",
"In view of the above disclosure, a wide range of possible method variants, which are in each case to be selected on a machine-specific basis, will become apparent to the person skilled in the art.",
"[0039] List of designations [0040] 1 Compressor [0041] 2 Intake air [0042] 3 Compressed air, combustion air [0043] 4 Combustion chamber [0044] 5 Compressed flue gas [0045] 6 Turbine [0046] 7 Partially expanded flue gas [0047] 8 Combustion chamber [0048] 9 Reheated flue gas [0049] 10 Turbine [0050] 11 Exhaust gas [0051] 12 Shaft [0052] 13 Generator [0053] 14 Controller [0054] 15 Actuator [0055] 16 Actuator [0056] 17 Actuator [0057] 18 Actuator [0058] 19 Functional block [0059] 20 Burner [0060] 21 Swirl generator [0061] 22 Inner body [0062] 23 Group of fuel-gas openings [0063] 24 Fuel-gas feed [0064] 25 Group of fuel-gas openings [0065] 26 Fuel-gas feed [0066] 27 Actuator [0067] 28 Actuator [0068] 29 Functional block [0069] 30 Burner [0070] 31 Burner inner body [0071] 32 Burner outer casing [0072] 33 Burner annular space [0073] 34 Combustion-air guide vane, swirl generator [0074] 35 Fuel-gas openings [0075] 36 Fuel-gas ring line [0076] 37 Fuel-gas annular space [0077] 38 Fuel-gas openings [0078] 39 Fuel-gas line [0079] 40 Actuator [0080] 41 Fuel-gas line [0081] 42 Actuator [0082] 51 Burner [0083] 52 Fuel-gas ring line [0084] 61 Burner [0085] 62 Burner [0086] 63 Burner [0087] 64 Burner [0088] 65 Burner [0089] 66 Fuel-gas ring line [0090] 67 Fuel-gas ring line [0091] {dot over (m)} EV Fuel-gas mass flow [0092] {dot over (m)} SEV Fuel-gas mass flow [0093] {dot over (m)} G Fuel-gas mass flow [0094] {dot over (m)} ST Inert medium mass flow, steam mass flow [0095] P ACT Useful power [0096] P SET Set power [0097] S Measuring device for the fuel-gas properties [0098] X G Measurement signal for fuel-gas properties [0099] Y 1 Control variable [0100] Y 2 Control variable [0101] Y 3 Control variable [0102] Y FUEL Fuel quantity control variable [0103] Y EV Control variable [0104] Y SEV Control variable [0105] Y ST Control variable [0106] While the invention has been described in detail with reference to preferred embodiments thereof, it will be apparent to one skilled in the art that various changes can be made, and equivalents employed, without departing from the scope of the invention.",
"Each of the aforementioned documents is incorporated by reference herein in its entirety."
] |
REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION
[0001] The present application claims priority benefit under 35 U.S.C. §119(e) from U.S. Provisional Application No. 60/216,145 filed Jul. 3, 2000, entitled “dsl-ON Software Specification, ” U.S. Provisional Application No. 60/249,813 filed Nov. 17, 2000, entitled “SYSTEM FOR REMOTE AUTOMATED INSTALLATION AND CONFIGURATION OF DSL MODEMS, ” U.S. Provisional Application No. unknown filed Nov. 17, 2000, entitled “SYSTEM FOR REMOTE AUTOMATED INSTALLATION AND CONFIGURATION OF DSL MODEMS,” and U.S. Provisional Application No. unknown filed Dec. 22, 2000, entitled “SYSTEM FOR REMOTE AUTOMATED INSTALLATION AND CONFIGURATION OF DIGITAL SUBSCRIBER LINE MODEMS, ” which are herewith incorporated by reference.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0002] 1. Field of the Invention
[0003] The present invention relates in general to a system for installation and configuration of broadband telecommunication devices (which includes electrical, optical, and wireless media) and in particular to an installation and configuration system for Digital Subscriber Line (DSL) modems.
[0004] 2. Description of the Related Art
[0005] DSL is a technology that transforms conventional telephone lines into high speed conduits for data transmission and Internet services. DSL brings high-bandwidth Internet access to homes and small businesses over ordinary copper telephone lines. There are a wide variety of DSL service speeds and options from hundreds of providers worldwide. Unlike a telephone, DSL is “always on” and connected. This means that no time is spent dialing for service and waiting to be connected.
[0006] A DSL line has sufficient bandwidth to carry data and voice signals at the same time, and the data part of the line is continuously connected. If the user chooses, the DSL line can be configured so that a portion of the bandwidth is used to transmit an analog signal so that the user can use a telephone and a computer on the same line at the same time.
[0007] DSL installations began in 1998. Since that time, due to the convenience of a high-speed DSL connection, the demand for DSL has increased at a rapid pace. At present, DSL subscribers often have to wait up to two to three months for DSL to be installed in their homes or small businesses. This is generally unacceptable to subscribers who have immediate DSL needs.
[0008] Delays in DSL installation are often due to a lengthy and confusing installation process that requires the services of a DSL installation technician. Often, the technician is unable to properly install the DSL modem leading to multiple “truck rolls,” the industry term for visits by installation technicians, before a DSL modem is installed correctly. Of course, an increase in truck rolls increases technician labor costs and the related expenses. DSL providers are absorbing some of these costs now, but won't be able to keep absorbing the costs in the near future. Another component of this problem is that only a limited number of technicians are available in the industry to install DSL. For this reason, it can often take over a month before a truck roll is even commissioned to a residence or a place of business.
[0009] Another problem with the current DSL installation process is that providers have a difficult time making minor changes to their clients' DSL services after the modems have been installed and configured. This occurs when the configuration information on the DSL subscriber's system is no longer sufficient to properly connect the DSL modem to the DSL service provider. There are currently three common ways a DSL service provider can make these changes. One way is for the service provider to initiate a truck roll to the subscriber's location. Another way is for the subscriber to call a service provider representative in order to be “walked through” the many steps necessary for reconfiguration. Finally, the service provider and the subscriber can attempt, by email correspondence, to “walk through” the reconfiguration.
[0010] The initial configuration and any subsequent reconfigurations are all complicated, if not expensive and time-consuming processes that beg for a true cost effective and time effective remedy. Therefore, there is a need for an efficient, error-free, automated DSL installation and configuration system.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0011] The present invention is an automated installation and configuration system that installs and configures a DSL modem without the assistance of a technician. The present invention eliminates the need for a truck roll and therefore enables DSL deployment on a mass scale. The present invention eliminates the errors that occur during the DSL installation and configuration process, and thus, facilitates efficient and cost-effective access to DSL technology.
[0012] An aspect of the invention is a telecommunications device installation and configuration system for configuring the operation of a DSL telecommunication device and user system. The telecommunications device installation and configuration system comprises a client computer system, wherein the client computer system includes a DSL telecommunications device, a storage device for receiving and storing a file of configuration data for the DSL telecommunication device, a pre-configured telecommunications device, and a plurality of program files. The telecommunications device installation and configuration system further comprises a server system, wherein the server system includes a telecommunications device that communicates with the pre-configured telecommunication device of the client computer system, a configuration database system containing configuration data used to control the operation of DSL telecommunication devices, an identification database system containing data used to identify the client computer system, and program files that create a configuration file. The telecommunications device installation and configuration system further comprises a data input interface that receives user identification data from a user of the client computer system, a display that displays a data entry screen on the client computer system to prompt the user to input the user identification data. The telecommunications device installation and configuration system further comprises a controller coupled to the data input interface, to the display, and to the pre-configured telecommunications device, wherein the controller operates to send the identification data to the server system via the pre-configured telecommunications device, receive configuration data from the server system to be transferred to the pre-configured telecommunications device, generate a communications device control command by converting the configuration data into a configuration file suitable for use with the second telecommunications device, and use the information in the configuration file to configure the DSL telecommunications device and the client computer system to enable the DSL telecommunications device.
[0013] Another aspect of the invention is a computer hardware installation and configuration system for installing and configuring a computer hardware device. The computer hardware installation and configuration system comprises a computer system, wherein the computer system includes a user interface system and a pre-configured telecommunications device. The computer hardware installation and configuration system further comprises an identification data structure. The computer hardware installation and configuration system further comprises a configuration data structure. The computer hardware installation and configuration system further comprises a server system, wherein the server system comprises an identification database system, a configuration data generation system, and a server communications system. The computer hardware installation and configuration system further comprises a computer program operating with the computer system, wherein the computer program operates to retrieve user information using the user interface system, compose the identification data structure, transmit the identification data structure to the server system using the pre-configured telecommunications device, retrieve the configuration data structure from the server system using the pre-configured telecommunications device, and configure the computer hardware device and the computer system to properly operate the computer device. The computer hardware installation and configuration system further comprises a server computer program operating with the server system, wherein the server computer program operates to retrieve the identification data structure from the computer system using the server communications system, generate the configuration data structure using data contained in the identification data structure and the configuration data generation system, and transmit the configuration data structure to the computer system using the server communications system.
[0014] Another aspect of the invention is a computer hardware installation and configuration system for installing and configuring a computer hardware device. The computer hardware installation and configuration system comprises a computer system, wherein the computer system comprises a user interface system and a configuration data structure. The computer hardware installation and configuration system further comprises a computer program, wherein the computer program operates to retrieve installation and configuration information using the user interface system, generate the configuration data structure using the installation and configuration information, and configure the computer hardware device and the computer system using the configuration data structure to properly operate the computer device.
[0015] Another aspect of this invention is a computer hardware installation and configuration system for installing and configuring a computer hardware device. The computer hardware installation and configuration system comprises a computer system, wherein the computer system comprises a user interface system and a data retrieval device. The computer hardware installation and configuration system further comprises an installation and configuration software package residing on a data storage device. The computer hardware installation and configuration system further comprises a configuration data structure. The computer hardware installation and configuration system further comprises a computer program operating with the computer system, wherein the computer program operates to retrieve user information using the user interface system, retrieve the installation and configuration software package from the data storage device using the data retrieval device, generate the configuration data structure using the user information and the installation and configuration software package, and configure the computer hardware device and the computer system using the configuration data structure to properly operate the computer device.
[0016] Another aspect of the invention is a software data structure for installing and configuring a computer hardware device. The software data structure comprises data fields containing information pertinent to the installation and configuration of the computer hardware device.
[0017] Another aspect of the invention is a software package for installing and configuring a computer hardware device. The software package comprises one or more software programs for installing and configuring various computer hardware devices wherein the software package selects and utilizes an appropriate software program for installing and configuring a particular computer hardware device.
[0018] Another aspect of the invention is a computer hardware device installation and configuration system for installing and configuring the operation of a computer hardware device on a computer system. The computer hardware device installation and configuration system comprises a computer hardware configuration data structure, wherein the configuration data structure comprises a data structure independent of the computer hardware device, and a data content specific for the computer hardware device and the computer system. The computer hardware device installation and configuration system further comprises a computer hardware installation and configuration controller, wherein the computer hardware installation and configuration controller comprises a plurality of computer hardware device specific installation and configuration programs, wherein the computer hardware installation and configuration controller operates to read the computer hardware configuration data structure, select an appropriate computer hardware device specific installation and configuration program for the computer hardware device and the computer system, and utilize the appropriate computer hardware device specific installation and configuration program to install and configure the computer hardware device for proper operation of the computer hardware device on the computer system.
[0019] For purposes of summarizing the invention, certain aspects, advantages and novel features of the invention have been described herein. Of course, it is to be understood that not necessarily all such aspects, advantages or features will be embodied in any particular embodiment of the invention.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0020] The present invention is described in more detail below in connection with the attached drawings, which are meant to illustrate and not limit the invention, and in which:
[0021] [0021]FIG. 1 illustrates a block diagram of an automated installation and configuration system, according to aspects of an embodiment of the invention;
[0022] [0022]FIG. 2 illustrates a block diagram of a user system, according to aspects of an embodiment of the invention;
[0023] [0023]FIG. 3 illustrates a block diagram of a service provider system, according to aspects of an embodiment of the invention;
[0024] [0024]FIG. 4 illustrates a data structure diagram of a user data file, according to aspects of an embodiment of the invention;
[0025] [0025]FIG. 5 illustrates a data structure diagram of a configuration file, according to aspects of an embodiment of the invention;
[0026] [0026]FIG. 6 illustrates a process flow diagram of a dial-up installation process, according to aspects of an embodiment of the invention;
[0027] [0027]FIG. 7 illustrates a process flow diagram of a preset installation process, according to aspects of an embodiment of the invention;
[0028] [0028]FIG. 8 illustrates a process flow diagram of a manual installation process, according to aspects of an embodiment of the invention;
[0029] [0029]FIG. 9 illustrates a screenshot of the initial configuration screen, according aspects of an embodiment of the invention;
[0030] [0030]FIG. 10 illustrates a screenshot of a user authentication screen, according to aspects of an embodiment of the invention;
[0031] [0031]FIG. 11 illustrates a screenshot of the configuration file selection screen, according to aspects of an embodiment of the invention;
[0032] [0032]FIG. 12 illustrates a screenshot of the Digital Subscriber Line (DSL) settings entry screen, according to aspects of an embodiment of the invention;
[0033] [0033]FIG. 13 illustrates a screenshot of the Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol (TCP/IP) entry screen, according to aspects of an embodiment of the invention;
[0034] [0034]FIG. 14 illustrates a screenshot of the Point-to-Point Protocol (PPP) information entry screen, according to aspects of an embodiment of the invention; and
[0035] [0035]FIG. 15 illustrates a block diagram of an installation program configuring the DSL Physical Layer and the ATM VPI/VCI and TCP/IP, according to aspects of an embodiment of the invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
[0036] The present invention relates to a system for installation and configuration of broadband telecommunication devices (which includes electrical, optical, and wireless media). The present invention will be described herein with respect to an installation and configuration system for Digital Subscriber Line (DSL) modems.
[0037] The term DSL or xDSL is used in this application to refer to all varieties of DSL, such as, but not limited to, Asymmetric Digital Subscriber Line (ADSL) (including G.Lite and Rate Adaptive Digital Subscriber Line (RADSL)), High-bit-rate Digital Subscriber Line (HDSL), Symmetric Digital Subscriber Line (SDSL), Single-pair High-speed Digital Subscriber Line (SHDSL), Very High Data Digital Subscriber Line (VDSL) (including Very-high-rate Asymmetric Digital Subscriber Line (VDSL) and Broadband Digital Subscriber Line (BDSL)), and Integrated Services Digital Network Digital Subscriber Line (IDSL).
[0038] One aspect of the present invention is to provide a DSL modem installation and configuration system for a complete configuration of the physical layer, Asynchronous Transfer Mode (ATM) Permanent Virtual Connection (PVC), ATM encapsulation, and Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol (TCP/IP) layer settings, without requiring user input for any of the aforementioned settings. More specifically, in order for a DSL modem to be configured properly, the following items must be properly configured:
[0039] Asymmetric Digital Subscriber Line (DSL) Physical Layer Standard
[0040] Asynchronous Transfer Mode (ATM) Permanent Virtual Connection (PVC), including:
[0041] Virtual Path Identifier (VPI)
[0042] Virtual Channel Identifier (VCI)
[0043] ATM Encapsulation Protocol
[0044] Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol (TCP/IP) information, including:
[0045] Internet Protocol (IP) Address
[0046] Subnet Mask
[0047] Default Gateway
[0048] Domain Name Service (DNS) Servers
[0049] Hostname
[0050] Domain
[0051] In the dial-up installation process, a DSL user system, comprising a DSL modem connected to the DSL user system, connects to a DSL service provider through a communication medium, such as, for example, a conventional 56K modem. The DSL service provider creates a configuration file for that DSL user system, and the DSL service provider sends the configuration file to the DSL user through the communication medium. The installation and configuration system then uses the configuration file to modify the DSL user system to install and configure the DSL modem connected to the DSL user system.
[0052] The configuration file is modem independent. Therefore, the DSL service provider does not need to know what type of DSL modem is connected to the user system.
[0053] To facilitate a complete understanding of the invention, the remainder of the detailed description describes the invention with reference to the figures, wherein like elements are referenced with like numerals throughout.
[0054] [0054]FIG. 1 illustrates a block diagram of an automated installation and configuration system 100 according to aspects of an embodiment of the invention. The automated installation and configuration system includes a user system 105 and a service provider system 110 communicating through a communication medium 115 . The user system 105 is operated by a subscriber 120 , and the service provider system 110 is operated by a service provider 125 .
[0055] According to one embodiment of the invention, the user system 105 comprises a conventional general purpose computer using one or more microprocessors such as, for example, an Intel-based processor (e.g., a Pentium III processor or a similar system). Moreover, the user system 105 includes an appropriate operating system such as, for example, an operating system capable of displaying graphics or windows, such as Windows, UNIX, Linux, or the like. As shown in FIG. 1, the user system 105 may include a DSL modem 130 . In one embodiment of the invention, the DSL modem 130 comprises any DSL modem such as, for example, a DSL modem by ITeX, Globespan, Infinilink, or the like.
[0056] In addition, the user system 105 may connect to the communication medium 115 through a conventional service provider such as, for example, a dial-up connection, digital subscriber line (DSL), cable modem, or the like. According to another embodiment, the user system 105 connects to the communication medium 115 through network connectivity such as, for example, a local or wide area network. According to one embodiment, the operating system includes a TCP/IP stack that handles all incoming and outgoing message traffic passed over the communication link 115 .
[0057] Although the user system 105 is disclosed with reference to the foregoing embodiments, this invention is not intended to be limited thereby. Rather, a skilled artisan will recognize from the disclosure herein a wide number of alternative embodiments of the user system 105 , including almost any computing device capable of sending or receiving information from another computing device. For example, the user system 105 may include a computer workstation, an interactive television, an interactive kiosk, a personal mobile computing device (such as a digital assistant), a mobile phone, a laptop, a wireless communication device, a smart card, an embedded computing device, or any such device which can interact with the communication medium 115 . In such alternative systems, the operating systems will likely differ and be adapted for the particular device. However, according to one embodiment, the operating system advantageously continues to provide the appropriate communications protocols needed to establish communication with communication medium 115 .
[0058] [0058]FIG. 1 also illustrates the service provider system 110 . According to one embodiment of the invention, the service provider system 110 comprises one or more secure servers for accessing and storing sensitive information such as user authentication data, personal user information, and the user's system information. For example, the authentication data may include a username and password used to gain access to the service provider system 110 . The service provider system 110 may also contain information about the user's name, address, system configuration, payment information (such as a credit card), and other personal information. The service provider system 110 is a system which facilitates Internet access by a plurality of user systems 105 such as, for example, Earthlink, American Online, the Microsoft Network, and the like.
[0059] [0059]FIG. 1 also illustrates the communication medium 115 connecting the user system 105 and the service provider system 110 . According to one embodiment, the communication medium 115 comprises the Internet. The Internet, as used throughout this disclosure, is a global network of computers. The structure of the Internet, which is well known to those of ordinary skill in the art, includes a network backbone with networks branching from the backbone. These branches in turn have networks branching from them and so on. Routers move information packets between network levels and then from network to network, until the packet reaches the neighborhood of its destination. From the destination, the destination network host directs the information packet to the appropriate terminal or node. In one advantageous embodiment, the Internet routing hubs comprise domain name system (DNS) servers using Transfer Control Protocol/Internet Protocol (TCP/IP) as is well known in the art. The routing hubs connect to one or more other routing hubs via high speed communication links.
[0060] Although the communication medium 115 is disclosed in terms of its preferred embodiment, one of ordinary skill in the art will recognize from the disclosure herein that the communication medium 115 may include a wide range of interactive communication links. For example, the communication medium 115 may include interactive television networks, telephone networks, wireless data transmission systems, two-way cable systems, customized private or public computer networks, interactive kiosk networks, automatic teller machine networks, direct links, satellite or cellular networks, and the like.
[0061] [0061]FIG. 1 also illustrates the subscriber 120 and the service provider 125 . The subscriber 120 is a person or organization operating the user system 105 . The service provider 125 is a person or organization operating the service provider system 115 with a view to providing Internet access to a plurality of subscribers 120 .
[0062] [0062]FIG. 2 illustrates a user system 105 according to aspects of an embodiment of the invention. The user system 105 includes a user interface device 205 , an operating and networking system 210 , one or more data storage and retrieval devices 215 , a configured modem 220 , the DSL modem 130 , and a DSL installation program 135 .
[0063] In one embodiment of the invention, the user interface device 205 includes any device capable of displaying information to a user and receiving input from the user, such as, for example, a computer monitor and a keyboard, or the like. In one embodiment of the invention, the operating and networking system 210 includes an appropriate operating and networking system to operate the user system 105 , such as, for example, Windows NT, UNIX, Linux, Macintosh OS, or the like. In one embodiment of the invention, the user system 105 includes one or more data storage and retrieval devices 215 . In one embodiment, the data storage and retrieval device 215 includes a CD ROM, a hard disk drive, a floppy disk drive, or the like.
[0064] As illustrated in FIG. 2, the user system 105 includes the configured modem 220 . In one embodiment of the invention, the configured modem 220 is any analog modem capable of transmitting and receiving data such as, for example, modems made by Hayes, 3COM, and the like. In one embodiment of the invention, the configured modem 220 is configured to operate without any further installation or configuration. As illustrated in FIG. 2, the configured modem 220 transmits the user data file 300 to the service provider system 110 , and the configured modem 220 receives the configuration file 400 from the service provider system 110 . The user system 105 includes the DSL modem 130 . The DSL modem 130 and the user system 105 is described with reference to FIG. 1.
[0065] As illustrated in FIG. 2, the user system 105 includes the DSL installation program 135 . The DSL installation program 135 includes all programs required to properly install and configure a DSL modem on the user system 105 . The DSL installation program 135 includes an installation control program 225 and an installation wrapper 230 . In one embodiment, the installation control program 225 is the program which controls the operation of the DSL installation program 135 . The installation wrapper 230 includes one or more modem specific installation programs 235 . In one embodiment of the invention, the modem specific installation program 235 is a program designed specifically to install a particular DSL modem. For example, to install the I300 (Globespan USB-based modem), the modem specific installation program 235 comprises a “i300.exe” executable program created by Infinilink (which in turn invokes a “setup.exe” created by Globespan) to install the USB modem. As another example, to install the i200 (ITeX PCI-based) modem, the modem specific installation program 235 comprises a “i200.exe” executable program as created by Infinilink. The modem specific installation programs 225 are discussed in more detail below.
[0066] [0066]FIG. 3 illustrates a service provider system 110 , according to aspects of an embodiment of the invention. The service provider system 110 includes a web server 250 and a DSL user information database 255 . In one embodiment, the web server 250 comprises a data routing device such as a conventional web server commercially available from Netscape, Microsoft, Apache, or the like. For example, one function of the web server 250 is to receive incoming data from the communication medium 115 . In one embodiment of the invention, the DSL user information database 255 includes any database system capable of storing demographic information about a plurality of individuals such as subscribers 120 . For example, the DSL user information database 255 includes username, password, and system information for a plurality of subscribers 120 .
[0067] As illustrated in FIG. 3, the web server 250 includes a configuration file generation program 260 . The configuration file generation program 260 is any program capable of creating and outputting a data file. The configuration file generation program 260 includes programs such as, for example, a program written in Microsoft Visual Basic, C++, Java, or the like.
[0068] As illustrated in FIG. 3, the service provider system 125 receives a user data file 300 from the user system 105 through the communication medium 115 . The web server 250 then reads the user data file 300 and extracts the login name and the login password field from the user data file 300 . Using the login name and login password, the web server 250 queries the DSL user information database 255 to retrieve the system information for the particular corresponding user system 105 .
[0069] [0069]FIG. 4 illustrates a data structure diagram of the user data file 300 according to aspects of an embodiment of the invention. In one embodiment, the user data file 300 includes the following fields: dial-up access server telephone number, dial-up access login name, dial-up access password, domain name, IP address of web server, and complete GET request URL. In one embodiment of the invention, the dial-up access server telephone number is a text field and contains a telephone number of the service provider 125 . In one embodiment of the invention, the dial-up access login name is a text field and contains the login name of the subscriber 120 . In one embodiment of the invention, the dial-up access login password is a text field and contains the password designated to the subscriber 120 . In one embodiment of the invention, the domain name is a text field and contains the domain name of the service provider system 110 . In one embodiment of the invention, the Internet Protocol (IP) address of that server is a text field and contains the IP address of the service provider system 110 . In one embodiment of the invention, the complete GET request URL is a web request, for example a text string such as:
[0070] “http://192.168.99.46/login.asp?UserID=pacbell&Password=fillrate&submit=submit+form”.
[0071] Although the user data file 300 is disclosed with reference to the foregoing embodiments, the invention is not intended to be limited thereby. Rather, a skilled artisan will recognize from the disclosure herein a wide number of alternative embodiments of the user data file 300 including almost any data structure capable of containing the information required to identify the user system 105 to the service provider system 110 . For example, the user data file 300 in one embodiment may not include a dial-up access login password if, for example, the service provider system 110 does not require a password from the user system 105 to establish a connection. As another example, the user data file 300 in one embodiment may comprise an Extensible Markup Language (XML) file.
[0072] The configuration file generation program 260 uses the information retrieved from the DSL user information database 255 and composes a configuration file 400 . The configuration file 400 is specific to the user system 105 and contains data necessary to install and configure the DSL modem 130 and the user system 105 . The server provider system 125 transmits the configuration file 400 using the communication medium 115 to the user system 105 .
[0073] [0073]FIG. 5 illustrates a data structure diagram of the configuration file 400 according to aspects of an embodiment of the invention. The configuration file 400 contains a plurality of data fields. FIG. 5 also illustrates a description of the data fields, the data type of the data fields, and comments regarding the data fields. In one embodiment of the invention, the configuration file 400 includes the following fields: Vendor ID, ISP, LEC, HeadEnd, Protocol, PVC count, VPIn, VCIn, Local IP, Subnet Mask, DNS Servers, Host Name, Domain, Gateway, PPP Username, PPP Password, PPPoE Service Name, [ERROR], Bad_Pass, Error_Msg, [END], and Valid. The descriptions, data field types, and comments describing the foregoing fields are also illustrated in FIG. 5. An explanation of the data fields, and their utility in the installation and configuration process is described as follows.
[0074] The Vendor ID is a hexadecimal value used to identify an equipment manufacturer or applications developer who is implementing and/or licensing the system described herein. This field is also used in order to allow for optional customization (e.g., interaction of the system with a custom application) for implementers or licensees of the system. This field is assigned to the implementer or licensee of the system.
[0075] The ISP is a text value used to identify the Internet service provider. This field is primarily used in order to identify the creator, origin, or source of the configuration file. Since the vendor (an implementer/licensee) of the system described herein could be independent of the organization creating, originating, or providing the configuration file, it is appropriate to have independent identification fields. Note that the Vendor ID and ISP could be identical. This field can be used to aid in authenticating that the configuration file supplied to an end user has originated from a valid source.
[0076] The LEC is a text value used to identify the Local Exchange Carrier (LEC). This field is primarily used to identify the network access provider (generally, the LEC is a local telephone company) that provides the broadband service between the ISP and residential or business customer. This field can be used to aid in authenticating that the configuration file supplied to an end user has been created with valid and appropriate network access service provisioning parameters. These network access service provisioning parameters are explained in the following text.
[0077] The HeadEnd is a text value used to identify the type of physical layer connection to attempt. Common HeadEnd values are T1.413i2, G.992.1 (or g.dmt), G.992.2 (or g.lite), or UAWG Lite (aka ADI Lite). The HeadEnd type is needed in order to make sure that the physical layer connection type of the customer DSL modem, matches the physical layer connection type provided by the LEC. The HeadEnd type is used to initialize the customer modem for the appropriate physical connection. Examples of HeadEnd types are shown in FIG. 5B. It should be noted that the HeadEnd types shown in FIG. 5B are the most common. HeadEnd types are not limited to those shown in FIG. 5B.
[0078] The Protocol is a text value used to identify the protocol encapsulation to be used. Protocol encapsulation is used for inserting IP (Internet Protocol) packets as payload into ATM (Asynchronous Transfer Mode) protocol data units. The Protocol type is used to initialize the customer DSL modem for the appropriate encapsulation method used by the network and/or Internet service providers.
[0079] The PVC count is the number of Permanent Virtual Connections (PVCs) for the user system. This value is used to determine the maximum number of PVCs allowed for the user system.
[0080] The VPI (Virtual Path Identifier) is a field in the ATM cell header that labels (identifies) a particular virtual path. The VPI is the first of two parameters used to numerically identify a PVC. This field is used to initialize the customer DSL modem for the appropriate PVC provisioned by the LEC.
[0081] The VCI (Virtual Channel Identifier) is a field in the ATM cell header that labels (identifies) a particular virtual channel. The VPI is the second of two parameters used to numerically identify a PVC. This field is used to initialize the customer DSL modem for the appropriate PVC provisioned by the LEC.
[0082] The Local IP is the user system's currently assigned Internet Protocol (IP) address. This value is required unless assigned by Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol or the Point-to-Point Protocol. The IP address provides a unique identifier of the user system as a network node or client on the Internet. The assignment of the IP address is administrated by the ISP and is assigned statically (a fixed value) or dynamically (assigned on a connection by connection basis from a finite set of values). An IP address must be provided either statically or dynamically in order for the user system to participate on the network.
[0083] The Subnet_Mask is the user system's currently assigned subnet mask value. A mask is used to determine what subnet an IP address belongs to. An IP address has two components, the network address and the host address. For example, consider the IP address 200.145.212.070. Assuming this is part of a Class B network, the first two numbers (200.145) represent the Class B network address, and the second two numbers (212.070) identify a particular host on this network. Subnetting enables the network administrator to further divide the host part of the address into two or more subnets. In this case, a part of the host address is reserved to identify the particular subnet. This value is required unless assigned by Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol or the Point-to-Point Protocol.
[0084] The DNS Servers is a text data field and contains one or more of the user system's Domain Name System (DNS) servers. A DNS server resolves or translates a text-based domain name to its uniquely assigned IP address. Essentially, a DNS server will accept a request to establish a network connection from a client to a server by taking in the requested text-based domain name (for example, www. example. com) from a client and returning the corresponding IP address (for example, 198.105.232.4) to the client. Without a DNS server, a client would have to know beforehand the IP address of the server that the client wishes to connect to. The DNS Servers field is used in the initialization of the networking properties of the user system. This value is required unless assigned by Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol or the Point-to-Point Protocol.
[0085] The Host Name is the name of the user system's host name. The Host Name is the first of two parameters used to identify a networked user account by its host PC name as opposed to the IP address of the host PC. This value is used to initialize the network parameters of the user system. This value is required unless assigned by Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol or the Point-to-Point Protocol.
[0086] The Domain is a text data field containing the name of the user system's Internet system provider's domain. The Domain name is the second of two parameters used to identify a networked user account by its host PC name as opposed to the IP address of the host PC. This value is used to initialize the network parameters of the user system. This value is required unless assigned by Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol or the Point-to-Point Protocol.
[0087] The Gateway is the IP address of the user system's gateway. The Gateway is the network access default router to which all data packets originating from the user system are directed prior to being forwarded to the Internet. This value is used to initialize the network parameters of the user system. This value is required unless assigned by Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol or the Point-to-Point Protocol.
[0088] The PPP Username is the value of the user system's Point-to-Point Protocol username. This value is only required in Point-to-Point Protocol mode. The PPP Username is the first of two parameters used to authorize and authenticate access of the service provider network by the user system.
[0089] The PPP Password is the value of the user system's Point-to-Point Protocol password. This value is only required in Point-to-Point Protocol mode. The PPP Password is the second of two parameters used to authorize and authenticate access of the service provider network by the user system.
[0090] The PPPoE is the service name for the Point-to-Point Protocol over Ethernet. This field is optional when using Point-to-Point Protocol over Ethernet. This field is used to indicate an ISP name or a class of service (CoS) or a quality of service (QoS).
[0091] The [ERROR] field contains the error message, if any, to be reported to the user system. This text field is only used to report error messages to the user. The contents of this field are implementation dependent and may be customized for a licensee of this invention.
[0092] The Bad_Pass is a text data field which is set if the user is using an incorrect username and password combination to access the Internet service provider. This field will only contain a value if an incorrect username and password combination is used. This information is returned in the configuration file if either the dialup access login name or dial up access login password is entered incorrectly by a user prior to requesting the configuration file. Therefore, it is used to authorize and authenticate an end user.
[0093] The Error_Msg text data field contains the default error message and is merely an indicator that an error has occurred.
[0094] The [END] text indicates the end of the configuration file. The “[END]” string in the configuration file does not represent a value, but its presence indicates that the configuration file is complete (i.e., there is no relevant information for installation or configuration after the END).
[0095] The Valid text data field is the last line of the configuration file. The Valid field is equal to the number 1 . This field is used to indicate that the contents of the entire configuration file are valid (i.e., correct and complete).
[0096] There are at least three ways that the automated installation and configuration system 100 can be executed. One way is by a dial-up installation process as illustrated in FIG. 6. A second way is by a preset installation process as illustrated in FIG. 7. A third way is by a manual installation process as illustrated in FIG. 8.
[0097] In the dial-up installation process illustrated in FIG. 6, the DSL installation program 135 , through the user interface device 205 , prompts the subscriber to enter the subscriber's dial-up access login name and the subscriber's dial-up access login password. The DSL installation program 135 advantageously contains the dial-up access server telephone number, the domain name, the IP address of the web server, and the complete GET request URL. Using the foregoing data and the dial-up access login name and dial-up access login password entered by the subscriber 120 , the DSL installation program 135 composes the user data file 300 . The DSL installation program 135 then connects to the service provider system 110 with the configured modem 220 . Once connected to the service provider system 110 , the DSL installation program sends the user data file 300 to the service provider system 110 . The service provider system 110 , as illustrated in FIG. 3, receives the user data file 300 and returns the configuration file 400 to the user system 105 . The DSL installation program 135 retrieves the configuration file 400 using the configured modem 220 .
[0098] The DSL installation program 135 uses the information in the configuration file 400 to configure the DSL modem 130 and the user system 105 . The installation wrapper 230 selects the appropriate modem specific installation program 235 among the one or more modem specific installation programs 235 residing in the installation wrapper 230 . The installation wrapper 230 selects the appropriate modem specific installation program 235 that corresponds to the particular DSL modem 130 .
[0099] In one embodiment of the invention, the modem specific installation program 235 uses the data contained in the configuration file 400 to configure the DSL modem 130 and the user system 105 . A DSL modem system used at the subscriber's location is herein referred to as Client Premises Equipment (CPE), and the subscriber's computer system using the CPE is herein referred to as the host computer. Currently there are at least three common types of CPE: controller-based CPE, controller-less CPE, and soft CPE. In a controller-based CPE, both the DSL and the ATM configuration are implemented in the hardware system. Examples of controller-based CPE include: Infinilink i500 (Ethernet), Virata Lithium, Beryllium, and Boron DSL modem systems. In a controller-less CPE, the DSL configuration is implemented in the hardware system and the ATM configuration is implemented in the software system. Examples of controller-less CPE include Infinilink i300 (Universal Serial Bus (USB) based) and Infinilink i200 (Peripheral Component Interconnect (PCI) based) DSL modem systems. In a soft CPE, both the DSL configuration and the ATM configuration are implemented in the software system. Examples of soft CPE include ITeX SAM and PCTEL DSL modem systems.
[0100] Each type of CPE has further installation and configuration requirements. For example, within the controller-based CPE type, different data encapsulations may be used. Data encapsulation is a method used for encapsulating network protocols above Asynchronous Transfer Mode into Asynchronous Transfer Mode. Examples of the data encapsulations include: RFC 1483 Bridged, RFC 1483 Routed, RFC 2364 (PPPoA), and RFC 2516 (PPPoE).
[0101] [0101]FIG. 15 illustrates a block diagram of the modem specific installation program 235 configuring the DSL Physical Layer, the ATM VPI/VCI parameters, and the TCP/IP parameters on the user system 105 and the DSL modem 130 . The function of the DSL Physical Layer is to identify the method used for establishing physical communications between the CPE and the Digital Subscriber Line Access Multiplexer (DSLAM). The function of the ATM VPI/VCI is to identify the ATM Virtual Circuit implemented. TCP/IP is a network protocol used by many network systems. The illustration is meant to demonstrate, as an example, the manner in which the modem specific installation program 235 configures the DSL Physical Layer, the ATM VPI/VCI settings, and the TCP/IP settings, which are only portions of the configuration process. Appendix A illustrates the complete list of the configuration parameters, and the configuration parameters' function, purpose, and configuration location.
[0102] As illustrated in FIG. 15, to configure the DSL Physical Layer, the ATM VPI/VCI, and the TCP/IP, the modem specific installation program 235 retrieves the data parameters, including Head End, ATM VPI, ATM VCI, and TCP/IP data parameters, from the configuration file 400 . The TCP/IP data parameters include the configuration file 400 data fields containing the IP address, subnet mask, default gateway, DNS servers, host name, and domain name. The modem specific installation program 235 stores the data in the CPE or the host computer according to the type of CPE as discussed in more detail below. Further, CPE products within the same CPE type may have different installation and configuration requirements. Thus, the invention relieves the subscriber from necessarily being aware of the type of CPE the subscriber is using or the installation and configuration requirements of the particular CPE product. Further, the subscriber need not know the appropriate values for the Head End, ATM VPI, ATM VCI, and TCP/IP data parameters.
[0103] As illustrated in FIG. 15, in a controller-based CPE, the modem specific installation program 235 stores the Head End, ATM VPI, ATM VCI, and TCP/IP data in the CPE and stores the TCP/IP data in the host computer. In a controller-less CPE, the modem specific installation program 235 stores the Head End data in the CPE and stores the Physical Layer's configuration and settings data and the TCP/IP data in the host computer. In a controller-less CPE, the modem specific installation program 235 stores the ATM VPI and ATM VCI data within the device driver settings of the host computer. In a soft CPE, the modem specific installation program 235 stores the Head End data and the TCP/IP data in the host computer and stores the ATM VPI and ATM VCI data within the device driver settings of the host computer.
[0104] As another example, as part of the configuration process, the modem specific installation program 235 sets the data encapsulation configuration of the user system 105 and the DSL modem 130 . For example, in a controller-based CPE, one of many possible data encapsulation methods may be used. For example, the foregoing data encapsulation methods may include: RFC 1483 Bridged, RFC 1483 Routed, RFC 2364 (PPPoA), and RFC 2516 (PPPoE), among others. In a RFC 1483 Bridged configuration, the modem specific installation program 235 stores the encapsulation protocol in the CPE and stores the IP Address, Subnet Mask, Default Gateway and DNS Servers data parameters in the host computer. In a RFC 1483 Routed configuration, the modem specific installation program 235 stores the encapsulation protocol, IP Address, Subnet Mask, and Default Gateway data parameters in the CPE and stores the IP Address, Subnet Mask, Default Gateway and DNS Servers data parameters in the host computer. In a RFC 2364 (PPPoA) configuration, the modem specific installation program 235 stores the encapsulation protocol, IP Address, Subnet Mask, and Default Gateway data parameters in the CPE and stores the IP Address, Subnet Mask, Default Gateway, and DNS Servers data parameters in the host computer. In a RFC 2516 (PPPoE) configuration, the modem specific installation program 235 stores the encapsulation protocol in the CPE. Thus, as illustrated in the foregoing examples, the configuration process relieves the subscriber from necessarily being aware of the type of CPE the subscriber is using or the installation and configuration requirements of the particular CPE product. Further, the subscriber need not know the appropriate values for the encapsulation protocol and the related data parameters.
[0105] Although the configuration process is disclosed with reference to the foregoing examples, the configuration process is not intended to be limited thereby. Rather, a skilled artisan will recognize from the disclosure herein a wide number of alternative configuration processes. Further, a skilled artisan will recognize that the configuration process may vary for each particular CPE and host computer.
[0106] One difference between the dial-up installation process 500 , the preset installation process 600 , and the manual installation process 700 is the manner in which the configuration file 400 is composed and communicated to the user's system. In the dial-up installation process 500 , the configuration file 400 is composed on the service provider system 110 and is transmitted back to the user system 105 for configuration of the DSL modem 130 and the user system 105 . In the preset installation process 600 , the subscriber 120 inserts a data storage device, such as a CD-ROM or a disk, containing the configuration file 400 into the user system 105 . The DSL installation program 135 uses the configuration file 400 residing on the data storage device to configure the DSL modem 130 and the user system 105 . In the manual installation process 700 , the DSL installation program 135 , through the use of the user interface device 205 , prompts the subscriber 120 to enter information required to compose the configuration file 400 . The DSL installation program 135 uses the configuration file 400 to configure the DSL modem 130 and the user system 105 .
[0107] [0107]FIG. 6 illustrates a process flow diagram of a dial-up installation process 500 according to aspects of one embodiment of the invention. The dial-up installation process 500 starts at a step 505 . At a step 510 , the subscriber 120 executes the DSL installation program 135 . After the subscriber 120 executes the DSL installation program 135 , the subscriber 120 is prompted, at a step 515 , for the user name and password as assigned to the subscriber 120 by the service provider 125 . At the step 515 , the subscriber 120 enters his or her assigned user name and password. At the step 515 , the subscriber 120 is also prompted to select the appropriate configured modem 220 . At the step 515 , the user also selects the configured modem 220 . At a step 520 , the DSL installation program 135 uses the configured modem 220 to connect to the service provider 110 and transmits the user data file 300 to the service provider. Subsequent to transmitting the user data file 300 at the step 520 , the installation program retrieves the configuration file 400 from the service provider system 110 . At a step 525 , the DSL installation program 135 configures the DSL modem 130 and the user system 105 using the configuration file 400 received from the service provider system 110 without further input from the subscriber 120 . At a step 530 , the user is prompted to restart the user system 105 hardware system. Once the user system 105 hardware system is restarted, at a step 535 , the dial-up installation process 500 is complete and the DSL modem 130 and the user system 105 is configured for operation.
[0108] [0108]FIG. 7 illustrates the pre-set installation process 600 according to aspects of one embodiment of the invention. The pre-set installation process 600 begins at the start state at a step 602 . At a step 605 , the subscriber 120 inserts the disk or CD ROM containing the configuration file 400 in the appropriate data storage and retrieval device 215 on the user system 105 . At a step 610 , the subscriber 120 executes the DSL installation program 135 on the user system 105 . At a step 615 , if the local configuration file field ATM encapsulation protocol value is 1483 or 1577, the process proceeds to a step 620 , and the subscriber 120 is prompted to enter the appropriate TCP/IP information (which is blank in the configuration file). The TCP/IP information includes the appropriate information related to IP address, subnet mask, default gateway, DNS servers, host name, and domain name required to configure the DSL modem 130 and the user system 105 . Once the user enters the foregoing information, the process moves directly to a step 625 . If, at the step 615 , the local configuration file ATM encapsulation protocol value was not 1483 and was not 1577, the process moves to a step 622 . At the step 622 , the user is prompted to enter PPP User Name and Password. Once the subscriber 120 enters the appropriate PPP User Name and Password, the process moves to the step 625 . At the step 625 , the DSL installation program 135 configures the DSL modem 130 and the user system 105 without further input from the user. At a step 630 , the subscriber restarts the user system 105 hardware system. The process then moves to a step 635 . At the step 635 , the installation and configuration of the DSL modem 130 and the user system 105 is complete.
[0109] [0109]FIG. 8 illustrates the manual installation process 700 according to aspects of an embodiment of the invention. The manual installation process 700 begins at the start state at a step 705 . At a step 710 , the subscriber 120 executes the DSL installation program 135 on the user system 105 . At a step 715 , the user is prompted by the DSL installation program 135 to enter the DSL Head-End type. Once the subscriber 120 enters the DSL Head-End type, the process moves to a step 720 where the DSL installation program 135 prompts the user to select the ATM encapsulation protocol. Once the subscriber 120 enters the appropriate ATM encapsulation protocol, the process moves to a step 725 where the subscriber 120 is prompted to enter the appropriate ATM PVC information. Once the subscriber 120 enters the appropriate ATM PVC information, the process moves to a step 730 . At the step 730 , if the subscriber 120 has selected 1483 or 1577 in the ATM encapsulation protocol information, the process moves to a step 735 . At the step 735 , the subscriber 120 is prompted by the DSL installation program 135 to enter the TCP/IP information of the user system 105 . Once the subscriber 120 enters the appropriate TCP/IP information, the process moves to a step 740 . If at the step 730 , the subscriber 120 did not enter 1483 and did not enter 1577 in the ATM encapsulation protocol information of the user system 105 , the process moves directly to a step 738 . At the step 738 the user is prompted to enter PPP User Name and Password. Once the subscriber 120 enters the appropriate PPP User Name and Password, the process moves directly to the step 740 . At the step 740 , the DSL installation program 135 configures the DSL modem 130 and the user system 105 using the foregoing information entered by the subscriber 120 . Once the DSL modem 130 and the user system 105 is configured, at step 745 , the subscriber 120 is prompted by the DSL installation program 135 to restart the user system 105 hardware. Once the subscriber 120 restarts the user system 105 hardware system the process moves to a step 750 , and the manual installation process 700 is completed.
[0110] [0110]FIG. 9 illustrates a screenshot of the initial configuration screen 800 according to aspects of one embodiment of the invention. The initial configuration screen 800 prompts the subscriber 120 to select one of three program options. The program options include installing and configuring DSL device, changing DSL modem settings, and uninstall DSL-ON (where DSL-ON is the name of the application implementing the present invention). When the subscriber 120 initially selects one of the three foregoing options, a description of that option is displayed on the initial configuration screen 800 to assist the subscriber 120 in choosing the appropriate option. Upon choosing the desired option, the subscriber 120 may select the next button on the initial configuration screen 800 . The subscriber 120 may also select the “cancel” button to terminate the program.
[0111] [0111]FIG. 10 illustrates a screenshot of the user authentication screen 850 according to aspects of one embodiment of the invention. The user authentication screen 850 includes three data entry sections: a username entry section 855 , a password entry section 860 , and a modem selection section 865 . Once the user authentication screen 850 is displayed, the subscriber 120 may enter the username assigned to the subscriber 120 by the service provider 125 in the username entry section 855 . The subscriber 120 may enter the password assigned to the subscriber 120 by the service provider 125 in the password entry section 860 . The subscriber 120 may select the configured modem 220 to be used by the DSL installation program 135 in the modem selection section 865 . Instructions are visible on the user authentication screen 850 to assist the subscriber 120 in entering appropriate data. Once the appropriate data is entered by the subscriber 120 , the subscriber 120 can then select the “next” button to continue with the installation. The subscriber 120 can also select the “back” button to go to the initial configuration screen 800 . The subscriber 120 may also select the “cancel” button to terminate the program.
[0112] [0112]FIG. 11 illustrates a screenshot of the configuration file selection screen 900 according to aspects of one embodiment of the invention. The configuration file selection screen 900 includes a configuration file selection section 905 . The subscriber 120 may use the configuration file selection section 905 to select the configuration file 400 to be used by the DSL installation program 135 . The subscriber 120 may use the “browse” button to view the user system 105 file directory and select the appropriate configuration file 400 . Upon selecting the appropriate configuration file 400 , the subscriber 120 may press the “next” button to continue with the installation. The subscriber 120 may instead select the “back” button to go back to the user authentication screen 850 . The subscriber 120 may also instead select the “cancel” button to terminate the program.
[0113] [0113]FIG. 12 illustrates a screenshot of the DSL settings entry screen 950 according to aspects of one embodiment of the invention. The DSL settings entry screen 950 includes DSL head end types radio buttons 955 , ATM encapsulation protocol radio buttons 960 , an ATM PVC VPI data entry section 965 , and an ATM PVC VCI data entry section 970 . The subscriber 120 may use the DSL head end types radio buttons 955 to select the appropriate setting for the DSL head end type. For example, the subscriber 120 may choose between the following:
[0114] Auto Detect
[0115] T1 41312
[0116] G.992.1 (G.dmt)
[0117] G.992.2 (G.lite)
[0118] The subscriber 120 may use the ATM encapsulation protocol radio buttons 960 to select the appropriate setting for the ATM encapsulation protocol. For example, the subscriber 120 may choose between the following:
[0119] RFC1483 LLC/SNAP Bridged
[0120] RFC1483 LLC/SNMP Routed
[0121] RFC1483 VCMUX Bridged
[0122] RFC1483 VCMUX Routed
[0123] RFC1577
[0124] RFC2364 VCMUX (PPPoA)
[0125] RFC2516 (PPPoE)
[0126] The subscriber 120 may use the ATM PVC VPI data entry section 965 to enter the appropriate value for the ATM PVC VPI setting. The subscriber 120 may use the ATM PVC VCI data entry section 965 to enter the appropriate value for the ATM PVC VCI setting. Once the appropriate data is entered by the subscriber 120 , the subscriber 120 can then select the “next” button to continue with the installation. The subscriber 120 can instead select the “back” button to go to the configuration file selection screen 900 . The subscriber 120 may also select the “cancel” button to terminate the program.
[0127] [0127]FIG. 13 illustrates a screenshot of the TCP/IP entry screen 1000 according to aspects of one embodiment of the invention. The TCP/IP entry screen 1000 includes an IP address data entry section 1005 , a subnet mask data entry section 1010 , a default gateway data entry section 1015 , a DNS servers data entry section 1020 , a host name data entry section 1025 , and a domain name data entry section 1030 .
[0128] Once the TCP/IP entry screen 1000 is displayed, the subscriber 120 may enter the appropriate IP address data for the user system 105 in the IP address data entry section 1005 . The subscriber 120 may use the subnet mask data entry section 1010 to enter the appropriate subnet mask information for the user system 105 . The subscriber 120 may use the default gateway data entry section 1015 to enter the appropriate default gateway data for the user system 105 . The subscriber 120 may use the DNS servers data entry section 1020 to enter the appropriate DNS servers data for the user system 105 . The subscriber 120 may use the host name data entry section 1025 to enter the appropriate host name data for the user system 105 . The subscriber 120 may use the domain name data entry section 1030 to enter the appropriate domain name data for the user system 105 .
[0129] Once the appropriate data is entered by the subscriber 120 , the subscriber 120 can then select the “next” button to continue with the installation. The subscriber 120 can instead select the “back” button to go to the DSL settings entry screen 950 . The subscriber 120 may also select the “cancel” button to terminate the program.
[0130] [0130]FIG. 14 illustrates a screenshot of the PPP information entry screen 1050 according to aspects of one embodiment of the invention. The PPP information entry screen 1050 includes a PPP username data entry section 1055 and a PPP password data entry section 1060 . Once the PPP information entry screen 1050 is displayed, the subscriber 120 may enter the appropriate PPP username data for the user system 105 in the PPP username data entry section 1055 . The subscriber 120 may use the PPP password data entry section 1060 to enter the appropriate PPP password information for the user system 105 .
[0131] Once the appropriate data is entered by the subscriber 120 , the subscriber 120 can then select the “next” button to continue with the installation. The subscriber 120 can instead select the “back” button to go to the TCP/IP entry screen 1000 . The subscriber 120 may also select the “cancel” button to terminate the program.
[0132] Although described above in connection with a DSL modem, one skilled in the art will appreciate that the systems and methods described herein are readily applicable to other broadband telecommunications devices, such as, for example, cable modems, broadband wireless, and the like.
[0133] While the above detailed description has shown, described and identified several novel features of the invention as applied to a preferred embodiment, it will be understood that various omissions, substitutions and changes in the form and details of the described embodiments may be made by those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit of the invention. Accordingly, the scope of the invention should not be limited to the foregoing discussion, but should be defined by the appended claims. | An automated installation and configuration system automatically configures Digital Subscriber Line (DSL) modems and associated user systems without a user having any knowledge of operating or networking systems. The system eliminates the need for a truck roll and makes it possible for a DSL modem to be installed across an ordinary telephone line using a conventional modem. The automated system eliminates the errors that occur during the DSL installation and configuration process, and thus facilitates efficient and cost-effective access to DSL technology. The automated system provides three methods for installing a DSL modem. In the first method, an analog modem connects the subscriber's system to a DSL service provider's server and retrieves a configuration file. The automated system then uses the configuration file to configure the subscriber's DSL modem. In the second method, the configuration file is located on a disk or CD-ROM. The automated system retrieves the configuration file from the disk or CD-ROM, and then uses the configuration file to configure the subscriber's DSL modem. In the third method, the automated system uses the user interface of the subscriber system to prompt the subscriber to enter configuration information. The automated system then uses that entered information to create the configuration file, and then uses the configuration file to configure the subscriber's DSL modem. | Summarize the patent information, clearly outlining the technical challenges and proposed solutions. | [
"REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION [0001] The present application claims priority benefit under 35 U.S.C. §119(e) from U.S. Provisional Application No. 60/216,145 filed Jul. 3, 2000, entitled “dsl-ON Software Specification, ”",
"U.S. Provisional Application No. 60/249,813 filed Nov. 17, 2000, entitled “SYSTEM FOR REMOTE AUTOMATED INSTALLATION AND CONFIGURATION OF DSL MODEMS, ”",
"U.S. Provisional Application No. unknown filed Nov. 17, 2000, entitled “SYSTEM FOR REMOTE AUTOMATED INSTALLATION AND CONFIGURATION OF DSL MODEMS,” and U.S. Provisional Application No. unknown filed Dec. 22, 2000, entitled “SYSTEM FOR REMOTE AUTOMATED INSTALLATION AND CONFIGURATION OF DIGITAL SUBSCRIBER LINE MODEMS, ”",
"which are herewith incorporated by reference.",
"BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION [0002] 1.",
"Field of the Invention [0003] The present invention relates in general to a system for installation and configuration of broadband telecommunication devices (which includes electrical, optical, and wireless media) and in particular to an installation and configuration system for Digital Subscriber Line (DSL) modems.",
"[0004] 2.",
"Description of the Related Art [0005] DSL is a technology that transforms conventional telephone lines into high speed conduits for data transmission and Internet services.",
"DSL brings high-bandwidth Internet access to homes and small businesses over ordinary copper telephone lines.",
"There are a wide variety of DSL service speeds and options from hundreds of providers worldwide.",
"Unlike a telephone, DSL is “always on”",
"and connected.",
"This means that no time is spent dialing for service and waiting to be connected.",
"[0006] A DSL line has sufficient bandwidth to carry data and voice signals at the same time, and the data part of the line is continuously connected.",
"If the user chooses, the DSL line can be configured so that a portion of the bandwidth is used to transmit an analog signal so that the user can use a telephone and a computer on the same line at the same time.",
"[0007] DSL installations began in 1998.",
"Since that time, due to the convenience of a high-speed DSL connection, the demand for DSL has increased at a rapid pace.",
"At present, DSL subscribers often have to wait up to two to three months for DSL to be installed in their homes or small businesses.",
"This is generally unacceptable to subscribers who have immediate DSL needs.",
"[0008] Delays in DSL installation are often due to a lengthy and confusing installation process that requires the services of a DSL installation technician.",
"Often, the technician is unable to properly install the DSL modem leading to multiple “truck rolls,” the industry term for visits by installation technicians, before a DSL modem is installed correctly.",
"Of course, an increase in truck rolls increases technician labor costs and the related expenses.",
"DSL providers are absorbing some of these costs now, but won't be able to keep absorbing the costs in the near future.",
"Another component of this problem is that only a limited number of technicians are available in the industry to install DSL.",
"For this reason, it can often take over a month before a truck roll is even commissioned to a residence or a place of business.",
"[0009] Another problem with the current DSL installation process is that providers have a difficult time making minor changes to their clients'",
"DSL services after the modems have been installed and configured.",
"This occurs when the configuration information on the DSL subscriber's system is no longer sufficient to properly connect the DSL modem to the DSL service provider.",
"There are currently three common ways a DSL service provider can make these changes.",
"One way is for the service provider to initiate a truck roll to the subscriber's location.",
"Another way is for the subscriber to call a service provider representative in order to be “walked through”",
"the many steps necessary for reconfiguration.",
"Finally, the service provider and the subscriber can attempt, by email correspondence, to “walk through”",
"the reconfiguration.",
"[0010] The initial configuration and any subsequent reconfigurations are all complicated, if not expensive and time-consuming processes that beg for a true cost effective and time effective remedy.",
"Therefore, there is a need for an efficient, error-free, automated DSL installation and configuration system.",
"SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION [0011] The present invention is an automated installation and configuration system that installs and configures a DSL modem without the assistance of a technician.",
"The present invention eliminates the need for a truck roll and therefore enables DSL deployment on a mass scale.",
"The present invention eliminates the errors that occur during the DSL installation and configuration process, and thus, facilitates efficient and cost-effective access to DSL technology.",
"[0012] An aspect of the invention is a telecommunications device installation and configuration system for configuring the operation of a DSL telecommunication device and user system.",
"The telecommunications device installation and configuration system comprises a client computer system, wherein the client computer system includes a DSL telecommunications device, a storage device for receiving and storing a file of configuration data for the DSL telecommunication device, a pre-configured telecommunications device, and a plurality of program files.",
"The telecommunications device installation and configuration system further comprises a server system, wherein the server system includes a telecommunications device that communicates with the pre-configured telecommunication device of the client computer system, a configuration database system containing configuration data used to control the operation of DSL telecommunication devices, an identification database system containing data used to identify the client computer system, and program files that create a configuration file.",
"The telecommunications device installation and configuration system further comprises a data input interface that receives user identification data from a user of the client computer system, a display that displays a data entry screen on the client computer system to prompt the user to input the user identification data.",
"The telecommunications device installation and configuration system further comprises a controller coupled to the data input interface, to the display, and to the pre-configured telecommunications device, wherein the controller operates to send the identification data to the server system via the pre-configured telecommunications device, receive configuration data from the server system to be transferred to the pre-configured telecommunications device, generate a communications device control command by converting the configuration data into a configuration file suitable for use with the second telecommunications device, and use the information in the configuration file to configure the DSL telecommunications device and the client computer system to enable the DSL telecommunications device.",
"[0013] Another aspect of the invention is a computer hardware installation and configuration system for installing and configuring a computer hardware device.",
"The computer hardware installation and configuration system comprises a computer system, wherein the computer system includes a user interface system and a pre-configured telecommunications device.",
"The computer hardware installation and configuration system further comprises an identification data structure.",
"The computer hardware installation and configuration system further comprises a configuration data structure.",
"The computer hardware installation and configuration system further comprises a server system, wherein the server system comprises an identification database system, a configuration data generation system, and a server communications system.",
"The computer hardware installation and configuration system further comprises a computer program operating with the computer system, wherein the computer program operates to retrieve user information using the user interface system, compose the identification data structure, transmit the identification data structure to the server system using the pre-configured telecommunications device, retrieve the configuration data structure from the server system using the pre-configured telecommunications device, and configure the computer hardware device and the computer system to properly operate the computer device.",
"The computer hardware installation and configuration system further comprises a server computer program operating with the server system, wherein the server computer program operates to retrieve the identification data structure from the computer system using the server communications system, generate the configuration data structure using data contained in the identification data structure and the configuration data generation system, and transmit the configuration data structure to the computer system using the server communications system.",
"[0014] Another aspect of the invention is a computer hardware installation and configuration system for installing and configuring a computer hardware device.",
"The computer hardware installation and configuration system comprises a computer system, wherein the computer system comprises a user interface system and a configuration data structure.",
"The computer hardware installation and configuration system further comprises a computer program, wherein the computer program operates to retrieve installation and configuration information using the user interface system, generate the configuration data structure using the installation and configuration information, and configure the computer hardware device and the computer system using the configuration data structure to properly operate the computer device.",
"[0015] Another aspect of this invention is a computer hardware installation and configuration system for installing and configuring a computer hardware device.",
"The computer hardware installation and configuration system comprises a computer system, wherein the computer system comprises a user interface system and a data retrieval device.",
"The computer hardware installation and configuration system further comprises an installation and configuration software package residing on a data storage device.",
"The computer hardware installation and configuration system further comprises a configuration data structure.",
"The computer hardware installation and configuration system further comprises a computer program operating with the computer system, wherein the computer program operates to retrieve user information using the user interface system, retrieve the installation and configuration software package from the data storage device using the data retrieval device, generate the configuration data structure using the user information and the installation and configuration software package, and configure the computer hardware device and the computer system using the configuration data structure to properly operate the computer device.",
"[0016] Another aspect of the invention is a software data structure for installing and configuring a computer hardware device.",
"The software data structure comprises data fields containing information pertinent to the installation and configuration of the computer hardware device.",
"[0017] Another aspect of the invention is a software package for installing and configuring a computer hardware device.",
"The software package comprises one or more software programs for installing and configuring various computer hardware devices wherein the software package selects and utilizes an appropriate software program for installing and configuring a particular computer hardware device.",
"[0018] Another aspect of the invention is a computer hardware device installation and configuration system for installing and configuring the operation of a computer hardware device on a computer system.",
"The computer hardware device installation and configuration system comprises a computer hardware configuration data structure, wherein the configuration data structure comprises a data structure independent of the computer hardware device, and a data content specific for the computer hardware device and the computer system.",
"The computer hardware device installation and configuration system further comprises a computer hardware installation and configuration controller, wherein the computer hardware installation and configuration controller comprises a plurality of computer hardware device specific installation and configuration programs, wherein the computer hardware installation and configuration controller operates to read the computer hardware configuration data structure, select an appropriate computer hardware device specific installation and configuration program for the computer hardware device and the computer system, and utilize the appropriate computer hardware device specific installation and configuration program to install and configure the computer hardware device for proper operation of the computer hardware device on the computer system.",
"[0019] For purposes of summarizing the invention, certain aspects, advantages and novel features of the invention have been described herein.",
"Of course, it is to be understood that not necessarily all such aspects, advantages or features will be embodied in any particular embodiment of the invention.",
"BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS [0020] The present invention is described in more detail below in connection with the attached drawings, which are meant to illustrate and not limit the invention, and in which: [0021] [0021 ]FIG. 1 illustrates a block diagram of an automated installation and configuration system, according to aspects of an embodiment of the invention;",
"[0022] [0022 ]FIG. 2 illustrates a block diagram of a user system, according to aspects of an embodiment of the invention;",
"[0023] [0023 ]FIG. 3 illustrates a block diagram of a service provider system, according to aspects of an embodiment of the invention;",
"[0024] [0024 ]FIG. 4 illustrates a data structure diagram of a user data file, according to aspects of an embodiment of the invention;",
"[0025] [0025 ]FIG. 5 illustrates a data structure diagram of a configuration file, according to aspects of an embodiment of the invention;",
"[0026] [0026 ]FIG. 6 illustrates a process flow diagram of a dial-up installation process, according to aspects of an embodiment of the invention;",
"[0027] [0027 ]FIG. 7 illustrates a process flow diagram of a preset installation process, according to aspects of an embodiment of the invention;",
"[0028] [0028 ]FIG. 8 illustrates a process flow diagram of a manual installation process, according to aspects of an embodiment of the invention;",
"[0029] [0029 ]FIG. 9 illustrates a screenshot of the initial configuration screen, according aspects of an embodiment of the invention;",
"[0030] [0030 ]FIG. 10 illustrates a screenshot of a user authentication screen, according to aspects of an embodiment of the invention;",
"[0031] [0031 ]FIG. 11 illustrates a screenshot of the configuration file selection screen, according to aspects of an embodiment of the invention;",
"[0032] [0032 ]FIG. 12 illustrates a screenshot of the Digital Subscriber Line (DSL) settings entry screen, according to aspects of an embodiment of the invention;",
"[0033] [0033 ]FIG. 13 illustrates a screenshot of the Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol (TCP/IP) entry screen, according to aspects of an embodiment of the invention;",
"[0034] [0034 ]FIG. 14 illustrates a screenshot of the Point-to-Point Protocol (PPP) information entry screen, according to aspects of an embodiment of the invention;",
"and [0035] [0035 ]FIG. 15 illustrates a block diagram of an installation program configuring the DSL Physical Layer and the ATM VPI/VCI and TCP/IP, according to aspects of an embodiment of the invention.",
"DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT [0036] The present invention relates to a system for installation and configuration of broadband telecommunication devices (which includes electrical, optical, and wireless media).",
"The present invention will be described herein with respect to an installation and configuration system for Digital Subscriber Line (DSL) modems.",
"[0037] The term DSL or xDSL is used in this application to refer to all varieties of DSL, such as, but not limited to, Asymmetric Digital Subscriber Line (ADSL) (including G.Lite and Rate Adaptive Digital Subscriber Line (RADSL)), High-bit-rate Digital Subscriber Line (HDSL), Symmetric Digital Subscriber Line (SDSL), Single-pair High-speed Digital Subscriber Line (SHDSL), Very High Data Digital Subscriber Line (VDSL) (including Very-high-rate Asymmetric Digital Subscriber Line (VDSL) and Broadband Digital Subscriber Line (BDSL)), and Integrated Services Digital Network Digital Subscriber Line (IDSL).",
"[0038] One aspect of the present invention is to provide a DSL modem installation and configuration system for a complete configuration of the physical layer, Asynchronous Transfer Mode (ATM) Permanent Virtual Connection (PVC), ATM encapsulation, and Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol (TCP/IP) layer settings, without requiring user input for any of the aforementioned settings.",
"More specifically, in order for a DSL modem to be configured properly, the following items must be properly configured: [0039] Asymmetric Digital Subscriber Line (DSL) Physical Layer Standard [0040] Asynchronous Transfer Mode (ATM) Permanent Virtual Connection (PVC), including: [0041] Virtual Path Identifier (VPI) [0042] Virtual Channel Identifier (VCI) [0043] ATM Encapsulation Protocol [0044] Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol (TCP/IP) information, including: [0045] Internet Protocol (IP) Address [0046] Subnet Mask [0047] Default Gateway [0048] Domain Name Service (DNS) Servers [0049] Hostname [0050] Domain [0051] In the dial-up installation process, a DSL user system, comprising a DSL modem connected to the DSL user system, connects to a DSL service provider through a communication medium, such as, for example, a conventional 56K modem.",
"The DSL service provider creates a configuration file for that DSL user system, and the DSL service provider sends the configuration file to the DSL user through the communication medium.",
"The installation and configuration system then uses the configuration file to modify the DSL user system to install and configure the DSL modem connected to the DSL user system.",
"[0052] The configuration file is modem independent.",
"Therefore, the DSL service provider does not need to know what type of DSL modem is connected to the user system.",
"[0053] To facilitate a complete understanding of the invention, the remainder of the detailed description describes the invention with reference to the figures, wherein like elements are referenced with like numerals throughout.",
"[0054] [0054 ]FIG. 1 illustrates a block diagram of an automated installation and configuration system 100 according to aspects of an embodiment of the invention.",
"The automated installation and configuration system includes a user system 105 and a service provider system 110 communicating through a communication medium 115 .",
"The user system 105 is operated by a subscriber 120 , and the service provider system 110 is operated by a service provider 125 .",
"[0055] According to one embodiment of the invention, the user system 105 comprises a conventional general purpose computer using one or more microprocessors such as, for example, an Intel-based processor (e.g., a Pentium III processor or a similar system).",
"Moreover, the user system 105 includes an appropriate operating system such as, for example, an operating system capable of displaying graphics or windows, such as Windows, UNIX, Linux, or the like.",
"As shown in FIG. 1, the user system 105 may include a DSL modem 130 .",
"In one embodiment of the invention, the DSL modem 130 comprises any DSL modem such as, for example, a DSL modem by ITeX, Globespan, Infinilink, or the like.",
"[0056] In addition, the user system 105 may connect to the communication medium 115 through a conventional service provider such as, for example, a dial-up connection, digital subscriber line (DSL), cable modem, or the like.",
"According to another embodiment, the user system 105 connects to the communication medium 115 through network connectivity such as, for example, a local or wide area network.",
"According to one embodiment, the operating system includes a TCP/IP stack that handles all incoming and outgoing message traffic passed over the communication link 115 .",
"[0057] Although the user system 105 is disclosed with reference to the foregoing embodiments, this invention is not intended to be limited thereby.",
"Rather, a skilled artisan will recognize from the disclosure herein a wide number of alternative embodiments of the user system 105 , including almost any computing device capable of sending or receiving information from another computing device.",
"For example, the user system 105 may include a computer workstation, an interactive television, an interactive kiosk, a personal mobile computing device (such as a digital assistant), a mobile phone, a laptop, a wireless communication device, a smart card, an embedded computing device, or any such device which can interact with the communication medium 115 .",
"In such alternative systems, the operating systems will likely differ and be adapted for the particular device.",
"However, according to one embodiment, the operating system advantageously continues to provide the appropriate communications protocols needed to establish communication with communication medium 115 .",
"[0058] [0058 ]FIG. 1 also illustrates the service provider system 110 .",
"According to one embodiment of the invention, the service provider system 110 comprises one or more secure servers for accessing and storing sensitive information such as user authentication data, personal user information, and the user's system information.",
"For example, the authentication data may include a username and password used to gain access to the service provider system 110 .",
"The service provider system 110 may also contain information about the user's name, address, system configuration, payment information (such as a credit card), and other personal information.",
"The service provider system 110 is a system which facilitates Internet access by a plurality of user systems 105 such as, for example, Earthlink, American Online, the Microsoft Network, and the like.",
"[0059] [0059 ]FIG. 1 also illustrates the communication medium 115 connecting the user system 105 and the service provider system 110 .",
"According to one embodiment, the communication medium 115 comprises the Internet.",
"The Internet, as used throughout this disclosure, is a global network of computers.",
"The structure of the Internet, which is well known to those of ordinary skill in the art, includes a network backbone with networks branching from the backbone.",
"These branches in turn have networks branching from them and so on.",
"Routers move information packets between network levels and then from network to network, until the packet reaches the neighborhood of its destination.",
"From the destination, the destination network host directs the information packet to the appropriate terminal or node.",
"In one advantageous embodiment, the Internet routing hubs comprise domain name system (DNS) servers using Transfer Control Protocol/Internet Protocol (TCP/IP) as is well known in the art.",
"The routing hubs connect to one or more other routing hubs via high speed communication links.",
"[0060] Although the communication medium 115 is disclosed in terms of its preferred embodiment, one of ordinary skill in the art will recognize from the disclosure herein that the communication medium 115 may include a wide range of interactive communication links.",
"For example, the communication medium 115 may include interactive television networks, telephone networks, wireless data transmission systems, two-way cable systems, customized private or public computer networks, interactive kiosk networks, automatic teller machine networks, direct links, satellite or cellular networks, and the like.",
"[0061] [0061 ]FIG. 1 also illustrates the subscriber 120 and the service provider 125 .",
"The subscriber 120 is a person or organization operating the user system 105 .",
"The service provider 125 is a person or organization operating the service provider system 115 with a view to providing Internet access to a plurality of subscribers 120 .",
"[0062] [0062 ]FIG. 2 illustrates a user system 105 according to aspects of an embodiment of the invention.",
"The user system 105 includes a user interface device 205 , an operating and networking system 210 , one or more data storage and retrieval devices 215 , a configured modem 220 , the DSL modem 130 , and a DSL installation program 135 .",
"[0063] In one embodiment of the invention, the user interface device 205 includes any device capable of displaying information to a user and receiving input from the user, such as, for example, a computer monitor and a keyboard, or the like.",
"In one embodiment of the invention, the operating and networking system 210 includes an appropriate operating and networking system to operate the user system 105 , such as, for example, Windows NT, UNIX, Linux, Macintosh OS, or the like.",
"In one embodiment of the invention, the user system 105 includes one or more data storage and retrieval devices 215 .",
"In one embodiment, the data storage and retrieval device 215 includes a CD ROM, a hard disk drive, a floppy disk drive, or the like.",
"[0064] As illustrated in FIG. 2, the user system 105 includes the configured modem 220 .",
"In one embodiment of the invention, the configured modem 220 is any analog modem capable of transmitting and receiving data such as, for example, modems made by Hayes, 3COM, and the like.",
"In one embodiment of the invention, the configured modem 220 is configured to operate without any further installation or configuration.",
"As illustrated in FIG. 2, the configured modem 220 transmits the user data file 300 to the service provider system 110 , and the configured modem 220 receives the configuration file 400 from the service provider system 110 .",
"The user system 105 includes the DSL modem 130 .",
"The DSL modem 130 and the user system 105 is described with reference to FIG. 1. [0065] As illustrated in FIG. 2, the user system 105 includes the DSL installation program 135 .",
"The DSL installation program 135 includes all programs required to properly install and configure a DSL modem on the user system 105 .",
"The DSL installation program 135 includes an installation control program 225 and an installation wrapper 230 .",
"In one embodiment, the installation control program 225 is the program which controls the operation of the DSL installation program 135 .",
"The installation wrapper 230 includes one or more modem specific installation programs 235 .",
"In one embodiment of the invention, the modem specific installation program 235 is a program designed specifically to install a particular DSL modem.",
"For example, to install the I300 (Globespan USB-based modem), the modem specific installation program 235 comprises a “i300.exe”",
"executable program created by Infinilink (which in turn invokes a “setup.exe”",
"created by Globespan) to install the USB modem.",
"As another example, to install the i200 (ITeX PCI-based) modem, the modem specific installation program 235 comprises a “i200.exe”",
"executable program as created by Infinilink.",
"The modem specific installation programs 225 are discussed in more detail below.",
"[0066] [0066 ]FIG. 3 illustrates a service provider system 110 , according to aspects of an embodiment of the invention.",
"The service provider system 110 includes a web server 250 and a DSL user information database 255 .",
"In one embodiment, the web server 250 comprises a data routing device such as a conventional web server commercially available from Netscape, Microsoft, Apache, or the like.",
"For example, one function of the web server 250 is to receive incoming data from the communication medium 115 .",
"In one embodiment of the invention, the DSL user information database 255 includes any database system capable of storing demographic information about a plurality of individuals such as subscribers 120 .",
"For example, the DSL user information database 255 includes username, password, and system information for a plurality of subscribers 120 .",
"[0067] As illustrated in FIG. 3, the web server 250 includes a configuration file generation program 260 .",
"The configuration file generation program 260 is any program capable of creating and outputting a data file.",
"The configuration file generation program 260 includes programs such as, for example, a program written in Microsoft Visual Basic, C++, Java, or the like.",
"[0068] As illustrated in FIG. 3, the service provider system 125 receives a user data file 300 from the user system 105 through the communication medium 115 .",
"The web server 250 then reads the user data file 300 and extracts the login name and the login password field from the user data file 300 .",
"Using the login name and login password, the web server 250 queries the DSL user information database 255 to retrieve the system information for the particular corresponding user system 105 .",
"[0069] [0069 ]FIG. 4 illustrates a data structure diagram of the user data file 300 according to aspects of an embodiment of the invention.",
"In one embodiment, the user data file 300 includes the following fields: dial-up access server telephone number, dial-up access login name, dial-up access password, domain name, IP address of web server, and complete GET request URL.",
"In one embodiment of the invention, the dial-up access server telephone number is a text field and contains a telephone number of the service provider 125 .",
"In one embodiment of the invention, the dial-up access login name is a text field and contains the login name of the subscriber 120 .",
"In one embodiment of the invention, the dial-up access login password is a text field and contains the password designated to the subscriber 120 .",
"In one embodiment of the invention, the domain name is a text field and contains the domain name of the service provider system 110 .",
"In one embodiment of the invention, the Internet Protocol (IP) address of that server is a text field and contains the IP address of the service provider system 110 .",
"In one embodiment of the invention, the complete GET request URL is a web request, for example a text string such as: [0070] “http://192.168.99.46/login.asp?UserID=pacbell&Password=fillrate&submit=submit+form.”",
"[0071] Although the user data file 300 is disclosed with reference to the foregoing embodiments, the invention is not intended to be limited thereby.",
"Rather, a skilled artisan will recognize from the disclosure herein a wide number of alternative embodiments of the user data file 300 including almost any data structure capable of containing the information required to identify the user system 105 to the service provider system 110 .",
"For example, the user data file 300 in one embodiment may not include a dial-up access login password if, for example, the service provider system 110 does not require a password from the user system 105 to establish a connection.",
"As another example, the user data file 300 in one embodiment may comprise an Extensible Markup Language (XML) file.",
"[0072] The configuration file generation program 260 uses the information retrieved from the DSL user information database 255 and composes a configuration file 400 .",
"The configuration file 400 is specific to the user system 105 and contains data necessary to install and configure the DSL modem 130 and the user system 105 .",
"The server provider system 125 transmits the configuration file 400 using the communication medium 115 to the user system 105 .",
"[0073] [0073 ]FIG. 5 illustrates a data structure diagram of the configuration file 400 according to aspects of an embodiment of the invention.",
"The configuration file 400 contains a plurality of data fields.",
"FIG. 5 also illustrates a description of the data fields, the data type of the data fields, and comments regarding the data fields.",
"In one embodiment of the invention, the configuration file 400 includes the following fields: Vendor ID, ISP, LEC, HeadEnd, Protocol, PVC count, VPIn, VCIn, Local IP, Subnet Mask, DNS Servers, Host Name, Domain, Gateway, PPP Username, PPP Password, PPPoE Service Name, [ERROR], Bad_Pass, Error_Msg, [END], and Valid.",
"The descriptions, data field types, and comments describing the foregoing fields are also illustrated in FIG. 5. An explanation of the data fields, and their utility in the installation and configuration process is described as follows.",
"[0074] The Vendor ID is a hexadecimal value used to identify an equipment manufacturer or applications developer who is implementing and/or licensing the system described herein.",
"This field is also used in order to allow for optional customization (e.g., interaction of the system with a custom application) for implementers or licensees of the system.",
"This field is assigned to the implementer or licensee of the system.",
"[0075] The ISP is a text value used to identify the Internet service provider.",
"This field is primarily used in order to identify the creator, origin, or source of the configuration file.",
"Since the vendor (an implementer/licensee) of the system described herein could be independent of the organization creating, originating, or providing the configuration file, it is appropriate to have independent identification fields.",
"Note that the Vendor ID and ISP could be identical.",
"This field can be used to aid in authenticating that the configuration file supplied to an end user has originated from a valid source.",
"[0076] The LEC is a text value used to identify the Local Exchange Carrier (LEC).",
"This field is primarily used to identify the network access provider (generally, the LEC is a local telephone company) that provides the broadband service between the ISP and residential or business customer.",
"This field can be used to aid in authenticating that the configuration file supplied to an end user has been created with valid and appropriate network access service provisioning parameters.",
"These network access service provisioning parameters are explained in the following text.",
"[0077] The HeadEnd is a text value used to identify the type of physical layer connection to attempt.",
"Common HeadEnd values are T1.413i2, G[.",
"].992.1 (or g.dmt), G[.",
"].992.2 (or g.lite), or UAWG Lite (aka ADI Lite).",
"The HeadEnd type is needed in order to make sure that the physical layer connection type of the customer DSL modem, matches the physical layer connection type provided by the LEC.",
"The HeadEnd type is used to initialize the customer modem for the appropriate physical connection.",
"Examples of HeadEnd types are shown in FIG. 5B.",
"It should be noted that the HeadEnd types shown in FIG. 5B are the most common.",
"HeadEnd types are not limited to those shown in FIG. 5B.",
"[0078] The Protocol is a text value used to identify the protocol encapsulation to be used.",
"Protocol encapsulation is used for inserting IP (Internet Protocol) packets as payload into ATM (Asynchronous Transfer Mode) protocol data units.",
"The Protocol type is used to initialize the customer DSL modem for the appropriate encapsulation method used by the network and/or Internet service providers.",
"[0079] The PVC count is the number of Permanent Virtual Connections (PVCs) for the user system.",
"This value is used to determine the maximum number of PVCs allowed for the user system.",
"[0080] The VPI (Virtual Path Identifier) is a field in the ATM cell header that labels (identifies) a particular virtual path.",
"The VPI is the first of two parameters used to numerically identify a PVC.",
"This field is used to initialize the customer DSL modem for the appropriate PVC provisioned by the LEC.",
"[0081] The VCI (Virtual Channel Identifier) is a field in the ATM cell header that labels (identifies) a particular virtual channel.",
"The VPI is the second of two parameters used to numerically identify a PVC.",
"This field is used to initialize the customer DSL modem for the appropriate PVC provisioned by the LEC.",
"[0082] The Local IP is the user system's currently assigned Internet Protocol (IP) address.",
"This value is required unless assigned by Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol or the Point-to-Point Protocol.",
"The IP address provides a unique identifier of the user system as a network node or client on the Internet.",
"The assignment of the IP address is administrated by the ISP and is assigned statically (a fixed value) or dynamically (assigned on a connection by connection basis from a finite set of values).",
"An IP address must be provided either statically or dynamically in order for the user system to participate on the network.",
"[0083] The Subnet_Mask is the user system's currently assigned subnet mask value.",
"A mask is used to determine what subnet an IP address belongs to.",
"An IP address has two components, the network address and the host address.",
"For example, consider the IP address 200.145.212.070.",
"Assuming this is part of a Class B network, the first two numbers (200.145) represent the Class B network address, and the second two numbers (212.070) identify a particular host on this network.",
"Subnetting enables the network administrator to further divide the host part of the address into two or more subnets.",
"In this case, a part of the host address is reserved to identify the particular subnet.",
"This value is required unless assigned by Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol or the Point-to-Point Protocol.",
"[0084] The DNS Servers is a text data field and contains one or more of the user system's Domain Name System (DNS) servers.",
"A DNS server resolves or translates a text-based domain name to its uniquely assigned IP address.",
"Essentially, a DNS server will accept a request to establish a network connection from a client to a server by taking in the requested text-based domain name (for example, www.",
"example.",
"com) from a client and returning the corresponding IP address (for example, 198.105.232.4) to the client.",
"Without a DNS server, a client would have to know beforehand the IP address of the server that the client wishes to connect to.",
"The DNS Servers field is used in the initialization of the networking properties of the user system.",
"This value is required unless assigned by Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol or the Point-to-Point Protocol.",
"[0085] The Host Name is the name of the user system's host name.",
"The Host Name is the first of two parameters used to identify a networked user account by its host PC name as opposed to the IP address of the host PC.",
"This value is used to initialize the network parameters of the user system.",
"This value is required unless assigned by Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol or the Point-to-Point Protocol.",
"[0086] The Domain is a text data field containing the name of the user system's Internet system provider's domain.",
"The Domain name is the second of two parameters used to identify a networked user account by its host PC name as opposed to the IP address of the host PC.",
"This value is used to initialize the network parameters of the user system.",
"This value is required unless assigned by Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol or the Point-to-Point Protocol.",
"[0087] The Gateway is the IP address of the user system's gateway.",
"The Gateway is the network access default router to which all data packets originating from the user system are directed prior to being forwarded to the Internet.",
"This value is used to initialize the network parameters of the user system.",
"This value is required unless assigned by Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol or the Point-to-Point Protocol.",
"[0088] The PPP Username is the value of the user system's Point-to-Point Protocol username.",
"This value is only required in Point-to-Point Protocol mode.",
"The PPP Username is the first of two parameters used to authorize and authenticate access of the service provider network by the user system.",
"[0089] The PPP Password is the value of the user system's Point-to-Point Protocol password.",
"This value is only required in Point-to-Point Protocol mode.",
"The PPP Password is the second of two parameters used to authorize and authenticate access of the service provider network by the user system.",
"[0090] The PPPoE is the service name for the Point-to-Point Protocol over Ethernet.",
"This field is optional when using Point-to-Point Protocol over Ethernet.",
"This field is used to indicate an ISP name or a class of service (CoS) or a quality of service (QoS).",
"[0091] The [ERROR] field contains the error message, if any, to be reported to the user system.",
"This text field is only used to report error messages to the user.",
"The contents of this field are implementation dependent and may be customized for a licensee of this invention.",
"[0092] The Bad_Pass is a text data field which is set if the user is using an incorrect username and password combination to access the Internet service provider.",
"This field will only contain a value if an incorrect username and password combination is used.",
"This information is returned in the configuration file if either the dialup access login name or dial up access login password is entered incorrectly by a user prior to requesting the configuration file.",
"Therefore, it is used to authorize and authenticate an end user.",
"[0093] The Error_Msg text data field contains the default error message and is merely an indicator that an error has occurred.",
"[0094] The [END] text indicates the end of the configuration file.",
"The “[END]”",
"string in the configuration file does not represent a value, but its presence indicates that the configuration file is complete (i.e., there is no relevant information for installation or configuration after the END).",
"[0095] The Valid text data field is the last line of the configuration file.",
"The Valid field is equal to the number 1 .",
"This field is used to indicate that the contents of the entire configuration file are valid (i.e., correct and complete).",
"[0096] There are at least three ways that the automated installation and configuration system 100 can be executed.",
"One way is by a dial-up installation process as illustrated in FIG. 6. A second way is by a preset installation process as illustrated in FIG. 7. A third way is by a manual installation process as illustrated in FIG. 8. [0097] In the dial-up installation process illustrated in FIG. 6, the DSL installation program 135 , through the user interface device 205 , prompts the subscriber to enter the subscriber's dial-up access login name and the subscriber's dial-up access login password.",
"The DSL installation program 135 advantageously contains the dial-up access server telephone number, the domain name, the IP address of the web server, and the complete GET request URL.",
"Using the foregoing data and the dial-up access login name and dial-up access login password entered by the subscriber 120 , the DSL installation program 135 composes the user data file 300 .",
"The DSL installation program 135 then connects to the service provider system 110 with the configured modem 220 .",
"Once connected to the service provider system 110 , the DSL installation program sends the user data file 300 to the service provider system 110 .",
"The service provider system 110 , as illustrated in FIG. 3, receives the user data file 300 and returns the configuration file 400 to the user system 105 .",
"The DSL installation program 135 retrieves the configuration file 400 using the configured modem 220 .",
"[0098] The DSL installation program 135 uses the information in the configuration file 400 to configure the DSL modem 130 and the user system 105 .",
"The installation wrapper 230 selects the appropriate modem specific installation program 235 among the one or more modem specific installation programs 235 residing in the installation wrapper 230 .",
"The installation wrapper 230 selects the appropriate modem specific installation program 235 that corresponds to the particular DSL modem 130 .",
"[0099] In one embodiment of the invention, the modem specific installation program 235 uses the data contained in the configuration file 400 to configure the DSL modem 130 and the user system 105 .",
"A DSL modem system used at the subscriber's location is herein referred to as Client Premises Equipment (CPE), and the subscriber's computer system using the CPE is herein referred to as the host computer.",
"Currently there are at least three common types of CPE: controller-based CPE, controller-less CPE, and soft CPE.",
"In a controller-based CPE, both the DSL and the ATM configuration are implemented in the hardware system.",
"Examples of controller-based CPE include: Infinilink i500 (Ethernet), Virata Lithium, Beryllium, and Boron DSL modem systems.",
"In a controller-less CPE, the DSL configuration is implemented in the hardware system and the ATM configuration is implemented in the software system.",
"Examples of controller-less CPE include Infinilink i300 (Universal Serial Bus (USB) based) and Infinilink i200 (Peripheral Component Interconnect (PCI) based) DSL modem systems.",
"In a soft CPE, both the DSL configuration and the ATM configuration are implemented in the software system.",
"Examples of soft CPE include ITeX SAM and PCTEL DSL modem systems.",
"[0100] Each type of CPE has further installation and configuration requirements.",
"For example, within the controller-based CPE type, different data encapsulations may be used.",
"Data encapsulation is a method used for encapsulating network protocols above Asynchronous Transfer Mode into Asynchronous Transfer Mode.",
"Examples of the data encapsulations include: RFC 1483 Bridged, RFC 1483 Routed, RFC 2364 (PPPoA), and RFC 2516 (PPPoE).",
"[0101] [0101 ]FIG. 15 illustrates a block diagram of the modem specific installation program 235 configuring the DSL Physical Layer, the ATM VPI/VCI parameters, and the TCP/IP parameters on the user system 105 and the DSL modem 130 .",
"The function of the DSL Physical Layer is to identify the method used for establishing physical communications between the CPE and the Digital Subscriber Line Access Multiplexer (DSLAM).",
"The function of the ATM VPI/VCI is to identify the ATM Virtual Circuit implemented.",
"TCP/IP is a network protocol used by many network systems.",
"The illustration is meant to demonstrate, as an example, the manner in which the modem specific installation program 235 configures the DSL Physical Layer, the ATM VPI/VCI settings, and the TCP/IP settings, which are only portions of the configuration process.",
"Appendix A illustrates the complete list of the configuration parameters, and the configuration parameters'",
"function, purpose, and configuration location.",
"[0102] As illustrated in FIG. 15, to configure the DSL Physical Layer, the ATM VPI/VCI, and the TCP/IP, the modem specific installation program 235 retrieves the data parameters, including Head End, ATM VPI, ATM VCI, and TCP/IP data parameters, from the configuration file 400 .",
"The TCP/IP data parameters include the configuration file 400 data fields containing the IP address, subnet mask, default gateway, DNS servers, host name, and domain name.",
"The modem specific installation program 235 stores the data in the CPE or the host computer according to the type of CPE as discussed in more detail below.",
"Further, CPE products within the same CPE type may have different installation and configuration requirements.",
"Thus, the invention relieves the subscriber from necessarily being aware of the type of CPE the subscriber is using or the installation and configuration requirements of the particular CPE product.",
"Further, the subscriber need not know the appropriate values for the Head End, ATM VPI, ATM VCI, and TCP/IP data parameters.",
"[0103] As illustrated in FIG. 15, in a controller-based CPE, the modem specific installation program 235 stores the Head End, ATM VPI, ATM VCI, and TCP/IP data in the CPE and stores the TCP/IP data in the host computer.",
"In a controller-less CPE, the modem specific installation program 235 stores the Head End data in the CPE and stores the Physical Layer's configuration and settings data and the TCP/IP data in the host computer.",
"In a controller-less CPE, the modem specific installation program 235 stores the ATM VPI and ATM VCI data within the device driver settings of the host computer.",
"In a soft CPE, the modem specific installation program 235 stores the Head End data and the TCP/IP data in the host computer and stores the ATM VPI and ATM VCI data within the device driver settings of the host computer.",
"[0104] As another example, as part of the configuration process, the modem specific installation program 235 sets the data encapsulation configuration of the user system 105 and the DSL modem 130 .",
"For example, in a controller-based CPE, one of many possible data encapsulation methods may be used.",
"For example, the foregoing data encapsulation methods may include: RFC 1483 Bridged, RFC 1483 Routed, RFC 2364 (PPPoA), and RFC 2516 (PPPoE), among others.",
"In a RFC 1483 Bridged configuration, the modem specific installation program 235 stores the encapsulation protocol in the CPE and stores the IP Address, Subnet Mask, Default Gateway and DNS Servers data parameters in the host computer.",
"In a RFC 1483 Routed configuration, the modem specific installation program 235 stores the encapsulation protocol, IP Address, Subnet Mask, and Default Gateway data parameters in the CPE and stores the IP Address, Subnet Mask, Default Gateway and DNS Servers data parameters in the host computer.",
"In a RFC 2364 (PPPoA) configuration, the modem specific installation program 235 stores the encapsulation protocol, IP Address, Subnet Mask, and Default Gateway data parameters in the CPE and stores the IP Address, Subnet Mask, Default Gateway, and DNS Servers data parameters in the host computer.",
"In a RFC 2516 (PPPoE) configuration, the modem specific installation program 235 stores the encapsulation protocol in the CPE.",
"Thus, as illustrated in the foregoing examples, the configuration process relieves the subscriber from necessarily being aware of the type of CPE the subscriber is using or the installation and configuration requirements of the particular CPE product.",
"Further, the subscriber need not know the appropriate values for the encapsulation protocol and the related data parameters.",
"[0105] Although the configuration process is disclosed with reference to the foregoing examples, the configuration process is not intended to be limited thereby.",
"Rather, a skilled artisan will recognize from the disclosure herein a wide number of alternative configuration processes.",
"Further, a skilled artisan will recognize that the configuration process may vary for each particular CPE and host computer.",
"[0106] One difference between the dial-up installation process 500 , the preset installation process 600 , and the manual installation process 700 is the manner in which the configuration file 400 is composed and communicated to the user's system.",
"In the dial-up installation process 500 , the configuration file 400 is composed on the service provider system 110 and is transmitted back to the user system 105 for configuration of the DSL modem 130 and the user system 105 .",
"In the preset installation process 600 , the subscriber 120 inserts a data storage device, such as a CD-ROM or a disk, containing the configuration file 400 into the user system 105 .",
"The DSL installation program 135 uses the configuration file 400 residing on the data storage device to configure the DSL modem 130 and the user system 105 .",
"In the manual installation process 700 , the DSL installation program 135 , through the use of the user interface device 205 , prompts the subscriber 120 to enter information required to compose the configuration file 400 .",
"The DSL installation program 135 uses the configuration file 400 to configure the DSL modem 130 and the user system 105 .",
"[0107] [0107 ]FIG. 6 illustrates a process flow diagram of a dial-up installation process 500 according to aspects of one embodiment of the invention.",
"The dial-up installation process 500 starts at a step 505 .",
"At a step 510 , the subscriber 120 executes the DSL installation program 135 .",
"After the subscriber 120 executes the DSL installation program 135 , the subscriber 120 is prompted, at a step 515 , for the user name and password as assigned to the subscriber 120 by the service provider 125 .",
"At the step 515 , the subscriber 120 enters his or her assigned user name and password.",
"At the step 515 , the subscriber 120 is also prompted to select the appropriate configured modem 220 .",
"At the step 515 , the user also selects the configured modem 220 .",
"At a step 520 , the DSL installation program 135 uses the configured modem 220 to connect to the service provider 110 and transmits the user data file 300 to the service provider.",
"Subsequent to transmitting the user data file 300 at the step 520 , the installation program retrieves the configuration file 400 from the service provider system 110 .",
"At a step 525 , the DSL installation program 135 configures the DSL modem 130 and the user system 105 using the configuration file 400 received from the service provider system 110 without further input from the subscriber 120 .",
"At a step 530 , the user is prompted to restart the user system 105 hardware system.",
"Once the user system 105 hardware system is restarted, at a step 535 , the dial-up installation process 500 is complete and the DSL modem 130 and the user system 105 is configured for operation.",
"[0108] [0108 ]FIG. 7 illustrates the pre-set installation process 600 according to aspects of one embodiment of the invention.",
"The pre-set installation process 600 begins at the start state at a step 602 .",
"At a step 605 , the subscriber 120 inserts the disk or CD ROM containing the configuration file 400 in the appropriate data storage and retrieval device 215 on the user system 105 .",
"At a step 610 , the subscriber 120 executes the DSL installation program 135 on the user system 105 .",
"At a step 615 , if the local configuration file field ATM encapsulation protocol value is 1483 or 1577, the process proceeds to a step 620 , and the subscriber 120 is prompted to enter the appropriate TCP/IP information (which is blank in the configuration file).",
"The TCP/IP information includes the appropriate information related to IP address, subnet mask, default gateway, DNS servers, host name, and domain name required to configure the DSL modem 130 and the user system 105 .",
"Once the user enters the foregoing information, the process moves directly to a step 625 .",
"If, at the step 615 , the local configuration file ATM encapsulation protocol value was not 1483 and was not 1577, the process moves to a step 622 .",
"At the step 622 , the user is prompted to enter PPP User Name and Password.",
"Once the subscriber 120 enters the appropriate PPP User Name and Password, the process moves to the step 625 .",
"At the step 625 , the DSL installation program 135 configures the DSL modem 130 and the user system 105 without further input from the user.",
"At a step 630 , the subscriber restarts the user system 105 hardware system.",
"The process then moves to a step 635 .",
"At the step 635 , the installation and configuration of the DSL modem 130 and the user system 105 is complete.",
"[0109] [0109 ]FIG. 8 illustrates the manual installation process 700 according to aspects of an embodiment of the invention.",
"The manual installation process 700 begins at the start state at a step 705 .",
"At a step 710 , the subscriber 120 executes the DSL installation program 135 on the user system 105 .",
"At a step 715 , the user is prompted by the DSL installation program 135 to enter the DSL Head-End type.",
"Once the subscriber 120 enters the DSL Head-End type, the process moves to a step 720 where the DSL installation program 135 prompts the user to select the ATM encapsulation protocol.",
"Once the subscriber 120 enters the appropriate ATM encapsulation protocol, the process moves to a step 725 where the subscriber 120 is prompted to enter the appropriate ATM PVC information.",
"Once the subscriber 120 enters the appropriate ATM PVC information, the process moves to a step 730 .",
"At the step 730 , if the subscriber 120 has selected 1483 or 1577 in the ATM encapsulation protocol information, the process moves to a step 735 .",
"At the step 735 , the subscriber 120 is prompted by the DSL installation program 135 to enter the TCP/IP information of the user system 105 .",
"Once the subscriber 120 enters the appropriate TCP/IP information, the process moves to a step 740 .",
"If at the step 730 , the subscriber 120 did not enter 1483 and did not enter 1577 in the ATM encapsulation protocol information of the user system 105 , the process moves directly to a step 738 .",
"At the step 738 the user is prompted to enter PPP User Name and Password.",
"Once the subscriber 120 enters the appropriate PPP User Name and Password, the process moves directly to the step 740 .",
"At the step 740 , the DSL installation program 135 configures the DSL modem 130 and the user system 105 using the foregoing information entered by the subscriber 120 .",
"Once the DSL modem 130 and the user system 105 is configured, at step 745 , the subscriber 120 is prompted by the DSL installation program 135 to restart the user system 105 hardware.",
"Once the subscriber 120 restarts the user system 105 hardware system the process moves to a step 750 , and the manual installation process 700 is completed.",
"[0110] [0110 ]FIG. 9 illustrates a screenshot of the initial configuration screen 800 according to aspects of one embodiment of the invention.",
"The initial configuration screen 800 prompts the subscriber 120 to select one of three program options.",
"The program options include installing and configuring DSL device, changing DSL modem settings, and uninstall DSL-ON (where DSL-ON is the name of the application implementing the present invention).",
"When the subscriber 120 initially selects one of the three foregoing options, a description of that option is displayed on the initial configuration screen 800 to assist the subscriber 120 in choosing the appropriate option.",
"Upon choosing the desired option, the subscriber 120 may select the next button on the initial configuration screen 800 .",
"The subscriber 120 may also select the “cancel”",
"button to terminate the program.",
"[0111] [0111 ]FIG. 10 illustrates a screenshot of the user authentication screen 850 according to aspects of one embodiment of the invention.",
"The user authentication screen 850 includes three data entry sections: a username entry section 855 , a password entry section 860 , and a modem selection section 865 .",
"Once the user authentication screen 850 is displayed, the subscriber 120 may enter the username assigned to the subscriber 120 by the service provider 125 in the username entry section 855 .",
"The subscriber 120 may enter the password assigned to the subscriber 120 by the service provider 125 in the password entry section 860 .",
"The subscriber 120 may select the configured modem 220 to be used by the DSL installation program 135 in the modem selection section 865 .",
"Instructions are visible on the user authentication screen 850 to assist the subscriber 120 in entering appropriate data.",
"Once the appropriate data is entered by the subscriber 120 , the subscriber 120 can then select the “next”",
"button to continue with the installation.",
"The subscriber 120 can also select the “back”",
"button to go to the initial configuration screen 800 .",
"The subscriber 120 may also select the “cancel”",
"button to terminate the program.",
"[0112] [0112 ]FIG. 11 illustrates a screenshot of the configuration file selection screen 900 according to aspects of one embodiment of the invention.",
"The configuration file selection screen 900 includes a configuration file selection section 905 .",
"The subscriber 120 may use the configuration file selection section 905 to select the configuration file 400 to be used by the DSL installation program 135 .",
"The subscriber 120 may use the “browse”",
"button to view the user system 105 file directory and select the appropriate configuration file 400 .",
"Upon selecting the appropriate configuration file 400 , the subscriber 120 may press the “next”",
"button to continue with the installation.",
"The subscriber 120 may instead select the “back”",
"button to go back to the user authentication screen 850 .",
"The subscriber 120 may also instead select the “cancel”",
"button to terminate the program.",
"[0113] [0113 ]FIG. 12 illustrates a screenshot of the DSL settings entry screen 950 according to aspects of one embodiment of the invention.",
"The DSL settings entry screen 950 includes DSL head end types radio buttons 955 , ATM encapsulation protocol radio buttons 960 , an ATM PVC VPI data entry section 965 , and an ATM PVC VCI data entry section 970 .",
"The subscriber 120 may use the DSL head end types radio buttons 955 to select the appropriate setting for the DSL head end type.",
"For example, the subscriber 120 may choose between the following: [0114] Auto Detect [0115] T1 41312 [0116] G[.",
"].992.1 (G.",
"dmt) [0117] G[.",
"].992.2 (G.",
"lite) [0118] The subscriber 120 may use the ATM encapsulation protocol radio buttons 960 to select the appropriate setting for the ATM encapsulation protocol.",
"For example, the subscriber 120 may choose between the following: [0119] RFC1483 LLC/SNAP Bridged [0120] RFC1483 LLC/SNMP Routed [0121] RFC1483 VCMUX Bridged [0122] RFC1483 VCMUX Routed [0123] RFC1577 [0124] RFC2364 VCMUX (PPPoA) [0125] RFC2516 (PPPoE) [0126] The subscriber 120 may use the ATM PVC VPI data entry section 965 to enter the appropriate value for the ATM PVC VPI setting.",
"The subscriber 120 may use the ATM PVC VCI data entry section 965 to enter the appropriate value for the ATM PVC VCI setting.",
"Once the appropriate data is entered by the subscriber 120 , the subscriber 120 can then select the “next”",
"button to continue with the installation.",
"The subscriber 120 can instead select the “back”",
"button to go to the configuration file selection screen 900 .",
"The subscriber 120 may also select the “cancel”",
"button to terminate the program.",
"[0127] [0127 ]FIG. 13 illustrates a screenshot of the TCP/IP entry screen 1000 according to aspects of one embodiment of the invention.",
"The TCP/IP entry screen 1000 includes an IP address data entry section 1005 , a subnet mask data entry section 1010 , a default gateway data entry section 1015 , a DNS servers data entry section 1020 , a host name data entry section 1025 , and a domain name data entry section 1030 .",
"[0128] Once the TCP/IP entry screen 1000 is displayed, the subscriber 120 may enter the appropriate IP address data for the user system 105 in the IP address data entry section 1005 .",
"The subscriber 120 may use the subnet mask data entry section 1010 to enter the appropriate subnet mask information for the user system 105 .",
"The subscriber 120 may use the default gateway data entry section 1015 to enter the appropriate default gateway data for the user system 105 .",
"The subscriber 120 may use the DNS servers data entry section 1020 to enter the appropriate DNS servers data for the user system 105 .",
"The subscriber 120 may use the host name data entry section 1025 to enter the appropriate host name data for the user system 105 .",
"The subscriber 120 may use the domain name data entry section 1030 to enter the appropriate domain name data for the user system 105 .",
"[0129] Once the appropriate data is entered by the subscriber 120 , the subscriber 120 can then select the “next”",
"button to continue with the installation.",
"The subscriber 120 can instead select the “back”",
"button to go to the DSL settings entry screen 950 .",
"The subscriber 120 may also select the “cancel”",
"button to terminate the program.",
"[0130] [0130 ]FIG. 14 illustrates a screenshot of the PPP information entry screen 1050 according to aspects of one embodiment of the invention.",
"The PPP information entry screen 1050 includes a PPP username data entry section 1055 and a PPP password data entry section 1060 .",
"Once the PPP information entry screen 1050 is displayed, the subscriber 120 may enter the appropriate PPP username data for the user system 105 in the PPP username data entry section 1055 .",
"The subscriber 120 may use the PPP password data entry section 1060 to enter the appropriate PPP password information for the user system 105 .",
"[0131] Once the appropriate data is entered by the subscriber 120 , the subscriber 120 can then select the “next”",
"button to continue with the installation.",
"The subscriber 120 can instead select the “back”",
"button to go to the TCP/IP entry screen 1000 .",
"The subscriber 120 may also select the “cancel”",
"button to terminate the program.",
"[0132] Although described above in connection with a DSL modem, one skilled in the art will appreciate that the systems and methods described herein are readily applicable to other broadband telecommunications devices, such as, for example, cable modems, broadband wireless, and the like.",
"[0133] While the above detailed description has shown, described and identified several novel features of the invention as applied to a preferred embodiment, it will be understood that various omissions, substitutions and changes in the form and details of the described embodiments may be made by those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit of the invention.",
"Accordingly, the scope of the invention should not be limited to the foregoing discussion, but should be defined by the appended claims."
] |
This is a continuation-in-part of two U.S. patent application Ser. Nos. 07/714,381, filed Jun. 11, 1991, now pending and being a continuation-in-part of Ser. No. 07/550,515, filed Jul. 10, 1990, now pending
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an air emission control system for removing volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and other objectionable contaminants from an emitted gas stream which is generated from a water treatment means. Specifically the improved air emission control system of this invention relates to collecting, dehumidifying, bypassing, diluting, monitoring, purifying recycling and reusing the emitted gas stream, and also relates to feeding an inert gas , upon demand, for reducing oxygen content of said emitted gas stream, in turn, for preventing a gas purification contactor from being ignited and/or exploded due to oxidation of carbonaceous substances inside said gas purification contactor. A complete water treatment and gas emission control system is developed by applying the air emission control system to either single stage water treatment or multiple stage water treatment. The present invention which causes no air pollution is a low cost and highly efficient alternative to present site remediation and water treatment technologies.
About 70 percent of potable water in the U.S.A. is supplied by groundwater.
Groundwater contamination, which is a national major concern, is about 71 percent caused by industrial accidents (chemical spills, tank leaks, etc.), 16 percent caused by railroad or truck's chemical accidents, and 13 percent caused by leachates from lagoons or dumpsites.
The primary reasons for treating groundwater are: potable use (39 percent), clean-up of aquifer to prevent spread of contamination (48 percent), and industrial and commercial use (13 percent). In any case, the potentially hazardous VOCs must be removed. Timely clean-up of aquifer to prevent spread of contamination is extremely important because the damage can be beyond repair if the spread of contamination is too wide.
Toxic organic compounds commonly found in groundwater include, but will not be limited to, the following: carbon tetrachloride, chloroform, dibromo chloro propane, DDD, DDE, DDT, CIS-1,2 dichloro ethylene, dichloro pentadiene, diisopropyl ether, tertiary methyl butyl ether, diisopropyl methyl phosphonate, 1,3-dichloro propene, dichloro ethyl ether, dichloro isopropyl ether, benzene, acetone, ethyl acrylate, trichloro trifloro ethane, methylene chloride, phenol, orthochloro phenol, tetrachloro ethylene, trichloro ethylene, 1,1-trichloro ethane, vinylidiene chloride, toluene, xylene, EDB and others.
Conventional water treatment means for groundwater purification is an air stripping tower in which a groundwater containing toxic volatile organic compounds is introduced to the top of said air stripping tower forming a swarm of downward water droplets, while a bulk volume of air is introduced to the bottom of said air stripping tower forming an upward counter current air stream. In other words, water droplets enter the air phase (gas phase) for removing volatile organic compounds from said water droplets by air stripping action. An emitted gas stream containing toxic volatile organic compounds and other volatile contaminants is formed, and exits from the top of said air stripping tower. This emitted gas stream must be properly treated in order to prevent air pollution. An air stripping tower water effluent containing negligible concentration of volatile organic compounds is also formed . Although the efficiency of an air stripping tower for removing volatile organic compounds from a contaminated groundwater is high, disposal of its emitted gas stream containing toxic volatile organic compounds generally is a problem.
Conventional water treatment means for treating wastewater is a biological activated sludge process plant in which an aeration basin having a mixed liquor and suspended microorganisms is used for removing organics from wastewater by biochemical reactions in the presence of air bubbles, microorganisms and nutrients. Due to physical action of air bubbling, an emitted gas stream containing odorous, toxic, volatile organic compounds is also generated over the top of said aeration basin. Air emission control at activated sludge process plants is now an important environmental engineering task.
Recently several dissolved air flotation plants and dispersed air flotation plants are developed. These modern water treatment meanses utilize flotation technology for either water purification or wastewater treatment. Since air bubbles must be generated for removing volatile, surface-active, oily and/or suspended contaminants from a water stream, an emitted gas stream containing these contaminants is also formed over the top of a flotation plant, in turn, causing air pollution.
The method and apparatus of this invention have been developed specifically for air pollution control at air stripping towers, activated sludge process plants, dissolved air flotation plants, dispersed air flotation plants and other similar plants that generate gas bubbles and/or emitted gas streams.
In addition to treating the contaminated ground water, commercial, industrial or municipal wastewaters containing VOCs and other toxic volatile contaminants can all be efficiently treated by the process system of the present invention.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Conventional technologies for groundwater treatment include: air stripping without air emission control, granular activated carbon, chemical oxidation, and biological processes. Air stripping without air emission control is not acceptable in many states.
Granular activated carbon contactor is technically feasible for either water purification or air emission control, but may be economically unfeasible when it is used alone. Lawrence K. Wang et al (U.S. Pat. No. 5,122,165, Jun. 16, 1992) and Orest Hrycyk et al (U.S. Pat. No. 5,122,166, Jun. 16, 1992) have developed two physical-chemical processes for groundwater treatment both processes using a liquid phase granular activated carbon contactor for water purification and using a gas phase granular activated carbon contactor for air emission control. A biological process for groundwater treatment with air emission control has also been developed by Lawrence K. Wang et al (U.S. patent application Ser. No. 550,515, filed Jul. 10, 1990, now pending).
The above three inventions (U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,122,165 and 5,122,166; and U.S. patent application Ser. No. 550,515, filed Jul. 10, 1990) relate to efficient and cost-effective groundwater purification systems aiming at clean-up of aquifer to prevent spread of VOCs contamination in the environment. The purified groundwater can be discharged to a recharging well; while the purified gas is recycled to the system for gas stripping, thus eliminating a gas emission problem. The above three inventions consider the affordability, performance, governmental acceptance, air pollution prevention and simplified operation.
The present invention, however, relates to an improved air emission control system that can be used in conjunction with the above three inventions (U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,122,165 and 5,122,166; and U.S. patent application Ser. No. 550,515, filed Jul. 10, 1990) as well as with other prior art systems described by O'Brien and Fisher (Water Engineering & Management, May 1983), O'Brien and Stenzel (Public Works, December 1984), Stenzel and Gupta (Journal of the Air Pollution Control Association, December 1985), Krofta (U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,874,842, 3,182,799, 4,022,696, 4,184,967, 4,377,485, 4,626,345, and 4,931,175), Ying et al (U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,623,464, and 4,755,296), Copa et al (U.S. Pat. No. 4,810,386), Meidl (U.S. Pat. No. 4,857,198), Irvine et al (U.S. Pat. No. 5,126,050) and Wang et al (U.S. Pat. No. 5,069,783).
The prior art air pollution control systems for removing volatile organic compounds from an emitted gas stream include gas incineration and gas phase granular activated carbon adsorption. Gas incineration is efficient but extremely expensive. Granular activated carbon adsorption is affordable, but frequently causes combustion at carbon beds or even explosion due to interactions of carbon, volatile organic compounds, and oxygen during a rising temperature at carbon beds.
Prior art concerning treatment of a gas effluent from multistep liquid treatment systems has been reviewed. Carnahan et al merely treat a gas effluent in a reactor tank with chlorine, in accordance with their U.S. Pat. No. 4,919,814. Irvine et al suggests such gas effluent being treated by carbon adsorption followed by membrane separation in accordance with their U.S. Pat. No. 5,126,050 (Col. 11, lines 36-41). U.S. Pat. No. 4,894,162, awarded to Cournoyer et al in January 1990, suggests such gas effluent being treated by venturi dilution and collection in a tank where microorganism action purifies the gas. Anderson's U.S. Pat. No. 4,391,704 suggests venturi dilution, treatment with chlorine or ozone and adsorption. Meidl's U.S Pat. No. 4,857,198 suggests initial separate gas stripping followed by recycling of such gas effluent back to the treatment system containing biological solids and powdered adsorbent. A publication by Waltrip et al (Journal WPCF, Vol. 57, No. 10, 1985) suggests primarily treatment of such gas effluent in a scrubber.
The method and apparatus of this invention, however, relates to an air emission control system comprising a gas piping system, at least one gas mover, at least one gas dilution unit, a demister, a monitoring unit, at least one gas bypass unit, a gas purification contactor, a recycling unit, at least one gas sampling unit, and an inert gas source for preventing possible combustion or explosion to be occurred inside the gas purification contactor. Said gas purification contactor of this invention is packed with virgin granular activated carbon, virgin fibrous activated carbon, ion exchange resins, polymeric adsorbent, base treated activated carbon, aluminate treated activated carbon, base treated polymeric adsorbent, aluminate treated polymeric adsorbent, reticulated foam, fiberglass screen, fibrous activated carbon screen, coalescing filter screen, membrane filter media, or combinations thereof for removal of volatile contaminants from a gas effluent emitted from multistep liquid treatment systems.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
In accordance with the present invention, an improved process method for removing volatile contaminants from an emitted gas stream comprises the following steps:
(a) providing an enclosure and a gas piping system to collect said emitted gas stream from a water treatment means,
(b) operating at least one low pressure and low volume gas mover to move said emitted gas stream from said water treatment means through said enclosure and said gas piping system to a dehumidifying means comprising at least a demister pad for removing water droplets from said emitted gas stream,
(c) monitoring the emitted gas stream with a flow meter, a vacuum/pressure gauge, and a humidity meter for measuring gas flow, vacuum/pressure, and humidity, respectively,
(d) sampling the emitted gas stream which has been dehumidified at an inlet sampling port for determining gas quality of said emitted gas stream which has been dehumidified,
(e) providing a first bypass means comprising a first bypass line, and a first gas dilution means for bypassing, diluting and discharging said emitted gas stream which has been dehumidified if air emission standards are met,
(f) diluting oxygen concentration of said emitted gas stream which has been dehumidified with at least one inert gas from an inert gas source, thereby producing an inert gas diluted gas stream, which causes no ignition nor explosion inside a gas purification contactor at downstream,
(g) treating said inert gas diluted gas stream with said gas purification contactor, thereby producing a contactor effluent,
(h) sampling the contactor effluent at an outlet sampling port for determining gas quality of said contactor effluent, in turn, determining the efficiency of said gas purification contactor in removing volatile contaminants,
(i) discharging said contactor effluent to an ambient air environment through a second bypass means comprising a second bypass line and a second gas dilution means, if gas quality of said contactor effluent meets said air emission standards,
(j) recycling said contactor effluent to said water treatment means for treating water, in turn, generating additional emitted gas stream, and
(k) providing a make-up gas to said water treatment means from a make-up gas source for treating water.
Still in accordance with the present invention, an air emission control apparatus for treating an emitted gas stream containing high concentrations of volatile contaminants comprises the following in combination:
(a) an enclosure and a gas piping system for collecting said emitted gas stream from a water treatment means,
(b) a dehumidifying means comprising at least a demister pad directly or indirectly connected to said enclosure and said gas piping system for removing humidity from said emitted gas stream,
(c) at least a gas mover directly or indirectly connected to said enclosure for moving said emitted gas stream,
(d) a monitoring means directly or indirectly connected to said gas mover for monitoring said emitted gas stream, said monitoring means further comprising a flow meter, a vacuum/pressure gauge, and a humidity meter for measuring gas flow rate, vacuum/pressure and humidity, respectively, of said emitted gas stream,
(e) an inlet sampling port directly or indirectly connected to said monitoring means and said gas mover for sampling and analyzing said emitted gas stream,
(f) a first bypass means connected to said gas piping system and said inlet sampling port at upstream of a gas purification contactor for bypassing said emitted gas stream when gas quality of said emitted gas stream meets air emission standards; said first bypass means further comprising a first bypass line, and a first gas dilution means for diluting said emitted gas stream with air before being discharged into an ambient air environment,
(g) an inert gas source connected to said gas piping system at upstream of said gas purification contactor for supplying at least one inert gas to said gas purification contactor, in turn for preventing ignition and explosion inside said gas purification contactor,
(h) said gas purification contactor connected to said gas piping system and said inert gas source for purifying said emitted gas stream, thereby producing a contactor effluent; said gas purification contactor further comprising a purifying agent,
(i) an outlet sampling port connected to said gas piping system at downstream of said gas purification contactor for sampling and analyzing said contactor effluent,
(j) a second bypass means connected to said gas piping system and said gas purification contactor for discharging said contactor effluent when gas quality of said contactor effluent meets air emission standards; said second bypass means further comprising a second bypass line and a second gas dilution means for diluting said contactor effluent with air before being discharged into said ambient air environment,
(k) a recycle pipe line connected to upstream of said water treatment means, but downstream of said second bypass line, said outlet sampling port and said gas purification contactor for recycling said contactor effluent to said water treatment means for reuse in treating water, in turn, producing additional emitted gas stream, and
(l) a make-up gas source directly or indirectly connected to said water treatment means for supplying additional gas upon demand for treating water.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING
FIG. 1 is a flow diagram of the present invention when applied to water treatment.
FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram of the present invention when a single stage system is applied to groundwater purification or wastewater treatment considering gas emission control.
FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram of the present invention when a two stage system is applied to water treatment or wastewater treatment considering gas emission control.
DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
In accordance with the present invention, an air emission control apparatus for treating an emitted gas stream containing high concentrations of volatile contaminants comprises the following in combination shown in FIGS. 1 and 2:
(a) an enclosure 12 and a gas piping system 13 for collecting said emitted gas stream 14 from a water treatment means 3,
(b) a dehumidifying means comprising at least a demister pad 16 directly or indirectly connected to said enclosure 12 and said gas piping system 13 for removing humidity from said emitted gas stream 14,
(c) at least a gas mover 15 directly or indirectly connected to said enclosure 12 for moving said emitted gas stream 14,
(d) a monitoring means 71 (FIG. 1) directly or indirectly connected to said gas mover 15 for monitoring said emitted gas stream 14; said monitoring means 71 further comprising a flow meter 40, a vacuum/pressure gauge 41, and a humidity meter 42 for measuring gas flow rate, vacuum/pressure and humidity, respectively, of said emitted gas stream 14,
(e) an inlet sampling port 17 directly or indirectly connected to said monitoring means 71 and said gas mover 15 for sampling and analyzing said emitted gas stream 14,
(f) a first bypass means 45A directly or indirectly connected to said gas piping system 13 and said inlet sampling port 17 at upstream of a gas purification contactor 18 for bypassing said emitted gas stream 14 when gas quality of said emitted gas stream 14 meets air emission standards; said first bypass means 70A (shown in FIG. 1) further comprising a first bypass line 45A, and a first gas dilution means 46A for diluting said emitted gas stream 14 with air 44A,
(g) an inert gas source 60 connected to said gas piping system 13 before being discharged into an ambient air environment stem 13 at upstream of said gas purification contactor 18 for supplying at least one inert gas to said gas purification contactor 18, in turn for preventing ignition and explosion inside said gas purification contactor 18,
(h) said gas purification contactor 18 connected to said gas piping system 13 and said inert gas source 60 for purifying said emitted gas stream 14, thereby producing a contactor effluent 18E; said gas purification contactor 18 further comprising a purifying agent,
(i) an outlet sampling port 19 connected to said gas piping system 13 at downstream of said gas purification contactor 18 for sampling and analyzing said contactor effluent 18E,
(j) a second bypass means 70B (shown in FIG. 1) connected to said gas piping system 13 and said gas purification contactor 18 for discharging said contactor effluent 18E when gas quality of said contactor effluent 18E meets air emission standards; said second bypass means 70B further comprising a second bypass line 45B and a second gas dilution means 46B for diluting said contactor effluent 18E with air 48 before being discharged into said ambient air environment 44B,
(k) a recycle pipe line 9 directly or indirectly connected to said water treatment means 3 and said second bypass line 45B, said outlet sampling port 19 and said gas purification contactor 18 for recycling said contactor effluent 18E to said water treatment means 3 for reuse in treating water, in turn, producing additional emitted gas stream 14, and
(l) a make-up gas source 50 directly or indirectly connected to said water treatment means 3 for supplying additional gas upon demand for treating water 2.
A complete water treatment and gas emission control system shown in FIG. 2 is presented below as a typical example. An influent pump 1 feeds a contaminated water 2 to an enclosed water treatment means 3, which is seeded/fed with microorganisms 30 and/or chemical 31 and is equipped with a sparger system 4, a vacuum breaker 5, a water inlet 6, a water outlet 7 with trap 8, a gas inlet recycle pipe line 9 to said sparger system 4, a gas outlet 10 to a gas recycle system, a manhole with cover 11, and an enclosure 12.
The water treatment means 3 shown in FIG. 2 is constructed to provide sufficient gas head space for holding an emitted gas stream 14 above water 53 in said water treatment means 3. Gas bubbles generated from the sparger system 4 passing through water 53 inside said water treatment means 3 entrains volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and other volatile contaminants from water phase 53 into gas phase becoming an emitted gas stream 14. The remaining VOCs and other organic contaminants are removed by the microorganisms 30 and/or chemical 31 in the water phase 53 inside said water treatment means 3.
Said chemical 31 include inorganic chemical, organic chemical, powdered activated carbon , peat moss and enzymes. The microorganisms 30 include aerobic, facultative and enzymatic (enzyme producing) microorganisms which may be fed to said water treatment means 3 for aerobic biological treatment. Anaerobic and facultative microorganisms may be seeded to said water treatment means 3 for anaerobic biological treatment when entire liquid treatment and gas emission control system shown in FIG. 2 is full of inert gas(es) from an inert gas source 60.
The emitted gas stream 14 from said water treatment means 3, shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 containing VOCs is sucked by a gas mover 15, and passes through the gas outlet 10 and a dehumidifying means such as a demister pad 16 or equivalent to remove water droplets from said emitted gas stream 14. The preferred gas mover 15 shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 is of low pressure (5 to 15 psi) and low volume (500 to 1500 scfm) type.
The dehumidified gas from said demister pad 16 or an equivalent dehumidifying means is monitored by a monitoring means 71 comprising a flow meter 40, a vacuum/pressure gauge 41, and is sampled at an inlet sampling port 17. Said dehumidified gas from said demister pad 16 or said equivalent dehumidifying means can be either bypassed through a bypass line 45A, or purified by a gas purification contactor 18 specifically designed for gas emission control, thereby producing a contactor effluent 18E., as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2. The contactor effluent 18E is sampled at an outlet sampling port 19, and is either partially or totally bypassed through a second bypass line 45B, or recycled to the water treatment means 3 via the gas inlet recycle pipe 9 and the sparger system 4 for continuous water purification for a plurality of times, as shown in FIG. 2.
The heart of this invention is the inert gas source 60 (FIGS. 1 and 2) which supplies at least one inert gas upon demand to said gas purification contactor 18, in order to dilute oxygen concentration in said emitted gas stream 14.
In case said purifying agent in said gas purification contactor 18 is granular activated carbon or fibrous activated carbon, the temperature of said granular or fibrous activated carbon gradually increase due to adsorption of volatile organic compounds onto said granular or fibrous activated carbon. At an elevated temperature with sufficient oxygen content, the volatile organic compounds and said granular or fibrous activated carbon may be ignited causing explosion and equipment damage. The inert gas source 60 of this invention is the solution to this ignition and explosion problem. After the oxygen content in said emitted gas stream 14 is significantly diluted by said inert gas, ignition or explosion at said gas purification contactor 18 can then be avoided.
The inert gas source 60 of this invention is selected from the group comprising nitrogen, helium, carbon dioxide, or combination thereof, which are commercially available in liquid cylinder form.
Alternatively the inert gas source 60 can be either a pressure swing adsorption (PSA) system or a vacuum swing adsorption (VSA) system. The former (PSA) applies pressure, while the latter (VSA) applies vacuum for moving an air stream containing oxygen, nitrogen, carbon dioxide, etc. Pelletized adsorbents, call molecular sieves, show a preference, at a given temperature and pressure, for nitrogen, carbon dioxide and hydrocarbons in air. When operating a PSA system, the pelletized adsorbent is contained in multiple adsorption vessels through which the influent pressurized air flows. Nitrogen, carbon dioxide and trace amount of hydrocarbons are adsorbed by the pelletized adsorbent. The non adsorbed gas, oxygen, passes through until the pelletized adsorbent becomes saturated. The air flow is then switched to the next vessel and the pelletized adsorbent is regenerated by depressurization, releasing the trapped nitrogen and other trace gases. Each of the vessels is pressurized and depressurized sequentially to produce a continuous stream of inert nitrogen and a continuous steam of oxygen.
The oxygen produced from said PSA system is a byproduct which can also be used in said water treatment means 3 if aerobic biological treatment is intended; while the nitrogen produced from the same PSA system is to be used as the inert gas source 60 of this invention. The inert gas source 60 supplies inert gas for preventing said gas purification contactor 18 from being ignited or exploded, and also for operating said water treatment means 3 for anaerobic biological treatment, upon demand.
The monitoring means comprises a flow meter 40, a vacuum/pressure gauge 41 and a humidity meter 42 (or combinations thereof) for measuring gas flow rate, vacuum/pressure and humidity, respectively, of said emitted gas stream 14, as shown in FIG. 2.
The first bypass line 45A comprises a first gas dilution means 46A for diluting the emitted gas stream 16E (FIG. 1) with air 48, and discharging it 16E to an ambient air environment 44A, under the condition that governmental air emission standards can be met. If said air emission standards can not be met, said emitted gas stream 16E (FIG. 1) should not be bypassed, instead, should be forwarded to said gas purification contactor 18 for purification.
The second bypass line 45B comprises a second gas dilution means 46B for diluting the contactor effluent 18E with air 48, and discharging it 18E with air 48, and discharging it 18E to the ambient air environment 44B, under the condition that governmental air emission standards can be met. Said outlet sampling port 19 is for gas quality control and assurance. Said second bypass line 45B is required if recirculation of the contactor effluent 18E to the water treatment means 3 through said recycle pipe line 9 is not intended or interrupted.
A make-up gas source 50 connected to said water treatment means 3 is for supplying additional gas upon demand. As a typical example, a make-up gas source 50 can be either air or oxygen if said water treatment means 3 is an aerobic biological treatment plant in which microorganisms require oxygen for their biochemical reactions.
In case that said water treatment means 3 is an air stripping unit, a dissolved gas flotation plant, a dispersed gas flotation plant, a foam separation plant, a froth flotation plant, a non-biological reactor, an anaerobic biological plant, or a physical-chemical plant, each involving generation of gas bubbles and an emitted gas stream, entire water treatment means 3 and entire gas emission control apparatus shown in FIG. 1 can be filled with one or more inert gases. The bubbles in said water treatment means 3 are inert gas bubbles, such as nitrogen, helium, carbon dioxide, or combinations of. The emitted gas stream 14 as well as the contactor effluent 18E contain mainly inert gas. Besides, the contactor effluent 18E is continuously recycled to said water treatment means 3 for generation of more inert gas bubbles. Under this process condition, both said first bypass line 45A and said second bypass line 45B can be idled or disconnected. Only small volume of inert gas is required to be the make-up gas source 50.
The purified water 53 in said water treatment means 3 shown in FIG. 2 flows through the water outlet 7 and a trap 8 and is further treated by a clarifier 20, a filter 21 and a disinfection unit 22. The plant effluent 23 is further treated or discharged to the environment. The sludge from said clarifier 20 is either partially recycled via a sludge recycle line 25 to the water treatment means 3, or partially/totally discharged as waste sludges 24.
Entire said water treatment means 3 and its gas emission control system (FIG. 1) comprising said enclosure 12, gas piping system 13, dehumidifying means such as demister pad 16, gas mover 15, gas purification contactor 18, inlet sampling port 17, outlet sampling port 19, bypass means 70A and 70B (FIG. 1), and monitoring means 71, sampling ports 17 and 19, inert gas source 60 and recycle line 9 are completely enclosed, thus eliminating gas emissions or secondary air pollution.
The present invention is specific for removal of volatile contaminants including volatile organic compounds (VOCs). VOCs are removed by gas purification contactor 18 in the gas phase rather than water phase. The remaining organic compounds are removed by the microorganisms 30 and/or chemical 31 in said water treatment means 3. Removal of VOCs by conventional granular activated carbon (GAC) filter in water phase is hindered by the other organic and inorganic compounds competing for adsorption sites on the GAC. Consequently, more VOCs are removed by the present invention's gas purification contactor 18 in the gas phase than that removed by conventional GAC filter in the water phase. The gas purification contactor 18 of this invention contains a purifying agent; while the filter means 21 of this invention contains a filter media. Both said purifying agent and said filter media are selected from a group comprising granular activated carbon, polymeric adsorbent, activated alumina, ion exchange resin, manganese dioxide, magnesium oxide, fibrous activated carbon, membrane filter media, fiberglass filter media, coalescing filter media, or combinations thereof. All filter media to be adopted by this invention are insoluble, and further comprise sand, coal, diatomaceous earth, calcium carbonate, or combinations thereof. Said purifying agent further comprise calcium chloride, sodium carbonate, lime, potassium carbonate, or combinations thereof, for further removing humidity and/or adjusting pH inside said gas purification contactor 18.
The size of said water treatment means 3 shown in FIG. 2 is altered to adjust the hydraulic residence time to conform to different influent flow rates.
In normal operation, the water treatment means 3 shown in FIG. 2 is under slightly negative pressure and is provided sufficient gas head space above the level of water 53 in said water treatment means 3.
The sparger system 4 is located at bottom of said water treatment means 3, shown in FIG. 2. The low pressure and low volume gas mover 15 provides energy for gas recirculation and gas bubbling through water phase containing influent water 2, chemical 31 and/or microorganisms 30. The gas bubbles passing through said water phase 13 and entraining (VOCs) from water phase 53 into gas phase becoming said emitted gas stream 14 inside said water treatment means 3, shown in FIG. 2 is a physical reaction, termed gas stripping. The remaining VOCs and other organic contaminants in said water phase 53 are removed by biochemical reactions of microorganisms 30 and/or by physical chemical reactions of chemical 31.
The emitted gas stream 14 containing VOCs exits said water treatment means 3 (See FIG. 2) and passes through a dehumidifying means such as a demister pad 16 to remove water droplets before entering said gas purification contactor 18 for adsorbing VOCs onto said purifying agent from said emitted gas stream 14 in high efficiency.
The trap 8 of said water outlet 7 prevents external air intrusion into said water treatment means 3, shown in FIG. 2. Partial recycling of the sludge produced from said clarifier 20 is for maintaining a constant population of microorganisms 30 in said water treatment means 3 under the condition that the water treatment means is operated for either aerobic biological treatment, or anaerobic biological treatment, in the presence of appropriate microorganisms and dissolved gases in water phase 53. The partially discharged waste sludges 24 include excess microorganisms and/or spent chemical flocs.
The inlet sampling port 17 and the outlet sampling port 19 at upstream and downstream, respectively, of the gas purification contactor 18 determine the present invention's efficiency for VOCs reduction.
When the purifying agent in said gas purification contactor 18 is exhausted, the spent purifying agent is replaced with virgin purifying agent, chemically treated purifying agent, and/or regenerated purifying agent.
The microorganisms 30 inside said water treatment means 3 are mixed with the chemical 31, upon demand, for improvement of water or wastewater treatment efficiency. Alternatively said chemical 31 can be fed to said water treatment means 3 without said microorganisms 30
The present invention is applied to groundwater decontamination as well as treatment of industrial, commercial or municipal wastewater, in which the water treatment means 3 generates said emitted gas stream 14.
The gas emission control apparatus (comprising all process units shown in FIG. 1 excluding said water treatment means 3) of the present invention is easily adjusted for treating said emitted gas stream 14 from various water treatment means 3 including conventional air stripping towers similar to that were described in the literature (R. P. O'Brien and J. L. Fisher, Water/Engineering & Management, May 1983; R. P. O'Brien and M. H. Stenzel, Public Works, December 1984; M. H. Stenzel and U. S. Gupta, Journal of the Air Pollution Control Association, December 1985) and in the prior art, such as the U.S. Patents cited in this invention.
A complete water treatment and gas emission control apparatus (comprising all process units shown in FIG. 1 including said water treatment means 3) is easily mobilized and demobilized because of its modular construction and its feasibility of being skid mounted, truck mounted, train mounted, boat mounted, or combinations thereof, for enhancing mobility.
For specific gas emission control, the purifying agent in said gas purification contactor 18 is totally or partially packed with said purifying agent, such as granular activated carbon (GAC), activated alumina, ion exchange resin, polymeric adsorbent, manganese oxide, sodium carbonate, membrane media, lime, fibrous activated carbon, calcium chloride, reticulated foam, lime, calcium chloride, calcite, dolomite, fiberglass media, coalescing filter media, membrane filter media, potassium carbonate, calcium carbonate, or combinations thereof, and can be chemically regenerated or treated by base (sodium hydroxide, potassium hydroxide, calcium hydroxide, or combinations thereof), aluminate (sodium aluminate, potassium aluminate, or both), chromium compound (potassium dichromate, sodium dichromate, or both), or manganese compound (potassium permanganate, sodium permanganate, or both).
The clarifier 20 of the present invention shown in FIG. 2 is either a sedimentation clarifier or a flotation clarifier. The filter 21 of the present invention shown in FIG. 2 is a single media filter, a multi-media filter, a diatomaceous earth (DE) filter, a cartridge filter, a granular activated carbon (GAC) filter, a micro filter, an ultra filter, or combinations thereof. The disinfection unit 22 of the present invention also shown in FIG. 2 is ultraviolet (UV) using UV light, chlorination using chlorine, ozonation using ozone, or combinations thereof.
While the invention has been described and illustrated with reference to a specific embodiment thereof, it will be understood that the modification and variations thereof will occur to those skilled in the art, and that the following examples and the appended claims are intended to cover such modifications and variations which are within the scope and spirit of this invention.
For example, the flow meter 40, vacuum/pressure gauge 41, humidity meter 42, or combinations thereof, shown in FIG. 1, can be idled or disconnected.
Alternatively, a foam collector-breaker 51, shown in FIG. 1, can be added to the gas emission control system of this invention for collecting and breaking surface active foam present in said emitted gas stream 14. Said foam collector-breaker 51 is to be connected directly or indirectly to said enclosure 12.
Alternatively, a scrubber means 52 can be added to the gas emission control system (FIG. 1) of this invention for removing volatile inorganic compounds (VICs) present in said emitted gas stream 14. Said scrubber means 52 is a wet scrubber, a dry scrubber, or both, directly or indirectly connected to said dehumidifying means comprising said demister pad 16. For the preferred embodiments of this invention, a wet scrubber 52 shall be installed at upstream of said demister pad 16; while a dry scrubber 52 shall be installed at downstream of said demister pad 16, as shown in FIG. 1.
Still the inert gas source 60 can be installed at either downstream or upstream of said gas mover 15, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2. If said inert gas source 60 is located at downstream or pressure side of said gas mover 15, a venturi feeder 60V is needed for feeding inert gas into said gas piping system 13. If said inert gas source 60 is located at upstream or suction side of said gas mover 15, a venturi feeder 60V is not needed.
Still alternatively the make-up gas source 50 can be directly connected to said water treatment means 3, or connected at upstream or suction side of said gas mover 15, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2.
The complete water treatment and gas emission control system of this invention shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 is a single stage system, and can be operated under various environmental or process conditions. Specifically the water phase 53 inside said water treatment means 3 shown in FIG. 2, can have, at least, the following eight process conditions for a single stage water treatment system:
(a) Condition A: aerobic condition, without chemical 31, without microorganisms 30;
(b) Condition B: aerobic condition, with chemical 31, without microorganisms 30;
(c) Condition C: aerobic condition, without chemical 31, with microorganisms 30;
(d) Condition D: aerobic condition, with chemical 31, with microorganisms 30;
(e) Condition E anaerobic condition, without chemical 31, without microorganisms 30;
(f) Condition F: anaerobic condition, with chemical 31, without microorganisms 30;
(g) Condition G: anaerobic condition, without chemical 31, with microorganisms 30; and
(h) Condition H: anaerobic condition, with chemical 31, with microorganisms 30.
A multiple stage water treatment system having multiple sets of process units shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 (except said filter 21 and said disinfection unit 22) is also covered by this invention. Various combinations of the above eight process conditions (Conditions A to H) are available for said multiple stage water treatment. FIG. 3 shows a two stage water treatment system of this invention having two sets of process units (i.e. The process units shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 are duplicated) except said filter 21 and said disinfection unit 22. The water phase 53 inside said two water treatment meanses 3 shown in FIG. 3 for a two-stage system can have many operating environmental and process conditions, namely various combinations of the eight Conditions A, B, C, D, E, F, G, and H identified in the last paragraph. For example, the combination of Conditions C and G for the first and the second, respectively, of the water treatment means 3 shown in FIG. 3 is an efficient aerobic/anoxic two-stage biological treatment system suitable for treating water contaminated by industrial pollutants.
The combination of Conditions B and C (or D) identified above is an efficient two-stage physicochemical & biological treatment system, which is also represented by FIG. 3.
The complete water treatment and gas emission control system of this invention can be expanded to more than two stages.
A three-stage system of this invention (not shown), for instance, has been proven to be an efficient biological treatment system for carbonaceous oxidation in the first stage (Condition C or D), nitrification in the second stage (Condition C or D), and denitrification in the third stage (Condition G or H). The theory, principles, and chemical reactions of carbonaceous oxidation, nitrification, and denitrification are reported in the literature by Lawrence K. Wang et al (Journal of Environmental Science, Volume 21, pages 23-28, December 1978).
The gas emission control system of this invention (all process units shown in FIG. 1 except said water treatment means 3) is always needed in the first stage, but may or may not be needed in the later stages.
The sparger system 4 (FIGS. 2 and 3) of this invention is a porous tube diffusion means, a porous plate diffusion means, nozzle diffusion means, an induced gas diffusion means, a diaphragm diffusion means, a jet gas diffusion means, a mechanical diffusion means, or combinations thereof.
Common reactive purifying agent packed inside said gas purification contactor 18 (FIGS. 1, 2, and 3) includes, at least, virgin granular activated carbon, virgin fibrous activated carbon, virgin polymeric adsorbent, base treated granular activated carbon, base treated fibrous activated carbon, base treated polymeric adsorbent, aluminate treated granular activated carbon, aluminate treated fibrous activated carbon, aluminate treated polymeric adsorbent, or combinations thereof. All base treated said purifying agent are impregnated with base; while all aluminate treated said purifying agent are impregnated with aluminate. Said base includes sodium hydroxide, potassium hydroxide, calcium hydroxide, or combinations thereof. Said aluminate includes sodium aluminate, potassium aluminate, or both. Both base treated purifying agent and the aluminate treated purifying agent of this invention are used for removing odorous contaminants from an emitted gas stream 14. Special chromium impregnated granular activated carbon, chromium impregnated fibrous activated carbon, chromium impregnated polymeric adsorbent, manganese impregnated granular activated carbon, manganese impregnated fibrous activated carbon, manganese impregnated polymeric adsorbent or combinations thereof, can be used as the purifying agent in the gas purification contactor 18 of this invention for removing formaldehyde gas and hydrocarbon gases from said emitted gas stream 14.
Said chromium comprises potassium dichromate, sodium dichromate, or both. Said manganese comprises potassium permanganate, sodium permanganate, or both.
The water treatment step of said water treatment means 3 comprises a continuous process steps described previously, and shown in FIG. 2, and a batch process steps described in the following paragraph.
The batch process steps for operating the water treatment means 3 of this invention comprise the following steps in sequence:
(a) pumping and discharging the contaminated water 2 into a water treatment means 3 until said water treatment means 3 reaches its full capacity, which is termed a Filling Phase; said Filling Phase further comprising a Static Filling Phase, a Mixed Filling Phase, a Reacting Filling Phase, or combinations thereof, depending on simultaneously feeding or subsequently feeding gas bubbles, microorganisms 30 and/or chemical 31 into said water treatment means 3; Said Static Filling Phase further representing a specific operating time period during which gas bubbles, microorganisms 30 and/or chemical 31 are not simultaneously fed to said water treatment means 3 together with said contaminated water 2; Said Mixed Filling Phase further representing a specific operating time period during which microorganisms 30 and/or chemical 31 are simultaneously fed to said water treatment means together with said contaminated water under a mixing condition; Said Reacting Filling Phase further representing a specific operating time period during which gas bubbles, microorganisms 30 and/or chemical 31 are fed into said water treatment means 3 together with said contaminated water 2 under another mixing condition,
(b) stopping to feed microorganisms 30 and/or chemical 31 but still feeding gas bubbles into said water treatment means 3 for removing contaminants from said contaminated water 2 and producing a water effluent and an emitted gas stream 14; simultaneously collecting, transporting, dehumidifying, monitoring, and purifying the emitted gas stream 14 and producing a gaseous contactor effluent 18E; recycling said contactor effluent 18E to said water treatment means 3 for continuously generating gas bubbles for reuse; Step b being a Reacting Phase,
(c) stopping to feed gas bubbles to said water treatment means 3 allowing insoluble sludge in the water effluent to separate by density difference without turbulence, thereby producing a clarified effluent and a separated sludge; said density difference being either sedimentation clarification or flotation clarification; Step c being a Separating Phase,
(d) discharging the clarified effluent from said water treatment means 3; filtering, disinfecting, discharging, or combinations thereof, said clarified effluent; Step d being Effluent Discharging Phase,
(e) totally or partially discharging the separated sludge from said water treatment means 3; Step e being Sludge Wasting Phase, (f) allowing said water treatment means 3 to remain idle until said water treatment means 3 is to be filled again; Step f being an Idling Phase which is used when there is more than one said water treatment means 3, and the lowest idling time being zero, and
(g) repeating the batch process cycle from steps a to f for a plurality of times for treating said contaminated water 2 while simultaneously collecting, transporting, monitoring, dehumidifying purifying recycling and reusing the emitted gas stream 14.
Said sedimentation clarification is a process method by which insoluble suspended solids and settleable solids settle to the bottom of said water treatment means 3 by gravity because the densities of said insoluble suspended solids and said settleable solids are higher than that of water. Said flotation clarification is a process method by which said insoluble suspended solids and said settleable solids float to a water surface inside said water treatment means 3 by rising gas bubbles with diameter smaller than 80 microns because the combined density of said fine gas bubbles, said insoluble suspended solids and said settleable solids are lower than that of water. Fine gas bubbles are produced by a gas dissolving and bubble generating means described by the U. S. Pat. Nos. 5,049,320 (Sep. 17, 1991) and 5,167,806 (Dec. 1, 1992) of Lawrence K. Wang et al, or commercially available means for producing fine gas bubbles. | The present invention relates to an air emission control system for removing volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and other objectionable contaminants from an emitted gas stream which is generated from a water treatment means. Specifically the improved air emission control system of this invention relates to collecting, dehumidifying, bypassing, diluting, monitoring, purifying recycling and reusing the emitted gas stream, and also relates to feeding an inert gas, upon demand, for reducing oxygen content of said emitted gas stream, in turn, for preventing a gas purification contactor from being ignited and/or exploded due to oxidation of carbonaceous substances inside said gas purification contactor. A complete water treatment and gas emission control system is developed by applying the air emission control system to either single stage water treatment or multiple stage water treatment. The present invention which causes no air pollution is a low cost and highly efficient alternative to present site remediation and water treatment technologies. | Summarize the key points of the given document. | [
"This is a continuation-in-part of two U.S. patent application Ser.",
"Nos. 07/714,381, filed Jun. 11, 1991, now pending and being a continuation-in-part of Ser.",
"No. 07/550,515, filed Jul. 10, 1990, now pending BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1.",
"Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an air emission control system for removing volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and other objectionable contaminants from an emitted gas stream which is generated from a water treatment means.",
"Specifically the improved air emission control system of this invention relates to collecting, dehumidifying, bypassing, diluting, monitoring, purifying recycling and reusing the emitted gas stream, and also relates to feeding an inert gas , upon demand, for reducing oxygen content of said emitted gas stream, in turn, for preventing a gas purification contactor from being ignited and/or exploded due to oxidation of carbonaceous substances inside said gas purification contactor.",
"A complete water treatment and gas emission control system is developed by applying the air emission control system to either single stage water treatment or multiple stage water treatment.",
"The present invention which causes no air pollution is a low cost and highly efficient alternative to present site remediation and water treatment technologies.",
"About 70 percent of potable water in the U.S.A. is supplied by groundwater.",
"Groundwater contamination, which is a national major concern, is about 71 percent caused by industrial accidents (chemical spills, tank leaks, etc.), 16 percent caused by railroad or truck's chemical accidents, and 13 percent caused by leachates from lagoons or dumpsites.",
"The primary reasons for treating groundwater are: potable use (39 percent), clean-up of aquifer to prevent spread of contamination (48 percent), and industrial and commercial use (13 percent).",
"In any case, the potentially hazardous VOCs must be removed.",
"Timely clean-up of aquifer to prevent spread of contamination is extremely important because the damage can be beyond repair if the spread of contamination is too wide.",
"Toxic organic compounds commonly found in groundwater include, but will not be limited to, the following: carbon tetrachloride, chloroform, dibromo chloro propane, DDD, DDE, DDT, CIS-1,2 dichloro ethylene, dichloro pentadiene, diisopropyl ether, tertiary methyl butyl ether, diisopropyl methyl phosphonate, 1,3-dichloro propene, dichloro ethyl ether, dichloro isopropyl ether, benzene, acetone, ethyl acrylate, trichloro trifloro ethane, methylene chloride, phenol, orthochloro phenol, tetrachloro ethylene, trichloro ethylene, 1,1-trichloro ethane, vinylidiene chloride, toluene, xylene, EDB and others.",
"Conventional water treatment means for groundwater purification is an air stripping tower in which a groundwater containing toxic volatile organic compounds is introduced to the top of said air stripping tower forming a swarm of downward water droplets, while a bulk volume of air is introduced to the bottom of said air stripping tower forming an upward counter current air stream.",
"In other words, water droplets enter the air phase (gas phase) for removing volatile organic compounds from said water droplets by air stripping action.",
"An emitted gas stream containing toxic volatile organic compounds and other volatile contaminants is formed, and exits from the top of said air stripping tower.",
"This emitted gas stream must be properly treated in order to prevent air pollution.",
"An air stripping tower water effluent containing negligible concentration of volatile organic compounds is also formed .",
"Although the efficiency of an air stripping tower for removing volatile organic compounds from a contaminated groundwater is high, disposal of its emitted gas stream containing toxic volatile organic compounds generally is a problem.",
"Conventional water treatment means for treating wastewater is a biological activated sludge process plant in which an aeration basin having a mixed liquor and suspended microorganisms is used for removing organics from wastewater by biochemical reactions in the presence of air bubbles, microorganisms and nutrients.",
"Due to physical action of air bubbling, an emitted gas stream containing odorous, toxic, volatile organic compounds is also generated over the top of said aeration basin.",
"Air emission control at activated sludge process plants is now an important environmental engineering task.",
"Recently several dissolved air flotation plants and dispersed air flotation plants are developed.",
"These modern water treatment meanses utilize flotation technology for either water purification or wastewater treatment.",
"Since air bubbles must be generated for removing volatile, surface-active, oily and/or suspended contaminants from a water stream, an emitted gas stream containing these contaminants is also formed over the top of a flotation plant, in turn, causing air pollution.",
"The method and apparatus of this invention have been developed specifically for air pollution control at air stripping towers, activated sludge process plants, dissolved air flotation plants, dispersed air flotation plants and other similar plants that generate gas bubbles and/or emitted gas streams.",
"In addition to treating the contaminated ground water, commercial, industrial or municipal wastewaters containing VOCs and other toxic volatile contaminants can all be efficiently treated by the process system of the present invention.",
"Description of the Prior Art Conventional technologies for groundwater treatment include: air stripping without air emission control, granular activated carbon, chemical oxidation, and biological processes.",
"Air stripping without air emission control is not acceptable in many states.",
"Granular activated carbon contactor is technically feasible for either water purification or air emission control, but may be economically unfeasible when it is used alone.",
"Lawrence K. Wang et al (U.S. Pat. No. 5,122,165, Jun. 16, 1992) and Orest Hrycyk et al (U.S. Pat. No. 5,122,166, Jun. 16, 1992) have developed two physical-chemical processes for groundwater treatment both processes using a liquid phase granular activated carbon contactor for water purification and using a gas phase granular activated carbon contactor for air emission control.",
"A biological process for groundwater treatment with air emission control has also been developed by Lawrence K. Wang et al (U.S. patent application Ser.",
"No. 550,515, filed Jul. 10, 1990, now pending).",
"The above three inventions (U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,122,165 and 5,122,166;",
"and U.S. patent application Ser.",
"No. 550,515, filed Jul. 10, 1990) relate to efficient and cost-effective groundwater purification systems aiming at clean-up of aquifer to prevent spread of VOCs contamination in the environment.",
"The purified groundwater can be discharged to a recharging well;",
"while the purified gas is recycled to the system for gas stripping, thus eliminating a gas emission problem.",
"The above three inventions consider the affordability, performance, governmental acceptance, air pollution prevention and simplified operation.",
"The present invention, however, relates to an improved air emission control system that can be used in conjunction with the above three inventions (U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,122,165 and 5,122,166;",
"and U.S. patent application Ser.",
"No. 550,515, filed Jul. 10, 1990) as well as with other prior art systems described by O'Brien and Fisher (Water Engineering &",
"Management, May 1983), O'Brien and Stenzel (Public Works, December 1984), Stenzel and Gupta (Journal of the Air Pollution Control Association, December 1985), Krofta (U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,874,842, 3,182,799, 4,022,696, 4,184,967, 4,377,485, 4,626,345, and 4,931,175), Ying et al (U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,623,464, and 4,755,296), Copa et al (U.S. Pat. No. 4,810,386), Meidl (U.S. Pat. No. 4,857,198), Irvine et al (U.S. Pat. No. 5,126,050) and Wang et al (U.S. Pat. No. 5,069,783).",
"The prior art air pollution control systems for removing volatile organic compounds from an emitted gas stream include gas incineration and gas phase granular activated carbon adsorption.",
"Gas incineration is efficient but extremely expensive.",
"Granular activated carbon adsorption is affordable, but frequently causes combustion at carbon beds or even explosion due to interactions of carbon, volatile organic compounds, and oxygen during a rising temperature at carbon beds.",
"Prior art concerning treatment of a gas effluent from multistep liquid treatment systems has been reviewed.",
"Carnahan et al merely treat a gas effluent in a reactor tank with chlorine, in accordance with their U.S. Pat. No. 4,919,814.",
"Irvine et al suggests such gas effluent being treated by carbon adsorption followed by membrane separation in accordance with their U.S. Pat. No. 5,126,050 (Col.",
"11, lines 36-41).",
"U.S. Pat. No. 4,894,162, awarded to Cournoyer et al in January 1990, suggests such gas effluent being treated by venturi dilution and collection in a tank where microorganism action purifies the gas.",
"Anderson's U.S. Pat. No. 4,391,704 suggests venturi dilution, treatment with chlorine or ozone and adsorption.",
"Meidl's U.S Pat. No. 4,857,198 suggests initial separate gas stripping followed by recycling of such gas effluent back to the treatment system containing biological solids and powdered adsorbent.",
"A publication by Waltrip et al (Journal WPCF, Vol. 57, No. 10, 1985) suggests primarily treatment of such gas effluent in a scrubber.",
"The method and apparatus of this invention, however, relates to an air emission control system comprising a gas piping system, at least one gas mover, at least one gas dilution unit, a demister, a monitoring unit, at least one gas bypass unit, a gas purification contactor, a recycling unit, at least one gas sampling unit, and an inert gas source for preventing possible combustion or explosion to be occurred inside the gas purification contactor.",
"Said gas purification contactor of this invention is packed with virgin granular activated carbon, virgin fibrous activated carbon, ion exchange resins, polymeric adsorbent, base treated activated carbon, aluminate treated activated carbon, base treated polymeric adsorbent, aluminate treated polymeric adsorbent, reticulated foam, fiberglass screen, fibrous activated carbon screen, coalescing filter screen, membrane filter media, or combinations thereof for removal of volatile contaminants from a gas effluent emitted from multistep liquid treatment systems.",
"SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In accordance with the present invention, an improved process method for removing volatile contaminants from an emitted gas stream comprises the following steps: (a) providing an enclosure and a gas piping system to collect said emitted gas stream from a water treatment means, (b) operating at least one low pressure and low volume gas mover to move said emitted gas stream from said water treatment means through said enclosure and said gas piping system to a dehumidifying means comprising at least a demister pad for removing water droplets from said emitted gas stream, (c) monitoring the emitted gas stream with a flow meter, a vacuum/pressure gauge, and a humidity meter for measuring gas flow, vacuum/pressure, and humidity, respectively, (d) sampling the emitted gas stream which has been dehumidified at an inlet sampling port for determining gas quality of said emitted gas stream which has been dehumidified, (e) providing a first bypass means comprising a first bypass line, and a first gas dilution means for bypassing, diluting and discharging said emitted gas stream which has been dehumidified if air emission standards are met, (f) diluting oxygen concentration of said emitted gas stream which has been dehumidified with at least one inert gas from an inert gas source, thereby producing an inert gas diluted gas stream, which causes no ignition nor explosion inside a gas purification contactor at downstream, (g) treating said inert gas diluted gas stream with said gas purification contactor, thereby producing a contactor effluent, (h) sampling the contactor effluent at an outlet sampling port for determining gas quality of said contactor effluent, in turn, determining the efficiency of said gas purification contactor in removing volatile contaminants, (i) discharging said contactor effluent to an ambient air environment through a second bypass means comprising a second bypass line and a second gas dilution means, if gas quality of said contactor effluent meets said air emission standards, (j) recycling said contactor effluent to said water treatment means for treating water, in turn, generating additional emitted gas stream, and (k) providing a make-up gas to said water treatment means from a make-up gas source for treating water.",
"Still in accordance with the present invention, an air emission control apparatus for treating an emitted gas stream containing high concentrations of volatile contaminants comprises the following in combination: (a) an enclosure and a gas piping system for collecting said emitted gas stream from a water treatment means, (b) a dehumidifying means comprising at least a demister pad directly or indirectly connected to said enclosure and said gas piping system for removing humidity from said emitted gas stream, (c) at least a gas mover directly or indirectly connected to said enclosure for moving said emitted gas stream, (d) a monitoring means directly or indirectly connected to said gas mover for monitoring said emitted gas stream, said monitoring means further comprising a flow meter, a vacuum/pressure gauge, and a humidity meter for measuring gas flow rate, vacuum/pressure and humidity, respectively, of said emitted gas stream, (e) an inlet sampling port directly or indirectly connected to said monitoring means and said gas mover for sampling and analyzing said emitted gas stream, (f) a first bypass means connected to said gas piping system and said inlet sampling port at upstream of a gas purification contactor for bypassing said emitted gas stream when gas quality of said emitted gas stream meets air emission standards;",
"said first bypass means further comprising a first bypass line, and a first gas dilution means for diluting said emitted gas stream with air before being discharged into an ambient air environment, (g) an inert gas source connected to said gas piping system at upstream of said gas purification contactor for supplying at least one inert gas to said gas purification contactor, in turn for preventing ignition and explosion inside said gas purification contactor, (h) said gas purification contactor connected to said gas piping system and said inert gas source for purifying said emitted gas stream, thereby producing a contactor effluent;",
"said gas purification contactor further comprising a purifying agent, (i) an outlet sampling port connected to said gas piping system at downstream of said gas purification contactor for sampling and analyzing said contactor effluent, (j) a second bypass means connected to said gas piping system and said gas purification contactor for discharging said contactor effluent when gas quality of said contactor effluent meets air emission standards;",
"said second bypass means further comprising a second bypass line and a second gas dilution means for diluting said contactor effluent with air before being discharged into said ambient air environment, (k) a recycle pipe line connected to upstream of said water treatment means, but downstream of said second bypass line, said outlet sampling port and said gas purification contactor for recycling said contactor effluent to said water treatment means for reuse in treating water, in turn, producing additional emitted gas stream, and (l) a make-up gas source directly or indirectly connected to said water treatment means for supplying additional gas upon demand for treating water.",
"BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING FIG. 1 is a flow diagram of the present invention when applied to water treatment.",
"FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram of the present invention when a single stage system is applied to groundwater purification or wastewater treatment considering gas emission control.",
"FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram of the present invention when a two stage system is applied to water treatment or wastewater treatment considering gas emission control.",
"DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS In accordance with the present invention, an air emission control apparatus for treating an emitted gas stream containing high concentrations of volatile contaminants comprises the following in combination shown in FIGS. 1 and 2: (a) an enclosure 12 and a gas piping system 13 for collecting said emitted gas stream 14 from a water treatment means 3, (b) a dehumidifying means comprising at least a demister pad 16 directly or indirectly connected to said enclosure 12 and said gas piping system 13 for removing humidity from said emitted gas stream 14, (c) at least a gas mover 15 directly or indirectly connected to said enclosure 12 for moving said emitted gas stream 14, (d) a monitoring means 71 (FIG.",
"1) directly or indirectly connected to said gas mover 15 for monitoring said emitted gas stream 14;",
"said monitoring means 71 further comprising a flow meter 40, a vacuum/pressure gauge 41, and a humidity meter 42 for measuring gas flow rate, vacuum/pressure and humidity, respectively, of said emitted gas stream 14, (e) an inlet sampling port 17 directly or indirectly connected to said monitoring means 71 and said gas mover 15 for sampling and analyzing said emitted gas stream 14, (f) a first bypass means 45A directly or indirectly connected to said gas piping system 13 and said inlet sampling port 17 at upstream of a gas purification contactor 18 for bypassing said emitted gas stream 14 when gas quality of said emitted gas stream 14 meets air emission standards;",
"said first bypass means 70A (shown in FIG. 1) further comprising a first bypass line 45A, and a first gas dilution means 46A for diluting said emitted gas stream 14 with air 44A, (g) an inert gas source 60 connected to said gas piping system 13 before being discharged into an ambient air environment stem 13 at upstream of said gas purification contactor 18 for supplying at least one inert gas to said gas purification contactor 18, in turn for preventing ignition and explosion inside said gas purification contactor 18, (h) said gas purification contactor 18 connected to said gas piping system 13 and said inert gas source 60 for purifying said emitted gas stream 14, thereby producing a contactor effluent 18E;",
"said gas purification contactor 18 further comprising a purifying agent, (i) an outlet sampling port 19 connected to said gas piping system 13 at downstream of said gas purification contactor 18 for sampling and analyzing said contactor effluent 18E, (j) a second bypass means 70B (shown in FIG. 1) connected to said gas piping system 13 and said gas purification contactor 18 for discharging said contactor effluent 18E when gas quality of said contactor effluent 18E meets air emission standards;",
"said second bypass means 70B further comprising a second bypass line 45B and a second gas dilution means 46B for diluting said contactor effluent 18E with air 48 before being discharged into said ambient air environment 44B, (k) a recycle pipe line 9 directly or indirectly connected to said water treatment means 3 and said second bypass line 45B, said outlet sampling port 19 and said gas purification contactor 18 for recycling said contactor effluent 18E to said water treatment means 3 for reuse in treating water, in turn, producing additional emitted gas stream 14, and (l) a make-up gas source 50 directly or indirectly connected to said water treatment means 3 for supplying additional gas upon demand for treating water 2.",
"A complete water treatment and gas emission control system shown in FIG. 2 is presented below as a typical example.",
"An influent pump 1 feeds a contaminated water 2 to an enclosed water treatment means 3, which is seeded/fed with microorganisms 30 and/or chemical 31 and is equipped with a sparger system 4, a vacuum breaker 5, a water inlet 6, a water outlet 7 with trap 8, a gas inlet recycle pipe line 9 to said sparger system 4, a gas outlet 10 to a gas recycle system, a manhole with cover 11, and an enclosure 12.",
"The water treatment means 3 shown in FIG. 2 is constructed to provide sufficient gas head space for holding an emitted gas stream 14 above water 53 in said water treatment means 3.",
"Gas bubbles generated from the sparger system 4 passing through water 53 inside said water treatment means 3 entrains volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and other volatile contaminants from water phase 53 into gas phase becoming an emitted gas stream 14.",
"The remaining VOCs and other organic contaminants are removed by the microorganisms 30 and/or chemical 31 in the water phase 53 inside said water treatment means 3.",
"Said chemical 31 include inorganic chemical, organic chemical, powdered activated carbon , peat moss and enzymes.",
"The microorganisms 30 include aerobic, facultative and enzymatic (enzyme producing) microorganisms which may be fed to said water treatment means 3 for aerobic biological treatment.",
"Anaerobic and facultative microorganisms may be seeded to said water treatment means 3 for anaerobic biological treatment when entire liquid treatment and gas emission control system shown in FIG. 2 is full of inert gas(es) from an inert gas source 60.",
"The emitted gas stream 14 from said water treatment means 3, shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 containing VOCs is sucked by a gas mover 15, and passes through the gas outlet 10 and a dehumidifying means such as a demister pad 16 or equivalent to remove water droplets from said emitted gas stream 14.",
"The preferred gas mover 15 shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 is of low pressure (5 to 15 psi) and low volume (500 to 1500 scfm) type.",
"The dehumidified gas from said demister pad 16 or an equivalent dehumidifying means is monitored by a monitoring means 71 comprising a flow meter 40, a vacuum/pressure gauge 41, and is sampled at an inlet sampling port 17.",
"Said dehumidified gas from said demister pad 16 or said equivalent dehumidifying means can be either bypassed through a bypass line 45A, or purified by a gas purification contactor 18 specifically designed for gas emission control, thereby producing a contactor effluent 18E.",
", as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2.",
"The contactor effluent 18E is sampled at an outlet sampling port 19, and is either partially or totally bypassed through a second bypass line 45B, or recycled to the water treatment means 3 via the gas inlet recycle pipe 9 and the sparger system 4 for continuous water purification for a plurality of times, as shown in FIG. 2. The heart of this invention is the inert gas source 60 (FIGS.",
"1 and 2) which supplies at least one inert gas upon demand to said gas purification contactor 18, in order to dilute oxygen concentration in said emitted gas stream 14.",
"In case said purifying agent in said gas purification contactor 18 is granular activated carbon or fibrous activated carbon, the temperature of said granular or fibrous activated carbon gradually increase due to adsorption of volatile organic compounds onto said granular or fibrous activated carbon.",
"At an elevated temperature with sufficient oxygen content, the volatile organic compounds and said granular or fibrous activated carbon may be ignited causing explosion and equipment damage.",
"The inert gas source 60 of this invention is the solution to this ignition and explosion problem.",
"After the oxygen content in said emitted gas stream 14 is significantly diluted by said inert gas, ignition or explosion at said gas purification contactor 18 can then be avoided.",
"The inert gas source 60 of this invention is selected from the group comprising nitrogen, helium, carbon dioxide, or combination thereof, which are commercially available in liquid cylinder form.",
"Alternatively the inert gas source 60 can be either a pressure swing adsorption (PSA) system or a vacuum swing adsorption (VSA) system.",
"The former (PSA) applies pressure, while the latter (VSA) applies vacuum for moving an air stream containing oxygen, nitrogen, carbon dioxide, etc.",
"Pelletized adsorbents, call molecular sieves, show a preference, at a given temperature and pressure, for nitrogen, carbon dioxide and hydrocarbons in air.",
"When operating a PSA system, the pelletized adsorbent is contained in multiple adsorption vessels through which the influent pressurized air flows.",
"Nitrogen, carbon dioxide and trace amount of hydrocarbons are adsorbed by the pelletized adsorbent.",
"The non adsorbed gas, oxygen, passes through until the pelletized adsorbent becomes saturated.",
"The air flow is then switched to the next vessel and the pelletized adsorbent is regenerated by depressurization, releasing the trapped nitrogen and other trace gases.",
"Each of the vessels is pressurized and depressurized sequentially to produce a continuous stream of inert nitrogen and a continuous steam of oxygen.",
"The oxygen produced from said PSA system is a byproduct which can also be used in said water treatment means 3 if aerobic biological treatment is intended;",
"while the nitrogen produced from the same PSA system is to be used as the inert gas source 60 of this invention.",
"The inert gas source 60 supplies inert gas for preventing said gas purification contactor 18 from being ignited or exploded, and also for operating said water treatment means 3 for anaerobic biological treatment, upon demand.",
"The monitoring means comprises a flow meter 40, a vacuum/pressure gauge 41 and a humidity meter 42 (or combinations thereof) for measuring gas flow rate, vacuum/pressure and humidity, respectively, of said emitted gas stream 14, as shown in FIG. 2. The first bypass line 45A comprises a first gas dilution means 46A for diluting the emitted gas stream 16E (FIG.",
"1) with air 48, and discharging it 16E to an ambient air environment 44A, under the condition that governmental air emission standards can be met.",
"If said air emission standards can not be met, said emitted gas stream 16E (FIG.",
"1) should not be bypassed, instead, should be forwarded to said gas purification contactor 18 for purification.",
"The second bypass line 45B comprises a second gas dilution means 46B for diluting the contactor effluent 18E with air 48, and discharging it 18E with air 48, and discharging it 18E to the ambient air environment 44B, under the condition that governmental air emission standards can be met.",
"Said outlet sampling port 19 is for gas quality control and assurance.",
"Said second bypass line 45B is required if recirculation of the contactor effluent 18E to the water treatment means 3 through said recycle pipe line 9 is not intended or interrupted.",
"A make-up gas source 50 connected to said water treatment means 3 is for supplying additional gas upon demand.",
"As a typical example, a make-up gas source 50 can be either air or oxygen if said water treatment means 3 is an aerobic biological treatment plant in which microorganisms require oxygen for their biochemical reactions.",
"In case that said water treatment means 3 is an air stripping unit, a dissolved gas flotation plant, a dispersed gas flotation plant, a foam separation plant, a froth flotation plant, a non-biological reactor, an anaerobic biological plant, or a physical-chemical plant, each involving generation of gas bubbles and an emitted gas stream, entire water treatment means 3 and entire gas emission control apparatus shown in FIG. 1 can be filled with one or more inert gases.",
"The bubbles in said water treatment means 3 are inert gas bubbles, such as nitrogen, helium, carbon dioxide, or combinations of.",
"The emitted gas stream 14 as well as the contactor effluent 18E contain mainly inert gas.",
"Besides, the contactor effluent 18E is continuously recycled to said water treatment means 3 for generation of more inert gas bubbles.",
"Under this process condition, both said first bypass line 45A and said second bypass line 45B can be idled or disconnected.",
"Only small volume of inert gas is required to be the make-up gas source 50.",
"The purified water 53 in said water treatment means 3 shown in FIG. 2 flows through the water outlet 7 and a trap 8 and is further treated by a clarifier 20, a filter 21 and a disinfection unit 22.",
"The plant effluent 23 is further treated or discharged to the environment.",
"The sludge from said clarifier 20 is either partially recycled via a sludge recycle line 25 to the water treatment means 3, or partially/totally discharged as waste sludges 24.",
"Entire said water treatment means 3 and its gas emission control system (FIG.",
"1) comprising said enclosure 12, gas piping system 13, dehumidifying means such as demister pad 16, gas mover 15, gas purification contactor 18, inlet sampling port 17, outlet sampling port 19, bypass means 70A and 70B (FIG.",
"1), and monitoring means 71, sampling ports 17 and 19, inert gas source 60 and recycle line 9 are completely enclosed, thus eliminating gas emissions or secondary air pollution.",
"The present invention is specific for removal of volatile contaminants including volatile organic compounds (VOCs).",
"VOCs are removed by gas purification contactor 18 in the gas phase rather than water phase.",
"The remaining organic compounds are removed by the microorganisms 30 and/or chemical 31 in said water treatment means 3.",
"Removal of VOCs by conventional granular activated carbon (GAC) filter in water phase is hindered by the other organic and inorganic compounds competing for adsorption sites on the GAC.",
"Consequently, more VOCs are removed by the present invention's gas purification contactor 18 in the gas phase than that removed by conventional GAC filter in the water phase.",
"The gas purification contactor 18 of this invention contains a purifying agent;",
"while the filter means 21 of this invention contains a filter media.",
"Both said purifying agent and said filter media are selected from a group comprising granular activated carbon, polymeric adsorbent, activated alumina, ion exchange resin, manganese dioxide, magnesium oxide, fibrous activated carbon, membrane filter media, fiberglass filter media, coalescing filter media, or combinations thereof.",
"All filter media to be adopted by this invention are insoluble, and further comprise sand, coal, diatomaceous earth, calcium carbonate, or combinations thereof.",
"Said purifying agent further comprise calcium chloride, sodium carbonate, lime, potassium carbonate, or combinations thereof, for further removing humidity and/or adjusting pH inside said gas purification contactor 18.",
"The size of said water treatment means 3 shown in FIG. 2 is altered to adjust the hydraulic residence time to conform to different influent flow rates.",
"In normal operation, the water treatment means 3 shown in FIG. 2 is under slightly negative pressure and is provided sufficient gas head space above the level of water 53 in said water treatment means 3.",
"The sparger system 4 is located at bottom of said water treatment means 3, shown in FIG. 2. The low pressure and low volume gas mover 15 provides energy for gas recirculation and gas bubbling through water phase containing influent water 2, chemical 31 and/or microorganisms 30.",
"The gas bubbles passing through said water phase 13 and entraining (VOCs) from water phase 53 into gas phase becoming said emitted gas stream 14 inside said water treatment means 3, shown in FIG. 2 is a physical reaction, termed gas stripping.",
"The remaining VOCs and other organic contaminants in said water phase 53 are removed by biochemical reactions of microorganisms 30 and/or by physical chemical reactions of chemical 31.",
"The emitted gas stream 14 containing VOCs exits said water treatment means 3 (See FIG. 2) and passes through a dehumidifying means such as a demister pad 16 to remove water droplets before entering said gas purification contactor 18 for adsorbing VOCs onto said purifying agent from said emitted gas stream 14 in high efficiency.",
"The trap 8 of said water outlet 7 prevents external air intrusion into said water treatment means 3, shown in FIG. 2. Partial recycling of the sludge produced from said clarifier 20 is for maintaining a constant population of microorganisms 30 in said water treatment means 3 under the condition that the water treatment means is operated for either aerobic biological treatment, or anaerobic biological treatment, in the presence of appropriate microorganisms and dissolved gases in water phase 53.",
"The partially discharged waste sludges 24 include excess microorganisms and/or spent chemical flocs.",
"The inlet sampling port 17 and the outlet sampling port 19 at upstream and downstream, respectively, of the gas purification contactor 18 determine the present invention's efficiency for VOCs reduction.",
"When the purifying agent in said gas purification contactor 18 is exhausted, the spent purifying agent is replaced with virgin purifying agent, chemically treated purifying agent, and/or regenerated purifying agent.",
"The microorganisms 30 inside said water treatment means 3 are mixed with the chemical 31, upon demand, for improvement of water or wastewater treatment efficiency.",
"Alternatively said chemical 31 can be fed to said water treatment means 3 without said microorganisms 30 The present invention is applied to groundwater decontamination as well as treatment of industrial, commercial or municipal wastewater, in which the water treatment means 3 generates said emitted gas stream 14.",
"The gas emission control apparatus (comprising all process units shown in FIG. 1 excluding said water treatment means 3) of the present invention is easily adjusted for treating said emitted gas stream 14 from various water treatment means 3 including conventional air stripping towers similar to that were described in the literature (R.",
"P. O'Brien and J. L. Fisher, Water/Engineering &",
"Management, May 1983;",
"R. P. O'Brien and M. H. Stenzel, Public Works, December 1984;",
"M. H. Stenzel and U. S. Gupta, Journal of the Air Pollution Control Association, December 1985) and in the prior art, such as the U.S. Patents cited in this invention.",
"A complete water treatment and gas emission control apparatus (comprising all process units shown in FIG. 1 including said water treatment means 3) is easily mobilized and demobilized because of its modular construction and its feasibility of being skid mounted, truck mounted, train mounted, boat mounted, or combinations thereof, for enhancing mobility.",
"For specific gas emission control, the purifying agent in said gas purification contactor 18 is totally or partially packed with said purifying agent, such as granular activated carbon (GAC), activated alumina, ion exchange resin, polymeric adsorbent, manganese oxide, sodium carbonate, membrane media, lime, fibrous activated carbon, calcium chloride, reticulated foam, lime, calcium chloride, calcite, dolomite, fiberglass media, coalescing filter media, membrane filter media, potassium carbonate, calcium carbonate, or combinations thereof, and can be chemically regenerated or treated by base (sodium hydroxide, potassium hydroxide, calcium hydroxide, or combinations thereof), aluminate (sodium aluminate, potassium aluminate, or both), chromium compound (potassium dichromate, sodium dichromate, or both), or manganese compound (potassium permanganate, sodium permanganate, or both).",
"The clarifier 20 of the present invention shown in FIG. 2 is either a sedimentation clarifier or a flotation clarifier.",
"The filter 21 of the present invention shown in FIG. 2 is a single media filter, a multi-media filter, a diatomaceous earth (DE) filter, a cartridge filter, a granular activated carbon (GAC) filter, a micro filter, an ultra filter, or combinations thereof.",
"The disinfection unit 22 of the present invention also shown in FIG. 2 is ultraviolet (UV) using UV light, chlorination using chlorine, ozonation using ozone, or combinations thereof.",
"While the invention has been described and illustrated with reference to a specific embodiment thereof, it will be understood that the modification and variations thereof will occur to those skilled in the art, and that the following examples and the appended claims are intended to cover such modifications and variations which are within the scope and spirit of this invention.",
"For example, the flow meter 40, vacuum/pressure gauge 41, humidity meter 42, or combinations thereof, shown in FIG. 1, can be idled or disconnected.",
"Alternatively, a foam collector-breaker 51, shown in FIG. 1, can be added to the gas emission control system of this invention for collecting and breaking surface active foam present in said emitted gas stream 14.",
"Said foam collector-breaker 51 is to be connected directly or indirectly to said enclosure 12.",
"Alternatively, a scrubber means 52 can be added to the gas emission control system (FIG.",
"1) of this invention for removing volatile inorganic compounds (VICs) present in said emitted gas stream 14.",
"Said scrubber means 52 is a wet scrubber, a dry scrubber, or both, directly or indirectly connected to said dehumidifying means comprising said demister pad 16.",
"For the preferred embodiments of this invention, a wet scrubber 52 shall be installed at upstream of said demister pad 16;",
"while a dry scrubber 52 shall be installed at downstream of said demister pad 16, as shown in FIG. 1. Still the inert gas source 60 can be installed at either downstream or upstream of said gas mover 15, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2.",
"If said inert gas source 60 is located at downstream or pressure side of said gas mover 15, a venturi feeder 60V is needed for feeding inert gas into said gas piping system 13.",
"If said inert gas source 60 is located at upstream or suction side of said gas mover 15, a venturi feeder 60V is not needed.",
"Still alternatively the make-up gas source 50 can be directly connected to said water treatment means 3, or connected at upstream or suction side of said gas mover 15, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2.",
"The complete water treatment and gas emission control system of this invention shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 is a single stage system, and can be operated under various environmental or process conditions.",
"Specifically the water phase 53 inside said water treatment means 3 shown in FIG. 2, can have, at least, the following eight process conditions for a single stage water treatment system: (a) Condition A: aerobic condition, without chemical 31, without microorganisms 30;",
"(b) Condition B: aerobic condition, with chemical 31, without microorganisms 30;",
"(c) Condition C: aerobic condition, without chemical 31, with microorganisms 30;",
"(d) Condition D: aerobic condition, with chemical 31, with microorganisms 30;",
"(e) Condition E anaerobic condition, without chemical 31, without microorganisms 30;",
"(f) Condition F: anaerobic condition, with chemical 31, without microorganisms 30;",
"(g) Condition G: anaerobic condition, without chemical 31, with microorganisms 30;",
"and (h) Condition H: anaerobic condition, with chemical 31, with microorganisms 30.",
"A multiple stage water treatment system having multiple sets of process units shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 (except said filter 21 and said disinfection unit 22) is also covered by this invention.",
"Various combinations of the above eight process conditions (Conditions A to H) are available for said multiple stage water treatment.",
"FIG. 3 shows a two stage water treatment system of this invention having two sets of process units (i.e. The process units shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 are duplicated) except said filter 21 and said disinfection unit 22.",
"The water phase 53 inside said two water treatment meanses 3 shown in FIG. 3 for a two-stage system can have many operating environmental and process conditions, namely various combinations of the eight Conditions A, B, C, D, E, F, G, and H identified in the last paragraph.",
"For example, the combination of Conditions C and G for the first and the second, respectively, of the water treatment means 3 shown in FIG. 3 is an efficient aerobic/anoxic two-stage biological treatment system suitable for treating water contaminated by industrial pollutants.",
"The combination of Conditions B and C (or D) identified above is an efficient two-stage physicochemical &",
"biological treatment system, which is also represented by FIG. 3. The complete water treatment and gas emission control system of this invention can be expanded to more than two stages.",
"A three-stage system of this invention (not shown), for instance, has been proven to be an efficient biological treatment system for carbonaceous oxidation in the first stage (Condition C or D), nitrification in the second stage (Condition C or D), and denitrification in the third stage (Condition G or H).",
"The theory, principles, and chemical reactions of carbonaceous oxidation, nitrification, and denitrification are reported in the literature by Lawrence K. Wang et al (Journal of Environmental Science, Volume 21, pages 23-28, December 1978).",
"The gas emission control system of this invention (all process units shown in FIG. 1 except said water treatment means 3) is always needed in the first stage, but may or may not be needed in the later stages.",
"The sparger system 4 (FIGS.",
"2 and 3) of this invention is a porous tube diffusion means, a porous plate diffusion means, nozzle diffusion means, an induced gas diffusion means, a diaphragm diffusion means, a jet gas diffusion means, a mechanical diffusion means, or combinations thereof.",
"Common reactive purifying agent packed inside said gas purification contactor 18 (FIGS.",
"1, 2, and 3) includes, at least, virgin granular activated carbon, virgin fibrous activated carbon, virgin polymeric adsorbent, base treated granular activated carbon, base treated fibrous activated carbon, base treated polymeric adsorbent, aluminate treated granular activated carbon, aluminate treated fibrous activated carbon, aluminate treated polymeric adsorbent, or combinations thereof.",
"All base treated said purifying agent are impregnated with base;",
"while all aluminate treated said purifying agent are impregnated with aluminate.",
"Said base includes sodium hydroxide, potassium hydroxide, calcium hydroxide, or combinations thereof.",
"Said aluminate includes sodium aluminate, potassium aluminate, or both.",
"Both base treated purifying agent and the aluminate treated purifying agent of this invention are used for removing odorous contaminants from an emitted gas stream 14.",
"Special chromium impregnated granular activated carbon, chromium impregnated fibrous activated carbon, chromium impregnated polymeric adsorbent, manganese impregnated granular activated carbon, manganese impregnated fibrous activated carbon, manganese impregnated polymeric adsorbent or combinations thereof, can be used as the purifying agent in the gas purification contactor 18 of this invention for removing formaldehyde gas and hydrocarbon gases from said emitted gas stream 14.",
"Said chromium comprises potassium dichromate, sodium dichromate, or both.",
"Said manganese comprises potassium permanganate, sodium permanganate, or both.",
"The water treatment step of said water treatment means 3 comprises a continuous process steps described previously, and shown in FIG. 2, and a batch process steps described in the following paragraph.",
"The batch process steps for operating the water treatment means 3 of this invention comprise the following steps in sequence: (a) pumping and discharging the contaminated water 2 into a water treatment means 3 until said water treatment means 3 reaches its full capacity, which is termed a Filling Phase;",
"said Filling Phase further comprising a Static Filling Phase, a Mixed Filling Phase, a Reacting Filling Phase, or combinations thereof, depending on simultaneously feeding or subsequently feeding gas bubbles, microorganisms 30 and/or chemical 31 into said water treatment means 3;",
"Said Static Filling Phase further representing a specific operating time period during which gas bubbles, microorganisms 30 and/or chemical 31 are not simultaneously fed to said water treatment means 3 together with said contaminated water 2;",
"Said Mixed Filling Phase further representing a specific operating time period during which microorganisms 30 and/or chemical 31 are simultaneously fed to said water treatment means together with said contaminated water under a mixing condition;",
"Said Reacting Filling Phase further representing a specific operating time period during which gas bubbles, microorganisms 30 and/or chemical 31 are fed into said water treatment means 3 together with said contaminated water 2 under another mixing condition, (b) stopping to feed microorganisms 30 and/or chemical 31 but still feeding gas bubbles into said water treatment means 3 for removing contaminants from said contaminated water 2 and producing a water effluent and an emitted gas stream 14;",
"simultaneously collecting, transporting, dehumidifying, monitoring, and purifying the emitted gas stream 14 and producing a gaseous contactor effluent 18E;",
"recycling said contactor effluent 18E to said water treatment means 3 for continuously generating gas bubbles for reuse;",
"Step b being a Reacting Phase, (c) stopping to feed gas bubbles to said water treatment means 3 allowing insoluble sludge in the water effluent to separate by density difference without turbulence, thereby producing a clarified effluent and a separated sludge;",
"said density difference being either sedimentation clarification or flotation clarification;",
"Step c being a Separating Phase, (d) discharging the clarified effluent from said water treatment means 3;",
"filtering, disinfecting, discharging, or combinations thereof, said clarified effluent;",
"Step d being Effluent Discharging Phase, (e) totally or partially discharging the separated sludge from said water treatment means 3;",
"Step e being Sludge Wasting Phase, (f) allowing said water treatment means 3 to remain idle until said water treatment means 3 is to be filled again;",
"Step f being an Idling Phase which is used when there is more than one said water treatment means 3, and the lowest idling time being zero, and (g) repeating the batch process cycle from steps a to f for a plurality of times for treating said contaminated water 2 while simultaneously collecting, transporting, monitoring, dehumidifying purifying recycling and reusing the emitted gas stream 14.",
"Said sedimentation clarification is a process method by which insoluble suspended solids and settleable solids settle to the bottom of said water treatment means 3 by gravity because the densities of said insoluble suspended solids and said settleable solids are higher than that of water.",
"Said flotation clarification is a process method by which said insoluble suspended solids and said settleable solids float to a water surface inside said water treatment means 3 by rising gas bubbles with diameter smaller than 80 microns because the combined density of said fine gas bubbles, said insoluble suspended solids and said settleable solids are lower than that of water.",
"Fine gas bubbles are produced by a gas dissolving and bubble generating means described by the U. S. Pat. Nos. 5,049,320 (Sep. 17, 1991) and 5,167,806 (Dec. 1, 1992) of Lawrence K. Wang et al, or commercially available means for producing fine gas bubbles."
] |
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] This application is a U.S. National Phase application of International Application PCT/EP2010/001015 and claims the benefit of priority under 35 U.S.C. §119 of German Patent Application DE 10 2009 011 230.8 filed Mar. 2, 2009, the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
[0002] The present invention pertains to a device and a process for recognizing and guiding individually packaged products provided with a code, preferably individually packaged products of a complete commissioning order commissioned in a commissioning unit, whereby the individually packaged products of a quantity, and preferably of a commissioning order, are guided separated and centered on a conveying track, which has a V-shaped cross section, through a scanning device with a plurality of individual scanners and are identified in the scanning device by reading the code of the individually packaged product as actual data and are then compared or detected with the desired data, which are stored in a central computer, of the individually packaged product quantity, and if there is disagreement of the desired data with the actual data, the individually packaged product is separated out.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0003] According to the state of the art, different individually packaged products are stored in a warehouse in bays at a certain location, sorted by kinds. When placing a commissioning order of a customer, the desired goods or individually packaged products are removed manually by an operator or, for example, at a wholesale dealer, automatically in a commissioning unit from the destination site in the warehouse and fed to a transport container, for example, a tub. The tub preferably contains the products of a complete commissioning order, is guided to a shipping area and from there is finally transported to the customer.
[0004] The difficulty lies in guaranteeing that the correct products were assigned to each commissioning order. In order to guarantee this, each order must be checked.
[0005] One possibility of checking is, for example, weighing an empty and a filled container in case of a commissioning order and calculating the total weight of the filled container from the known individual weights of the individually packaged products besides the known empty weight of the container. However, many different individually packaged products often have approximately the same weight, so that the weighing method is only conditionally reliable. If there is no difference, in weighing, between the set weight and the actual weight of a commissioning order, then the correct composition of a desired commissioning order cannot hence be absolutely concluded. If there is a difference between the set weight and the actual weight, then the error is unknown for the most part and can often be eliminated only with difficulty by all individual products of the container having to be taken once more from the container and checked manually in order to determine definitively which product is missing or if too much is present. This means not only a tremendous expenditure of time, but also a high cost factor, which is reflected, if nothing else, in the price of the product.
[0006] To lower costs and expense, according to the state of the art, the products or individually packaged products are provided with a bar code beforehand, i.e., still before storing the individually packaged products in the warehouse. The thus identified individually packaged products are taken from the container for checking and fed manually to a reading device or a hand scanner, which is capable of identifying the product by the bar code. It is understood that such an identification process is nevertheless expensive.
[0007] In order to recognize a large number of individually packaged products comparatively quickly for the purpose of optionally introducing corrective measures, the “check station” mentioned in the introduction, whose conveying track, which has a V-shaped cross section, is a diagonal chute, on which the individually packaged products, fed manually separately, slide through a scanning tunnel because of their gravity and are hereby read and checked and are possibly subsequently sorted out, is known from DE 102 09 864 A1 . However, it was shown that the sliding speed is undefined and limited, and a reliable centering in the V angle of the chute and reliable multidimensional scanning in case of high throughput of individually packaged products are only conditionally possible.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0008] An object of the present invention is to provide a device and a process of the type mentioned in the introduction, which is capable of recognizing a large number of individually packaged products by simple means in case of rapid throughput of individually packaged products and, nevertheless, high reliability of a three-dimensional scanning, in order to be able to optionally introduce corrective measures very quickly and very reliably.
[0009] The essence of the device for recognizing and guiding individually packaged products provided with a code according to the present invention, preferably of individually packaged products of a complete commissioning order commissioned in a commissioning unit, is the design of a conveying track, which has a V-shaped cross section, whose one V leg is a driven individually packaged product-conveying element, preferably a driven circular conveying belt, on which the conveyed individually packaged product lies in a nonsliding manner, and whose other V leg is a stationary individually packaged product-sliding element, preferably a sliding plate, on which the conveyed individually packaged product slides.
[0010] The conveying track (first conveying track) in this case preferably runs in the horizontal direction, whereby the two V legs form an angle of at least 90°, preferably form exactly a right angle, and at least one of the V legs, preferably both V legs form an angle of 45° to the horizontal.
[0011] In particular, the first conveying track, in the longitudinal direction, is composed of two (first and second) conveying sections aligned with one another, each consisting of an individually packaged product-conveying element and of an individually packaged product-sliding element, whereby the individually packaged product-sliding element of the second conveying section is connected, aligned, to the individually packaged product-conveying element of the first conveying section, and inversely, the individually packaged product-conveying element of the second conveying section is connected, aligned, to the individually packaged product-sliding element of the first conveying section.
[0012] The individually packaged product-sliding element may be designed as light-transparent to be able to scan the sliding underside of a conveyed individually packaged product as well. Provisions are, however, preferably made for a stationary light-transparent section, especially a glass window, to be arranged directly downstream aligned with the non-light-transparent individually packaged product-sliding element, whereby the length of the individually packaged product-conveying element corresponds approximately to the sum of the individual lengths of the individually packaged product-sliding element and of the light-transparent section.
[0013] In the area of the light-transparent section, and especially of the glass window, a three-dimensional scanning device with preferably three individual scanners is provided, whose first individual scanner reads the possible code on the sliding surface of a conveyed individually packaged product through the light-transparent section, and whose other individual scanners read possible codes of other side surfaces of the conveyed individually packaged product, but the first individual scanner does not read the side surface of the individually packaged product that lies on the individually packaged product-conveying element in a nonsliding manner.
[0014] An especially effectively working device with high throughput capacity of individually packaged products provides for each of the two conveying sections to have a (first or second) scanning device each with preferably three individual scanners as well as a (first or second) light-transparent section, especially a (first or second) glass window, whereby an individual scanner of the second conveying section reads a possible code of the up to now unread side surface of the individually packaged product that was lying beforehand in a nonsliding manner on the individually packaged product-conveying element of the first conveying section through the associated second light-transparent section. During operation, the first belt thus pulls an individually packaged product over the first glass window. Here, the first unknown side is canned. After that, the (second) belt changes to the other side in order to be able to draw the second unknown side over the second glass window.
[0015] In the area of the longitudinal end of the first conveying track there is provided a selecting means for a lateral or lower ejection of individually packaged products that are not recognized by the scanning device(s) or are to be sorted out. The selecting means, which can be controlled by the central computer, has at least one transverse pusher, at least one diverter or at least one pivoting flap, which releases an ejection opening.
[0016] Inversely, the selecting means may also be used for a lateral selecting of recognized individually packaged products and the longitudinal end of the first conveying track may be used for an ejection of the individually packaged products that are not recognized or are to be sorted out.
[0017] In particular, a process according to the present invention for recognizing and guiding individually packaged products provided with a code is characterized in that the individually packaged products of a commissioning order are fed manually by an operator to the first conveying track preferably simultaneously, in pairs and spaced apart from one another.
[0018] If the distance of two simultaneously fed individually packaged products selected by the operator is too small to make possible a reliable scanning of two individually packaged products spaced apart from one another at the adjusted, usually high, conveying speed of the first conveying track in the range of one m/sec and a reliable discharging at the selecting means, a distance recognition means, and especially a distance light barrier, provides an automatic turning off of the drive of the first conveying track or of the drive of the individually packaged product-conveying element of the first conveying track. The operator may then place the individually packaged products, which are spaced too close to one another, with new greater distance again onto the conveying track and restart the drive by pressing a button at a terminal.
[0019] It is desirable to keep the distance between the individually packaged products to be scanned as low as possible, and especially in the range of 200 mm. Due to the possible low individually packaged product distance, two individually packaged products can be read in two scanning devices spaced apart from one another, which is desirable for achieving a high throughput rate. By means of fixed cycle tracking combined with the identification of the cameras or scanners and the measurement of the individually packaged product length by means of the distance light barrier, one knows which code belongs to which individually packaged product or which individually packaged product does not have a code.
[0020] According to the present invention, consequently only one side of the “V belt” is a driven belt in the first conveying track. The other side is a fixed sliding plate. The individually packaged products are automatically aligned in the V angle only by this combination, and only this alignment enables the scanners or cameras to detect an optimal image. If both sides of the “V belt” were driven, the alignment would not be reliable, especially not at the high conveying speed according to the present invention, preferably in the range of one m/sec. It depends on the “relative speed” between the two sides of the “V belt,” which makes possible a local rotation of a fed individually packaged product until the individually packaged product has found its stable position in the V angle. It would hence also be theoretically conceivable to use another driven circular belt with a different speed instead of the fixed sliding plate; however, in practice it is impractical because of the greater expense.
[0021] Therefore, according to the present invention, a check station is suggested, which can be operated with high throughput rate with high reliability because of the highly defined, adjustable conveying speed of the first conveying track (by contrast to a prior-art “chute” of the state of the art mentioned in the introduction) and because of the low minimum distance between two individually packaged products to be scanned, especially if two scanning devices spaced apart from one another are each provided with three individual scanners.
[0022] When containers are mentioned here, it is understood that they may also be a different receptacle for individually packaged products in the present invention, for example, pallets or trays.
[0023] The device according to the present invention and the process according to the present invention are explained in detail below based on exemplary embodiments. The various features of novelty which characterize the invention are pointed out with particularity in the claims annexed to and forming a part of this disclosure. For a better understanding of the invention, its operating advantages and specific objects attained by its uses, reference is made to the accompanying drawings and descriptive matter in which preferred embodiments of the invention are illustrated.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0024] In the drawings:
[0025] FIG. 1 is a schematic perspective lateral view of the device according to the present invention for recognizing and guiding individually packaged products provided with a code;
[0026] FIG. 2 is a schematic perspective view showing the detail of the inlet area of the device according to FIG. 1 , with working surface, terminal, as well as first, second and third conveying tracks, especially the workstation of an operator;
[0027] FIG. 3 is a front view showing the first conveying track consisting of two conveying sections in addition to individual scanners;
[0028] FIG. 4 is a schematic top view of the device according to FIG. 1 in the area of the individual scanner;
[0029] FIG. 5 is a schematic perspective view showing a device similar to FIG. 3 with a scanning tunnel;
[0030] FIG. 6 is a schematic top view of the device according to FIG. 1 in the area of the selecting means;
[0031] FIG. 7 is a schematic top view showing a schematic diagram of the device according to the present invention; and
[0032] FIG. 8 is a schematic top view, similar to FIG. 7 , showing a schematic diagram of an alternative device according to the present invention.
DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
[0033] Referring to the drawings in particular, a device 1 for recognizing and guiding individually packaged products provided with codes shown in FIGS. 1 through 7 is part of a commissioning unit, in which individually packaged products are commissioned in a manner not of detailed interest here. The commissioned individually packaged products of a commissioning order are collected in an (order) container 12 . It is essential to check the contents of the container 12 by number of pieces and type of individually packaged products, i.e., the commissioning order.
[0034] The codes are data matrix codes, in which the following data contents are coded: product identification, batch information, expiration date, serial number.
[0035] The commissioning unit has a central computer (not shown), to which the device described below is connected via a terminal.
[0036] The device 1 for recognizing and guiding a quantity of individually packaged products 2 provided with a code has a first conveying track 3 that has a V-shaped cross section. The individually packaged products of a commissioning order are guided separated and centered and pass through a scanning device 15 with a plurality of individual scanners 16 , 17 , 18 and are identified as actual data in the scanning device 15 by reading the code of the individually packaged product 2 and are compared with the desired data, stored in the central computer, of the individual packaged product quantity, and if there is disagreement of the desired data with the actual data, the individually packaged product is separated out.
[0037] In particular, the one V leg of the first conveying track 3 , which has a V-shaped cross section, is a driven individually packaged product-conveying element 5 , especially a driven circular conveyor belt, on which the conveyed individually packaged product 2 lies in a nonsliding manner.
[0038] The other V leg of the first conveying track 3 is a stationary individually packaged product-sliding element 6 , especially a sliding plate, on which the conveyed individually packaged product 2 slides, on the other hand.
[0039] The first conveying track 3 is arranged horizontally.
[0040] The two V legs form an angle of at least 90° and they form exactly a right angle in the exemplary embodiment of the drawings.
[0041] At least one of the V legs forms an angle of 45° to the horizontal, and both V legs in the exemplary embodiment of the drawings.
[0042] In particular, in the longitudinal direction, the first conveying track 3 is composed of two (first and second) conveying sections aligned with one another, each consisting of an individually packaged product-conveying element 5 and an individually packaged product-sliding element 6 , whereby the individually packaged product-sliding element 6 of the second conveying section is connected, aligned, to the individually packaged product-conveying element 5 of the first conveying section, and inversely, the individually packaged product-conveying element 5 of the second conveying section is connected, aligned, to the individually packaged product-sliding element 6 of the first conveying section.
[0043] A stationary light-transparent section 10 , and especially a glass window, is arranged directly downstream aligned with the non-light-transparent individually packaged product-sliding element 6 , whereby the length of the individually packaged product-conveying element 5 corresponds approximately to the sum of the individual lengths of the individually packaged product-sliding element 6 and of the light-transparent section 10 .
[0044] In the area of the light-transparent section 10 or of the glass window, a three-dimensional scanning device 15 with preferably three individual scanners 16 , 17 , 18 is provided, whose first individual scanner 16 reads the possible code on the sliding surface of a conveyed individually packaged product through the light-transparent section 10 , and whose other individual scanners 17 , 18 read possible codes of other side surfaces of the conveyed individually packaged product, but the first individual scanner does not read the side surface of the individually packaged product that lies on the individually packaged product-conveying element 5 in a nonsliding manner.
[0045] Each of the two conveying sections has a (first or second) scanning device 15 each with preferably three individual scanners 16 , 17 , 18 as well as a (first or second) light-transparent section 10 or a (first or second) glass window, whereby an individual scanner 16 of the second conveying section reads a possible code of the up to now unread side surface of the individually packaged product that was lying beforehand in a nonsliding manner on the individually packaged product-conveying element 5 of the first conveying section through the associated second light-transparent section 10 .
[0046] The scanning devices 15 are optionally arranged in a scanning tunnel 14 according to FIG. 5 selecting means 13 for a lateral or lower ejection of individually packaged products 2 ′ which are not recognized by the scanning device 15 or which are to be sorted out is provided in the area of the longitudinal end of the first conveying track 3 .
[0047] Ejected, non-recognized individually packaged products 2 ′ can be returned on a second conveying track 19 for a manual scanning by means of a hand scanner 7 and optionally for sorting out in the area of the inlet of the first conveying track 3 and can optionally be received in a container kept ready.
[0048] A container 12 that is empty or filled with hand-scanned individually packaged products on a third conveying track 20 can be conveyed from the area of the inlet of the first conveying track 3 under the longitudinal end of the first conveying track into a ready position.
[0049] Individually packaged products recognized by the scanning device 15 at the longitudinal end of the first conveying track 3 are delivered into the container 12 kept ready.
[0050] A buffer 23 with a flap that can be opened on the bottom for a guided delivery of buffered, scanned individually packaged products 2 into the container 12 kept ready is provided at the longitudinal end of the first conveying track 3 .
[0051] The selecting means 13 , which can be controlled by means of the central computer, has at least one transverse pusher, at least one diverter or at least one pivoting flap 21 , which releases an ejection opening.
[0052] The pivoting flap 21 may be designed as a counter-controlled double flap with two pivot axes 22 according to FIG. 6 .
[0053] The terminal comprises a keyboard 8 , a display screen 9 and a bidirectional wired connection to the individual scanners 16 , 17 , 18 of the scanning devices 15 as well as to the hand scanner 7 for a connection to the central computer for recognizing the desired data or identifying the individually packaged products, especially the individually packaged products of a complete commissioning order, as well as for comparing the actual data with the desired data of the individually packaged product quantity.
[0054] Furthermore, a spacer is provided for a simultaneous manual entry of two individually packaged products 2 that are spaced apart from one another on the first conveying track 3 . In the exemplary embodiment of the drawings, the spacer is the keyboard 8 of the terminal, as this can be seen in FIGS. 1 through 3 , for example.
[0055] A feed table 4 is located on the inlet side for the individually packaged products 2 approximately at the level of the inlet of the first conveying track 3 .
[0056] Finally, a (not shown) distance light barrier is provided for the purpose of automatic turning off of the drive of the individually packaged product-conveying element 5 in case of undershooting a minimum distance of two individually packaged products to be scanned consecutively. Similar to the first individual scanner 16 behind the glass window, the distance light barrier is located behind the individually packaged product-sliding element 6 or sliding plate and recognizes an individually packaged product conveyed past through an opening in the sliding plate, and especially its length, as well as the distance between two conveyed individually packaged products by means of measuring time. The (minimum) distance between two conveyed individually packaged products, which it is essential to check, is obtained based on the known conveying speed of the first conveying track 3 . If the minimum distance is undershot, the individually packaged product-conveying element 5 or the circular belt stops automatically. An operator then repositions the individually packaged products that are placed too close to one another on the first conveying track 3 and restarts the circular belt by pressing a button on the keyboard 8 .
[0057] During operation, the individually packaged products 2 of a commissioning order are then placed or dumped out by an operator 24 from a container 12 containing [sic, “enthaltenen” (contained) should be “enthaltenden”—Tr. Ed.] the individually packaged products of the commissioning order onto the feed table 4 arranged upstream of the first conveying track 3 and fed to the first conveying track 3 separately, in particular, simultaneously, in pairs and spaced apart from one another. The operator 24 pulls an individually packaged product with both hands to the body into the V belt. The individually packaged products are taken over by the V belt and fed aligned to the scanning area. Two consecutive individually packaged products spaced apart from one another can be scanned simultaneously. Scanned and hereby recognized individually packaged products reach the longitudinal end of the first conveying track 3 and from there the buffer 23 or collecting hopper.
[0058] Before dumping out or placing the individually packaged products onto the feed table 4 , however, bulky, heavy, sensitive, awkward and/or round individually packaged products are separated out from the container 12 or from the feed table 4 by the operator 24 and are identified in a hand scanner 7 or by entering the actual data on the keyboard 8 of a terminal of the central computer and the identified individually packaged products are subsequently placed back in the container again.
[0059] The container 12 is placed on the third conveying track 20 and is then conveyed from there under the outlet of the first conveying track 3 into a ready position, which then takes over the scanned and recognized individually packaged products 2 of the buffer 23 .
[0060] Scanned and not recognized individually packaged products 2 ′ are separated out by the selecting means 13 and then returned into the area of the start of the first conveying track 3 via the second conveying track 11 .
[0061] The returned individually packaged products 2 ′ are identified by the operator 24 by means of the hand scanner 7 or by entering the actual data on the keyboard 8 of the central computer.
[0062] Hereby recognized individually packaged products of the commissioning order are again guided via the first conveying track 3 to the container 12 under the outlet of the first conveying track 3 .
[0063] Not recognized individually packaged products are transferred to a place for separating out or are fed back into a commissioning warehouse.
[0064] The individually packaged product is acoustically or visually identifiable to an operator 24 at least when the desired data are in agreement with the actual data.
[0065] Also, a recognition report is prepared about a correct commissioning order.
[0066] A report about an error in commissioning may likewise be prepared.
[0067] In an alternative embodiment, the “check station” according to the present invention according to the schematic diagram according to FIG. 7 may be converted into a filling station for individual orders according to the schematic diagram according to FIG. 8 . In this case, especially a plurality of selecting means 13 arranged one behind the other are then used for a lateral or lower ejection of individually packaged products, recognized by the scanning devices 15 , into assigned single-order containers 25 , while the longitudinal end of the first conveying track 3 is used as an ejection 26 of non-recognized individually packaged products.
[0068] By means of the present invention, a large number of individually packaged products or products can be recognized in a simple manner, very reliably and very quickly, for the most part in a semi-automatic manner by means of the device 1 in a simple ergonomic operation and the commissioning order can thus be checked. Only atypical individually packaged products are, as previously, hand-scanned.
[0069] While specific embodiments of the invention have been described in detail to illustrate the application of the principles of the invention, it will be understood that the invention may be embodied otherwise without departing from such principles. | An arrangement and a method are provided for detecting and controlling piece goods ( 2 ) having a code, preferably of piece goods commissioned in a commissioning system for a complete commissioning order. The piece goods of a quantity, preferably a commissioning order, are singulated and centered on a transport route ( 3 ) and fed through a scanning device ( 15 ), and are identified as actual data in the scanning device ( 15 ) by reading the code of the piece goods ( 2 ). This is compared or captured to target data of the piece goods quantity. The piece goods are separated out if the target data do not match the actual data. A first transport route ( 3 ) has a V-shaped cross-section, the one V-arm thereof being a driven piece goods transport element ( 5 ) preferably a drive recirculating conveyor belt, and the other V-arm thereof being a stationary piece goods sliding element ( 6 ), preferably a sheet metal slide. | Briefly summarize the invention's components and working principles as described in the document. | [
"CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS [0001] This application is a U.S. National Phase application of International Application PCT/EP2010/001015 and claims the benefit of priority under 35 U.S.C. §119 of German Patent Application DE 10 2009 011 230.8 filed Mar. 2, 2009, the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.",
"FIELD OF THE INVENTION [0002] The present invention pertains to a device and a process for recognizing and guiding individually packaged products provided with a code, preferably individually packaged products of a complete commissioning order commissioned in a commissioning unit, whereby the individually packaged products of a quantity, and preferably of a commissioning order, are guided separated and centered on a conveying track, which has a V-shaped cross section, through a scanning device with a plurality of individual scanners and are identified in the scanning device by reading the code of the individually packaged product as actual data and are then compared or detected with the desired data, which are stored in a central computer, of the individually packaged product quantity, and if there is disagreement of the desired data with the actual data, the individually packaged product is separated out.",
"BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION [0003] According to the state of the art, different individually packaged products are stored in a warehouse in bays at a certain location, sorted by kinds.",
"When placing a commissioning order of a customer, the desired goods or individually packaged products are removed manually by an operator or, for example, at a wholesale dealer, automatically in a commissioning unit from the destination site in the warehouse and fed to a transport container, for example, a tub.",
"The tub preferably contains the products of a complete commissioning order, is guided to a shipping area and from there is finally transported to the customer.",
"[0004] The difficulty lies in guaranteeing that the correct products were assigned to each commissioning order.",
"In order to guarantee this, each order must be checked.",
"[0005] One possibility of checking is, for example, weighing an empty and a filled container in case of a commissioning order and calculating the total weight of the filled container from the known individual weights of the individually packaged products besides the known empty weight of the container.",
"However, many different individually packaged products often have approximately the same weight, so that the weighing method is only conditionally reliable.",
"If there is no difference, in weighing, between the set weight and the actual weight of a commissioning order, then the correct composition of a desired commissioning order cannot hence be absolutely concluded.",
"If there is a difference between the set weight and the actual weight, then the error is unknown for the most part and can often be eliminated only with difficulty by all individual products of the container having to be taken once more from the container and checked manually in order to determine definitively which product is missing or if too much is present.",
"This means not only a tremendous expenditure of time, but also a high cost factor, which is reflected, if nothing else, in the price of the product.",
"[0006] To lower costs and expense, according to the state of the art, the products or individually packaged products are provided with a bar code beforehand, i.e., still before storing the individually packaged products in the warehouse.",
"The thus identified individually packaged products are taken from the container for checking and fed manually to a reading device or a hand scanner, which is capable of identifying the product by the bar code.",
"It is understood that such an identification process is nevertheless expensive.",
"[0007] In order to recognize a large number of individually packaged products comparatively quickly for the purpose of optionally introducing corrective measures, the “check station”",
"mentioned in the introduction, whose conveying track, which has a V-shaped cross section, is a diagonal chute, on which the individually packaged products, fed manually separately, slide through a scanning tunnel because of their gravity and are hereby read and checked and are possibly subsequently sorted out, is known from DE 102 09 864 A1 .",
"However, it was shown that the sliding speed is undefined and limited, and a reliable centering in the V angle of the chute and reliable multidimensional scanning in case of high throughput of individually packaged products are only conditionally possible.",
"SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION [0008] An object of the present invention is to provide a device and a process of the type mentioned in the introduction, which is capable of recognizing a large number of individually packaged products by simple means in case of rapid throughput of individually packaged products and, nevertheless, high reliability of a three-dimensional scanning, in order to be able to optionally introduce corrective measures very quickly and very reliably.",
"[0009] The essence of the device for recognizing and guiding individually packaged products provided with a code according to the present invention, preferably of individually packaged products of a complete commissioning order commissioned in a commissioning unit, is the design of a conveying track, which has a V-shaped cross section, whose one V leg is a driven individually packaged product-conveying element, preferably a driven circular conveying belt, on which the conveyed individually packaged product lies in a nonsliding manner, and whose other V leg is a stationary individually packaged product-sliding element, preferably a sliding plate, on which the conveyed individually packaged product slides.",
"[0010] The conveying track (first conveying track) in this case preferably runs in the horizontal direction, whereby the two V legs form an angle of at least 90°, preferably form exactly a right angle, and at least one of the V legs, preferably both V legs form an angle of 45° to the horizontal.",
"[0011] In particular, the first conveying track, in the longitudinal direction, is composed of two (first and second) conveying sections aligned with one another, each consisting of an individually packaged product-conveying element and of an individually packaged product-sliding element, whereby the individually packaged product-sliding element of the second conveying section is connected, aligned, to the individually packaged product-conveying element of the first conveying section, and inversely, the individually packaged product-conveying element of the second conveying section is connected, aligned, to the individually packaged product-sliding element of the first conveying section.",
"[0012] The individually packaged product-sliding element may be designed as light-transparent to be able to scan the sliding underside of a conveyed individually packaged product as well.",
"Provisions are, however, preferably made for a stationary light-transparent section, especially a glass window, to be arranged directly downstream aligned with the non-light-transparent individually packaged product-sliding element, whereby the length of the individually packaged product-conveying element corresponds approximately to the sum of the individual lengths of the individually packaged product-sliding element and of the light-transparent section.",
"[0013] In the area of the light-transparent section, and especially of the glass window, a three-dimensional scanning device with preferably three individual scanners is provided, whose first individual scanner reads the possible code on the sliding surface of a conveyed individually packaged product through the light-transparent section, and whose other individual scanners read possible codes of other side surfaces of the conveyed individually packaged product, but the first individual scanner does not read the side surface of the individually packaged product that lies on the individually packaged product-conveying element in a nonsliding manner.",
"[0014] An especially effectively working device with high throughput capacity of individually packaged products provides for each of the two conveying sections to have a (first or second) scanning device each with preferably three individual scanners as well as a (first or second) light-transparent section, especially a (first or second) glass window, whereby an individual scanner of the second conveying section reads a possible code of the up to now unread side surface of the individually packaged product that was lying beforehand in a nonsliding manner on the individually packaged product-conveying element of the first conveying section through the associated second light-transparent section.",
"During operation, the first belt thus pulls an individually packaged product over the first glass window.",
"Here, the first unknown side is canned.",
"After that, the (second) belt changes to the other side in order to be able to draw the second unknown side over the second glass window.",
"[0015] In the area of the longitudinal end of the first conveying track there is provided a selecting means for a lateral or lower ejection of individually packaged products that are not recognized by the scanning device(s) or are to be sorted out.",
"The selecting means, which can be controlled by the central computer, has at least one transverse pusher, at least one diverter or at least one pivoting flap, which releases an ejection opening.",
"[0016] Inversely, the selecting means may also be used for a lateral selecting of recognized individually packaged products and the longitudinal end of the first conveying track may be used for an ejection of the individually packaged products that are not recognized or are to be sorted out.",
"[0017] In particular, a process according to the present invention for recognizing and guiding individually packaged products provided with a code is characterized in that the individually packaged products of a commissioning order are fed manually by an operator to the first conveying track preferably simultaneously, in pairs and spaced apart from one another.",
"[0018] If the distance of two simultaneously fed individually packaged products selected by the operator is too small to make possible a reliable scanning of two individually packaged products spaced apart from one another at the adjusted, usually high, conveying speed of the first conveying track in the range of one m/sec and a reliable discharging at the selecting means, a distance recognition means, and especially a distance light barrier, provides an automatic turning off of the drive of the first conveying track or of the drive of the individually packaged product-conveying element of the first conveying track.",
"The operator may then place the individually packaged products, which are spaced too close to one another, with new greater distance again onto the conveying track and restart the drive by pressing a button at a terminal.",
"[0019] It is desirable to keep the distance between the individually packaged products to be scanned as low as possible, and especially in the range of 200 mm.",
"Due to the possible low individually packaged product distance, two individually packaged products can be read in two scanning devices spaced apart from one another, which is desirable for achieving a high throughput rate.",
"By means of fixed cycle tracking combined with the identification of the cameras or scanners and the measurement of the individually packaged product length by means of the distance light barrier, one knows which code belongs to which individually packaged product or which individually packaged product does not have a code.",
"[0020] According to the present invention, consequently only one side of the “V belt”",
"is a driven belt in the first conveying track.",
"The other side is a fixed sliding plate.",
"The individually packaged products are automatically aligned in the V angle only by this combination, and only this alignment enables the scanners or cameras to detect an optimal image.",
"If both sides of the “V belt”",
"were driven, the alignment would not be reliable, especially not at the high conveying speed according to the present invention, preferably in the range of one m/sec.",
"It depends on the “relative speed”",
"between the two sides of the “V belt,” which makes possible a local rotation of a fed individually packaged product until the individually packaged product has found its stable position in the V angle.",
"It would hence also be theoretically conceivable to use another driven circular belt with a different speed instead of the fixed sliding plate;",
"however, in practice it is impractical because of the greater expense.",
"[0021] Therefore, according to the present invention, a check station is suggested, which can be operated with high throughput rate with high reliability because of the highly defined, adjustable conveying speed of the first conveying track (by contrast to a prior-art “chute”",
"of the state of the art mentioned in the introduction) and because of the low minimum distance between two individually packaged products to be scanned, especially if two scanning devices spaced apart from one another are each provided with three individual scanners.",
"[0022] When containers are mentioned here, it is understood that they may also be a different receptacle for individually packaged products in the present invention, for example, pallets or trays.",
"[0023] The device according to the present invention and the process according to the present invention are explained in detail below based on exemplary embodiments.",
"The various features of novelty which characterize the invention are pointed out with particularity in the claims annexed to and forming a part of this disclosure.",
"For a better understanding of the invention, its operating advantages and specific objects attained by its uses, reference is made to the accompanying drawings and descriptive matter in which preferred embodiments of the invention are illustrated.",
"BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS [0024] In the drawings: [0025] FIG. 1 is a schematic perspective lateral view of the device according to the present invention for recognizing and guiding individually packaged products provided with a code;",
"[0026] FIG. 2 is a schematic perspective view showing the detail of the inlet area of the device according to FIG. 1 , with working surface, terminal, as well as first, second and third conveying tracks, especially the workstation of an operator;",
"[0027] FIG. 3 is a front view showing the first conveying track consisting of two conveying sections in addition to individual scanners;",
"[0028] FIG. 4 is a schematic top view of the device according to FIG. 1 in the area of the individual scanner;",
"[0029] FIG. 5 is a schematic perspective view showing a device similar to FIG. 3 with a scanning tunnel;",
"[0030] FIG. 6 is a schematic top view of the device according to FIG. 1 in the area of the selecting means;",
"[0031] FIG. 7 is a schematic top view showing a schematic diagram of the device according to the present invention;",
"and [0032] FIG. 8 is a schematic top view, similar to FIG. 7 , showing a schematic diagram of an alternative device according to the present invention.",
"DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS [0033] Referring to the drawings in particular, a device 1 for recognizing and guiding individually packaged products provided with codes shown in FIGS. 1 through 7 is part of a commissioning unit, in which individually packaged products are commissioned in a manner not of detailed interest here.",
"The commissioned individually packaged products of a commissioning order are collected in an (order) container 12 .",
"It is essential to check the contents of the container 12 by number of pieces and type of individually packaged products, i.e., the commissioning order.",
"[0034] The codes are data matrix codes, in which the following data contents are coded: product identification, batch information, expiration date, serial number.",
"[0035] The commissioning unit has a central computer (not shown), to which the device described below is connected via a terminal.",
"[0036] The device 1 for recognizing and guiding a quantity of individually packaged products 2 provided with a code has a first conveying track 3 that has a V-shaped cross section.",
"The individually packaged products of a commissioning order are guided separated and centered and pass through a scanning device 15 with a plurality of individual scanners 16 , 17 , 18 and are identified as actual data in the scanning device 15 by reading the code of the individually packaged product 2 and are compared with the desired data, stored in the central computer, of the individual packaged product quantity, and if there is disagreement of the desired data with the actual data, the individually packaged product is separated out.",
"[0037] In particular, the one V leg of the first conveying track 3 , which has a V-shaped cross section, is a driven individually packaged product-conveying element 5 , especially a driven circular conveyor belt, on which the conveyed individually packaged product 2 lies in a nonsliding manner.",
"[0038] The other V leg of the first conveying track 3 is a stationary individually packaged product-sliding element 6 , especially a sliding plate, on which the conveyed individually packaged product 2 slides, on the other hand.",
"[0039] The first conveying track 3 is arranged horizontally.",
"[0040] The two V legs form an angle of at least 90° and they form exactly a right angle in the exemplary embodiment of the drawings.",
"[0041] At least one of the V legs forms an angle of 45° to the horizontal, and both V legs in the exemplary embodiment of the drawings.",
"[0042] In particular, in the longitudinal direction, the first conveying track 3 is composed of two (first and second) conveying sections aligned with one another, each consisting of an individually packaged product-conveying element 5 and an individually packaged product-sliding element 6 , whereby the individually packaged product-sliding element 6 of the second conveying section is connected, aligned, to the individually packaged product-conveying element 5 of the first conveying section, and inversely, the individually packaged product-conveying element 5 of the second conveying section is connected, aligned, to the individually packaged product-sliding element 6 of the first conveying section.",
"[0043] A stationary light-transparent section 10 , and especially a glass window, is arranged directly downstream aligned with the non-light-transparent individually packaged product-sliding element 6 , whereby the length of the individually packaged product-conveying element 5 corresponds approximately to the sum of the individual lengths of the individually packaged product-sliding element 6 and of the light-transparent section 10 .",
"[0044] In the area of the light-transparent section 10 or of the glass window, a three-dimensional scanning device 15 with preferably three individual scanners 16 , 17 , 18 is provided, whose first individual scanner 16 reads the possible code on the sliding surface of a conveyed individually packaged product through the light-transparent section 10 , and whose other individual scanners 17 , 18 read possible codes of other side surfaces of the conveyed individually packaged product, but the first individual scanner does not read the side surface of the individually packaged product that lies on the individually packaged product-conveying element 5 in a nonsliding manner.",
"[0045] Each of the two conveying sections has a (first or second) scanning device 15 each with preferably three individual scanners 16 , 17 , 18 as well as a (first or second) light-transparent section 10 or a (first or second) glass window, whereby an individual scanner 16 of the second conveying section reads a possible code of the up to now unread side surface of the individually packaged product that was lying beforehand in a nonsliding manner on the individually packaged product-conveying element 5 of the first conveying section through the associated second light-transparent section 10 .",
"[0046] The scanning devices 15 are optionally arranged in a scanning tunnel 14 according to FIG. 5 selecting means 13 for a lateral or lower ejection of individually packaged products 2 ′ which are not recognized by the scanning device 15 or which are to be sorted out is provided in the area of the longitudinal end of the first conveying track 3 .",
"[0047] Ejected, non-recognized individually packaged products 2 ′ can be returned on a second conveying track 19 for a manual scanning by means of a hand scanner 7 and optionally for sorting out in the area of the inlet of the first conveying track 3 and can optionally be received in a container kept ready.",
"[0048] A container 12 that is empty or filled with hand-scanned individually packaged products on a third conveying track 20 can be conveyed from the area of the inlet of the first conveying track 3 under the longitudinal end of the first conveying track into a ready position.",
"[0049] Individually packaged products recognized by the scanning device 15 at the longitudinal end of the first conveying track 3 are delivered into the container 12 kept ready.",
"[0050] A buffer 23 with a flap that can be opened on the bottom for a guided delivery of buffered, scanned individually packaged products 2 into the container 12 kept ready is provided at the longitudinal end of the first conveying track 3 .",
"[0051] The selecting means 13 , which can be controlled by means of the central computer, has at least one transverse pusher, at least one diverter or at least one pivoting flap 21 , which releases an ejection opening.",
"[0052] The pivoting flap 21 may be designed as a counter-controlled double flap with two pivot axes 22 according to FIG. 6 .",
"[0053] The terminal comprises a keyboard 8 , a display screen 9 and a bidirectional wired connection to the individual scanners 16 , 17 , 18 of the scanning devices 15 as well as to the hand scanner 7 for a connection to the central computer for recognizing the desired data or identifying the individually packaged products, especially the individually packaged products of a complete commissioning order, as well as for comparing the actual data with the desired data of the individually packaged product quantity.",
"[0054] Furthermore, a spacer is provided for a simultaneous manual entry of two individually packaged products 2 that are spaced apart from one another on the first conveying track 3 .",
"In the exemplary embodiment of the drawings, the spacer is the keyboard 8 of the terminal, as this can be seen in FIGS. 1 through 3 , for example.",
"[0055] A feed table 4 is located on the inlet side for the individually packaged products 2 approximately at the level of the inlet of the first conveying track 3 .",
"[0056] Finally, a (not shown) distance light barrier is provided for the purpose of automatic turning off of the drive of the individually packaged product-conveying element 5 in case of undershooting a minimum distance of two individually packaged products to be scanned consecutively.",
"Similar to the first individual scanner 16 behind the glass window, the distance light barrier is located behind the individually packaged product-sliding element 6 or sliding plate and recognizes an individually packaged product conveyed past through an opening in the sliding plate, and especially its length, as well as the distance between two conveyed individually packaged products by means of measuring time.",
"The (minimum) distance between two conveyed individually packaged products, which it is essential to check, is obtained based on the known conveying speed of the first conveying track 3 .",
"If the minimum distance is undershot, the individually packaged product-conveying element 5 or the circular belt stops automatically.",
"An operator then repositions the individually packaged products that are placed too close to one another on the first conveying track 3 and restarts the circular belt by pressing a button on the keyboard 8 .",
"[0057] During operation, the individually packaged products 2 of a commissioning order are then placed or dumped out by an operator 24 from a container 12 containing [sic, “enthaltenen”",
"(contained) should be “enthaltenden”—Tr.",
"Ed.",
"] the individually packaged products of the commissioning order onto the feed table 4 arranged upstream of the first conveying track 3 and fed to the first conveying track 3 separately, in particular, simultaneously, in pairs and spaced apart from one another.",
"The operator 24 pulls an individually packaged product with both hands to the body into the V belt.",
"The individually packaged products are taken over by the V belt and fed aligned to the scanning area.",
"Two consecutive individually packaged products spaced apart from one another can be scanned simultaneously.",
"Scanned and hereby recognized individually packaged products reach the longitudinal end of the first conveying track 3 and from there the buffer 23 or collecting hopper.",
"[0058] Before dumping out or placing the individually packaged products onto the feed table 4 , however, bulky, heavy, sensitive, awkward and/or round individually packaged products are separated out from the container 12 or from the feed table 4 by the operator 24 and are identified in a hand scanner 7 or by entering the actual data on the keyboard 8 of a terminal of the central computer and the identified individually packaged products are subsequently placed back in the container again.",
"[0059] The container 12 is placed on the third conveying track 20 and is then conveyed from there under the outlet of the first conveying track 3 into a ready position, which then takes over the scanned and recognized individually packaged products 2 of the buffer 23 .",
"[0060] Scanned and not recognized individually packaged products 2 ′ are separated out by the selecting means 13 and then returned into the area of the start of the first conveying track 3 via the second conveying track 11 .",
"[0061] The returned individually packaged products 2 ′ are identified by the operator 24 by means of the hand scanner 7 or by entering the actual data on the keyboard 8 of the central computer.",
"[0062] Hereby recognized individually packaged products of the commissioning order are again guided via the first conveying track 3 to the container 12 under the outlet of the first conveying track 3 .",
"[0063] Not recognized individually packaged products are transferred to a place for separating out or are fed back into a commissioning warehouse.",
"[0064] The individually packaged product is acoustically or visually identifiable to an operator 24 at least when the desired data are in agreement with the actual data.",
"[0065] Also, a recognition report is prepared about a correct commissioning order.",
"[0066] A report about an error in commissioning may likewise be prepared.",
"[0067] In an alternative embodiment, the “check station”",
"according to the present invention according to the schematic diagram according to FIG. 7 may be converted into a filling station for individual orders according to the schematic diagram according to FIG. 8 .",
"In this case, especially a plurality of selecting means 13 arranged one behind the other are then used for a lateral or lower ejection of individually packaged products, recognized by the scanning devices 15 , into assigned single-order containers 25 , while the longitudinal end of the first conveying track 3 is used as an ejection 26 of non-recognized individually packaged products.",
"[0068] By means of the present invention, a large number of individually packaged products or products can be recognized in a simple manner, very reliably and very quickly, for the most part in a semi-automatic manner by means of the device 1 in a simple ergonomic operation and the commissioning order can thus be checked.",
"Only atypical individually packaged products are, as previously, hand-scanned.",
"[0069] While specific embodiments of the invention have been described in detail to illustrate the application of the principles of the invention, it will be understood that the invention may be embodied otherwise without departing from such principles."
] |
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The invention is an image or object support apparatus which hold an image or object, such as a photograph, drawing or other graphic work in a spaced position relative to a backing plate. The backing plate is itself supported in the place of display, as by picture hanging means or a stand. The image or object is supported by struts having grippers enabling easy changing of the image or object, and easy adapting to images of various size.
2. Description of Related Art
Prior art picture frames, of course, generally hold an image or object inside of some type of framework. Badge holders are known which include sliding frameworks so that matter such as an employee's photograph can be readily inserted.
Picture hangers using corner engaging wire brackets to hold an image or object are known, however, these use an image or object mounted on some form of rigid backing and the wire comer brackets are held on by interlocking them with a flexible "picture wire" that loops through each of the four (4) brackets. This item and dinner plate hangers use wires in tension to apply to compression to an object to hold up the object. The invention does not use compression on the image or object as many images, such as photographs on paper, would bend if in compression. The invention's preferred embodiment with C-shaped wires enable use to apply tension on the image or object if desired, which is a functionally different operation.
Prior art slotted frames enable a paper to be placed in the slots and the slotted frame is supported in position relative to a backing. The preferred embodiment is different using paired slots and spacers to attach them to and hold them away from the backing. Another prior art approach is to use a combination of the slots and magnets. Another prior art apparatus uses combinations of adhesives and magnetic mounting devices of specific male and female configurations with mechanical securement means. A magnetic "L" shaped bracket has been used in the prior art as well. In the invention, an alternative embodiment is different in that it uses two gripper surfaces holding the image or object in between, without identifiable "male" and "female" members.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
This apparatus provides an economic, pleasing and a distinctive appearance in a structure having an economical construction with adaptability to display various size images. The invention comprises a base plate of a planar, rectangular or square form. On the reverse of the plate are spacers and hanging means. This can be hung on a wall, on a traditional picture hanger, nail or the like, or placed using a stand, as on a table or the like.
The base plate has a plurality of struts extending outwardly therefrom. In the preferred embodiment, these struts are flexible, resilient wires extending in a generally C-shaped manner thereby having portions substantially parallel to the planar surface and substantially perpendicular therefrom. At the end of the struts or wires, the preferred embodiment uses one clip per wire. These may be spring loaded clips or other attachment means. An image or object, such as a photograph, is clipped in place on the wires thereby being spaced away from the planar surface giving a "floating" appearance.
Advantages in this configuration include the pleasing appearance, the ability to rapidly and easily change the image or object to suit decorative, subject or other purposes, adaptability to different size images and the ability to use various media for images, whether on paper, transparencies or the like.
The C-shaped arrangement of the struts in the preferred embodiment lets them be bent slightly inwardly or outwardly to accommodate square or rectangular images of varying dimensions or non-rectangular images such as photographs cropped for certain effects.
In addition, the C-shaped struts could be deformed to differing top and bottom radii so as to impart the appearance of a tilt, either upwardly or downwardly, to improve an observer's sight of the image or object, to reduce glare or the like. This can also be done to change the lateral spacing between grippers to adapt to different images.
Alternative embodiments include different strut arrangements and gripping means. Straight rodlike struts could have threaded ends fitting threaded receptacles at selected spaced positions on the base plate. These could then accommodate the varied shaping but not to the infinite degree of the C-shaped wires. The gripping means on the rodlike struts could then be either paired parallel (or downwardly converging) U-shaped channels having closed bottoms thereby defining slots in which a photographic image or object could be placed or, in the second alternative, magnetic elements which could be placed on the outer surface of the image or object in close proximity with magnetized rods, thereby providing greatest protection for the image or object against scratching or the like. The slot arrangement would provide the most rigid structure. One additional potential variation is to use a springy C-shaped wire or strap which would tend to put outwardly directed loads on the corners of a photograph, thereby tending to hold it flat.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the preferred embodiment.
FIG. 2 is front elevational view of the preferred embodiment.
FIG. 3 is a rear elevational view of the preferred embodiment.
FIG. 4 is a top plan view of the preferred embodiment.
FIG. 5 is a perspective view of an alternative embodiment.
FIG. 6 is a top plan view of an alternative embodiment.
FIG. 7 is a sectional view of an alternative embodiment.
FIG. 8 is a perspective view of another alternative embodiment.
FIG. 9 is a top plan view of the alternative embodiment.
FIG. 10 is a sectional view of the other alternative embodiment.
FIG. 11 is a top plan view of another alternative embodiment.
FIG. 12 is a partial front elevation of alternative embodiment.
FIG. 13 is a partial rear elevation of the alternative embodiment.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
The holder 10 supports an image or object 12 for display purposes. A planar surface 14, in the preferred embodiment a finished metal plate, provides the backing and structure for the holder 10. The surface 14 can be any material finished for pleasing appearance and having the necessary structural support and can be formed in a configuration other than the flat plate shown. Thus, the appearance could be enhanced by the use of a concave or convex surface without departing from the invention.
Struts 16 project outwardly from surface 14. Each strut has a gripper 18 formed at the terminus 20 of strut 16 which is adapted to grip image or object 12. In the preferred embodiment, gripper 18 comprises a first jaw 22 and second jaw 24 connected at pivot 26 so as to capture image or object 12 therebetween.
As can be seen, strut 16 has a base leg 30 merging into a curve leg 32 in the preferred embodiment the curved leg 32 terminating in end 20 where the gripper 18 is formed or attached. In the preferred embodiment, strut 16 is formed with leg 30 and 32 such that it describes a "C" shape thereby enabling gripper 18 to lie with jaws 22, 24 nearly parallel to plate 14. In this manner, certain advantages are presented.
Leg 30 can be arranged to terminate where it is affixed to plate 14 or, in the preferred embodiment, to be mounted to pass through an aperture 34 formed in plate 14. In the preferred embodiment, a length of wire can be formed such that a pair of legs 16 are a continuous length of wire, the respective legs 30 merging into a crossing portion 36 which is concealed from view by virtue of the wire passing through apertures 34 behind plate 14. This provides for ease of assembly while maintaining a pleasing appearance and providing economy in the use of fewer cutting operations and fastening operations to connect or mount strut 16 on plate 14. Nevertheless, other methods of mounting strut 16 to plate 14 could be used without departing from the invention.
Another advantage to the "C" shape of strut 16 is that it can be readily manipulated to form struts of varying depth and width relative to the lateral spacing between grippers 18 so that images of varying geometry can be accommodated and a somewhat wider spacing of grippers 18 can be provided permitting the struts 16 to be resiliently deformably closed in to grip image or object 12 under tension provided by the memory or springiness of the wires in the struts 16. This will assist in holding the image or object 12 in a more or less flat position particularly useful when unmounted photographic paper is used which has a tendency to curl owing to the development process.
Another advantage to the "C" shape is that the terminus of legs 30 and passage through apertures 34 are generally hidden from most angles for viewing the image or object by virtue of the placement of the image or object 12 substantially in front of apertures 34. This then in conjunction with using wires finished along the same manner as plate 14 enhances an aesthetically pleasing "high tech" appearance while accentuating the functional and utilitarian attributes of the invention.
Stringers or braces 40 can be mounted to the reverse of plate 14 and hanging attachments 42, such as picture wire in the preferred embodiment used to support the apparatus in use, such as hanging on a hook from a wall (not shown). The stringers provide additional rigidity against bending of plate 14, provide for placement of the mounting apparatus 42 as well as spacing the plate 14 some distance from the wall thereby enhancing the aesthetic appearance and also enabling clearance for the passage of crossing portion 36 of the wire composing struts 16.
Alternative embodiments may be provided. In a first alternative embodiment, in FIGS. 5-7, struts 56 may be substantially rigid members of cylindrical form mounted perpendicularly to plate 54. In this embodiment, strut 56 supports gripping assembly 58 which comprises a first magnetic element 62 and a second magnetic element 64. The magnetic elements are held together with magnetic force sufficient that image or object 12 can be held in place using a plurality of strut-magnetic element combinations. In the preferred version of this alternative embodiment, four strut-magnetic element combinations can be used. Strut 56 is shown as a non-ferrous material such as an aluminum tube with a ferrous insert 62 attracted to magnetic element 64. Alternatively, the strut may be composed of a ferrous or magnetic material, dispensing with a separate element, while performing the same function, namely attracting element 64, a magnet or complimentary ferrous material.
In this alternative embodiment, it would be preferred to have at least a first array of apertures 74 aligning a plurality of struts 56 with an image or object 12 of a certain perimeter. A second array of apertures 76 could be used to change the lateral spacing and/or perimeter of the strut array to conform to a different size image. It would be preferred to use threaded apertures 74, 76 and a threaded end 78 of the struts for ease of manual movement. This arrangement provides for an aesthetically pleasing retention of the image or object 12 with the supports entirely hidden and the friction caused by the magnetic attraction between elements capturing the image or object providing the means for support. A stand 79 is illustrated which can be utilized to support the base plate 54 on a horizontal surface such as a table top. This stand 79 could be used on the other embodiments as well. While magnetic attractive elements 62, 64 are preferred, it may be advantageous to use alternatives such as elements composed of a material having electrostatic attraction or adhesive attraction.
Another alternative is shown in FIGS. 8-10. In this embodiment a pair of opposed brackets 80 are mounted on rigid struts 82. The struts 82 are fitted in apertures 84 in base plate 85, with another array of apertures 86 adapted to receive the struts 82 in different lateral spacing. Because of the mounting to brackets 80, it would be preferred in this alternative to use a pin end 88 as threads such as in FIG. 7 could not easily be used. Pin end 88 can be adapted to a compression fit in aperture 84.
Brackets 80 have a front flange, 90 a rear flange, 92, a side web 94 joining the flanges 90, 92, and a bottom stop, 96. The flanges 90, 92, web 94 and stop 96 define a slot 100 between them. The image or object 12 can be fitted in the slot 100 and rest on stop 96.
Another alternative is shown in FIG. 11. In this embodiment the strut 16 has end 20 formed as a helical coil 101 to hold the image or object 12. By opening the helical coil, through pressure by the edge of the image, or by a fingernail, the image can be place between coils, utilizing the tensile strength of the coil to hold the image in place.
A preferably plastic foam hanger 102 (which may be die cut, or molded) is formed with walls 103 arranged in the shape of square or a rectangle, with the interior of the square or rectangle proportionately removed, leaving a void in the interior of the square or rectangle. Rim 104 can be formed to grip a hanger, hook or nail in a wall. This shape is then attached to the back of the frame and can be utilized to hang or mount the support apparatus.
This foam hanger 102 can also serve to attach C-shaped wires to rear of plate 14 by means of compressing them between foam hanger 102 and plate 14 with any suitable adhesive. | An image or object support apparatus holds an image or object, such as a photograph, drawing or other graphic work in a spaced position relative to a backing plate. The backing plate is itself supported in the place of display, as by picture hanging means or a stand. The image or object is supported by struts having grippers enabling easy changing of the image or object, and easy adapting to images of various size. | Condense the core contents of the given document. | [
"BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1.",
"Field of the Invention The invention is an image or object support apparatus which hold an image or object, such as a photograph, drawing or other graphic work in a spaced position relative to a backing plate.",
"The backing plate is itself supported in the place of display, as by picture hanging means or a stand.",
"The image or object is supported by struts having grippers enabling easy changing of the image or object, and easy adapting to images of various size.",
"Description of Related Art Prior art picture frames, of course, generally hold an image or object inside of some type of framework.",
"Badge holders are known which include sliding frameworks so that matter such as an employee's photograph can be readily inserted.",
"Picture hangers using corner engaging wire brackets to hold an image or object are known, however, these use an image or object mounted on some form of rigid backing and the wire comer brackets are held on by interlocking them with a flexible "picture wire"",
"that loops through each of the four (4) brackets.",
"This item and dinner plate hangers use wires in tension to apply to compression to an object to hold up the object.",
"The invention does not use compression on the image or object as many images, such as photographs on paper, would bend if in compression.",
"The invention's preferred embodiment with C-shaped wires enable use to apply tension on the image or object if desired, which is a functionally different operation.",
"Prior art slotted frames enable a paper to be placed in the slots and the slotted frame is supported in position relative to a backing.",
"The preferred embodiment is different using paired slots and spacers to attach them to and hold them away from the backing.",
"Another prior art approach is to use a combination of the slots and magnets.",
"Another prior art apparatus uses combinations of adhesives and magnetic mounting devices of specific male and female configurations with mechanical securement means.",
"A magnetic "L"",
"shaped bracket has been used in the prior art as well.",
"In the invention, an alternative embodiment is different in that it uses two gripper surfaces holding the image or object in between, without identifiable "male"",
"and "female"",
"members.",
"SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION This apparatus provides an economic, pleasing and a distinctive appearance in a structure having an economical construction with adaptability to display various size images.",
"The invention comprises a base plate of a planar, rectangular or square form.",
"On the reverse of the plate are spacers and hanging means.",
"This can be hung on a wall, on a traditional picture hanger, nail or the like, or placed using a stand, as on a table or the like.",
"The base plate has a plurality of struts extending outwardly therefrom.",
"In the preferred embodiment, these struts are flexible, resilient wires extending in a generally C-shaped manner thereby having portions substantially parallel to the planar surface and substantially perpendicular therefrom.",
"At the end of the struts or wires, the preferred embodiment uses one clip per wire.",
"These may be spring loaded clips or other attachment means.",
"An image or object, such as a photograph, is clipped in place on the wires thereby being spaced away from the planar surface giving a "floating"",
"appearance.",
"Advantages in this configuration include the pleasing appearance, the ability to rapidly and easily change the image or object to suit decorative, subject or other purposes, adaptability to different size images and the ability to use various media for images, whether on paper, transparencies or the like.",
"The C-shaped arrangement of the struts in the preferred embodiment lets them be bent slightly inwardly or outwardly to accommodate square or rectangular images of varying dimensions or non-rectangular images such as photographs cropped for certain effects.",
"In addition, the C-shaped struts could be deformed to differing top and bottom radii so as to impart the appearance of a tilt, either upwardly or downwardly, to improve an observer's sight of the image or object, to reduce glare or the like.",
"This can also be done to change the lateral spacing between grippers to adapt to different images.",
"Alternative embodiments include different strut arrangements and gripping means.",
"Straight rodlike struts could have threaded ends fitting threaded receptacles at selected spaced positions on the base plate.",
"These could then accommodate the varied shaping but not to the infinite degree of the C-shaped wires.",
"The gripping means on the rodlike struts could then be either paired parallel (or downwardly converging) U-shaped channels having closed bottoms thereby defining slots in which a photographic image or object could be placed or, in the second alternative, magnetic elements which could be placed on the outer surface of the image or object in close proximity with magnetized rods, thereby providing greatest protection for the image or object against scratching or the like.",
"The slot arrangement would provide the most rigid structure.",
"One additional potential variation is to use a springy C-shaped wire or strap which would tend to put outwardly directed loads on the corners of a photograph, thereby tending to hold it flat.",
"BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the preferred embodiment.",
"FIG. 2 is front elevational view of the preferred embodiment.",
"FIG. 3 is a rear elevational view of the preferred embodiment.",
"FIG. 4 is a top plan view of the preferred embodiment.",
"FIG. 5 is a perspective view of an alternative embodiment.",
"FIG. 6 is a top plan view of an alternative embodiment.",
"FIG. 7 is a sectional view of an alternative embodiment.",
"FIG. 8 is a perspective view of another alternative embodiment.",
"FIG. 9 is a top plan view of the alternative embodiment.",
"FIG. 10 is a sectional view of the other alternative embodiment.",
"FIG. 11 is a top plan view of another alternative embodiment.",
"FIG. 12 is a partial front elevation of alternative embodiment.",
"FIG. 13 is a partial rear elevation of the alternative embodiment.",
"DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT The holder 10 supports an image or object 12 for display purposes.",
"A planar surface 14, in the preferred embodiment a finished metal plate, provides the backing and structure for the holder 10.",
"The surface 14 can be any material finished for pleasing appearance and having the necessary structural support and can be formed in a configuration other than the flat plate shown.",
"Thus, the appearance could be enhanced by the use of a concave or convex surface without departing from the invention.",
"Struts 16 project outwardly from surface 14.",
"Each strut has a gripper 18 formed at the terminus 20 of strut 16 which is adapted to grip image or object 12.",
"In the preferred embodiment, gripper 18 comprises a first jaw 22 and second jaw 24 connected at pivot 26 so as to capture image or object 12 therebetween.",
"As can be seen, strut 16 has a base leg 30 merging into a curve leg 32 in the preferred embodiment the curved leg 32 terminating in end 20 where the gripper 18 is formed or attached.",
"In the preferred embodiment, strut 16 is formed with leg 30 and 32 such that it describes a "C"",
"shape thereby enabling gripper 18 to lie with jaws 22, 24 nearly parallel to plate 14.",
"In this manner, certain advantages are presented.",
"Leg 30 can be arranged to terminate where it is affixed to plate 14 or, in the preferred embodiment, to be mounted to pass through an aperture 34 formed in plate 14.",
"In the preferred embodiment, a length of wire can be formed such that a pair of legs 16 are a continuous length of wire, the respective legs 30 merging into a crossing portion 36 which is concealed from view by virtue of the wire passing through apertures 34 behind plate 14.",
"This provides for ease of assembly while maintaining a pleasing appearance and providing economy in the use of fewer cutting operations and fastening operations to connect or mount strut 16 on plate 14.",
"Nevertheless, other methods of mounting strut 16 to plate 14 could be used without departing from the invention.",
"Another advantage to the "C"",
"shape of strut 16 is that it can be readily manipulated to form struts of varying depth and width relative to the lateral spacing between grippers 18 so that images of varying geometry can be accommodated and a somewhat wider spacing of grippers 18 can be provided permitting the struts 16 to be resiliently deformably closed in to grip image or object 12 under tension provided by the memory or springiness of the wires in the struts 16.",
"This will assist in holding the image or object 12 in a more or less flat position particularly useful when unmounted photographic paper is used which has a tendency to curl owing to the development process.",
"Another advantage to the "C"",
"shape is that the terminus of legs 30 and passage through apertures 34 are generally hidden from most angles for viewing the image or object by virtue of the placement of the image or object 12 substantially in front of apertures 34.",
"This then in conjunction with using wires finished along the same manner as plate 14 enhances an aesthetically pleasing "high tech"",
"appearance while accentuating the functional and utilitarian attributes of the invention.",
"Stringers or braces 40 can be mounted to the reverse of plate 14 and hanging attachments 42, such as picture wire in the preferred embodiment used to support the apparatus in use, such as hanging on a hook from a wall (not shown).",
"The stringers provide additional rigidity against bending of plate 14, provide for placement of the mounting apparatus 42 as well as spacing the plate 14 some distance from the wall thereby enhancing the aesthetic appearance and also enabling clearance for the passage of crossing portion 36 of the wire composing struts 16.",
"Alternative embodiments may be provided.",
"In a first alternative embodiment, in FIGS. 5-7, struts 56 may be substantially rigid members of cylindrical form mounted perpendicularly to plate 54.",
"In this embodiment, strut 56 supports gripping assembly 58 which comprises a first magnetic element 62 and a second magnetic element 64.",
"The magnetic elements are held together with magnetic force sufficient that image or object 12 can be held in place using a plurality of strut-magnetic element combinations.",
"In the preferred version of this alternative embodiment, four strut-magnetic element combinations can be used.",
"Strut 56 is shown as a non-ferrous material such as an aluminum tube with a ferrous insert 62 attracted to magnetic element 64.",
"Alternatively, the strut may be composed of a ferrous or magnetic material, dispensing with a separate element, while performing the same function, namely attracting element 64, a magnet or complimentary ferrous material.",
"In this alternative embodiment, it would be preferred to have at least a first array of apertures 74 aligning a plurality of struts 56 with an image or object 12 of a certain perimeter.",
"A second array of apertures 76 could be used to change the lateral spacing and/or perimeter of the strut array to conform to a different size image.",
"It would be preferred to use threaded apertures 74, 76 and a threaded end 78 of the struts for ease of manual movement.",
"This arrangement provides for an aesthetically pleasing retention of the image or object 12 with the supports entirely hidden and the friction caused by the magnetic attraction between elements capturing the image or object providing the means for support.",
"A stand 79 is illustrated which can be utilized to support the base plate 54 on a horizontal surface such as a table top.",
"This stand 79 could be used on the other embodiments as well.",
"While magnetic attractive elements 62, 64 are preferred, it may be advantageous to use alternatives such as elements composed of a material having electrostatic attraction or adhesive attraction.",
"Another alternative is shown in FIGS. 8-10.",
"In this embodiment a pair of opposed brackets 80 are mounted on rigid struts 82.",
"The struts 82 are fitted in apertures 84 in base plate 85, with another array of apertures 86 adapted to receive the struts 82 in different lateral spacing.",
"Because of the mounting to brackets 80, it would be preferred in this alternative to use a pin end 88 as threads such as in FIG. 7 could not easily be used.",
"Pin end 88 can be adapted to a compression fit in aperture 84.",
"Brackets 80 have a front flange, 90 a rear flange, 92, a side web 94 joining the flanges 90, 92, and a bottom stop, 96.",
"The flanges 90, 92, web 94 and stop 96 define a slot 100 between them.",
"The image or object 12 can be fitted in the slot 100 and rest on stop 96.",
"Another alternative is shown in FIG. 11.",
"In this embodiment the strut 16 has end 20 formed as a helical coil 101 to hold the image or object 12.",
"By opening the helical coil, through pressure by the edge of the image, or by a fingernail, the image can be place between coils, utilizing the tensile strength of the coil to hold the image in place.",
"A preferably plastic foam hanger 102 (which may be die cut, or molded) is formed with walls 103 arranged in the shape of square or a rectangle, with the interior of the square or rectangle proportionately removed, leaving a void in the interior of the square or rectangle.",
"Rim 104 can be formed to grip a hanger, hook or nail in a wall.",
"This shape is then attached to the back of the frame and can be utilized to hang or mount the support apparatus.",
"This foam hanger 102 can also serve to attach C-shaped wires to rear of plate 14 by means of compressing them between foam hanger 102 and plate 14 with any suitable adhesive."
] |
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
This invention relates to mooring lines. In particular, this invention relates to a retractable mooring line device for a boat or other watercraft.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Mooring or docking a boat conventionally involves tying at least one mooring line between a cleat secured to the boat and a dock, pier, slip or other stationary mooring structure. This can be a difficult and trying task, particularly in rough water where the motion of the boat and slippery wet surfaces can render it difficult to properly secure the mooring line to the boat.
Moreover, the boat must be equipped with a mooring line of sufficient length to accommodate various mooring environments, although in many cases only a portion of the mooring line will be required to secure the boat. The excess mooring line can be difficult to stow neatly, and is thus subject to becoming knotted or tangled, or entangled with persons, cargo or equipment on the boat, which can pose both an inconvenience and a hazard.
Retractable mooring lines have been proposed, in which a line is wound about a payoff reel and dispensed as needed to moor the boat under the particular mooring conditions encountered at the time. An example of such a device is described and illustrated in U.S. Pat. No. 4,846,090 issued Jul. 11, 1989 to Palmquist, which is incorporated herein by reference, which teaches a spring-loaded reel biased in the take-up direction and provided with a ratchet-type lock that is selectively engaged to ratchet teeth provided along the edges of the reel guide walls, to prevent rotation in the payoff direction when the boat is moored.
However, the use of a ratchet-type lock with a spring-loaded payoff reel can cause problems due to the oscillating motion experienced by a moored boat in wavy conditions. Where the mooring structure is above the level of the securing point on the boat, as the boat is lifted upwardly by a wave the tension on the mooring line is temporarily released, which allows the reel to rotate in the take-up direction. As the crest of the wave passes, the boat begins to fall, but in the newly locked position of the reel the mooring line is too short to allow the boat to freely roll off of the wave, causing the boat to list away from the mooring structure. Similarly, where the mooring structure is below the level of the securing point on the boat, when the boat falls into a trough the tension on the mooring line is temporarily released, which allows the reel to turn in the take-up direction and locks the mooring line so that as the crest of the next wave arrives and lifts the boat the mooring line is too short to allow the boat to rise to the crest of the wave, causing the boat to list toward the mooring structure.
A retractable mooring line device which provides a positive lock against rotation of the payoff reel in both directions is described in U.S. Pat. No. 6,095,075 issued Aug. 1, 2000 to Gordon et al., which is incorporated herein by reference. This device is particularly suitable for light- and medium-duty applications. However, the latch engages only one wall of the payoff reel. A moored boat can be subjected to very high peak forces due to wave action and currents, and repetitive momentary tension on the mooring line is transferred to the payoff reel, which in turn subjects the locking mechanism to high momentary stresses. The payoff reel guide wall becomes subject to shearing or deformation and thus must be formed to a gauge sufficient to resist deformation under ordinary conditions.
It would accordingly be advantageous to provide a retractable mooring device with a payoff reel that can be locked in both the payoff and take-up directions and which provides a secure and stable lock simultaneously against both walls of the payoff reel, to effectively double the resistance to deformation of the reel under the stresses normally encountered by a mooring line, but in which the lock can be released with minimal effort.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention overcomes the above disadvantages by providing a retractable mooring line device which locks the payoff reel against rotation in both the payoff and take-up directions. The locking mechanism in the device of the invention is sturdy and stable, yet easy to release.
The invention accomplishes this by providing a reel for storing and paying off the mooring line, having side walls each comprising a series of notches for receiving a releasable latch. The latch engages between notches at a substantially right angle, which provides a secure, positive locking engagement between the latch and the reel while permitting the latch to be released under the application of relatively little force.
In one preferred embodiment having a generally vertical orientation, and thus suitable for mounting internally within the gunnel or transom of a boat, the latch is actuated by a lever having a broad actuation plate which can be easily actuated by a user's hand or foot, and engages the reel radially. The latch is preferably biased to a locked position, i.e. with the latch engaging the reel, by a spring which bears against the gunnel plate, and thus the mechanism can be exposed for maintenance or repair simply by removal of the gunnel plate and the gunnel plate can then be reinstalled without requiring special loading or positioning of the latch spring.
In a further embodiment which is particularly suitable for mounting horizontally, for example within a pontoon of a pontoon or deck boat or the like, in which the latch is actuated by a button which can be actuated by a user's hand or foot. In this embodiment the latch moves axially relative to the reel and is provided with a pair of notches which align with the walls of the reel when the latch is in the release position. Preferably the latch is retained by the top plate and biased to the locked position by a spring which bears against the bottom of the housing, so in this embodiment after removing the housing the top plate can be removed and reinstalled without requiring special loading or positioning of the latch spring.
The present invention thus provides a retractable mooring line device, comprising a housing comprising side plates, a rotatable reel comprising sidewalls affixed in spaced relation to a hub, rotatably mounted to the side plates of the housing, the sidewalls each having a series of notches about its periphery, and a locking mechanism comprising a latching member pivotably mounted adjacent to the reel by a hub, comprising a latch positioned and configured to move between an unlocked position in which the latch disengages from the reel and a locked position in which the latch engages at least one of the series of notches about the periphery of each of the side walls of the reel, whereby when the latch is engaged to the notches the reel is prevented from rotation, and when the latch is disengaged from the notches the reel is capable of rotation in two directions.
The present invention further provides a retractable mooring line device, comprising a housing comprising side plates and a gunnel plate affixed to a top edge of each side plate, a rotatable reel comprising sidewalls affixed in spaced relation to a hub, rotatably mounted to the side plates of the housing, the sidewalls each having a series of notches about its periphery, and a locking mechanism comprising a latching member pivotably mounted adjacent to the reel by a hub, comprising an actuating plate exposed to an exterior of the housing and a latch disposed on opposed sides of the hub, the latch being positioned and configured to move between an unlocked position in which the latch disengages from the reel and a locked position in which the latch engages at least one of the series of notches about the periphery of each of the side walls of the reel, the latching member comprising a spring bearing against the gunnel plate and urging the latch toward the locked position, whereby when the latch is engaged to the notches the reel is prevented from rotation, and when the latch is disengaged from the notches the reel is capable of rotation in two directions.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
In drawings which illustrate by way of example only preferred embodiments of the invention,
FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a first embodiment of the retractable mooring line device according to the invention, having a generally vertical orientation.
FIG. 2 is an end elevation of the device of FIG. 1 .
FIG. 3 is a partially exploded view of the device of FIG. 1 with one side plate removed to expose the moving parts of the device.
FIG. 4 is a partially exploded view of the reel and reel mounting mechanism.
FIG. 5 is an exploded view of a preferred embodiment of a spring for loading the reel.
FIG. 6 is an exploded perspective view of the spring and the reel.
FIG. 7 is a perspective view of the latching member.
FIG. 8 is a side elevation of the device of FIG. 1 with one side plate removed, showing the device in a fully unlocked position.
FIG. 9 is a side elevation of the device of FIG. 1 with one side plate removed, showing the device in a locked position; and
FIG. 10 is a side elevation of the device of FIG. 1 with one side plate removed, showing the device in a locked position with the safety latch engaged.
FIG. 11 is a perspective view of a further embodiment of the retractable mooring line device according to the invention, having a generally horizontal orientation.
FIG. 12 is a perspective view of the embodiment of FIG. 11 with the top plate removed.
FIG. 13 is a side elevation of the embodiment of FIG. 11 , showing the latch in the locked position.
FIG. 14 is a side elevation of the embodiment of FIG. 11 , showing the latch in the release position.
FIG. 15 is an end elevation of the embodiment of FIG. 11 .
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
FIGS. 1 and 2 illustrate a first embodiment of the retractable mooring line device according to the invention. The device comprises a housing 10 comprising side plates 12 , 14 and a gunnel plate 16 . The side plates 12 , 14 are connected in spaced relation as by bolts 10 a extending through spacer sleeves 10 b, leaving sufficient clearance to allow free rotation of the reel 20 .
The gunnel plate 16 is preferably affixed to flanges 12 a, 14 a of the respective side plates 12 , 14 , as by bolts 16 a with countersunk heads exposed for removal in case the device requires maintenance or repair. An opening 16 c is provided in the gunnel plate 16 for the mooring line 2 , shown in phantom in FIG. 1 , to pass out of the housing 10 .
All components of the device are preferably composed of stainless steel, except as otherwise indicating in the following description. However, it will be appreciated that other materials may be suitable for any particular application, for example aluminium or plastic may be used for light duty applications, and the invention is not intended to be limited thereby.
The device may be housed in a plastic or fiberglass cup or casing 8 , as shown in FIG. 2 , which provides a drainage outlet 8 a to allow water to drain directly out of the hull of the watercraft, for example through a flexible hose 8 b.
The reel 20 , illustrated in FIG. 4 , comprises a pair of side walls 22 , 24 connected by (for example welded to) a hub 26 . The hub 26 fits snugly over a main bushing 28 , which is preferably composed of a self lubricating high density plastic, which in turn mounts over an axle or pin 30 rotationally fixed relative to the side plates 12 , 14 of the housing 10 . The hub 26 is rotationally locked to the main bushing 28 by one or more locking pins 26 a, and the bushing 28 remains free to rotate on pin 30 .
The reel is preferably spring loaded for automatic retraction when the locking mechanism (described below) is released. A spring 40 , illustrated in FIG. 5 , has a first anchoring end 40 a for engaging a slot 30 a or other engaging means at one end of the pin 30 , and a second anchoring end 40 b for engaging a slot 26 b or other engaging means in the hub 26 . Preferably the hub 26 is provided with a plurality of evenly spaced slots 26 b, so that the spring can be fixed to the hub 26 in one of a number of positions without requiring rotation of the reel 20 into a specific position. Also, preferably the spring 40 is contained within a casing 41 comprising a body 42 and a lid 44 , composed of the same self lubricating plastic as the bushing 28 . The casing 41 serves to both contain the spring against dislodgement when the reel 20 is removed from the housing 10 for servicing and to protect the spring 40 from salt water and the elements.
The encased spring 40 is thus inserted into the main hub 26 as shown in FIG. 6 . It will be appreciated that the main bushing 28 has an axial length less than that of the hub 26 , leaving sufficient space for the spring casing 41 to fit fully within the hub 26 .
In the preferred embodiment the pin 30 is rotationally fixed relative to the side plates 12 , 14 by a square end 30 b, best seen in FIG. 1 , which fits into a square opening in the side plate 12 and thus locks the pin 30 against rotation relative to the housing 10 . The reel 20 (and concurrently the main bushing 26 and spring casing 42 ) rotate around the pin 30 .
In the preferred embodiment the locking mechanism comprises a latching member 50 , illustrated in FIG. 7 , comprising an actuating plate 52 and a latch 54 disposed on opposite sides of a hub 56 . The latching member 50 is engaged to the side plates 12 , 14 as by pin 50 a, seen in FIG. 3 , so that as the actuating plate 52 is depressed into the housing 10 the latch 54 moves away from the side walls 22 , 24 to unlock the reel 20 .
An opening 16 b is provided in the gunnel plate 16 to expose the latching member 50 , preferably approximating the peripheral configuration of the actuating plate 52 for aesthetic reasons and to keep dirt out of the housing 10 .
A series of notches 60 is formed in the periphery of each of the side walls 22 , 24 of the reel 20 . Preferably the notches 60 are provided entirely around the periphery of each sidewall 22 , 24 , to maximize the number of positions in which the device can lock, separated by sufficient material to withstand the forces normally encountered by the watercraft when moored. The latch 54 is configured to simultaneously engage one of the notches 60 in each of the side walls 22 , 24 of the reel 20 . The latch 54 thus extends substantially across the entire interior of the housing 10 , which both ensures that the latch 54 engages both side walls 22 , 24 and allows some deflection of the latching member 50 without dislodging the latch 54 from the notches 60 .
The latching member 50 is accordingly mounted adjacent to the gunnel plate 16 , so as to pivot between the position in which the latch 54 is disengaged from the notches 60 as shown in FIG. 8 , which allows the reel 20 to rotate freely, and a position in which the latch 54 is engaged within a notch 60 in each side wall 22 , 24 , as shown in FIG. 9 , to lock the reel 20 against rotation in both directions. In the preferred embodiment the latching member SO is mounted such that the actuating plate 52 is flush with the gunnel plate 16 when the device is in the locked position shown in FIG. 9 , and the latch 54 engages each notch 60 in a substantially perpendicular orientation.
Preferably the latching member 50 is spring biased to the locking position, so that the device locks automatically unless the actuating plate 54 is being depressed. In the preferred embodiment this is accomplished by affixing to the latching member 50 as by rivets or any other suitable means, a spring 70 , for example a leaf spring. Spring 70 is oriented such that the free end 72 of the spring 70 engages against the underside of the gunnel plate 16 . The pressure applied by the spring 70 can be optimized by separating the free end 72 of the spring 70 into a series of fingers 70 a, 70 b, 70 c, the width of each being selected so that the cumulative force supplied by the fingers 70 a, 70 b, 70 c provides the desired resistance to disengagement of the latching member 50 . This ensures that the latch 54 does not become dislodged from the notch 60 inadvertently, but at the same time minimizes the pressure required to release the latching member 50 .
In the preferred embodiment a maintenance lock 80 is also provided, rotatably mounted between the side plates 12 , 14 as by a pin 82 , in a position adjacent to the reel 20 . The maintenance lock 80 can thus be pivoted from the unlocked position, as shown in FIG. 9 , to a locked position shown in FIG. 10 in which the reel 20 is prevented from rotating regardless of the position of the latching member 50 . During normal operation of the device the maintenance lock 80 is retained in the unlocked position by a boss or stud 84 projecting from the side plate 12 and/or 14 into a hole 83 in the maintenance lock 80 . During maintenance or servicing the maintenance lock 80 can be rotated to the locked position and retained in the unlocked position by a boss or stud 85 projecting from the side plate 12 and/or 14 into the hole 83 in the maintenance lock 80 . The maintenance lock 80 is provided solely to prevent the reel 20 from uncoiling during servicing or repair activities, and is not used in normal operation.
In use, the gunnel plate 16 is attached to the side plate flanges 12 a, 14 a by bolts 16 a. The reel 20 is rotated a sufficient number of revolutions to retract the mooring line, 2 and the mooring line 2 is passed through the opening 16 and attached to the reel 20 . When the reel 20 is released the spring 40 rotates the reel in the take-up direction and the mooring line 2 is automatically loaded onto the hub 26 . The device is optionally placed in a water-catching container 8 and mounted into the gunnel 4 of a boat (shown in phantom in FIG. 2 ), preferably so that the upper surface of the gunnel plate 16 is flush with the gunnel 4 , and secured in place as by screws, rivets or other suitable fastening members (not shown) through holes 16 d.
When the watercraft is to be moored, the actuating plate 52 of the latching member 50 is depressed, which may be conveniently effected by the user's foot. The mooring line 2 is drawn out to the required length and affixed to a dock or other mooring structure (not shown). The spring 40 winds tighter as the mooring line 2 is drawn out, because the end 40 a engaging the pin 30 remains stationary while the end 40 b rotates with the hub 26 . The actuating plate 52 is released and the latch spring 70 urges the latch 54 into the next nearest notches 60 of the respective sidewalls 22 , 24 of the reel 20 , thus locking the reel 20 against rotation.
To retract the mooring line 2 , the actuating plate 54 is depressed to disengage the latch 54 from the notches 60 . The spring 40 rotates the reel 20 in the retracting direction to retract the mooring line 2 back onto the reel 20 for storage.
FIGS. 11 to 15 illustrate a further embodiment of the retractable mooring line device according to the invention. This embodiment has a generally horizontal orientation, which is particularly suitable for mounting on a watercraft via housing flange 10 a, for example onto the frame between pontoons of a pontoon boat or the like. In this embodiment a latch 90 comprises a latch plate 92 having notches 94 (best seen in FIG. 13 ) large enough to allow the sidewalls 22 , 24 of the reel 20 to pass freely through the notches 94 , and spaced apart a distance corresponding to the spacing between the sidewalls 22 , 24 . The latch 90 is slidably disposed through an opening (not shown) in the top plate 16 at any suitable position adjacent to the reel 20 , and movable between a locked position, shown in FIG. 13 , with the button 96 raised from the top plate 16 and the notches 94 out of alignment with the reel sidewalls 22 , 24 ; and a release position, shown in FIG. 14 , with the button 96 depressed and the notches 94 in alignment with the reel sidewalls 22 , 24 .
Preferably the latch 90 is biased to the locked position by one or more springs 98 (two springs 98 are shown in the embodiment illustrated, as best seen in FIG. 15 ), which bear against the bottom plate 18 of the housing 10 . Thus, in this embodiment also the top plate 16 can be removed and reinstalled (after demounting the housing from the frame of the boat) without requiring special loading or positioning of the latch spring 98 . As in the previously described embodiment, the button 96 can be actuated by a user's hand or foot. However, in the embodiment of FIGS. 11 to 15 the latch 90 moves axially relative to the reel 20 , releasing the reel 20 when the notches 94 are aligned with the reel sidewalls 22 , 24 , as shown in FIG. 14 .
In the operation of the embodiment of FIGS. 11 to 15 , the reel 20 is retained in the locked position by engagement of the latch plate 92 with one of the series of notches 60 disposed about the periphery of each sidewall 22 , 24 . When a user depresses the button 96 the latch plate 92 moves axially relative to the reel 20 until the notches 94 come into alignment with the sidewalls 22 , 24 , at which point the reel 20 is released and able to rotate in both directions.
In both of the described embodiments, servicing and maintenance of the device 10 is easily effected by removing bolts 16 a and removing the gunnel plate 16 , which exposes the entire interior of the housing 10 and all of the moving components of the device 10 .
Various embodiments of the present invention having been thus described in detail by way of example, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that variations and modifications may be made without departing from the invention. The invention includes all such variations and modifications as fall within the scope of the appended claims. | A retractable mooring line device comprising a reel for storing and paying off a mooring line ( 2 ), having side walls ( 22, 24 ) each comprising a series of notches ( 60 ) for receiving a releasable latch ( 54 ). A latch simultaneously engages between notches in both side walls ( 22, 24 ) at a substantially right angle to provide a secure, positive locking engagement between the latch and the reel while permitting the latch ( 54 ) to be released under the application of relatively little force. In the preferred embodiment the latch may be actuated by a user's hand or foot and is biased toward the reel by a spring ( 70 ) which bears against the housing ( 18 ). The mechanism can be exposed for maintenance or repair simply by removal of the gunnel plate ( 16 ) and reinstallation of the gunnel plate does not require special loading of the latch spring. | Concisely explain the essential features and purpose of the invention. | [
"FIELD OF THE INVENTION This invention relates to mooring lines.",
"In particular, this invention relates to a retractable mooring line device for a boat or other watercraft.",
"BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Mooring or docking a boat conventionally involves tying at least one mooring line between a cleat secured to the boat and a dock, pier, slip or other stationary mooring structure.",
"This can be a difficult and trying task, particularly in rough water where the motion of the boat and slippery wet surfaces can render it difficult to properly secure the mooring line to the boat.",
"Moreover, the boat must be equipped with a mooring line of sufficient length to accommodate various mooring environments, although in many cases only a portion of the mooring line will be required to secure the boat.",
"The excess mooring line can be difficult to stow neatly, and is thus subject to becoming knotted or tangled, or entangled with persons, cargo or equipment on the boat, which can pose both an inconvenience and a hazard.",
"Retractable mooring lines have been proposed, in which a line is wound about a payoff reel and dispensed as needed to moor the boat under the particular mooring conditions encountered at the time.",
"An example of such a device is described and illustrated in U.S. Pat. No. 4,846,090 issued Jul. 11, 1989 to Palmquist, which is incorporated herein by reference, which teaches a spring-loaded reel biased in the take-up direction and provided with a ratchet-type lock that is selectively engaged to ratchet teeth provided along the edges of the reel guide walls, to prevent rotation in the payoff direction when the boat is moored.",
"However, the use of a ratchet-type lock with a spring-loaded payoff reel can cause problems due to the oscillating motion experienced by a moored boat in wavy conditions.",
"Where the mooring structure is above the level of the securing point on the boat, as the boat is lifted upwardly by a wave the tension on the mooring line is temporarily released, which allows the reel to rotate in the take-up direction.",
"As the crest of the wave passes, the boat begins to fall, but in the newly locked position of the reel the mooring line is too short to allow the boat to freely roll off of the wave, causing the boat to list away from the mooring structure.",
"Similarly, where the mooring structure is below the level of the securing point on the boat, when the boat falls into a trough the tension on the mooring line is temporarily released, which allows the reel to turn in the take-up direction and locks the mooring line so that as the crest of the next wave arrives and lifts the boat the mooring line is too short to allow the boat to rise to the crest of the wave, causing the boat to list toward the mooring structure.",
"A retractable mooring line device which provides a positive lock against rotation of the payoff reel in both directions is described in U.S. Pat. No. 6,095,075 issued Aug. 1, 2000 to Gordon et al.",
", which is incorporated herein by reference.",
"This device is particularly suitable for light- and medium-duty applications.",
"However, the latch engages only one wall of the payoff reel.",
"A moored boat can be subjected to very high peak forces due to wave action and currents, and repetitive momentary tension on the mooring line is transferred to the payoff reel, which in turn subjects the locking mechanism to high momentary stresses.",
"The payoff reel guide wall becomes subject to shearing or deformation and thus must be formed to a gauge sufficient to resist deformation under ordinary conditions.",
"It would accordingly be advantageous to provide a retractable mooring device with a payoff reel that can be locked in both the payoff and take-up directions and which provides a secure and stable lock simultaneously against both walls of the payoff reel, to effectively double the resistance to deformation of the reel under the stresses normally encountered by a mooring line, but in which the lock can be released with minimal effort.",
"SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention overcomes the above disadvantages by providing a retractable mooring line device which locks the payoff reel against rotation in both the payoff and take-up directions.",
"The locking mechanism in the device of the invention is sturdy and stable, yet easy to release.",
"The invention accomplishes this by providing a reel for storing and paying off the mooring line, having side walls each comprising a series of notches for receiving a releasable latch.",
"The latch engages between notches at a substantially right angle, which provides a secure, positive locking engagement between the latch and the reel while permitting the latch to be released under the application of relatively little force.",
"In one preferred embodiment having a generally vertical orientation, and thus suitable for mounting internally within the gunnel or transom of a boat, the latch is actuated by a lever having a broad actuation plate which can be easily actuated by a user's hand or foot, and engages the reel radially.",
"The latch is preferably biased to a locked position, i.e. with the latch engaging the reel, by a spring which bears against the gunnel plate, and thus the mechanism can be exposed for maintenance or repair simply by removal of the gunnel plate and the gunnel plate can then be reinstalled without requiring special loading or positioning of the latch spring.",
"In a further embodiment which is particularly suitable for mounting horizontally, for example within a pontoon of a pontoon or deck boat or the like, in which the latch is actuated by a button which can be actuated by a user's hand or foot.",
"In this embodiment the latch moves axially relative to the reel and is provided with a pair of notches which align with the walls of the reel when the latch is in the release position.",
"Preferably the latch is retained by the top plate and biased to the locked position by a spring which bears against the bottom of the housing, so in this embodiment after removing the housing the top plate can be removed and reinstalled without requiring special loading or positioning of the latch spring.",
"The present invention thus provides a retractable mooring line device, comprising a housing comprising side plates, a rotatable reel comprising sidewalls affixed in spaced relation to a hub, rotatably mounted to the side plates of the housing, the sidewalls each having a series of notches about its periphery, and a locking mechanism comprising a latching member pivotably mounted adjacent to the reel by a hub, comprising a latch positioned and configured to move between an unlocked position in which the latch disengages from the reel and a locked position in which the latch engages at least one of the series of notches about the periphery of each of the side walls of the reel, whereby when the latch is engaged to the notches the reel is prevented from rotation, and when the latch is disengaged from the notches the reel is capable of rotation in two directions.",
"The present invention further provides a retractable mooring line device, comprising a housing comprising side plates and a gunnel plate affixed to a top edge of each side plate, a rotatable reel comprising sidewalls affixed in spaced relation to a hub, rotatably mounted to the side plates of the housing, the sidewalls each having a series of notches about its periphery, and a locking mechanism comprising a latching member pivotably mounted adjacent to the reel by a hub, comprising an actuating plate exposed to an exterior of the housing and a latch disposed on opposed sides of the hub, the latch being positioned and configured to move between an unlocked position in which the latch disengages from the reel and a locked position in which the latch engages at least one of the series of notches about the periphery of each of the side walls of the reel, the latching member comprising a spring bearing against the gunnel plate and urging the latch toward the locked position, whereby when the latch is engaged to the notches the reel is prevented from rotation, and when the latch is disengaged from the notches the reel is capable of rotation in two directions.",
"BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS In drawings which illustrate by way of example only preferred embodiments of the invention, FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a first embodiment of the retractable mooring line device according to the invention, having a generally vertical orientation.",
"FIG. 2 is an end elevation of the device of FIG. 1 .",
"FIG. 3 is a partially exploded view of the device of FIG. 1 with one side plate removed to expose the moving parts of the device.",
"FIG. 4 is a partially exploded view of the reel and reel mounting mechanism.",
"FIG. 5 is an exploded view of a preferred embodiment of a spring for loading the reel.",
"FIG. 6 is an exploded perspective view of the spring and the reel.",
"FIG. 7 is a perspective view of the latching member.",
"FIG. 8 is a side elevation of the device of FIG. 1 with one side plate removed, showing the device in a fully unlocked position.",
"FIG. 9 is a side elevation of the device of FIG. 1 with one side plate removed, showing the device in a locked position;",
"and FIG. 10 is a side elevation of the device of FIG. 1 with one side plate removed, showing the device in a locked position with the safety latch engaged.",
"FIG. 11 is a perspective view of a further embodiment of the retractable mooring line device according to the invention, having a generally horizontal orientation.",
"FIG. 12 is a perspective view of the embodiment of FIG. 11 with the top plate removed.",
"FIG. 13 is a side elevation of the embodiment of FIG. 11 , showing the latch in the locked position.",
"FIG. 14 is a side elevation of the embodiment of FIG. 11 , showing the latch in the release position.",
"FIG. 15 is an end elevation of the embodiment of FIG. 11 .",
"DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION FIGS. 1 and 2 illustrate a first embodiment of the retractable mooring line device according to the invention.",
"The device comprises a housing 10 comprising side plates 12 , 14 and a gunnel plate 16 .",
"The side plates 12 , 14 are connected in spaced relation as by bolts 10 a extending through spacer sleeves 10 b, leaving sufficient clearance to allow free rotation of the reel 20 .",
"The gunnel plate 16 is preferably affixed to flanges 12 a, 14 a of the respective side plates 12 , 14 , as by bolts 16 a with countersunk heads exposed for removal in case the device requires maintenance or repair.",
"An opening 16 c is provided in the gunnel plate 16 for the mooring line 2 , shown in phantom in FIG. 1 , to pass out of the housing 10 .",
"All components of the device are preferably composed of stainless steel, except as otherwise indicating in the following description.",
"However, it will be appreciated that other materials may be suitable for any particular application, for example aluminium or plastic may be used for light duty applications, and the invention is not intended to be limited thereby.",
"The device may be housed in a plastic or fiberglass cup or casing 8 , as shown in FIG. 2 , which provides a drainage outlet 8 a to allow water to drain directly out of the hull of the watercraft, for example through a flexible hose 8 b. The reel 20 , illustrated in FIG. 4 , comprises a pair of side walls 22 , 24 connected by (for example welded to) a hub 26 .",
"The hub 26 fits snugly over a main bushing 28 , which is preferably composed of a self lubricating high density plastic, which in turn mounts over an axle or pin 30 rotationally fixed relative to the side plates 12 , 14 of the housing 10 .",
"The hub 26 is rotationally locked to the main bushing 28 by one or more locking pins 26 a, and the bushing 28 remains free to rotate on pin 30 .",
"The reel is preferably spring loaded for automatic retraction when the locking mechanism (described below) is released.",
"A spring 40 , illustrated in FIG. 5 , has a first anchoring end 40 a for engaging a slot 30 a or other engaging means at one end of the pin 30 , and a second anchoring end 40 b for engaging a slot 26 b or other engaging means in the hub 26 .",
"Preferably the hub 26 is provided with a plurality of evenly spaced slots 26 b, so that the spring can be fixed to the hub 26 in one of a number of positions without requiring rotation of the reel 20 into a specific position.",
"Also, preferably the spring 40 is contained within a casing 41 comprising a body 42 and a lid 44 , composed of the same self lubricating plastic as the bushing 28 .",
"The casing 41 serves to both contain the spring against dislodgement when the reel 20 is removed from the housing 10 for servicing and to protect the spring 40 from salt water and the elements.",
"The encased spring 40 is thus inserted into the main hub 26 as shown in FIG. 6 .",
"It will be appreciated that the main bushing 28 has an axial length less than that of the hub 26 , leaving sufficient space for the spring casing 41 to fit fully within the hub 26 .",
"In the preferred embodiment the pin 30 is rotationally fixed relative to the side plates 12 , 14 by a square end 30 b, best seen in FIG. 1 , which fits into a square opening in the side plate 12 and thus locks the pin 30 against rotation relative to the housing 10 .",
"The reel 20 (and concurrently the main bushing 26 and spring casing 42 ) rotate around the pin 30 .",
"In the preferred embodiment the locking mechanism comprises a latching member 50 , illustrated in FIG. 7 , comprising an actuating plate 52 and a latch 54 disposed on opposite sides of a hub 56 .",
"The latching member 50 is engaged to the side plates 12 , 14 as by pin 50 a, seen in FIG. 3 , so that as the actuating plate 52 is depressed into the housing 10 the latch 54 moves away from the side walls 22 , 24 to unlock the reel 20 .",
"An opening 16 b is provided in the gunnel plate 16 to expose the latching member 50 , preferably approximating the peripheral configuration of the actuating plate 52 for aesthetic reasons and to keep dirt out of the housing 10 .",
"A series of notches 60 is formed in the periphery of each of the side walls 22 , 24 of the reel 20 .",
"Preferably the notches 60 are provided entirely around the periphery of each sidewall 22 , 24 , to maximize the number of positions in which the device can lock, separated by sufficient material to withstand the forces normally encountered by the watercraft when moored.",
"The latch 54 is configured to simultaneously engage one of the notches 60 in each of the side walls 22 , 24 of the reel 20 .",
"The latch 54 thus extends substantially across the entire interior of the housing 10 , which both ensures that the latch 54 engages both side walls 22 , 24 and allows some deflection of the latching member 50 without dislodging the latch 54 from the notches 60 .",
"The latching member 50 is accordingly mounted adjacent to the gunnel plate 16 , so as to pivot between the position in which the latch 54 is disengaged from the notches 60 as shown in FIG. 8 , which allows the reel 20 to rotate freely, and a position in which the latch 54 is engaged within a notch 60 in each side wall 22 , 24 , as shown in FIG. 9 , to lock the reel 20 against rotation in both directions.",
"In the preferred embodiment the latching member SO is mounted such that the actuating plate 52 is flush with the gunnel plate 16 when the device is in the locked position shown in FIG. 9 , and the latch 54 engages each notch 60 in a substantially perpendicular orientation.",
"Preferably the latching member 50 is spring biased to the locking position, so that the device locks automatically unless the actuating plate 54 is being depressed.",
"In the preferred embodiment this is accomplished by affixing to the latching member 50 as by rivets or any other suitable means, a spring 70 , for example a leaf spring.",
"Spring 70 is oriented such that the free end 72 of the spring 70 engages against the underside of the gunnel plate 16 .",
"The pressure applied by the spring 70 can be optimized by separating the free end 72 of the spring 70 into a series of fingers 70 a, 70 b, 70 c, the width of each being selected so that the cumulative force supplied by the fingers 70 a, 70 b, 70 c provides the desired resistance to disengagement of the latching member 50 .",
"This ensures that the latch 54 does not become dislodged from the notch 60 inadvertently, but at the same time minimizes the pressure required to release the latching member 50 .",
"In the preferred embodiment a maintenance lock 80 is also provided, rotatably mounted between the side plates 12 , 14 as by a pin 82 , in a position adjacent to the reel 20 .",
"The maintenance lock 80 can thus be pivoted from the unlocked position, as shown in FIG. 9 , to a locked position shown in FIG. 10 in which the reel 20 is prevented from rotating regardless of the position of the latching member 50 .",
"During normal operation of the device the maintenance lock 80 is retained in the unlocked position by a boss or stud 84 projecting from the side plate 12 and/or 14 into a hole 83 in the maintenance lock 80 .",
"During maintenance or servicing the maintenance lock 80 can be rotated to the locked position and retained in the unlocked position by a boss or stud 85 projecting from the side plate 12 and/or 14 into the hole 83 in the maintenance lock 80 .",
"The maintenance lock 80 is provided solely to prevent the reel 20 from uncoiling during servicing or repair activities, and is not used in normal operation.",
"In use, the gunnel plate 16 is attached to the side plate flanges 12 a, 14 a by bolts 16 a. The reel 20 is rotated a sufficient number of revolutions to retract the mooring line, 2 and the mooring line 2 is passed through the opening 16 and attached to the reel 20 .",
"When the reel 20 is released the spring 40 rotates the reel in the take-up direction and the mooring line 2 is automatically loaded onto the hub 26 .",
"The device is optionally placed in a water-catching container 8 and mounted into the gunnel 4 of a boat (shown in phantom in FIG. 2 ), preferably so that the upper surface of the gunnel plate 16 is flush with the gunnel 4 , and secured in place as by screws, rivets or other suitable fastening members (not shown) through holes 16 d. When the watercraft is to be moored, the actuating plate 52 of the latching member 50 is depressed, which may be conveniently effected by the user's foot.",
"The mooring line 2 is drawn out to the required length and affixed to a dock or other mooring structure (not shown).",
"The spring 40 winds tighter as the mooring line 2 is drawn out, because the end 40 a engaging the pin 30 remains stationary while the end 40 b rotates with the hub 26 .",
"The actuating plate 52 is released and the latch spring 70 urges the latch 54 into the next nearest notches 60 of the respective sidewalls 22 , 24 of the reel 20 , thus locking the reel 20 against rotation.",
"To retract the mooring line 2 , the actuating plate 54 is depressed to disengage the latch 54 from the notches 60 .",
"The spring 40 rotates the reel 20 in the retracting direction to retract the mooring line 2 back onto the reel 20 for storage.",
"FIGS. 11 to 15 illustrate a further embodiment of the retractable mooring line device according to the invention.",
"This embodiment has a generally horizontal orientation, which is particularly suitable for mounting on a watercraft via housing flange 10 a, for example onto the frame between pontoons of a pontoon boat or the like.",
"In this embodiment a latch 90 comprises a latch plate 92 having notches 94 (best seen in FIG. 13 ) large enough to allow the sidewalls 22 , 24 of the reel 20 to pass freely through the notches 94 , and spaced apart a distance corresponding to the spacing between the sidewalls 22 , 24 .",
"The latch 90 is slidably disposed through an opening (not shown) in the top plate 16 at any suitable position adjacent to the reel 20 , and movable between a locked position, shown in FIG. 13 , with the button 96 raised from the top plate 16 and the notches 94 out of alignment with the reel sidewalls 22 , 24 ;",
"and a release position, shown in FIG. 14 , with the button 96 depressed and the notches 94 in alignment with the reel sidewalls 22 , 24 .",
"Preferably the latch 90 is biased to the locked position by one or more springs 98 (two springs 98 are shown in the embodiment illustrated, as best seen in FIG. 15 ), which bear against the bottom plate 18 of the housing 10 .",
"Thus, in this embodiment also the top plate 16 can be removed and reinstalled (after demounting the housing from the frame of the boat) without requiring special loading or positioning of the latch spring 98 .",
"As in the previously described embodiment, the button 96 can be actuated by a user's hand or foot.",
"However, in the embodiment of FIGS. 11 to 15 the latch 90 moves axially relative to the reel 20 , releasing the reel 20 when the notches 94 are aligned with the reel sidewalls 22 , 24 , as shown in FIG. 14 .",
"In the operation of the embodiment of FIGS. 11 to 15 , the reel 20 is retained in the locked position by engagement of the latch plate 92 with one of the series of notches 60 disposed about the periphery of each sidewall 22 , 24 .",
"When a user depresses the button 96 the latch plate 92 moves axially relative to the reel 20 until the notches 94 come into alignment with the sidewalls 22 , 24 , at which point the reel 20 is released and able to rotate in both directions.",
"In both of the described embodiments, servicing and maintenance of the device 10 is easily effected by removing bolts 16 a and removing the gunnel plate 16 , which exposes the entire interior of the housing 10 and all of the moving components of the device 10 .",
"Various embodiments of the present invention having been thus described in detail by way of example, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that variations and modifications may be made without departing from the invention.",
"The invention includes all such variations and modifications as fall within the scope of the appended claims."
] |
Origin of the Invention
The invention described herein was made in the performance of work under a NASA contract, and is subject to the provisions of Public Law 96-517 (35 USC 202) in which the Contractor has elected not to retain title.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The field of this invention is a robotic control system which shares autonomous and hand-controller commands.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Robotic manipulation research is still in its infancy, and present day manipulation systems (teleoperator or autonomous) suffer from many weaknesses.
Consider, for example, the teleoperator systems that are currently used in space applications. Because of the time delay in transmission of signals, terrestrial teleoperators must be predictive in sending commands to the robot. One solution is to employ teleoperation in space. This solution, however, poses many problems in cost and practicality. Moreover, if teleoperation were to be done in space (from a shuttle, for example) the time delay problem would be overcome; but then mission time would be restricted according to the study reported by Montemerlop, Merlin D., The Space Perspective: Man-Machine Redundancy in Remote Manipulator Systems, Keynote Speech, NATO Advanced Research Workshop on Robots with Redundancy: Design, Sensing & Control, June 27-July 1, 1988, Salo, Lago di Garda, Italy.
With existing technologies, autonomous systems are incapable of accommodating large un-modelled variations. Moreover, since many problems in space applications are often detected, diagnosed and solved through human on-the-spot initiative, the presence of a human in the active loop becomes imperative. See Montemerlop, Merlin D. supra. We, therefore suggest (as many others have done) that the development of systems under shared control is of paramount importance in our attempt to automate space applications.
It is our observation that much of the research in shared systems, lacks a strong theoretical flavor. Effort has been directed towards building systems and implementing shared control at the servo-level. These systems consider the teleoperator as the master, record her actions in a teleoperative device, and then directly transform them into robot commands, which finally get executed under autonomous control. See, for example, Sheridan, T. B., Telerobotics', Workshop on Shared Autonomous & Teleoperated Manipulator Control, 1988 IEEE International Conference on Robotics & Automation, Apr. 24-29, Philadelphia, PA.
The Sheridan article provides a splendid historical perspective about research in telerobotics, and many shortcomings in the scenarios described above come to light in that article. Most importantly of these shortcomings, is the absence of active human intelligence that should be involved during an integration of autonomous and teleoperator inputs. By this we mean that a theory of how to intelligently share control, prior to this invention, has not yet been firmly established. The lack of an effective shared control places the responsibility of maintaining stability squarely on the shoulders of the teleoperator. This responsibility is fine for terrestrial experiments (in nuclear power plants or for prosthetics), but not for space applications.
There exist classes of applications for which attempting to build a robotic system that is either purely teleoperative or completely autonomous may be self defeating. Such self-defeating applications include, for example, automating small batch jobs in space involving satellite maintenance and repair. The motivation of this invention is to exploit the power of each system and integrate them into a single man-machine system. Such shared systems will have the capability of accepting commands from a high level planner and/or a teleoperator, and appropriately mixing them.
Other shortcomings exhibited by our present teleoperator systems are as follows. The teleoperator, often requires explicit knowledge of the relationship between her actions and that of the robot. And, in general, it is very tiresome for the operator to impart fine motions to the robot.
A search of the prior art was done for the purpose of evaluating this invention. The results of that search are as follows:
Daggett el al., U.S. Pat. No. 4,763,05
Takita et al., U.S. Pat. No. 4,582,026
Resnick, U.S. Pat. No. 4,432,063
Guittet el al., U.S. Pat. No. 4,510,574
Maruo et al., U.S. Pat. No. 4,737,697
Inoue, U.S. Pat. No. 4,641,251
Inoue discloses a divided control system in which a main control 5 is in parallel with subcontrol units, such as units 6. Such subcontrol units are used to immediately stop the robot when an unexpected obstacle is encountered. The robot is provided with a number of such subcontrol units for individually controlling each operating portion so that a high response speed is achieved if an unexpected obstacle is encountered. See Col 2, lines 40 through 56 and FIG. 2.
Guittet et al discloses proportioning of force control between a master actuator and a slave actuator by each transmitting to a control device of the other a position and/or speed signal with a transmission delay. The transmission delays are compared and a sum of the delay times is used in a first force control loop that is supplemented by a second control loop. The system's second control loop includes a second force signal that is related to the delay times being sensed. See FIG. 6 and Column 10, lines 39 through 58 where it is described as a desire of the patent to use the most appropriate configuration of the invention, based upon the delay time summation.
Maruo et al is typical of those types of systems that employ a teaching mode and a playback mode. During the teaching mode a servo is disabled and then is enabled again in the playback mode. See the abstract.
Takita et al discloses an anticipatory control system in which each point of operation can be changed over individually on the basis of a driving control instruction for a sub-loop controller associated with each operating point. See FIG. 2 for the master controller 10 and the subloop controllers such as 11a, 11b, etc.
The Daggett et al system is typical of those that operate on a cascaded control approach in which processors are individually assigned data processing and calculation tasks. These individual processors respond to extended control and basic control as shown in FIGS. 4 and 5 and as described at Column 8, lines 37 through 48.
Resnick is of interest for its disclosure of robot control over nonprogrammed and programmed points. In summary then, none of these references are deemed of significant relevance to this invention.
We conclude this background section by putting the above-described state of the art in context with some other basic background art. In an article by Sheridan, T. B., entitled "Telerobotics", Workshop on Shared Autonomous & Teleoperated Manipulator Control, 1988 IEEE International Conference on Robotics & Automation, Apr. 24-29, Philadelphia, PA. four major areas are specified as requiring research that must be done in telerobotics. The four areas include: (i) telesensing, (ii) teleactuation, (iii) computer-aiding in control and, (iv) meta analysis of task interactions. This invention focuses on some important aspects of areas (ii) and (iv) and additionally shows how these aspects relate to each other. Such aspects are also reflected in a somewhat similar hybrid position/force task representation, used for low-level tasks, as described in an article by De Schutter J., Van Brussel H., entitled "Compliant Robot Motion, I.A. Formalism for Specifying Compliant Tasks", International Journal of Robotics Research, Vol. 7, No. 4, August 1988.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
An important issue that must be addressed in the development of shared systems is the actual integration of the human and autonomous input modalities as first taught, described and claimed in this our invention. Two approaches may be taken towards this; either the nominal autonomous behavior may be modified by a teleoperator, or nominal teleoperator behavior may be modified autonomously. For example, autonomously planned motion trajectories will be modified by a teleoperator to track unmodelled target motions in the former, while nominal teleoperator motions will be modified through compliance to accommodate geometric errors autonomously in the latter.
Ideally, one would like teleoperators to be terrestrial (based on ground) and operate robots located at remote sites with full confidence that execution will be accurate and reliable. At the execution level, these two desirable features can be obtained through a systematic design of controllers. At the task level, one way of achieving such features is to follow an integration philosophy that results in a shared system which has all the positive features of pure teleoperation and pure autonomy, and none of the negative features. We submit that our invention contributes a major step towards this "ideal" goal, and it lies in mixing the teleoperator and autonomous inputs in an advantageous, new and novel manner.
More specifically, this invention relates to a hierarchical shared system, and describes and claims a novel approach for intelligently sharing control over a remote robot between the autonomous and teleoperative control systems. In this patent application, we present a shared control architecture compatible with both approaches and discuss in detail some of the implementation issues.
The architecture that we present in this application is hierarchical, and consists of two levels. The top level represents the task level, while the bottom, the execution level. Inputs to our architecture are formulated in a task coordinate system and consist of the following: (1a) a specification of a task coordinate system and (1b) task trajectories, and (2) the teleoperator trajectory. A hybrid position/force task representation is used for low-level tasks. Therefore, the task coordinate system consists of orthogonal motion and force coordinates, task and teleoperator trajectories, of appropriate motion and force trajectories. Teleoperator signals are transformed from its local coordinate system (in our architecture, this is called the hand controller system) to the task coordinate system.
In space applications, the performance of pure teleoperation systems depend significantly on the communication time delays between the local and the remote sites. The philosophy behind any sharing of control must therefore be based on minimizing the detrimental effects caused by these time delays.
Our inventive approach is as follows. At the task level, should the communication delay be significant, we allow integration only along motion directions, while forces are controlled autonomously. A significant first step in the integration process, in accordance with our invention, consists therefore of deciding what signals are to be mixed, followed by the decision of when such signals may mix. Another important step is to decide how such signals may be mixed. These steps are done with the help of selection and mixing matrices. Entries in such matrices reflect how each input's signals modality is weighted.
At the execution level, the system is oblivious to the nature of the desired trajectory, and it may come directly from the autonomous part, teleoperator part, or the desired trajectory may be a mixture of the two. The servo controller is simply capable of tracking motion and/or force trajectories in a stable fashion. For the hybrid task representation of our invention, we choose a hybrid force/motion control architecture for servo-control. Also it should be noted that the flexibility of our invention accommodates different task representations that may result in different control architectures.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING
FIG. 1 is a figure depicting a hierarchical system in accordance with the invention.
FIG. 2 is a figure depicting a shared system architecture in accordance with the invention.
FIG. 3 is a figure depicting a shared space system architecture in accordance with the invention.
FIG. 4 is a figure depicting a remote site task sharing in accordance with the invention.
FIG. 5 is a figure depicting a task controller in accordance with the invention.
FIG. 6 is a figure depicting a teleop-task transformation in accordance with the invention.
FIG. 7 is a figure depicting a pure hybrid control in accordance with the invention.
FIG. 8 is a figure depicting a traded and shared control implementation architecture in accordance with the invention.
DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
A novel robotic control system comprises two levels of control circuitry whereby the system will accept and execute autonomous or hand-controller commands, sharing control between them such that shortcomings and limitations of one mode of control may be overcome by the other. These two levels are represented as a task level and an execution level.
At the task level, should the communication time delay between local and remote sites (experienced in space application) be significant, integration is used only along motion directions, while forces are controlled autonomously. The first step in integration consists of decision logic that determines when the control signals may mix and the second step is deciding how the signals may mix.
A novel application of a mixing matrix is employed in which input modality is weighted.
The invention will now be described in more detail in the following sections.
I. SHARED CONTROL
Consider a hierarchical robot system shown in FIG. 1. In a shared system, any level i must be capable of accepting commands from both autonomous and teleoperative sources, and must allow this acceptance at multiple levels. If inputs from both teleoperation 100 as well as the autonomous system 150 arrive at level i, as shown in FIG. 1, then all levels from 0 to i come under shared control of shared system 175.
The system approach for this invention is depicted in FIG. 2. It consists only of two levels, namely level 0 and level 1 shown on opposed sides of the dashed line 201. Level 0 is the servo control level, and accepts tool motion/force commands and runs them on the robot. Level 1 generates the motion/force commands.
Sharing occurs at both levels, in general. At the task level, sharing occurs in the task-level sharing circuit 215, while at the servo-level it occurs in servo-level sharing circuit 225.
We draw upon the ongoing research in the development of hierarchical autonomous robot systems to describe some of the details of the architecture shown in FIG. 2. At level 1 robotic task-level commands are generated, and we therefore denote that level as the task level. Level 0 executes the task and so it is denoted the execution level.
In this patent application, the word task is used in a local sense and denotes the generation of two pieces of information, (i) a task coordinate system, and (ii) desired trajectories of the task coordinates. To integrate teleoperator inputs with its autonomous counterpart, these inputs must be compatible, and so, if necessary, primitive arm/hand teleoperator actions must be transformed into an appropriate task coordinate system.
The task coordinate system is dependent on the representation of tasks. Our task representation framework is similar to that described by: De Schutter J., Van Brussel H., Compliant Robot Motion, A Formalism for Specifying Compliant Tasks, International Journal of Robotics Research, Vol. 7, No. 4, August 1988. The task coordinate system consists of orthogonal motion and force coordinates. The origin of this system is generally located at the arm endpoint (location of the contact) in the absence (presence) of contact. We assume that desired autonomous motion/force trajectories are readily available to us.
At the execution level, we use a hybrid force/motion control scheme disclosed by: Raibert, M. H., & Craig, J. J., Hybrid Position/Force Control of Manipulators, Journal of Dynamic Systems, Measurement & Control, 102 (June 1981), 126-133.
For space applications, the proposed hierarchy (in FIG. 2) needs additional structuring. This is due to the fact that some of the planning/control/sensing actions are done locally on the earth (or in space but physically far away from the location of the robot system), while others are done remotely by the robot system itself. In such a scenario, explicit sharing at the servo level may not be practical because of the time delays in communication.
FIG. 3 shows the hierarchy in FIG. 2 with some modifications. The servo-level sharing circuitry 225 of FIG. 2 has been removed completely. In addition, we show that both task and servo-level operations have now been distributed over the remote and local sites. At the local site, a planner develops a series of task-level autonomous commands. These locally-initiated commands are transmitted over line 310 to the robot system located at a remote site, where such commands are received by a task-level sharing circuit 315.
Meanwhile, the teleoperator 325, acquires information about (i) robot motions through TV displays, and (ii) the contact and inertial forces through force reflectance in any well known manner (not shown in FIG. 3). She compares the acquired information with her perception of the task, and generates teleoperative inputs 330 to perform the appropriate corrections. The teleoperative inputs are applied over line 331 to transformation circuitry 335. Transformation circuitry 335, in turn, sends these commands over line 333 to the remote location.
The actual transformation of teleoperative inputs at line 331 into the task coordinate system happens partly at the local site (circuitry 331, 335) and partly at the remote site in transformation circuitry 350. At the local site, primitive device specific actions are first converted at 335 to some local coordinate system by a hand controller, or other suitable conversion device (not shown). Then, those converted signals are transformed to a coordinate system attached to a reference location such as the base of the robot (the reference location, of course, will be known from past information) and then such coordinate information is transmitted to the remote site over line 333.
At the remote site, the inputs are transformed from the base of the robot to the task coordinate system by the remote transformation circuitry 350. Transformations from base to task frame is done at the remote site because the robot's joint angle information will be the most up-to-date at that location. Task-level sharing occurs completely at the remote site, as does the servo-control by servo system 365 for robot 375.
The architecture presented in FIG. 3 is implemented in this invention and is described in more detail with reference to FIGS. 4, 6, and 7. Such description will be given after a discussion of notation to be used in the description.
The notation used in this description is as follows:
I=Input
O=Output
The first subscript of I or O indicates the hierarchical level. The second subscript indicates the source of the signal (T for teleoperator, A for autonomous and S for shared). Therefore,
I ij , for i=1, . . . , n & j=T,A,S
O ij , for i=1, . . . , n & j=T,A,S
are the generalized expressions for the various inputs and outputs. In addition, sharing is represented by C and transformations are represented by T. With these understood, we define the following: ##EQU1##
Task-level sharing, (C 1 ), is discussed in section II which follows. In section III we discuss the transformation ##EQU2## of teleoperator commands to the task frame, and present the necessary control architectures for hybrid position/force control
II. TASK LEVEL
We now describe the task level of our shared control architecture in greater detail. The issue that needs to be addressed at this level is how the teleoperator and autonomous inputs (both expressed in the task coordinate system) will be combined. That is, how do we develop C 1 (the signals issuing from task-level sharing 315 in FIG. 3)?
The details of circuit 315 are shown in FIG. 4 where the FIG. 3 input/output connections from FIG. 3 are repeated. Note in FIG. 3 that the autonomous input 310 is from the local site location to the sharing circuit 315 and the two return signals are a modified motion/force feedback 311 and an autonomous feedback 312. Those leads are also shown in FIG. 4 for ease of comparing the two figures.
In FIG. 4, in the lower left-hand portion of the circuitry, the teleop input and the autonomous input terms are weighted by a series of matrices 465 through 468 and 470 through 473. The weighted values are summed in summation circuits 475 and 480 and a modified motion/force signal, as a result of such weighing and summing, is developed on output lead 410 for application to the servo control 365. The manner of modification is a significant feature of this invention and requires further explanation after digressing briefly for some background information.
The most important factor that affects the development of C is the transmission delay that exists between a teleoperator and the robot system itself. For terrestrial teleoperation (ground based operator) this delay time is of the order of a few seconds, and implies that modifications on the nominal trajectory will occur with a significant delay. In addition, the information obtained by the operator about the state of the robot will be obsolete, and so, her modifications are at best outdated, or may even be downright invalid. Sharing at the task level must therefore minimize these detrimental effects.
In general, robots may operate in one of three modes. They may either be moving freely, or just about to establish contact, or else, may have already established stable contact. In the first case, although the transmission delay causes the robot to deviate away from its desired path, and the obsolete feedback information results in errors in the specification of the desired path, the system's stability is never affected. However, in the third case, and very often in the second case (if the contact surface is very close), instabilities are generated in the system from both transmission delay as well as obsolete feedback information.
One way to reduce the above-mentioned undesirable features in a shared system is to allow nominal task trajectories generated by an autonomous system to be affected by the teleoperator only in those directions where contact is not established, and perform force control autonomously. At the task level, our sharing strategy can be summarized as follows. Let the motions and forces allowable by the contact type (See the notation developed by Salisbury, J. K., Kinematic & force Analysis of Articulated Hands, Ph.D thesis, Department of Mechanical Engineering, Stanford University, 1982) be represented by 6×1 vectors M and F. Let M (i) represent the i th row of M. Then: ##EQU3##
Similarly, F(i) is 0 or 1 depending on whether force freedom in that direction exists or not. For a hybrid task representation:
F.sup.T M=0
Also, let .sup.α M and .sup.α F represent desired motion and force trajectories expressed in the task coordinate system be represented by ##EQU4## and the corresponding Jacobian, ##EQU5##
A. Feedforward Path:
In the feedforward path, the input and output signals at the task level, FIG. 4, will consist of the following components: ##EQU6## where←indicates what information is contained in the command.
The mapping of I A and I T onto 0 S occurs as follows. Let π M be a 6×6 matrix 465, 466 (and π M (i,i) the element at its i th row and column). For the degrees of motion freedom the π matrices in FIG. 4 are derived as follows: ##EQU7## π F for force matrix elements 470, 471 can be constructed similarly. ##EQU8##
Thus the π matrices reflect the effect of task representation on sharing. Through this novel approach, we are able to specify what is being mixed along a particular direction. The question of how the actual sharing occurs is resolved through the weighing matrices Ω shown as elements 467, 468 (motion) and 472, 473 (force) in FIG. 4. The Ω matrices are determined as follows (Ω(i,i)) is the element located at the i th row and column.
Now in M and F, some directions may be chosen for operation under pure teleoperation or pure autonomy. Let these be denoted by 6×1 vectors G T and G A . Therefore, (G T (i) (G A (i)) is equal to 1 if and only if pure teleoperation (autonomous control) is intended in the direction i. With these, we define the elements of the Ω matrices as follows: ##EQU9## where, W denotes the weight entries in the matrices. Note that the Ω matrices will, in general, be diagonal.
With these stated conditions, sharing in the feedforward path occurs as given below: ##EQU10## Equations (1) and (2) completely determine C in the feedforward direction with summing taking place in summation circuits 475 and 480.
Note that pure autonomy and pure teleoperation can be effected within the same architecture by setting W equal to 1 and W equal to 0, respectively.
B. Feedback Path
In the feedback path of FIG. 4, actual robot motions/forces are input into the task level sharing circuitry at 410 from servo 365 in FIG. 3. This information is used to generate motion/force feedback applied by lead 312 to an autonomous task planner, as well as force reflective feedback 332 to the teleoperator. We now explain each of the feedback signals in FIG. 4 in more detail.
In FIG. 3, we show a signal denoted modified M/F at line 311, which signal is fed back to an autonomous planner at level 2 (See FIG. 1). The signal represents the shared desired motion/force trajectory 0 1s . The reason for this feedback is given in the following discussion.
The autonomous planner expects the system to track only the autonomous part I 1A . This expectation would result in an incorrect reasoning (upon completion of the task) by the planner. In short, the autonomous planner does not know that the actual signals that are controlling the robot have been a shared command.
What is really being tracked, of course, is not solely an autonomous input command. Note that the autonomous planner would conclude that the task execution has failed unless a mechanism for dealing with the sharing command is provided. One way to rectify the above-described incorrect conclusion is to modify the task specification of the autonomous task planner from I 1A to 0 1s . Note that under pure teleoperation, the task planner specifications are derived from the teleoperator completely.
Note also that at level 2 of FIG. 1, there is an autonomous task controller 500, FIG. 5, into which the autonomous feedback 510 and modified M/F signals 520 are fed back. Based on these items of feedback information, and depending on the next task plan that it receives from a high level task planner, the task controller 500 generates appropriate autonomous inputs for the next task. These inputs are applied at line 530 by task controller 500 as is shown in FIG. 5.
The actual robot motions/forces may be generated at the servo level in a coordinate system different from the task coordinate system. For example, the robot motions may be expressed in terms of the robot's joint space in any well known manner. Therefore, in general, the feedback information needs to be transformed to the task coordinate system.
These required transformations are performed by ##EQU11## (element 415) and ##EQU12## (element 420) respectively in FIG. 4.
Note that the shared feedback signals appear on line 410 and are applied to the transformation circuits 415 and 420, respectively. These transformation circuits, as described above, convert the incoming joint space information to the task coordinate system's notation. The π matrices for motion, elements 425 and 427, connected to the output of circuit 415, are identical in the feedback path while the weighing matrices 435, 437 that are receiving the output terms are different.
In a similar manner, transformation circuit 420 applies its output to the π matrices 426 and 428 for force weighing. Those matrices, in turn, are connected to weighing matrices 434 and 436.
We now develope the mathematical relationship for signal weighing by the matrices 435, 437 and 434, 436. These mathematical relationships are as follows: ##EQU13## where .sub.λi reflects the scaling factor between the actual forces generated and the force that the teleoperator is intended to feel. Note that this is how we, in accordance with our invention, have force reflectance of the actual forces to the operator. This force reflectance may be openloop, where the operator just feels the contact forces, or closed-loop where the operator can effect changes in the desired contact force through teleoperation. The latter case is allowed only when the time delays are insignificant.
Generally speaking, the term .sup.Λ.sbsp.T M is actually very complex. We have provided a connection between the matrix 437 and the input to summing junction 475 in FIG. 4. This connection accomplishes a multifold purpose for the term .sup.Λ.sbsp.T M.
The purpose for the .sup.Λ.sbsp.T M term is twofold. First, it must enable the teleoperator to experience the inertia of the robot system at the remote site. Through this the operator gets a sense of how the robot is behaving. In addition, it enables the operator to adapt to the inertial characteristics of the robot system, so that the operator learns how best to teleoperate the robot 375. For example, in the presence of contacts along directions of contact forces, we simply reflect the actual forces back to the operator (with a scaling factor), as explained above. Along directions of motions, however, we obtain the difference between the desired and actual teleoperator trajectories, and use this difference information to inform the operator about the inertial characteristics of the robot.
We explain the actual methodology behind the above-described virtual force reflectance in the next subsection. Suffice it to say at this point, however, that at the task level, in order to obtain the existing errors in teleoperation, we must extract out of the actual motions under shared control, the contributions due to teleoperation.
Although the shared input signal 0 S at lead 410 is a linear combination of autonomous and teleoperator trajectories, the non-linearities in the robot system itself (and possibly also in its controllers, if non-linear controllers are employed) makes is very difficult to perform this extraction. We therefore restrict ourselves in a mathematical development to a simple case in this patent application. The general case is valid, however, and is within the scope of the appended claims, and is covered in our invention.
Let us develope for the simple case;
(G.sub.A).sup.t G.sub.T =0
G.sub.A U G.sub.T =S.sub.M
where, U indicates a union operation and S M represents the space of motions allowable by M. In this case, teleoperative and autonomous motions are in the orthogonal directions, and so, .sup.Λ.sbsp.T M will be: ##EQU14##
Note that the actual robot trajectory under shared control is then multiplied by the appropriate A matrix, and then subtracted from the desired to obtain the difference. The difference is then shipped out to the local site. Output signals from the A matrices are six element vectors. For example, if the motion output information is expressed in three digits the first three places are motion information followed by three zeroes in the last three digit places. For the force side the opposite condition is true, with the last three places containing force information while the first three digit places are filled with zeroes. A combined six digit signal is then developed at the autonomous feedback line 312.
To summarize, in this subsection, we have described in detail how teleoperative and autonomous inputs will be integrated at the task level.
III. SERVO LEVEL
At the servo level, three functions have to be performed in the feedforward path. The first is the actual execution of the commands issued from the task level. This function will be accomplished by any standard servo operation through equipment that is well known and located entirely at the remote site. The second function is to take the raw teleoperator input signals and convert such signals to a coordinate system attached to the device itself. This function is also accomplished by equipment that is well known and is located entirely at the local site. In connection with this second function, device-specific commands are shipped out to the robot system from the remote site. The third function is to perform the transformation of feedback information at the remote site to the appropriate task level coordinate system.
In the feedback path, the functions are almost identical. The only exception is that at the local site, in addition to performing the transformations between device coordinate system and the actual input device, there must also be a servo-loop in the force reflectance path.
We will now explain the above-mentioned features in more detail by reference to FIG. 6 which shows both the feedforward and feedback paths from and to the teleoperator. It should be recalled from FIG. 3 that an operator 325 will supply a teleoperator input to a hand controller. Such a hand controller, shown in FIG. 6 as hand controller 625, is connected in standard fashion to a servo system of any known type.
The servo 626 will convert the teleop inputs into a signal format that is acceptable by transformation circuitry 335. Such transformation circuitry includes a pair of transformation circuits 640 and 645 (local site), and another pair of transformation circuits 650, 655 (remote site) each of which are devoted to motion (T) and to force () respectively in accordance with our invention.
As one reviews the circuitry of FIG. 6, it is readily apparent that the left-hand side and the right-hand side of the figure are images of each other with the outbound or feedforward part on the left and the inbound or feedback part on the right. Description of one side is mostly self explanatory of the reverse direction that occurs in the other side. The transformation of the parameters at T and at are described in the subsections hereinafter.
A. Determination of T
The transformation between task-level and the teleoperation-level occur in the boxes denoted transform 335 (local site) and transform 350 (remote site) as shown in FIG. 3. Once C has been determined at the task level, determination of this transformation is straightforward.
Transformations of the teleoperator motions to the task coordinate system are required as long as at least one degree of motion freedom exists. Therefore, the matrix ##EQU15## is required. This will in general vary with the locations of the task frame, and so requires information from higher level planning system for its construction.
In addition, if teleoperation is allowed along force direction, then the jacobian ##EQU16## would also be required. Similar arguments can be used for the feedback path. Thus in FIG. 6, we see that the kinematic transformations ##EQU17## in the feedforward path are done at the local and remote sites respectively. Similarly for ##EQU18## in the feedback path. The forces are transformed through the corresponding Jacobians, ##EQU19## in the feedforward path, and ##EQU20## in the feedback path.
In general, the teleoperator device itself has a very small motion limit. Therefore, each teleoperator input indicates the incremental change necessary in the autonomous trajectory. The rate at which a local processor within the hand controller samples the raw device signal and converts it to hand controller specific motions may, in general, be an order of magnitude faster than the rate at the task-level.
The above implies that the small incremental changes specified by a teleoperator will have to be accumulated and stored in order to generate the teleoperative commands at the task level. In our implementations (although not explicitly depicted in any figure) this is assumed to be done at the remote site.
B. Teleoperation unit
The transformation of motions of the input devices in the teleoperation hardware to small incremental motions in a teleoperator device specific cartesian coordinate system, occurs in the feedforward path in servo 626 in FIG. 6. The box denoted hand controller 625 represents the teleoperation hardware. The hardware not only contains encoders to read the motions of the input device, but also motors that can be actuated.
In the feedback path, the servo box 686 drives these motors against the operator to provide her with force reflectance in a manner well known in this art. Such force reflection can occur in two cases: (1) when there is negligible transmission time delay between the local and the remote sites. In this case actual forces from the remote site can be fed back to the operator and thus the control loop is effectively closed through the operator. And (2) when there is enough transmission time delay, only the motion subspace is directly controlled by the operator. In this latter case the motion errors in teleoperation, supplied from the task-level, are first multiplied by a stiffness matrix to generate virtual inertial forces, and then added to the actual contact forces.
The actuators drive the operator back (or forth) in proportion to these signals. If the operator reacts by moving the input device back or forth, she feels the effective inertia of the remote manipulator. Thus the force reflectance loop is closed only around the robot system located at the remote site.
C. Control Architecture
The output from the task level to the servo-level is made up of desired motions and/or forces as is depicted in FIG. 4. These motion and/or force commands must be actually executed on the robot. In the absence of contacts, the controller must track position trajectories. In the presence of contacts, there are certain directions along which motion trajectories are specified, while along the others, force trajectories are specified. The fundamental assumption in a hybrid task representation is that frictional effects are negligible. Under such conditions, a pure hybrid control strategy can be used for execution of the commands.
FIG. 7 shows a hybrid position/force control architecture, in accordance with that described by Raibert, M. H., & Craig, J. J., Hybrid Position/Force Control of Manipulators, Journal of Dynamic Systems, Measurement & Control, 102 (June 1981), 126-133. In FIG. 7, errors in position are compensated for by the controller 710 denoted C X , while force errors are compensated for through a force compensator 720 denoted C F . The outputs of both C x and C F represent actual motor current signals. These are directly added by an adder 725 and supplied to the robot 375.
C X and C F are position and force compensators respectively. These may be of any conventional design. For example, if the system is linearized, these could be directly obtained through pole placement, or designs to adapt to small geometric errors in the contact, or designed to minimize the flow of energy at the contact and so on. Such designs are well known in this art and are not believed to require any further description.
During implementation, we must bear in mind that each trajectory specified from the task level must be followed. One way to emulate this is to take the force/motion trajectory specified in 0 1 .sbsb.5 (denoted shared output in FIG. 4), and perform interpolations by slicing it into small incremental regions consisting of ramps or steps. Each incremental δ α specifies a small change in the state of the robot so that when accumulated over all the increments, changes specifies by α are achieved. And, each δ α will be added on to the previous alpha values to generate the present F d and X d signals present at 750 and 775 of FIG. 7. That is, for k=1 to n, where n is the total number of interpolations required:
X.sub.d (K+1)=X.sub.d (K)+δα.sub.S.sbsb.M
F.sub.d (K+1)=F.sub.d (K)+δα.sub.S.sbsb.M
And, X d (0) and F d (0) are known before starting the task.
In this subsection, we have explained in detail (i) how teleoperator inputs are generated, (ii) how task-level feedback is reflected to the teleoperator, and (iii) how each shared task command may be executed. In the next section, we will describe in somewhat more detail the shared control architecture which is representative of an implementation of the shared control of this, our invention.
The implementation will consist of the hardware and the software environment; and a particular way in which shared control is implemented.
3.0 HARDWARE
The hardware as shown in FIG. 8 is divided into two groups: local 800 above the dashed line 810 and remote 850 below the dashed line 810. In local site 800, there is a pair of six DOF hand controllers, shown as right and left hand controllers 801, 802 respectively. These hand controllers may be in accordance with the description given in Bejczy, A. K., Salisbury, J. K., Controlling Remote Manipulators through Kinesthetic Coupling, Computers in Mechanical Engineering, Vol. 2, No. 1, July 1983, pages 48-60.
These hand controllers appear at encircled numerals 1 and 2 in FIG. 8. Shown at encircled numerals 3 and 4 in FIG. 8 are a pair of associated Universal Motor Controllers ("UMC") 815 and 816. The universal motor controllers 815 and 816 are connected to two VME chassis, each with two Motorola 68020/68881 based single board computers, I/O cards, and Ethernet cards (marked at encircled numerals 5 and 6 in FIG. 8. Items shown associated with the encircled numerals 1 through 6 form the hardware support for a standard teleoperation control over a robot. All operations from, and/or to, the actual tele-operator (and visa-versa) transformation boxes T and on the local side are performed by this hardware. A Sun 3/60 work station 845 serves as the programming environment (see next subsection) and as an on line operator interface to invoke different modes of operation.
In general, real time signals are transmitted by using parallel I/O and non real time command invocations are through the use of ethernet based sockets. Autonomous commands are generated here.
The hardware of the remote site consists of a Sun 4/200 computer 885 (marked at encircled numeral 7 in FIG. 8), a VME chassis with two Motorola 68020/68881 based single board computer and serial/parallel I/O cards 856, 857 (marked 12 in FIG. 8), two UMC's 861,862 (marked at encircled numerals 8 and 9 in FIG. 8), two Puma 560's, identified as left robot 876 and right robot 886 and two Lord wrist force/torque sensors 877 and 878 (marked at encircled numerals 10 and 11 in FIG. 8).
All hand controllers are equipped with DC motors and encoders. The operator's hand motions are measured through the displacements it causes in the hand controller's joints using simple kinematic relations. Force feedback is possible since the hand controllers are equipped with joint motors. The hand controllers are balanced such that the operator can let go of them without the assembly dropping due to gravity. Each hand controller, in addition to providing a general six DOF motion specification capability, has three general purpose buttons and a trigger that is used for opening or closing a gripper, indexing, or any other user-defined function.
The UMC's may be those built at Jet Propulsion Laboratories in accordance with an article by: Bejczy, A. K., Szakaly, Z. F., A Synchronized Computational Architecture for Generalized Bilateral Control of Robot Arms, Proc. of the Conference on Advances in Intelligent Robotic Systems, SPIE & International Society for Optical Engineering, Cambridge, MA., No. 1-6, 1987. and Bejczy, A. K., Szakaly, Z. F., Universal Computer Control System (UCCS) for Space Telerobots, Proc. of the 1987 IEEE International Conference on Robotics & Automation, Raleigh, NC, Mar. 30-Apr. 3, 1987, pages 318-324. Such articles disclose general purpose motor controllers consisting of custom joint interface cards for reading the encoders and a multi-bus based National Semiconductor 32016 single board computer for servo control.
Each UMC is a stand alone robot controller with a capability to use additional microprocessors for multiprocessing. In our implementation a second NSC32016 with an onboard parallel port serves as a communication processor. This parallel port is connected to a VME based commercial parallel card. The overall system has four such connections; two in the remote site and two in the local site. The UMC's are used to send either position or voltage commands to the puma's or the hand controllers and read their encoders and potentiometer (in the case of Puma arms). When position set points are given to the UMC's, real time PID control is performed at the rate of 1000 Hz. The communication protocol which supports an array of commands and information gathering functions can be executed at the same 1000 Hz as well.
4.0 SOFTWARE
In this section we first describe the software environment that supports our implementation. Then we provide the details specific to the implementation of shared control.
There are three different software environments each identifiable with a particular hardware module. These are: UMC, VME/68020, and the Sun 4/200 software environments. In our implementation, the UMC's are considered black boxes with a predefined communication protocol.
The programming environment is IBM-PC for code development, cross compilation, and down loading. All the code is in NSC32016 assembly language. The VME/68020 uses a commercial software development package called VxWorks. This package provides all the necessary tools to write, down load, and debug code on the 68020's. The package can use one of several commercial real time kernels.
All the communication and 68020 software are written in the C language. The Sun 4/200 runs on a modified Sun 3.2 operating system which provides a real time kernel capability. The programming language is C. The autonomous portion is written in an enhanced (dual arm) version of Robot Control C Library (RCCL) pertaining to: Hayward, V., Paul R., Robot Manipulator Control Under Unix RCCL, International Journal of Robotics Research, Vol. 5, No. 4, pages 94-111, Winter 1987 and Lloyd, J., Parker, M., McClain, R., Extending the RCCL Programming Environment to Multiple Robots & Processors, Proc. 1988 IEEE International Conference on Robotics & Automation, Apr. 24-29, Philadelphia, PA, pages 465-469.
Now we describe the implementation of shared control. The teleoperation portion of the control, i.e., forward kinematics and transformation to the robot base coordinate frame are performed in the local site (functions on the local side in FIG. 6 are implemented on hardware items marked by encircled numerals 1 through 6 in FIG. 8). Force feedback to the operator is also implemented in the local site. The task level share control is performed on the Sun 360 in the R programming environment.
RCCL is general purpose robot library that provides a convenient programming environment. Since the user writes her code in the C language and makes use of RCCL library functions, the programs are not restricted to a specific syntax such as VAL or other special purpose robot languages. The user writes two pieces of code for each robot program.
The first part, which runs asynchronously with the robot, is the main logic of the program, such as when to start, how fast to move, Cartesian verses joint mode trajectory generation, etc. . . . The second part, which runs in real time, computes the user supplied real time functions. These real time functions can be tied to an external sensor such as a vision subsystem or force torque sensor, or an internal real time system such as joint sensors. Task level shared control is implemented using this capability of RCCL.
After the autonomous trajectories are determined from the task description, a ring equation of the form:
(Z . . . ) T6(. . . R)=AB . . . U
In every interval i.e., a time period during which R computes a new position set point, equation (3) is solved for T6. T6 is the transformation describing the sixth frame robot. All other matrices have to be determined before hand. Normally, the autonomous system generates plans which end up providing via point for the manipulator to pass through. In terms of the above equation, this means that matrices such as Z, . . . , U are determined by the autonomous system. One or more of these matrices can be attached to the output of the hand controllers. In this manner, the system can effectively mix the data from these two separate paths. This data can first go through appropriate filters so only the specified subspace affects the motion of the robot.
The output of this portion can then be given to the level 0 which actually performs the servo control. Similar but simpler mechanism is used to mix the force trajectories. It is simpler, since at the present we consider very simple (step function) trajectories for force control.
The servo control is performed in two 68020 CPU's in the remote site (box 12). Since the Sun 4/200 computer can compute the kinematics and dynamics equations 7 to 8 times faster than the 68020/68881 processors, most of the computational elements that do not need servo level updates reside in the Sun 4/200 computer. These include the Jacobian, inverse Jacobian, and some of the elements of the arm dynamics. The Sun 4/200 updates this data and computes the position and force set positions at the rate of 150 Hz. The servo level runs at 300 Hz.
In this patent application we have presented an architecture for shared control in two levels of a control hierarchy. Our philosophical approach to the invention includes a signal sharing that has retained the advantages of each mode while allowing for one's deficiencies to be overcome by the other. Particular emphasis was placed on the control of a remotely located robot in the presence of transmission time delays. The architecture provides a flexible system design such that one can start on an almost completely teleoperated mode and move towards increased autonomy in time.
Other applications of the principles and features of this invention will be well recognized to those of ordinary skill in this art and need no further description. The principles described and claimed hereinafter are to be construed in accordance with the applicable construction and interpretation tenets of the Patent Laws. | A shared system for robot control including integration of the human and autonomous input modalities for an improved control.
Autonomously planned motion trajectories are modified by a teleoperator to track unmodelled target motions, while nominal teleoperator motions are modified through compliance to accommodate geometric errors autonomously in the latter. A hierarchical shared system intelligently shares control over a remote robot between the autonomous and teleoperative portions of an overall control system. Architecture is hierarchical, and consists of two levels. The top level represents the task level, while the bottom, the execution level.
In space applications, the performance of pure teleoperation systems depend significantly on the communication time delays between the local and the remote sites. Selection/mixing matrices are provided with entries which relfect how each input's signals modality is weighted. The shared control minimizes the detrimental effects caused by these time delays between earth and space. | Briefly summarize the main idea's components and working principles as described in the context. | [
"Origin of the Invention The invention described herein was made in the performance of work under a NASA contract, and is subject to the provisions of Public Law 96-517 (35 USC 202) in which the Contractor has elected not to retain title.",
"BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1.",
"Field of the Invention The field of this invention is a robotic control system which shares autonomous and hand-controller commands.",
"Description of the Prior Art Robotic manipulation research is still in its infancy, and present day manipulation systems (teleoperator or autonomous) suffer from many weaknesses.",
"Consider, for example, the teleoperator systems that are currently used in space applications.",
"Because of the time delay in transmission of signals, terrestrial teleoperators must be predictive in sending commands to the robot.",
"One solution is to employ teleoperation in space.",
"This solution, however, poses many problems in cost and practicality.",
"Moreover, if teleoperation were to be done in space (from a shuttle, for example) the time delay problem would be overcome;",
"but then mission time would be restricted according to the study reported by Montemerlop, Merlin D., The Space Perspective: Man-Machine Redundancy in Remote Manipulator Systems, Keynote Speech, NATO Advanced Research Workshop on Robots with Redundancy: Design, Sensing &",
"Control, June 27-July 1, 1988, Salo, Lago di Garda, Italy.",
"With existing technologies, autonomous systems are incapable of accommodating large un-modelled variations.",
"Moreover, since many problems in space applications are often detected, diagnosed and solved through human on-the-spot initiative, the presence of a human in the active loop becomes imperative.",
"See Montemerlop, Merlin D. supra.",
"We, therefore suggest (as many others have done) that the development of systems under shared control is of paramount importance in our attempt to automate space applications.",
"It is our observation that much of the research in shared systems, lacks a strong theoretical flavor.",
"Effort has been directed towards building systems and implementing shared control at the servo-level.",
"These systems consider the teleoperator as the master, record her actions in a teleoperative device, and then directly transform them into robot commands, which finally get executed under autonomous control.",
"See, for example, Sheridan, T. B., Telerobotics', Workshop on Shared Autonomous &",
"Teleoperated Manipulator Control, 1988 IEEE International Conference on Robotics &",
"Automation, Apr. 24-29, Philadelphia, PA.",
"The Sheridan article provides a splendid historical perspective about research in telerobotics, and many shortcomings in the scenarios described above come to light in that article.",
"Most importantly of these shortcomings, is the absence of active human intelligence that should be involved during an integration of autonomous and teleoperator inputs.",
"By this we mean that a theory of how to intelligently share control, prior to this invention, has not yet been firmly established.",
"The lack of an effective shared control places the responsibility of maintaining stability squarely on the shoulders of the teleoperator.",
"This responsibility is fine for terrestrial experiments (in nuclear power plants or for prosthetics), but not for space applications.",
"There exist classes of applications for which attempting to build a robotic system that is either purely teleoperative or completely autonomous may be self defeating.",
"Such self-defeating applications include, for example, automating small batch jobs in space involving satellite maintenance and repair.",
"The motivation of this invention is to exploit the power of each system and integrate them into a single man-machine system.",
"Such shared systems will have the capability of accepting commands from a high level planner and/or a teleoperator, and appropriately mixing them.",
"Other shortcomings exhibited by our present teleoperator systems are as follows.",
"The teleoperator, often requires explicit knowledge of the relationship between her actions and that of the robot.",
"And, in general, it is very tiresome for the operator to impart fine motions to the robot.",
"A search of the prior art was done for the purpose of evaluating this invention.",
"The results of that search are as follows: Daggett el al.",
", U.S. Pat. No. 4,763,05 Takita et al.",
", U.S. Pat. No. 4,582,026 Resnick, U.S. Pat. No. 4,432,063 Guittet el al.",
", U.S. Pat. No. 4,510,574 Maruo et al.",
", U.S. Pat. No. 4,737,697 Inoue, U.S. Pat. No. 4,641,251 Inoue discloses a divided control system in which a main control 5 is in parallel with subcontrol units, such as units 6.",
"Such subcontrol units are used to immediately stop the robot when an unexpected obstacle is encountered.",
"The robot is provided with a number of such subcontrol units for individually controlling each operating portion so that a high response speed is achieved if an unexpected obstacle is encountered.",
"See Col 2, lines 40 through 56 and FIG. 2. Guittet et al discloses proportioning of force control between a master actuator and a slave actuator by each transmitting to a control device of the other a position and/or speed signal with a transmission delay.",
"The transmission delays are compared and a sum of the delay times is used in a first force control loop that is supplemented by a second control loop.",
"The system's second control loop includes a second force signal that is related to the delay times being sensed.",
"See FIG. 6 and Column 10, lines 39 through 58 where it is described as a desire of the patent to use the most appropriate configuration of the invention, based upon the delay time summation.",
"Maruo et al is typical of those types of systems that employ a teaching mode and a playback mode.",
"During the teaching mode a servo is disabled and then is enabled again in the playback mode.",
"See the abstract.",
"Takita et al discloses an anticipatory control system in which each point of operation can be changed over individually on the basis of a driving control instruction for a sub-loop controller associated with each operating point.",
"See FIG. 2 for the master controller 10 and the subloop controllers such as 11a, 11b, etc.",
"The Daggett et al system is typical of those that operate on a cascaded control approach in which processors are individually assigned data processing and calculation tasks.",
"These individual processors respond to extended control and basic control as shown in FIGS. 4 and 5 and as described at Column 8, lines 37 through 48.",
"Resnick is of interest for its disclosure of robot control over nonprogrammed and programmed points.",
"In summary then, none of these references are deemed of significant relevance to this invention.",
"We conclude this background section by putting the above-described state of the art in context with some other basic background art.",
"In an article by Sheridan, T. B., entitled "Telerobotics", Workshop on Shared Autonomous &",
"Teleoperated Manipulator Control, 1988 IEEE International Conference on Robotics &",
"Automation, Apr. 24-29, Philadelphia, PA.",
"four major areas are specified as requiring research that must be done in telerobotics.",
"The four areas include: (i) telesensing, (ii) teleactuation, (iii) computer-aiding in control and, (iv) meta analysis of task interactions.",
"This invention focuses on some important aspects of areas (ii) and (iv) and additionally shows how these aspects relate to each other.",
"Such aspects are also reflected in a somewhat similar hybrid position/force task representation, used for low-level tasks, as described in an article by De Schutter J., Van Brussel H., entitled "Compliant Robot Motion, I.A. Formalism for Specifying Compliant Tasks", International Journal of Robotics Research, Vol. 7, No. 4, August 1988.",
"SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An important issue that must be addressed in the development of shared systems is the actual integration of the human and autonomous input modalities as first taught, described and claimed in this our invention.",
"Two approaches may be taken towards this;",
"either the nominal autonomous behavior may be modified by a teleoperator, or nominal teleoperator behavior may be modified autonomously.",
"For example, autonomously planned motion trajectories will be modified by a teleoperator to track unmodelled target motions in the former, while nominal teleoperator motions will be modified through compliance to accommodate geometric errors autonomously in the latter.",
"Ideally, one would like teleoperators to be terrestrial (based on ground) and operate robots located at remote sites with full confidence that execution will be accurate and reliable.",
"At the execution level, these two desirable features can be obtained through a systematic design of controllers.",
"At the task level, one way of achieving such features is to follow an integration philosophy that results in a shared system which has all the positive features of pure teleoperation and pure autonomy, and none of the negative features.",
"We submit that our invention contributes a major step towards this "ideal"",
"goal, and it lies in mixing the teleoperator and autonomous inputs in an advantageous, new and novel manner.",
"More specifically, this invention relates to a hierarchical shared system, and describes and claims a novel approach for intelligently sharing control over a remote robot between the autonomous and teleoperative control systems.",
"In this patent application, we present a shared control architecture compatible with both approaches and discuss in detail some of the implementation issues.",
"The architecture that we present in this application is hierarchical, and consists of two levels.",
"The top level represents the task level, while the bottom, the execution level.",
"Inputs to our architecture are formulated in a task coordinate system and consist of the following: (1a) a specification of a task coordinate system and (1b) task trajectories, and (2) the teleoperator trajectory.",
"A hybrid position/force task representation is used for low-level tasks.",
"Therefore, the task coordinate system consists of orthogonal motion and force coordinates, task and teleoperator trajectories, of appropriate motion and force trajectories.",
"Teleoperator signals are transformed from its local coordinate system (in our architecture, this is called the hand controller system) to the task coordinate system.",
"In space applications, the performance of pure teleoperation systems depend significantly on the communication time delays between the local and the remote sites.",
"The philosophy behind any sharing of control must therefore be based on minimizing the detrimental effects caused by these time delays.",
"Our inventive approach is as follows.",
"At the task level, should the communication delay be significant, we allow integration only along motion directions, while forces are controlled autonomously.",
"A significant first step in the integration process, in accordance with our invention, consists therefore of deciding what signals are to be mixed, followed by the decision of when such signals may mix.",
"Another important step is to decide how such signals may be mixed.",
"These steps are done with the help of selection and mixing matrices.",
"Entries in such matrices reflect how each input's signals modality is weighted.",
"At the execution level, the system is oblivious to the nature of the desired trajectory, and it may come directly from the autonomous part, teleoperator part, or the desired trajectory may be a mixture of the two.",
"The servo controller is simply capable of tracking motion and/or force trajectories in a stable fashion.",
"For the hybrid task representation of our invention, we choose a hybrid force/motion control architecture for servo-control.",
"Also it should be noted that the flexibility of our invention accommodates different task representations that may result in different control architectures.",
"BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING FIG. 1 is a figure depicting a hierarchical system in accordance with the invention.",
"FIG. 2 is a figure depicting a shared system architecture in accordance with the invention.",
"FIG. 3 is a figure depicting a shared space system architecture in accordance with the invention.",
"FIG. 4 is a figure depicting a remote site task sharing in accordance with the invention.",
"FIG. 5 is a figure depicting a task controller in accordance with the invention.",
"FIG. 6 is a figure depicting a teleop-task transformation in accordance with the invention.",
"FIG. 7 is a figure depicting a pure hybrid control in accordance with the invention.",
"FIG. 8 is a figure depicting a traded and shared control implementation architecture in accordance with the invention.",
"DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT A novel robotic control system comprises two levels of control circuitry whereby the system will accept and execute autonomous or hand-controller commands, sharing control between them such that shortcomings and limitations of one mode of control may be overcome by the other.",
"These two levels are represented as a task level and an execution level.",
"At the task level, should the communication time delay between local and remote sites (experienced in space application) be significant, integration is used only along motion directions, while forces are controlled autonomously.",
"The first step in integration consists of decision logic that determines when the control signals may mix and the second step is deciding how the signals may mix.",
"A novel application of a mixing matrix is employed in which input modality is weighted.",
"The invention will now be described in more detail in the following sections.",
"I. SHARED CONTROL Consider a hierarchical robot system shown in FIG. 1. In a shared system, any level i must be capable of accepting commands from both autonomous and teleoperative sources, and must allow this acceptance at multiple levels.",
"If inputs from both teleoperation 100 as well as the autonomous system 150 arrive at level i, as shown in FIG. 1, then all levels from 0 to i come under shared control of shared system 175.",
"The system approach for this invention is depicted in FIG. 2. It consists only of two levels, namely level 0 and level 1 shown on opposed sides of the dashed line 201.",
"Level 0 is the servo control level, and accepts tool motion/force commands and runs them on the robot.",
"Level 1 generates the motion/force commands.",
"Sharing occurs at both levels, in general.",
"At the task level, sharing occurs in the task-level sharing circuit 215, while at the servo-level it occurs in servo-level sharing circuit 225.",
"We draw upon the ongoing research in the development of hierarchical autonomous robot systems to describe some of the details of the architecture shown in FIG. 2. At level 1 robotic task-level commands are generated, and we therefore denote that level as the task level.",
"Level 0 executes the task and so it is denoted the execution level.",
"In this patent application, the word task is used in a local sense and denotes the generation of two pieces of information, (i) a task coordinate system, and (ii) desired trajectories of the task coordinates.",
"To integrate teleoperator inputs with its autonomous counterpart, these inputs must be compatible, and so, if necessary, primitive arm/hand teleoperator actions must be transformed into an appropriate task coordinate system.",
"The task coordinate system is dependent on the representation of tasks.",
"Our task representation framework is similar to that described by: De Schutter J., Van Brussel H., Compliant Robot Motion, A Formalism for Specifying Compliant Tasks, International Journal of Robotics Research, Vol. 7, No. 4, August 1988.",
"The task coordinate system consists of orthogonal motion and force coordinates.",
"The origin of this system is generally located at the arm endpoint (location of the contact) in the absence (presence) of contact.",
"We assume that desired autonomous motion/force trajectories are readily available to us.",
"At the execution level, we use a hybrid force/motion control scheme disclosed by: Raibert, M. H., &",
"Craig, J. J., Hybrid Position/Force Control of Manipulators, Journal of Dynamic Systems, Measurement &",
"Control, 102 (June 1981), 126-133.",
"For space applications, the proposed hierarchy (in FIG. 2) needs additional structuring.",
"This is due to the fact that some of the planning/control/sensing actions are done locally on the earth (or in space but physically far away from the location of the robot system), while others are done remotely by the robot system itself.",
"In such a scenario, explicit sharing at the servo level may not be practical because of the time delays in communication.",
"FIG. 3 shows the hierarchy in FIG. 2 with some modifications.",
"The servo-level sharing circuitry 225 of FIG. 2 has been removed completely.",
"In addition, we show that both task and servo-level operations have now been distributed over the remote and local sites.",
"At the local site, a planner develops a series of task-level autonomous commands.",
"These locally-initiated commands are transmitted over line 310 to the robot system located at a remote site, where such commands are received by a task-level sharing circuit 315.",
"Meanwhile, the teleoperator 325, acquires information about (i) robot motions through TV displays, and (ii) the contact and inertial forces through force reflectance in any well known manner (not shown in FIG. 3).",
"She compares the acquired information with her perception of the task, and generates teleoperative inputs 330 to perform the appropriate corrections.",
"The teleoperative inputs are applied over line 331 to transformation circuitry 335.",
"Transformation circuitry 335, in turn, sends these commands over line 333 to the remote location.",
"The actual transformation of teleoperative inputs at line 331 into the task coordinate system happens partly at the local site (circuitry 331, 335) and partly at the remote site in transformation circuitry 350.",
"At the local site, primitive device specific actions are first converted at 335 to some local coordinate system by a hand controller, or other suitable conversion device (not shown).",
"Then, those converted signals are transformed to a coordinate system attached to a reference location such as the base of the robot (the reference location, of course, will be known from past information) and then such coordinate information is transmitted to the remote site over line 333.",
"At the remote site, the inputs are transformed from the base of the robot to the task coordinate system by the remote transformation circuitry 350.",
"Transformations from base to task frame is done at the remote site because the robot's joint angle information will be the most up-to-date at that location.",
"Task-level sharing occurs completely at the remote site, as does the servo-control by servo system 365 for robot 375.",
"The architecture presented in FIG. 3 is implemented in this invention and is described in more detail with reference to FIGS. 4, 6, and 7.",
"Such description will be given after a discussion of notation to be used in the description.",
"The notation used in this description is as follows: I=Input O=Output The first subscript of I or O indicates the hierarchical level.",
"The second subscript indicates the source of the signal (T for teleoperator, A for autonomous and S for shared).",
"Therefore, I ij , for i=1, .",
", n &",
"j=T,A,S O ij , for i=1, .",
", n &",
"j=T,A,S are the generalized expressions for the various inputs and outputs.",
"In addition, sharing is represented by C and transformations are represented by T. With these understood, we define the following: ##EQU1## Task-level sharing, (C 1 ), is discussed in section II which follows.",
"In section III we discuss the transformation ##EQU2## of teleoperator commands to the task frame, and present the necessary control architectures for hybrid position/force control II.",
"TASK LEVEL We now describe the task level of our shared control architecture in greater detail.",
"The issue that needs to be addressed at this level is how the teleoperator and autonomous inputs (both expressed in the task coordinate system) will be combined.",
"That is, how do we develop C 1 (the signals issuing from task-level sharing 315 in FIG. 3)?",
"The details of circuit 315 are shown in FIG. 4 where the FIG. 3 input/output connections from FIG. 3 are repeated.",
"Note in FIG. 3 that the autonomous input 310 is from the local site location to the sharing circuit 315 and the two return signals are a modified motion/force feedback 311 and an autonomous feedback 312.",
"Those leads are also shown in FIG. 4 for ease of comparing the two figures.",
"In FIG. 4, in the lower left-hand portion of the circuitry, the teleop input and the autonomous input terms are weighted by a series of matrices 465 through 468 and 470 through 473.",
"The weighted values are summed in summation circuits 475 and 480 and a modified motion/force signal, as a result of such weighing and summing, is developed on output lead 410 for application to the servo control 365.",
"The manner of modification is a significant feature of this invention and requires further explanation after digressing briefly for some background information.",
"The most important factor that affects the development of C is the transmission delay that exists between a teleoperator and the robot system itself.",
"For terrestrial teleoperation (ground based operator) this delay time is of the order of a few seconds, and implies that modifications on the nominal trajectory will occur with a significant delay.",
"In addition, the information obtained by the operator about the state of the robot will be obsolete, and so, her modifications are at best outdated, or may even be downright invalid.",
"Sharing at the task level must therefore minimize these detrimental effects.",
"In general, robots may operate in one of three modes.",
"They may either be moving freely, or just about to establish contact, or else, may have already established stable contact.",
"In the first case, although the transmission delay causes the robot to deviate away from its desired path, and the obsolete feedback information results in errors in the specification of the desired path, the system's stability is never affected.",
"However, in the third case, and very often in the second case (if the contact surface is very close), instabilities are generated in the system from both transmission delay as well as obsolete feedback information.",
"One way to reduce the above-mentioned undesirable features in a shared system is to allow nominal task trajectories generated by an autonomous system to be affected by the teleoperator only in those directions where contact is not established, and perform force control autonomously.",
"At the task level, our sharing strategy can be summarized as follows.",
"Let the motions and forces allowable by the contact type (See the notation developed by Salisbury, J. K., Kinematic &",
"force Analysis of Articulated Hands, Ph.",
"D thesis, Department of Mechanical Engineering, Stanford University, 1982) be represented by 6×1 vectors M and F. Let M (i) represent the i th row of M. Then: ##EQU3## Similarly, F(i) is 0 or 1 depending on whether force freedom in that direction exists or not.",
"For a hybrid task representation: F.sup.",
"T M=0 Also, let .",
"sup.",
"α M and .",
"sup.",
"α F represent desired motion and force trajectories expressed in the task coordinate system be represented by ##EQU4## and the corresponding Jacobian, ##EQU5## A. Feedforward Path: In the feedforward path, the input and output signals at the task level, FIG. 4, will consist of the following components: ##EQU6## where←indicates what information is contained in the command.",
"The mapping of I A and I T onto 0 S occurs as follows.",
"Let π M be a 6×6 matrix 465, 466 (and π M (i,i) the element at its i th row and column).",
"For the degrees of motion freedom the π matrices in FIG. 4 are derived as follows: ##EQU7## π F for force matrix elements 470, 471 can be constructed similarly.",
"##EQU8## Thus the π matrices reflect the effect of task representation on sharing.",
"Through this novel approach, we are able to specify what is being mixed along a particular direction.",
"The question of how the actual sharing occurs is resolved through the weighing matrices Ω shown as elements 467, 468 (motion) and 472, 473 (force) in FIG. 4. The Ω matrices are determined as follows (Ω(i,i)) is the element located at the i th row and column.",
"Now in M and F, some directions may be chosen for operation under pure teleoperation or pure autonomy.",
"Let these be denoted by 6×1 vectors G T and G A .",
"Therefore, (G T (i) (G A (i)) is equal to 1 if and only if pure teleoperation (autonomous control) is intended in the direction i. With these, we define the elements of the Ω matrices as follows: ##EQU9## where, W denotes the weight entries in the matrices.",
"Note that the Ω matrices will, in general, be diagonal.",
"With these stated conditions, sharing in the feedforward path occurs as given below: ##EQU10## Equations (1) and (2) completely determine C in the feedforward direction with summing taking place in summation circuits 475 and 480.",
"Note that pure autonomy and pure teleoperation can be effected within the same architecture by setting W equal to 1 and W equal to 0, respectively.",
"B. Feedback Path In the feedback path of FIG. 4, actual robot motions/forces are input into the task level sharing circuitry at 410 from servo 365 in FIG. 3. This information is used to generate motion/force feedback applied by lead 312 to an autonomous task planner, as well as force reflective feedback 332 to the teleoperator.",
"We now explain each of the feedback signals in FIG. 4 in more detail.",
"In FIG. 3, we show a signal denoted modified M/F at line 311, which signal is fed back to an autonomous planner at level 2 (See FIG. 1).",
"The signal represents the shared desired motion/force trajectory 0 1s .",
"The reason for this feedback is given in the following discussion.",
"The autonomous planner expects the system to track only the autonomous part I 1A .",
"This expectation would result in an incorrect reasoning (upon completion of the task) by the planner.",
"In short, the autonomous planner does not know that the actual signals that are controlling the robot have been a shared command.",
"What is really being tracked, of course, is not solely an autonomous input command.",
"Note that the autonomous planner would conclude that the task execution has failed unless a mechanism for dealing with the sharing command is provided.",
"One way to rectify the above-described incorrect conclusion is to modify the task specification of the autonomous task planner from I 1A to 0 1s .",
"Note that under pure teleoperation, the task planner specifications are derived from the teleoperator completely.",
"Note also that at level 2 of FIG. 1, there is an autonomous task controller 500, FIG. 5, into which the autonomous feedback 510 and modified M/F signals 520 are fed back.",
"Based on these items of feedback information, and depending on the next task plan that it receives from a high level task planner, the task controller 500 generates appropriate autonomous inputs for the next task.",
"These inputs are applied at line 530 by task controller 500 as is shown in FIG. 5. The actual robot motions/forces may be generated at the servo level in a coordinate system different from the task coordinate system.",
"For example, the robot motions may be expressed in terms of the robot's joint space in any well known manner.",
"Therefore, in general, the feedback information needs to be transformed to the task coordinate system.",
"These required transformations are performed by ##EQU11## (element 415) and ##EQU12## (element 420) respectively in FIG. 4. Note that the shared feedback signals appear on line 410 and are applied to the transformation circuits 415 and 420, respectively.",
"These transformation circuits, as described above, convert the incoming joint space information to the task coordinate system's notation.",
"The π matrices for motion, elements 425 and 427, connected to the output of circuit 415, are identical in the feedback path while the weighing matrices 435, 437 that are receiving the output terms are different.",
"In a similar manner, transformation circuit 420 applies its output to the π matrices 426 and 428 for force weighing.",
"Those matrices, in turn, are connected to weighing matrices 434 and 436.",
"We now develope the mathematical relationship for signal weighing by the matrices 435, 437 and 434, 436.",
"These mathematical relationships are as follows: ##EQU13## where .",
"sub.",
"λi reflects the scaling factor between the actual forces generated and the force that the teleoperator is intended to feel.",
"Note that this is how we, in accordance with our invention, have force reflectance of the actual forces to the operator.",
"This force reflectance may be openloop, where the operator just feels the contact forces, or closed-loop where the operator can effect changes in the desired contact force through teleoperation.",
"The latter case is allowed only when the time delays are insignificant.",
"Generally speaking, the term .",
"sup.",
"sbsp.",
"T M is actually very complex.",
"We have provided a connection between the matrix 437 and the input to summing junction 475 in FIG. 4. This connection accomplishes a multifold purpose for the term .",
"sup.",
"sbsp.",
"T M. The purpose for the .",
"sup.",
"sbsp.",
"T M term is twofold.",
"First, it must enable the teleoperator to experience the inertia of the robot system at the remote site.",
"Through this the operator gets a sense of how the robot is behaving.",
"In addition, it enables the operator to adapt to the inertial characteristics of the robot system, so that the operator learns how best to teleoperate the robot 375.",
"For example, in the presence of contacts along directions of contact forces, we simply reflect the actual forces back to the operator (with a scaling factor), as explained above.",
"Along directions of motions, however, we obtain the difference between the desired and actual teleoperator trajectories, and use this difference information to inform the operator about the inertial characteristics of the robot.",
"We explain the actual methodology behind the above-described virtual force reflectance in the next subsection.",
"Suffice it to say at this point, however, that at the task level, in order to obtain the existing errors in teleoperation, we must extract out of the actual motions under shared control, the contributions due to teleoperation.",
"Although the shared input signal 0 S at lead 410 is a linear combination of autonomous and teleoperator trajectories, the non-linearities in the robot system itself (and possibly also in its controllers, if non-linear controllers are employed) makes is very difficult to perform this extraction.",
"We therefore restrict ourselves in a mathematical development to a simple case in this patent application.",
"The general case is valid, however, and is within the scope of the appended claims, and is covered in our invention.",
"Let us develope for the simple case;",
"(G.",
"sub.",
"A).",
"sup.",
"t G.sub.",
"T =0 G.sub.",
"A U G.sub.",
"T =S.",
"sub.",
"M where, U indicates a union operation and S M represents the space of motions allowable by M. In this case, teleoperative and autonomous motions are in the orthogonal directions, and so, .",
"sup.",
"sbsp.",
"T M will be: ##EQU14## Note that the actual robot trajectory under shared control is then multiplied by the appropriate A matrix, and then subtracted from the desired to obtain the difference.",
"The difference is then shipped out to the local site.",
"Output signals from the A matrices are six element vectors.",
"For example, if the motion output information is expressed in three digits the first three places are motion information followed by three zeroes in the last three digit places.",
"For the force side the opposite condition is true, with the last three places containing force information while the first three digit places are filled with zeroes.",
"A combined six digit signal is then developed at the autonomous feedback line 312.",
"To summarize, in this subsection, we have described in detail how teleoperative and autonomous inputs will be integrated at the task level.",
"III.",
"SERVO LEVEL At the servo level, three functions have to be performed in the feedforward path.",
"The first is the actual execution of the commands issued from the task level.",
"This function will be accomplished by any standard servo operation through equipment that is well known and located entirely at the remote site.",
"The second function is to take the raw teleoperator input signals and convert such signals to a coordinate system attached to the device itself.",
"This function is also accomplished by equipment that is well known and is located entirely at the local site.",
"In connection with this second function, device-specific commands are shipped out to the robot system from the remote site.",
"The third function is to perform the transformation of feedback information at the remote site to the appropriate task level coordinate system.",
"In the feedback path, the functions are almost identical.",
"The only exception is that at the local site, in addition to performing the transformations between device coordinate system and the actual input device, there must also be a servo-loop in the force reflectance path.",
"We will now explain the above-mentioned features in more detail by reference to FIG. 6 which shows both the feedforward and feedback paths from and to the teleoperator.",
"It should be recalled from FIG. 3 that an operator 325 will supply a teleoperator input to a hand controller.",
"Such a hand controller, shown in FIG. 6 as hand controller 625, is connected in standard fashion to a servo system of any known type.",
"The servo 626 will convert the teleop inputs into a signal format that is acceptable by transformation circuitry 335.",
"Such transformation circuitry includes a pair of transformation circuits 640 and 645 (local site), and another pair of transformation circuits 650, 655 (remote site) each of which are devoted to motion (T) and to force respectively in accordance with our invention.",
"As one reviews the circuitry of FIG. 6, it is readily apparent that the left-hand side and the right-hand side of the figure are images of each other with the outbound or feedforward part on the left and the inbound or feedback part on the right.",
"Description of one side is mostly self explanatory of the reverse direction that occurs in the other side.",
"The transformation of the parameters at T and at are described in the subsections hereinafter.",
"A. Determination of T The transformation between task-level and the teleoperation-level occur in the boxes denoted transform 335 (local site) and transform 350 (remote site) as shown in FIG. 3. Once C has been determined at the task level, determination of this transformation is straightforward.",
"Transformations of the teleoperator motions to the task coordinate system are required as long as at least one degree of motion freedom exists.",
"Therefore, the matrix ##EQU15## is required.",
"This will in general vary with the locations of the task frame, and so requires information from higher level planning system for its construction.",
"In addition, if teleoperation is allowed along force direction, then the jacobian ##EQU16## would also be required.",
"Similar arguments can be used for the feedback path.",
"Thus in FIG. 6, we see that the kinematic transformations ##EQU17## in the feedforward path are done at the local and remote sites respectively.",
"Similarly for ##EQU18## in the feedback path.",
"The forces are transformed through the corresponding Jacobians, ##EQU19## in the feedforward path, and ##EQU20## in the feedback path.",
"In general, the teleoperator device itself has a very small motion limit.",
"Therefore, each teleoperator input indicates the incremental change necessary in the autonomous trajectory.",
"The rate at which a local processor within the hand controller samples the raw device signal and converts it to hand controller specific motions may, in general, be an order of magnitude faster than the rate at the task-level.",
"The above implies that the small incremental changes specified by a teleoperator will have to be accumulated and stored in order to generate the teleoperative commands at the task level.",
"In our implementations (although not explicitly depicted in any figure) this is assumed to be done at the remote site.",
"B. Teleoperation unit The transformation of motions of the input devices in the teleoperation hardware to small incremental motions in a teleoperator device specific cartesian coordinate system, occurs in the feedforward path in servo 626 in FIG. 6. The box denoted hand controller 625 represents the teleoperation hardware.",
"The hardware not only contains encoders to read the motions of the input device, but also motors that can be actuated.",
"In the feedback path, the servo box 686 drives these motors against the operator to provide her with force reflectance in a manner well known in this art.",
"Such force reflection can occur in two cases: (1) when there is negligible transmission time delay between the local and the remote sites.",
"In this case actual forces from the remote site can be fed back to the operator and thus the control loop is effectively closed through the operator.",
"And (2) when there is enough transmission time delay, only the motion subspace is directly controlled by the operator.",
"In this latter case the motion errors in teleoperation, supplied from the task-level, are first multiplied by a stiffness matrix to generate virtual inertial forces, and then added to the actual contact forces.",
"The actuators drive the operator back (or forth) in proportion to these signals.",
"If the operator reacts by moving the input device back or forth, she feels the effective inertia of the remote manipulator.",
"Thus the force reflectance loop is closed only around the robot system located at the remote site.",
"C. Control Architecture The output from the task level to the servo-level is made up of desired motions and/or forces as is depicted in FIG. 4. These motion and/or force commands must be actually executed on the robot.",
"In the absence of contacts, the controller must track position trajectories.",
"In the presence of contacts, there are certain directions along which motion trajectories are specified, while along the others, force trajectories are specified.",
"The fundamental assumption in a hybrid task representation is that frictional effects are negligible.",
"Under such conditions, a pure hybrid control strategy can be used for execution of the commands.",
"FIG. 7 shows a hybrid position/force control architecture, in accordance with that described by Raibert, M. H., &",
"Craig, J. J., Hybrid Position/Force Control of Manipulators, Journal of Dynamic Systems, Measurement &",
"Control, 102 (June 1981), 126-133.",
"In FIG. 7, errors in position are compensated for by the controller 710 denoted C X , while force errors are compensated for through a force compensator 720 denoted C F .",
"The outputs of both C x and C F represent actual motor current signals.",
"These are directly added by an adder 725 and supplied to the robot 375.",
"C X and C F are position and force compensators respectively.",
"These may be of any conventional design.",
"For example, if the system is linearized, these could be directly obtained through pole placement, or designs to adapt to small geometric errors in the contact, or designed to minimize the flow of energy at the contact and so on.",
"Such designs are well known in this art and are not believed to require any further description.",
"During implementation, we must bear in mind that each trajectory specified from the task level must be followed.",
"One way to emulate this is to take the force/motion trajectory specified in 0 1 .",
"sbsb[.",
"].5 (denoted shared output in FIG. 4), and perform interpolations by slicing it into small incremental regions consisting of ramps or steps.",
"Each incremental δ α specifies a small change in the state of the robot so that when accumulated over all the increments, changes specifies by α are achieved.",
"And, each δ α will be added on to the previous alpha values to generate the present F d and X d signals present at 750 and 775 of FIG. 7. That is, for k=1 to n, where n is the total number of interpolations required: X.sub.",
"d (K+1)=X.",
"sub.",
"d (K)+δα.",
"sub.S.sbsb.",
"M F.sub.",
"d (K+1)=F.",
"sub.",
"d (K)+δα.",
"sub.S.sbsb.",
"M And, X d (0) and F d (0) are known before starting the task.",
"In this subsection, we have explained in detail (i) how teleoperator inputs are generated, (ii) how task-level feedback is reflected to the teleoperator, and (iii) how each shared task command may be executed.",
"In the next section, we will describe in somewhat more detail the shared control architecture which is representative of an implementation of the shared control of this, our invention.",
"The implementation will consist of the hardware and the software environment;",
"and a particular way in which shared control is implemented.",
"3.0 HARDWARE The hardware as shown in FIG. 8 is divided into two groups: local 800 above the dashed line 810 and remote 850 below the dashed line 810.",
"In local site 800, there is a pair of six DOF hand controllers, shown as right and left hand controllers 801, 802 respectively.",
"These hand controllers may be in accordance with the description given in Bejczy, A. K., Salisbury, J. K., Controlling Remote Manipulators through Kinesthetic Coupling, Computers in Mechanical Engineering, Vol. 2, No. 1, July 1983, pages 48-60.",
"These hand controllers appear at encircled numerals 1 and 2 in FIG. 8. Shown at encircled numerals 3 and 4 in FIG. 8 are a pair of associated Universal Motor Controllers ("UMC") 815 and 816.",
"The universal motor controllers 815 and 816 are connected to two VME chassis, each with two Motorola 68020/68881 based single board computers, I/O cards, and Ethernet cards (marked at encircled numerals 5 and 6 in FIG. 8. Items shown associated with the encircled numerals 1 through 6 form the hardware support for a standard teleoperation control over a robot.",
"All operations from, and/or to, the actual tele-operator (and visa-versa) transformation boxes T and on the local side are performed by this hardware.",
"A Sun 3/60 work station 845 serves as the programming environment (see next subsection) and as an on line operator interface to invoke different modes of operation.",
"In general, real time signals are transmitted by using parallel I/O and non real time command invocations are through the use of ethernet based sockets.",
"Autonomous commands are generated here.",
"The hardware of the remote site consists of a Sun 4/200 computer 885 (marked at encircled numeral 7 in FIG. 8), a VME chassis with two Motorola 68020/68881 based single board computer and serial/parallel I/O cards 856, 857 (marked 12 in FIG. 8), two UMC's 861,862 (marked at encircled numerals 8 and 9 in FIG. 8), two Puma 560's, identified as left robot 876 and right robot 886 and two Lord wrist force/torque sensors 877 and 878 (marked at encircled numerals 10 and 11 in FIG. 8).",
"All hand controllers are equipped with DC motors and encoders.",
"The operator's hand motions are measured through the displacements it causes in the hand controller's joints using simple kinematic relations.",
"Force feedback is possible since the hand controllers are equipped with joint motors.",
"The hand controllers are balanced such that the operator can let go of them without the assembly dropping due to gravity.",
"Each hand controller, in addition to providing a general six DOF motion specification capability, has three general purpose buttons and a trigger that is used for opening or closing a gripper, indexing, or any other user-defined function.",
"The UMC's may be those built at Jet Propulsion Laboratories in accordance with an article by: Bejczy, A. K., Szakaly, Z. F., A Synchronized Computational Architecture for Generalized Bilateral Control of Robot Arms, Proc.",
"of the Conference on Advances in Intelligent Robotic Systems, SPIE &",
"International Society for Optical Engineering, Cambridge, MA.",
", No. 1-6, 1987.",
"and Bejczy, A. K., Szakaly, Z. F., Universal Computer Control System (UCCS) for Space Telerobots, Proc.",
"of the 1987 IEEE International Conference on Robotics &",
"Automation, Raleigh, NC, Mar. 30-Apr. 3, 1987, pages 318-324.",
"Such articles disclose general purpose motor controllers consisting of custom joint interface cards for reading the encoders and a multi-bus based National Semiconductor 32016 single board computer for servo control.",
"Each UMC is a stand alone robot controller with a capability to use additional microprocessors for multiprocessing.",
"In our implementation a second NSC32016 with an onboard parallel port serves as a communication processor.",
"This parallel port is connected to a VME based commercial parallel card.",
"The overall system has four such connections;",
"two in the remote site and two in the local site.",
"The UMC's are used to send either position or voltage commands to the puma's or the hand controllers and read their encoders and potentiometer (in the case of Puma arms).",
"When position set points are given to the UMC's, real time PID control is performed at the rate of 1000 Hz.",
"The communication protocol which supports an array of commands and information gathering functions can be executed at the same 1000 Hz as well.",
"4.0 SOFTWARE In this section we first describe the software environment that supports our implementation.",
"Then we provide the details specific to the implementation of shared control.",
"There are three different software environments each identifiable with a particular hardware module.",
"These are: UMC, VME/68020, and the Sun 4/200 software environments.",
"In our implementation, the UMC's are considered black boxes with a predefined communication protocol.",
"The programming environment is IBM-PC for code development, cross compilation, and down loading.",
"All the code is in NSC32016 assembly language.",
"The VME/68020 uses a commercial software development package called VxWorks.",
"This package provides all the necessary tools to write, down load, and debug code on the 68020's.",
"The package can use one of several commercial real time kernels.",
"All the communication and 68020 software are written in the C language.",
"The Sun 4/200 runs on a modified Sun 3.2 operating system which provides a real time kernel capability.",
"The programming language is C. The autonomous portion is written in an enhanced (dual arm) version of Robot Control C Library (RCCL) pertaining to: Hayward, V., Paul R., Robot Manipulator Control Under Unix RCCL, International Journal of Robotics Research, Vol. 5, No. 4, pages 94-111, Winter 1987 and Lloyd, J., Parker, M., McClain, R., Extending the RCCL Programming Environment to Multiple Robots &",
"Processors, Proc.",
"1988 IEEE International Conference on Robotics &",
"Automation, Apr. 24-29, Philadelphia, PA, pages 465-469.",
"Now we describe the implementation of shared control.",
"The teleoperation portion of the control, i.e., forward kinematics and transformation to the robot base coordinate frame are performed in the local site (functions on the local side in FIG. 6 are implemented on hardware items marked by encircled numerals 1 through 6 in FIG. 8).",
"Force feedback to the operator is also implemented in the local site.",
"The task level share control is performed on the Sun 360 in the R programming environment.",
"RCCL is general purpose robot library that provides a convenient programming environment.",
"Since the user writes her code in the C language and makes use of RCCL library functions, the programs are not restricted to a specific syntax such as VAL or other special purpose robot languages.",
"The user writes two pieces of code for each robot program.",
"The first part, which runs asynchronously with the robot, is the main logic of the program, such as when to start, how fast to move, Cartesian verses joint mode trajectory generation, etc.",
"The second part, which runs in real time, computes the user supplied real time functions.",
"These real time functions can be tied to an external sensor such as a vision subsystem or force torque sensor, or an internal real time system such as joint sensors.",
"Task level shared control is implemented using this capability of RCCL.",
"After the autonomous trajectories are determined from the task description, a ring equation of the form: (Z .",
") T6(.",
"R)=AB .",
"U In every interval i.e., a time period during which R computes a new position set point, equation (3) is solved for T6.",
"T6 is the transformation describing the sixth frame robot.",
"All other matrices have to be determined before hand.",
"Normally, the autonomous system generates plans which end up providing via point for the manipulator to pass through.",
"In terms of the above equation, this means that matrices such as Z, .",
", U are determined by the autonomous system.",
"One or more of these matrices can be attached to the output of the hand controllers.",
"In this manner, the system can effectively mix the data from these two separate paths.",
"This data can first go through appropriate filters so only the specified subspace affects the motion of the robot.",
"The output of this portion can then be given to the level 0 which actually performs the servo control.",
"Similar but simpler mechanism is used to mix the force trajectories.",
"It is simpler, since at the present we consider very simple (step function) trajectories for force control.",
"The servo control is performed in two 68020 CPU's in the remote site (box 12).",
"Since the Sun 4/200 computer can compute the kinematics and dynamics equations 7 to 8 times faster than the 68020/68881 processors, most of the computational elements that do not need servo level updates reside in the Sun 4/200 computer.",
"These include the Jacobian, inverse Jacobian, and some of the elements of the arm dynamics.",
"The Sun 4/200 updates this data and computes the position and force set positions at the rate of 150 Hz.",
"The servo level runs at 300 Hz.",
"In this patent application we have presented an architecture for shared control in two levels of a control hierarchy.",
"Our philosophical approach to the invention includes a signal sharing that has retained the advantages of each mode while allowing for one's deficiencies to be overcome by the other.",
"Particular emphasis was placed on the control of a remotely located robot in the presence of transmission time delays.",
"The architecture provides a flexible system design such that one can start on an almost completely teleoperated mode and move towards increased autonomy in time.",
"Other applications of the principles and features of this invention will be well recognized to those of ordinary skill in this art and need no further description.",
"The principles described and claimed hereinafter are to be construed in accordance with the applicable construction and interpretation tenets of the Patent Laws."
] |
FIELD OF THE PRESENT INVENTION
This invention relates to an electrophotographic apparatus. More particularly to a surface of a photoimaging component such as a photoconductor, cleaning blade, fixing roller, separation pawl, corona wire and corona grid etc.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
In an electrophotographic apparatus, the photoreceptor is used in a series of electrophotographic processes; that is, in repetitive processes of primary charging, forming of an electrostatic latent image by image exposure, development of toner charged in reverse polarity of the electrostatic image, transfer of the toner image on plain paper, removal of residual toner on the drum by a cleaning device, and removal of electric charge on the drum by intense exposure.
In these processes, the talc and residual toner of the paper on the photoconductor drum are usually removed by using a cleaning roller or cleaning blade.
The required characteristics of the blade are to remove the toner efficiently from the photoconductor drum and to prevent the removed toner from depositing on the blade.
As the blade material, polyurethane rubber is generally used because it is excellent in wear resistance.
In the fixing process, the toner is permanently adhered to the paper by heat or pressure. The fixing process is the step for determining the final image. When the adhesion of the toner and the roller surface becomes stronger than the aggregation of toner particles, the toner deposits on the roller, which causes background noise on the copy. That is, the toner is stuck on the white background. To prevent this, the roller surface is coated with polytetrafluoroethylene to weaken toner adhesion.
In the fixing process, in order to improve the paper offset property, the separation pawl is used. To prevent the toner from sticking to the separation pawl, the surface of the separation pawl made of polyamide is coated with a resin containing fluorine, and is baked (Japanese Patent Publication Sho. 61-23554).
In the corona charging process, the photoconductor surface is uniformly charged by corona discharge by means of a corona wire. The corona wire is usually made of gold-coated tungsten wire.
Also in the fixing process, the photoconductor surface is uniformly charged by corona discharge by means of a charger. The corona grid is generally made of stainless steel.
If an attempt is made to remove the toner in this method, however, a slight amount of paper talc and toner is not removed but is left on the photoconductor drum. When the image is repeatedly formed, white blanks or black spots may appear on the image and lower the image quality. Or if the cleaning roller or cleaning blade is applied by force in order to remove toner, the electric charge of the surface layer of the photoconductor is charged which lowers the durability.
Moreover, if fixed repeatedly by using a fixing roller, the toner is deposited on the roller surface, and black spots appear on the image if the images are formed repeatedly, and the image quality drops. This is because, due to repeated fixings, the Teflon ("Teflon" is the trademark for polytetrafluoroethylene) coated surface is injured or is partly torn, and the toner parting property is lowered.
In the conventional separation pawl, if used repeatedly at 200° C. or more, the fluorine-containing resin film may be injured or partly torn, and the toner parting property is lowered which impairs the image quality.
By repeating the charging process in the electrophotographic apparatus using a charger, the toner deposits on the corona wire, and when the images are formed repeatedly, image disturbance or black spots may appear on the image which lowers the image quality. This is because the corona wire is not provided with the toner parting property.
Also by repeating the charging process in the electrophotographic apparatus using such charger, the toner deposits on the corona grid, and when images are formed repeatedly, image disturbances or black spots may appear on the image which lowers the image quality. This is because the corona grid is not provided with the toner parting property.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The invention is devised in light of the above problems, and it is hence a primary object to present an electrophotographic apparatus which is excellent in image quality.
According to a first aspect of the invention we provide an electrophotographic apparatus for obtaining duplicate images comprising a photoimaging component coated with a chemical adsorption film containing a fluorocarbon group, the chemical adsorption film bonded through --SiO-- covalent bonds.
It is preferable in this invention that the component is selected from the group consisting of a photoconductor, cleaning blade, fixing roller, separation pawl, corona wire and corona grid.
It is preferable in this invention that the chemical adsorption film is a monomolecular film or a polymer film.
It is preferable in this invention that the component comprises a substrate made of a material selected from the group consisting of metals, metal oxide, ceramics, glass, plastics.
It is preferable in this invention that the component comprises a substrate surface having at least one functional group selected from the group consisting of a hydroxyl group, carboxyl group, an imino group and an amino group.
It is preferable in this invention that the component comprises a plasma or corona treated substrate surface.
It is preferable in this invention that the chemical adsorption film is laminated via a siloxane-based inner layer, the inner layer being bonded by covalent bonds to a surface of the device, the inner layer and the chemical adsorption film being bonded together by covalent bonds.
It is preferable in this invention that the inner layer is a monomolecular film or polymer film.
According to the invention, the photoreceptor used in the electrophotographic apparatus of the invention has its surface coated with a chemical adsorption film possessing a fluorocarbon group by chemical bonding through siloxane coupling, and is hence excellent in protection from contamination. That is, since the fluorocarbon group is present in the surface layer of the chemical adsorption film, the anti-fouling property is excellent, and the toner does not deposit on the uncharged portion, and the talc and toner of the paper may be easily removed at the time of cleaning. Since the base of the chemical adsorption film is formed by chemical bonding through siloxane coupling, the film is excellent in durability, and if the surface is cleaned repeatedly, the chemical adsorption film will not be easily separated from the photoconductor surface. Furthermore, the chemical adsorption film of the invention is ultrathin, on the order of nanometers or Angstroms, and therefore it will not spoil the characteristics of the photoconductor surface such as mechanical strength.
Furthermore, according to a preferred embodiment of the invention in which the chemical adsorption film is a monomolecular film, since a thin film of uniform thickness is formed, it does not affect the dimensional precision of the photoconductor.
A preferred second aspect of the invention for achieving the above object presents an electrophotographic apparatus for obtaining duplicate images, wherein a chemical adsorption film possessing a fluorocarbon group through siloxane coupling is applied on the surface of the cleaning blade.
In this embodiment, the chemical adsorption film is desirably a monomolecular film.
The cleaning blade used in the electrophotographic apparatus of the invention has its surface coated with a chemical adsorption film possessing a fluorocarbon group by chemical bonding through siloxane coupling, and therefore it provides excellent lubrication and prevents contamination. That is, since the fluorocarbon group is present in the surface layer of the chemical adsorption film, it provides excellent lubrication and prevents contamination. Besides, since the base of the chemical adsorption film is formed by chemical bonding through siloxane coupling, the film is excellent in durability, and therefore if the surface is rubbed repeatedly, the chemical adsorption film will not be easily separated from the cleaning blade surface. Furthermore, since the chemical adsorption film of the invention is an ultrathin film, on the order of nanometers or Angstroms, it does not spoil the properties of the cleaning blade such as mechanical strength.
Moreover, since the chemical adsorption film is a monomolecular film in a preferred embodiment of the invention, a thin film of uniform thickness is obtained, so that it does not affect the dimensional precision of the cleaning blade.
A preferred third embodiment presents an electrophotographic apparatus for obtaining duplicate images, wherein the chemical adsorption film possessing a fluorocarbon group through siloxane coupling is applied on the surface of a fixing roller.
In this embodiment, the chemical adsorption film is desired to be a monomolecular film.
The fixing roller used in the electrophotographic apparatus of the invention has its surface coated with a chemical adsorption film possessing a fluorocarbon group by chemical bonding through siloxane coupling, and therefore it is excellent separating property. That is, since the fluorocarbon group is present in the surface layer of the chemical adsorption film, it is excellent separating property. Besides, since the base of the chemical adsorption film is formed by chemical bonding through siloxane coupling, a film excellent in durability is obtained, and if the surface is rubbed repeatedly, the chemical adsorption film will not be easily peeled off the surface of the fixing roller. In addition, since the chemical adsorption film of the invention is an ultrathin film, on the order of nanometers or Angstroms, it does not spoil the characteristics of the fixing roller such as mechanical strength.
In a preferred embodiment of the invention in which the chemical adsorption film is a monomolecular film, a thin film of uniform thickness is obtained, and it does not affect the dimensional precision of the fixing roller.
To achieve the above objects, the invention presents an electrophotographic apparatus for obtaining duplicate images, wherein the chemical adsorption film possessing a fluorocarbon group through siloxane coupling is applied on the surface of a separation pawl used in the paper offset.
In this embodiment, the chemical adsorption film is desired to be a monomolecular film.
The separation pawl used in the electrophotographic apparatus of the invention has its surface coated with a chemical adsorption film possessing a fluorocarbon group by chemical bonding through siloxane coupling, and hence it is excellent separating property. That is, since the fluorocarbon group is present in the surface layer of the chemical adsorption film, it is excellent in parting property, and the toner does not deposit on the surface. Besides, the base of the chemical adsorption film is formed by chemical bonding through siloxane coupling, and hence the film is excellent in durability, and if the surface is rubbed repeatedly, the chemical adsorption film will not be easily peeled off the surface of the separation pawl. Furthermore, since the chemical adsorption film of the invention is an ultrathin film, on the order of nanometers or Angstroms, it does not spoil the properties of the separation pawl such as mechanical strength.
Still more, in a preferred constitution of the invention in which the chemical adsorption film is a monomolecular film, since a thin film of uniform thickness is obtained, it does not affect the dimensional precision of the separation pawl.
A preferred fifth embodiment presents an electrophotographic apparatus for obtaining duplicate images, wherein the chemical adsorption film possessing a fluorocarbon group through siloxane coupling is applied on the surface of a corona wire.
In the above embodiment, the chemical adsorption film is desired to be a monomolecular film.
The corona wire used in the electrophotographic apparatus of the invention has its surface coated with a chemical adsorption film possessing a fluorocarbon group by chemical bonding through siloxane coupling, and hence it is excellent in parting property. That is, since the fluorocarbon group is present in the surface layer of the chemical adsorption film, the separating property is excellent. Besides, since the base of the chemical adsorption film is formed by chemical bonding through siloxane coupling, the film is excellent also in durability, and if charged repeatedly, the chemical adsorption film will not be easily peeled off the surface of the corona wire. In addition, since the chemical adsorption film of the invention is an ultrathin film, on the order of nanometers or Angstroms, it does not spoil the characteristics of the corona wire such as mechanical strength.
In a preferred embodiment of the invention in which the chemical adsorption film is a monomolecular film, a thin film of uniform thickness is obtained, so that it does not affect the dimensional precision of the corona wire.
A preferred sixth embodiment presents an electrophotographic apparatus for obtaining duplicate images, wherein a chemical adsorption film possessing a fluorocarbon group through siloxane coupling is applied on the surface of a corona grid.
In this embodiment, the chemical adsorption film is desired to be a monomolecular film.
The corona grid used in the electrophotographic apparatus of the invention has its surface coated with a chemical adsorption film possessing a fluorocarbon group by chemical bonding through siloxane coupling, and therefore it is excellent separating property. That is, since the alkyl fluoride group is present in the surface layer of the chemical adsorption film, the separating property is excellent. Besides, since the base of the chemical adsorption film is formed by chemical bonding through siloxane coupling, the film also excels in durability, and if charged repeatedly, the chemical adsorption film will not be easily peeled off the corona grid. Moreover, since the chemical adsorption film of the invention is an ultrathin film, on the order of nanometers or Angstroms, it does not spoil the properties of the corona grid such as mechanical strength.
In a preferred embodiments of the invention in which the chemical adsorption film is a monomolecular film, a thin film in uniform thickness is formed, and therefore it does not affect the dimensional precision of the corona grid.
In the first to sixth embodiments, the chemical adsorption film may be replaced by a polymer film. By forming a polymer film, the film is dense and it is excellent in durability and other properties.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG. 1 is a sectional conceptual diagram magnifying the surface of an electrophotographic photoconductor used in an electrophotographic apparatus of the invention from a molecular level.
FIG. 2 is a sectional conceptual diagram magnifying the surface of a cleaning blade used in an electrophotographic apparatus of the invention from a molecular level.
FIG. 3 is a sectional conceptual diagram magnifying the surface of a fixing roller used in an electrophotographic apparatus of the invention from a molecular level.
FIG. 4 is a sectional conceptual diagram magnifying the surface of a separation pawl used in an electrophotograhic apparatus of the invention from a molecular level.
FIG. 5 is a sectional conceptual diagram magnifying the surface of a corona wire used in an electrophotographic apparatus of the invention from a molecular level.
FIG. 6 is a sectional conceptual diagram magnifying the surface of a corona grid used in an electrophotographic apparatus of the invention from a molecular level.
FIG. 7 is a sectional view of a separation pawl used in an electrophotographic apparatus of the invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
The invention is described in detail below by reference to the illustrated embodiments thereof.
A first embodiment of the electrophotographic apparatus of the invention employs, as shown in FIG. 1, an electrophotographic photoreceptor 1 having its surface coated with a monomolecular film 3 possessing a fluorocarbon group through a siloxane coupling 2.
The materials for the electrophotographic photoconductor may include, as examples of inorganic photoconductor, amorphous silicon, mixture of amorphous Se and As 2 Se 3 , CdS and others.
Examples of an organic photoconductor may include, for the carrier generating layer (CGL), PVK, perylene pigment, indigo, bisazo pigment, chlorodian blue, etc. and for the carrier transfer layer (CTL), triphenylamine dimer, pyrazoline derivative, triphenylamine derivative, hydrazone derivative, oxadiazole derivative, and indolin derivative. These organic photoconductors are mainly used in a state being dispersed in a resin.
The chemical adsorption film applied on the surface of the photoconductor used in the electrophotographic apparatus of the invention is composed of a chlorosilane surface active agent possessing an alkyl fluoride group.
A second embodiment of the electrophotographic apparatus of the invention comprises, as shown in FIG. 2, a cleaning blade 21 having its surface coated with a monomolecular film possessing a fluorocarbon group through a siloxane coupling 22.
As the material for the cleaning blade, for example, rubber materials, in particular, polyurethane rubber materials are widely used.
A third embodiment of the electrophotographic apparatus of the invention comprises, as shown in FIG. 3, a fixing roller 31 having its surface coated with a monomolecular film 33 possessing a fluorocarbon group through a siloxane coupling 32.
As the material for the fixing roller, for example, metal is widely used, in particular, aluminum.
The chemical adsorption film applied on the surface of the fixing roller used in the electrophotographic apparatus of the invention is composed of a chlorosilane surface active agent possessing a fluorocarbon group.
A fourth embodiment of the electrophotographic apparatus of the invention comprises, as shown in FIG. 4, a separation pawl 41 having its surface coated with a monomolecular film 43 possessing a fluorocarbon group through a silocane coupling 42.
Materials for the separation pawl include heat resistant resins such as polyamide, polyimide, nylon, PET, PBT, polyacetal, polycarbonate, polyarylate, polypropylene polyethylene, and ABS.
The chemical adsorption film applied on the surface of the separation pawl used in the electrophotographic apparatus of the invention is composed of a chlorosilane surface active agent possessing a fluorocarbon group.
A fifth embodiment of the electrophotographic apparatus of the invention comprises, as shown in FIG. 5, a corona wire 51 having its surface coated with monomolecular film 53 possessing a fluorocarbon group through a siloxane coupling 52.
As the material for the corona wire, metal, especially tungsten wire, coated with gold is used.
The chemical adsorption film applied on the surface of the corona wire of the electrophotographic apparatus of the invention is composed of a chlorosilane surface active agent possessing a fluorocarbon group.
A sixth embodiment of the electrophotographic apparatus of the invention comprises, as shown in FIG. 6, a corona grid 61 having its surface coated with a monomolecular film 63 possessing a fluorocarbon group through a siloxane coupling 62.
As the material for the charging grid, stainless steel is used in particular.
The chemical adsorption film applied on the surface of the corona grid used in the electrophotographic apparatus of the invention is composed of a chlorosilane surface active agent possessing a fluorocarbon group.
Examples of trichlorosilane-based surface active materials of the present invention include
CF 3 (CF 2 ) 7 (CF 2 ) 2 SiCl 3 ,
CF 3 CH 2 O(CH 2 ) 15 SiCl 3 ,
CF 3 (CH 2 ) 2 Si(CH 3 ) 2 (CH 2 ) 15 SiCl 3 ,
F(CF 2 ) 4 (CH 2 ) 2 Si(CH 3 ) 2 (CH 2 ) 9 SiCl 3 ,
F(CF 2 ) 8 (CH 2 ) 2 Si(CH 3 ) 2 (CH 2 ) 9 SiCl 3 ,
F(CF 2 ) 8 (CH 2 ) 2 Si(CH 3 ) 2 (CH 2 ) 10 SiCl 3 ,
F(CF 2 ) 8 (CH 2 ) 2 Si(CH 3 ) 2 (CH 2 ) 16 SiCl 3 ,
CF 3 COO(CH 2 ) 15 SiCl 3 ,
CF 3 (CF 2 ) 5 (CH 2 ) 2 SiCl 3 ,
CH 3 (CH 2 ) 9 SiCl 3 ,
CH 3 CH 2 O(CH 2 ) 15 SiCl 3 ,
CH 3 (CH 2 ) 2 Si(CH 3 ) 2 (CH 2 ) 15 SiCl 3 ,
CH 3 (CH 2 ) 6 Si(CH 3 ) 2 (CH 2 ) 9 SiCl 3 ,
CH 3 (CH 2 ) 10 Si(CH 3 ) 2 (CH 2 ) 9 SiCl 3 ,
CH 3 COO(CH 2 ) 15 SiCl 3 .
Examples of lower-alkyl substituted monochlorosilane- or dichlorosilane-based surface active materials of the present invention include
CF 3 (CF 2 ) 7 (CH 2 ) 2 SiCl n (CH 3 ) 3-n ,
CF 3 CH 2 O(CH 2 ) 15 SiCl n (CH 3 ) 3-n ,
CF 3 (CF 2 ) 7 (CH 2 ) 2 SiCl n (C 2 H 5 ) 3-n ,
CF 3 (CH 2 ) 2 Si(CH 3 ) 2 (CH 2 ) 15 SiCl n (CH 3 ) 3-n ,
CF 3 CH 2 O(CH 2 ) 15 SiCl n (C 2 H 5 ) 3-n ,
CF 3 (CF 2 ) 3 (CH 2 ) 2 Si(CH 3 ) 2 (CH 2 ) 9 SiCl n --(C 2 H 5 ) 3-n ,
CF 3 (CF 2 ) 3 (CH 2 ) 2 Si(CH 3 ) 2 (CH 2 ) 10 SiCl n-- (C 2 H 5 ) 3-n ,
CF 3 (CF 2 ) 3 (CH 2 ) 2 Si(CH 3 ) 2 (CH 2 ) 16 SiCl n --(C 2 H 5 ) 3-n ,
CF 3 (CF 2 ) 7 (CH 2 ) 2 Si(CH 3 ) 2 (CH 2 ) 9 SiCl n --(CH 3 ) 3-n ,
CF 3 (CF 2 ) 5 (CH 2 ) 2 SiCl n (CH 3 ) 3-n ,
CF 3 COO(CH 2 ) 15 SiCl n (CH 3 ) 3-n
where n represents 1 or 2.
Among these examples, trichlorosilane-based surface active materials are preferred in that chlorosilyl bonds other than those bonded to their hydrophilic groups form inter-molecular bonds with adjacent chlorosilane groups by siloxane bonds, thereby permitting formation of a more firmly adsorbed film.
Trichlorosilane-based surface active materials are particularly preferred because chlorosilyl bonds other than those coupled to their hydrophilic groups form inter-molecular bonds with adjacent chlorosilane groups with siloxane bonds and thus permit formation of a more firmly adsorbed film.
Further, CF 3 (CF 2 ) n (CH 2 ) 2 SiCl 3 where n represents an integer, most suitably 3 to 25, is preferred because of its solubility and its water-repelling, anti-contaminating and other functional properties. Further, with an ethylene (C═C) or acetylene (C.tbd.C) group added to or incorporated in the fluorocarbon chain portion, the chemically adsorbed film may be crosslinked after formation by irradiating it with an electron beam of about 5 Mrads, thus further improving the hardness of the chemically adsorbed film.
It is thus possible to further improve the hardness of the chemically adsorbed film.
The chlorosilane-based surface active material capable of use according to the invention is not limited to those in the form of a straight chain as noted above. It is possible to use a branched fluorocarbon or hydrocarbon group or those having a substituted fluorocarbon or hydrocarbon group with silicon at one end (i.e., those represented by the formula R 2 SiCl 2 , R 3 SiCl, R 1 R 2 SiCl 2 or R 1 R 2 R 3 SiCl where R, R 1 , R 2 and R 3 represents an fluorocarbon group or hydrocarbon group). To increase the adsorption density, however, the straight chain form is preferred.
Further, by chemically adsorbing a material for forming an inner layer material having a plurality of chlorosilyl groups, e.g., SiCl 4 , SiHCl 3 , SiH 2 Cl 2 , and Cl(SiCl 2 O) n Cl 3 (where n represents an integer in a range from 1 to 20), SiCl m (CH 3 ) 4-m , SiCl m (C 2 H 5 ) 4-m (where m represents 1, 2 or 3), and HSiCl p (CH 3 ) 3-p , HSiCl p (C 2 H 5 ) 3-p (where p represents 1 or 2), and then reacting it with water, surface chlorosilyl bonds are converted to hydrophilic silanol bonds, thus making the polymer composition hydrophilic. Among the materials containing a plurality of chlorosilyl groups, tetrachlorosilane (SiCl 4 ) is preferred in that it is highly reactive and low in molecular weight. It can, therefore, provide silanol bonds at a high density. In this way, it is possible to provide a highly hydrophilic composition compared to oxidation treatment of a polymer-containing substrate. To this surface, a chlorosilane-based surface active material containing fluorocarbon groups may be chemically adsorbed. In this way, a chemically adsorbed film suitably having an increased density can be obtained.
With a machine part consisting of a plastic molding, a chemically adsorbed film containing fluoroalkyl groups is formed on the plastic molding surface via siloxane bonds. The method of forming the film suitably comprises a step of making the plastic molding surface hydrophilic by oxidiation treatment, and a step of chemically adsorbing a chlorosilane-based surface active material to the oxidized surface by contacting the surface with a non-aqueous organic solvent by means of dipping, thus forming a chemically adsorbed film containing fluoroalkyl groups via siloxane bonds.
The plastic material may be oxidized by ordinary means, e.g., oxygen plasma treatment, corona treatment, and dipping into a mixed solution containing concentrated sulfuric acid and potassium dichromate (i.e., a chromium-containing mixture solution treatment).
The non-aqueous solvent to be used according to the invention may be any organic solvent, which does not dissolve the plastic material with the chemically adsorbed film to be formed thereon and is free from active hydrogen able to react with the chlorosilane-based surface active material. Suitable examples of the solvent are fluorine-based solvents, e.g., 1,1-dichloro-1-fluoroethane, 1,1-dichloro-2,2,2-trifluoroethane, 1,1-dichloro-2,2,3,3,3-pentafluoropropane, 1,3-dichloro-1,1,2,2,3-heptafluoropropane, etc., hydrocarbon-based solvents, e.g., hexane, octane, hexadecane, cyclohexane, etc., ether-based solvents, e.g., dibutylether, dibenzylether, etc., and ester-based solvents, e.g., methyl acetate, ethyl acetate, isopropyl acetate, amyl acetate, etc.
Incidentally, the chemical adsorption film applied on the surface of the photoconductor, cleaning blade, fixing roller, separation pawl, corona wire and corona grid used in the electrophotographic apparatus of the invention sufficiently exhibits its desired advantages with only one layer of a monomolecular chemical adsorption film. To form only one layer of a monomolecular chemical adsorption film, after chemically adsorbing a substance containing a plurality of chlorosilyl groups or chlorosilane surface active agent, it is washed in a nonaqueous solvent without contact with moisture, and is then allowed to be contacted with moisture. It is therefore done easily without any particular process. Needless to say, the chemical adsorption film may be formed by accumulating monomolecular films. In this way, when the chemical adsorption film forms a monomolecular film, the groups showing the given function are oriented and the density is enhanced, so that added benefits may be exhibited. When forming a chemical adsorption polymer film, the step of washing in nonaqueous solvent is skipped.
The invention is further described below by referring to some of the practical embodiments.
Embodiment 1
On an aluminum cylinder support of 80 mm in diameter and 360 mm in length, 2 μm thick undercoat layer was disposed by applying a 5 wt. % methanol solution of nylon resin by a dipping method. On this undercoat layer, as a photoconductor layer, amorphous silicon was formed in a thickness of 0.3 μm by a sputtering method. The material was dipped and held in a 10 -2 mol/liter cyclohexane solution of heptadecafluorodecyl trichlorosilane (surface active agent) for 120 minutes at room temperature in a nitrogen atmosphere, and successively the unreacted surface active agent was washed in a nonaqueous cyclohexane solution and then in pure water, and a chemical adsorption monomolecular film through a siloxane coupling containing a fluorocarbon group was formed on the surface of the photoconductor surface. In this process, if the formed film is not washed in a nonaqueous solution, a chemical adsorption polymer film will be formed.
Embodiment 2
On an aluminum cylinder support of 80 mm in diameter and 360 mm in length, a 2 μm thick undercoat layer was disposed by applying a 5% methanol solution of nylon resin by a dipping method.
To 88 parts of a mixed solvent of MEK (ethyl methyl ketone) and dichloromethane, 12 parts of a pyrazoline derivative and 10 parts of a bisphenyl A polycarbonate resin were dissolved. The solution was dipped and applied on the undercoat layer, and was dried by hot air for 1 hour at 100° C., and a 19 μm thick charge transfer layer was formed.
Having 10 parts of perylene pigment dissolved in a mixed solvent of bisphenol Z polycarbonate monochlorobenzne/dichloromethane=1:1 to make up 100 parts of solution (2% concentration by weight), the solution was dispersed in a ball mill for 24 hours. This dispersion was applied on the charge transfer layer, and by drying for 20 minutes at 100° C., a 2 μm thick charge generation layer was formed.
This photoconductor was treated in a UV dry stripper for 10 minutes with oxygen plasma (oxygen flow: 1 liter/min) to oxidize the surface, and it was dipped and held in a 1 wt. % tetrachlorosilane solution [solvent: tri(n-nonafluorobutyl) amine] for 60 minutes at room temperature in a nitrogen atmosphere, and in succession the unreacted tetrachlorosilane was washed in tri(n-nonafluorobutyl)amine, then in pure water, and using a dried sample, and using heptadecafluorodecyl trichlorosilane as a chlorosilane surface active agent containing a fluorocarbon group, it was dipped and held in tri(n-nonafluorobutyl)amine solution at a concentration of 10 -2 mol/liter for 120 minutes at room temperature in a nitrogen atmosphere, and the unreacted heptadecafluorodecyl trichlorosilane was washed in a tri(n-nonafluorobutyl)amine solvent, then in pure water, thereby forming a chemical adsorption monomolecular film containing a fluorocarbon group through a siloxane coupling on the photoconductor surface.
Embodiment 3
A similar experiment was conducted by forming a mixture (30:70:30 by weight) of urethane resin, silicon resin and silica particles as a protective layer on the photoconductor layer in Embodiment 1.
Reference 1
The processing was same as in Embodiment 1, except that the step of forming the chemical adsorption film was skipped.
Reference 2
The processing was same as in Embodiment 2, except that the step of forming the chemical adsorption film was skipped.
The photoconductor obtained in Embodiments 1 to 3 and References 1 and 2 were installed in a commercial electrophotographic apparatus, and corona charging, image exposure, development by toner, transfer and cleaning were repeated 10,000 times at 25° C. and 55% RH, and images were produced. The quality of the image obtained after 10,000 times was evaluated, and the result is shown in Table 1.
Table 1
Image quality after 10,000 times
Embodiment 1 As high as initial quality
Reference 1 Sharpness extremely lowered, showing many black spots and white blank areas
Embodiment 2 As high as initial quality
Reference 2 Sharpness extremely lowered, showing blurry image, black spots, and white black areas
Embodiment 3 As high as initial quality
As clear from Table 1, in the electrophotographic apparatus using the photoconductors of the reference examples, the image quality was extremely lowered when used repeatedly and continuously, but in the apparatus using the photoconductors of the invention, the image quality was not lowered after repeated continuous use.
Embodiment 4
Polyurethane rubber of 50 mm in length, 360 mm in width and 3 mm in thickness was dipped and held for 120 minutes in a 10 -2 mol/liter cyclohexane solution of heptadecafluorodecyl trichlorosilane at room temperature in a nitrogen atmosphere, and the unreacted heptadecafluorodecyl trichlorosilane was washed in cyclohexane, then in pure water, and a chemical adsorption monomolecular film containing fluorocarbon group through a siloxane coupling was formed on the surface of the cleaning blade.
Embodiment 5
Polyurethane rubber of 50 mm in length, 360 mm in width and 3 mm in thickness was treated in a UV dry stripper for 10 minutes with oxygen plasma (oxygen flow rate: 1 liter/min) to oxidize the surface, and it was dipped and held in 1 wt. % tetrachlorosilane solution [solvent: tri(n-nonafluorobutyl)amine] for 60 minutes at room temperature in a nitrogen atmosphere, and the unreacted tetrachlorosilane was washed in tri(n-nonafluorobutyl)amine, then in pure water, and using the dried sample, and using heptadecafluorodecyl trichlorosilane as the chlorosilane surface active agent containing fluorocarbon group, it was dipped and held in a tri(n-nonafluorobutyl)amine solution at a concentration of 10 -2 mol/liter for 120 minutes at room temperature in a nitrogen atmosphere, and successively the unreacted heptadecafluorodecyl trichlorosilane was washed in a tri(n-nonafluorobutyl)amine solvent, then in pure water. A chemical adsorption monomolecular film containing fluorocarbon groups through siloxane coupling was formed on the surface of the cleaning blade.
Embodiment 6
A similar experiment was done to Embodiment 4, except that heptadecafluorodecyl trichlorosilane was replaced by 9-(heptadecafluorodecyl dimethylsilyl) nonyltrichlorosilane.
Reference 3
Same as in Embodiment 4, except that the step for forming the chemical adsorption film was skipped.
The cleaning blades of Embodiments 4 to 6 and Reference 3 were installed in a commercial electrophotographic apparatus, and corona charging, image exposure, development by toner, transfer and cleaning were repeated 10,000 times at 25° C. and 55% RH, and images were reproduced. The quality of the images obtained after 10,000 times was evaluated, and the result is shown in Table 2.
Table 2
Image quality after 10,000 times
Embodiment 4 As high as initial quality
Embodiment 5 As high as initial quality
Embodiment 6 As high as initial quality
Reference 3 Sharpness extremely lowered, showing blurry image, black spots
As clear from Table 2, in the electrophotographic apparatus using the cleaning blade of the reference example, the image quality was extremely lowered after repeated and continuous use, but in the electrophotographic apparatus using the cleaning blade of the invention, the image quality was not lowered after repeated use.
Embodiment 7
An aluminum roller of 30 mm in diameter and 360 mm in length was dipped and held in 10 -2 mol/liter cyclohexane solution of heptadecafluorodecyl trichlorosilane for 120 minutes at room temperature in nitrogen atmosphere, and the unreacted heptadecafluorodecyl trichlorosilane was washed in cyclohexane, then in pure water, and a chemical adsorption monomolecular film containing fluorocarbon groups through siloxane coupling was formed on the surface of the fixing roller.
Embodiment 8
The same aluminum roller as in Embodiment 7 was first dipped and held in a 1 wt. % tetrachlorosilane solution [solvent: tri(n-nonafluorobutyl)amine] for 60 minutes at room temperature in a nitrogen atmosphere, and the unreacted tetrachlorosilane was washed in tri(n-nonafluorobutyl)amine, then in pure water, and using the dried sample and using heptadecafluorodecyl trichlorosilane as the chlorosilane surface active agent containing fluorocarbon groups, it was dipped and held in tri(n-nonafluorobutyl)amine solution at a concentration of 10 -2 mol/liter for 120 minutes at room temperature in a nitrogen atmosphere, and the unreacted heptadecafluorodecyl trichlorosilane was washed in a tri(n-nonafluorobutyl)amine solvent, then in pure water, and a chemical adsorption monomolecular film containing fluorocarbon groups through siloxane coupling was formed on the surface of the fixing roller.
Embodiment 9
An experiment was conducted the same as in Embodiment 7, except that heptadecafluorodecyl trichlorosilane was replaced by 9-(heptadecafluorodecyl dimethylsilyl) nonyltrichlorosilane.
Reference 4
An experiment was conducted the same as in Embodiment 7, except that a coating film of polytetrafuloroethylene was formed at a thickness of 10 μm, instead of forming the chemical adsorption film.
The fixing rollers of Embodiments 7 to 9 and Reference 4 were installed in the fixing unit of the commercial electrophotographic apparatus, and corona charging, image exposure, development by toner, transfer, fixing and cleaning were repeated 10,000 times at 25° C. and 55% RH, and images were reproduced. The quality of the image obtained after 10,000 times was evaluated, and the result is shown in Table 3.
Table 3
Image quality after 10,000 times
Embodiment 7 As high as initial quality
Embodiment 8 As high as initial quality
Embodiment 9 As high as initial quality
Reference 4 Sharpness lowered, showing partly black spots
As clear from Table 3, in the electrophotographic apparatus using the fixing roller of the reference example, the image quality was lowered by repeated and continuous use, but in the electrophotographic apparatus using the fixing roller of the invention, the image quality was not lowered by repeated and continuous use.
Embodiment 10
A block of core material of a separation pawl in a shape as shown in FIG. 7 was obtained from polyamide imide by cutting or injection forming. This molding was dipped and held in a 10 -2 mol/liter cyclohexane solution of heptadecafluorodecyl trichlorosilane for 120 minutes at room temperature in a nitrogen atmosphere, and the unreacted heptadecafluorodecyl trichlorosilane was washed in cyclohexane, then in pure water, and a chemical adsorption film containing fluorocarbon groups through siloxane coupling was formed on the surface of the separation pawl.
Embodiment 11
The same separation pawl as in Embodiment 10 was dipped and held in 1 wt. % tetrachlorosilane solution [solvent: tri(n-nonafluorobutyl)amine] for 60 minutes at room temperature in a nitrogen atmosphere, and the unreacted tetrachlorosilane was successively washed in tri(n-nonafluorobutyl)amine, then in pure water, and using the dried sample, and using heptadecafluorodecyl trichlorosilane as the chlorosilane surface active agent containing alkyl fluoride groups, it was dipped and held in a tri(n-nonafluorobutyl)amine solution at a concentration of 10 -2 mol/liter for 120 minutes at room temperature in a nitrogen atmosphere, and successively the unreacted heptadecafluorodecyl trichlorosilane was washed in a tri(n-nonafluorobutyl)amine solvent, then in pure water, and a chemical adsorption monomolecular film containing fluorocarbon groups through siloxane coupling was formed on the surface of the separation pawl.
Embodiment 12
An experiment was conducted the same as in Embodiment 10, except that heptadecafluorodecyl trichlorosilane was replaced by 9-(heptadecafluorodecyl dimethylsilyl) nonlyltrichlorosilane.
Reference 5
An experiment was conducted the same as in Embodiment 10, except that a coating film of Teflon ("Teflon" is the trademark for polytetrafluoroethylene) was formed at a thickness of 10 μm instead of forming the chemical adsorption film.
The separation pawls of Embodiments 10 to 12 and Reference 5 were installed in the fixing unit of the commercial electrophotographic apparatus, and corona charging, image imposture, development by toner, transfer, fixing and cleaning were repeated 10,000 times at 25° C. and 55% RH, and the images were reproduced. The quality of the images obtained after 10,000 times was evaluated, and the result is shown in Table 4.
Table 4
Image quality after 10,000 times
Embodiment 10 As high as initial quality
Embodiment 11 As high as initial quality
Embodiment 12 As high as initial quality
Reference 5 White spots seen in separation pawl fixing portion.
As clear from Table 4, in the electrophotographic apparatus using the separation pawl of the reference example, the image quality was lowered by repeated and continuous use, but in the electrophotographic apparatus using the separation pawl of the invention, the image quality was not lowered after repeated and continuous use.
Embodiment 13
A tungsten wire of 50 μm in diameter and 360 mm in length was dipped and held in a 10 -2 mol/liter cyclohexane solution of heptadecafluorodecyl trichlorosilane for 120 minutes at room temperature in a nitrogen atmosphere, and the unreacted heptadecafluorodecyl trichlorosilane was successively washed in cyclohexane, then in pure water, and a chemical adsorption monomolecular film containing fluorocarbon groups through siloxane coupling was formed on the surface of the corona wire.
Embodiment 14
The same tungsten wire as in Embodiment 13 was first dipped and held in a 1 wt. % tetrachlorosilane solution [solvent: tri(n-nonafluorobutyl)amine] for 60 minutes at room temperature in a nitrogen atmosphere, and the unreacted tetrachlorosilane was washed in tri(n-nonafluorobutyl)amine, then in pure water, and using the dried sample, and using heptadecafluorodecyl trichlorosilane as the chlorosilane surface active agent containing fluorocarbon groups, it was dipped and held in a tri(n-nonafluorobutyl)amine solution at a concentration of 10 -2 mol/liter for 120 minutes at room temperature in a nitrogen atmosphere, and the unreacted heptadecafluorodecyl trichlorosilane was washed in a tri(n-nonafluorobutyl)amine solvent, then in pure water, and a chemical adsorption monomolecular film containing fluorocarbon groups through siloxane coupling was formed on the corona wire.
Embodiment 15
An experiment was done the same as in Embodiment 13, except that heptadecafluorodecyl trichlorosilane was replaced by 9-(heptadecafluorodecyl dimethylsilyl)nonyltrichlorosilane.
Reference 6
The corona wire in Embodiment 13 was used as reference example without surface treatment.
The corona wires of Embodiments 13 to 15 and Reference 6 were installed in the fixing unit of the commercial electrophotographic apparatus, and corona charging, image exposure, development by toner, transfer, fixing and cleaning were repeated 10,000 times at 25° C. and 55% RH, and the images were reproduced. The quality of the images obtained after 10,000 times was evaluated, and the result is shown in Table 5.
Table 5
Image quality after 10,000 times
Embodiment 13 As high as initial quality
Embodiment 14 As high as initial quality
Embodiment 15 As high as initial quality
Reference 6 Sharpness lowered, showing black spots partially
As clear from Table 5, in the electrophotographic apparatus using the corona wire of the reference example, the image quality was lowered by continuous and repeated use, but in the electrophotographic apparatus using the corona wire of the invention, the image quality was not lowered after repeated and continuous use.
Embodiment 16
A stainless steel corona grid of 1.5 cm in width and 360 mm in length was dipped and held in a 10 -2 mol/liter cyclohexane solution of heptadecafluorodecyl trichlorosilane for 120 minutes at room temperature in a nitrogen atmosphere, and the unreacted heptadecafluorodecyl trichlorosilane was successively washed in cyclohexane, then in pure water, and a chemical adsorption monomolecular film containing fluorocarbon groups through siloxane coupling was formed on the surface of the corona grid.
Embodiment 17
The same stainless steel grid as in Embodiment 16 was first dipped and held in a 1 wt. % tetrachlorosilane solution [solvent: tri(n-nonafluorobutyl)amine] for 60 minutes at room temperature in a nitrogen atmosphere, and the unreacted tetrachlorosilane was washed in tri(n-nonafluorobutyl)amine, then in pure water, and using the dried sample, and using heptadecafluorodecyl trichlorosilane as chlorosilane surface active agent containing fluorocarbon group, it was dipped and held in a tri(n-nonafluorobutyl)amine solution at a concentration of 10 -2 mol/liter for 120 minutes at room temperature in a nitrogen atmosphere, and the unreacted heptadecafluorodecyl trichlorosilane was washed in a tri(n-nonafluorobutyl)amine solvent, the in pure water, and chemical adsorption film containing fluorocarbon groups through siloxane coupling was formed on the corona grid.
Embodiment 18
An experiment was conducted the same as in Embodiment 16, except that heptadecafluorodecyl trichlorosilane was replaced by 9-(heptadecafluorodecyl dimethylsilyl) nonyltrichlorosilane.
Reference 7
The corona grid of Embodiment 16 was used as a reference example without surface treatment.
The corona grid of Embodiments 16 to 18 and Reference 7 were installed in the fixing unit of the commercial electrophotographic apparatus, and corona charging, image exposure, development by toner, transfer, fixing and cleaning were repeated 10,000 times at 25° C. and 55% RH, and the images were reproduced. The quality of images after 10,000 times was evaluated, and the result is shown in Table 6.
Table 6
Image quality after 10,000 times
Embodiment 16 As high as initial quality
Embodiment 17 As high as initial quality
Embodiment 18 As high as initial quality
Reference 7 Sharpness lowered, showing black spots partially
As clear from Table 6, in the electrophotographic apparatus using the corona grid of the reference example, the image quality was lowered after repeated and continuous use, but in the electrophotographic apparatus using the corona grid of the invention, the image quality was not lowered after repeated and continuous use.
The electrophotographic apparatus of the first embodiment has the surface of the electrophotographic photoconductor covalently bonded with a monomolecular film containing a fluorocarbon group through siloxane coupling, so that the photoreceptor excellent in anti-fouling property and durability may be obtained.
Besides, since the surface of the photoconductor is covered with a chemical adsorption film containing a fluorocarbon film through siloxane coupling, as compared with the prior art, the anti-fouling property is outstanding. As a result, if used continuously, images of high quality are obtained.
The electrophotographic apparatus of the second embodiment has the surface of the cleaning blade coated with a chemical adsorption film containing a fluorocarbon film through siloxane coupling, and therefore as compared with the prior art, the lubrication and anti-fouling properties are notably excellent. As a result, images of high quality are obtained if used continuously.
The electrophotographic apparatus of the third embodiment has the surface of the fixing roller coated with a chemical adsorption film containing a fluorocarbon group through siloxane coupling, and therefore as compared with the prior art, the anti-fouling property is excellent. As a result, if used continuously, images of high quality are obtained.
The electrophotographic apparatus of the fourth embodiment has the surface of the separation pawl coated with a chemical adsorption film containing a fluorocarbon group through siloxane coupling, and therefore the parting property is superb as compared with the prior art. As a result, if used continuously, images of high quality are obtained.
The electrophotographic apparatus of the fifth embodiment has the surface of the corona wire coated with a chemical adsorption film containing a fluorocarbon group through siloxane coupling, and therefore the toner parting property is superb as compared with the prior art. As a result, if used continuously, images of high quality are obtained.
The electrophotographic apparatus of the sixth embodiment has the surface of the corona grid coated with a chemical adsorption film containing an alkyl fluoride group through siloxane coupling, and therefore the toner parting property is superb as compared with the prior art. As a result, if used continuously, images of high quality are obtained.
Thus, the invention brings about outstanding industrial uses.
As has been shown, the invention is greatly beneficial to industry.
The invention may be embodied in other specific forms without departing from the spirit or essential characteristics thereof. The present embodiment is to be considered in all respects as illustrative and not restrictive, the scope of the invention being indicated by the appended claims rather than by the foregoing description and all changes which come within the meaning and range of equivalency of the claims are intended to be embraced therein. | A chemical adsorption film possessing a fluorocarbon group through siloxane coupling is applied on the surface of a photoimaging component such as a photoconductor, the surface of a cleaning blade, the surface of a fixing roller, the surface of a separation pawl used in offset of paper, the surface of a corona wire, or the surface of a corona grid. Further according to the invention, the chemical adsorption film is laminated via a siloxanebased inner layer, the inner layer being bonded by covalent bonds to the surface of the device, the inner layer and the chemical adsorption film being bonded together by covalent bonds. Furthermore according to the invention, since the chemical adsorption film of the invention is an ultrathin film, on the order of nanometers or Angstroms, it does not spoil the properties of the separation pawl such as mechanical strength. | Briefly outline the background technology and the problem the invention aims to solve. | [
"FIELD OF THE PRESENT INVENTION This invention relates to an electrophotographic apparatus.",
"More particularly to a surface of a photoimaging component such as a photoconductor, cleaning blade, fixing roller, separation pawl, corona wire and corona grid etc.",
"BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION In an electrophotographic apparatus, the photoreceptor is used in a series of electrophotographic processes;",
"that is, in repetitive processes of primary charging, forming of an electrostatic latent image by image exposure, development of toner charged in reverse polarity of the electrostatic image, transfer of the toner image on plain paper, removal of residual toner on the drum by a cleaning device, and removal of electric charge on the drum by intense exposure.",
"In these processes, the talc and residual toner of the paper on the photoconductor drum are usually removed by using a cleaning roller or cleaning blade.",
"The required characteristics of the blade are to remove the toner efficiently from the photoconductor drum and to prevent the removed toner from depositing on the blade.",
"As the blade material, polyurethane rubber is generally used because it is excellent in wear resistance.",
"In the fixing process, the toner is permanently adhered to the paper by heat or pressure.",
"The fixing process is the step for determining the final image.",
"When the adhesion of the toner and the roller surface becomes stronger than the aggregation of toner particles, the toner deposits on the roller, which causes background noise on the copy.",
"That is, the toner is stuck on the white background.",
"To prevent this, the roller surface is coated with polytetrafluoroethylene to weaken toner adhesion.",
"In the fixing process, in order to improve the paper offset property, the separation pawl is used.",
"To prevent the toner from sticking to the separation pawl, the surface of the separation pawl made of polyamide is coated with a resin containing fluorine, and is baked (Japanese Patent Publication Sho.",
"61-23554).",
"In the corona charging process, the photoconductor surface is uniformly charged by corona discharge by means of a corona wire.",
"The corona wire is usually made of gold-coated tungsten wire.",
"Also in the fixing process, the photoconductor surface is uniformly charged by corona discharge by means of a charger.",
"The corona grid is generally made of stainless steel.",
"If an attempt is made to remove the toner in this method, however, a slight amount of paper talc and toner is not removed but is left on the photoconductor drum.",
"When the image is repeatedly formed, white blanks or black spots may appear on the image and lower the image quality.",
"Or if the cleaning roller or cleaning blade is applied by force in order to remove toner, the electric charge of the surface layer of the photoconductor is charged which lowers the durability.",
"Moreover, if fixed repeatedly by using a fixing roller, the toner is deposited on the roller surface, and black spots appear on the image if the images are formed repeatedly, and the image quality drops.",
"This is because, due to repeated fixings, the Teflon ("Teflon"",
"is the trademark for polytetrafluoroethylene) coated surface is injured or is partly torn, and the toner parting property is lowered.",
"In the conventional separation pawl, if used repeatedly at 200° C. or more, the fluorine-containing resin film may be injured or partly torn, and the toner parting property is lowered which impairs the image quality.",
"By repeating the charging process in the electrophotographic apparatus using a charger, the toner deposits on the corona wire, and when the images are formed repeatedly, image disturbance or black spots may appear on the image which lowers the image quality.",
"This is because the corona wire is not provided with the toner parting property.",
"Also by repeating the charging process in the electrophotographic apparatus using such charger, the toner deposits on the corona grid, and when images are formed repeatedly, image disturbances or black spots may appear on the image which lowers the image quality.",
"This is because the corona grid is not provided with the toner parting property.",
"SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The invention is devised in light of the above problems, and it is hence a primary object to present an electrophotographic apparatus which is excellent in image quality.",
"According to a first aspect of the invention we provide an electrophotographic apparatus for obtaining duplicate images comprising a photoimaging component coated with a chemical adsorption film containing a fluorocarbon group, the chemical adsorption film bonded through --SiO-- covalent bonds.",
"It is preferable in this invention that the component is selected from the group consisting of a photoconductor, cleaning blade, fixing roller, separation pawl, corona wire and corona grid.",
"It is preferable in this invention that the chemical adsorption film is a monomolecular film or a polymer film.",
"It is preferable in this invention that the component comprises a substrate made of a material selected from the group consisting of metals, metal oxide, ceramics, glass, plastics.",
"It is preferable in this invention that the component comprises a substrate surface having at least one functional group selected from the group consisting of a hydroxyl group, carboxyl group, an imino group and an amino group.",
"It is preferable in this invention that the component comprises a plasma or corona treated substrate surface.",
"It is preferable in this invention that the chemical adsorption film is laminated via a siloxane-based inner layer, the inner layer being bonded by covalent bonds to a surface of the device, the inner layer and the chemical adsorption film being bonded together by covalent bonds.",
"It is preferable in this invention that the inner layer is a monomolecular film or polymer film.",
"According to the invention, the photoreceptor used in the electrophotographic apparatus of the invention has its surface coated with a chemical adsorption film possessing a fluorocarbon group by chemical bonding through siloxane coupling, and is hence excellent in protection from contamination.",
"That is, since the fluorocarbon group is present in the surface layer of the chemical adsorption film, the anti-fouling property is excellent, and the toner does not deposit on the uncharged portion, and the talc and toner of the paper may be easily removed at the time of cleaning.",
"Since the base of the chemical adsorption film is formed by chemical bonding through siloxane coupling, the film is excellent in durability, and if the surface is cleaned repeatedly, the chemical adsorption film will not be easily separated from the photoconductor surface.",
"Furthermore, the chemical adsorption film of the invention is ultrathin, on the order of nanometers or Angstroms, and therefore it will not spoil the characteristics of the photoconductor surface such as mechanical strength.",
"Furthermore, according to a preferred embodiment of the invention in which the chemical adsorption film is a monomolecular film, since a thin film of uniform thickness is formed, it does not affect the dimensional precision of the photoconductor.",
"A preferred second aspect of the invention for achieving the above object presents an electrophotographic apparatus for obtaining duplicate images, wherein a chemical adsorption film possessing a fluorocarbon group through siloxane coupling is applied on the surface of the cleaning blade.",
"In this embodiment, the chemical adsorption film is desirably a monomolecular film.",
"The cleaning blade used in the electrophotographic apparatus of the invention has its surface coated with a chemical adsorption film possessing a fluorocarbon group by chemical bonding through siloxane coupling, and therefore it provides excellent lubrication and prevents contamination.",
"That is, since the fluorocarbon group is present in the surface layer of the chemical adsorption film, it provides excellent lubrication and prevents contamination.",
"Besides, since the base of the chemical adsorption film is formed by chemical bonding through siloxane coupling, the film is excellent in durability, and therefore if the surface is rubbed repeatedly, the chemical adsorption film will not be easily separated from the cleaning blade surface.",
"Furthermore, since the chemical adsorption film of the invention is an ultrathin film, on the order of nanometers or Angstroms, it does not spoil the properties of the cleaning blade such as mechanical strength.",
"Moreover, since the chemical adsorption film is a monomolecular film in a preferred embodiment of the invention, a thin film of uniform thickness is obtained, so that it does not affect the dimensional precision of the cleaning blade.",
"A preferred third embodiment presents an electrophotographic apparatus for obtaining duplicate images, wherein the chemical adsorption film possessing a fluorocarbon group through siloxane coupling is applied on the surface of a fixing roller.",
"In this embodiment, the chemical adsorption film is desired to be a monomolecular film.",
"The fixing roller used in the electrophotographic apparatus of the invention has its surface coated with a chemical adsorption film possessing a fluorocarbon group by chemical bonding through siloxane coupling, and therefore it is excellent separating property.",
"That is, since the fluorocarbon group is present in the surface layer of the chemical adsorption film, it is excellent separating property.",
"Besides, since the base of the chemical adsorption film is formed by chemical bonding through siloxane coupling, a film excellent in durability is obtained, and if the surface is rubbed repeatedly, the chemical adsorption film will not be easily peeled off the surface of the fixing roller.",
"In addition, since the chemical adsorption film of the invention is an ultrathin film, on the order of nanometers or Angstroms, it does not spoil the characteristics of the fixing roller such as mechanical strength.",
"In a preferred embodiment of the invention in which the chemical adsorption film is a monomolecular film, a thin film of uniform thickness is obtained, and it does not affect the dimensional precision of the fixing roller.",
"To achieve the above objects, the invention presents an electrophotographic apparatus for obtaining duplicate images, wherein the chemical adsorption film possessing a fluorocarbon group through siloxane coupling is applied on the surface of a separation pawl used in the paper offset.",
"In this embodiment, the chemical adsorption film is desired to be a monomolecular film.",
"The separation pawl used in the electrophotographic apparatus of the invention has its surface coated with a chemical adsorption film possessing a fluorocarbon group by chemical bonding through siloxane coupling, and hence it is excellent separating property.",
"That is, since the fluorocarbon group is present in the surface layer of the chemical adsorption film, it is excellent in parting property, and the toner does not deposit on the surface.",
"Besides, the base of the chemical adsorption film is formed by chemical bonding through siloxane coupling, and hence the film is excellent in durability, and if the surface is rubbed repeatedly, the chemical adsorption film will not be easily peeled off the surface of the separation pawl.",
"Furthermore, since the chemical adsorption film of the invention is an ultrathin film, on the order of nanometers or Angstroms, it does not spoil the properties of the separation pawl such as mechanical strength.",
"Still more, in a preferred constitution of the invention in which the chemical adsorption film is a monomolecular film, since a thin film of uniform thickness is obtained, it does not affect the dimensional precision of the separation pawl.",
"A preferred fifth embodiment presents an electrophotographic apparatus for obtaining duplicate images, wherein the chemical adsorption film possessing a fluorocarbon group through siloxane coupling is applied on the surface of a corona wire.",
"In the above embodiment, the chemical adsorption film is desired to be a monomolecular film.",
"The corona wire used in the electrophotographic apparatus of the invention has its surface coated with a chemical adsorption film possessing a fluorocarbon group by chemical bonding through siloxane coupling, and hence it is excellent in parting property.",
"That is, since the fluorocarbon group is present in the surface layer of the chemical adsorption film, the separating property is excellent.",
"Besides, since the base of the chemical adsorption film is formed by chemical bonding through siloxane coupling, the film is excellent also in durability, and if charged repeatedly, the chemical adsorption film will not be easily peeled off the surface of the corona wire.",
"In addition, since the chemical adsorption film of the invention is an ultrathin film, on the order of nanometers or Angstroms, it does not spoil the characteristics of the corona wire such as mechanical strength.",
"In a preferred embodiment of the invention in which the chemical adsorption film is a monomolecular film, a thin film of uniform thickness is obtained, so that it does not affect the dimensional precision of the corona wire.",
"A preferred sixth embodiment presents an electrophotographic apparatus for obtaining duplicate images, wherein a chemical adsorption film possessing a fluorocarbon group through siloxane coupling is applied on the surface of a corona grid.",
"In this embodiment, the chemical adsorption film is desired to be a monomolecular film.",
"The corona grid used in the electrophotographic apparatus of the invention has its surface coated with a chemical adsorption film possessing a fluorocarbon group by chemical bonding through siloxane coupling, and therefore it is excellent separating property.",
"That is, since the alkyl fluoride group is present in the surface layer of the chemical adsorption film, the separating property is excellent.",
"Besides, since the base of the chemical adsorption film is formed by chemical bonding through siloxane coupling, the film also excels in durability, and if charged repeatedly, the chemical adsorption film will not be easily peeled off the corona grid.",
"Moreover, since the chemical adsorption film of the invention is an ultrathin film, on the order of nanometers or Angstroms, it does not spoil the properties of the corona grid such as mechanical strength.",
"In a preferred embodiments of the invention in which the chemical adsorption film is a monomolecular film, a thin film in uniform thickness is formed, and therefore it does not affect the dimensional precision of the corona grid.",
"In the first to sixth embodiments, the chemical adsorption film may be replaced by a polymer film.",
"By forming a polymer film, the film is dense and it is excellent in durability and other properties.",
"BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a sectional conceptual diagram magnifying the surface of an electrophotographic photoconductor used in an electrophotographic apparatus of the invention from a molecular level.",
"FIG. 2 is a sectional conceptual diagram magnifying the surface of a cleaning blade used in an electrophotographic apparatus of the invention from a molecular level.",
"FIG. 3 is a sectional conceptual diagram magnifying the surface of a fixing roller used in an electrophotographic apparatus of the invention from a molecular level.",
"FIG. 4 is a sectional conceptual diagram magnifying the surface of a separation pawl used in an electrophotograhic apparatus of the invention from a molecular level.",
"FIG. 5 is a sectional conceptual diagram magnifying the surface of a corona wire used in an electrophotographic apparatus of the invention from a molecular level.",
"FIG. 6 is a sectional conceptual diagram magnifying the surface of a corona grid used in an electrophotographic apparatus of the invention from a molecular level.",
"FIG. 7 is a sectional view of a separation pawl used in an electrophotographic apparatus of the invention.",
"DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The invention is described in detail below by reference to the illustrated embodiments thereof.",
"A first embodiment of the electrophotographic apparatus of the invention employs, as shown in FIG. 1, an electrophotographic photoreceptor 1 having its surface coated with a monomolecular film 3 possessing a fluorocarbon group through a siloxane coupling 2.",
"The materials for the electrophotographic photoconductor may include, as examples of inorganic photoconductor, amorphous silicon, mixture of amorphous Se and As 2 Se 3 , CdS and others.",
"Examples of an organic photoconductor may include, for the carrier generating layer (CGL), PVK, perylene pigment, indigo, bisazo pigment, chlorodian blue, etc.",
"and for the carrier transfer layer (CTL), triphenylamine dimer, pyrazoline derivative, triphenylamine derivative, hydrazone derivative, oxadiazole derivative, and indolin derivative.",
"These organic photoconductors are mainly used in a state being dispersed in a resin.",
"The chemical adsorption film applied on the surface of the photoconductor used in the electrophotographic apparatus of the invention is composed of a chlorosilane surface active agent possessing an alkyl fluoride group.",
"A second embodiment of the electrophotographic apparatus of the invention comprises, as shown in FIG. 2, a cleaning blade 21 having its surface coated with a monomolecular film possessing a fluorocarbon group through a siloxane coupling 22.",
"As the material for the cleaning blade, for example, rubber materials, in particular, polyurethane rubber materials are widely used.",
"A third embodiment of the electrophotographic apparatus of the invention comprises, as shown in FIG. 3, a fixing roller 31 having its surface coated with a monomolecular film 33 possessing a fluorocarbon group through a siloxane coupling 32.",
"As the material for the fixing roller, for example, metal is widely used, in particular, aluminum.",
"The chemical adsorption film applied on the surface of the fixing roller used in the electrophotographic apparatus of the invention is composed of a chlorosilane surface active agent possessing a fluorocarbon group.",
"A fourth embodiment of the electrophotographic apparatus of the invention comprises, as shown in FIG. 4, a separation pawl 41 having its surface coated with a monomolecular film 43 possessing a fluorocarbon group through a silocane coupling 42.",
"Materials for the separation pawl include heat resistant resins such as polyamide, polyimide, nylon, PET, PBT, polyacetal, polycarbonate, polyarylate, polypropylene polyethylene, and ABS.",
"The chemical adsorption film applied on the surface of the separation pawl used in the electrophotographic apparatus of the invention is composed of a chlorosilane surface active agent possessing a fluorocarbon group.",
"A fifth embodiment of the electrophotographic apparatus of the invention comprises, as shown in FIG. 5, a corona wire 51 having its surface coated with monomolecular film 53 possessing a fluorocarbon group through a siloxane coupling 52.",
"As the material for the corona wire, metal, especially tungsten wire, coated with gold is used.",
"The chemical adsorption film applied on the surface of the corona wire of the electrophotographic apparatus of the invention is composed of a chlorosilane surface active agent possessing a fluorocarbon group.",
"A sixth embodiment of the electrophotographic apparatus of the invention comprises, as shown in FIG. 6, a corona grid 61 having its surface coated with a monomolecular film 63 possessing a fluorocarbon group through a siloxane coupling 62.",
"As the material for the charging grid, stainless steel is used in particular.",
"The chemical adsorption film applied on the surface of the corona grid used in the electrophotographic apparatus of the invention is composed of a chlorosilane surface active agent possessing a fluorocarbon group.",
"Examples of trichlorosilane-based surface active materials of the present invention include CF 3 (CF 2 ) 7 (CF 2 ) 2 SiCl 3 , CF 3 CH 2 O(CH 2 ) 15 SiCl 3 , CF 3 (CH 2 ) 2 Si(CH 3 ) 2 (CH 2 ) 15 SiCl 3 , F(CF 2 ) 4 (CH 2 ) 2 Si(CH 3 ) 2 (CH 2 ) 9 SiCl 3 , F(CF 2 ) 8 (CH 2 ) 2 Si(CH 3 ) 2 (CH 2 ) 9 SiCl 3 , F(CF 2 ) 8 (CH 2 ) 2 Si(CH 3 ) 2 (CH 2 ) 10 SiCl 3 , F(CF 2 ) 8 (CH 2 ) 2 Si(CH 3 ) 2 (CH 2 ) 16 SiCl 3 , CF 3 COO(CH 2 ) 15 SiCl 3 , CF 3 (CF 2 ) 5 (CH 2 ) 2 SiCl 3 , CH 3 (CH 2 ) 9 SiCl 3 , CH 3 CH 2 O(CH 2 ) 15 SiCl 3 , CH 3 (CH 2 ) 2 Si(CH 3 ) 2 (CH 2 ) 15 SiCl 3 , CH 3 (CH 2 ) 6 Si(CH 3 ) 2 (CH 2 ) 9 SiCl 3 , CH 3 (CH 2 ) 10 Si(CH 3 ) 2 (CH 2 ) 9 SiCl 3 , CH 3 COO(CH 2 ) 15 SiCl 3 .",
"Examples of lower-alkyl substituted monochlorosilane- or dichlorosilane-based surface active materials of the present invention include CF 3 (CF 2 ) 7 (CH 2 ) 2 SiCl n (CH 3 ) 3-n , CF 3 CH 2 O(CH 2 ) 15 SiCl n (CH 3 ) 3-n , CF 3 (CF 2 ) 7 (CH 2 ) 2 SiCl n (C 2 H 5 ) 3-n , CF 3 (CH 2 ) 2 Si(CH 3 ) 2 (CH 2 ) 15 SiCl n (CH 3 ) 3-n , CF 3 CH 2 O(CH 2 ) 15 SiCl n (C 2 H 5 ) 3-n , CF 3 (CF 2 ) 3 (CH 2 ) 2 Si(CH 3 ) 2 (CH 2 ) 9 SiCl n --(C 2 H 5 ) 3-n , CF 3 (CF 2 ) 3 (CH 2 ) 2 Si(CH 3 ) 2 (CH 2 ) 10 SiCl n-- (C 2 H 5 ) 3-n , CF 3 (CF 2 ) 3 (CH 2 ) 2 Si(CH 3 ) 2 (CH 2 ) 16 SiCl n --(C 2 H 5 ) 3-n , CF 3 (CF 2 ) 7 (CH 2 ) 2 Si(CH 3 ) 2 (CH 2 ) 9 SiCl n --(CH 3 ) 3-n , CF 3 (CF 2 ) 5 (CH 2 ) 2 SiCl n (CH 3 ) 3-n , CF 3 COO(CH 2 ) 15 SiCl n (CH 3 ) 3-n where n represents 1 or 2.",
"Among these examples, trichlorosilane-based surface active materials are preferred in that chlorosilyl bonds other than those bonded to their hydrophilic groups form inter-molecular bonds with adjacent chlorosilane groups by siloxane bonds, thereby permitting formation of a more firmly adsorbed film.",
"Trichlorosilane-based surface active materials are particularly preferred because chlorosilyl bonds other than those coupled to their hydrophilic groups form inter-molecular bonds with adjacent chlorosilane groups with siloxane bonds and thus permit formation of a more firmly adsorbed film.",
"Further, CF 3 (CF 2 ) n (CH 2 ) 2 SiCl 3 where n represents an integer, most suitably 3 to 25, is preferred because of its solubility and its water-repelling, anti-contaminating and other functional properties.",
"Further, with an ethylene (C═C) or acetylene (C.",
"tbd.",
"C) group added to or incorporated in the fluorocarbon chain portion, the chemically adsorbed film may be crosslinked after formation by irradiating it with an electron beam of about 5 Mrads, thus further improving the hardness of the chemically adsorbed film.",
"It is thus possible to further improve the hardness of the chemically adsorbed film.",
"The chlorosilane-based surface active material capable of use according to the invention is not limited to those in the form of a straight chain as noted above.",
"It is possible to use a branched fluorocarbon or hydrocarbon group or those having a substituted fluorocarbon or hydrocarbon group with silicon at one end (i.e., those represented by the formula R 2 SiCl 2 , R 3 SiCl, R 1 R 2 SiCl 2 or R 1 R 2 R 3 SiCl where R, R 1 , R 2 and R 3 represents an fluorocarbon group or hydrocarbon group).",
"To increase the adsorption density, however, the straight chain form is preferred.",
"Further, by chemically adsorbing a material for forming an inner layer material having a plurality of chlorosilyl groups, e.g., SiCl 4 , SiHCl 3 , SiH 2 Cl 2 , and Cl(SiCl 2 O) n Cl 3 (where n represents an integer in a range from 1 to 20), SiCl m (CH 3 ) 4-m , SiCl m (C 2 H 5 ) 4-m (where m represents 1, 2 or 3), and HSiCl p (CH 3 ) 3-p , HSiCl p (C 2 H 5 ) 3-p (where p represents 1 or 2), and then reacting it with water, surface chlorosilyl bonds are converted to hydrophilic silanol bonds, thus making the polymer composition hydrophilic.",
"Among the materials containing a plurality of chlorosilyl groups, tetrachlorosilane (SiCl 4 ) is preferred in that it is highly reactive and low in molecular weight.",
"It can, therefore, provide silanol bonds at a high density.",
"In this way, it is possible to provide a highly hydrophilic composition compared to oxidation treatment of a polymer-containing substrate.",
"To this surface, a chlorosilane-based surface active material containing fluorocarbon groups may be chemically adsorbed.",
"In this way, a chemically adsorbed film suitably having an increased density can be obtained.",
"With a machine part consisting of a plastic molding, a chemically adsorbed film containing fluoroalkyl groups is formed on the plastic molding surface via siloxane bonds.",
"The method of forming the film suitably comprises a step of making the plastic molding surface hydrophilic by oxidiation treatment, and a step of chemically adsorbing a chlorosilane-based surface active material to the oxidized surface by contacting the surface with a non-aqueous organic solvent by means of dipping, thus forming a chemically adsorbed film containing fluoroalkyl groups via siloxane bonds.",
"The plastic material may be oxidized by ordinary means, e.g., oxygen plasma treatment, corona treatment, and dipping into a mixed solution containing concentrated sulfuric acid and potassium dichromate (i.e., a chromium-containing mixture solution treatment).",
"The non-aqueous solvent to be used according to the invention may be any organic solvent, which does not dissolve the plastic material with the chemically adsorbed film to be formed thereon and is free from active hydrogen able to react with the chlorosilane-based surface active material.",
"Suitable examples of the solvent are fluorine-based solvents, e.g., 1,1-dichloro-1-fluoroethane, 1,1-dichloro-2,2,2-trifluoroethane, 1,1-dichloro-2,2,3,3,3-pentafluoropropane, 1,3-dichloro-1,1,2,2,3-heptafluoropropane, etc.",
", hydrocarbon-based solvents, e.g., hexane, octane, hexadecane, cyclohexane, etc.",
", ether-based solvents, e.g., dibutylether, dibenzylether, etc.",
", and ester-based solvents, e.g., methyl acetate, ethyl acetate, isopropyl acetate, amyl acetate, etc.",
"Incidentally, the chemical adsorption film applied on the surface of the photoconductor, cleaning blade, fixing roller, separation pawl, corona wire and corona grid used in the electrophotographic apparatus of the invention sufficiently exhibits its desired advantages with only one layer of a monomolecular chemical adsorption film.",
"To form only one layer of a monomolecular chemical adsorption film, after chemically adsorbing a substance containing a plurality of chlorosilyl groups or chlorosilane surface active agent, it is washed in a nonaqueous solvent without contact with moisture, and is then allowed to be contacted with moisture.",
"It is therefore done easily without any particular process.",
"Needless to say, the chemical adsorption film may be formed by accumulating monomolecular films.",
"In this way, when the chemical adsorption film forms a monomolecular film, the groups showing the given function are oriented and the density is enhanced, so that added benefits may be exhibited.",
"When forming a chemical adsorption polymer film, the step of washing in nonaqueous solvent is skipped.",
"The invention is further described below by referring to some of the practical embodiments.",
"Embodiment 1 On an aluminum cylinder support of 80 mm in diameter and 360 mm in length, 2 μm thick undercoat layer was disposed by applying a 5 wt.",
"% methanol solution of nylon resin by a dipping method.",
"On this undercoat layer, as a photoconductor layer, amorphous silicon was formed in a thickness of 0.3 μm by a sputtering method.",
"The material was dipped and held in a 10 -2 mol/liter cyclohexane solution of heptadecafluorodecyl trichlorosilane (surface active agent) for 120 minutes at room temperature in a nitrogen atmosphere, and successively the unreacted surface active agent was washed in a nonaqueous cyclohexane solution and then in pure water, and a chemical adsorption monomolecular film through a siloxane coupling containing a fluorocarbon group was formed on the surface of the photoconductor surface.",
"In this process, if the formed film is not washed in a nonaqueous solution, a chemical adsorption polymer film will be formed.",
"Embodiment 2 On an aluminum cylinder support of 80 mm in diameter and 360 mm in length, a 2 μm thick undercoat layer was disposed by applying a 5% methanol solution of nylon resin by a dipping method.",
"To 88 parts of a mixed solvent of MEK (ethyl methyl ketone) and dichloromethane, 12 parts of a pyrazoline derivative and 10 parts of a bisphenyl A polycarbonate resin were dissolved.",
"The solution was dipped and applied on the undercoat layer, and was dried by hot air for 1 hour at 100° C., and a 19 μm thick charge transfer layer was formed.",
"Having 10 parts of perylene pigment dissolved in a mixed solvent of bisphenol Z polycarbonate monochlorobenzne/dichloromethane=1:1 to make up 100 parts of solution (2% concentration by weight), the solution was dispersed in a ball mill for 24 hours.",
"This dispersion was applied on the charge transfer layer, and by drying for 20 minutes at 100° C., a 2 μm thick charge generation layer was formed.",
"This photoconductor was treated in a UV dry stripper for 10 minutes with oxygen plasma (oxygen flow: 1 liter/min) to oxidize the surface, and it was dipped and held in a 1 wt.",
"% tetrachlorosilane solution [solvent: tri(n-nonafluorobutyl) amine] for 60 minutes at room temperature in a nitrogen atmosphere, and in succession the unreacted tetrachlorosilane was washed in tri(n-nonafluorobutyl)amine, then in pure water, and using a dried sample, and using heptadecafluorodecyl trichlorosilane as a chlorosilane surface active agent containing a fluorocarbon group, it was dipped and held in tri(n-nonafluorobutyl)amine solution at a concentration of 10 -2 mol/liter for 120 minutes at room temperature in a nitrogen atmosphere, and the unreacted heptadecafluorodecyl trichlorosilane was washed in a tri(n-nonafluorobutyl)amine solvent, then in pure water, thereby forming a chemical adsorption monomolecular film containing a fluorocarbon group through a siloxane coupling on the photoconductor surface.",
"Embodiment 3 A similar experiment was conducted by forming a mixture (30:70:30 by weight) of urethane resin, silicon resin and silica particles as a protective layer on the photoconductor layer in Embodiment 1.",
"Reference 1 The processing was same as in Embodiment 1, except that the step of forming the chemical adsorption film was skipped.",
"Reference 2 The processing was same as in Embodiment 2, except that the step of forming the chemical adsorption film was skipped.",
"The photoconductor obtained in Embodiments 1 to 3 and References 1 and 2 were installed in a commercial electrophotographic apparatus, and corona charging, image exposure, development by toner, transfer and cleaning were repeated 10,000 times at 25° C. and 55% RH, and images were produced.",
"The quality of the image obtained after 10,000 times was evaluated, and the result is shown in Table 1.",
"Table 1 Image quality after 10,000 times Embodiment 1 As high as initial quality Reference 1 Sharpness extremely lowered, showing many black spots and white blank areas Embodiment 2 As high as initial quality Reference 2 Sharpness extremely lowered, showing blurry image, black spots, and white black areas Embodiment 3 As high as initial quality As clear from Table 1, in the electrophotographic apparatus using the photoconductors of the reference examples, the image quality was extremely lowered when used repeatedly and continuously, but in the apparatus using the photoconductors of the invention, the image quality was not lowered after repeated continuous use.",
"Embodiment 4 Polyurethane rubber of 50 mm in length, 360 mm in width and 3 mm in thickness was dipped and held for 120 minutes in a 10 -2 mol/liter cyclohexane solution of heptadecafluorodecyl trichlorosilane at room temperature in a nitrogen atmosphere, and the unreacted heptadecafluorodecyl trichlorosilane was washed in cyclohexane, then in pure water, and a chemical adsorption monomolecular film containing fluorocarbon group through a siloxane coupling was formed on the surface of the cleaning blade.",
"Embodiment 5 Polyurethane rubber of 50 mm in length, 360 mm in width and 3 mm in thickness was treated in a UV dry stripper for 10 minutes with oxygen plasma (oxygen flow rate: 1 liter/min) to oxidize the surface, and it was dipped and held in 1 wt.",
"% tetrachlorosilane solution [solvent: tri(n-nonafluorobutyl)amine] for 60 minutes at room temperature in a nitrogen atmosphere, and the unreacted tetrachlorosilane was washed in tri(n-nonafluorobutyl)amine, then in pure water, and using the dried sample, and using heptadecafluorodecyl trichlorosilane as the chlorosilane surface active agent containing fluorocarbon group, it was dipped and held in a tri(n-nonafluorobutyl)amine solution at a concentration of 10 -2 mol/liter for 120 minutes at room temperature in a nitrogen atmosphere, and successively the unreacted heptadecafluorodecyl trichlorosilane was washed in a tri(n-nonafluorobutyl)amine solvent, then in pure water.",
"A chemical adsorption monomolecular film containing fluorocarbon groups through siloxane coupling was formed on the surface of the cleaning blade.",
"Embodiment 6 A similar experiment was done to Embodiment 4, except that heptadecafluorodecyl trichlorosilane was replaced by 9-(heptadecafluorodecyl dimethylsilyl) nonyltrichlorosilane.",
"Reference 3 Same as in Embodiment 4, except that the step for forming the chemical adsorption film was skipped.",
"The cleaning blades of Embodiments 4 to 6 and Reference 3 were installed in a commercial electrophotographic apparatus, and corona charging, image exposure, development by toner, transfer and cleaning were repeated 10,000 times at 25° C. and 55% RH, and images were reproduced.",
"The quality of the images obtained after 10,000 times was evaluated, and the result is shown in Table 2.",
"Table 2 Image quality after 10,000 times Embodiment 4 As high as initial quality Embodiment 5 As high as initial quality Embodiment 6 As high as initial quality Reference 3 Sharpness extremely lowered, showing blurry image, black spots As clear from Table 2, in the electrophotographic apparatus using the cleaning blade of the reference example, the image quality was extremely lowered after repeated and continuous use, but in the electrophotographic apparatus using the cleaning blade of the invention, the image quality was not lowered after repeated use.",
"Embodiment 7 An aluminum roller of 30 mm in diameter and 360 mm in length was dipped and held in 10 -2 mol/liter cyclohexane solution of heptadecafluorodecyl trichlorosilane for 120 minutes at room temperature in nitrogen atmosphere, and the unreacted heptadecafluorodecyl trichlorosilane was washed in cyclohexane, then in pure water, and a chemical adsorption monomolecular film containing fluorocarbon groups through siloxane coupling was formed on the surface of the fixing roller.",
"Embodiment 8 The same aluminum roller as in Embodiment 7 was first dipped and held in a 1 wt.",
"% tetrachlorosilane solution [solvent: tri(n-nonafluorobutyl)amine] for 60 minutes at room temperature in a nitrogen atmosphere, and the unreacted tetrachlorosilane was washed in tri(n-nonafluorobutyl)amine, then in pure water, and using the dried sample and using heptadecafluorodecyl trichlorosilane as the chlorosilane surface active agent containing fluorocarbon groups, it was dipped and held in tri(n-nonafluorobutyl)amine solution at a concentration of 10 -2 mol/liter for 120 minutes at room temperature in a nitrogen atmosphere, and the unreacted heptadecafluorodecyl trichlorosilane was washed in a tri(n-nonafluorobutyl)amine solvent, then in pure water, and a chemical adsorption monomolecular film containing fluorocarbon groups through siloxane coupling was formed on the surface of the fixing roller.",
"Embodiment 9 An experiment was conducted the same as in Embodiment 7, except that heptadecafluorodecyl trichlorosilane was replaced by 9-(heptadecafluorodecyl dimethylsilyl) nonyltrichlorosilane.",
"Reference 4 An experiment was conducted the same as in Embodiment 7, except that a coating film of polytetrafuloroethylene was formed at a thickness of 10 μm, instead of forming the chemical adsorption film.",
"The fixing rollers of Embodiments 7 to 9 and Reference 4 were installed in the fixing unit of the commercial electrophotographic apparatus, and corona charging, image exposure, development by toner, transfer, fixing and cleaning were repeated 10,000 times at 25° C. and 55% RH, and images were reproduced.",
"The quality of the image obtained after 10,000 times was evaluated, and the result is shown in Table 3.",
"Table 3 Image quality after 10,000 times Embodiment 7 As high as initial quality Embodiment 8 As high as initial quality Embodiment 9 As high as initial quality Reference 4 Sharpness lowered, showing partly black spots As clear from Table 3, in the electrophotographic apparatus using the fixing roller of the reference example, the image quality was lowered by repeated and continuous use, but in the electrophotographic apparatus using the fixing roller of the invention, the image quality was not lowered by repeated and continuous use.",
"Embodiment 10 A block of core material of a separation pawl in a shape as shown in FIG. 7 was obtained from polyamide imide by cutting or injection forming.",
"This molding was dipped and held in a 10 -2 mol/liter cyclohexane solution of heptadecafluorodecyl trichlorosilane for 120 minutes at room temperature in a nitrogen atmosphere, and the unreacted heptadecafluorodecyl trichlorosilane was washed in cyclohexane, then in pure water, and a chemical adsorption film containing fluorocarbon groups through siloxane coupling was formed on the surface of the separation pawl.",
"Embodiment 11 The same separation pawl as in Embodiment 10 was dipped and held in 1 wt.",
"% tetrachlorosilane solution [solvent: tri(n-nonafluorobutyl)amine] for 60 minutes at room temperature in a nitrogen atmosphere, and the unreacted tetrachlorosilane was successively washed in tri(n-nonafluorobutyl)amine, then in pure water, and using the dried sample, and using heptadecafluorodecyl trichlorosilane as the chlorosilane surface active agent containing alkyl fluoride groups, it was dipped and held in a tri(n-nonafluorobutyl)amine solution at a concentration of 10 -2 mol/liter for 120 minutes at room temperature in a nitrogen atmosphere, and successively the unreacted heptadecafluorodecyl trichlorosilane was washed in a tri(n-nonafluorobutyl)amine solvent, then in pure water, and a chemical adsorption monomolecular film containing fluorocarbon groups through siloxane coupling was formed on the surface of the separation pawl.",
"Embodiment 12 An experiment was conducted the same as in Embodiment 10, except that heptadecafluorodecyl trichlorosilane was replaced by 9-(heptadecafluorodecyl dimethylsilyl) nonlyltrichlorosilane.",
"Reference 5 An experiment was conducted the same as in Embodiment 10, except that a coating film of Teflon ("Teflon"",
"is the trademark for polytetrafluoroethylene) was formed at a thickness of 10 μm instead of forming the chemical adsorption film.",
"The separation pawls of Embodiments 10 to 12 and Reference 5 were installed in the fixing unit of the commercial electrophotographic apparatus, and corona charging, image imposture, development by toner, transfer, fixing and cleaning were repeated 10,000 times at 25° C. and 55% RH, and the images were reproduced.",
"The quality of the images obtained after 10,000 times was evaluated, and the result is shown in Table 4.",
"Table 4 Image quality after 10,000 times Embodiment 10 As high as initial quality Embodiment 11 As high as initial quality Embodiment 12 As high as initial quality Reference 5 White spots seen in separation pawl fixing portion.",
"As clear from Table 4, in the electrophotographic apparatus using the separation pawl of the reference example, the image quality was lowered by repeated and continuous use, but in the electrophotographic apparatus using the separation pawl of the invention, the image quality was not lowered after repeated and continuous use.",
"Embodiment 13 A tungsten wire of 50 μm in diameter and 360 mm in length was dipped and held in a 10 -2 mol/liter cyclohexane solution of heptadecafluorodecyl trichlorosilane for 120 minutes at room temperature in a nitrogen atmosphere, and the unreacted heptadecafluorodecyl trichlorosilane was successively washed in cyclohexane, then in pure water, and a chemical adsorption monomolecular film containing fluorocarbon groups through siloxane coupling was formed on the surface of the corona wire.",
"Embodiment 14 The same tungsten wire as in Embodiment 13 was first dipped and held in a 1 wt.",
"% tetrachlorosilane solution [solvent: tri(n-nonafluorobutyl)amine] for 60 minutes at room temperature in a nitrogen atmosphere, and the unreacted tetrachlorosilane was washed in tri(n-nonafluorobutyl)amine, then in pure water, and using the dried sample, and using heptadecafluorodecyl trichlorosilane as the chlorosilane surface active agent containing fluorocarbon groups, it was dipped and held in a tri(n-nonafluorobutyl)amine solution at a concentration of 10 -2 mol/liter for 120 minutes at room temperature in a nitrogen atmosphere, and the unreacted heptadecafluorodecyl trichlorosilane was washed in a tri(n-nonafluorobutyl)amine solvent, then in pure water, and a chemical adsorption monomolecular film containing fluorocarbon groups through siloxane coupling was formed on the corona wire.",
"Embodiment 15 An experiment was done the same as in Embodiment 13, except that heptadecafluorodecyl trichlorosilane was replaced by 9-(heptadecafluorodecyl dimethylsilyl)nonyltrichlorosilane.",
"Reference 6 The corona wire in Embodiment 13 was used as reference example without surface treatment.",
"The corona wires of Embodiments 13 to 15 and Reference 6 were installed in the fixing unit of the commercial electrophotographic apparatus, and corona charging, image exposure, development by toner, transfer, fixing and cleaning were repeated 10,000 times at 25° C. and 55% RH, and the images were reproduced.",
"The quality of the images obtained after 10,000 times was evaluated, and the result is shown in Table 5.",
"Table 5 Image quality after 10,000 times Embodiment 13 As high as initial quality Embodiment 14 As high as initial quality Embodiment 15 As high as initial quality Reference 6 Sharpness lowered, showing black spots partially As clear from Table 5, in the electrophotographic apparatus using the corona wire of the reference example, the image quality was lowered by continuous and repeated use, but in the electrophotographic apparatus using the corona wire of the invention, the image quality was not lowered after repeated and continuous use.",
"Embodiment 16 A stainless steel corona grid of 1.5 cm in width and 360 mm in length was dipped and held in a 10 -2 mol/liter cyclohexane solution of heptadecafluorodecyl trichlorosilane for 120 minutes at room temperature in a nitrogen atmosphere, and the unreacted heptadecafluorodecyl trichlorosilane was successively washed in cyclohexane, then in pure water, and a chemical adsorption monomolecular film containing fluorocarbon groups through siloxane coupling was formed on the surface of the corona grid.",
"Embodiment 17 The same stainless steel grid as in Embodiment 16 was first dipped and held in a 1 wt.",
"% tetrachlorosilane solution [solvent: tri(n-nonafluorobutyl)amine] for 60 minutes at room temperature in a nitrogen atmosphere, and the unreacted tetrachlorosilane was washed in tri(n-nonafluorobutyl)amine, then in pure water, and using the dried sample, and using heptadecafluorodecyl trichlorosilane as chlorosilane surface active agent containing fluorocarbon group, it was dipped and held in a tri(n-nonafluorobutyl)amine solution at a concentration of 10 -2 mol/liter for 120 minutes at room temperature in a nitrogen atmosphere, and the unreacted heptadecafluorodecyl trichlorosilane was washed in a tri(n-nonafluorobutyl)amine solvent, the in pure water, and chemical adsorption film containing fluorocarbon groups through siloxane coupling was formed on the corona grid.",
"Embodiment 18 An experiment was conducted the same as in Embodiment 16, except that heptadecafluorodecyl trichlorosilane was replaced by 9-(heptadecafluorodecyl dimethylsilyl) nonyltrichlorosilane.",
"Reference 7 The corona grid of Embodiment 16 was used as a reference example without surface treatment.",
"The corona grid of Embodiments 16 to 18 and Reference 7 were installed in the fixing unit of the commercial electrophotographic apparatus, and corona charging, image exposure, development by toner, transfer, fixing and cleaning were repeated 10,000 times at 25° C. and 55% RH, and the images were reproduced.",
"The quality of images after 10,000 times was evaluated, and the result is shown in Table 6.",
"Table 6 Image quality after 10,000 times Embodiment 16 As high as initial quality Embodiment 17 As high as initial quality Embodiment 18 As high as initial quality Reference 7 Sharpness lowered, showing black spots partially As clear from Table 6, in the electrophotographic apparatus using the corona grid of the reference example, the image quality was lowered after repeated and continuous use, but in the electrophotographic apparatus using the corona grid of the invention, the image quality was not lowered after repeated and continuous use.",
"The electrophotographic apparatus of the first embodiment has the surface of the electrophotographic photoconductor covalently bonded with a monomolecular film containing a fluorocarbon group through siloxane coupling, so that the photoreceptor excellent in anti-fouling property and durability may be obtained.",
"Besides, since the surface of the photoconductor is covered with a chemical adsorption film containing a fluorocarbon film through siloxane coupling, as compared with the prior art, the anti-fouling property is outstanding.",
"As a result, if used continuously, images of high quality are obtained.",
"The electrophotographic apparatus of the second embodiment has the surface of the cleaning blade coated with a chemical adsorption film containing a fluorocarbon film through siloxane coupling, and therefore as compared with the prior art, the lubrication and anti-fouling properties are notably excellent.",
"As a result, images of high quality are obtained if used continuously.",
"The electrophotographic apparatus of the third embodiment has the surface of the fixing roller coated with a chemical adsorption film containing a fluorocarbon group through siloxane coupling, and therefore as compared with the prior art, the anti-fouling property is excellent.",
"As a result, if used continuously, images of high quality are obtained.",
"The electrophotographic apparatus of the fourth embodiment has the surface of the separation pawl coated with a chemical adsorption film containing a fluorocarbon group through siloxane coupling, and therefore the parting property is superb as compared with the prior art.",
"As a result, if used continuously, images of high quality are obtained.",
"The electrophotographic apparatus of the fifth embodiment has the surface of the corona wire coated with a chemical adsorption film containing a fluorocarbon group through siloxane coupling, and therefore the toner parting property is superb as compared with the prior art.",
"As a result, if used continuously, images of high quality are obtained.",
"The electrophotographic apparatus of the sixth embodiment has the surface of the corona grid coated with a chemical adsorption film containing an alkyl fluoride group through siloxane coupling, and therefore the toner parting property is superb as compared with the prior art.",
"As a result, if used continuously, images of high quality are obtained.",
"Thus, the invention brings about outstanding industrial uses.",
"As has been shown, the invention is greatly beneficial to industry.",
"The invention may be embodied in other specific forms without departing from the spirit or essential characteristics thereof.",
"The present embodiment is to be considered in all respects as illustrative and not restrictive, the scope of the invention being indicated by the appended claims rather than by the foregoing description and all changes which come within the meaning and range of equivalency of the claims are intended to be embraced therein."
] |
BACKGROUND FOR THE INVENTION
[0001] 1. Field of Invention
[0002] This invention relates to a human blood pressure simulation apparatus that provides the user tactile sensations representing the level of pressure within his or her cardio-vascular system during the cardiac cycle of pumping blood throughout the body. Both systolic and diastolic blood pressure levels are simulated at the pulse rate of the simulated cardiac output. The user may compare, by physical feel, his or her blood pressure cycle simulation with that of a normal blood pressure level simulation.
[0003] 2. Background
[0004] Hypertension (high blood pressure) has been called “the silent killer” by health professionals since it damages the human body without being felt by the victim. It is well known that abnormal blood pressure levels can lead to many health related problems and even death. Many millions of people each year have their blood pressure measured, however, only very few actually know what the numbers mean physically with regards to the pressures experienced by their blood vessels and heart. Even less have a sense of what force is exerted by the heart on their blood vessels by normal and abnormal blood pressure levels. To increase the awareness of blood pressure levels in humans, an apparatus has been invented, as described herein, to provide physically sensible feedback in relation to the blood pressure cycle.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0005] This invention provides tactile indications to human subjects related to blood pressure forces experienced by cardiovascular systems under normal and abnormal human blood pressure cycles. The instant invention permits human subjects to physically feel the cyclic pressure experienced by their heart or blood vessels by providing simulation of blood pressure cycles and by including a physical interface by which the subject can sense the force on his or her heart or blood vessels at both the systolic and diastolic portions of the simulated cardiac cycle.
[0006] Current medical literature cites normal blood pressure amplitudes for humans to be near 120 mm of Hg for the systolic phase and 80 mm of Hg for the diastolic phase relative to the atmospheric pressure. The units of “mm of Hg” refer to a mercury column (vertical manometer) supported by the blood pressure as measured by blood pressure measuring equipment such as a sphygmomanometer. The height of a vertical column of liquid is an accepted unit of pressure in scientific and medical literature. However, it is anticipated that very few people know what magnitudes of 120 mm of Hg, 80 mm of Hg, etc., actually mean in regard to pressure levels. To further complicate the issue, much of the time, the units on these pressure values are dropped for brevity and are simply reported as unitless numbers as “120/80” as the systolic pressure over the diastolic pressure.
[0007] Blood pressure is such a vital health parameter that it is extremely important that people have an accurate physical feeling for what their blood pressure level means relative to normal blood pressure. While customary reporting of systolic pressures over diastolic pressures is one way of relative abstract comparison with normal blood pressure levels, the experience of physically feeling what normal and abnormal blood pressure cycles are like is quite dramatic and has much more lasting impact on the subject. A subject actually feeling his or her abnormal blood pressure level through the apparatus of the instant invention may be more likely to comply with prescribed therapies such as taking medications, engaging in physical exercise, dieting, reduction of body mass, etc. in order to achieve normal blood pressure levels. It is well known that humans cannot feel the level of their arterial blood pressure by pressing their fingers against their veins or arteries near the surface of their skin.
[0008] In accordance with the invention, a sense of physical feel as a pressure magnitude comparison is provided rather than an abstract mental comparison of numerical values representing blood pressure levels. A pressurized fluid containing vessel with an interface which permits human subjects to receive tactile sensations of the pressure levels representing those experienced within the subject's blood vessels or heart is provided. It is understood that the use of the term “fluid” herein includes a gas or a liquid or both.
[0009] Various embodiments are described herein to simulate the parameters of the human blood pressure cycle and to convey those parameters to human subjects through the sense of touch.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0010] FIG. 1 is a block diagram of the electronic controlled embodiment of the Blood Pressure Simulation Apparatus with Tactile Interface.
[0011] FIG. 2 is a drawing of the manually controlled embodiment of the Blood Pressure Simulation Apparatus with Tactile Interface.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
[0012] One preferred embodiment of the Blood Pressure Simulation Apparatus with Tactile Interface is shown in FIG. 1 . A pressurized fluid generator 100 provides a fluid above the ambient pressure to serve as the working medium within the pressure vessel with moveable surface providing tactile interface 120 . The fluid is air in one embodiment. In another embodiment of the invention, the fluid is an incompressible liquid segregated from a gas to provide pressurization. The pressurized fluid generator 100 is an electric powered pump in one embodiment, a compressed fluid storage vessel in another embodiment, and a manually operated pump in yet another embodiment. A fluid pressure control element 110 serves as a pressure regulator to control the pressure level within the pressure vessel with moveable surface 120 . A fluid pressure sensor 130 senses the pressure level within the pressure vessel with moveable surface 120 and provides pressure data feedback to the electronic control unit 140 . A manifold 135 pneumatically connects the fluid pressure control element 110 , the pressure vessel with moveable surface 120 , and the fluid pressure sensor 130 . A power supply 150 provides electrical energy to the electronic control unit 140 . User-operated controls to define pressure excursion parameters 160 provide the user a preferred method to set the simulated diastolic blood pressure and systolic blood pressure levels within the pressure vessel with moveable surface 120 and to set the simulated cardiac pulse rate where, in one embodiment, these controls include electronic switches or variable resistors. In one embodiment, an optional data interface to an electronic sphygmomanometer 170 automatically transfers the human subject blood pressure data as input settings to the electronic control unit 140 to maintain the simulated diastolic and systolic blood pressure levels and the periodicity of the simulated cardiac cycle within the pressure vessel with moveable surface 120 to be equivalent to the respective pressure levels and cardiac cycle periodicity as measured from the subject by the electronic sphygmomanometer (not shown). An optional data display 180 is used in one embodiment to indicate to the user the simulated diastolic and systolic blood pressure levels. The electronic control unit 140 is the master controller unit of the apparatus interfacing with the fluid pressure sensor 130 , the fluid pressure control element 110 , the user operated controls 160 , an optional data interface to the electronic sphygmomanometer 170 , and the optional data display 180 . The electronic control unit 140 electronically maintains the periodicity and pressure levels within the pressure vessel with moveable surface 120 for the simulated blood pressure cycles. In one embodiment, the electronic control unit 140 circuitry includes a microprocessor.
[0013] The pressure vessel with moveable surface 120 is the tactile interface with human subjects to physically communicate the pressure induced forces acting on blood vessels or heart subjected to blood pressure levels. The pressure level inside the pressure vessel with moveable surface 120 is communicated to a human subject through touching of at least one moveable surface. In one embodiment the pressure vessel with moveable surface 120 is comprised of a rubber or elastomeric hollow bulb (similar to the bulb 220 shown in FIG. 2 ) designed to be squeezed in one hand while a simulated blood pressure is applied to the bulb. In this embodiment, the user feels the force experienced by the walls of blood vessels or the heart under pressure and gets a true sense of the containment force required to maintain the blood vessels intact or the force the heart exerts to pump blood. In one embodiment, a small volume bulb can communicate the force exerted on the blood vessels while a larger volume bulb can communicate the force exerted by the heart. The forces due to abnormal blood pressure levels can be compared relative to forces due to normal blood pressure levels by adjusting the user-operated controls 160 . In another embodiment, the rubber or elastomeric hollow bulb has a rigid, incompressible solid member positioned inside so that the human subject can compress the bulb by hand so at least some portion of the inner bulb surface remains in contact with the solid member, thus providing consistent feel and reduced tendency for the subject to randomly squeeze the bulb during blood pressure simulation. The incompressible member may further include at least one electrical contact to sense when the bulb has been squeezed to contact the incompressible member. In another embodiment, the pressure vessel with moveable surface 120 is comprised of a piston cylinder apparatus (not shown) whereby a human subject can feel the force on the piston induced by the simulated blood pressure levels. In yet another embodiment, an inflatable cuff serves as the tactile interface whereby a human body appendage such as a finger, hand, arm, or leg is surrounded by the cuff. In still yet another embodiment, an elastic walled, closed ended tube to simulate a blood vessel section serves as the tactile interface whereby a person can grip the tube to feel the force on the tube wall as an indication of the force exerted on a blood vessel wall due to a blood pressure cycle. All embodiments of the invention provide the user of the apparatus a physical feeling for the level of simulated blood pressure within the pressure vessel with moveable surface 120 . The apparatus may simulate normal as well as abnormal human blood pressure levels.
[0014] In another preferred embodiment, the apparatus of FIG. 1 is integrally combined with an electronic sphygmomanometer to comprise a single unit capable of reading blood pressure levels and simulating the diastolic and systolic blood pressure levels so the human subject can physically feel the pressure induced forces experienced by the subject's own blood vessels.
[0015] Another preferred embodiment of the Blood Pressure Simulation Apparatus with Tactile Interface is shown in FIG. 2 . The large volume elastomeric hollow bulb 200 , the pressure indicator 210 , the small volume elastomeric hollow bulb 220 , and the connecting tubing 230 form a closed system. The terms “large” and “small” as used herein are relative terms only, and it is understood that the large volume elastomeric hollow bulb 200 contains as least as much volume as the small volume elastomeric hollow bulb 220 . Both the large volume elastomeric hollow bulb 200 and the small elastomeric hollow bulb 220 may be held and compressed, at least partially, in a human hand. The user experiencing the blood pressure cycle simulation holds the small elastomeric hollow bulb 220 in one hand and squeezes the bulb to reduce the volume and to increase the fluid pressure indicated on the pressure indicator 210 to a level below the desired simulated diastolic blood pressure. In one embodiment as shown in FIG. 2 , an incompressible member 240 is located within the small elastomeric hollow bulb 220 such that the user squeezes the bulb 220 so that the interior walls of the bulb 220 make contact with the incompressible member 240 . A fluid bleed valve 250 is manually operated to reduce the mass of fluid in the closed system so the pressure as indicated by the pressure indicator 210 can be set below the desired simulated diastolic blood pressure. The user then alternately squeezes and partially releases the large elastomeric hollow bulb 200 with the other hand to simulate and manually control the diastolic and systolic blood pressure levels desired within the small elastomeric hollow bulb 220 as indicated on the pressure indicator 210 . The user's hand continuing to grasp the small elastomeric hollow bulb 220 experiences force sensations indicative of the forces experienced by human blood vessel walls undergoing blood pressure cycles. Alternatively, a person other than the one experiencing the blood pressure simulation operates the large volume elastomeric hollow bulb 200 to drive and control the simulated blood pressure cycles. In one embodiment, the pressure indicator 210 is an electronic pressure sensor with digital display of pressure level. In another embodiment, the pressure indicator 210 is an analog pressure gage. In yet another embodiment, the pressure indicator 210 is a manometer.
[0016] It is understood that the concepts of the elastomeric hollow bulb described in this specification and appended claims are intended to be broad in scope and include all vessels having at least some non-fixed surface portion that can be used by humans to sense, through touch, pressure levels within such vessels. One function of the vessels with at least some non-fixed surface portion is to provide significant force amplification within the vessel compared to the force exerted on the walls of the relatively small diameter conduits comprising the manifold 135 and tubing 230 connecting the system components. The functions of elastomeric hollow bulbs described within this specification and appended claims may also be replaced with a bellows apparatus without loss of intended function of the invention.
[0017] The various preferred embodiments described above are merely descriptive of the present invention and are in no way intended to limit the scope of the invention. Modifications of the present invention will become obvious to those skilled in the art in light of the detailed description above, and such modifications are intended to fall within the scope of the appended claims. | The blood pressure level in humans is a vital health parameter, yet the vast majority of people do not have a physical feeling for what normal and abnormal blood pressure levels mean in relation to the forces exerted on the heart and blood vessels. A blood pressure simulation apparatus is described which provides human subjects a means to physically feel simulated blood pressure levels through a tactile interface. Both normal and abnormal blood pressure cycles are simulated. Interfacing of the apparatus to an electronic blood pressure monitor is provided. | Summarize the document in concise, focusing on the main idea's functionality and advantages. | [
"BACKGROUND FOR THE INVENTION [0001] 1.",
"Field of Invention [0002] This invention relates to a human blood pressure simulation apparatus that provides the user tactile sensations representing the level of pressure within his or her cardio-vascular system during the cardiac cycle of pumping blood throughout the body.",
"Both systolic and diastolic blood pressure levels are simulated at the pulse rate of the simulated cardiac output.",
"The user may compare, by physical feel, his or her blood pressure cycle simulation with that of a normal blood pressure level simulation.",
"[0003] 2.",
"Background [0004] Hypertension (high blood pressure) has been called “the silent killer”",
"by health professionals since it damages the human body without being felt by the victim.",
"It is well known that abnormal blood pressure levels can lead to many health related problems and even death.",
"Many millions of people each year have their blood pressure measured, however, only very few actually know what the numbers mean physically with regards to the pressures experienced by their blood vessels and heart.",
"Even less have a sense of what force is exerted by the heart on their blood vessels by normal and abnormal blood pressure levels.",
"To increase the awareness of blood pressure levels in humans, an apparatus has been invented, as described herein, to provide physically sensible feedback in relation to the blood pressure cycle.",
"SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION [0005] This invention provides tactile indications to human subjects related to blood pressure forces experienced by cardiovascular systems under normal and abnormal human blood pressure cycles.",
"The instant invention permits human subjects to physically feel the cyclic pressure experienced by their heart or blood vessels by providing simulation of blood pressure cycles and by including a physical interface by which the subject can sense the force on his or her heart or blood vessels at both the systolic and diastolic portions of the simulated cardiac cycle.",
"[0006] Current medical literature cites normal blood pressure amplitudes for humans to be near 120 mm of Hg for the systolic phase and 80 mm of Hg for the diastolic phase relative to the atmospheric pressure.",
"The units of “mm of Hg”",
"refer to a mercury column (vertical manometer) supported by the blood pressure as measured by blood pressure measuring equipment such as a sphygmomanometer.",
"The height of a vertical column of liquid is an accepted unit of pressure in scientific and medical literature.",
"However, it is anticipated that very few people know what magnitudes of 120 mm of Hg, 80 mm of Hg, etc.",
", actually mean in regard to pressure levels.",
"To further complicate the issue, much of the time, the units on these pressure values are dropped for brevity and are simply reported as unitless numbers as “120/80”",
"as the systolic pressure over the diastolic pressure.",
"[0007] Blood pressure is such a vital health parameter that it is extremely important that people have an accurate physical feeling for what their blood pressure level means relative to normal blood pressure.",
"While customary reporting of systolic pressures over diastolic pressures is one way of relative abstract comparison with normal blood pressure levels, the experience of physically feeling what normal and abnormal blood pressure cycles are like is quite dramatic and has much more lasting impact on the subject.",
"A subject actually feeling his or her abnormal blood pressure level through the apparatus of the instant invention may be more likely to comply with prescribed therapies such as taking medications, engaging in physical exercise, dieting, reduction of body mass, etc.",
"in order to achieve normal blood pressure levels.",
"It is well known that humans cannot feel the level of their arterial blood pressure by pressing their fingers against their veins or arteries near the surface of their skin.",
"[0008] In accordance with the invention, a sense of physical feel as a pressure magnitude comparison is provided rather than an abstract mental comparison of numerical values representing blood pressure levels.",
"A pressurized fluid containing vessel with an interface which permits human subjects to receive tactile sensations of the pressure levels representing those experienced within the subject's blood vessels or heart is provided.",
"It is understood that the use of the term “fluid”",
"herein includes a gas or a liquid or both.",
"[0009] Various embodiments are described herein to simulate the parameters of the human blood pressure cycle and to convey those parameters to human subjects through the sense of touch.",
"BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS [0010] FIG. 1 is a block diagram of the electronic controlled embodiment of the Blood Pressure Simulation Apparatus with Tactile Interface.",
"[0011] FIG. 2 is a drawing of the manually controlled embodiment of the Blood Pressure Simulation Apparatus with Tactile Interface.",
"DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT [0012] One preferred embodiment of the Blood Pressure Simulation Apparatus with Tactile Interface is shown in FIG. 1 .",
"A pressurized fluid generator 100 provides a fluid above the ambient pressure to serve as the working medium within the pressure vessel with moveable surface providing tactile interface 120 .",
"The fluid is air in one embodiment.",
"In another embodiment of the invention, the fluid is an incompressible liquid segregated from a gas to provide pressurization.",
"The pressurized fluid generator 100 is an electric powered pump in one embodiment, a compressed fluid storage vessel in another embodiment, and a manually operated pump in yet another embodiment.",
"A fluid pressure control element 110 serves as a pressure regulator to control the pressure level within the pressure vessel with moveable surface 120 .",
"A fluid pressure sensor 130 senses the pressure level within the pressure vessel with moveable surface 120 and provides pressure data feedback to the electronic control unit 140 .",
"A manifold 135 pneumatically connects the fluid pressure control element 110 , the pressure vessel with moveable surface 120 , and the fluid pressure sensor 130 .",
"A power supply 150 provides electrical energy to the electronic control unit 140 .",
"User-operated controls to define pressure excursion parameters 160 provide the user a preferred method to set the simulated diastolic blood pressure and systolic blood pressure levels within the pressure vessel with moveable surface 120 and to set the simulated cardiac pulse rate where, in one embodiment, these controls include electronic switches or variable resistors.",
"In one embodiment, an optional data interface to an electronic sphygmomanometer 170 automatically transfers the human subject blood pressure data as input settings to the electronic control unit 140 to maintain the simulated diastolic and systolic blood pressure levels and the periodicity of the simulated cardiac cycle within the pressure vessel with moveable surface 120 to be equivalent to the respective pressure levels and cardiac cycle periodicity as measured from the subject by the electronic sphygmomanometer (not shown).",
"An optional data display 180 is used in one embodiment to indicate to the user the simulated diastolic and systolic blood pressure levels.",
"The electronic control unit 140 is the master controller unit of the apparatus interfacing with the fluid pressure sensor 130 , the fluid pressure control element 110 , the user operated controls 160 , an optional data interface to the electronic sphygmomanometer 170 , and the optional data display 180 .",
"The electronic control unit 140 electronically maintains the periodicity and pressure levels within the pressure vessel with moveable surface 120 for the simulated blood pressure cycles.",
"In one embodiment, the electronic control unit 140 circuitry includes a microprocessor.",
"[0013] The pressure vessel with moveable surface 120 is the tactile interface with human subjects to physically communicate the pressure induced forces acting on blood vessels or heart subjected to blood pressure levels.",
"The pressure level inside the pressure vessel with moveable surface 120 is communicated to a human subject through touching of at least one moveable surface.",
"In one embodiment the pressure vessel with moveable surface 120 is comprised of a rubber or elastomeric hollow bulb (similar to the bulb 220 shown in FIG. 2 ) designed to be squeezed in one hand while a simulated blood pressure is applied to the bulb.",
"In this embodiment, the user feels the force experienced by the walls of blood vessels or the heart under pressure and gets a true sense of the containment force required to maintain the blood vessels intact or the force the heart exerts to pump blood.",
"In one embodiment, a small volume bulb can communicate the force exerted on the blood vessels while a larger volume bulb can communicate the force exerted by the heart.",
"The forces due to abnormal blood pressure levels can be compared relative to forces due to normal blood pressure levels by adjusting the user-operated controls 160 .",
"In another embodiment, the rubber or elastomeric hollow bulb has a rigid, incompressible solid member positioned inside so that the human subject can compress the bulb by hand so at least some portion of the inner bulb surface remains in contact with the solid member, thus providing consistent feel and reduced tendency for the subject to randomly squeeze the bulb during blood pressure simulation.",
"The incompressible member may further include at least one electrical contact to sense when the bulb has been squeezed to contact the incompressible member.",
"In another embodiment, the pressure vessel with moveable surface 120 is comprised of a piston cylinder apparatus (not shown) whereby a human subject can feel the force on the piston induced by the simulated blood pressure levels.",
"In yet another embodiment, an inflatable cuff serves as the tactile interface whereby a human body appendage such as a finger, hand, arm, or leg is surrounded by the cuff.",
"In still yet another embodiment, an elastic walled, closed ended tube to simulate a blood vessel section serves as the tactile interface whereby a person can grip the tube to feel the force on the tube wall as an indication of the force exerted on a blood vessel wall due to a blood pressure cycle.",
"All embodiments of the invention provide the user of the apparatus a physical feeling for the level of simulated blood pressure within the pressure vessel with moveable surface 120 .",
"The apparatus may simulate normal as well as abnormal human blood pressure levels.",
"[0014] In another preferred embodiment, the apparatus of FIG. 1 is integrally combined with an electronic sphygmomanometer to comprise a single unit capable of reading blood pressure levels and simulating the diastolic and systolic blood pressure levels so the human subject can physically feel the pressure induced forces experienced by the subject's own blood vessels.",
"[0015] Another preferred embodiment of the Blood Pressure Simulation Apparatus with Tactile Interface is shown in FIG. 2 .",
"The large volume elastomeric hollow bulb 200 , the pressure indicator 210 , the small volume elastomeric hollow bulb 220 , and the connecting tubing 230 form a closed system.",
"The terms “large”",
"and “small”",
"as used herein are relative terms only, and it is understood that the large volume elastomeric hollow bulb 200 contains as least as much volume as the small volume elastomeric hollow bulb 220 .",
"Both the large volume elastomeric hollow bulb 200 and the small elastomeric hollow bulb 220 may be held and compressed, at least partially, in a human hand.",
"The user experiencing the blood pressure cycle simulation holds the small elastomeric hollow bulb 220 in one hand and squeezes the bulb to reduce the volume and to increase the fluid pressure indicated on the pressure indicator 210 to a level below the desired simulated diastolic blood pressure.",
"In one embodiment as shown in FIG. 2 , an incompressible member 240 is located within the small elastomeric hollow bulb 220 such that the user squeezes the bulb 220 so that the interior walls of the bulb 220 make contact with the incompressible member 240 .",
"A fluid bleed valve 250 is manually operated to reduce the mass of fluid in the closed system so the pressure as indicated by the pressure indicator 210 can be set below the desired simulated diastolic blood pressure.",
"The user then alternately squeezes and partially releases the large elastomeric hollow bulb 200 with the other hand to simulate and manually control the diastolic and systolic blood pressure levels desired within the small elastomeric hollow bulb 220 as indicated on the pressure indicator 210 .",
"The user's hand continuing to grasp the small elastomeric hollow bulb 220 experiences force sensations indicative of the forces experienced by human blood vessel walls undergoing blood pressure cycles.",
"Alternatively, a person other than the one experiencing the blood pressure simulation operates the large volume elastomeric hollow bulb 200 to drive and control the simulated blood pressure cycles.",
"In one embodiment, the pressure indicator 210 is an electronic pressure sensor with digital display of pressure level.",
"In another embodiment, the pressure indicator 210 is an analog pressure gage.",
"In yet another embodiment, the pressure indicator 210 is a manometer.",
"[0016] It is understood that the concepts of the elastomeric hollow bulb described in this specification and appended claims are intended to be broad in scope and include all vessels having at least some non-fixed surface portion that can be used by humans to sense, through touch, pressure levels within such vessels.",
"One function of the vessels with at least some non-fixed surface portion is to provide significant force amplification within the vessel compared to the force exerted on the walls of the relatively small diameter conduits comprising the manifold 135 and tubing 230 connecting the system components.",
"The functions of elastomeric hollow bulbs described within this specification and appended claims may also be replaced with a bellows apparatus without loss of intended function of the invention.",
"[0017] The various preferred embodiments described above are merely descriptive of the present invention and are in no way intended to limit the scope of the invention.",
"Modifications of the present invention will become obvious to those skilled in the art in light of the detailed description above, and such modifications are intended to fall within the scope of the appended claims."
] |
RELATED APPLICATIONS
The subject application is a continuation-in-part of Ser. No. 07/773,724, filed on Oct. 9, 1991, now U.S. Pat. No. 5,219,749 the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Next to cellulose, chitin is the world's most abundant, easily obtained, and renewable biological material. It is a natural product synthesized by a wide variety of organisms. Several billion tons of the material are produced annually. Chitin is a carbohydrate polymer, the N-acetylated polymer of β(1→4) linked N-acetylglucosamine, or poly-N-acetyl glucosamine. In plants, chitin is a cell wall constituent replacing cellulose or sometimes occurring together with cellulose. In animals, chitin is usually organized as a cuticle at one surface of the epithelial tissue. Although structurally similar to cellulose, chitin has distinctly different chemical properties. It is an extremely insoluble material, with limited industrial applicability.
The deacetylated derivative of chitin, chitosan, is a much more tractable material with a broad and impressive array of practical applications. Chitosan is positively charged, thus, it can be used as a protein precipitant and a metal chelating agent. It can be formulated as a solution, gel, membrane, film or fiber. Such formulations are useful, for example, in the areas of precious metal recovery, crop protection, chromatography and enzyme immobilization. Chitosan is a biologically benign, non-immunogenic, material making it ideal for use in the agricultural, food, drug and cosmetic industries. It can form complexes with other natural polymers, such as collagen and keratin, to form materials with unique biomedical properties. For example, such materials can be used as wound healing accelerants, components of artificial skin and blood vessels, anticoagulants, and controlled drug release vehicles.
At present the bulk of the chitosan produced worldwide is prepared from crustacean shell material. Chitin comprises about 20-50% of the dry weight of crustacean cuticles, the balance being primarily calcium carbonate, calcium phosphate and other proteins. Chitin is first isolated by treating ground crustacean shells with dilute acid and alkali to remove proteins and minerals. The raw chitin is then deacetylated by exposure to concentrated alkali at high temperature to generate chitosan. Although the chitosan produced in this manner has many useful features, it is impossible to effectively control the production process, which leads to the production of a material having a broad range of molecular weight and a heterogenous extent of deacetylation. Such a product is not of great value, since many of the potentially important applications, particularly in the biomedical area, require uniform material with very specific physical and chemical properties.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The subject invention relates to an isolated DNA sequence encoding an enzyme which catalyzes the conversion of chitin to chitosan. Specific embodiments include DNA sequences which are characterized by the ability to hybridize to the DNA sequence represented in SEQ ID NO: 1 under stringent hybridization conditions. The invention also relates to a DNA expression construct encoding an enzyme having the specificity described above, or biologically active portions thereof.
The invention also relates to a method for converting chitin to chitosan by contacting chitin with an enzyme having a chitin deacetylase activity. In this method, the enzyme is produced by recombinant DNA techniques in which an isolated DNA sequence encoding the enzyme, or a biologically active portion thereof, is expressed from a DNA expression construct.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG. 1 is a diagram representing the elution profile from a Phenyl Sepharose® CL-4B column.
FIG. 2 is a diagram representing the elution profile from a Q Sepharose® Fast Flow column.
FIG. 3 is a diagram representing the elution profile from an S Sepharose® Fast Flow column.
FIG. 4 is a diagram which represents the temperature dependence of chitin deacetylase activity.
FIG. 5 is a diagram which represents the pH dependence of chitin deacetylase activity.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
i) Purification of chitin Deacetylase
The present invention was made possible by the discovery of a method for purifying chitin deacetylase from a cellular extract of an organism which produces chitin deacetylase. The enzyme chitin deacetylase is produced by a variety of genera including, for example, Mucor, Phycomyces, Absidia, and Choanephora. Other potentially useful genera include Zygorhynchus, Actinomucor, Circinella, Rhizopus, Colletotrichum and Rhizomucor.
A preferred source for chitin deacetylase is the cell wall of fungal mycelia. Such mycelia are produced in great quantities as a byproduct of the fermentation industry. The growth of Mucor rouxii in standard fermentors has been described in the literature. The use of a fungus such as Mucor rouxii offers a number of advantages. The organism can be grown using inexpensive nutrients. It can be grown to a high cell density (grams of cell dry weight per liter of culture medium) in a large scale fermentation system. The culture time required to achieve high cell density is as low as 12 hours/batch.
Initially, cellular extract is prepared from an organism which produces chitin deacetylase. For example, if the organism is a fungus (e.g., Mucor rouxii) mycelial cells are disrupted in the presence of an extraction buffer. The extraction buffer may contain protease inhibitors, other degradative enzyme inhibitors and stabilizers to maintain enzyme activity and facilitate its extraction. Non-soluble material is removed from the liquid phase of the extraction mixture, for example, by filtration or centrifugation.
The cellular extract is subjected to a thermal cycling step which results in the precipitation of undesirable protein (i.e., protein other than chitin deacetylase). For example, as described in the Examples below, the extract can be incubated at about 50° C. for a period of about 15-30 minutes. The precipitated protein is subsequently removed, for example, by filtration or centrifugation.
It is well known that the solubility properties of proteins in solutions having high salt concentrations vary over a wide range. This difference in solubility can be exploited to achieve separation of protein in a solution by precipitation at high ionic strength. Many salts can be used for this purpose, but ammonium sulfate is preferred by virtue of the fact that it does not appreciably alter pH, it is highly soluble, and it does not destabilize proteins.
Applicants' have determined that an ammonium sulfate concentration of about 2.1M effectively precipitates a wide variety of proteins from the liquid phase described above, without precipitating the chitin deacetylase. Proteins which precipitate in an ammonium sulfate concentration of about 2.1M are removed from the solution by standard techniques (e.g., filtration or centrifugation).
The liquid phase Which is recovered following the ammonium sulfate precipitation is subjected to hydrophobic interaction chromatography. Hydrophobic interaction chromatography is widely employed for the purification of macromolecules on the basis of their varying strength of hydrophobic interaction with hydrophobic groups attached to an uncharged gel matrix. This technique is usually performed in the presence of moderately high concentrations of anti-chaotropic salts (salt promoted adsorption chromatography). Several factors influence the chromatographic behavior of proteins and peptides on hydrophobic adsorbents. These factors include ligand structure, ligand density, sample characteristics, flow rate, salting-out effect, ionic strength, temperature and pH. An example of a hydrophobic column resin is Phenyl Sepharose® 6 Fast Flow. Material bound by a hydrophobic adsorbent is removed from the column by passing, for example, water over the column.
Following hydrophobic interaction chromatography, the solution containing the chitin deacetylase is further purified by ion-exchange chromatography. An ion exchanger is a solid support that has chemically bound charged groups to which ions are electrostatically bound. A negatively charged group will exchange positive ions and is a cation exchanger. A positively charged group will exchange negative ions and is an anion exchanger. Ion exchangers can be characterized as strong or weak ion exchangers. Strong ion exchangers function over a wide pH range and thus are useful for isolating a weakly ionized substance that requires very low or high pH for ionization.
The pH of the material which is recovered from the hydrophobic column is adjusted to about 8 and passed over a strong anion exchange column (e.g., Q Sepharose® Fast Flow). Fractions are collected and assayed for chitin deacetylase activity as described in the Exemplification section below. Fractions possessing chitin deacetylase activity are pooled and the pH of the pooled fractions is adjusted to about 3.5. The solution is then passed over a column which contains a strong cation exchange resin (e.g., S Sepharose®Fast Flow) and the flow through is collected. When analyzed by polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis, the flow through fraction contains an electrophoretically homogeneous protein species. The term essentially pure, as used herein, refers to a chitin deacetylase preparation which resolves substantially as a single band when analyzed by gel electrophoresis.
In a second method of purification, Applicants have employed purified immunoglobulin specifically reactive with chitin deacetylase. Immunoglobulin having the desired properties can be produced by immunizing an animal with essentially pure chitin deacetylase. Immunoglobulin having the desired properties can be attached to a solid support to form an immunoadsorbent. The immunoadsorbent can then be used to purify the enzyme from a crude extract by conventional methods.
Chitin deacetylase, prepared as described herein, can be used in a method for converting chitin to chitosan. Reaction parameters affecting enzyme activity are discussed in the Examples. Prior to the discovery which forms the basis of the subject invention, it was known in the art that a variety of organisms produce an enzyme having the ability to deacetylate chitin thereby converting chitin to chitosan. This enzyme, generally referred to as chitin deacetylase, is produced by a variety of genera including, for example, Mucor, Phycomyces, Absidia, and Choanephora. Other potentially useful genera include Zygorhynchus, Actinomucor, circinella, Rhizopus, Colletotrichum and Rhizomucor.
A preferred source for chitin deacetylase is the cell wall of fungal mycelia. Such mycelia are produced in great quantities as a byproduct of the fermentation industry. The growth of Mucor rouxii in standard fermentors has been described in the literature.
ii) Chitin Deacetylase Production by Recombinant DNA Techniques
The production of an enzyme having chitin deacetylase activity by recombinant DNA techniques offers a variety of advantages over the purification of the enzyme from an organism in which it is naturally produced. For example, by using recombinant techniques, it is possible to produce the enzyme in a well characterized system such as E. coli. The use of this bacterial cell offers production advantages as compared with known chitin deacetylase producers such as Mucor rouxii.
In order to produce chitin deacetylase by recombinant DNA techniques, it is first necessary to isolate the gene which encodes the deacetylase. Example 4, presented below, describes experiments which were carried out in order to accomplish the isolation of this gene. The amino-terminal amino acid sequence was determined using conventional biochemical techniques to analyze an essentially pure preparation of the enzyme prepared as described above. The DNA sequence was determined and is presented in SEQ ID NO: 1. The DNA sequence disclosed in SEQ ID NO: 1 can be isolated by the methods described below, or by using the polymerase chain reaction amplification method. Primer sequences to be used in such an amplification reaction can be determined by reference to the DNA Sequences Listing below.
The scope of the invention encompasses an isolated DNA sequence encoding an enzyme having a chitin deacetylase activity, or a biologically active portion thereof, which is characterized by the ability to hybridize to the DNA sequence represented in SEQ ID NO: 1 under stringent hybridization conditions. DNA sequences which hybridize to the listed sequences under stringent hybridization conditions are either perfectly complementary, or highly homologous to the listed sequence. Homologous, as used herein, refers to DNA sequences which differ from the listed sequence, but the difference has no substantial effect on the biological activity (i.e., deacetylase activity) of the encoded protein. One possible set of stringent hybridization conditions is 50% formamide, 5 X SSPE (1 X SSPE is 0.15M NaCl, mM Na-EDTA, 10 mM Na-phosphate, pH 7.0), 5 X Denhardt's solution (0.1% polyvinylpyrrolidone, 0.1% Ficoll) at 45°.
The identification of biologically active fragments of the enzyme can be determined by conventional techniques. For example, deletions can be generated in the portion of the expression construct which encodes the enzyme. The deletion construct is then expressed and assayed for chitin deacetylase activity.
The isolated DNA sequences which fall within the scope of this invention can be used to express the encoded deacetylase in large quantities in either prokaryotic or eukaryotic host cells. For this purpose, the DNA is inserted into a prokaryotic or eukaryotic expression vector, with the appropriate regulatory signals, and used to transform cells. A variety of appropriate vectors and regulatory signals have been previously developed for this purpose and are well known to those skilled in the art.
Through the use of conventional techniques, the deacetylase of this invention can be overexpressed, for example, in E. coli to the extent that they represent a substantial proportion of the total cellular protein. The purification of a protein which is expressed at such substantial levels, and for which a simple assay system is established, is a straightforward matter to one skilled in the art.
In another aspect, the invention relates to methods for converting chitin to chitosan. In the claimed methods, chitosan is contacted with an enzyme having chitin deacetylase activity, the enzyme being produced by recombinant DNA techniques in which an isolated DNA sequence encoding the enzyme, or a biologically active portion thereof, is expressed from a DNA expression construct. The scope of this aspect of the invention includes not only the use of DNA characterized by the ability to hybridize to the DNA sequence represented in SEQ ID NO: 1 under stringent hybridization conditions, but also isolated DNA sequences which are characterized by the ability to hybridize to a DNA sequence encoding a rhizobial nodB protein. DNA sequence information relating to the NodABC locus has been published and submitted to database services. Examples of such publications include: Goethals et al., Mol. Gen. Genet. 219:289-298 (1989); Krishnan et al. Plant Microb. Interact.; Surin et al., Mol. Microbiol. 2: 173-283 (1988); Rossen et al., Nucl. Acids Res. 12: 9497 (1984); Evans et al., Gene 43: 95-101 (1986); Shearman et al., EMBO J. 5: 647 (1986); Toeroek et al., Nucl. Acids. Res. 12: 9509 (1984); Egelhoff et al., DNA 4: 241 (1985); Schofield et al., Nucl. Acids Res. 14: 2891 (1986); Scott, Nucl. Acids Res. 14: 2905 (1986); and Vasquez et al., J. Bacteriol. 173: 1250 (1991).
The invention is further illustrated by the following Examples.
EXAMPLES
Example 1
First Method for Purifying Chitin Deacetylase
Fermentation of Mucor rouxii
Mucor rouxii was obtained from the American Type Culture Collection (ATCC 24905). The fungus was grown in minimal medium as described by Bartnicki-Garcia and Nickerson (Bacteriol. 84: 841-858 (1962)) in 16 liters batches. Media was inoculated with 2×10 8 spores per liter and was stirred and aerated with sterile air for 24 hours at 28° C. Mycelia were harvested at mid-log phase by filtration. Cultures yielded approximately 20 grams of mycelia (wet weight) per liter.
Extraction and Purification of Chitin Deacetylase
400 grams of mycelia were extracted by blending with 600 grams of glass beads and 700ml of extraction buffer containing 50mM Tris HCl (pH 7.8), 100mM NaCl and 0.2 mM PMSF for one hour over ice. After the extraction was completed the glass beads were settled and removed and the extract was centrifuged for 30 minutes at 8000 g at 4° C. The supernatant (750 ml) is referred to as the crude extract.
The crude extract was then incubated in a waterbath set at 50° C. for 30 minutes and the precipitated material was removed by centrifugation at 8000 g for 30 minutes at 4° C. The supernatant from the 50° incubation was made 2.1M in ammonium sulfate and the precipitated proteins were removed by centrifugation at 10,000 g for 45 minutes. The supernatant (850 ml) was then passed over a column (44×230 mm) of Phenyl Sepharose® CL-4B equilibrated with 20mM Tris HCl (pH 7.5) containing 2.1M ammonium sulfate. After the column was washed with the buffer mentioned above, the retained proteins were eluted with a 2100 ml linear gradient of decreasing ammonium sulfate concentration. Flow rate was 250 ml/h and fractions of 14 ml were collected. The elution profile is shown in FIG. 1. Chitin deacetylase activity was detected in fractions 195-295 which were pooled for further purification. The protein content was followed by a UV monitor at 280 nm.
Chitin deacetylase activity was estimated using as substrate partially O-hydroxyethylated chitin (glycol chitin) radiolabeled in N-acetyl groups. The substrate preparation as well as the assay conditions were as described by Araki and Ito (Eur. J. Biochem. 55:71-78 (1975)) with the following modifications. The assay mixture contained 0.1 mg/ml BSA buffered by 25 mM sodium glutamate at pH 4.5 (50° C.). Incubation time was 30 minutes at 50° C.
The sample of partially purified chitin deacetylase from the previous step was dialyzed against 20 mM Tris HCl (pH 8), and then passed over a column of Q Sepharose® Fast Flow (26×340 mm) equilibrated with the same buffer. After the column was washed, a linear gradient of NaCl (2000 ml, 0-0.75M) buffered with 20 mM Tris HCl (pH 8), was established. Flow rate was 300 ml/h and fractions of 11.5 ml were collected. The elution profile is shown in FIG. 2. Chitin deacetylase activity was detected in fractions 105-150 corresponding to ˜0.13M NaCl. These fractions were pooled for further processing.
The pooled fractions were dialyzed against 25 mM sodium formate buffer, (pH 3.5), and the sample was loaded on an S Sepharose® Fast Flow column (26×280 mm) equilibrated with the same buffer. The column was eluted at a flow rate of 250 ml/h with a linear gradient of NaCl (2000 ml, 0-1.2M) in the buffer mentioned above. Fractions of 12 ml were collected. The elution profile is shown in FIG. 3. The majority of chitin deacetylase activity was not retained by the column and was detected in the flow through fractions in an electrophoretically homogenous form.
Characterization of Purified Enzyme
a) molecular weight
The results of the purification scheme are summarized in Table 1. The enzyme purified by this procedure was judged to be electrophoretically homogeneous, as tested by both native and SDS-PAGE. On a gradient (5-20%) SDS polyacrylamide gel the enzyme band migrated at a distance corresponding to molecular weight of ˜75 kDa. When purified chitin deacetylase was subjected to gel filtration on Sephacryl® S-200 HR it was eluted as a single peak with an apparent size of ˜80 kDa indicating that the native enzyme exists as a monomer.
TABLE 1______________________________________Purification of chitin deacetylase Total Total enzyme Specific Purifi- protein activity activity Yield cationStep (mg) (units.sup.a) units/mg (%) (-fold)______________________________________Crude 10380 345 0.033 100 1extract50° C. 4719 240 0.051 69.6 1.54treatmentPhenyl 1374 150 0.11 43.5 3.3Sepha-rose ®Q 279 80 0.29 23.2 8.8Sepha-rose ®S 12.6 40.7 3.23 11.8 97.9Sepha-rose ®______________________________________ .sup.a One unit of the enzyme activity was defined as the amount of the enzyme required to produce 1 μmole of acetic acid per minute when incubated with 48 μg of glycol chitin under optimum pH (4.5) and temperature (50° C.) conditions.
b) carbohydrate content
Several pieces of evidence suggest that chitin deacetylase is a glycoprotein. After electrophoresis, the enzyme band gave a positive stain with periodate-Schiff's reagent on polyacrylamide gels. The enzyme was retained by a column of concanavalin A-Sepharose® 4B and recovered as a single peak by elution with a gradient of α-methyl mannoside at a position corresponding to approximately 25 mM. As shown in Table 2, direct carbohydrate analysis of the enzyme revealed that the protein contains 6 residues of fucose, 85 residues of mannose and 22 residues of N-acetylglucosamine per molecule contributing approximately 30% to its molecular weight. Sialic acid and other sugars were not found in significant amounts.
Monosaccharide analysis was carried out by gas-liquid chromatography and gas-liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry. The sample was hydrolyzed in 4M trifluoroacetic acid at 100° C. for 4 hours. The molar ratio of carbohydrates per molecule was estimated by direct carbo-hydrate and amino acid composition analysis.
TABLE 2______________________________________Carbohydrate mol/mol of protein Nearest integer______________________________________Fucose 5.81 6Mannose 81.92 82N- 20.73 21AcetylglucosamineSialic acid 0______________________________________
c) immunoprecipitation of in vitro translation product
In order to determine the size of the chitin deacetylase polypeptide chain in an alternative manner, mRNA encoding the enzyme was translated in vitro followed by immunoprecipitation. mRNA was extracted from mycelia (15 g wet weight) harvested at the early log phase by grinding in liquid nitrogen. mRNA was purified by the guanidinium thiocyanate method of Chirwin et al. (Biochem. 18:5294-5299 (1979)) followed by pelleting in cesium chloride by ultracentrifugation. Poly (A) + RNA (˜120 μg) was isolated by 3 passes through an oligo(dT)-cellulose column as described by Aviv and Leder (Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci., USA 69:1408-1412 (1972)). In vitro translation of total mRNA was performed using nuclease treated rabbit reticulocyte lysate according to the manufacturer's instructions. In vitro translation products were labeled with 35 S-methionine.
Polyclonal antisera was prepared by emulsifying pure chitin deacetylase (500 μg, 1 mg/ml in PBS) with an equal volume of Freund's complete adjuvant. The mixture was injected intradermally into a rabbit after preimmune serum was obtained. The animal was reimmunized and bled after four and six weeks with 200 μg of enzyme in Freund's incomplete adjuvant, also injected intradermally. Antisera obtained were monitored for the presence of antichitin deacetylase antibodies by ELISA and by enzyme activity inhibition assays.
After the in vitro translation reaction was completed, 10 μl of preimmune serum were added and the reaction was incubated for 30 minutes at room temperature. Antigen-antibody complexes were removed by centrifugation after adsorption to 10μl of Protein A-Sepharose® added to the reaction. Specific polyclonal antiserum (10μl) was then added to the supernatant which was subsequently incubated as described above. The new antigen-antibody complexes were collected using protein A-Sepharose®by centrifugation and then washed three times with 20 volumes of 25 mM Tris HCl (pH 7.5), 150 mM NaCl by resuspension and pelleting. Immunoprecipitates were boiled for 5 min in SDS-PAGE loading buffer and analyzed by gel electrophoresis. The gel was fixed for 30 min in 10% acetic acid, 30% methanol, incubated for 30 min in EN 3 HANCE® (New England Nuclear) and then dried and exposed.
In vitro translation products were analyzed on a 12% SDS polyacrylamide gel followed by autoradiography. The material immunoprecipitated by the specific antiserum showed one band corresponding to molecular weight of ˜49000 kDa that represents the size of the polypeptide chain prior to any post-translational modification.
d) enzyme activity characterization
The temperature optimum of the enzyme activity was estimated to be ˜50° C. using labeled glycol chitin, as substrate as described above. The temperature dependence of the chitin deacetylase activity is shown graphically in FIG. 4. The pH optimum was estimated to be ˜4.5, tested with a combination of overlapping buffers, as shown graphically in FIG. 5. Chitin deacetylase (5 mU) when incubated with 1 mg of partially chemically deacetylated chitosan (81%) for one hour, released 0.22 μmoles of acetic acid corresponding to an increment of ˜5.3% in deacetylation degree. The enzyme was also active on microcrystalline chitin (colloidal chitin) and carboxymethyl chitin (soluble derivative).
e) amino acid composition
The amino acid composition of chitin deacetylase is shown in Table 3. Basic amino acids accounted only for ˜8% of the total amino acids, a value ˜40% lower than the average.
Amino acid composition of purified chitin deacetylase was determined after 24 hour hydrolysis with 6M HCl at 100° C. The values are means of two different sample determinations. The number of residues per molecule of protein is based on the estimated molecular weight of 49000 Da from SDS-PAGE of the immunoprecipitated product from in vitro translation of mRNA.
TABLE 3______________________________________Amino acid Residues/molecule Nearest integer______________________________________Aspartic acid 56.01 56Threonine 55.65 56Serine 59.23 59Glutamic acid 37.33 37Proline 29.08 29Glycine 31.62 32Alanine 56.73 57Valine 27.58 28Methionine 5.09 5Isoleucine 20.40 20Leucine 20.89 21Tyrosine 16.24 16Phenylalanine 8.78 9Histidine 7.31 7Lysine 15.85 16Arginine 5.87 6Half-Cysteine 9.62 10Tryptophan 7.77 8Total 472______________________________________
Example 2
Production and Purification of Antibodies Reactive with Chitin Deacetylase
An adult male white New Zealand rabbit was immunized with 500 μg (1 mg/ml in PBS) of purified chitin deacetylase, prepared as described in Example 1, from the fungus Mucor rouxii. The enzyme was emulsified with an equal volume of Freund's complete adjuvant in a total volume of 1 ml, and was administered to the animal intradermally. A further three booster doses of 150 μg of chitin deacetylase emulsified in Freund's incomplete adjuvant were administered at 4-week intervals. Test bleeds from the marginal ear vein were used to monitor serum antibody titer by ELISA. Control serum was taken prior to immunization.
The specificity of the antiserum produced was analyzed in a chitin deacetylase inhibition assay. Chitin deacetylase activity was assayed by measuring the radioactivity of [ 3 H]-acetic acid liberated from a water-soluble chitin derivative, glycol [acetyl- 3 H] chitin. The reaction mixture contained 48 μg of glycol [acetyl- 3 H] chitin, 1 mM magnesium chloride, 0.1 mg/ml BSA and was buffered by 25 mM sodium glutamate (pH 4.5) in a total volume of 50 μl. After incubation at 50° C. for 15 min, the reaction was terminated by the addition of 16 μl of HCl, 4 μl of acetic acid and 80 μl of water. Ethyl acetate (0.5 ml) was added to the mixture, and the solution was vigorously mixed with a vortex mixer for 5 minutes and centrifuged at 14,000 rpm. 4.5 ml of toluene-based liquid scintillation cocktail was added to 200 μl of the organic phase solution and swirled. The solution was transferred to a vial and measured for radioactivity in a liquid scintillation counter. One unit of enzyme releases 1.0 μmol of the acetic acid from glycol chitin per minute under the conditions described above. Specific activity was defined as the units of enzyme per milligram of protein. Protein was assayed by the so-called Lowry method using bovine serum albumin as a standard.
Antibody titer was monitored using a non-competitive ELISA. Chitin deacetylase was immobilized onto microtiter plates (Maxi Sorp, Nunc, Denmark) at 2 μg/ml of "coating" buffer (pH 9.6), containing 0.05M sodium carbonate and sodium bicarbonate by incubation overnight at 4° C. Wells were washed out with 0.05% aqueous solution of Tween 80 followed by two washes with distilled water. After that 200 μl of blocking agent per well was incubated for 1 hour at room temperature. The blocking agent was 1 g of bovine serum albumin dissolved in 100 ml of 0.010M PBS (pH 7.4). Wells were washed out as before. An anti-rabbit IgG conjugated to horseradish peroxidase was used to indirectly detect specific IgG bound to immobilized chitin deacetylase. The conjugate was diluted 10,000-fold in 0.010M PBS (pH 7.4) and incubated at 100 μl per well for one hour at room temperature. Wells were washed out with H 2 O/Tween 80 solution as before, followed by two washes with distilled water. Wells were aspirated and incubated with 100 μl of substrate/chromogen solution made up just prior to use as follows: The reaction was stopped after 15 minutes by addition of 50 μl of 4M sulfuric acid per well. Absorbance was read at 450 nm using an ELISA reader. The enzyme activity of a defined amount of purified chitin deacetylase was measured after incubation with various amounts of antiserum. These experiments confirmed that a component of the antiserum was specifically reactive with chitin deacetylase.
IgG was affinity-purified from rabbit serum using chitin deacetylase immobilized to cyanogen bromide-activated Sepharose 4B (Pharmacia Ltd.) according to manufacturer's instructions. A solution containing ten milligrams of purified chitin deacetylase was dialyzed against 2 it of "coupling buffer" (pH 8.3), containing 0.1M sodium bicarbonate and 0.5M sodium chloride. Preswollen cyanogen bromide-activated Sepharose 4B equilibrated with coupling buffer was mixed with chitin deacetylase (1.4 mg protein/ml of gel) overnight at 4° C. by end over end rotation. This mixture was transferred to a scintered glass funnel and sucked dry under vacuum. The fluid was recovered and assayed for protein to assess coupling efficiency. The gel was washed thoroughly with coupling buffer and mixed as before for 2 hours with Tris-HCl buffer (0.1M, pH 8.0) at room temperature. The gel was sucked dry and washed with coupling buffer. Protein noncovalently adsorbed to the gel was removed by washing the gel with alternating buffers of low (0.1M sodium acetate, 0.5M sodium chloride, pH 4.0) and high pH (0.1M Tris, 0.5M sodium chloride, pH 8.3). The chitin deacetylase-linked Sepharose 4B was transferred to a minicolumn and washed with 0.025M Tris-HCl (pH 7.4) which contained 0.02% sodium azide during storage at 4° C. The concentration of antibody in solution can be estimated by measuring A 280 using an average extinction coefficient for antibodies of 1.4 for 1 mg ml -1 protein using a 1 cm path length cell.
Rabbit antiserum against chitin deacetylase obtained from various bleedings was separately precipitated by 40% saturation of ammonium sulfate. The immunoglobulin containing precipitate was dissolved and dialyzed extensively against 0.025M Tris (pH 7.4), 0.2M sodium chloride and subsequently passed through the chitin deacetylase-linked Sepharose 4B column (including protease inhibitors). The gel was washed with ten column volumes of 0.025M Tris, 0.1M sodium chloride (pH 7.4), until collected fractions gave negligible readings at 280 nm. Non-specifically bound proteins were eluted with 0.025M Tris, 1M sodium chloride, pH 7.4. A batch of IgG was eluted with two column volumes of 0.1M glycine-hydrochloric acid buffer (pH 2.8). A further batch of higher affinity IgG was eluted with two column volumes of 0.2M glycine-hydrochloric acid, pH 2.2. The term affinity, as used herein, refers to the functional affinity (avidity) as polyclonal antibodies were used. All fractions were immediately adjusted to pH 7.0 with 1M Tris-HCl (pH 9.0). The two populations of IgG fractions were pooled separately and concentrated by ultrafiltration prior to dialysis against 0.025M Tris (pH 7.4). The purified specific IgG shows the characteristic rabbit IgG pattern in SDS-PAGE. Pure specific IgG is stored at -20° C. at a concentration >1 mg/ml in 0.010M Tris, 0.1M sodium chloride (pH 7.4).
The coupling of chitin deacetylase to cyanogen bromide-activated Sepharose 4B was 90% efficient, producing chitin deacetylase-linked Sepharose 4B at 1.4 mg of chitin deacetylase/ml of gel. By the method presented here, about 2.0-6.5 mg of pure specific IgG were isolated from every 10 ml of antiserum with the elution of pH 2.8 (2.0% to 5.0% of total protein after ammonium sulfate precipitation). Total isolated specific IgG represents 4.5% to 8.0% of total protein after ammonium sulfate precipitation. The binding capacity of the chitin deacetylase-linked Sepharose 4B for anti-chitin deacetylase antibody was determined at 1.4 mg IgG/ml of gel.
Example 3
Second Method for Purifying Chitin Deacetylase
Frozen mycelia (2 gram), prepared as described in Example 1, was thawed, minced and homogenized in 10 ml of 0.05M Tris-HCl buffer (pH 7.4) containing 0.5 mM PMSF, 0.1 mM NEM and 150 mM NaCl, using an improvised glass-bead miller (2 gram glass beads per gram of wet mycelia). All steps were performed at 4° C. This produced a homogenate which was centrifuged at 10,000 rpm for 30 minutes at 4° C. The supernatant (12.2 ml; 4.6 mg/ml; 56.0 mg) is referred to as the crude extract. The extract was then incubated in a waterbath set at 50° C. for 15 minutes and rapidly cooled on ice. Precipitated protein was removed by centrifugation at 35,000 rpm for 45 minutes at 4° C.
Five milligrams of the pure lower affinity rabbit IgG, described in Example 2, was dialyzed against the coupling buffer (pH 8.3) and mixed with 5 ml of swollen CNBr-activated Sepharose 4B to prepare an immunoadsorbent. The IgG was coupled by the method described for chitin deacetylase coupling. The coupling of IgG to activated Sepharose 4B was 85% efficient, producing IgG-linked Sepharose at 1 mg IgG/ml of gel. This immunoadsorbent was used for chitin deacetylase purification.
The supernatant described above (11.5 ml; 0.54 mg/ml; 6.2 mg) was loaded onto the immunoadsorbent (packed in a column of dimensions 2×1.6 cm; 5 ml) previously equilibrated in 25 mM Tris-HCl buffer (pH 7.4) containing 150 mM NaCl (buffer A). The column was washed with buffer A until no absorption of 280 nm was evident in the effluents (non-specifically bound proteins were eluted with 25 mM Tris-HCl pH 7.4, 1M NaCl). Specifically bound chitin deacetylase was eluted using 0.2M glycine-HCl buffer (pH 2.8) at a flow rate of 35 ml/h. Eluate was immediately adjusted to pH 7.0 with 1M Tris-HCl pH 9.0, dialyzed against buffer A and concentrated by ultrafiltration (300 μl; 40 μg/ml; 12 μg; 180 mU).
Purification of chitin deacetylase by immunoadsorption (table 4) produced a specific activity of 1500 m units/mg for the desorbed enzyme and a yield of about 30%. Assessment of chitin deacetylase purity by SDS-PAGE shows a single band. Purification of chitin deacetylase by conventional methods (table 1) produced a pure enzyme with a specific activity of 3.23 units/mg and a yield of 11.8%. The maximum binding capacity of the immunoadsorbent was determined at 42 μg of chitin deacetylase/ml of gel (4% of the antigen binding sites remain available for binding antigen after covalent immobilization to the matrix).
TABLE 4______________________________________Purification of Chitin DeacetylaseBy Immunoadsorption Total Enzyme Specific Purif- Protein activity activity Yield icationStep (mg) (munits) (munits/mg) (%) (fold)______________________________________Crude 56.0 608 10.86 100.0 1.0extract50° C. 6.2 540 87.10 88.8 8.1treatmentImmuno- 0.012 180 1500.00 29.6 1400.0adsorbent______________________________________
Example 4
A purified preparation of chitin deacetylase was subjected to amino-terminal amino acid sequence analysis by conventional techniques. Based on the amino acid sequence information, degenerate oligonucleotides were synthesized and a cDNA clone corresponding to the chitin deacetylase mRNA was isolated from a Mucor rouxi cDNA library. The cDNA sequence was determined and this sequence is shown in SEQ ID NO: 1.
A search of the EMBL databank using the deduced amino acid sequence of chitin deacetylase revealed significant sequence similarities with nodB proteins of various rhizobial species. Multiple sequence alignments using all known nodB protein sequences and the chitin deacetlyase sequence highlighted the most significant similarities.
The nodB protein sequence (≈215 amino acids long) are well conserved between all rhizobial species examined, with identities ranging from 37-67% and overall similarities from 55-78%. Chitin deacetylase is a much longer polypeptide (400 amino acids) and the region which displays homology to the nodB gene products (up to 31% identity, 50% similarity) is located in the central part of the molecule. The amino-terminal (1-121 amino acid) and the carboxterminal (≈50%) conserved in chitin deacetylase. In contrast, six of nine predicted N-glycosylation sites are found in the non-conserved domains of chitin deacetylase suggesting that these glycosylated domains may be important for the specialized function of the enzyme in cell wall biosynthesis.
Equivalents
Those skilled in the art will know, or be able to ascertain, using no more than routine experimentation, many equivalents to the specific embodiments of the invention described herein. These and all other equivalents are intended to be encompassed by the following claims.
__________________________________________________________________________SEQUENCE LISTING(1) GENERAL INFORMATION:(iii) NUMBER OF SEQUENCES: 2(2) INFORMATION FOR SEQ ID NO:1:(i) SEQUENCE CHARACTERISTICS:(A) LENGTH: 1203 base pairs(B) TYPE: nucleic acid(C) STRANDEDNESS: double(D) TOPOLOGY: linear(ii) MOLECULE TYPE: cDNA(ix) FEATURE: (A) NAME/KEY: CDS(B) LOCATION: 1..1200(xi) SEQUENCE DESCRIPTION: SEQ ID NO:1:GACACCTCCGCAAATTACTGGCAATCATTTACTTCTCAAATTAATCCC48AspThrSerAlaAsnTyrTrpGlnSerPheThrSerGlnIleAsnPro1 51015AAGAACATCTCCATTCCCTCTATTGAGCAAACTTCATCCATTGACCCC96LysAsnIleSerIleProSerIleGluGlnThrSerSerIleAspPro 202530ACTCAAGAATGTGCTTACTACACTCCTGATGCTTCATTGTTCACATTC144ThrGlnGluCysAlaTyrTyrThrProAspAlaSerLeuPheThrPhe 354045AACGCTTCCGAATGGCCCTCTATCTGGGAAGTCGCTACTACCAATGGT192AsnAlaSerGluTrpProSerIleTrpGluValAlaThrThrAsnGly50 5560ATGAATGAGTCTGCCGAGTTCCTCAGTGTCTACAATTCTATTGACTGG240MetAsnGluSerAlaGluPheLeuSerValTyrAsnSerIleAspTrp65 707580ACCAAGGCACCCAATATTTCTGTGCGTACCCTTGACGCTAACGGCAAC288ThrLysAlaProAsnIleSerValArgThrLeuAspAlaAsnGlyAsn 859095TTGGATACCACTGGTTACAATACTGCTACTGACCCTGATTGTTGGTGG336LeuAspThrThrGlyTyrAsnThrAlaThrAspProAspCysTrpTrp 100105110ACAGCTACCACATGTACCTCTCCCAAGATTTCTGATATCAATGACGAT384ThrAlaThrThrCysThrSerProLysIleSerAspIleAsnAspAsp 115120125ATCTCCAAGTGTCCTGAACCCGAGACTTGGGGTTTGACTTACGATGAT432IleSerLysCysProGluProGluThrTrpGlyLeuThrTyrAspAsp130 135140GGACCTAACTGCTCTCACAACGCTTTCTATGACTACCTTCAAGAGCAA480GlyProAsnCysSerHisAsnAlaPheTyrAspTyrLeuGlnGluGln145 150155160AAGTTGAAGGCCTCCATGTTTTATATTGGTTCCAATGTTGTTGACTGG528LysLeuLysAlaSerMetPheTyrIleGlySerAsnValValAspTrp 165170175CCATACGGTGCTATGCGTGGTGTTGTTGATGGCCATCACATTGCATCC576ProTyrGlyAlaMetArgGlyValValAspGlyHisHisIleAlaSer 180185190CACACATGGTCTCACCCTCAAATGACAACCAAGACCAATCAAGAGGTC624HisThrTrpSerHisProGlnMetThrThrLysThrAsnGlnGluVal 195200205CTTGCTGAATTCTATTATACTCAAAAGGCCATCAAGCTCGCTACTGGT672LeuAlaGluPheTyrTyrThrGlnLysAlaIleLysLeuAlaThrGly210 215220TTGACCCCTCGTTACTGGCGTCCTCCTTATGGTGATATCGATGATCGT720LeuThrProArgTyrTrpArgProProTyrGlyAspIleAspAspArg225 230235240GTTCGTTGGATTGCCTCTCAATTAGGTTTAACTGCTGTTATTTGGAAC768ValArgTrpIleAlaSerGlnLeuGlyLeuThrAlaValIleTrpAsn 245250255CTCGATACTGATGATTGGTCTGCTGGTGTCACTACTACTGTCGAAGCT816LeuAspThrAspAspTrpSerAlaGlyValThrThrThrValGluAla 260265270GTTGAGCAAAGTTATTCCGATTATATTGCTATGGGTACCAATGGTACT864ValGluGlnSerTyrSerAspTyrIleAlaMetGlyThrAsnGlyThr 275280285TTTGCCAACAGTGGTAACATTGTATTGACCCATGAAATCAACACAACT912PheAlaAsnSerGlyAsnIleValLeuThrHisGluIleAsnThrThr290 295300ATGAGTCTCGCTGTCGAGAACTTGCCCAAGATCATTTCTGCCTATAAA960MetSerLeuAlaValGluAsnLeuProLysIleIleSerAlaTyrLys305 310315320CAAGTCATCGATGTCGCTACCTGTTACAACATTTCTCACCCTTACTTT1008GlnValIleAspValAlaThrCysTyrAsnIleSerHisProTyrPhe 325330335GAAGACTACGAATGGACCAATGTCTTGAACGGCACAAAATCTTCTGCT1056GluAspTyrGluTrpThrAsnValLeuAsnGlyThrLysSerSerAla 340345350ACCGCCAGTGGATCTGCTACTTCTGCTAGTGCTTCTGGAGGCGCTACT1104ThrAlaSerGlySerAlaThrSerAlaSerAlaSerGlyGlyAlaThr 355360365ACCGCTGCCGCTCATATCCAAGCTTCTACTAGCGGCGCCATGTCTGTC1152ThrAlaAlaAlaHisIleGlnAlaSerThrSerGlyAlaMetSerVal370 375380CTTCCCAACCTCGCCTTGATCTCTGCCTTCATTGCTACCCTGTTGTTT1200LeuProAsnLeuAlaLeuIleSerAlaPheIleAlaThrLeuLeuPhe385 390395400TAG1203(2) INFORMATION FOR SEQ ID NO:2:(i) SEQUENCE CHARACTERISTICS:(A) LENGTH: 400 amino acids(B) TYPE: amino acid (D) TOPOLOGY: linear(ii) MOLECULE TYPE: protein(xi) SEQUENCE DESCRIPTION: SEQ ID NO:2:AspThrSerAlaAsnTyrTrpGlnSerPheThrSerGlnIleAsnPro151015LysAsnIleSerIleProSer IleGluGlnThrSerSerIleAspPro202530ThrGlnGluCysAlaTyrTyrThrProAspAlaSerLeuPheThrPhe3540 45AsnAlaSerGluTrpProSerIleTrpGluValAlaThrThrAsnGly505560MetAsnGluSerAlaGluPheLeuSerValTyrAsnSerIleAspTrp65707580ThrLysAlaProAsnIleSerValArgThrLeuAspAlaAsnGlyAsn859095Le uAspThrThrGlyTyrAsnThrAlaThrAspProAspCysTrpTrp100105110ThrAlaThrThrCysThrSerProLysIleSerAspIleAsnAspAsp115 120125IleSerLysCysProGluProGluThrTrpGlyLeuThrTyrAspAsp130135140GlyProAsnCysSerHisAsnAlaPheTyr AspTyrLeuGlnGluGln145150155160LysLeuLysAlaSerMetPheTyrIleGlySerAsnValValAspTrp165170 175ProTyrGlyAlaMetArgGlyValValAspGlyHisHisIleAlaSer180185190HisThrTrpSerHisProGlnMetThrThrLysThrAsn GlnGluVal195200205LeuAlaGluPheTyrTyrThrGlnLysAlaIleLysLeuAlaThrGly210215220LeuThrProAr gTyrTrpArgProProTyrGlyAspIleAspAspArg225230235240ValArgTrpIleAlaSerGlnLeuGlyLeuThrAlaValIleTrpAsn 245250255LeuAspThrAspAspTrpSerAlaGlyValThrThrThrValGluAla260265270ValGluGlnSerTyrSerAsp TyrIleAlaMetGlyThrAsnGlyThr275280285PheAlaAsnSerGlyAsnIleValLeuThrHisGluIleAsnThrThr290295 300MetSerLeuAlaValGluAsnLeuProLysIleIleSerAlaTyrLys305310315320GlnValIleAspValAlaThrCysTyrAsnIleSerHisPro TyrPhe325330335GluAspTyrGluTrpThrAsnValLeuAsnGlyThrLysSerSerAla340345350Th rAlaSerGlySerAlaThrSerAlaSerAlaSerGlyGlyAlaThr355360365ThrAlaAlaAlaHisIleGlnAlaSerThrSerGlyAlaMetSerVal370 375380LeuProAsnLeuAlaLeuIleSerAlaPheIleAlaThrLeuLeuPhe385390395400__________________________________________________________________________ | Disclosed is the DNA sequence of an enzyme which catalyzes the conversion of chitin to chitosan. The enxyme exhibits substantial homology to the rhizobial nodB protein. | Identify the most important claim in the given context and summarize it | [
"RELATED APPLICATIONS The subject application is a continuation-in-part of Ser.",
"No. 07/773,724, filed on Oct. 9, 1991, now U.S. Pat. No. 5,219,749 the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.",
"BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Next to cellulose, chitin is the world's most abundant, easily obtained, and renewable biological material.",
"It is a natural product synthesized by a wide variety of organisms.",
"Several billion tons of the material are produced annually.",
"Chitin is a carbohydrate polymer, the N-acetylated polymer of β(1→4) linked N-acetylglucosamine, or poly-N-acetyl glucosamine.",
"In plants, chitin is a cell wall constituent replacing cellulose or sometimes occurring together with cellulose.",
"In animals, chitin is usually organized as a cuticle at one surface of the epithelial tissue.",
"Although structurally similar to cellulose, chitin has distinctly different chemical properties.",
"It is an extremely insoluble material, with limited industrial applicability.",
"The deacetylated derivative of chitin, chitosan, is a much more tractable material with a broad and impressive array of practical applications.",
"Chitosan is positively charged, thus, it can be used as a protein precipitant and a metal chelating agent.",
"It can be formulated as a solution, gel, membrane, film or fiber.",
"Such formulations are useful, for example, in the areas of precious metal recovery, crop protection, chromatography and enzyme immobilization.",
"Chitosan is a biologically benign, non-immunogenic, material making it ideal for use in the agricultural, food, drug and cosmetic industries.",
"It can form complexes with other natural polymers, such as collagen and keratin, to form materials with unique biomedical properties.",
"For example, such materials can be used as wound healing accelerants, components of artificial skin and blood vessels, anticoagulants, and controlled drug release vehicles.",
"At present the bulk of the chitosan produced worldwide is prepared from crustacean shell material.",
"Chitin comprises about 20-50% of the dry weight of crustacean cuticles, the balance being primarily calcium carbonate, calcium phosphate and other proteins.",
"Chitin is first isolated by treating ground crustacean shells with dilute acid and alkali to remove proteins and minerals.",
"The raw chitin is then deacetylated by exposure to concentrated alkali at high temperature to generate chitosan.",
"Although the chitosan produced in this manner has many useful features, it is impossible to effectively control the production process, which leads to the production of a material having a broad range of molecular weight and a heterogenous extent of deacetylation.",
"Such a product is not of great value, since many of the potentially important applications, particularly in the biomedical area, require uniform material with very specific physical and chemical properties.",
"SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The subject invention relates to an isolated DNA sequence encoding an enzyme which catalyzes the conversion of chitin to chitosan.",
"Specific embodiments include DNA sequences which are characterized by the ability to hybridize to the DNA sequence represented in SEQ ID NO: 1 under stringent hybridization conditions.",
"The invention also relates to a DNA expression construct encoding an enzyme having the specificity described above, or biologically active portions thereof.",
"The invention also relates to a method for converting chitin to chitosan by contacting chitin with an enzyme having a chitin deacetylase activity.",
"In this method, the enzyme is produced by recombinant DNA techniques in which an isolated DNA sequence encoding the enzyme, or a biologically active portion thereof, is expressed from a DNA expression construct.",
"BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a diagram representing the elution profile from a Phenyl Sepharose® CL-4B column.",
"FIG. 2 is a diagram representing the elution profile from a Q Sepharose® Fast Flow column.",
"FIG. 3 is a diagram representing the elution profile from an S Sepharose® Fast Flow column.",
"FIG. 4 is a diagram which represents the temperature dependence of chitin deacetylase activity.",
"FIG. 5 is a diagram which represents the pH dependence of chitin deacetylase activity.",
"DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION i) Purification of chitin Deacetylase The present invention was made possible by the discovery of a method for purifying chitin deacetylase from a cellular extract of an organism which produces chitin deacetylase.",
"The enzyme chitin deacetylase is produced by a variety of genera including, for example, Mucor, Phycomyces, Absidia, and Choanephora.",
"Other potentially useful genera include Zygorhynchus, Actinomucor, Circinella, Rhizopus, Colletotrichum and Rhizomucor.",
"A preferred source for chitin deacetylase is the cell wall of fungal mycelia.",
"Such mycelia are produced in great quantities as a byproduct of the fermentation industry.",
"The growth of Mucor rouxii in standard fermentors has been described in the literature.",
"The use of a fungus such as Mucor rouxii offers a number of advantages.",
"The organism can be grown using inexpensive nutrients.",
"It can be grown to a high cell density (grams of cell dry weight per liter of culture medium) in a large scale fermentation system.",
"The culture time required to achieve high cell density is as low as 12 hours/batch.",
"Initially, cellular extract is prepared from an organism which produces chitin deacetylase.",
"For example, if the organism is a fungus (e.g., Mucor rouxii) mycelial cells are disrupted in the presence of an extraction buffer.",
"The extraction buffer may contain protease inhibitors, other degradative enzyme inhibitors and stabilizers to maintain enzyme activity and facilitate its extraction.",
"Non-soluble material is removed from the liquid phase of the extraction mixture, for example, by filtration or centrifugation.",
"The cellular extract is subjected to a thermal cycling step which results in the precipitation of undesirable protein (i.e., protein other than chitin deacetylase).",
"For example, as described in the Examples below, the extract can be incubated at about 50° C. for a period of about 15-30 minutes.",
"The precipitated protein is subsequently removed, for example, by filtration or centrifugation.",
"It is well known that the solubility properties of proteins in solutions having high salt concentrations vary over a wide range.",
"This difference in solubility can be exploited to achieve separation of protein in a solution by precipitation at high ionic strength.",
"Many salts can be used for this purpose, but ammonium sulfate is preferred by virtue of the fact that it does not appreciably alter pH, it is highly soluble, and it does not destabilize proteins.",
"Applicants'",
"have determined that an ammonium sulfate concentration of about 2.1M effectively precipitates a wide variety of proteins from the liquid phase described above, without precipitating the chitin deacetylase.",
"Proteins which precipitate in an ammonium sulfate concentration of about 2.1M are removed from the solution by standard techniques (e.g., filtration or centrifugation).",
"The liquid phase Which is recovered following the ammonium sulfate precipitation is subjected to hydrophobic interaction chromatography.",
"Hydrophobic interaction chromatography is widely employed for the purification of macromolecules on the basis of their varying strength of hydrophobic interaction with hydrophobic groups attached to an uncharged gel matrix.",
"This technique is usually performed in the presence of moderately high concentrations of anti-chaotropic salts (salt promoted adsorption chromatography).",
"Several factors influence the chromatographic behavior of proteins and peptides on hydrophobic adsorbents.",
"These factors include ligand structure, ligand density, sample characteristics, flow rate, salting-out effect, ionic strength, temperature and pH.",
"An example of a hydrophobic column resin is Phenyl Sepharose® 6 Fast Flow.",
"Material bound by a hydrophobic adsorbent is removed from the column by passing, for example, water over the column.",
"Following hydrophobic interaction chromatography, the solution containing the chitin deacetylase is further purified by ion-exchange chromatography.",
"An ion exchanger is a solid support that has chemically bound charged groups to which ions are electrostatically bound.",
"A negatively charged group will exchange positive ions and is a cation exchanger.",
"A positively charged group will exchange negative ions and is an anion exchanger.",
"Ion exchangers can be characterized as strong or weak ion exchangers.",
"Strong ion exchangers function over a wide pH range and thus are useful for isolating a weakly ionized substance that requires very low or high pH for ionization.",
"The pH of the material which is recovered from the hydrophobic column is adjusted to about 8 and passed over a strong anion exchange column (e.g., Q Sepharose® Fast Flow).",
"Fractions are collected and assayed for chitin deacetylase activity as described in the Exemplification section below.",
"Fractions possessing chitin deacetylase activity are pooled and the pH of the pooled fractions is adjusted to about 3.5.",
"The solution is then passed over a column which contains a strong cation exchange resin (e.g., S Sepharose®Fast Flow) and the flow through is collected.",
"When analyzed by polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis, the flow through fraction contains an electrophoretically homogeneous protein species.",
"The term essentially pure, as used herein, refers to a chitin deacetylase preparation which resolves substantially as a single band when analyzed by gel electrophoresis.",
"In a second method of purification, Applicants have employed purified immunoglobulin specifically reactive with chitin deacetylase.",
"Immunoglobulin having the desired properties can be produced by immunizing an animal with essentially pure chitin deacetylase.",
"Immunoglobulin having the desired properties can be attached to a solid support to form an immunoadsorbent.",
"The immunoadsorbent can then be used to purify the enzyme from a crude extract by conventional methods.",
"Chitin deacetylase, prepared as described herein, can be used in a method for converting chitin to chitosan.",
"Reaction parameters affecting enzyme activity are discussed in the Examples.",
"Prior to the discovery which forms the basis of the subject invention, it was known in the art that a variety of organisms produce an enzyme having the ability to deacetylate chitin thereby converting chitin to chitosan.",
"This enzyme, generally referred to as chitin deacetylase, is produced by a variety of genera including, for example, Mucor, Phycomyces, Absidia, and Choanephora.",
"Other potentially useful genera include Zygorhynchus, Actinomucor, circinella, Rhizopus, Colletotrichum and Rhizomucor.",
"A preferred source for chitin deacetylase is the cell wall of fungal mycelia.",
"Such mycelia are produced in great quantities as a byproduct of the fermentation industry.",
"The growth of Mucor rouxii in standard fermentors has been described in the literature.",
"ii) Chitin Deacetylase Production by Recombinant DNA Techniques The production of an enzyme having chitin deacetylase activity by recombinant DNA techniques offers a variety of advantages over the purification of the enzyme from an organism in which it is naturally produced.",
"For example, by using recombinant techniques, it is possible to produce the enzyme in a well characterized system such as E. coli.",
"The use of this bacterial cell offers production advantages as compared with known chitin deacetylase producers such as Mucor rouxii.",
"In order to produce chitin deacetylase by recombinant DNA techniques, it is first necessary to isolate the gene which encodes the deacetylase.",
"Example 4, presented below, describes experiments which were carried out in order to accomplish the isolation of this gene.",
"The amino-terminal amino acid sequence was determined using conventional biochemical techniques to analyze an essentially pure preparation of the enzyme prepared as described above.",
"The DNA sequence was determined and is presented in SEQ ID NO: 1.",
"The DNA sequence disclosed in SEQ ID NO: 1 can be isolated by the methods described below, or by using the polymerase chain reaction amplification method.",
"Primer sequences to be used in such an amplification reaction can be determined by reference to the DNA Sequences Listing below.",
"The scope of the invention encompasses an isolated DNA sequence encoding an enzyme having a chitin deacetylase activity, or a biologically active portion thereof, which is characterized by the ability to hybridize to the DNA sequence represented in SEQ ID NO: 1 under stringent hybridization conditions.",
"DNA sequences which hybridize to the listed sequences under stringent hybridization conditions are either perfectly complementary, or highly homologous to the listed sequence.",
"Homologous, as used herein, refers to DNA sequences which differ from the listed sequence, but the difference has no substantial effect on the biological activity (i.e., deacetylase activity) of the encoded protein.",
"One possible set of stringent hybridization conditions is 50% formamide, 5 X SSPE (1 X SSPE is 0.15M NaCl, mM Na-EDTA, 10 mM Na-phosphate, pH 7.0), 5 X Denhardt's solution (0.1% polyvinylpyrrolidone, 0.1% Ficoll) at 45°.",
"The identification of biologically active fragments of the enzyme can be determined by conventional techniques.",
"For example, deletions can be generated in the portion of the expression construct which encodes the enzyme.",
"The deletion construct is then expressed and assayed for chitin deacetylase activity.",
"The isolated DNA sequences which fall within the scope of this invention can be used to express the encoded deacetylase in large quantities in either prokaryotic or eukaryotic host cells.",
"For this purpose, the DNA is inserted into a prokaryotic or eukaryotic expression vector, with the appropriate regulatory signals, and used to transform cells.",
"A variety of appropriate vectors and regulatory signals have been previously developed for this purpose and are well known to those skilled in the art.",
"Through the use of conventional techniques, the deacetylase of this invention can be overexpressed, for example, in E. coli to the extent that they represent a substantial proportion of the total cellular protein.",
"The purification of a protein which is expressed at such substantial levels, and for which a simple assay system is established, is a straightforward matter to one skilled in the art.",
"In another aspect, the invention relates to methods for converting chitin to chitosan.",
"In the claimed methods, chitosan is contacted with an enzyme having chitin deacetylase activity, the enzyme being produced by recombinant DNA techniques in which an isolated DNA sequence encoding the enzyme, or a biologically active portion thereof, is expressed from a DNA expression construct.",
"The scope of this aspect of the invention includes not only the use of DNA characterized by the ability to hybridize to the DNA sequence represented in SEQ ID NO: 1 under stringent hybridization conditions, but also isolated DNA sequences which are characterized by the ability to hybridize to a DNA sequence encoding a rhizobial nodB protein.",
"DNA sequence information relating to the NodABC locus has been published and submitted to database services.",
"Examples of such publications include: Goethals et al.",
", Mol.",
"Gen.",
"Genet.",
"219:289-298 (1989);",
"Krishnan et al.",
"Plant Microb.",
"Interact.",
"Surin et al.",
", Mol.",
"Microbiol.",
"2: 173-283 (1988);",
"Rossen et al.",
", Nucl.",
"Acids Res.",
"12: 9497 (1984);",
"Evans et al.",
", Gene 43: 95-101 (1986);",
"Shearman et al.",
", EMBO J. 5: 647 (1986);",
"Toeroek et al.",
", Nucl.",
"Acids.",
"Res.",
"12: 9509 (1984);",
"Egelhoff et al.",
", DNA 4: 241 (1985);",
"Schofield et al.",
", Nucl.",
"Acids Res.",
"14: 2891 (1986);",
"Scott, Nucl.",
"Acids Res.",
"14: 2905 (1986);",
"and Vasquez et al.",
", J. Bacteriol.",
"173: 1250 (1991).",
"The invention is further illustrated by the following Examples.",
"EXAMPLES Example 1 First Method for Purifying Chitin Deacetylase Fermentation of Mucor rouxii Mucor rouxii was obtained from the American Type Culture Collection (ATCC 24905).",
"The fungus was grown in minimal medium as described by Bartnicki-Garcia and Nickerson (Bacteriol.",
"84: 841-858 (1962)) in 16 liters batches.",
"Media was inoculated with 2×10 8 spores per liter and was stirred and aerated with sterile air for 24 hours at 28° C. Mycelia were harvested at mid-log phase by filtration.",
"Cultures yielded approximately 20 grams of mycelia (wet weight) per liter.",
"Extraction and Purification of Chitin Deacetylase 400 grams of mycelia were extracted by blending with 600 grams of glass beads and 700ml of extraction buffer containing 50mM Tris HCl (pH 7.8), 100mM NaCl and 0.2 mM PMSF for one hour over ice.",
"After the extraction was completed the glass beads were settled and removed and the extract was centrifuged for 30 minutes at 8000 g at 4° C. The supernatant (750 ml) is referred to as the crude extract.",
"The crude extract was then incubated in a waterbath set at 50° C. for 30 minutes and the precipitated material was removed by centrifugation at 8000 g for 30 minutes at 4° C. The supernatant from the 50° incubation was made 2.1M in ammonium sulfate and the precipitated proteins were removed by centrifugation at 10,000 g for 45 minutes.",
"The supernatant (850 ml) was then passed over a column (44×230 mm) of Phenyl Sepharose® CL-4B equilibrated with 20mM Tris HCl (pH 7.5) containing 2.1M ammonium sulfate.",
"After the column was washed with the buffer mentioned above, the retained proteins were eluted with a 2100 ml linear gradient of decreasing ammonium sulfate concentration.",
"Flow rate was 250 ml/h and fractions of 14 ml were collected.",
"The elution profile is shown in FIG. 1. Chitin deacetylase activity was detected in fractions 195-295 which were pooled for further purification.",
"The protein content was followed by a UV monitor at 280 nm.",
"Chitin deacetylase activity was estimated using as substrate partially O-hydroxyethylated chitin (glycol chitin) radiolabeled in N-acetyl groups.",
"The substrate preparation as well as the assay conditions were as described by Araki and Ito (Eur.",
"J. Biochem.",
"55:71-78 (1975)) with the following modifications.",
"The assay mixture contained 0.1 mg/ml BSA buffered by 25 mM sodium glutamate at pH 4.5 (50° C.).",
"Incubation time was 30 minutes at 50° C. The sample of partially purified chitin deacetylase from the previous step was dialyzed against 20 mM Tris HCl (pH 8), and then passed over a column of Q Sepharose® Fast Flow (26×340 mm) equilibrated with the same buffer.",
"After the column was washed, a linear gradient of NaCl (2000 ml, 0-0.75M) buffered with 20 mM Tris HCl (pH 8), was established.",
"Flow rate was 300 ml/h and fractions of 11.5 ml were collected.",
"The elution profile is shown in FIG. 2. Chitin deacetylase activity was detected in fractions 105-150 corresponding to ˜0.13M NaCl.",
"These fractions were pooled for further processing.",
"The pooled fractions were dialyzed against 25 mM sodium formate buffer, (pH 3.5), and the sample was loaded on an S Sepharose® Fast Flow column (26×280 mm) equilibrated with the same buffer.",
"The column was eluted at a flow rate of 250 ml/h with a linear gradient of NaCl (2000 ml, 0-1.2M) in the buffer mentioned above.",
"Fractions of 12 ml were collected.",
"The elution profile is shown in FIG. 3. The majority of chitin deacetylase activity was not retained by the column and was detected in the flow through fractions in an electrophoretically homogenous form.",
"Characterization of Purified Enzyme a) molecular weight The results of the purification scheme are summarized in Table 1.",
"The enzyme purified by this procedure was judged to be electrophoretically homogeneous, as tested by both native and SDS-PAGE.",
"On a gradient (5-20%) SDS polyacrylamide gel the enzyme band migrated at a distance corresponding to molecular weight of ˜75 kDa.",
"When purified chitin deacetylase was subjected to gel filtration on Sephacryl® S-200 HR it was eluted as a single peak with an apparent size of ˜80 kDa indicating that the native enzyme exists as a monomer.",
"TABLE 1______________________________________Purification of chitin deacetylase Total Total enzyme Specific Purifi- protein activity activity Yield cationStep (mg) (units.",
"sup.",
"a) units/mg (%) (-fold)______________________________________Crude 10380 345 0.033 100 1extract50° C. 4719 240 0.051 69.6 1.54treatmentPhenyl 1374 150 0.11 43.5 3.3Sepha-rose ®Q 279 80 0.29 23.2 8.8Sepha-rose ®S 12.6 40.7 3.23 11.8 97.9Sepha-rose ®______________________________________ .",
"sup.",
"a One unit of the enzyme activity was defined as the amount of the enzyme required to produce 1 μmole of acetic acid per minute when incubated with 48 μg of glycol chitin under optimum pH (4.5) and temperature (50° C.) conditions.",
"b) carbohydrate content Several pieces of evidence suggest that chitin deacetylase is a glycoprotein.",
"After electrophoresis, the enzyme band gave a positive stain with periodate-Schiff's reagent on polyacrylamide gels.",
"The enzyme was retained by a column of concanavalin A-Sepharose® 4B and recovered as a single peak by elution with a gradient of α-methyl mannoside at a position corresponding to approximately 25 mM.",
"As shown in Table 2, direct carbohydrate analysis of the enzyme revealed that the protein contains 6 residues of fucose, 85 residues of mannose and 22 residues of N-acetylglucosamine per molecule contributing approximately 30% to its molecular weight.",
"Sialic acid and other sugars were not found in significant amounts.",
"Monosaccharide analysis was carried out by gas-liquid chromatography and gas-liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry.",
"The sample was hydrolyzed in 4M trifluoroacetic acid at 100° C. for 4 hours.",
"The molar ratio of carbohydrates per molecule was estimated by direct carbo-hydrate and amino acid composition analysis.",
"TABLE 2______________________________________Carbohydrate mol/mol of protein Nearest integer______________________________________Fucose 5.81 6Mannose 81.92 82N- 20.73 21AcetylglucosamineSialic acid 0______________________________________ c) immunoprecipitation of in vitro translation product In order to determine the size of the chitin deacetylase polypeptide chain in an alternative manner, mRNA encoding the enzyme was translated in vitro followed by immunoprecipitation.",
"mRNA was extracted from mycelia (15 g wet weight) harvested at the early log phase by grinding in liquid nitrogen.",
"mRNA was purified by the guanidinium thiocyanate method of Chirwin et al.",
"(Biochem.",
"18:5294-5299 (1979)) followed by pelleting in cesium chloride by ultracentrifugation.",
"Poly (A) + RNA (˜120 μg) was isolated by 3 passes through an oligo(dT)-cellulose column as described by Aviv and Leder (Proc.",
"Natl.",
"Acad.",
"Sci.",
", USA 69:1408-1412 (1972)).",
"In vitro translation of total mRNA was performed using nuclease treated rabbit reticulocyte lysate according to the manufacturer's instructions.",
"In vitro translation products were labeled with 35 S-methionine.",
"Polyclonal antisera was prepared by emulsifying pure chitin deacetylase (500 μg, 1 mg/ml in PBS) with an equal volume of Freund's complete adjuvant.",
"The mixture was injected intradermally into a rabbit after preimmune serum was obtained.",
"The animal was reimmunized and bled after four and six weeks with 200 μg of enzyme in Freund's incomplete adjuvant, also injected intradermally.",
"Antisera obtained were monitored for the presence of antichitin deacetylase antibodies by ELISA and by enzyme activity inhibition assays.",
"After the in vitro translation reaction was completed, 10 μl of preimmune serum were added and the reaction was incubated for 30 minutes at room temperature.",
"Antigen-antibody complexes were removed by centrifugation after adsorption to 10μl of Protein A-Sepharose® added to the reaction.",
"Specific polyclonal antiserum (10μl) was then added to the supernatant which was subsequently incubated as described above.",
"The new antigen-antibody complexes were collected using protein A-Sepharose®by centrifugation and then washed three times with 20 volumes of 25 mM Tris HCl (pH 7.5), 150 mM NaCl by resuspension and pelleting.",
"Immunoprecipitates were boiled for 5 min in SDS-PAGE loading buffer and analyzed by gel electrophoresis.",
"The gel was fixed for 30 min in 10% acetic acid, 30% methanol, incubated for 30 min in EN 3 HANCE® (New England Nuclear) and then dried and exposed.",
"In vitro translation products were analyzed on a 12% SDS polyacrylamide gel followed by autoradiography.",
"The material immunoprecipitated by the specific antiserum showed one band corresponding to molecular weight of ˜49000 kDa that represents the size of the polypeptide chain prior to any post-translational modification.",
"d) enzyme activity characterization The temperature optimum of the enzyme activity was estimated to be ˜50° C. using labeled glycol chitin, as substrate as described above.",
"The temperature dependence of the chitin deacetylase activity is shown graphically in FIG. 4. The pH optimum was estimated to be ˜4.5, tested with a combination of overlapping buffers, as shown graphically in FIG. 5. Chitin deacetylase (5 mU) when incubated with 1 mg of partially chemically deacetylated chitosan (81%) for one hour, released 0.22 μmoles of acetic acid corresponding to an increment of ˜5.3% in deacetylation degree.",
"The enzyme was also active on microcrystalline chitin (colloidal chitin) and carboxymethyl chitin (soluble derivative).",
"e) amino acid composition The amino acid composition of chitin deacetylase is shown in Table 3.",
"Basic amino acids accounted only for ˜8% of the total amino acids, a value ˜40% lower than the average.",
"Amino acid composition of purified chitin deacetylase was determined after 24 hour hydrolysis with 6M HCl at 100° C. The values are means of two different sample determinations.",
"The number of residues per molecule of protein is based on the estimated molecular weight of 49000 Da from SDS-PAGE of the immunoprecipitated product from in vitro translation of mRNA.",
"TABLE 3______________________________________Amino acid Residues/molecule Nearest integer______________________________________Aspartic acid 56.01 56Threonine 55.65 56Serine 59.23 59Glutamic acid 37.33 37Proline 29.08 29Glycine 31.62 32Alanine 56.73 57Valine 27.58 28Methionine 5.09 5Isoleucine 20.40 20Leucine 20.89 21Tyrosine 16.24 16Phenylalanine 8.78 9Histidine 7.31 7Lysine 15.85 16Arginine 5.87 6Half-Cysteine 9.62 10Tryptophan 7.77 8Total 472______________________________________ Example 2 Production and Purification of Antibodies Reactive with Chitin Deacetylase An adult male white New Zealand rabbit was immunized with 500 μg (1 mg/ml in PBS) of purified chitin deacetylase, prepared as described in Example 1, from the fungus Mucor rouxii.",
"The enzyme was emulsified with an equal volume of Freund's complete adjuvant in a total volume of 1 ml, and was administered to the animal intradermally.",
"A further three booster doses of 150 μg of chitin deacetylase emulsified in Freund's incomplete adjuvant were administered at 4-week intervals.",
"Test bleeds from the marginal ear vein were used to monitor serum antibody titer by ELISA.",
"Control serum was taken prior to immunization.",
"The specificity of the antiserum produced was analyzed in a chitin deacetylase inhibition assay.",
"Chitin deacetylase activity was assayed by measuring the radioactivity of [ 3 H]-acetic acid liberated from a water-soluble chitin derivative, glycol [acetyl- 3 H] chitin.",
"The reaction mixture contained 48 μg of glycol [acetyl- 3 H] chitin, 1 mM magnesium chloride, 0.1 mg/ml BSA and was buffered by 25 mM sodium glutamate (pH 4.5) in a total volume of 50 μl.",
"After incubation at 50° C. for 15 min, the reaction was terminated by the addition of 16 μl of HCl, 4 μl of acetic acid and 80 μl of water.",
"Ethyl acetate (0.5 ml) was added to the mixture, and the solution was vigorously mixed with a vortex mixer for 5 minutes and centrifuged at 14,000 rpm.",
"4.5 ml of toluene-based liquid scintillation cocktail was added to 200 μl of the organic phase solution and swirled.",
"The solution was transferred to a vial and measured for radioactivity in a liquid scintillation counter.",
"One unit of enzyme releases 1.0 μmol of the acetic acid from glycol chitin per minute under the conditions described above.",
"Specific activity was defined as the units of enzyme per milligram of protein.",
"Protein was assayed by the so-called Lowry method using bovine serum albumin as a standard.",
"Antibody titer was monitored using a non-competitive ELISA.",
"Chitin deacetylase was immobilized onto microtiter plates (Maxi Sorp, Nunc, Denmark) at 2 μg/ml of "coating"",
"buffer (pH 9.6), containing 0.05M sodium carbonate and sodium bicarbonate by incubation overnight at 4° C. Wells were washed out with 0.05% aqueous solution of Tween 80 followed by two washes with distilled water.",
"After that 200 μl of blocking agent per well was incubated for 1 hour at room temperature.",
"The blocking agent was 1 g of bovine serum albumin dissolved in 100 ml of 0.010M PBS (pH 7.4).",
"Wells were washed out as before.",
"An anti-rabbit IgG conjugated to horseradish peroxidase was used to indirectly detect specific IgG bound to immobilized chitin deacetylase.",
"The conjugate was diluted 10,000-fold in 0.010M PBS (pH 7.4) and incubated at 100 μl per well for one hour at room temperature.",
"Wells were washed out with H 2 O/Tween 80 solution as before, followed by two washes with distilled water.",
"Wells were aspirated and incubated with 100 μl of substrate/chromogen solution made up just prior to use as follows: The reaction was stopped after 15 minutes by addition of 50 μl of 4M sulfuric acid per well.",
"Absorbance was read at 450 nm using an ELISA reader.",
"The enzyme activity of a defined amount of purified chitin deacetylase was measured after incubation with various amounts of antiserum.",
"These experiments confirmed that a component of the antiserum was specifically reactive with chitin deacetylase.",
"IgG was affinity-purified from rabbit serum using chitin deacetylase immobilized to cyanogen bromide-activated Sepharose 4B (Pharmacia Ltd.) according to manufacturer's instructions.",
"A solution containing ten milligrams of purified chitin deacetylase was dialyzed against 2 it of "coupling buffer"",
"(pH 8.3), containing 0.1M sodium bicarbonate and 0.5M sodium chloride.",
"Preswollen cyanogen bromide-activated Sepharose 4B equilibrated with coupling buffer was mixed with chitin deacetylase (1.4 mg protein/ml of gel) overnight at 4° C. by end over end rotation.",
"This mixture was transferred to a scintered glass funnel and sucked dry under vacuum.",
"The fluid was recovered and assayed for protein to assess coupling efficiency.",
"The gel was washed thoroughly with coupling buffer and mixed as before for 2 hours with Tris-HCl buffer (0.1M, pH 8.0) at room temperature.",
"The gel was sucked dry and washed with coupling buffer.",
"Protein noncovalently adsorbed to the gel was removed by washing the gel with alternating buffers of low (0.1M sodium acetate, 0.5M sodium chloride, pH 4.0) and high pH (0.1M Tris, 0.5M sodium chloride, pH 8.3).",
"The chitin deacetylase-linked Sepharose 4B was transferred to a minicolumn and washed with 0.025M Tris-HCl (pH 7.4) which contained 0.02% sodium azide during storage at 4° C. The concentration of antibody in solution can be estimated by measuring A 280 using an average extinction coefficient for antibodies of 1.4 for 1 mg ml -1 protein using a 1 cm path length cell.",
"Rabbit antiserum against chitin deacetylase obtained from various bleedings was separately precipitated by 40% saturation of ammonium sulfate.",
"The immunoglobulin containing precipitate was dissolved and dialyzed extensively against 0.025M Tris (pH 7.4), 0.2M sodium chloride and subsequently passed through the chitin deacetylase-linked Sepharose 4B column (including protease inhibitors).",
"The gel was washed with ten column volumes of 0.025M Tris, 0.1M sodium chloride (pH 7.4), until collected fractions gave negligible readings at 280 nm.",
"Non-specifically bound proteins were eluted with 0.025M Tris, 1M sodium chloride, pH 7.4.",
"A batch of IgG was eluted with two column volumes of 0.1M glycine-hydrochloric acid buffer (pH 2.8).",
"A further batch of higher affinity IgG was eluted with two column volumes of 0.2M glycine-hydrochloric acid, pH 2.2.",
"The term affinity, as used herein, refers to the functional affinity (avidity) as polyclonal antibodies were used.",
"All fractions were immediately adjusted to pH 7.0 with 1M Tris-HCl (pH 9.0).",
"The two populations of IgG fractions were pooled separately and concentrated by ultrafiltration prior to dialysis against 0.025M Tris (pH 7.4).",
"The purified specific IgG shows the characteristic rabbit IgG pattern in SDS-PAGE.",
"Pure specific IgG is stored at -20° C. at a concentration >1 mg/ml in 0.010M Tris, 0.1M sodium chloride (pH 7.4).",
"The coupling of chitin deacetylase to cyanogen bromide-activated Sepharose 4B was 90% efficient, producing chitin deacetylase-linked Sepharose 4B at 1.4 mg of chitin deacetylase/ml of gel.",
"By the method presented here, about 2.0-6.5 mg of pure specific IgG were isolated from every 10 ml of antiserum with the elution of pH 2.8 (2.0% to 5.0% of total protein after ammonium sulfate precipitation).",
"Total isolated specific IgG represents 4.5% to 8.0% of total protein after ammonium sulfate precipitation.",
"The binding capacity of the chitin deacetylase-linked Sepharose 4B for anti-chitin deacetylase antibody was determined at 1.4 mg IgG/ml of gel.",
"Example 3 Second Method for Purifying Chitin Deacetylase Frozen mycelia (2 gram), prepared as described in Example 1, was thawed, minced and homogenized in 10 ml of 0.05M Tris-HCl buffer (pH 7.4) containing 0.5 mM PMSF, 0.1 mM NEM and 150 mM NaCl, using an improvised glass-bead miller (2 gram glass beads per gram of wet mycelia).",
"All steps were performed at 4° C. This produced a homogenate which was centrifuged at 10,000 rpm for 30 minutes at 4° C. The supernatant (12.2 ml;",
"4.6 mg/ml;",
"56.0 mg) is referred to as the crude extract.",
"The extract was then incubated in a waterbath set at 50° C. for 15 minutes and rapidly cooled on ice.",
"Precipitated protein was removed by centrifugation at 35,000 rpm for 45 minutes at 4° C. Five milligrams of the pure lower affinity rabbit IgG, described in Example 2, was dialyzed against the coupling buffer (pH 8.3) and mixed with 5 ml of swollen CNBr-activated Sepharose 4B to prepare an immunoadsorbent.",
"The IgG was coupled by the method described for chitin deacetylase coupling.",
"The coupling of IgG to activated Sepharose 4B was 85% efficient, producing IgG-linked Sepharose at 1 mg IgG/ml of gel.",
"This immunoadsorbent was used for chitin deacetylase purification.",
"The supernatant described above (11.5 ml;",
"0.54 mg/ml;",
"6.2 mg) was loaded onto the immunoadsorbent (packed in a column of dimensions 2×1.6 cm;",
"5 ml) previously equilibrated in 25 mM Tris-HCl buffer (pH 7.4) containing 150 mM NaCl (buffer A).",
"The column was washed with buffer A until no absorption of 280 nm was evident in the effluents (non-specifically bound proteins were eluted with 25 mM Tris-HCl pH 7.4, 1M NaCl).",
"Specifically bound chitin deacetylase was eluted using 0.2M glycine-HCl buffer (pH 2.8) at a flow rate of 35 ml/h.",
"Eluate was immediately adjusted to pH 7.0 with 1M Tris-HCl pH 9.0, dialyzed against buffer A and concentrated by ultrafiltration (300 μl;",
"40 μg/ml;",
"12 μg;",
"180 mU).",
"Purification of chitin deacetylase by immunoadsorption (table 4) produced a specific activity of 1500 m units/mg for the desorbed enzyme and a yield of about 30%.",
"Assessment of chitin deacetylase purity by SDS-PAGE shows a single band.",
"Purification of chitin deacetylase by conventional methods (table 1) produced a pure enzyme with a specific activity of 3.23 units/mg and a yield of 11.8%.",
"The maximum binding capacity of the immunoadsorbent was determined at 42 μg of chitin deacetylase/ml of gel (4% of the antigen binding sites remain available for binding antigen after covalent immobilization to the matrix).",
"TABLE 4______________________________________Purification of Chitin DeacetylaseBy Immunoadsorption Total Enzyme Specific Purif- Protein activity activity Yield icationStep (mg) (munits) (munits/mg) (%) (fold)______________________________________Crude 56.0 608 10.86 100.0 1.0extract50° C. 6.2 540 87.10 88.8 8.1treatmentImmuno- 0.012 180 1500.00 29.6 1400.0adsorbent______________________________________ Example 4 A purified preparation of chitin deacetylase was subjected to amino-terminal amino acid sequence analysis by conventional techniques.",
"Based on the amino acid sequence information, degenerate oligonucleotides were synthesized and a cDNA clone corresponding to the chitin deacetylase mRNA was isolated from a Mucor rouxi cDNA library.",
"The cDNA sequence was determined and this sequence is shown in SEQ ID NO: 1.",
"A search of the EMBL databank using the deduced amino acid sequence of chitin deacetylase revealed significant sequence similarities with nodB proteins of various rhizobial species.",
"Multiple sequence alignments using all known nodB protein sequences and the chitin deacetlyase sequence highlighted the most significant similarities.",
"The nodB protein sequence (≈215 amino acids long) are well conserved between all rhizobial species examined, with identities ranging from 37-67% and overall similarities from 55-78%.",
"Chitin deacetylase is a much longer polypeptide (400 amino acids) and the region which displays homology to the nodB gene products (up to 31% identity, 50% similarity) is located in the central part of the molecule.",
"The amino-terminal (1-121 amino acid) and the carboxterminal (≈50%) conserved in chitin deacetylase.",
"In contrast, six of nine predicted N-glycosylation sites are found in the non-conserved domains of chitin deacetylase suggesting that these glycosylated domains may be important for the specialized function of the enzyme in cell wall biosynthesis.",
"Equivalents Those skilled in the art will know, or be able to ascertain, using no more than routine experimentation, many equivalents to the specific embodiments of the invention described herein.",
"These and all other equivalents are intended to be encompassed by the following claims.",
"__________________________________________________________________________SEQUENCE LISTING(1) GENERAL INFORMATION:(iii) NUMBER OF SEQUENCES: 2(2) INFORMATION FOR SEQ ID NO:1:(i) SEQUENCE CHARACTERISTICS:(A) LENGTH: 1203 base pairs(B) TYPE: nucleic acid(C) STRANDEDNESS: double(D) TOPOLOGY: linear(ii) MOLECULE TYPE: cDNA(ix) FEATURE: (A) NAME/KEY: CDS(B) LOCATION: 1.",
"].1200(xi) SEQUENCE DESCRIPTION: SEQ ID NO:1:GACACCTCCGCAAATTACTGGCAATCATTTACTTCTCAAATTAATCCC48AspThrSerAlaAsnTyrTrpGlnSerPheThrSerGlnIleAsnPro1 51015AAGAACATCTCCATTCCCTCTATTGAGCAAACTTCATCCATTGACCCC96LysAsnIleSerIleProSerIleGluGlnThrSerSerIleAspPro 202530ACTCAAGAATGTGCTTACTACACTCCTGATGCTTCATTGTTCACATTC144ThrGlnGluCysAlaTyrTyrThrProAspAlaSerLeuPheThrPhe 354045AACGCTTCCGAATGGCCCTCTATCTGGGAAGTCGCTACTACCAATGGT192AsnAlaSerGluTrpProSerIleTrpGluValAlaThrThrAsnGly50 5560ATGAATGAGTCTGCCGAGTTCCTCAGTGTCTACAATTCTATTGACTGG240MetAsnGluSerAlaGluPheLeuSerValTyrAsnSerIleAspTrp65 707580ACCAAGGCACCCAATATTTCTGTGCGTACCCTTGACGCTAACGGCAAC288ThrLysAlaProAsnIleSerValArgThrLeuAspAlaAsnGlyAsn 859095TTGGATACCACTGGTTACAATACTGCTACTGACCCTGATTGTTGGTGG336LeuAspThrThrGlyTyrAsnThrAlaThrAspProAspCysTrpTrp 100105110ACAGCTACCACATGTACCTCTCCCAAGATTTCTGATATCAATGACGAT384ThrAlaThrThrCysThrSerProLysIleSerAspIleAsnAspAsp 115120125ATCTCCAAGTGTCCTGAACCCGAGACTTGGGGTTTGACTTACGATGAT432IleSerLysCysProGluProGluThrTrpGlyLeuThrTyrAspAsp130 135140GGACCTAACTGCTCTCACAACGCTTTCTATGACTACCTTCAAGAGCAA480GlyProAsnCysSerHisAsnAlaPheTyrAspTyrLeuGlnGluGln145 150155160AAGTTGAAGGCCTCCATGTTTTATATTGGTTCCAATGTTGTTGACTGG528LysLeuLysAlaSerMetPheTyrIleGlySerAsnValValAspTrp 165170175CCATACGGTGCTATGCGTGGTGTTGTTGATGGCCATCACATTGCATCC576ProTyrGlyAlaMetArgGlyValValAspGlyHisHisIleAlaSer 180185190CACACATGGTCTCACCCTCAAATGACAACCAAGACCAATCAAGAGGTC624HisThrTrpSerHisProGlnMetThrThrLysThrAsnGlnGluVal 195200205CTTGCTGAATTCTATTATACTCAAAAGGCCATCAAGCTCGCTACTGGT672LeuAlaGluPheTyrTyrThrGlnLysAlaIleLysLeuAlaThrGly210 215220TTGACCCCTCGTTACTGGCGTCCTCCTTATGGTGATATCGATGATCGT720LeuThrProArgTyrTrpArgProProTyrGlyAspIleAspAspArg225 230235240GTTCGTTGGATTGCCTCTCAATTAGGTTTAACTGCTGTTATTTGGAAC768ValArgTrpIleAlaSerGlnLeuGlyLeuThrAlaValIleTrpAsn 245250255CTCGATACTGATGATTGGTCTGCTGGTGTCACTACTACTGTCGAAGCT816LeuAspThrAspAspTrpSerAlaGlyValThrThrThrValGluAla 260265270GTTGAGCAAAGTTATTCCGATTATATTGCTATGGGTACCAATGGTACT864ValGluGlnSerTyrSerAspTyrIleAlaMetGlyThrAsnGlyThr 275280285TTTGCCAACAGTGGTAACATTGTATTGACCCATGAAATCAACACAACT912PheAlaAsnSerGlyAsnIleValLeuThrHisGluIleAsnThrThr290 295300ATGAGTCTCGCTGTCGAGAACTTGCCCAAGATCATTTCTGCCTATAAA960MetSerLeuAlaValGluAsnLeuProLysIleIleSerAlaTyrLys305 310315320CAAGTCATCGATGTCGCTACCTGTTACAACATTTCTCACCCTTACTTT1008GlnValIleAspValAlaThrCysTyrAsnIleSerHisProTyrPhe 325330335GAAGACTACGAATGGACCAATGTCTTGAACGGCACAAAATCTTCTGCT1056GluAspTyrGluTrpThrAsnValLeuAsnGlyThrLysSerSerAla 340345350ACCGCCAGTGGATCTGCTACTTCTGCTAGTGCTTCTGGAGGCGCTACT1104ThrAlaSerGlySerAlaThrSerAlaSerAlaSerGlyGlyAlaThr 355360365ACCGCTGCCGCTCATATCCAAGCTTCTACTAGCGGCGCCATGTCTGTC1152ThrAlaAlaAlaHisIleGlnAlaSerThrSerGlyAlaMetSerVal370 375380CTTCCCAACCTCGCCTTGATCTCTGCCTTCATTGCTACCCTGTTGTTT1200LeuProAsnLeuAlaLeuIleSerAlaPheIleAlaThrLeuLeuPhe385 390395400TAG1203(2) INFORMATION FOR SEQ ID NO:2:(i) SEQUENCE CHARACTERISTICS:(A) LENGTH: 400 amino acids(B) TYPE: amino acid (D) TOPOLOGY: linear(ii) MOLECULE TYPE: protein(xi) SEQUENCE DESCRIPTION: SEQ ID NO:2:AspThrSerAlaAsnTyrTrpGlnSerPheThrSerGlnIleAsnPro151015LysAsnIleSerIleProSer IleGluGlnThrSerSerIleAspPro202530ThrGlnGluCysAlaTyrTyrThrProAspAlaSerLeuPheThrPhe3540 45AsnAlaSerGluTrpProSerIleTrpGluValAlaThrThrAsnGly505560MetAsnGluSerAlaGluPheLeuSerValTyrAsnSerIleAspTrp65707580ThrLysAlaProAsnIleSerValArgThrLeuAspAlaAsnGlyAsn859095Le uAspThrThrGlyTyrAsnThrAlaThrAspProAspCysTrpTrp100105110ThrAlaThrThrCysThrSerProLysIleSerAspIleAsnAspAsp115 120125IleSerLysCysProGluProGluThrTrpGlyLeuThrTyrAspAsp130135140GlyProAsnCysSerHisAsnAlaPheTyr AspTyrLeuGlnGluGln145150155160LysLeuLysAlaSerMetPheTyrIleGlySerAsnValValAspTrp165170 175ProTyrGlyAlaMetArgGlyValValAspGlyHisHisIleAlaSer180185190HisThrTrpSerHisProGlnMetThrThrLysThrAsn GlnGluVal195200205LeuAlaGluPheTyrTyrThrGlnLysAlaIleLysLeuAlaThrGly210215220LeuThrProAr gTyrTrpArgProProTyrGlyAspIleAspAspArg225230235240ValArgTrpIleAlaSerGlnLeuGlyLeuThrAlaValIleTrpAsn 245250255LeuAspThrAspAspTrpSerAlaGlyValThrThrThrValGluAla260265270ValGluGlnSerTyrSerAsp TyrIleAlaMetGlyThrAsnGlyThr275280285PheAlaAsnSerGlyAsnIleValLeuThrHisGluIleAsnThrThr290295 300MetSerLeuAlaValGluAsnLeuProLysIleIleSerAlaTyrLys305310315320GlnValIleAspValAlaThrCysTyrAsnIleSerHisPro TyrPhe325330335GluAspTyrGluTrpThrAsnValLeuAsnGlyThrLysSerSerAla340345350Th rAlaSerGlySerAlaThrSerAlaSerAlaSerGlyGlyAlaThr355360365ThrAlaAlaAlaHisIleGlnAlaSerThrSerGlyAlaMetSerVal370 375380LeuProAsnLeuAlaLeuIleSerAlaPheIleAlaThrLeuLeuPhe385390395400__________________________________________________________________________"
] |
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a cowling, and in particular, to a cowling for a wind power generator.
2. Description of the Related Art
An impeller of a conventional wind power generator is driven by wind to generate electric power. Wind, however, blows in all directions. If the wind does not blow directly on the impeller, the wind power generator can not operate at optimum efficiency. Another impeller of a conventional wind power generator changes direction corresponding to wind direction. When the turbulence occurs, the impeller loads wind force in all directions, the potential damage causes to the wind power generator.
The invention provides a cowling applicable to any kind of impeller for wind power generators, capable of effectively solving the described problems.
BRIEF SUMMARY OF INVENTION
The invention provides a cowling for a wind power generator. The cowling rotates to face the wind according to wind direction, avoiding impeller load due to multidirectional wind force thus protecting the impeller.
The cowling of the invention includes a cover body and an empennage connected with the cover body. The cover body includes an accommodating space for receiving an impeller, and a first opening serving as an air inlet for the impeller. According to the wind direction, the empennage will adjust the first opening to the proper position to face the wind.
If the wind is a multidirectional and turbulent, the cowling can be positioned to provide a single direction for channeling the multidirectional turbulence through the impeller from the first opening and drive to the impeller. The cover body blocks turbulence from entering the cowling from a direction interfering with the impeller. Thus, the impeller works efficiently and the lifespan of the impeller is prolonged.
A detailed description is given in the following embodiments with reference to the accompanying drawings.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS
The invention can be more fully understood by reading the subsequent detailed description and examples with references made to the accompanying drawings, wherein:
FIG. 1 shows an embodiment of a cowling of the invention;
FIG. 2 is a schematic view in a different view angle of the cowling shown in FIG. 1 ;
FIG. 3 is a front view of a cowling applied to a wind power generator of the invention;
FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view of the cowling shown in FIG. 3 ;
FIGS. 5 to 7 are schematic views to show all kinds of empennages;
FIG. 8 is a schematic view of another embodiment of a cowling of the invention;
FIG. 9 is a schematic view of another embodiment of a cowling of the invention;
FIG. 10 is a schematic view to show a first opening of a cowling facing side of an impeller;
FIG. 11 is a front view the cowling shown in FIG. 10 .
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF INVENTION
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 df the invention is best determined by reference to the appended claims.
Referring to FIGS. 1 to 3 , a cowling 1 of the invention comprises a cover body 10 and an empennage 121 connected to the cover body 10 by the connecting parts 12 . The cover body 10 comprises an accommodating space 101 and a first opening 103 . The accommodating space 101 is communicated to the first opening 103 . An impeller 2 for generating electric power is disposed in the accommodating space 101 . The first opening 103 is located at one side of the cover body 10 and has an air inlet for transmission of the wind. The position of the connecting part 12 is located at the side of the cover body 10 opposite to the first opening 103 . The empennage 121 can be adjusted by the wind so the first opening 103 faces the blowing wind. In this embodiment, the first opening 103 is a rectangle and the empennage 121 is a circle.
Referring to FIG. 4 , in detail, the impeller 2 further comprises a shaft 21 passing through the center of the impeller 2 . The cowling 1 is supported by the shaft 21 via two bearings 22 , thus, when the impeller 2 rotates, the cowling 1 can simultaneously rotate without interference.
Note that shape of the empennage 121 is not limited. The empennage 121 may be rhombus, polygon, T-shape of fin shape shown in FIGS. 5 to 7 . The empennage 121 can be any other shape enabling the cowling 1 to change direction.
The cover body 10 of the cowling 1 further comprises a second opening 105 shown in FIG. 2 opposite to the first opening 103 . After the wind passes through the impeller 2 , airflow exits from an air outlet, e.g. the second opening 105 , to prevent interference between the wind and the airflow.
If the wind is multidirectional turbulence, the empennage 121 rotates along one direction of the multidirectional turbulence. Thus, the first opening 103 of the cowling 1 is adjusted to a stable position so that the first opening 103 faces the wind. One direction of the multidirectional turbulence can pass through the impeller 2 from the first opening 103 to drive the impeller 2 . The cover body 10 blocks turbulent wind from other directions entering the cowling 1 and interfering with the impeller 2 . Thus, the impeller 2 works efficiently and the lifespan of the impeller 2 is prolonged.
FIG. 8 shows another embodiment of the invention. Compared with FIG. 1 , the first opening 303 of the cowling 3 is a bell shape for enlarging the area of the air inlet and concentrating the wind to drive the impeller.
Referring to FIG. 9 , the cowling 3 further comprises a plurality of air-guiding elements 305 installed in the first opening 303 shown in FIG. 8 for adjusting the wind. Thus, the impeller 2 works efficiently.
Moreover, the first openings can be located corresponding to one side of the impeller shown in FIGS. 10 to 11 . Compared with FIG. 1 , the first opening 403 of the cowling 4 does not correspondingly face the impeller 2 , but faces the side of the impeller 2 . In another word, the first opening 403 faces one side of the blades of the impeller 2 . Thus, after entering the first opening, the wind directly drives the blades, thus increasing efficiency.
While the invention has been described by way of example and in terms of the preferred embodiments, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited to the disclosed embodiments. 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. | A cowling of the invention includes a cover body and an empennage connected with the cover body. The cover body includes an accommodating space for receiving an impeller, and a first opening serving as an air inlet for the impeller. According to the wind direction, the empennage will adjust the first opening to the proper position to face the wind. | Analyze the document's illustrations and descriptions to summarize the main idea's core structure and function. | [
"BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1.",
"Field of the Invention The invention relates to a cowling, and in particular, to a cowling for a wind power generator.",
"Description of the Related Art An impeller of a conventional wind power generator is driven by wind to generate electric power.",
"Wind, however, blows in all directions.",
"If the wind does not blow directly on the impeller, the wind power generator can not operate at optimum efficiency.",
"Another impeller of a conventional wind power generator changes direction corresponding to wind direction.",
"When the turbulence occurs, the impeller loads wind force in all directions, the potential damage causes to the wind power generator.",
"The invention provides a cowling applicable to any kind of impeller for wind power generators, capable of effectively solving the described problems.",
"BRIEF SUMMARY OF INVENTION The invention provides a cowling for a wind power generator.",
"The cowling rotates to face the wind according to wind direction, avoiding impeller load due to multidirectional wind force thus protecting the impeller.",
"The cowling of the invention includes a cover body and an empennage connected with the cover body.",
"The cover body includes an accommodating space for receiving an impeller, and a first opening serving as an air inlet for the impeller.",
"According to the wind direction, the empennage will adjust the first opening to the proper position to face the wind.",
"If the wind is a multidirectional and turbulent, the cowling can be positioned to provide a single direction for channeling the multidirectional turbulence through the impeller from the first opening and drive to the impeller.",
"The cover body blocks turbulence from entering the cowling from a direction interfering with the impeller.",
"Thus, the impeller works efficiently and the lifespan of the impeller is prolonged.",
"A detailed description is given in the following embodiments with reference to the accompanying drawings.",
"BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS The invention can be more fully understood by reading the subsequent detailed description and examples with references made to the accompanying drawings, wherein: FIG. 1 shows an embodiment of a cowling of the invention;",
"FIG. 2 is a schematic view in a different view angle of the cowling shown in FIG. 1 ;",
"FIG. 3 is a front view of a cowling applied to a wind power generator of the invention;",
"FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view of the cowling shown in FIG. 3 ;",
"FIGS. 5 to 7 are schematic views to show all kinds of empennages;",
"FIG. 8 is a schematic view of another embodiment of a cowling of the invention;",
"FIG. 9 is a schematic view of another embodiment of a cowling of the invention;",
"FIG. 10 is a schematic view to show a first opening of a cowling facing side of an impeller;",
"FIG. 11 is a front view the cowling shown in FIG. 10 .",
"DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF INVENTION 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 df the invention is best determined by reference to the appended claims.",
"Referring to FIGS. 1 to 3 , a cowling 1 of the invention comprises a cover body 10 and an empennage 121 connected to the cover body 10 by the connecting parts 12 .",
"The cover body 10 comprises an accommodating space 101 and a first opening 103 .",
"The accommodating space 101 is communicated to the first opening 103 .",
"An impeller 2 for generating electric power is disposed in the accommodating space 101 .",
"The first opening 103 is located at one side of the cover body 10 and has an air inlet for transmission of the wind.",
"The position of the connecting part 12 is located at the side of the cover body 10 opposite to the first opening 103 .",
"The empennage 121 can be adjusted by the wind so the first opening 103 faces the blowing wind.",
"In this embodiment, the first opening 103 is a rectangle and the empennage 121 is a circle.",
"Referring to FIG. 4 , in detail, the impeller 2 further comprises a shaft 21 passing through the center of the impeller 2 .",
"The cowling 1 is supported by the shaft 21 via two bearings 22 , thus, when the impeller 2 rotates, the cowling 1 can simultaneously rotate without interference.",
"Note that shape of the empennage 121 is not limited.",
"The empennage 121 may be rhombus, polygon, T-shape of fin shape shown in FIGS. 5 to 7 .",
"The empennage 121 can be any other shape enabling the cowling 1 to change direction.",
"The cover body 10 of the cowling 1 further comprises a second opening 105 shown in FIG. 2 opposite to the first opening 103 .",
"After the wind passes through the impeller 2 , airflow exits from an air outlet, e.g. the second opening 105 , to prevent interference between the wind and the airflow.",
"If the wind is multidirectional turbulence, the empennage 121 rotates along one direction of the multidirectional turbulence.",
"Thus, the first opening 103 of the cowling 1 is adjusted to a stable position so that the first opening 103 faces the wind.",
"One direction of the multidirectional turbulence can pass through the impeller 2 from the first opening 103 to drive the impeller 2 .",
"The cover body 10 blocks turbulent wind from other directions entering the cowling 1 and interfering with the impeller 2 .",
"Thus, the impeller 2 works efficiently and the lifespan of the impeller 2 is prolonged.",
"FIG. 8 shows another embodiment of the invention.",
"Compared with FIG. 1 , the first opening 303 of the cowling 3 is a bell shape for enlarging the area of the air inlet and concentrating the wind to drive the impeller.",
"Referring to FIG. 9 , the cowling 3 further comprises a plurality of air-guiding elements 305 installed in the first opening 303 shown in FIG. 8 for adjusting the wind.",
"Thus, the impeller 2 works efficiently.",
"Moreover, the first openings can be located corresponding to one side of the impeller shown in FIGS. 10 to 11 .",
"Compared with FIG. 1 , the first opening 403 of the cowling 4 does not correspondingly face the impeller 2 , but faces the side of the impeller 2 .",
"In another word, the first opening 403 faces one side of the blades of the impeller 2 .",
"Thus, after entering the first opening, the wind directly drives the blades, thus increasing efficiency.",
"While the invention has been described by way of example and in terms of the preferred embodiments, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited to the disclosed embodiments.",
"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."
] |
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/333,352, filed Jan. 17, 2003, which is a national stage of International Application PCT/US01/41694, filed Aug. 13, 2001, which claims priority to U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 60/224,332, filed Aug. 11, 2000, each of which is incorporated by reference in its entirety herein.
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
[0002] The present invention relates generally to the field of Internet and intranet telephony and more particularly relates to a network telecommunications system for performing unified messaging services.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0003] The Internet has evolved into an essential communication tool for millions of users in the business, technical and educational fields. In this regard, a growing use of the Internet relates to Internet telephony which provides a number of advantages over conventional circuit-switched network controlled by a separate signaling network.
[0004] An important feature in most modern telephony systems is voice messaging. An extension of voice messaging is unified messaging, where access to messaging services in various media is provided in a common platform. For example, the ability to converge voice mail, e-mail, video messaging, instant messaging services and the like within a common system as part of the telephony network provides a single platform for users to conveniently access such services.
[0005] Voicemail service is generally provided by the local private branch exchange (PBX) or local exchange carrier. Such current voice mail systems are typically closed architectures. As a result, it is often difficult to perform simple operations, such as forwarding voicemail outside the local PBX, filtering or sorting of messages. Thus, an open architecture which facilitates simple data exchange within and without of the local telephony exchange would be desirable.
[0006] The session initiation protocol (SIP) is gaining in popularity as a standard signaling protocol for use in Internet telephony. As this popularity grows, it would be desirable to provide a system architecture and method for providing unified messaging services on a SIP based system. In addition, the real time streaming protocol (RTSP) has been proposed as a standard transport protocol for multimedia service, such as video, audio and mixed media files, over the Internet. A unified messaging system which employs SIP as the signaling protocol along with RTSP for message storage and delivery can offer many benefits over known messaging systems.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0007] In accordance with the present invention, a network telephony system is provided which enables unified messaging services. The system generally includes a data network, at least one user agent operatively coupled to the data network and a signaling server operatively coupled to the data network. The user agents are telephony endpoints, such as standalone Internet telephony appliances or personal computers with appropriate telephony software. A messaging server is provided which is operatively coupled to the data network and is responsive to the signaling server. The system also includes a media server which is operatively coupled to the network and includes computer data storage media for storing message files. The media server is responsive to the messaging server and, on occurrence of a message condition, is directly accessible to a calling party to receive a recorded message file on the media server or to store a message file for subsequent retrieval by a called party.
[0008] Preferably, the signaling server includes a database of network addresses, such as session initiation protocol (SIP) addresses, for registered user agents. On receipt of a call request from a calling party, the signaling server generates a call request to the address of the called user agent stored in the database and also generates a call request to a network address of the messaging server. The signaling server can cancel the call request to the messaging server in the event the call request to the called user agent is accepted. The signaling server can also cancel the call request to the called user agent in the event a message condition is detected. One such message condition is the passage of a predetermined time period from the initiation of the call request.
[0009] In one embodiment, after a message condition is detected, an invite request can be provided to the called user agent address while a message is being provided to the media server. By accepting the invite request, the called user agent can reclaim the call from the media server.
[0010] When a message condition is detected, the media server provides a stored greeting message to the calling party as a prompt to leave a message. The media server preferably supports streaming media and operates in accordance with the real time streaming media protocol (RTSP). In response to a calling party storing a message on the media server, the media server can also provide a notification to a called party that a message is available. The notification can take the form of an electronic mail transmission which includes the address where the called party can retrieve the message. Alternatively, the notification can include a copy of the message as a file attachment.
[0011] An alternate embodiment in accordance with the present invention is a network telephony system providing unified messaging services which includes at least two media servers distributed within the system and operating in response to a single messaging server.
[0012] Another network telephony system providing unified messaging services in accordance with the present invention includes a digital data network and a gateway server computer interposed between a public switched telephony network (PSTN) and the digital data network. A signaling server is operatively coupled to the digital data network. A messaging server is also operatively coupled to the digital data network and is responsive to the signaling server. A media server, including computer data storage media for storing message files is also provided. A DTMF translator is interposed between to the gateway server and the media server to provide access to the message files stored on the media server using DTMF signals, such as from a standard telephone handset.
[0013] Also in accordance with the present invention is a method for providing messaging services in a data network telephony system. The method includes receiving a call request from a first user agent to a second user agent, where the user agents are telephony nodes or endpoints. In response to the call request, additional call requests are generated, generally by a signaling server, to both the second user agent and to a messaging server associated with the second user agent. In the event a message condition is detected, the method establishes a connection between the first user agent and a media server to provide message storage on the media server. If no message condition is detected, the call request to the messaging server is cancelled.
[0014] The message condition can be the expiration of a predetermined time period following the generation of the call request. The message condition can also be provided based on registration information or status information regarding the called party, such as a do not disturb indication, or a command or rule to forward certain calls to the messaging server.
[0015] The method also provides for call reclaiming. In this regard, when a calling party is recording a message on the media server, an invite request can be provided to the called party. If accepted, the called party can enter the call session and terminate the recording.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0016] For a complete understanding of the present invention and the advantages thereof, reference is now made to the following description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in which like reference numbers indicate like features and wherein:
[0017] FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a system for providing unified messaging services in a SIP protocol telephony system;
[0018] FIG. 2 is a flow chart describing an example of voice mail services being provided in accordance with the system of FIG. 1 ;
[0019] FIG. 3 is an exemplary call programming language (CPL) script for selectively routing calls to a messaging server;
[0020] FIG. 4 is a pictorial representation of a user interface for a message management system suitable for use in connection with the present systems and methods; and
[0021] FIG. 5 is a block diagram of a system in accordance with the present invention including a gateway between an Internet telephony system and a conventional PSTN system.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
[0022] FIG. 1 is a simplified block diagram illustrating the architecture of the present system for performing unified messaging services in connection with an Internet telephony system. The system as shown illustrates components which are part of a local telephony exchange or PBX. The system preferably operates in accordance with the session initiation protocol (SIP) for signaling and control functions. The system will generally include a large number of telephony endpoints, which preferably take the form of SIP protocol user agents. For illustrative purposes, only two such user agents 102 , 104 are illustrated. The user agents 102 , 104 can take on many forms, such as stand alone SIP telephony devices, which are available from a number of sources or SIP client software operating on a conventional personal computer, such as the SIPC software available for license from Columbia University, New York, N.Y. Suitable SIP user agents are described in international patent publication WO 00/76158 entitled “Network Telephony Appliance and System for Inter/Intranet Telephony” published on Dec. 14, 2000, which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety.
[0023] The SIP user agents 102 , 104 are coupled to a network 106 , such as an Ethernet network. The network can also be the Internet with user agents grouped under a common domain. The user agents 102 , 104 can access one another directly via network 106 (internally, peer-to-peer), from a conventional telephony system via a SIP-PSTN gateway (externally) ( FIG. 3 ), or externally from another internet domain.
[0024] The system generally includes a signaling server 108 which responds to call requests from a SIP user agent 102 , 104 and identifies the location of the called party. Preferably, the signaling server 108 is a SIP server which can perform proxy and redirect signaling operations. In the SIP protocol, each telephony endpoint can be referred to as a node and has a specific SIP address. By employing this specific address, any node acting as a calling party can directly initiate a call session with any other node on the network. The signaling server 108 can be accessed by the various user agents 102 , 104 on the network to provide enhanced services, such as a directory service, call forwarding, call branching, call messaging and the like. For example, a calling party wishing to initiate a call to JOHN SMITH can enter the SIP address for that person if it is known, such as sip:[email protected]. If, on the other hand, the calling party does not know the SIP address of the party, the calling party can contact the signaling server 108 with a request to begin a session with JOHN SMITH.
[0025] The signaling server includes databases with registration information for various parties and can return the SIP address to the calling party or forward the call request to the proper SIP address of the called party. In addition, the called party may have multiple sip addresses such as john.smith@home, john.smith@office, john.smith@lab and the like. The signaling server can provide a session initiation signal to each of these addresses and establish a connection between the calling party and the first contacted node that responds to the initiation request. Similarly, parties can periodically register with the redirect server to indicate the current SIP address where they can be contacted (call forwarding feature). In general, when a call is initiated, the signaling server 108 either proxies, redirects or rejects the call initiation message. Signaling servers 108 , such as SIP proxy servers are known. A suitable SIP proxy server can be implemented using the SIPD software available from Columbia University, New York, N.Y.
[0026] The system 100 also includes a messaging server 110 which is coupled to the signaling server 108 via the network 106 . The messaging server 110 provides command and control functions with respect to the voice mail and other messaging features of the system 100 . In the case of a system operating in accordance with the SIP protocol, the messaging server 110 includes a SIP address and operates in accordance with the protocol. In general, the messaging server 110 will be responsive to commands which are generated by the signaling server 108 in response to incoming calls or requests to access or manage messages.
[0027] In addition to the messaging server 110 , at least one (two illustrated) separate media server 112 A, 112 B is also provided. In contrast to the messaging server 110 which provides control functionality, especially in regard to routing of calls, the media servers 112 A, 112 B primarily operate to provide prompts or outgoing messages to callers, to record messages, to provide notification of received messages and to provide for the retrieval of messages in various media formats. The storage of multimedia messages for a large number of users can involve large storage capacity and bandwidth. To distribute this system loading, multiple media servers 112 A, 112 B can be distributed throughout the system. The plurality of media servers 112 can be responsive to a single messaging server 110 . Preferably, the media servers 112 support streaming media capability and protocols, such as the RTSP protocol.
[0028] As noted in connection with FIG. 1 , the media servers are storage locations for the multimedia mails and messages. Multiple media servers 112 A and 112 B can be deployed within a given system (generally defined by a domain in SIP based systems) in order to distribute system loading and also provide for system scalability.
[0029] Message retrieval from the media servers 112 can take place in several ways. For example, a known RTSP based media player can be used to directly play recorded voice messages stored on the streaming media server 112 A. For example a URI such as rtsp://rtsp.mediaserver.ext/useragent_name/inbox/message_#.au can be used to retrieve the message identified as message_# from a user's inbox on the streaming media server identified by the term mediaserver.ext. In addition, the user agent can have the message forwarded to her current location via e-mail. A preferred method of message retrieval is to provide access and management of a users inbox via a webpage using conventional web browser software, such as Netscape Navigator® or Microsoft Explorer®. This is illustrated and described below in connection with FIG. 4 .
[0030] The operation of the system 100 of FIG. 1 will be described in connection with an exemplary call session set forth in the flow chart of FIG. 2 . Referring to FIG. 2 , SIP user agent 1 102 attempts to place a call to SIP user agent 2 104 (step 202 ). While the SIP protocol provides for direct peer-to-peer calls, it is assumed that the call is routed through the signaling server 108 via the network 106 . The signaling server 108 generates a “forked proxy” by which a call request is routed to both the messaging server 110 as well as the current registered location of user agent 2 104 (step 204 ). The call request will result in the user agent 2 providing a ring or other notification of an incoming call request. If in step 206 , the SIP user agent answers within a predetermined time, t, the proxy server 108 receives a signal that the call was accepted and cancels the call request that was sent to the voicemail server 110 . The signaling server 108 then sends a response to user agent 1 102 to initiate the call session in a manner known in the art (step 207 ).
[0031] If in step 206 the user agent 2 104 does not provide a signal that the call was accepted within a predetermined time period t, such as ten seconds, a message condition occurs and the messaging server 110 generates a setup request an assigned media server 112 A (step 208 ). A message condition can also occur based on user agent preferences or availability. For example, a user agent may register with the signaling server 108 as unavailable to certain callers or at certain times of day. The setup request can include a request for playback of a welcome message and a separate request to record the an incoming voice mail message. Following the setup request to the media server 112 A, the messaging server 110 provides a signal to the proxy server 108 to accept the call (step 210 ). The signaling server 108 cancels the call request to user agent 2 104 (step 212 ) and provides a response to user agent 1 directing user agent 1 to the media server 112 A (step 214 ). Once routed to the media server 112 A, the operator of user agent 1 can be directed to leave a message by the media server providing a recorded greeting (step 216 ).
[0032] Upon completion of the message, the caller, user agent 1 102 , terminates the call session and the signaling server 108 provides a signal to the media server 112 to stop recording. The messaging server 110 provides a notification, such as by e-mail, that a message has been received (step 218 ). Generally, the notification provides a link, such as a uniform resource locator (URL), directing the operator of SIP user agent 2 to the location on the media server where the message is stored. By providing such a link, rather than the message itself, the user can access the message remotely, such as by accessing the media server 112 via the Internet. In addition, by storing the message on the media server and providing a link to the message, system bandwidth and loading can be minimized. To recall the message, the user enters the link into an appropriate web browser and accesses the message stored on the media server 112 (step 220 ). Alternatively, the message can be packaged as an e-mail attachment and forwarded to the user.
[0033] As an alternative to the “forked proxy” approach to messaging described in connection with FIG. 2 , redirection to the messaging server 110 can be programmed directly into the user agent receiving the call. Yet another alternative is the use of a script, such as the call processing language (CPL) script which is illustrated in FIG. 3 . Such an approach provides the user with the most control over call routing. For example, a script can be written to selectively route calls to the messaging server 110 based on the time of day, the status of the user agent (i.e., busy), the caller address and the like. While the CPL script approach to routing offers the highest level of flexibility, messaging server 110 and signaling server 108 are required to support CPL to provide this enhanced functionality.
[0034] FIG. 4 is an illustration of a user interface of a system for managing and retrieving messages stored on a media server. The mailbox management system generally organizes received messages in the form of user accessible folders, such as “inbox,” “sent items,” and the like in a manner which is commonly used in connection with e-mail management programs, such as Microsoft Outlook®. Referring to FIG. 4 , each user can have a message inbox where multimedia messages can be stored including text, graphics, video and audio messages. The message management system will generally display received messages by date and sender and can display other information about the messages such as subject and message size. Within the subject, the type of message or a message type extension can be provided. Suitable unified message management software includes the SIPUM software, which is available from Columbia University, New York, N.Y.
[0035] FIG. 5 is a block diagram illustrating an extension of the system of FIG. 1 to conventional PSTN telephony systems. Telephony nodes, either traditional telephony endpoints or SIP user agents, operating outside the network 106 access the signaling server 108 via a SIP-PSTN gateway 504 . The SIP-PSTN gateway 504 includes an interface to network 106 as well as an interface to the conventional PSTN system 502 . Callers from the PSTN can place and receive calls to SIP user agents registered with the signaling server 108 via the SIP-PSTN gateway 504 . The use of a SIP-PSTN gateway 504 between a SIP based telephony network and a traditional PSTN system is known in the art.
[0036] To provide access and control of the media servers 112 , a DTME-RTSP translator 406 is also provided. The SIP-PSTN gateway 508 preferably converts the DTMF tone signals into digital packet data, such as in the RTP protocol, for transport on the network 106 . The RTP protocol packets are passed to the DTMF-RTSP translator 506 which receives the RTP encoded DTMF signaling tones from conventional telephony devices and provides corresponding commands in an RTSP protocol format which can be decoded by the media server 112 . For example, a user of a conventional telephone handset within PSTN system 502 can access an inbox stored on the media server 112 and perform limited management functions using the keypad of the handset for numeric command entry. For example, the user can depress key #1 to hear new messages, key #4 to replay a message, key #7 to delete a message and key #9 to save a message, and the like. Of course, various commands can be assigned to various numeric entries and this set of commands is merely one such example.
[0037] An additional feature in the present system is call reclaiming. Call reclaiming refers to the ability of a called party to pick up a call after a message recording process has begun and provide the option of allowing the parties to terminate recording and initiate a normal call session. Referring back to FIG. 1 , in the present architecture, message recording is remote from the user agent and, therefore, signaling methods must be in place to intervene in the recording process between a calling user agent and the media server 112 . Several methods can be provided using the SIP protocol to achieve this. For example, after a call is routed to a media server 112 and the original call request to user agent 2 is cancelled, the media server can send an INVITE command to the user agent 2 104 . If an operator of user agent 2 104 accepts the INVITE, user agent 2 can join a three way conference with the media server 112 and the calling party. This can be followed by the media server 112 generating a SIP BYE command to drop from the conference.
[0038] The present systems and methods provide a network telephony architecture for delivering unified messaging services. The use of media servers which are separate from the signaling servers provides enhanced system flexibility and scalability. In this way a common signaling server can operate with a number of media servers to optimize system loading and bandwidth considerations. The use of the SIP protocol provides an open architecture approach which tends to be “media neutral”.
[0039] The invention has been described in connection with certain preferred embodiments thereof. It will be appreciated that those skilled in the art can modify or alter such embodiments without departing from the scope and spirit of the invention which is set forth in the appended claims. | A network telephony system is provided which enables unified messaging services. The system generally includes at least one user agent operatively coupled to a data network and a signalling server operatively coupled to the data network. The user agents are telephony endpoints, such as standalone Internet telephony appliances or personal computers with appropriate telephony software. A messaging server is provided which is operatively coupled to the data network and is responsive to the signaling server. The system also includes a media server which is operatively coupled to the network and includes computer data storage media for storing message files. The media server is responsive to the messaging server and, on occurrence of a messgae condition, is directly accessible to a calling party to store a message file for subsequent retrieval by a called party. | Summarize the key points of the given patent document. | [
"CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS [0001] This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser.",
"No. 10/333,352, filed Jan. 17, 2003, which is a national stage of International Application PCT/US01/41694, filed Aug. 13, 2001, which claims priority to U.S. Provisional Application Ser.",
"No. 60/224,332, filed Aug. 11, 2000, each of which is incorporated by reference in its entirety herein.",
"FIELD OF THE INVENTION [0002] The present invention relates generally to the field of Internet and intranet telephony and more particularly relates to a network telecommunications system for performing unified messaging services.",
"BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION [0003] The Internet has evolved into an essential communication tool for millions of users in the business, technical and educational fields.",
"In this regard, a growing use of the Internet relates to Internet telephony which provides a number of advantages over conventional circuit-switched network controlled by a separate signaling network.",
"[0004] An important feature in most modern telephony systems is voice messaging.",
"An extension of voice messaging is unified messaging, where access to messaging services in various media is provided in a common platform.",
"For example, the ability to converge voice mail, e-mail, video messaging, instant messaging services and the like within a common system as part of the telephony network provides a single platform for users to conveniently access such services.",
"[0005] Voicemail service is generally provided by the local private branch exchange (PBX) or local exchange carrier.",
"Such current voice mail systems are typically closed architectures.",
"As a result, it is often difficult to perform simple operations, such as forwarding voicemail outside the local PBX, filtering or sorting of messages.",
"Thus, an open architecture which facilitates simple data exchange within and without of the local telephony exchange would be desirable.",
"[0006] The session initiation protocol (SIP) is gaining in popularity as a standard signaling protocol for use in Internet telephony.",
"As this popularity grows, it would be desirable to provide a system architecture and method for providing unified messaging services on a SIP based system.",
"In addition, the real time streaming protocol (RTSP) has been proposed as a standard transport protocol for multimedia service, such as video, audio and mixed media files, over the Internet.",
"A unified messaging system which employs SIP as the signaling protocol along with RTSP for message storage and delivery can offer many benefits over known messaging systems.",
"SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION [0007] In accordance with the present invention, a network telephony system is provided which enables unified messaging services.",
"The system generally includes a data network, at least one user agent operatively coupled to the data network and a signaling server operatively coupled to the data network.",
"The user agents are telephony endpoints, such as standalone Internet telephony appliances or personal computers with appropriate telephony software.",
"A messaging server is provided which is operatively coupled to the data network and is responsive to the signaling server.",
"The system also includes a media server which is operatively coupled to the network and includes computer data storage media for storing message files.",
"The media server is responsive to the messaging server and, on occurrence of a message condition, is directly accessible to a calling party to receive a recorded message file on the media server or to store a message file for subsequent retrieval by a called party.",
"[0008] Preferably, the signaling server includes a database of network addresses, such as session initiation protocol (SIP) addresses, for registered user agents.",
"On receipt of a call request from a calling party, the signaling server generates a call request to the address of the called user agent stored in the database and also generates a call request to a network address of the messaging server.",
"The signaling server can cancel the call request to the messaging server in the event the call request to the called user agent is accepted.",
"The signaling server can also cancel the call request to the called user agent in the event a message condition is detected.",
"One such message condition is the passage of a predetermined time period from the initiation of the call request.",
"[0009] In one embodiment, after a message condition is detected, an invite request can be provided to the called user agent address while a message is being provided to the media server.",
"By accepting the invite request, the called user agent can reclaim the call from the media server.",
"[0010] When a message condition is detected, the media server provides a stored greeting message to the calling party as a prompt to leave a message.",
"The media server preferably supports streaming media and operates in accordance with the real time streaming media protocol (RTSP).",
"In response to a calling party storing a message on the media server, the media server can also provide a notification to a called party that a message is available.",
"The notification can take the form of an electronic mail transmission which includes the address where the called party can retrieve the message.",
"Alternatively, the notification can include a copy of the message as a file attachment.",
"[0011] An alternate embodiment in accordance with the present invention is a network telephony system providing unified messaging services which includes at least two media servers distributed within the system and operating in response to a single messaging server.",
"[0012] Another network telephony system providing unified messaging services in accordance with the present invention includes a digital data network and a gateway server computer interposed between a public switched telephony network (PSTN) and the digital data network.",
"A signaling server is operatively coupled to the digital data network.",
"A messaging server is also operatively coupled to the digital data network and is responsive to the signaling server.",
"A media server, including computer data storage media for storing message files is also provided.",
"A DTMF translator is interposed between to the gateway server and the media server to provide access to the message files stored on the media server using DTMF signals, such as from a standard telephone handset.",
"[0013] Also in accordance with the present invention is a method for providing messaging services in a data network telephony system.",
"The method includes receiving a call request from a first user agent to a second user agent, where the user agents are telephony nodes or endpoints.",
"In response to the call request, additional call requests are generated, generally by a signaling server, to both the second user agent and to a messaging server associated with the second user agent.",
"In the event a message condition is detected, the method establishes a connection between the first user agent and a media server to provide message storage on the media server.",
"If no message condition is detected, the call request to the messaging server is cancelled.",
"[0014] The message condition can be the expiration of a predetermined time period following the generation of the call request.",
"The message condition can also be provided based on registration information or status information regarding the called party, such as a do not disturb indication, or a command or rule to forward certain calls to the messaging server.",
"[0015] The method also provides for call reclaiming.",
"In this regard, when a calling party is recording a message on the media server, an invite request can be provided to the called party.",
"If accepted, the called party can enter the call session and terminate the recording.",
"BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS [0016] For a complete understanding of the present invention and the advantages thereof, reference is now made to the following description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in which like reference numbers indicate like features and wherein: [0017] FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a system for providing unified messaging services in a SIP protocol telephony system;",
"[0018] FIG. 2 is a flow chart describing an example of voice mail services being provided in accordance with the system of FIG. 1 ;",
"[0019] FIG. 3 is an exemplary call programming language (CPL) script for selectively routing calls to a messaging server;",
"[0020] FIG. 4 is a pictorial representation of a user interface for a message management system suitable for use in connection with the present systems and methods;",
"and [0021] FIG. 5 is a block diagram of a system in accordance with the present invention including a gateway between an Internet telephony system and a conventional PSTN system.",
"DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [0022] FIG. 1 is a simplified block diagram illustrating the architecture of the present system for performing unified messaging services in connection with an Internet telephony system.",
"The system as shown illustrates components which are part of a local telephony exchange or PBX.",
"The system preferably operates in accordance with the session initiation protocol (SIP) for signaling and control functions.",
"The system will generally include a large number of telephony endpoints, which preferably take the form of SIP protocol user agents.",
"For illustrative purposes, only two such user agents 102 , 104 are illustrated.",
"The user agents 102 , 104 can take on many forms, such as stand alone SIP telephony devices, which are available from a number of sources or SIP client software operating on a conventional personal computer, such as the SIPC software available for license from Columbia University, New York, N.Y. Suitable SIP user agents are described in international patent publication WO 00/76158 entitled “Network Telephony Appliance and System for Inter/Intranet Telephony”",
"published on Dec. 14, 2000, which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety.",
"[0023] The SIP user agents 102 , 104 are coupled to a network 106 , such as an Ethernet network.",
"The network can also be the Internet with user agents grouped under a common domain.",
"The user agents 102 , 104 can access one another directly via network 106 (internally, peer-to-peer), from a conventional telephony system via a SIP-PSTN gateway (externally) ( FIG. 3 ), or externally from another internet domain.",
"[0024] The system generally includes a signaling server 108 which responds to call requests from a SIP user agent 102 , 104 and identifies the location of the called party.",
"Preferably, the signaling server 108 is a SIP server which can perform proxy and redirect signaling operations.",
"In the SIP protocol, each telephony endpoint can be referred to as a node and has a specific SIP address.",
"By employing this specific address, any node acting as a calling party can directly initiate a call session with any other node on the network.",
"The signaling server 108 can be accessed by the various user agents 102 , 104 on the network to provide enhanced services, such as a directory service, call forwarding, call branching, call messaging and the like.",
"For example, a calling party wishing to initiate a call to JOHN SMITH can enter the SIP address for that person if it is known, such as sip:john.",
"[email protected].",
"If, on the other hand, the calling party does not know the SIP address of the party, the calling party can contact the signaling server 108 with a request to begin a session with JOHN SMITH.",
"[0025] The signaling server includes databases with registration information for various parties and can return the SIP address to the calling party or forward the call request to the proper SIP address of the called party.",
"In addition, the called party may have multiple sip addresses such as john.",
"smith@home, john.",
"smith@office, john.",
"smith@lab and the like.",
"The signaling server can provide a session initiation signal to each of these addresses and establish a connection between the calling party and the first contacted node that responds to the initiation request.",
"Similarly, parties can periodically register with the redirect server to indicate the current SIP address where they can be contacted (call forwarding feature).",
"In general, when a call is initiated, the signaling server 108 either proxies, redirects or rejects the call initiation message.",
"Signaling servers 108 , such as SIP proxy servers are known.",
"A suitable SIP proxy server can be implemented using the SIPD software available from Columbia University, New York, N.Y. [0026] The system 100 also includes a messaging server 110 which is coupled to the signaling server 108 via the network 106 .",
"The messaging server 110 provides command and control functions with respect to the voice mail and other messaging features of the system 100 .",
"In the case of a system operating in accordance with the SIP protocol, the messaging server 110 includes a SIP address and operates in accordance with the protocol.",
"In general, the messaging server 110 will be responsive to commands which are generated by the signaling server 108 in response to incoming calls or requests to access or manage messages.",
"[0027] In addition to the messaging server 110 , at least one (two illustrated) separate media server 112 A, 112 B is also provided.",
"In contrast to the messaging server 110 which provides control functionality, especially in regard to routing of calls, the media servers 112 A, 112 B primarily operate to provide prompts or outgoing messages to callers, to record messages, to provide notification of received messages and to provide for the retrieval of messages in various media formats.",
"The storage of multimedia messages for a large number of users can involve large storage capacity and bandwidth.",
"To distribute this system loading, multiple media servers 112 A, 112 B can be distributed throughout the system.",
"The plurality of media servers 112 can be responsive to a single messaging server 110 .",
"Preferably, the media servers 112 support streaming media capability and protocols, such as the RTSP protocol.",
"[0028] As noted in connection with FIG. 1 , the media servers are storage locations for the multimedia mails and messages.",
"Multiple media servers 112 A and 112 B can be deployed within a given system (generally defined by a domain in SIP based systems) in order to distribute system loading and also provide for system scalability.",
"[0029] Message retrieval from the media servers 112 can take place in several ways.",
"For example, a known RTSP based media player can be used to directly play recorded voice messages stored on the streaming media server 112 A. For example a URI such as rtsp://rtsp.mediaserver.",
"ext/useragent_name/inbox/message_#.",
"au can be used to retrieve the message identified as message_# from a user's inbox on the streaming media server identified by the term mediaserver.",
"ext.",
"In addition, the user agent can have the message forwarded to her current location via e-mail.",
"A preferred method of message retrieval is to provide access and management of a users inbox via a webpage using conventional web browser software, such as Netscape Navigator® or Microsoft Explorer®.",
"This is illustrated and described below in connection with FIG. 4 .",
"[0030] The operation of the system 100 of FIG. 1 will be described in connection with an exemplary call session set forth in the flow chart of FIG. 2 .",
"Referring to FIG. 2 , SIP user agent 1 102 attempts to place a call to SIP user agent 2 104 (step 202 ).",
"While the SIP protocol provides for direct peer-to-peer calls, it is assumed that the call is routed through the signaling server 108 via the network 106 .",
"The signaling server 108 generates a “forked proxy”",
"by which a call request is routed to both the messaging server 110 as well as the current registered location of user agent 2 104 (step 204 ).",
"The call request will result in the user agent 2 providing a ring or other notification of an incoming call request.",
"If in step 206 , the SIP user agent answers within a predetermined time, t, the proxy server 108 receives a signal that the call was accepted and cancels the call request that was sent to the voicemail server 110 .",
"The signaling server 108 then sends a response to user agent 1 102 to initiate the call session in a manner known in the art (step 207 ).",
"[0031] If in step 206 the user agent 2 104 does not provide a signal that the call was accepted within a predetermined time period t, such as ten seconds, a message condition occurs and the messaging server 110 generates a setup request an assigned media server 112 A (step 208 ).",
"A message condition can also occur based on user agent preferences or availability.",
"For example, a user agent may register with the signaling server 108 as unavailable to certain callers or at certain times of day.",
"The setup request can include a request for playback of a welcome message and a separate request to record the an incoming voice mail message.",
"Following the setup request to the media server 112 A, the messaging server 110 provides a signal to the proxy server 108 to accept the call (step 210 ).",
"The signaling server 108 cancels the call request to user agent 2 104 (step 212 ) and provides a response to user agent 1 directing user agent 1 to the media server 112 A (step 214 ).",
"Once routed to the media server 112 A, the operator of user agent 1 can be directed to leave a message by the media server providing a recorded greeting (step 216 ).",
"[0032] Upon completion of the message, the caller, user agent 1 102 , terminates the call session and the signaling server 108 provides a signal to the media server 112 to stop recording.",
"The messaging server 110 provides a notification, such as by e-mail, that a message has been received (step 218 ).",
"Generally, the notification provides a link, such as a uniform resource locator (URL), directing the operator of SIP user agent 2 to the location on the media server where the message is stored.",
"By providing such a link, rather than the message itself, the user can access the message remotely, such as by accessing the media server 112 via the Internet.",
"In addition, by storing the message on the media server and providing a link to the message, system bandwidth and loading can be minimized.",
"To recall the message, the user enters the link into an appropriate web browser and accesses the message stored on the media server 112 (step 220 ).",
"Alternatively, the message can be packaged as an e-mail attachment and forwarded to the user.",
"[0033] As an alternative to the “forked proxy”",
"approach to messaging described in connection with FIG. 2 , redirection to the messaging server 110 can be programmed directly into the user agent receiving the call.",
"Yet another alternative is the use of a script, such as the call processing language (CPL) script which is illustrated in FIG. 3 .",
"Such an approach provides the user with the most control over call routing.",
"For example, a script can be written to selectively route calls to the messaging server 110 based on the time of day, the status of the user agent (i.e., busy), the caller address and the like.",
"While the CPL script approach to routing offers the highest level of flexibility, messaging server 110 and signaling server 108 are required to support CPL to provide this enhanced functionality.",
"[0034] FIG. 4 is an illustration of a user interface of a system for managing and retrieving messages stored on a media server.",
"The mailbox management system generally organizes received messages in the form of user accessible folders, such as “inbox,” “sent items,” and the like in a manner which is commonly used in connection with e-mail management programs, such as Microsoft Outlook®.",
"Referring to FIG. 4 , each user can have a message inbox where multimedia messages can be stored including text, graphics, video and audio messages.",
"The message management system will generally display received messages by date and sender and can display other information about the messages such as subject and message size.",
"Within the subject, the type of message or a message type extension can be provided.",
"Suitable unified message management software includes the SIPUM software, which is available from Columbia University, New York, N.Y. [0035] FIG. 5 is a block diagram illustrating an extension of the system of FIG. 1 to conventional PSTN telephony systems.",
"Telephony nodes, either traditional telephony endpoints or SIP user agents, operating outside the network 106 access the signaling server 108 via a SIP-PSTN gateway 504 .",
"The SIP-PSTN gateway 504 includes an interface to network 106 as well as an interface to the conventional PSTN system 502 .",
"Callers from the PSTN can place and receive calls to SIP user agents registered with the signaling server 108 via the SIP-PSTN gateway 504 .",
"The use of a SIP-PSTN gateway 504 between a SIP based telephony network and a traditional PSTN system is known in the art.",
"[0036] To provide access and control of the media servers 112 , a DTME-RTSP translator 406 is also provided.",
"The SIP-PSTN gateway 508 preferably converts the DTMF tone signals into digital packet data, such as in the RTP protocol, for transport on the network 106 .",
"The RTP protocol packets are passed to the DTMF-RTSP translator 506 which receives the RTP encoded DTMF signaling tones from conventional telephony devices and provides corresponding commands in an RTSP protocol format which can be decoded by the media server 112 .",
"For example, a user of a conventional telephone handset within PSTN system 502 can access an inbox stored on the media server 112 and perform limited management functions using the keypad of the handset for numeric command entry.",
"For example, the user can depress key #1 to hear new messages, key #4 to replay a message, key #7 to delete a message and key #9 to save a message, and the like.",
"Of course, various commands can be assigned to various numeric entries and this set of commands is merely one such example.",
"[0037] An additional feature in the present system is call reclaiming.",
"Call reclaiming refers to the ability of a called party to pick up a call after a message recording process has begun and provide the option of allowing the parties to terminate recording and initiate a normal call session.",
"Referring back to FIG. 1 , in the present architecture, message recording is remote from the user agent and, therefore, signaling methods must be in place to intervene in the recording process between a calling user agent and the media server 112 .",
"Several methods can be provided using the SIP protocol to achieve this.",
"For example, after a call is routed to a media server 112 and the original call request to user agent 2 is cancelled, the media server can send an INVITE command to the user agent 2 104 .",
"If an operator of user agent 2 104 accepts the INVITE, user agent 2 can join a three way conference with the media server 112 and the calling party.",
"This can be followed by the media server 112 generating a SIP BYE command to drop from the conference.",
"[0038] The present systems and methods provide a network telephony architecture for delivering unified messaging services.",
"The use of media servers which are separate from the signaling servers provides enhanced system flexibility and scalability.",
"In this way a common signaling server can operate with a number of media servers to optimize system loading and bandwidth considerations.",
"The use of the SIP protocol provides an open architecture approach which tends to be “media neutral.”",
"[0039] The invention has been described in connection with certain preferred embodiments thereof.",
"It will be appreciated that those skilled in the art can modify or alter such embodiments without departing from the scope and spirit of the invention which is set forth in the appended claims."
] |
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention pertains to improvements in magnetic field sensing compasses utilizing magnetic azimuth or flux valve pickoffs in which sensed mutually perpendicular components of the earth's field are nulled by the closed loop feed back of nulling currents into respective pairs of flux valve sensing windings.
2. Description of the Prior Art
A known flux valve earth's field directional pickoff is a structure having a cooperating equiangular Y-shaped laminated core, an excitation winding, and sensing windings surrounding and coupled to each of the three legs of the core and disclosed widely in the literature, as in the O. E. Esval, C. F. Fragola, and L. F. Beach U.S. Pat. No. 2,383,461 for a "Flux Valve Compass System," issued Aug. 28, 1945, and in the M. C. Depp U.S. Pat. No. 2,852,859 for "Flux Valve Compensating System," issued Sept. 23, 1958, both parents being assigned to Sperry Rand Corporation. Such flux valves are normally mounted with the plane of the core disposed horizontally so that they measure the earth's total horizontal magnetic field, if properly compensated for any error effects produced by spurious magnetic fields associated with the structure of the craft on which the flux valve is mounted. Such flux valves are directly suited to use in open loop three-wire selsyn data transmission systems either for slaving a directional gyroscope, or for providing a direct analog representation or indication of the angle of a craft longitudinal axis relative to magnetic north at a receiving device. However, such open-loop systems suffer various disadvantages. For example, the output of the Y-shaped flux valve is rich in harmonics and accurate demodulation is difficult, especially for low signal levels. Craft vibrations also produce spurious flux valve outputs. Conversion of the alternating currents from the flux valve into unidirectional sine and cosine signals of sufficient accuracy as often required in navigation equipment is difficult.
Closed loop compass systems were then realized to overcome some of the foregoing difficulties of the prior art, such as the compass systems of the D. H. Baker, F. H. Kallio U.S. Pat. No. 3,678,593 for a "Compass System and Components Thereof Having Automatic Field Compensation," issued July 25, 1972, and of the J. R. Erspamer U.S. Pat. No. 3,942,257 for "Index Error Correction for Flux Valve Heading Repeater System," issued Mar. 9, 1976, both patents being assigned to Sperry Rand Corporation. In these systems, the output of a three-legged flux valve is converted into direct current signals representative of the components of the sensed earth's field vector. These currents provide the useful compass output signals and are also fed back into the legs of the flux valve in a direction which substantially nulls the earth's field vector. Thus, the compass operates about a null condition in a closed loop manner affording improved directional accuracy particularly as discussed in the aforementioned Baker et al patent.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention also provides the benefits of servo operation with improved linearity about an error nulled condition and provides an inexpensive, compact compass system cooperating with a miniature flux valve having flat toroidal form. The flux valve employed is equipped with two cooperating pairs of pickoff coils so that the earth's magnetic field is readily resolved into components parallel and perpendicular to the flux valve directional reference axis, the two sets of pickoff coils being mounted orthogonally and diametrically on the toroidal flux valve core. The coil configuration permits automatic cancellation of bias effects which, if present, would cause undesired one and two cycle error generation. Both the parallel and perpendicular components of the earth's field are generated in the same flux valve and undergo time shared manipulation in the same compass channel, so that dual channel gain errors are eliminated. Furthermore, both the parallel and perpendicular components of the earth's magnetic field are found without physically moving or rotating the flux valve, enabling size, cost, and power drain to be reduced while increasing reliability.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG. 1 is a plan view in partial cross section of the flux valve dual-component sensor of the present invention.
FIG. 2 is a wiring diagram illustrating the novel compass processor system cooperating with one of the two pairs of sensor coils of the flux valve of FIG. 1 and showing electrical components and their interconnections.
FIG. 3 is a wiring diagram illustrating a novel application of the invention in a time sharing system for measuring orthogonal components of the earth's magnetic field and for calculating precise magnetic heading data, certain errors being inherently eliminated in the computing process.
DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
The miniature flux valve employed in the novel compass system, unlike the Y-shaped core flux valve, employs the annular structure of FIG. 1. The core 1 of the valve 15 consists of a single thin apertured disk fabricated of a high permeability, low hysteresis iron-nickel alloy such as the alloy available from Magnetics, Inc. of Butler, Pennsylvania under the trade name Supermalloy. In one embodiment of the invention, core 1 has an outer diameter of about 2.9 inches and an inner diameter of about 2.7 inches, being about 4 mils thick. An inner excitation winding 2 having, for example, 700 turns and terminals 3, is wound continuously around core 1; a protective or insulating tape or other material may be used as at 8 to cover the multi-turn excitation coil 2. Core 1 is preferably energized by applying an alternating current through coil 2 so that core 1 is magnetically saturated twice per cycle. With respect to the reference direction indicated by arrow 9, a pair of cooperating equal rectangular pickoff coils 5, 7 is disposed in mutual diametral relation at right angles to core 1 and in the plane of arrow 9. A second pair of cooperating pickoff coils 4, 6 lies perpendicular to core 1 and to reference direction 9. Coils 4, 6, like coils 5, 7 are similar, all having the same number of turns (100, for example). Accordingly, the voltages induced in coils 4 and 6 by a periodically varying exciting flux generated by excitation winding 2 are equal in magnitude in the absence of any earth's or other magnetic field. Coils 4 and 6 are connected as shown in FIG. 1 in series opposition, so that the resultant voltage between the common lead 12 and the 90° output lead 10 is zero in the absence of any externally applied magnetic field, such as the earth's field. In a generally similar manner, coils 5 and 7 are also connected in series opposition, so that the resultant voltage between the common lead 12 and the 0° output lead 11 is also zero in the absence of an externally applied magnetic field.
If a unidirectional magnetic field having a component in the direction of reference direction 9 is present, differential voltages induced in coils 4, 6 will have a frequency twice that of the exciting flux and a phase corresponding to the sense of the applied field along the direction of arrow 9. In other words, series connected coils 4, 6 produce a voltage at terminals 10, 12 varying sinusoidally in amplitude as a function of the angle between the direction of the applied unidirectional magnetic field and the orientation of the plane of coils 4, 6. The output on leads 11, 12 of the cooperating coils 5, 7 is similar, but shifted by 90° with respect to the 0° output of coils 5, 7. Flux valves of the general type shown in FIG. 1 are well known in the art as advantageous because they do not accidentally become magnetized and are very thin; they are described generally in the U.S. Pat. No. 2,389,146 to C. F. Frogola, M. C. Depp, and R. S. Curry, issued Nov. 20, 1945 for a "Flux Valve" and assigned to Sperry Rand Corporation.
The excitation field produced by winding 2 drives core 1 well into positive and then into negative saturation once each cycle of its excitation current. When the unidirectional earth's field is present, that field adds to the alternating excitation, causing core 1 to go into saturation sooner or later according to the polarity of the earth's field than it would go into saturation in the absence of the earth's field. In effect, this operation time-shifts the voltages found in the pairs of pickoff coils so that they no longer cancel when the earth's field is present, ultimately to produce a resultant unidirectional voltage directly proportional to the earth's field.
For producing the desired conversion, the apparatus of FIG. 2 is employed. Use of the invention is shown here with a flux valve 15 having two diametrically cooperating opposed pickoff coils 4, 6. The companion coils 5, 7 may be similarly operated on a time sharing basis with respect to junctions 70, 71, as will be further discussed in connection with FIG. 3.
Returning to FIG. 2, stable oscillator 96 acts as a synchronizer for the system operating, for example at 4 KHz and providing signals via branching lead 97 to divider 74 and to demodulator 51. Considering first the current path including frequency divider 74, it feeds a signal at, say 2 KHz, to the input of a conventional driver amplifier 75, whose output is fed through lead 76 to a conventional chopper circuit 94. The direct current level fed from junction 59 is by virtue of a source (not shown) coupled to terminal 58 and reference voltage generator 56, substantially a constant level signal and is used to stabilize the amplitude of the output of chopper 94, this level being chopped at the frequency of the output 76 of driver 75. Blocking capacitor 93 interposed between chopper 94 and integrating amplifier 92 supplies the latter with the bipolar pulse train 93a. The effect of integrating amplifier 92 and coupling capacitor 91 is to produce the regular bipolar triangular wave 91a. The latter is supplied through a conventional voltage-to-current converter 90 and resistor 89 to the excitation winding 2 of flux valve 15, retaining its bipolar triangular wave form at the converter output.
For providing a useful compass output, as at terminal 57, and for feed back cancellation of the earth's field within flux valve 15, the apparatus in the upper portion of FIG. 2 is employed. For this purpose, the double frequency voltage present across cooperating coils 4, 6 when the earth's field is present is coupled through junctions 70, 71 and junctions 36, 37, 73 across the input resistor 72, whence it is coupled by blocking capacitor 38 to the input of a.c. amplifier 39. The output of amplifier 39 is coupled by blocking capacitor 50 to demodulator 51. This input to circuit 51 is in the form of a frequency doubled (4 KHz) error signal, so that the synchronizing oscillator 96 output is directly coupled by lead 97 to enable performance of the demodulation function of circuit 51. The demodulated direct current error signal is now coupled to integrating amplifier 53, which rapidly produces an asymptotic constant voltage level 55a representative of the angle between north and the flux valve index 9 on leads 30 and 55 and at output terminal 57.
The integrated signal 55a, in the instance illustrated, is the cosine of the earth's field direction and may be supplied via lead 30 and resistor 29 to one input of a voltage-to-current converter 31; the second input of converter 31 is coupled through resistor 32 to ground and to junctions 36 and 70. A power divider resistance network 34, 35 couples the output of converter 31 through resistor 34 and lead 30 to the first input of converter 31 and also couples the output of converter 31 through resistor 35 to junction 36. Terminal 36 is also coupled via lead 33 through resistor 32 to ground. In this general manner, the integral of the direct current error signal at the output of integrating amplifier 53 is fed back through cooperating pickoff coils 4, 6 in such a way as to cancel substantially the effect of the earth's field flux within flux valve 15. The output of integrating amplifier 53 may furthermore be connected as a useful direction-indicating signal to a conventional voltage-to-frequency converter 80, also employing the reference voltage at junction 59 from generator 56 for scale stabilizing purposes. The output of converter 80 may then be used for navigation or flight control purposes, as in a conventional digital processing system 81. It will be readily understood that before the circuit is first placed into operation, integrating amplifier 53 will be placed in its initial state by rendering switch 52 conductive, as by applying an appropriate activating potential to the switch control terminal 52a or by grounding the appropriate one of the terminals of amplifier 53 according to conventional practice.
The apparatus of FIG. 2 may be used advantageously with all four pickoffs, 4, 6, and 5, 7 of FIG. 1 as in FIG. 3, wherein those four pickoff coils are illustrated, though the flux valve excitation coil 2 and core 1 are not shown merely as a matter of convenience in maintaining simplicity in the drawings. The purpose of FIG. 3 is also to illustrate an advantage of the invention whereby it may be employed in novel navigation instrumentalities in the past requiring physical movement of the flux valve so as to cancel certain bias effects. In such apparatus, certain measurements and computations are made serially in time. For example, prior art systems make one magnetic field reading and then physically rotate the valve through 90° in azimuth before making a second reading. In the present invention, non-mechanical reversal of coil terminals ultimately permits cancellation of electronic biases with power usage economy, and both parallel and perpendicular components of the earth's field are quickly found with no rotation of the flux valve.
As seen in FIG. 3, the apparatus utilizes an array of switches shown, merely by way of illustration, as manually rotatable mechanical switches 103, 106, 107, 125 all operated in synchronized relation by mechanical or other linkage 126. It will be obvious to those skilled in the art that electronic switches such as semiconductor switches may be substituted, and that they may be manually operated or automatically positioned according to a predetermined time schedule. The rotary switch 103 determines the condition of the initial-state setting switch 52 of processor 40 in FIG. 2, closing the switch 52 when the rotary blade of the switch 103 is vertically upward in the drawing. For all other positions of the blade of switch 103, a positive voltage from a source (not shown) coupled at terminal 100 is coupled by bus 102 to render switch 52 non-conducting.
The rotary switches 106 and 107 determine the states of two-way switches 111, 112, and 113 in a coordinated manner. The first (vertically up) second, and fourth positions of rotary switch 106 couple the ground potential via bus 101 and leads 108 and 109 to switches 111 and 113, while the third and fifth positions of rotary switch 106 couple a positive potential from the positive bus 102 to switches 111, 113, causing them to change state. Rotary switch 107 cooperates only with two-way switch 112 via lead 110. The switch input lead 110 is grounded for the first (vertically up), second, and third positions of rotary switch 107 and supplies a positive bias for the last two positions of switch 107.
Switch 111 has an input coupled to junction 70 of processor 40. Switch 111 has two selectable outputs 114 and 115. Output 114 is the input to switch 112 and its branching lead 116 is one input to dual-input switch 113. Switch 112 has two possible outputs; one is the series connected pair of pick up coils 4, 6, while the other is the series connected pair of pick up coils 5, 7. Opposite dual position switch 112, the coil pairs are both coupled to lead 115 from switch 111 and to the second input of dual-input switch 113. The single output of dual input switch 113 is coupled to junction 71 of the processor 40 of FIG. 2.
The sets of switches just described permit the selection of pairs of pick up coils and their effective reversal as coupled at junctions 70, 71 of processor 40 in five successive cyclic steps. In the first step, inputs to switches 52, 111, 112, 113 are all at ground. This is a standby mode in which the significant event is that the flux valve error integrating amplifier 53 is held in its truly zeroed initial state.
In step 2, only the 0° set of series connected pickoff coils 4, 6 is connected to junctions 70, 71 through switch 111, lead 114, switch 112, coils 4, 6, lead 115, and switch 113. This state comes about when rotary switches 103, 106, 107 and 125 are moved one step from the first vertically upward position and each remains on its second contactor terminal. After a short time interval, such as about one second, and when the feed back loop through resistor 29 and converter 31 has settled, a sample of the flux valve output is available at the output junction 57 of processor 40.
The foregoing sample will now be passed to a conventional sample and hold circuit 127, rotary switch 125 having moved one step to permit its flow. There are four such sample and hold circuits 127, 128, 129, 130, each coupled to one of the last four terminals of rotary switch 125. The outputs of sample and hold circuits 127, 128 are coupled, in the polarity shown, to opposed inputs of a summation device 140 whose output is coupled via lead 142 to one input of tangent function generator 143. Similarly, the outputs of sample and hold circuits 129, 130 are connected, in the polarity shown, to opposed inputs of a second summation device 141 whose output is coupled by lead 144 to a second input of tangent function generator 143. The output of generator 143 is coupled via lead 145 to a conventional arctangent generator 146, whereby an angle, such as the true heading angle θ, may be indicated on a conventional numerical display device 148. It will be apparent that the outputs of sample and hold circuits 127, 128, 129, 130 may be transferred simultaneously when all are present to the respective summation circuits 140, 141 by well known means, such as by the generation of a transfer signal when the ganged switch 124 is turned to the location of contact 122 coupled to a suitable power source (not shown) at terminal 123.
It will be understood that the data held in sample and hold device 127 is representative of a quantity:
y.sub.1 =A sin θ+B (1)
where
θ is the desired value of the angle between magnetic north and the flux valve reference direction 9,
A is a scale factor dependent upon electronic gain in the system, and
B is an undesired bias term depending upon circuit anomolies.
In step 3, the rotary switches 103, 106, 107, 125 are each rotated to their horizontal locations. While the control input signal applied to switch 112 remains as before, the inputs via leads 108, 109 to switches 111 and 113 are changed so that flow of current through the series coils 4, 6 is reversed. Thus, the 0° set of pickoff coils is electrically reversed in polarity with respect to their coupling to terminals 70, 71 of processor 40. After the same short interval (one second) when the feed back loop 29, 31 has settled, the new output at junction 57 is placed in the second sample and hold device 128. This new quantity may be represented as:
y.sub.2 =-A sin θ+B (2)
wherein the symbols are generally the same as those of Equation (1). The two quantities y 1 and y 2 may then be applied for algebraic subtraction in device 140, generating:
y.sub.3 =2A sin θ (3)
independent of the anomoly B which would create an undesirable one cycle error, if present.
In step 4, only the 90° set of series connected coils 5, 7 is connected through switch 111, lead 114, switch 112, coils 5, 7, lead 115, and switch 113. This state is brought about when rotary switches 103, 106, 107, and 125 are moved from the third to the fourth or next-to-last switch position. After settling of the feed back loop, a third sample of the flux valve output is present at the output junction 57 of processor 40. The sample may now be passed to the third sample and hold circuit 129, rotary switch 125 having been moved to its fourth position. The data then held in sample and hold device 129 is representative of:
y.sub.4 =A cos θ+B (4)
In step 5, the rotary switches 103, 106, 107, 125 are all moved to their last or fifth position, their blades all pointing downward. The input to dual output switch 112 remains positive, while the inputs to switches via leads 108, 109 are now also positive so that the flow of current through the series coils 5, 7 is reversed. Accordingly, the 90° set of pickoff coils 5, 7 is electrically reversed in polarity with respect to their coupling to terminals 70, 71 of processor 40. After the proper settling interval, the new output at junction 57 is placed in the fourth sample and hold device 130. This new quantity may be represented as:
y.sub.5 =-A cos θ+B (5)
After subtraction of the quantities represented by Equation (4) and Equation (5) in algebraic summation device 141, the quantity B is eliminated and there is yielded on lead 144 the quantity:
y.sub.6 =2A cos θ (6)
Tangent generator 143 is a conventional divider type of device, so that division therein of the quantities y 3 by y 6 can readily be accomplished, generating:
y.sub.7 =tan θ (7)
The value of θ in Equation (7) is readily found by the conventional arctangent generator 146, so that the value θ may readily be determined as previously discussed.
It is now evident by inspection of Equations (1) through (7) that their solutions may be accomplished by any of several kinds of instrumentation, including the use of a cooperative assembly of known analog or of digital data processing or computing circuits. For example, the several equations involve simple arithmetic operations such as addition, subtraction, multiplication, division, and trigonometric function generation. Many examples of both analog and digital computation elements are available in the prior art for accomplishing such computer operations; hybrid computer solutions may be used. It is furthermore evident that a conventional general purpose digital or analog computer may be employed for the purpose. It is obviously well within the ordinary skill of digital computer programmers to process the equations discussed above, to create flow charts, and to translate the latter into computer routines and sub-routines for solution of such equations along with a compatible computer language for processing input data and instructions to produce outputs directly useful for application, for example, in a standard display.
Accordingly, it is seen that the invention provides a versatile, low power, compact, light weight flux valve compass system employing a toroidal flux valve with two cooperating pairs of pickoffs disposed so that resolved orthogonal components of the earth's magnetic field are readily derived. Automatic cancellation of one and two cycle errors is provided. Dual channel errors are eliminated by time sharing of a common compass channel. No physical motion of the flux valve sensor is required reliably to provide precise compass output data. Servoed cancellation of the earth's field vector provides improved linearity of operation.
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 of limitation and that changes within the purview of the appended claims may be made without departing from the true scope and spirit of the invention in its broader aspects. | An improved earth's magnetic field sensing compass utilizes a flat, toroidal flux valve in which pickoffs sense mutually perpendicular components of the magnetic field and the fields are nulled by the closed loop feed back of nulling currents into respective pairs of the sensor pickoffs. | Identify the most important claim in the given context and summarize it | [
"BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1.",
"Field of the Invention The present invention pertains to improvements in magnetic field sensing compasses utilizing magnetic azimuth or flux valve pickoffs in which sensed mutually perpendicular components of the earth's field are nulled by the closed loop feed back of nulling currents into respective pairs of flux valve sensing windings.",
"Description of the Prior Art A known flux valve earth's field directional pickoff is a structure having a cooperating equiangular Y-shaped laminated core, an excitation winding, and sensing windings surrounding and coupled to each of the three legs of the core and disclosed widely in the literature, as in the O. E. Esval, C. F. Fragola, and L. F. Beach U.S. Pat. No. 2,383,461 for a "Flux Valve Compass System,"",
"issued Aug. 28, 1945, and in the M. C. Depp U.S. Pat. No. 2,852,859 for "Flux Valve Compensating System,"",
"issued Sept.",
"23, 1958, both parents being assigned to Sperry Rand Corporation.",
"Such flux valves are normally mounted with the plane of the core disposed horizontally so that they measure the earth's total horizontal magnetic field, if properly compensated for any error effects produced by spurious magnetic fields associated with the structure of the craft on which the flux valve is mounted.",
"Such flux valves are directly suited to use in open loop three-wire selsyn data transmission systems either for slaving a directional gyroscope, or for providing a direct analog representation or indication of the angle of a craft longitudinal axis relative to magnetic north at a receiving device.",
"However, such open-loop systems suffer various disadvantages.",
"For example, the output of the Y-shaped flux valve is rich in harmonics and accurate demodulation is difficult, especially for low signal levels.",
"Craft vibrations also produce spurious flux valve outputs.",
"Conversion of the alternating currents from the flux valve into unidirectional sine and cosine signals of sufficient accuracy as often required in navigation equipment is difficult.",
"Closed loop compass systems were then realized to overcome some of the foregoing difficulties of the prior art, such as the compass systems of the D. H. Baker, F. H. Kallio U.S. Pat. No. 3,678,593 for a "Compass System and Components Thereof Having Automatic Field Compensation,"",
"issued July 25, 1972, and of the J. R. Erspamer U.S. Pat. No. 3,942,257 for "Index Error Correction for Flux Valve Heading Repeater System,"",
"issued Mar. 9, 1976, both patents being assigned to Sperry Rand Corporation.",
"In these systems, the output of a three-legged flux valve is converted into direct current signals representative of the components of the sensed earth's field vector.",
"These currents provide the useful compass output signals and are also fed back into the legs of the flux valve in a direction which substantially nulls the earth's field vector.",
"Thus, the compass operates about a null condition in a closed loop manner affording improved directional accuracy particularly as discussed in the aforementioned Baker et al patent.",
"SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention also provides the benefits of servo operation with improved linearity about an error nulled condition and provides an inexpensive, compact compass system cooperating with a miniature flux valve having flat toroidal form.",
"The flux valve employed is equipped with two cooperating pairs of pickoff coils so that the earth's magnetic field is readily resolved into components parallel and perpendicular to the flux valve directional reference axis, the two sets of pickoff coils being mounted orthogonally and diametrically on the toroidal flux valve core.",
"The coil configuration permits automatic cancellation of bias effects which, if present, would cause undesired one and two cycle error generation.",
"Both the parallel and perpendicular components of the earth's field are generated in the same flux valve and undergo time shared manipulation in the same compass channel, so that dual channel gain errors are eliminated.",
"Furthermore, both the parallel and perpendicular components of the earth's magnetic field are found without physically moving or rotating the flux valve, enabling size, cost, and power drain to be reduced while increasing reliability.",
"BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a plan view in partial cross section of the flux valve dual-component sensor of the present invention.",
"FIG. 2 is a wiring diagram illustrating the novel compass processor system cooperating with one of the two pairs of sensor coils of the flux valve of FIG. 1 and showing electrical components and their interconnections.",
"FIG. 3 is a wiring diagram illustrating a novel application of the invention in a time sharing system for measuring orthogonal components of the earth's magnetic field and for calculating precise magnetic heading data, certain errors being inherently eliminated in the computing process.",
"DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS The miniature flux valve employed in the novel compass system, unlike the Y-shaped core flux valve, employs the annular structure of FIG. 1. The core 1 of the valve 15 consists of a single thin apertured disk fabricated of a high permeability, low hysteresis iron-nickel alloy such as the alloy available from Magnetics, Inc. of Butler, Pennsylvania under the trade name Supermalloy.",
"In one embodiment of the invention, core 1 has an outer diameter of about 2.9 inches and an inner diameter of about 2.7 inches, being about 4 mils thick.",
"An inner excitation winding 2 having, for example, 700 turns and terminals 3, is wound continuously around core 1;",
"a protective or insulating tape or other material may be used as at 8 to cover the multi-turn excitation coil 2.",
"Core 1 is preferably energized by applying an alternating current through coil 2 so that core 1 is magnetically saturated twice per cycle.",
"With respect to the reference direction indicated by arrow 9, a pair of cooperating equal rectangular pickoff coils 5, 7 is disposed in mutual diametral relation at right angles to core 1 and in the plane of arrow 9.",
"A second pair of cooperating pickoff coils 4, 6 lies perpendicular to core 1 and to reference direction 9.",
"Coils 4, 6, like coils 5, 7 are similar, all having the same number of turns (100, for example).",
"Accordingly, the voltages induced in coils 4 and 6 by a periodically varying exciting flux generated by excitation winding 2 are equal in magnitude in the absence of any earth's or other magnetic field.",
"Coils 4 and 6 are connected as shown in FIG. 1 in series opposition, so that the resultant voltage between the common lead 12 and the 90° output lead 10 is zero in the absence of any externally applied magnetic field, such as the earth's field.",
"In a generally similar manner, coils 5 and 7 are also connected in series opposition, so that the resultant voltage between the common lead 12 and the 0° output lead 11 is also zero in the absence of an externally applied magnetic field.",
"If a unidirectional magnetic field having a component in the direction of reference direction 9 is present, differential voltages induced in coils 4, 6 will have a frequency twice that of the exciting flux and a phase corresponding to the sense of the applied field along the direction of arrow 9.",
"In other words, series connected coils 4, 6 produce a voltage at terminals 10, 12 varying sinusoidally in amplitude as a function of the angle between the direction of the applied unidirectional magnetic field and the orientation of the plane of coils 4, 6.",
"The output on leads 11, 12 of the cooperating coils 5, 7 is similar, but shifted by 90° with respect to the 0° output of coils 5, 7.",
"Flux valves of the general type shown in FIG. 1 are well known in the art as advantageous because they do not accidentally become magnetized and are very thin;",
"they are described generally in the U.S. Pat. No. 2,389,146 to C. F. Frogola, M. C. Depp, and R. S. Curry, issued Nov. 20, 1945 for a "Flux Valve"",
"and assigned to Sperry Rand Corporation.",
"The excitation field produced by winding 2 drives core 1 well into positive and then into negative saturation once each cycle of its excitation current.",
"When the unidirectional earth's field is present, that field adds to the alternating excitation, causing core 1 to go into saturation sooner or later according to the polarity of the earth's field than it would go into saturation in the absence of the earth's field.",
"In effect, this operation time-shifts the voltages found in the pairs of pickoff coils so that they no longer cancel when the earth's field is present, ultimately to produce a resultant unidirectional voltage directly proportional to the earth's field.",
"For producing the desired conversion, the apparatus of FIG. 2 is employed.",
"Use of the invention is shown here with a flux valve 15 having two diametrically cooperating opposed pickoff coils 4, 6.",
"The companion coils 5, 7 may be similarly operated on a time sharing basis with respect to junctions 70, 71, as will be further discussed in connection with FIG. 3. Returning to FIG. 2, stable oscillator 96 acts as a synchronizer for the system operating, for example at 4 KHz and providing signals via branching lead 97 to divider 74 and to demodulator 51.",
"Considering first the current path including frequency divider 74, it feeds a signal at, say 2 KHz, to the input of a conventional driver amplifier 75, whose output is fed through lead 76 to a conventional chopper circuit 94.",
"The direct current level fed from junction 59 is by virtue of a source (not shown) coupled to terminal 58 and reference voltage generator 56, substantially a constant level signal and is used to stabilize the amplitude of the output of chopper 94, this level being chopped at the frequency of the output 76 of driver 75.",
"Blocking capacitor 93 interposed between chopper 94 and integrating amplifier 92 supplies the latter with the bipolar pulse train 93a.",
"The effect of integrating amplifier 92 and coupling capacitor 91 is to produce the regular bipolar triangular wave 91a.",
"The latter is supplied through a conventional voltage-to-current converter 90 and resistor 89 to the excitation winding 2 of flux valve 15, retaining its bipolar triangular wave form at the converter output.",
"For providing a useful compass output, as at terminal 57, and for feed back cancellation of the earth's field within flux valve 15, the apparatus in the upper portion of FIG. 2 is employed.",
"For this purpose, the double frequency voltage present across cooperating coils 4, 6 when the earth's field is present is coupled through junctions 70, 71 and junctions 36, 37, 73 across the input resistor 72, whence it is coupled by blocking capacitor 38 to the input of a.c. amplifier 39.",
"The output of amplifier 39 is coupled by blocking capacitor 50 to demodulator 51.",
"This input to circuit 51 is in the form of a frequency doubled (4 KHz) error signal, so that the synchronizing oscillator 96 output is directly coupled by lead 97 to enable performance of the demodulation function of circuit 51.",
"The demodulated direct current error signal is now coupled to integrating amplifier 53, which rapidly produces an asymptotic constant voltage level 55a representative of the angle between north and the flux valve index 9 on leads 30 and 55 and at output terminal 57.",
"The integrated signal 55a, in the instance illustrated, is the cosine of the earth's field direction and may be supplied via lead 30 and resistor 29 to one input of a voltage-to-current converter 31;",
"the second input of converter 31 is coupled through resistor 32 to ground and to junctions 36 and 70.",
"A power divider resistance network 34, 35 couples the output of converter 31 through resistor 34 and lead 30 to the first input of converter 31 and also couples the output of converter 31 through resistor 35 to junction 36.",
"Terminal 36 is also coupled via lead 33 through resistor 32 to ground.",
"In this general manner, the integral of the direct current error signal at the output of integrating amplifier 53 is fed back through cooperating pickoff coils 4, 6 in such a way as to cancel substantially the effect of the earth's field flux within flux valve 15.",
"The output of integrating amplifier 53 may furthermore be connected as a useful direction-indicating signal to a conventional voltage-to-frequency converter 80, also employing the reference voltage at junction 59 from generator 56 for scale stabilizing purposes.",
"The output of converter 80 may then be used for navigation or flight control purposes, as in a conventional digital processing system 81.",
"It will be readily understood that before the circuit is first placed into operation, integrating amplifier 53 will be placed in its initial state by rendering switch 52 conductive, as by applying an appropriate activating potential to the switch control terminal 52a or by grounding the appropriate one of the terminals of amplifier 53 according to conventional practice.",
"The apparatus of FIG. 2 may be used advantageously with all four pickoffs, 4, 6, and 5, 7 of FIG. 1 as in FIG. 3, wherein those four pickoff coils are illustrated, though the flux valve excitation coil 2 and core 1 are not shown merely as a matter of convenience in maintaining simplicity in the drawings.",
"The purpose of FIG. 3 is also to illustrate an advantage of the invention whereby it may be employed in novel navigation instrumentalities in the past requiring physical movement of the flux valve so as to cancel certain bias effects.",
"In such apparatus, certain measurements and computations are made serially in time.",
"For example, prior art systems make one magnetic field reading and then physically rotate the valve through 90° in azimuth before making a second reading.",
"In the present invention, non-mechanical reversal of coil terminals ultimately permits cancellation of electronic biases with power usage economy, and both parallel and perpendicular components of the earth's field are quickly found with no rotation of the flux valve.",
"As seen in FIG. 3, the apparatus utilizes an array of switches shown, merely by way of illustration, as manually rotatable mechanical switches 103, 106, 107, 125 all operated in synchronized relation by mechanical or other linkage 126.",
"It will be obvious to those skilled in the art that electronic switches such as semiconductor switches may be substituted, and that they may be manually operated or automatically positioned according to a predetermined time schedule.",
"The rotary switch 103 determines the condition of the initial-state setting switch 52 of processor 40 in FIG. 2, closing the switch 52 when the rotary blade of the switch 103 is vertically upward in the drawing.",
"For all other positions of the blade of switch 103, a positive voltage from a source (not shown) coupled at terminal 100 is coupled by bus 102 to render switch 52 non-conducting.",
"The rotary switches 106 and 107 determine the states of two-way switches 111, 112, and 113 in a coordinated manner.",
"The first (vertically up) second, and fourth positions of rotary switch 106 couple the ground potential via bus 101 and leads 108 and 109 to switches 111 and 113, while the third and fifth positions of rotary switch 106 couple a positive potential from the positive bus 102 to switches 111, 113, causing them to change state.",
"Rotary switch 107 cooperates only with two-way switch 112 via lead 110.",
"The switch input lead 110 is grounded for the first (vertically up), second, and third positions of rotary switch 107 and supplies a positive bias for the last two positions of switch 107.",
"Switch 111 has an input coupled to junction 70 of processor 40.",
"Switch 111 has two selectable outputs 114 and 115.",
"Output 114 is the input to switch 112 and its branching lead 116 is one input to dual-input switch 113.",
"Switch 112 has two possible outputs;",
"one is the series connected pair of pick up coils 4, 6, while the other is the series connected pair of pick up coils 5, 7.",
"Opposite dual position switch 112, the coil pairs are both coupled to lead 115 from switch 111 and to the second input of dual-input switch 113.",
"The single output of dual input switch 113 is coupled to junction 71 of the processor 40 of FIG. 2. The sets of switches just described permit the selection of pairs of pick up coils and their effective reversal as coupled at junctions 70, 71 of processor 40 in five successive cyclic steps.",
"In the first step, inputs to switches 52, 111, 112, 113 are all at ground.",
"This is a standby mode in which the significant event is that the flux valve error integrating amplifier 53 is held in its truly zeroed initial state.",
"In step 2, only the 0° set of series connected pickoff coils 4, 6 is connected to junctions 70, 71 through switch 111, lead 114, switch 112, coils 4, 6, lead 115, and switch 113.",
"This state comes about when rotary switches 103, 106, 107 and 125 are moved one step from the first vertically upward position and each remains on its second contactor terminal.",
"After a short time interval, such as about one second, and when the feed back loop through resistor 29 and converter 31 has settled, a sample of the flux valve output is available at the output junction 57 of processor 40.",
"The foregoing sample will now be passed to a conventional sample and hold circuit 127, rotary switch 125 having moved one step to permit its flow.",
"There are four such sample and hold circuits 127, 128, 129, 130, each coupled to one of the last four terminals of rotary switch 125.",
"The outputs of sample and hold circuits 127, 128 are coupled, in the polarity shown, to opposed inputs of a summation device 140 whose output is coupled via lead 142 to one input of tangent function generator 143.",
"Similarly, the outputs of sample and hold circuits 129, 130 are connected, in the polarity shown, to opposed inputs of a second summation device 141 whose output is coupled by lead 144 to a second input of tangent function generator 143.",
"The output of generator 143 is coupled via lead 145 to a conventional arctangent generator 146, whereby an angle, such as the true heading angle θ, may be indicated on a conventional numerical display device 148.",
"It will be apparent that the outputs of sample and hold circuits 127, 128, 129, 130 may be transferred simultaneously when all are present to the respective summation circuits 140, 141 by well known means, such as by the generation of a transfer signal when the ganged switch 124 is turned to the location of contact 122 coupled to a suitable power source (not shown) at terminal 123.",
"It will be understood that the data held in sample and hold device 127 is representative of a quantity: y.sub[.",
"].1 =A sin θ+B (1) where θ is the desired value of the angle between magnetic north and the flux valve reference direction 9, A is a scale factor dependent upon electronic gain in the system, and B is an undesired bias term depending upon circuit anomolies.",
"In step 3, the rotary switches 103, 106, 107, 125 are each rotated to their horizontal locations.",
"While the control input signal applied to switch 112 remains as before, the inputs via leads 108, 109 to switches 111 and 113 are changed so that flow of current through the series coils 4, 6 is reversed.",
"Thus, the 0° set of pickoff coils is electrically reversed in polarity with respect to their coupling to terminals 70, 71 of processor 40.",
"After the same short interval (one second) when the feed back loop 29, 31 has settled, the new output at junction 57 is placed in the second sample and hold device 128.",
"This new quantity may be represented as: y.sub[.",
"].2 =-A sin θ+B (2) wherein the symbols are generally the same as those of Equation (1).",
"The two quantities y 1 and y 2 may then be applied for algebraic subtraction in device 140, generating: y.sub[.",
"].3 =2A sin θ (3) independent of the anomoly B which would create an undesirable one cycle error, if present.",
"In step 4, only the 90° set of series connected coils 5, 7 is connected through switch 111, lead 114, switch 112, coils 5, 7, lead 115, and switch 113.",
"This state is brought about when rotary switches 103, 106, 107, and 125 are moved from the third to the fourth or next-to-last switch position.",
"After settling of the feed back loop, a third sample of the flux valve output is present at the output junction 57 of processor 40.",
"The sample may now be passed to the third sample and hold circuit 129, rotary switch 125 having been moved to its fourth position.",
"The data then held in sample and hold device 129 is representative of: y.sub[.",
"].4 =A cos θ+B (4) In step 5, the rotary switches 103, 106, 107, 125 are all moved to their last or fifth position, their blades all pointing downward.",
"The input to dual output switch 112 remains positive, while the inputs to switches via leads 108, 109 are now also positive so that the flow of current through the series coils 5, 7 is reversed.",
"Accordingly, the 90° set of pickoff coils 5, 7 is electrically reversed in polarity with respect to their coupling to terminals 70, 71 of processor 40.",
"After the proper settling interval, the new output at junction 57 is placed in the fourth sample and hold device 130.",
"This new quantity may be represented as: y.sub[.",
"].5 =-A cos θ+B (5) After subtraction of the quantities represented by Equation (4) and Equation (5) in algebraic summation device 141, the quantity B is eliminated and there is yielded on lead 144 the quantity: y.sub[.",
"].6 =2A cos θ (6) Tangent generator 143 is a conventional divider type of device, so that division therein of the quantities y 3 by y 6 can readily be accomplished, generating: y.sub[.",
"].7 =tan θ (7) The value of θ in Equation (7) is readily found by the conventional arctangent generator 146, so that the value θ may readily be determined as previously discussed.",
"It is now evident by inspection of Equations (1) through (7) that their solutions may be accomplished by any of several kinds of instrumentation, including the use of a cooperative assembly of known analog or of digital data processing or computing circuits.",
"For example, the several equations involve simple arithmetic operations such as addition, subtraction, multiplication, division, and trigonometric function generation.",
"Many examples of both analog and digital computation elements are available in the prior art for accomplishing such computer operations;",
"hybrid computer solutions may be used.",
"It is furthermore evident that a conventional general purpose digital or analog computer may be employed for the purpose.",
"It is obviously well within the ordinary skill of digital computer programmers to process the equations discussed above, to create flow charts, and to translate the latter into computer routines and sub-routines for solution of such equations along with a compatible computer language for processing input data and instructions to produce outputs directly useful for application, for example, in a standard display.",
"Accordingly, it is seen that the invention provides a versatile, low power, compact, light weight flux valve compass system employing a toroidal flux valve with two cooperating pairs of pickoffs disposed so that resolved orthogonal components of the earth's magnetic field are readily derived.",
"Automatic cancellation of one and two cycle errors is provided.",
"Dual channel errors are eliminated by time sharing of a common compass channel.",
"No physical motion of the flux valve sensor is required reliably to provide precise compass output data.",
"Servoed cancellation of the earth's field vector provides improved linearity of operation.",
"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 of limitation and that changes within the purview of the appended claims may be made without departing from the true scope and spirit of the invention in its broader aspects."
] |
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
The present application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 12/255,985, filed Oct. 22, 2008, which in turn claims benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 60/981,617, filed Oct. 22, 2007, the disclosures of which are hereby incorporated by reference herein in their entirety.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention pertains to an oral care implement, in particular, to a toothbrush with an air flossing system. Individuals exhibit many forms of poor oral health including tooth decay, periodontal diseases and bad breath (halitosis). Tooth decay and periodontal disease are typically caused by harmful bacteria within the mouth. When the harmful bacteria mixes with proteins present in saliva, a film of plaque is formed on the teeth and soft tissue. If the plaque is not removed, it can attack the teeth and create cavities. Additionally, the plaque will attack the soft tissue within the mouth and cause gum disease, the leading cause of tooth loss in adults. Many individuals, especially young children, do not regularly brush their teeth or perform interdental cleaning of their teeth. Such habits often can be attributed to the individual regarding tooth brushing as a mundane duty with few pleasurable aspects.
BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention pertains to an oral care implement with an air flossing system.
In one aspect, an oral care implement includes an oral care region having cleaning elements for engaging oral tissue. A body is provided for gripping the implement. An air source is disposed in the body for proving pressurized air to an air outlet. The air outlet is disposed in the oral care region for injecting the pressurized air to clean debris from the oral tissue.
In another aspect, an oral care implement includes an oral care region having at least one cleaning element for engaging oral tissue. An air device is provided which delivers pressurized air. An air outlet is disposed in the oral care region and is operatively connected to air device. Further, the oral care implement includes a motion-producing device capable of moving the cleaning element during release of pressurized air from the air outlet.
In another aspect, a docking station for recharging the oral care implement has an air reservoir or an air pump, or both.
In a further aspect, an oral care implement is disclosed comprising: an oral care region having cleaning elements; a body coupled to the oral care region; a gas outlet operably coupled to a gas source, the gas outlet disposed in the oral care region; an oral care material source storing an oral care material; an oral care material outlet operably coupled to the oral care material source, the oral care material outlet disposed in the oral care region; and wherein the oral care material outlet is spaced apart from the gas outlet.
In yet another aspect, an oral care implement is disclosed that comprises: an oral care region having at least one cleaning element; a body coupled to the oral care region; an air source for storing pressurized air; an air outlet disposed in the oral care region and operably coupled to the air source; an elastomeric tooth cleaning element extending from a surface of the oral care region; and wherein the elastomeric tooth cleaning element is positioned on the oral care region adjacent the air outlet so that the air stream causes a dynamic vibratory flexing action of at least a portion of the elastomeric tooth cleaning element.
Other features and advantages of the invention will become apparent from the following description taken in conjunction with the following drawings.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIGS. 1 and 2 are perspective front and rear views of an oral care implement, such as a toothbrush, according to one or more embodiments of the invention;
FIGS. 3 and 4 are schematic representations of alternative toothbrush constructions according to one or more embodiments of the invention;
FIGS. 5-7 are a schematic representations of the toothbrush cleaning action in an oral cavity;
FIGS. 8 and 9 are schematic representations of an alternative toothbrush construction according to one or more embodiments of the invention;
FIG. 10 is a schematic representation of an alternative toothbrush construction according to one or more embodiments of the invention;
FIG. 11 is a schematic representation of an alternative toothbrush construction and docking station according to one or more embodiments of the invention; and
FIG. 12 is an example functional block diagram of components of a control system according to one or more embodiments of the invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
In the following description, the invention is discussed in terms of a toothbrush (e.g. a form of an oral care implement) but could be in the form of other personal care implements. For example, a toothbrush can be used for personal hygiene, such as oral care purposes. Further, it is understood that other embodiments may be utilized and structural and functional modifications may be made without departing from the scope of the present invention.
FIGS. 1-2 illustrate an oral care implement, such as a toothbrush, generally designated with the reference numeral 100 . The toothbrush 100 generally includes a head 102 and a handle 103 .
The handle 103 is generally an elongated member dimensioned so that a user can readily grip and manipulate the toothbrush 100 . The handle 103 may be formed of many different shapes, lengths and with a variety of constructions. In one construction, the handle 103 has a neck portion 105 positioned adjacent the head 101 . The neck portion 105 may be a narrowed region on the handle 103 between head 101 and the part of the handle normally gripped by the user. Nevertheless, the neck portion 101 could be the region between the head 101 and the part of the handle normally gripped by the user. In another construction, the handle 103 is integrally formed with the head 101 . Other attachment configurations also are possible.
The head 101 may include an oral care region comprising one or more tooth cleaning elements 111 . As used herein, the term “tooth cleaning elements” or “cleaning elements” includes any type of structure that is commonly used or is suitable for use in providing oral health benefits (e.g., tooth cleaning, tooth polishing, tooth whitening, massaging, stimulating, etc.) by making contact with portions of the teeth and gums. Such tooth cleaning elements include but are not limited to tufts of bristles that can be formed to have a number of different shapes and sizes and elastomeric cleaning members that can be formed to have a number of different shapes and sizes, or a combination of both tufts of bristles and elastomeric cleaning members.
In one construction, the one or more tooth cleaning elements 111 are formed from a plurality of bristles. Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2 , the tooth cleaning elements 111 are bristle regions having different shapes, however, it is understood that a number of different configurations of oral care implements may be utilized. The one or more tooth cleaning elements 111 may be attached to the head 101 by known methods, such as being fit within recesses formed in the head 101 along a front portion 107 of the toothbrush 100 ( FIG. 1 ). The head 101 also may be configured to be detached from the neck 105 or handle 103 and replaced with a new head 101 , if desired.
Referring to FIG. 3 , toothbrush 100 includes head 101 with an air flossing outlet 109 surrounded by the tooth cleaning elements 111 . Toothbrush 100 includes an air inlet 113 for receiving ambient air to be stored in a rechargeable air reservoir or air cartridge 117 for storing pressurized air. In air inlet is connected to an air pump/compressor 119 . The both the reservoir 117 and pump/compressor 119 serve as pressurized air sources to air flossing outlet 109 . The air inlet 113 may have a filter to trap air borne particulates before storage in the reservoir. To prevent over-pressurizing the reservoir 117 , a pressure relief valve 122 may be provided in the handle 103 . The relief valve 122 may be preset to open and release air from the reservoir at predetermined pressure, such as 50 to 60 p.s.i. Alternatively, the pump/compressor 419 may be preset to stop operation at a specific pressure or range of pressure in lieu using a pressure relief valve.
Toothbrush 100 may include an air pressure button 115 for controlling pressurized air provided to the reservoir 117 . In operation, the engagement of button 115 by the user initiates the operation of air pump/compressor 119 . Button 115 may be used for releasing the pressurized air to enable an air flossing operation of the teeth of user. In operation, the button 115 may control the opening and closing of an air valve 123 . For example, the air valve 123 may be connected to a relay or solenoid component for opening closing. Also, the air components can be connected together via air conduit 118 , such as tubing or other hollow pathway to enable air flow. In an alternative construction shown in FIG. 4 , toothbrush 100 ′ may not include a reservoir 117 for pressurized air storage. In such a construction, the pressurized air is directly transferred from the pump/compressor 119 to air outlet 109 . Nevertheless in both constructions, the provided pressure at air outlet 109 may range from 15.0 pounds per square inches (p.s.i.) to 30.0 p.s.i.
The controlled release of the pressurized air from the outlet 109 provides for interdental cleaning of the teeth of a user. The outlet 109 is provided in the form of an orifice. The orifice can be of different sizes and shapes, such as circular, rectangular, square or triangular. In one construction, the orifice has a circular shape. The diameters of the orifice may range from 0.50 mm to 2.00 mm. Nevertheless, other diameters are possible. Referring to FIGS. 5-7 , as can be appreciated in operation, the pressurized air exits from the air outlet 109 in the form of an air stream 500 . The air stream can be delivered at a constant rate or could be pulsated at a predetermined rate, as discussed with regard to FIG. 12 . The air stream 500 interacts with dentifrice and water within the field of cleaning elements 111 . It is understood that the air-dentifrice-water interaction creates a high pressure bubble matrix 503 . A schematic representation of flow of air stream 500 and cleaning action is shown in FIG. 7 . Referring to FIG. 7 , as can be appreciated, the velocity of the bubbles 503 against the tooth surfaces 505 generally conform to the curvature of the teeth, penetrates into the interproximal areas between the teeth and sweeps away the plaque and debris. The loosened plaque and debris are received by the cleaning elements 111 of the head 101 . The effective cleaning of the interproximal areas 507 between the teeth provides a floss-like clean. While one air outlet may be used in the toothbrush 100 , the inventive aspect may be practiced with a plurality of air outlets, such as two or three outlets.
In an alternative construction of the toothbrush 200 shown in FIGS. 8-9 , the tooth cleaning elements of head 201 may include a variety of tooth cleaning elements which can be used for wiping, cleaning and massaging the user's teeth and gums. In the illustrated construction of FIG. 12 , tooth cleaning elements include distal tooth cleaning elements 203 a - b disposed at a distal end 121 of head 201 , peripheral tooth cleaning elements 205 a - 1 , longitudinal tooth cleaning elements 207 b - c disposed along longitudinal axis a-a, arcuate tooth cleaning elements 209 a - d and 211 a - b , and proximal cleaning elements 213 a,b . Tooth cleaning elements 205 , 207 , 211 and 213 can be provided as tufts of bristles whereas tooth cleaning elements 209 can be formed as elastomeric walls segments. Nevertheless, other forms and types of tooth cleaning elements may be used.
In this construction, air outlet 109 is provided generally in the center of the arcuate tooth cleaning elements structure near the distal end 121 . Nevertheless, the air outlet 109 can be disposed at other locations on the head 201 , such as generally in the center of the other arcuate tooth cleaning element structure. In the example of the arcuate elastomeric wall segments, as can be appreciated that the air stream causes a dynamic vibratory flexing action of individual segments with respect to their vertical axis, which in-turn enhances the cleaning action of the distal tip (e.g., wiping edge) of the segment 209 against the tooth surface. Additionally, the interior space defined between the arcuate elements 209 enables the elements to from a nozzle structure/configuration 250 to direct the air stream into the interproximal areas of between the teeth. The gaps 212 formed between the arcuate segments 209 a - d enables some controlled flow of the fluid and air flow to other regions of the head 101 during brushing.
It should be appreciated that the nozzle configuration could be formed by tightly packed, elongate bristle tufts. Further, in lieu of gaps between the elements, the nozzle configurations could have completely closed sidewall structures in other constructions. While four arcuate segment cleaning elements 209 a - d are shown surrounding each of the generally cleaning elements 207 , the inventive aspects may be practiced with more or fewer arcuate segments. While the arcuate segments form a generally circular structure, the segments can form an elliptical shape or a rectangular shape or other shapes in cross-section. Nevertheless, other shapes are possible to form the nozzle-like structure. Hence, the pressurized air stream of toothbrush 100 has synergistic benefits of providing a floss-like clean and improved surface cleaning of the tooth.
The elastomeric material of the cleaning elements has a hardness property in the range of A15 to A35 Shore hardness; A20 to A30 Shore hardness; or A25 to A28 Shore hardness. As an example, one elastomeric material is styrene-ethylene/butylene-styrene block copolymer (SEBS) manufactured by GLS Corporation. Nevertheless, SEBS material from other manufacturers or other materials within and outside the noted hardness range could be used.
Referring to FIG. 10 , in an alternative construction, toothbrush 300 may operation in conjunction with a docking station 400 . Toothbrush 300 includes the features of toothbrush construction 100 , expect for on-board pump/compressor 119 . The docking station 400 comprises cavity 452 for seating, receiving and/or storing the handle 103 of the toothbrush 300 . The docking station 400 may include an air inlet 413 for receiving ambient air to be stored in a reservoir 417 for storing pressurized air received via the air inlet 413 from air pump/compressor 419 . The air inlet 413 may have a filter to trap air borne particulates. To prevent over-pressurizing the reservoir 417 , a pressure relief valve 422 may be provided. The relief valve 422 may be preset to open and release air from the reservoir 417 at predetermined pressure, such as 50 to 60 p.s.i. Alternatively, the pump/compressor 419 may be preset to stop operation at a specific pressure in lieu using a pressure relief valve.
Docking station 400 may include an air pressure button 415 for controlling pressurized air entry into the reservoir 417 . In operation, the depression or otherwise engagement of button 415 initiates the operation of air pump/compressor 419 . Docking station 400 may further include a button 412 for releasing the pressurized air into the rechargeable reservoir in the toothbrush handle 103 . In operation, the button 412 controls the opening and closing of an air valve 423 to fill the reservoir 119 of toothbrush 300 . An input 431 is operative connected to the air valve 423 . Air input 431 works in cooperating with the air inlet 113 of toothbrush 300 . The connection between air input 431 and air inlet 113 can be air tight seal based on a threaded connection, press-fit, and the like. Docketing station 400 may include a control system 401 which may comprise one or more printed circuit boards to controlling the operation pump/compressor 419 in conjunction with button 412 , 415 . In alternative construction, the docking station 400 may not have a reservoir 417 for pressurized air storage. In such a construction, pressurized air is directly transferred to the reservoir of toothbrush handle 103 by the pump/compressor 419 in the docking station 400 . In other constructions of the docking station 400 , a power source such as a battery or the like, is provided in the interior cavity to power the air storage and filling features. Alternatively, the docking station 400 may to draw electric power from a household outlet.
Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2 , toothbrush 100 includes a front portion 107 and a rear portion 109 . A thumb gripping portion 115 is provided so that a user may hold the toothbrush 100 with their thumb resting on gripping portion 115 . Thumb gripping portion 115 may be formed of a pliable, cushioning material that is depressible as a user presses their thumb against it. In one or more constructions, as described herein, the thumb gripping portion 115 may serves as an actuator to control operation of the toothbrush features. For example, thumb gripping portion 115 may serve as a button to turn control a device associated with the toothbrush 100 “on” and/or “off”. For example, the device may be the on-board pump or an air valve for controlling the pressurized air.
In a powered toothbrush construction, thumb gripping portion 115 serves as a button to change a mode of operation of the toothbrush 100 . Button 115 enables a user to change the mode of operation to any of a number of different operations. (e.g., an air flossing only mode, a vibratory only mode, or air flossing/vibratory mode). For example, depression or other engagement of button 115 may change the mode of operation to air floss only mode. In the air floss mode, an air stream is provided from the outlet. A subsequent engagement of button 115 may change the mode of operation moving cleaning element mode (e.g., vibratory head or oscillating head portion). A subsequent engagement of button 115 may change the mode of operation to combination air flossing/moving cleaning element mode. Nevertheless, the specific order of the engagement events of the button 115 , does not limit the scope of the inventive concepts. Further, the toothbrush 100 may have two or more buttons or actuators for controlling the modes of operation.
In another construction, toothbrush 100 may be a powered toothbrush including motion-producing device that drives a powered element, such as movable cleaning elements 111 with an activation/deactivation or “on/off” button, such as button 115 .
Referring to FIGS. 3-4 , in another construction, toothbrush 100 may include a motion-producing device 130 to define a vibratory head 102 . A wide variety of motion-producing devices (e.g., vibratory devices) can be used to produce vibrations over a wide range of frequencies. Various types of vibratory devices are commercially available, such as transducers. One example of a vibratory device provides frequencies in the range of about 100 to 350 kHz. The vibration frequencies may be of different waveforms, including sinusoid, square, sawtooth and the like. Nevertheless, other values and waveforms are possible. A vibratory device may be located in head of the toothbrush or neck thereof. When activated, vibratory device is powered by battery (and controlled by electronics on circuit board or switching system) so as to induce vibrations in head of the toothbrush and thereby enhances teeth-cleaning action imparted by the tooth cleaning elements. In alternate constructions, a vibratory device may include a micro motor attached to a shaft, with the shaft coupled to an eccentric rotating about an axis parallel to the longitudinal axis of the toothbrush. In still other constructions, a vibratory-producing device includes an eccentric that is driven by a micro motor in a translatory manner.
A switch, such as a button, toggle switch, rotating dial, or the like, can be provided for activating the vibratory device, such a switch/button 115 of toothbrush 100 . A vibratory device often has a power source, such as a battery. Activating the switch can cause the vibration-producing device to operate for a user-defined interval (e.g., during the time that a button is depressed or a switch is in an engaged position), or alternatively can activate a timing circuit that causes the vibratory device to operate for a predetermined interval. If a timing circuit is used, the associated interval either may be preset or may be adjustable, e.g., by a user-activated switch.
Referring to FIG. 11 , in an alternative construction, toothbrush 500 may include an active agent feature. Toothbrush 500 may include the features of toothbrush constructions 100 , 100 ′, 200 , and 300 . An active agent outlet 150 may be provided with the field of cleaning elements 111 . The toothbrush 500 can be supplied with one or more cartridges or reservoirs 151 containing active agent(s). Multiple cartridges can be provided, for example, for supplying different active agents or a replacement supply of the same active agent. The outlet 150 is connected to the reservoir 151 via a conduit 153 . Depending on the type of active agent used and the location of the air outlet 109 and an active agent outlet, the active agent can be administered before, during, or after initiation of air stream. As can be appreciated, the active agent and air stream interaction on the oral surfaces can improve plaque removal/bacterial removal interdental areas. In one construction, a user-activated switch, such as a dial (not shown), can have multiple settings for selecting one or more of several active agents. For example, the dial can have a first setting for oxidizer/whitener treatment, a second setting for breath freshener treatment, and a third setting for antimicrobial treatment.
Non-limiting examples of active agents which can be used include antibacterial agents, such as chlorhexidine, cetyl pyridininum chloride, triclosan, zinc salts, and; oxidative or whitening agents, such as hydrogen peroxide, urea peroxide, sodium percarbonate, and PVP-H 2 O 2 ; supercharged fluoride delivery ingredients; tooth sensitivity ingredients, such as KNO 3 ; occluding agents, such as Novamin® bioactive glass and arginine salts such as arginine bicarbonate; gum health actives, including those which reduce inflammation pathways and/or interfere in bacterial processes which produce inflammatory stimuli, bachalin, polyphenols, triclosan, ethyl pyruvate, and guanidinoethyl disulfide; nutritional type ingredients, such as vitamins, minerals, amino acids, vitamin E, and folic acid; tartar control or anti-stain ingredients, including phosphate salts, polyvinylphosphonic acid, PVM/MA copolymer; enzymes, such as those used for plaque disruption; sensate ingredients, such as those providing cooling, tingle, or heat sensations; flavors and flavor ingredients; anti-cavity or enamel repair agents; breath freshening ingredients; oral malodor reducing agents; anti-attachment agents, such as ethyl lauroyl arginate; diagnostic solutions, such as plaque-indicator dyes; and combinations thereof.
Examples of flavors and flavor ingredients include essential oils, menthol, carvone, and anethole, and various flavoring aldehydes, esters, and alcohols. Examples of essential oils include oils of spearmint, peppermint, wintergreen, sassafras, clove, sage, eucalyptus, marjoram, cinnamon, lemon, lime, grapefruit, and orange. Flavoring agents typically are provided at a concentration of about 0.1 to about 2 wt % based on the weight of the composition, more usually from about 0.1 to about 0.5 wt %.
The active agent and/or its medium can be selected to complement a toothpaste formula, such as by coordinating flavors, colors, aesthetics, or active ingredients. A flavor can be administered to create a gradual flavor change during brushing, which presently is not possible using toothpaste alone.
The active agent can be provided in any suitable vehicle, such as in aqueous solution or in the form of gel or paste. Non-limiting examples of vehicles include water, monohydric alcohols such as ethanol, poly(ethylene oxides) such as polyethylene glycols such as PEG 2M, 5M, 7M, 14M, 23M, 45M, and 90M available from Union Carbide, carboxymethylene polymers such as Carbopol® 934 and 974 available from B. F. Goodrich, and combinations thereof. The selection of a suitable vehicle will be apparent to persons skilled in the art depending on such factors as the properties of the active agent and the desired properties of the medium, such as viscosity.
As described herein with respect to FIG. 12 , a control system 600 for toothbrush constructions 100 , 100 ′, 200 , 300 , and 500 may be included to control the air stream for the “floss-like” clean. FIG. 12 illustrates a block diagram of components in one or more constructions of control system 600 . One or more of the components shown in FIG. 12 may be included within one or more printed circuit boards. Possible alternatives include flash memory, flash ROM, RAM with battery backup. Control system 600 may include a pump control 619 operatively connected to one or more components of the system 600 and a user interface 615 , such button 115 .
Mode selection circuitry 621 may include electrical circuitry, software, computer-readable instructions, or other components to allow for changing the mode of operation of the toothbrush 100 . For example, mode selection circuitry 621 may receive and process an input signal to change the mode of operation from an air floss mode to moving-cleaning element mode of operation. Mode selection circuitry 621 may be configured to perform the functions for processing signal(s) performing computer-readable instructions, and reading from and writing to a memory (not shown) associated with the toothbrush 100 switching between different modes of operation.
Timer circuitry 622 may include hardware, software, computer-readable instructions, or other components to allow for counting up or counting down time. Timer circuitry 622 may include a crystal oscillator for counting seconds, minutes, etc. Timer circuitry 622 may be configured to perform the functions for processing signal(s) performing computer-readable instructions, and reading from and writing to a memory (not shown) associated with the toothbrush 622 operating in a timer mode for two (2) minutes for air flossing mode. In one arrangement, the air floss mode can end after an elapsed time of 2 minutes.
Control system 600 may include a valve control 623 operatively connected to one or more components of the system 600 to controlling release of air for flossing, including a constant stream of air or pulsating stream of air. The pulsation frequency can may be of different waveforms, including sinusoid, square, sawtooth and like. The control system circuitry 600 may include hardware, software, computer-readable instructions, or other components to enable control the air flow. For example, the control system 600 may include memory of a programmable type in which nonvolatile storage can be electrically erased and reprogrammed.
As discussed, the inventive aspects may be practiced for a manual toothbrush or a powered toothbrush with moving tooth cleaning elements. While the various features of the toothbrush 100 work together to achieve the advantages previously described, it is recognized that individual features and sub-combinations of these features can be used to obtain some of the aforementioned advantages without the necessity to adopt all of these features.
While the invention has been described with respect to specific examples including presently preferred modes of carrying out the invention, those skilled in the art will appreciate that there are numerous variations and permutations of the above described systems and techniques. Thus, the spirit and scope of the invention should be construed broadly as set forth in the appended claims. | An oral care implement is disclosed comprising: an oral care region having cleaning elements; a body coupled to the oral care region; a gas outlet operably coupled to a gas source, the gas outlet disposed in the oral care region; an oral care material source storing an oral care material; an oral care material outlet operably coupled to the oral care material source, the oral care material outlet disposed in the oral care region; and wherein the oral care material outlet is spaced apart from the gas outlet. In another aspect, an oral care implement is disclosed comprising an oral care region having an elastomeric tooth cleaning element and an air outlet positioned adjacent the air outlet so that an air stream existing the air outlet causes a dynamic vibratory flexing action of at least a portion of the elastomeric tooth cleaning element. | Concisely explain the essential features and purpose of the concept presented in the passage. | [
"CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS The present application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser.",
"No. 12/255,985, filed Oct. 22, 2008, which in turn claims benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 60/981,617, filed Oct. 22, 2007, the disclosures of which are hereby incorporated by reference herein in their entirety.",
"BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION The present invention pertains to an oral care implement, in particular, to a toothbrush with an air flossing system.",
"Individuals exhibit many forms of poor oral health including tooth decay, periodontal diseases and bad breath (halitosis).",
"Tooth decay and periodontal disease are typically caused by harmful bacteria within the mouth.",
"When the harmful bacteria mixes with proteins present in saliva, a film of plaque is formed on the teeth and soft tissue.",
"If the plaque is not removed, it can attack the teeth and create cavities.",
"Additionally, the plaque will attack the soft tissue within the mouth and cause gum disease, the leading cause of tooth loss in adults.",
"Many individuals, especially young children, do not regularly brush their teeth or perform interdental cleaning of their teeth.",
"Such habits often can be attributed to the individual regarding tooth brushing as a mundane duty with few pleasurable aspects.",
"BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention pertains to an oral care implement with an air flossing system.",
"In one aspect, an oral care implement includes an oral care region having cleaning elements for engaging oral tissue.",
"A body is provided for gripping the implement.",
"An air source is disposed in the body for proving pressurized air to an air outlet.",
"The air outlet is disposed in the oral care region for injecting the pressurized air to clean debris from the oral tissue.",
"In another aspect, an oral care implement includes an oral care region having at least one cleaning element for engaging oral tissue.",
"An air device is provided which delivers pressurized air.",
"An air outlet is disposed in the oral care region and is operatively connected to air device.",
"Further, the oral care implement includes a motion-producing device capable of moving the cleaning element during release of pressurized air from the air outlet.",
"In another aspect, a docking station for recharging the oral care implement has an air reservoir or an air pump, or both.",
"In a further aspect, an oral care implement is disclosed comprising: an oral care region having cleaning elements;",
"a body coupled to the oral care region;",
"a gas outlet operably coupled to a gas source, the gas outlet disposed in the oral care region;",
"an oral care material source storing an oral care material;",
"an oral care material outlet operably coupled to the oral care material source, the oral care material outlet disposed in the oral care region;",
"and wherein the oral care material outlet is spaced apart from the gas outlet.",
"In yet another aspect, an oral care implement is disclosed that comprises: an oral care region having at least one cleaning element;",
"a body coupled to the oral care region;",
"an air source for storing pressurized air;",
"an air outlet disposed in the oral care region and operably coupled to the air source;",
"an elastomeric tooth cleaning element extending from a surface of the oral care region;",
"and wherein the elastomeric tooth cleaning element is positioned on the oral care region adjacent the air outlet so that the air stream causes a dynamic vibratory flexing action of at least a portion of the elastomeric tooth cleaning element.",
"Other features and advantages of the invention will become apparent from the following description taken in conjunction with the following drawings.",
"BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIGS. 1 and 2 are perspective front and rear views of an oral care implement, such as a toothbrush, according to one or more embodiments of the invention;",
"FIGS. 3 and 4 are schematic representations of alternative toothbrush constructions according to one or more embodiments of the invention;",
"FIGS. 5-7 are a schematic representations of the toothbrush cleaning action in an oral cavity;",
"FIGS. 8 and 9 are schematic representations of an alternative toothbrush construction according to one or more embodiments of the invention;",
"FIG. 10 is a schematic representation of an alternative toothbrush construction according to one or more embodiments of the invention;",
"FIG. 11 is a schematic representation of an alternative toothbrush construction and docking station according to one or more embodiments of the invention;",
"and FIG. 12 is an example functional block diagram of components of a control system according to one or more embodiments of the invention.",
"DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION In the following description, the invention is discussed in terms of a toothbrush (e.g. a form of an oral care implement) but could be in the form of other personal care implements.",
"For example, a toothbrush can be used for personal hygiene, such as oral care purposes.",
"Further, it is understood that other embodiments may be utilized and structural and functional modifications may be made without departing from the scope of the present invention.",
"FIGS. 1-2 illustrate an oral care implement, such as a toothbrush, generally designated with the reference numeral 100 .",
"The toothbrush 100 generally includes a head 102 and a handle 103 .",
"The handle 103 is generally an elongated member dimensioned so that a user can readily grip and manipulate the toothbrush 100 .",
"The handle 103 may be formed of many different shapes, lengths and with a variety of constructions.",
"In one construction, the handle 103 has a neck portion 105 positioned adjacent the head 101 .",
"The neck portion 105 may be a narrowed region on the handle 103 between head 101 and the part of the handle normally gripped by the user.",
"Nevertheless, the neck portion 101 could be the region between the head 101 and the part of the handle normally gripped by the user.",
"In another construction, the handle 103 is integrally formed with the head 101 .",
"Other attachment configurations also are possible.",
"The head 101 may include an oral care region comprising one or more tooth cleaning elements 111 .",
"As used herein, the term “tooth cleaning elements”",
"or “cleaning elements”",
"includes any type of structure that is commonly used or is suitable for use in providing oral health benefits (e.g., tooth cleaning, tooth polishing, tooth whitening, massaging, stimulating, etc.) by making contact with portions of the teeth and gums.",
"Such tooth cleaning elements include but are not limited to tufts of bristles that can be formed to have a number of different shapes and sizes and elastomeric cleaning members that can be formed to have a number of different shapes and sizes, or a combination of both tufts of bristles and elastomeric cleaning members.",
"In one construction, the one or more tooth cleaning elements 111 are formed from a plurality of bristles.",
"Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2 , the tooth cleaning elements 111 are bristle regions having different shapes, however, it is understood that a number of different configurations of oral care implements may be utilized.",
"The one or more tooth cleaning elements 111 may be attached to the head 101 by known methods, such as being fit within recesses formed in the head 101 along a front portion 107 of the toothbrush 100 ( FIG. 1 ).",
"The head 101 also may be configured to be detached from the neck 105 or handle 103 and replaced with a new head 101 , if desired.",
"Referring to FIG. 3 , toothbrush 100 includes head 101 with an air flossing outlet 109 surrounded by the tooth cleaning elements 111 .",
"Toothbrush 100 includes an air inlet 113 for receiving ambient air to be stored in a rechargeable air reservoir or air cartridge 117 for storing pressurized air.",
"In air inlet is connected to an air pump/compressor 119 .",
"The both the reservoir 117 and pump/compressor 119 serve as pressurized air sources to air flossing outlet 109 .",
"The air inlet 113 may have a filter to trap air borne particulates before storage in the reservoir.",
"To prevent over-pressurizing the reservoir 117 , a pressure relief valve 122 may be provided in the handle 103 .",
"The relief valve 122 may be preset to open and release air from the reservoir at predetermined pressure, such as 50 to 60 p.s.i. Alternatively, the pump/compressor 419 may be preset to stop operation at a specific pressure or range of pressure in lieu using a pressure relief valve.",
"Toothbrush 100 may include an air pressure button 115 for controlling pressurized air provided to the reservoir 117 .",
"In operation, the engagement of button 115 by the user initiates the operation of air pump/compressor 119 .",
"Button 115 may be used for releasing the pressurized air to enable an air flossing operation of the teeth of user.",
"In operation, the button 115 may control the opening and closing of an air valve 123 .",
"For example, the air valve 123 may be connected to a relay or solenoid component for opening closing.",
"Also, the air components can be connected together via air conduit 118 , such as tubing or other hollow pathway to enable air flow.",
"In an alternative construction shown in FIG. 4 , toothbrush 100 ′ may not include a reservoir 117 for pressurized air storage.",
"In such a construction, the pressurized air is directly transferred from the pump/compressor 119 to air outlet 109 .",
"Nevertheless in both constructions, the provided pressure at air outlet 109 may range from 15.0 pounds per square inches (p.s.i.) to 30.0 p.s.i. The controlled release of the pressurized air from the outlet 109 provides for interdental cleaning of the teeth of a user.",
"The outlet 109 is provided in the form of an orifice.",
"The orifice can be of different sizes and shapes, such as circular, rectangular, square or triangular.",
"In one construction, the orifice has a circular shape.",
"The diameters of the orifice may range from 0.50 mm to 2.00 mm.",
"Nevertheless, other diameters are possible.",
"Referring to FIGS. 5-7 , as can be appreciated in operation, the pressurized air exits from the air outlet 109 in the form of an air stream 500 .",
"The air stream can be delivered at a constant rate or could be pulsated at a predetermined rate, as discussed with regard to FIG. 12 .",
"The air stream 500 interacts with dentifrice and water within the field of cleaning elements 111 .",
"It is understood that the air-dentifrice-water interaction creates a high pressure bubble matrix 503 .",
"A schematic representation of flow of air stream 500 and cleaning action is shown in FIG. 7 .",
"Referring to FIG. 7 , as can be appreciated, the velocity of the bubbles 503 against the tooth surfaces 505 generally conform to the curvature of the teeth, penetrates into the interproximal areas between the teeth and sweeps away the plaque and debris.",
"The loosened plaque and debris are received by the cleaning elements 111 of the head 101 .",
"The effective cleaning of the interproximal areas 507 between the teeth provides a floss-like clean.",
"While one air outlet may be used in the toothbrush 100 , the inventive aspect may be practiced with a plurality of air outlets, such as two or three outlets.",
"In an alternative construction of the toothbrush 200 shown in FIGS. 8-9 , the tooth cleaning elements of head 201 may include a variety of tooth cleaning elements which can be used for wiping, cleaning and massaging the user's teeth and gums.",
"In the illustrated construction of FIG. 12 , tooth cleaning elements include distal tooth cleaning elements 203 a - b disposed at a distal end 121 of head 201 , peripheral tooth cleaning elements 205 a - 1 , longitudinal tooth cleaning elements 207 b - c disposed along longitudinal axis a-a, arcuate tooth cleaning elements 209 a - d and 211 a - b , and proximal cleaning elements 213 a,b .",
"Tooth cleaning elements 205 , 207 , 211 and 213 can be provided as tufts of bristles whereas tooth cleaning elements 209 can be formed as elastomeric walls segments.",
"Nevertheless, other forms and types of tooth cleaning elements may be used.",
"In this construction, air outlet 109 is provided generally in the center of the arcuate tooth cleaning elements structure near the distal end 121 .",
"Nevertheless, the air outlet 109 can be disposed at other locations on the head 201 , such as generally in the center of the other arcuate tooth cleaning element structure.",
"In the example of the arcuate elastomeric wall segments, as can be appreciated that the air stream causes a dynamic vibratory flexing action of individual segments with respect to their vertical axis, which in-turn enhances the cleaning action of the distal tip (e.g., wiping edge) of the segment 209 against the tooth surface.",
"Additionally, the interior space defined between the arcuate elements 209 enables the elements to from a nozzle structure/configuration 250 to direct the air stream into the interproximal areas of between the teeth.",
"The gaps 212 formed between the arcuate segments 209 a - d enables some controlled flow of the fluid and air flow to other regions of the head 101 during brushing.",
"It should be appreciated that the nozzle configuration could be formed by tightly packed, elongate bristle tufts.",
"Further, in lieu of gaps between the elements, the nozzle configurations could have completely closed sidewall structures in other constructions.",
"While four arcuate segment cleaning elements 209 a - d are shown surrounding each of the generally cleaning elements 207 , the inventive aspects may be practiced with more or fewer arcuate segments.",
"While the arcuate segments form a generally circular structure, the segments can form an elliptical shape or a rectangular shape or other shapes in cross-section.",
"Nevertheless, other shapes are possible to form the nozzle-like structure.",
"Hence, the pressurized air stream of toothbrush 100 has synergistic benefits of providing a floss-like clean and improved surface cleaning of the tooth.",
"The elastomeric material of the cleaning elements has a hardness property in the range of A15 to A35 Shore hardness;",
"A20 to A30 Shore hardness;",
"or A25 to A28 Shore hardness.",
"As an example, one elastomeric material is styrene-ethylene/butylene-styrene block copolymer (SEBS) manufactured by GLS Corporation.",
"Nevertheless, SEBS material from other manufacturers or other materials within and outside the noted hardness range could be used.",
"Referring to FIG. 10 , in an alternative construction, toothbrush 300 may operation in conjunction with a docking station 400 .",
"Toothbrush 300 includes the features of toothbrush construction 100 , expect for on-board pump/compressor 119 .",
"The docking station 400 comprises cavity 452 for seating, receiving and/or storing the handle 103 of the toothbrush 300 .",
"The docking station 400 may include an air inlet 413 for receiving ambient air to be stored in a reservoir 417 for storing pressurized air received via the air inlet 413 from air pump/compressor 419 .",
"The air inlet 413 may have a filter to trap air borne particulates.",
"To prevent over-pressurizing the reservoir 417 , a pressure relief valve 422 may be provided.",
"The relief valve 422 may be preset to open and release air from the reservoir 417 at predetermined pressure, such as 50 to 60 p.s.i. Alternatively, the pump/compressor 419 may be preset to stop operation at a specific pressure in lieu using a pressure relief valve.",
"Docking station 400 may include an air pressure button 415 for controlling pressurized air entry into the reservoir 417 .",
"In operation, the depression or otherwise engagement of button 415 initiates the operation of air pump/compressor 419 .",
"Docking station 400 may further include a button 412 for releasing the pressurized air into the rechargeable reservoir in the toothbrush handle 103 .",
"In operation, the button 412 controls the opening and closing of an air valve 423 to fill the reservoir 119 of toothbrush 300 .",
"An input 431 is operative connected to the air valve 423 .",
"Air input 431 works in cooperating with the air inlet 113 of toothbrush 300 .",
"The connection between air input 431 and air inlet 113 can be air tight seal based on a threaded connection, press-fit, and the like.",
"Docketing station 400 may include a control system 401 which may comprise one or more printed circuit boards to controlling the operation pump/compressor 419 in conjunction with button 412 , 415 .",
"In alternative construction, the docking station 400 may not have a reservoir 417 for pressurized air storage.",
"In such a construction, pressurized air is directly transferred to the reservoir of toothbrush handle 103 by the pump/compressor 419 in the docking station 400 .",
"In other constructions of the docking station 400 , a power source such as a battery or the like, is provided in the interior cavity to power the air storage and filling features.",
"Alternatively, the docking station 400 may to draw electric power from a household outlet.",
"Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2 , toothbrush 100 includes a front portion 107 and a rear portion 109 .",
"A thumb gripping portion 115 is provided so that a user may hold the toothbrush 100 with their thumb resting on gripping portion 115 .",
"Thumb gripping portion 115 may be formed of a pliable, cushioning material that is depressible as a user presses their thumb against it.",
"In one or more constructions, as described herein, the thumb gripping portion 115 may serves as an actuator to control operation of the toothbrush features.",
"For example, thumb gripping portion 115 may serve as a button to turn control a device associated with the toothbrush 100 “on”",
"and/or “off.”",
"For example, the device may be the on-board pump or an air valve for controlling the pressurized air.",
"In a powered toothbrush construction, thumb gripping portion 115 serves as a button to change a mode of operation of the toothbrush 100 .",
"Button 115 enables a user to change the mode of operation to any of a number of different operations.",
"(e.g., an air flossing only mode, a vibratory only mode, or air flossing/vibratory mode).",
"For example, depression or other engagement of button 115 may change the mode of operation to air floss only mode.",
"In the air floss mode, an air stream is provided from the outlet.",
"A subsequent engagement of button 115 may change the mode of operation moving cleaning element mode (e.g., vibratory head or oscillating head portion).",
"A subsequent engagement of button 115 may change the mode of operation to combination air flossing/moving cleaning element mode.",
"Nevertheless, the specific order of the engagement events of the button 115 , does not limit the scope of the inventive concepts.",
"Further, the toothbrush 100 may have two or more buttons or actuators for controlling the modes of operation.",
"In another construction, toothbrush 100 may be a powered toothbrush including motion-producing device that drives a powered element, such as movable cleaning elements 111 with an activation/deactivation or “on/off”",
"button, such as button 115 .",
"Referring to FIGS. 3-4 , in another construction, toothbrush 100 may include a motion-producing device 130 to define a vibratory head 102 .",
"A wide variety of motion-producing devices (e.g., vibratory devices) can be used to produce vibrations over a wide range of frequencies.",
"Various types of vibratory devices are commercially available, such as transducers.",
"One example of a vibratory device provides frequencies in the range of about 100 to 350 kHz.",
"The vibration frequencies may be of different waveforms, including sinusoid, square, sawtooth and the like.",
"Nevertheless, other values and waveforms are possible.",
"A vibratory device may be located in head of the toothbrush or neck thereof.",
"When activated, vibratory device is powered by battery (and controlled by electronics on circuit board or switching system) so as to induce vibrations in head of the toothbrush and thereby enhances teeth-cleaning action imparted by the tooth cleaning elements.",
"In alternate constructions, a vibratory device may include a micro motor attached to a shaft, with the shaft coupled to an eccentric rotating about an axis parallel to the longitudinal axis of the toothbrush.",
"In still other constructions, a vibratory-producing device includes an eccentric that is driven by a micro motor in a translatory manner.",
"A switch, such as a button, toggle switch, rotating dial, or the like, can be provided for activating the vibratory device, such a switch/button 115 of toothbrush 100 .",
"A vibratory device often has a power source, such as a battery.",
"Activating the switch can cause the vibration-producing device to operate for a user-defined interval (e.g., during the time that a button is depressed or a switch is in an engaged position), or alternatively can activate a timing circuit that causes the vibratory device to operate for a predetermined interval.",
"If a timing circuit is used, the associated interval either may be preset or may be adjustable, e.g., by a user-activated switch.",
"Referring to FIG. 11 , in an alternative construction, toothbrush 500 may include an active agent feature.",
"Toothbrush 500 may include the features of toothbrush constructions 100 , 100 ′, 200 , and 300 .",
"An active agent outlet 150 may be provided with the field of cleaning elements 111 .",
"The toothbrush 500 can be supplied with one or more cartridges or reservoirs 151 containing active agent(s).",
"Multiple cartridges can be provided, for example, for supplying different active agents or a replacement supply of the same active agent.",
"The outlet 150 is connected to the reservoir 151 via a conduit 153 .",
"Depending on the type of active agent used and the location of the air outlet 109 and an active agent outlet, the active agent can be administered before, during, or after initiation of air stream.",
"As can be appreciated, the active agent and air stream interaction on the oral surfaces can improve plaque removal/bacterial removal interdental areas.",
"In one construction, a user-activated switch, such as a dial (not shown), can have multiple settings for selecting one or more of several active agents.",
"For example, the dial can have a first setting for oxidizer/whitener treatment, a second setting for breath freshener treatment, and a third setting for antimicrobial treatment.",
"Non-limiting examples of active agents which can be used include antibacterial agents, such as chlorhexidine, cetyl pyridininum chloride, triclosan, zinc salts, and;",
"oxidative or whitening agents, such as hydrogen peroxide, urea peroxide, sodium percarbonate, and PVP-H 2 O 2 ;",
"supercharged fluoride delivery ingredients;",
"tooth sensitivity ingredients, such as KNO 3 ;",
"occluding agents, such as Novamin® bioactive glass and arginine salts such as arginine bicarbonate;",
"gum health actives, including those which reduce inflammation pathways and/or interfere in bacterial processes which produce inflammatory stimuli, bachalin, polyphenols, triclosan, ethyl pyruvate, and guanidinoethyl disulfide;",
"nutritional type ingredients, such as vitamins, minerals, amino acids, vitamin E, and folic acid;",
"tartar control or anti-stain ingredients, including phosphate salts, polyvinylphosphonic acid, PVM/MA copolymer;",
"enzymes, such as those used for plaque disruption;",
"sensate ingredients, such as those providing cooling, tingle, or heat sensations;",
"flavors and flavor ingredients;",
"anti-cavity or enamel repair agents;",
"breath freshening ingredients;",
"oral malodor reducing agents;",
"anti-attachment agents, such as ethyl lauroyl arginate;",
"diagnostic solutions, such as plaque-indicator dyes;",
"and combinations thereof.",
"Examples of flavors and flavor ingredients include essential oils, menthol, carvone, and anethole, and various flavoring aldehydes, esters, and alcohols.",
"Examples of essential oils include oils of spearmint, peppermint, wintergreen, sassafras, clove, sage, eucalyptus, marjoram, cinnamon, lemon, lime, grapefruit, and orange.",
"Flavoring agents typically are provided at a concentration of about 0.1 to about 2 wt % based on the weight of the composition, more usually from about 0.1 to about 0.5 wt %.",
"The active agent and/or its medium can be selected to complement a toothpaste formula, such as by coordinating flavors, colors, aesthetics, or active ingredients.",
"A flavor can be administered to create a gradual flavor change during brushing, which presently is not possible using toothpaste alone.",
"The active agent can be provided in any suitable vehicle, such as in aqueous solution or in the form of gel or paste.",
"Non-limiting examples of vehicles include water, monohydric alcohols such as ethanol, poly(ethylene oxides) such as polyethylene glycols such as PEG 2M, 5M, 7M, 14M, 23M, 45M, and 90M available from Union Carbide, carboxymethylene polymers such as Carbopol® 934 and 974 available from B. F. Goodrich, and combinations thereof.",
"The selection of a suitable vehicle will be apparent to persons skilled in the art depending on such factors as the properties of the active agent and the desired properties of the medium, such as viscosity.",
"As described herein with respect to FIG. 12 , a control system 600 for toothbrush constructions 100 , 100 ′, 200 , 300 , and 500 may be included to control the air stream for the “floss-like”",
"clean.",
"FIG. 12 illustrates a block diagram of components in one or more constructions of control system 600 .",
"One or more of the components shown in FIG. 12 may be included within one or more printed circuit boards.",
"Possible alternatives include flash memory, flash ROM, RAM with battery backup.",
"Control system 600 may include a pump control 619 operatively connected to one or more components of the system 600 and a user interface 615 , such button 115 .",
"Mode selection circuitry 621 may include electrical circuitry, software, computer-readable instructions, or other components to allow for changing the mode of operation of the toothbrush 100 .",
"For example, mode selection circuitry 621 may receive and process an input signal to change the mode of operation from an air floss mode to moving-cleaning element mode of operation.",
"Mode selection circuitry 621 may be configured to perform the functions for processing signal(s) performing computer-readable instructions, and reading from and writing to a memory (not shown) associated with the toothbrush 100 switching between different modes of operation.",
"Timer circuitry 622 may include hardware, software, computer-readable instructions, or other components to allow for counting up or counting down time.",
"Timer circuitry 622 may include a crystal oscillator for counting seconds, minutes, etc.",
"Timer circuitry 622 may be configured to perform the functions for processing signal(s) performing computer-readable instructions, and reading from and writing to a memory (not shown) associated with the toothbrush 622 operating in a timer mode for two (2) minutes for air flossing mode.",
"In one arrangement, the air floss mode can end after an elapsed time of 2 minutes.",
"Control system 600 may include a valve control 623 operatively connected to one or more components of the system 600 to controlling release of air for flossing, including a constant stream of air or pulsating stream of air.",
"The pulsation frequency can may be of different waveforms, including sinusoid, square, sawtooth and like.",
"The control system circuitry 600 may include hardware, software, computer-readable instructions, or other components to enable control the air flow.",
"For example, the control system 600 may include memory of a programmable type in which nonvolatile storage can be electrically erased and reprogrammed.",
"As discussed, the inventive aspects may be practiced for a manual toothbrush or a powered toothbrush with moving tooth cleaning elements.",
"While the various features of the toothbrush 100 work together to achieve the advantages previously described, it is recognized that individual features and sub-combinations of these features can be used to obtain some of the aforementioned advantages without the necessity to adopt all of these features.",
"While the invention has been described with respect to specific examples including presently preferred modes of carrying out the invention, those skilled in the art will appreciate that there are numerous variations and permutations of the above described systems and techniques.",
"Thus, the spirit and scope of the invention should be construed broadly as set forth in the appended claims."
] |
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
[0001] Feeding of domesticated animals is generally quite easy. One bowl for food and one for water are provided for the owner's pets. The owner puts dry (or even wet) food into the food bowl and water into the water bowl. The animals then can eat and drink whenever they are hungry or thirsty. However, in some climates and locales, this situation is less than ideal. Pests may also like to eat whenever they are hungry as well. The pests, and ants in particular, will find and take over the pet's food. This causes problems not only for the pets whose food is being tainted by the pests, but may also provide the pests with other options, including infesting other areas of the home, etc.
[0002] Thus, a pet bowl is needed to prevent the pests from entering the food bowl. While a moat around the food bowl is known, the present invention allows the water from a water dish to travel from the water dish to the moat around the food portion and maintain a constant water depth.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0003] The present invention is directed to a moated pet food bowl that includes a first bowl for holding water and having an opening in a sidewall thereof, a second bowl having an opening in a sidewall thereof, the second bowl disposed adjacent to and attached to the first bowl, a third bowl disposed at least partially within the second bowl, the third bowl for holding pet food, and a conduit disposed between the first and second bowls and connected to the openings in the sidewalls thereof so that the first bowl and the second bowl are in fluid communication with each other.
[0004] In some embodiments, the opening in the sidewall of the first bowl is higher than the opening in the sidewall of the second bowl.
[0005] In some other embodiments, the third bowl has a lip extending outward to at least partially cover the gap when the third bowl is disposed within the second bowl.
[0006] According to another aspect of the present invention, a moated pet food bowl includes a first bowl for holding water having a bottom and a side wall extending around the bottom to form a water holding portion, the first bowl having an opening in the side wall, a second bowl having a bottom and a side wall extending around the bottom, the second bowl having an opening in the sidewall, the second bowl disposed adjacent to and attached to the first bowl, a third bowl having an outside perimeter, the outside perimeter being smaller than an inside perimeter of the second bowl such that the third bowl fits at least partially within the second bowl, the third bowl for holding pet food, and a conduit disposed between the first and second bowls and connected to the openings in the sidewalls thereof so that the first bowl and the second bowl are in fluid communication with each other.
[0007] It is to be understood that both the foregoing general description and the following detailed description of the present embodiments of the invention are intended to provide an overview or framework for understanding the nature and character of the invention as it is claimed. The accompanying drawings are included to provide a further understanding of the invention, and are incorporated into and constitute a part of this specification. The drawings illustrate various embodiments of the invention and, together with the description, serve to explain the principles and operations of the invention.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0008] FIG. 1 is a perspective view of one embodiment of a moated pet bowl according to the present invention with supply bottles that can be used therewith;
[0009] FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view of the moated pet bowl of FIG. 1 ;
[0010] FIG. 3 is a cross sectional view of the moated pet bowl of FIG. 1 along line 3 - 3 ;
[0011] FIG. 4 is a cross sectional view of the moated pet bowl of FIG. 1 along line 4 - 4 ;
[0012] FIG. 5 is a cross sectional view of the moated pet bowl of FIG. 1 along line 5 - 6 ;
[0013] FIG. 6 is a front view of the moated pet bowl of FIG. 1 ;
[0014] FIG. 7 is a top view of the moated pet bowl of FIG. 1 ;
[0015] FIG. 8 is an exploded top view of the moated pet bowl of FIG. 7
[0016] FIG. 9 is a rear view of the moated pet bowl of FIG. 1 illustrating one embodiment of clamp that can be used to secure the moated pet bowl; and
[0017] FIG. 10 is rear cross sectional view of an alternative embodiment of a conduit used to join the two bowls together in fluid communication.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
[0018] 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.
[0019] Referring to the figures, a moated pet bowl 10 has a first bowl 100 and a second bowl 200 , the first bowl 100 and the second bowl 200 being attached to one another. The first bowl 100 and the second bowl 200 are preferably attached to one another with supports 12 , 14 . As illustrated, the first bowl 100 and the second bowl 200 are made from metal and the supports 12 , 14 , also made of metal, are welded to the bowls 100 , 200 . However, the pet bowl 10 may be made of any appropriate materials, including but not limited to plastic, steel, aluminum, or other appropriate materials. While the supports 12 , 14 are illustrated as attaching to sides of the bowls 100 , 200 , they could be attached in other ways and/or manner. For example, they could be attached by the bottoms or the tops of the bowls 100 , 200 , and the bowls 100 , 200 could also share a common wall.
[0020] The moated pet bowl 10 also has a third bowl 300 , which is inserted into the second bowl 200 . See, e.g., FIGS. 2 and 3 . As described in more detail below, the first bowl 100 is designed to hold water for the pet that will be using the moated pet bowl 10 . The second bowl 200 is designed to be the moat as it is in fluid communication with and receives water from the first bowl 100 and in particular, from water bottle WB. The third bowl 300 holds the dry pet food. The third bowl 300 is preferably removably inserted into the second bowl 200 with space therearound to allow water from the first bowl 100 to surround the third bowl 300 to make a moat, preventing pests from being able to access the pet food in the third bowl 300 due to the water barrier between the second bowl two hundred 200 and the third bowl 300 .
[0021] As best seen in FIGS. 2, 3, and 5 , the first bowl 100 has a bottom 102 and a side wall 104 that encircles the bottom 102 . The first bowl 100 has a shape that approximates a FIG. 8 , but could be of any appropriate shape, including more of an oval or rectangular shape (with rounded corners if desired). By using this configuration, Applicant has eliminated tight corners to allow for easier cleaning and safety as there are no sharp edges or corners to accumulate old food or to injure the persons or the pets using the bowl. While there appears to be a seam between the bottom 102 and the side wall 104 , the two elements could be formed simultaneously, with the bottom 102 and the side wall 104 forming a unitary structure. There may also be a smoother or curved transition between the bottom 102 and the side wall 104 , eliminating the 90 degree corners (see, e.g., FIGS. 3 and 5 ), further improving the ability to clean the moated pet bowl 10 .
[0022] Returning to the first bowl 100 , the bottom 102 and the side wall 104 form a water holding portion 106 , which is divided into a supply area 108 and a drinking area 110 . On the top edge 112 of the supply area 108 is a bottle holding member 114 . The bottle holding member 114 has a first ring portion 116 that is preferably attached to at least a portion of the side wall 104 and a disbursing portion 118 . While the bottle holding member 114 is fixedly attached as illustrated, it could also be removable. The disbursing portion 118 holds a source of water, a water bottle such as the water bottle WB in FIG. 1 , and preferably has a lower portion to 120 control the flow of water from the water bottle (see e.g., FIGS. 3, 5, and 7 ) into the supply area 108 . The lower portion 120 is preferably funnel-shaped but could be any appropriate configuration. The top part of the disbursing portion 118 may be configured to accept a variety of water supply bottles and sizes of openings, including specialized bottles or more prevalent water bottles that are available from numerous retailers. The length of the lower portion 120 may also be altered, depending on the depth of water that is needed in the first bowl 100 . For a shallower water line in the first bowl 100 , the lower portion 120 would be closer to the bottom 102 and farther away from the bottom 102 for a higher water line. However, the water line in supply area 108 needs to be at least as high as the opening 122 as discussed below.
[0023] The water bottle WB is illustrated as a tall, thin water bottle, but it could be of any shape or size. For example, the water bottle WB could be a regular 16 ounce water bottle, or a much larger diameter and shorter water bottle. The water bottle WB could simply sit within the disbursing portion 118 , or be secured within the disbursing portion 118 with threads on the water bottle WB and the disbursing portion 118 or in any other fashion.
[0024] The first bowl 100 also has an opening 122 in the side wall 104 , see FIGS. 3 and 5 , that is connected to a conduit 130 , which joins the first bowl 100 with the second bowl 200 , as discussed below in more detail. The conduit 130 is illustrated as a cylinder but could be of any shape in cross section—oval, square, etc. and still fall within the scope of the present invention. While is it not the most preferred embodiment, the conduit 130 may have a lengthwise opening giving it a u-shaped cross section.
[0025] The second bowl 200 has a bottom 202 and a side wall 204 and has a shape that also approximates a FIG. 8 . However, as noted above with regard to the first bowl 100 , it could be of any appropriate shape and made of any appropriate materials. The bottom 202 and the side wall 204 could be formed simultaneously, with the bottom 202 and the side wall 204 forming a unitary structure for the same reasons as given for the first bowl 100 .
[0026] The bottom 202 and the side wall 204 form a water holding portion 206 (and as is clear from the figures, also holds third bowl 300 ). The second bowl 200 also has an opening 222 in the side wall 204 , see FIGS. 2 and 5 , that is connected to the conduit 130 , which connects the second bowl 200 with the first bowl 100 to allow water to flow from the first bowl 100 to the second bowl 200 . The second bowl 200 also includes alignment members 216 , which are attached to the bottom 202 and the side wall 204 to center the third bowl 300 . The third bowl 300 will have cooperating structures to engage the alignment members 216 . The alignment members 216 may only be attached to one of the bottom 202 and the side wall 204 if so desired. For obvious reasons, the third bowl 300 is preferably removable from the second bowl 200 to allow for cleaning of both second bowl 200 and third bowl 300 .
[0027] The third bowl 300 has a bottom 302 and a side wall 304 and has a shape that preferably approximates the shape of the second bowl 200 . In the embodiment illustrated, that shape is a FIG. 8 , but could be any shape that fits inside the second bowl 200 . The bottom 302 and the side wall 304 form a pet food holding portion 306 , which is divided into a supply area 308 and an eating area 310 . Attached to the top edge 312 of the side wall 304 in the supply area 308 is a bottle holding member 316 . The third bowl 300 also has a disbursing portion 318 in the supply area 308 and under the bottle holding member 316 to control the flow of pet food from a supply bottle FB (see e.g., FIG. 1 ). The disbursing portion 318 is preferably an inclined surface (and may also be a portion of the bottom 302 ), which directs the pet food from the bottle in the supply area 308 into the eating area 310 . While the disbursing portion 318 is illustrated as a flat inclined surface, it could be concave or have another shape (more funnel-like) that would direct the pet food into the eating area 310 .
[0028] The food bottle FB is illustrated as a tall, thin bottle, but it could be of any shape or size. The opening in the food bottle FB needs to be large enough that the food does not get caught in the opening. For example, the food bottle WB could be a tall slender bottle that may match the water bottle WB, or a much larger diameter and shorter water bottle. The food bottle FB preferably has threads to match to match those in the bottle holding member 316 .
[0029] Attached to the outside of the third bowl 300 at the bottom 302 are two projections 320 that engage and cooperate with the alignment members 216 . See FIGS. 2 and 8 . When the third bowl 300 is inserted into the water holding portion 206 of second bowl 200 , the projections 320 fit between the alignment members 216 to center the third bowl 300 within the second bowl 200 . This ensures that water from the first bowl 100 that enters the second bowl 200 through conduit 130 (or could alternatively be added directly to the second bowl 200 by the pet owner) completely surrounds the third bowl 300 . In this manner, the pet food in the third bowl 300 is isolated from the pests by the water—since the pests will not be able to cross over the water in the second bowl 200 . As would be obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, the projections 320 and the alignment members 216 could be reversed with the projections on the second bowl 200 and the alignment members on the third bowl 300 . The alignment members and the projections 216 , 320 could take other forms and still fall within the scope of the present invention as long as they would keep the water around the third bowl 300 .
[0030] The third bowl 300 also preferably has an extended lip 330 that extends radially outward from the side wall 304 in the eating area 310 . In this manner, the extended lip 330 covers the area 332 that is formed between the inside surface 218 of side wall 204 of the second bowl and the outside surface 322 of the side wall 302 of the third bowl 300 . As best illustrated in FIG. 4 , the lip 330 extends outward beyond the sidewall 204 of the second bowl 200 . The extended lip 330 provides another barrier to pests that may want to get to the food in third bowl 300 and also prevents the pet eating the food from allowing food to drop into the area 332 . If food were to enter the area 332 , it would potentially provide a path from the second bowl 200 to the third bowl 300 as well as fouling the water in the second bowl 200 . The lip 330 provides a space 334 between its self and the top of the side wall 204 so that the pests cannot simply bypass the area 332 by climbing from the sidewall 204 to the lip 330 . As is illustrated in the figures, especially FIG. 3 , the side wall 104 is higher (wider) than the side wall 204 , but could be the same height or even smaller (taking into account the conduit 130 between the first and second bowls 100 , 200 ) if so desired.
[0031] As illustrated in FIGS. 1-9 , the conduit 130 is level between the first bowl 100 and the second bowl 200 . However, as illustrated in an alternative embodiment of a moated pet bowl 10 ′ in FIG. 10 , the conduit 130 ′ at the first bowl 100 ′ may be slightly higher (and the opening 122 ′ is higher in wall 104 ′) than the opening 222 ′ in the side wall 204 ′ at the second bowl to prevent water from the second bowl 200 ′ from entering the first bowl 100 ′—and perhaps contaminating the water that the pet drinks. However, with this arrangement, the water in the second bowl 200 ′, and the moat, is maintained as long as there is water in the supply bottle.
[0032] A clamp 400 is provided to secure the moated pet bowl 10 to another structure. The clamp 400 may take any form but has an arm 402 that is adjustably attached to the support 14 at one end 404 with a wing nut 410 and is attached to a bar 406 at the second end 408 . The bar 406 and the second end 408 can have inserted therebetween the other structure to prevent the moated pet bowl from be easily moved.
[0033] 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. | A pet food bowl has three bowls, a first bowl for holding drinking water, a second bowl for holding water and providing a moat, and third bowl to be placed in the second bowl for holding the pet food. The water from the drinking bowl passes through a conduit to the second bowl, maintaining the water level in the second bowl. The third bowl may be removable to allow for easy cleaning of the second and third bowls. | Provide a concise summary of the essential information conveyed in the given context. | [
"FIELD OF THE INVENTION [0001] Feeding of domesticated animals is generally quite easy.",
"One bowl for food and one for water are provided for the owner's pets.",
"The owner puts dry (or even wet) food into the food bowl and water into the water bowl.",
"The animals then can eat and drink whenever they are hungry or thirsty.",
"However, in some climates and locales, this situation is less than ideal.",
"Pests may also like to eat whenever they are hungry as well.",
"The pests, and ants in particular, will find and take over the pet's food.",
"This causes problems not only for the pets whose food is being tainted by the pests, but may also provide the pests with other options, including infesting other areas of the home, etc.",
"[0002] Thus, a pet bowl is needed to prevent the pests from entering the food bowl.",
"While a moat around the food bowl is known, the present invention allows the water from a water dish to travel from the water dish to the moat around the food portion and maintain a constant water depth.",
"SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION [0003] The present invention is directed to a moated pet food bowl that includes a first bowl for holding water and having an opening in a sidewall thereof, a second bowl having an opening in a sidewall thereof, the second bowl disposed adjacent to and attached to the first bowl, a third bowl disposed at least partially within the second bowl, the third bowl for holding pet food, and a conduit disposed between the first and second bowls and connected to the openings in the sidewalls thereof so that the first bowl and the second bowl are in fluid communication with each other.",
"[0004] In some embodiments, the opening in the sidewall of the first bowl is higher than the opening in the sidewall of the second bowl.",
"[0005] In some other embodiments, the third bowl has a lip extending outward to at least partially cover the gap when the third bowl is disposed within the second bowl.",
"[0006] According to another aspect of the present invention, a moated pet food bowl includes a first bowl for holding water having a bottom and a side wall extending around the bottom to form a water holding portion, the first bowl having an opening in the side wall, a second bowl having a bottom and a side wall extending around the bottom, the second bowl having an opening in the sidewall, the second bowl disposed adjacent to and attached to the first bowl, a third bowl having an outside perimeter, the outside perimeter being smaller than an inside perimeter of the second bowl such that the third bowl fits at least partially within the second bowl, the third bowl for holding pet food, and a conduit disposed between the first and second bowls and connected to the openings in the sidewalls thereof so that the first bowl and the second bowl are in fluid communication with each other.",
"[0007] It is to be understood that both the foregoing general description and the following detailed description of the present embodiments of the invention are intended to provide an overview or framework for understanding the nature and character of the invention as it is claimed.",
"The accompanying drawings are included to provide a further understanding of the invention, and are incorporated into and constitute a part of this specification.",
"The drawings illustrate various embodiments of the invention and, together with the description, serve to explain the principles and operations of the invention.",
"BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS [0008] FIG. 1 is a perspective view of one embodiment of a moated pet bowl according to the present invention with supply bottles that can be used therewith;",
"[0009] FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view of the moated pet bowl of FIG. 1 ;",
"[0010] FIG. 3 is a cross sectional view of the moated pet bowl of FIG. 1 along line 3 - 3 ;",
"[0011] FIG. 4 is a cross sectional view of the moated pet bowl of FIG. 1 along line 4 - 4 ;",
"[0012] FIG. 5 is a cross sectional view of the moated pet bowl of FIG. 1 along line 5 - 6 ;",
"[0013] FIG. 6 is a front view of the moated pet bowl of FIG. 1 ;",
"[0014] FIG. 7 is a top view of the moated pet bowl of FIG. 1 ;",
"[0015] FIG. 8 is an exploded top view of the moated pet bowl of FIG. 7 [0016] FIG. 9 is a rear view of the moated pet bowl of FIG. 1 illustrating one embodiment of clamp that can be used to secure the moated pet bowl;",
"and [0017] FIG. 10 is rear cross sectional view of an alternative embodiment of a conduit used to join the two bowls together in fluid communication.",
"DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS [0018] 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.",
"[0019] Referring to the figures, a moated pet bowl 10 has a first bowl 100 and a second bowl 200 , the first bowl 100 and the second bowl 200 being attached to one another.",
"The first bowl 100 and the second bowl 200 are preferably attached to one another with supports 12 , 14 .",
"As illustrated, the first bowl 100 and the second bowl 200 are made from metal and the supports 12 , 14 , also made of metal, are welded to the bowls 100 , 200 .",
"However, the pet bowl 10 may be made of any appropriate materials, including but not limited to plastic, steel, aluminum, or other appropriate materials.",
"While the supports 12 , 14 are illustrated as attaching to sides of the bowls 100 , 200 , they could be attached in other ways and/or manner.",
"For example, they could be attached by the bottoms or the tops of the bowls 100 , 200 , and the bowls 100 , 200 could also share a common wall.",
"[0020] The moated pet bowl 10 also has a third bowl 300 , which is inserted into the second bowl 200 .",
"See, e.g., FIGS. 2 and 3 .",
"As described in more detail below, the first bowl 100 is designed to hold water for the pet that will be using the moated pet bowl 10 .",
"The second bowl 200 is designed to be the moat as it is in fluid communication with and receives water from the first bowl 100 and in particular, from water bottle WB.",
"The third bowl 300 holds the dry pet food.",
"The third bowl 300 is preferably removably inserted into the second bowl 200 with space therearound to allow water from the first bowl 100 to surround the third bowl 300 to make a moat, preventing pests from being able to access the pet food in the third bowl 300 due to the water barrier between the second bowl two hundred 200 and the third bowl 300 .",
"[0021] As best seen in FIGS. 2, 3, and 5 , the first bowl 100 has a bottom 102 and a side wall 104 that encircles the bottom 102 .",
"The first bowl 100 has a shape that approximates a FIG. 8 , but could be of any appropriate shape, including more of an oval or rectangular shape (with rounded corners if desired).",
"By using this configuration, Applicant has eliminated tight corners to allow for easier cleaning and safety as there are no sharp edges or corners to accumulate old food or to injure the persons or the pets using the bowl.",
"While there appears to be a seam between the bottom 102 and the side wall 104 , the two elements could be formed simultaneously, with the bottom 102 and the side wall 104 forming a unitary structure.",
"There may also be a smoother or curved transition between the bottom 102 and the side wall 104 , eliminating the 90 degree corners (see, e.g., FIGS. 3 and 5 ), further improving the ability to clean the moated pet bowl 10 .",
"[0022] Returning to the first bowl 100 , the bottom 102 and the side wall 104 form a water holding portion 106 , which is divided into a supply area 108 and a drinking area 110 .",
"On the top edge 112 of the supply area 108 is a bottle holding member 114 .",
"The bottle holding member 114 has a first ring portion 116 that is preferably attached to at least a portion of the side wall 104 and a disbursing portion 118 .",
"While the bottle holding member 114 is fixedly attached as illustrated, it could also be removable.",
"The disbursing portion 118 holds a source of water, a water bottle such as the water bottle WB in FIG. 1 , and preferably has a lower portion to 120 control the flow of water from the water bottle (see e.g., FIGS. 3, 5, and 7 ) into the supply area 108 .",
"The lower portion 120 is preferably funnel-shaped but could be any appropriate configuration.",
"The top part of the disbursing portion 118 may be configured to accept a variety of water supply bottles and sizes of openings, including specialized bottles or more prevalent water bottles that are available from numerous retailers.",
"The length of the lower portion 120 may also be altered, depending on the depth of water that is needed in the first bowl 100 .",
"For a shallower water line in the first bowl 100 , the lower portion 120 would be closer to the bottom 102 and farther away from the bottom 102 for a higher water line.",
"However, the water line in supply area 108 needs to be at least as high as the opening 122 as discussed below.",
"[0023] The water bottle WB is illustrated as a tall, thin water bottle, but it could be of any shape or size.",
"For example, the water bottle WB could be a regular 16 ounce water bottle, or a much larger diameter and shorter water bottle.",
"The water bottle WB could simply sit within the disbursing portion 118 , or be secured within the disbursing portion 118 with threads on the water bottle WB and the disbursing portion 118 or in any other fashion.",
"[0024] The first bowl 100 also has an opening 122 in the side wall 104 , see FIGS. 3 and 5 , that is connected to a conduit 130 , which joins the first bowl 100 with the second bowl 200 , as discussed below in more detail.",
"The conduit 130 is illustrated as a cylinder but could be of any shape in cross section—oval, square, etc.",
"and still fall within the scope of the present invention.",
"While is it not the most preferred embodiment, the conduit 130 may have a lengthwise opening giving it a u-shaped cross section.",
"[0025] The second bowl 200 has a bottom 202 and a side wall 204 and has a shape that also approximates a FIG. 8 .",
"However, as noted above with regard to the first bowl 100 , it could be of any appropriate shape and made of any appropriate materials.",
"The bottom 202 and the side wall 204 could be formed simultaneously, with the bottom 202 and the side wall 204 forming a unitary structure for the same reasons as given for the first bowl 100 .",
"[0026] The bottom 202 and the side wall 204 form a water holding portion 206 (and as is clear from the figures, also holds third bowl 300 ).",
"The second bowl 200 also has an opening 222 in the side wall 204 , see FIGS. 2 and 5 , that is connected to the conduit 130 , which connects the second bowl 200 with the first bowl 100 to allow water to flow from the first bowl 100 to the second bowl 200 .",
"The second bowl 200 also includes alignment members 216 , which are attached to the bottom 202 and the side wall 204 to center the third bowl 300 .",
"The third bowl 300 will have cooperating structures to engage the alignment members 216 .",
"The alignment members 216 may only be attached to one of the bottom 202 and the side wall 204 if so desired.",
"For obvious reasons, the third bowl 300 is preferably removable from the second bowl 200 to allow for cleaning of both second bowl 200 and third bowl 300 .",
"[0027] The third bowl 300 has a bottom 302 and a side wall 304 and has a shape that preferably approximates the shape of the second bowl 200 .",
"In the embodiment illustrated, that shape is a FIG. 8 , but could be any shape that fits inside the second bowl 200 .",
"The bottom 302 and the side wall 304 form a pet food holding portion 306 , which is divided into a supply area 308 and an eating area 310 .",
"Attached to the top edge 312 of the side wall 304 in the supply area 308 is a bottle holding member 316 .",
"The third bowl 300 also has a disbursing portion 318 in the supply area 308 and under the bottle holding member 316 to control the flow of pet food from a supply bottle FB (see e.g., FIG. 1 ).",
"The disbursing portion 318 is preferably an inclined surface (and may also be a portion of the bottom 302 ), which directs the pet food from the bottle in the supply area 308 into the eating area 310 .",
"While the disbursing portion 318 is illustrated as a flat inclined surface, it could be concave or have another shape (more funnel-like) that would direct the pet food into the eating area 310 .",
"[0028] The food bottle FB is illustrated as a tall, thin bottle, but it could be of any shape or size.",
"The opening in the food bottle FB needs to be large enough that the food does not get caught in the opening.",
"For example, the food bottle WB could be a tall slender bottle that may match the water bottle WB, or a much larger diameter and shorter water bottle.",
"The food bottle FB preferably has threads to match to match those in the bottle holding member 316 .",
"[0029] Attached to the outside of the third bowl 300 at the bottom 302 are two projections 320 that engage and cooperate with the alignment members 216 .",
"See FIGS. 2 and 8 .",
"When the third bowl 300 is inserted into the water holding portion 206 of second bowl 200 , the projections 320 fit between the alignment members 216 to center the third bowl 300 within the second bowl 200 .",
"This ensures that water from the first bowl 100 that enters the second bowl 200 through conduit 130 (or could alternatively be added directly to the second bowl 200 by the pet owner) completely surrounds the third bowl 300 .",
"In this manner, the pet food in the third bowl 300 is isolated from the pests by the water—since the pests will not be able to cross over the water in the second bowl 200 .",
"As would be obvious to one of ordinary skill in the art, the projections 320 and the alignment members 216 could be reversed with the projections on the second bowl 200 and the alignment members on the third bowl 300 .",
"The alignment members and the projections 216 , 320 could take other forms and still fall within the scope of the present invention as long as they would keep the water around the third bowl 300 .",
"[0030] The third bowl 300 also preferably has an extended lip 330 that extends radially outward from the side wall 304 in the eating area 310 .",
"In this manner, the extended lip 330 covers the area 332 that is formed between the inside surface 218 of side wall 204 of the second bowl and the outside surface 322 of the side wall 302 of the third bowl 300 .",
"As best illustrated in FIG. 4 , the lip 330 extends outward beyond the sidewall 204 of the second bowl 200 .",
"The extended lip 330 provides another barrier to pests that may want to get to the food in third bowl 300 and also prevents the pet eating the food from allowing food to drop into the area 332 .",
"If food were to enter the area 332 , it would potentially provide a path from the second bowl 200 to the third bowl 300 as well as fouling the water in the second bowl 200 .",
"The lip 330 provides a space 334 between its self and the top of the side wall 204 so that the pests cannot simply bypass the area 332 by climbing from the sidewall 204 to the lip 330 .",
"As is illustrated in the figures, especially FIG. 3 , the side wall 104 is higher (wider) than the side wall 204 , but could be the same height or even smaller (taking into account the conduit 130 between the first and second bowls 100 , 200 ) if so desired.",
"[0031] As illustrated in FIGS. 1-9 , the conduit 130 is level between the first bowl 100 and the second bowl 200 .",
"However, as illustrated in an alternative embodiment of a moated pet bowl 10 ′ in FIG. 10 , the conduit 130 ′ at the first bowl 100 ′ may be slightly higher (and the opening 122 ′ is higher in wall 104 ′) than the opening 222 ′ in the side wall 204 ′ at the second bowl to prevent water from the second bowl 200 ′ from entering the first bowl 100 ′—and perhaps contaminating the water that the pet drinks.",
"However, with this arrangement, the water in the second bowl 200 ′, and the moat, is maintained as long as there is water in the supply bottle.",
"[0032] A clamp 400 is provided to secure the moated pet bowl 10 to another structure.",
"The clamp 400 may take any form but has an arm 402 that is adjustably attached to the support 14 at one end 404 with a wing nut 410 and is attached to a bar 406 at the second end 408 .",
"The bar 406 and the second end 408 can have inserted therebetween the other structure to prevent the moated pet bowl from be easily moved.",
"[0033] 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."
] |
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] Priority is claimed with respect to Swiss Patent Application No. 01500/14, filed Oct. 1, 2014, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0002] 1. Technical Field
[0003] The present application relates to a device and a method for the braking and positioning of a print sheet in a processing machine, using at least one braking-force generating means.
[0004] This braking and positioning of the print sheet is available for a basic operation, preferably in connection with the production of folded print sheets in a folding apparatus, wherein the folding apparatus is typically provided with a cross folding and/or a longitudinal folding device.
[0005] The print sheets are typically processed starting with a paper roll which is first printed on in a printing press (digital or offset) and is then guided inline into the folding apparatus, wherein the braking and the positioning of the print sheets initially creates the prerequisites for maintaining a uniform and high quality folding operation throughout the production, even at high clock speeds.
[0006] With the print sheet being securely positioned upstream of the folding operation, previously printed paper rolls can also be used. Loose sheets can furthermore be supplied individually to the folding apparatus, wherein it must be ensured in this case as well that the sheets are securely positioned before reaching the folding device.
[0007] 2. Prior Art
[0008] The folding of different substrates (papers), in particular the longitudinal folding, is especially challenging from a technical view since the print sheets coming from the feed device are redirected by 90° with the aid of a sword and must be supplied to a so-called pair of folding rollers. Before the sheet sections are supplied with the aid of a sword or other folding device to the folding roller pair, the sheet section which typically arrives from a cross folding device, must be decelerated within a very short time (a few milliseconds or fractions of milliseconds) from the feeding speed to 0. With the presently known longitudinal folding devices, this is achieved either with an end stop for the print sheet, or a combination of print sheet end stop and brush.
[0009] The purpose of the brush is to stop and smooth the incoming sheet sections within the brush width. The sheet sections mostly arrive in the longitudinal folding device with the folding edge (cross fold) in the lead. However, non-folded (meaning without cross fold) sections can also be supplied to the longitudinal folding device.
[0010] The longitudinal folding process is basically prior art. The main problem with the sheet redirection or deflection into the folding rollers primarily relates to the stopping of the print sheets at the so-called print sheet end stop. For this, the complete delaying energy is generated abruptly once the print sheet hits the end stop, thus causing the individual sheet to be compressed in the region of the sheet end stop or, in the case of rigid sheets, a portion of the energy is converted to a bouncing back.
[0011] The compressing of the print sheets can result in damage to the folding edge and thus result in deficient products, depending on the speed and the type of paper. When the sheets bounce back, they can furthermore rotate slightly, relative to the optimum geometric position, resulting in slanted or parallel folds during the following instant of inserting the sword. To reduce or eliminate these negative effects, numerous measures have already been proposed which are part of the prior art.
[0012] The braking brush or brushes are located, for example, in front of the sheet stop and must be adjusted respectively to the product thickness. The disadvantage of this solution is that the braking brushes are subject to strong mechanical wear and the thickness adjustment to the paper is generally very involved. The feeding upper belts furthermore can only be guided to the end of the print sheet section. A bouncing back is thus prevented or the product is returned to the end stop. However, damage to the sheet at the end stop is not prevented in this way. Also conceivable is a combination with other solutions. Further known systems are actively controlled braking devices which stop the print sheet at the end, such that the sheet is only aligned at the end stop.
[0013] A system for stopping paper sheets is known from the German patent document DE 199 21 169 C2. With this system, the products are advantageously slowed and stopped from the back, so that they can be stretched and fit flush on the base, e.g. a folding table. The systems have a compact and easy design with few components and is easy to control. According to the description, the system can be used as a sheet brake on folding tables, as a brake for slowing-down stations or in front of the paddles of paddle wheels, so that the products can be processed further without damage. By means of a support, paper sheets are conveyed on transport belts, for example to a folding table for printing presses. These paper sheets can be products cut from paper webs in cross cutters, can be non-folded or single-folded or multiple folded and can be gathered or non-gathered products. A carrier is attached to a frame extending above the paper movement direction. At the end facing away from the frame, an electromagnet is arranged on the carrier. An armature moves inside its coil body, preferably perpendicular to the movement direction and surface of the paper sheets. At the end directed toward the movement track, the armature is provided with a brake shoe with attached brake lining. The brake shoe moves with spring action with the aid of a spring element, e.g. a leaf spring of resilient steel or plastic, and is connected to the carrier through a receptacle. Also conceivable would be a screw spring which is directly accommodated by the armature and supports itself on the housing for the electromagnet as well as an indentation of the armature. By electrically triggering the electromagnet, a magnetic flux field is generated, the force effect of which causes the armature to press the paper sheet via the brake shoe with the lining against another brake lining that is fixedly attached to the support.
[0014] German patent document DE 43 07 383 A1 discloses a system for stopping sheets, in particular paper sheets. The sheets are successively transported to a braking device by a fast-moving series of belts, consisting of several spaced-apart, parallel-arranged lower belts and upper belts. While the discharge-side deflection rollers of the lower belts are positioned in front of the braking system, the upper belts extend further into the region of the braking system. The braking system consists of a guide metal, arranged below the intake plane, which extends past the working width. Arranged at the track discharge end of the sheet metal is a slot nozzle through which compressed air is blown counter to the sheet movement across the top of the guide sheet and is directed upward by the sheet end that is curved upward. The air flow generates a low pressure which pulls the back edge of the sheets downward and simultaneously slows down the sheets. The air nozzle is followed directly by a circulating overlap blanket which extends over the width of the machine and moves at the slower depositing speed. The sheets deflected downward by the airflow from the nozzle detach from the upper belts and are deposited on the blanket. In the process, the front edge of the following, not yet slowed down sheet slides over its back edge and an overlapping flow is created which is then transported further at a slower speed.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0015] It is an object of the invention to reliably and completely stop print sheets moving at high speed within a short period of time in a precise position, using a method and apparatus of the aforementioned type, before these print sheets are subjected to further processing as intended.
[0016] According to one embodiment of the invention there is provided a device for braking and positioning a print sheet in a processing machine, wherein, along a feeding direction for the print sheet, at least one mechanism exerts a braking force onto the print sheet, to position the print sheet in connection with an operation of a downstream-arranged processing station, the device comprising: at least a first mechanism operative to release pneumatic, braking-force triggering pulses that act upon the print sheet; at least a second mechanism operative to generate at last one frictional force that acts upon the print sheet, wherein with aid of at least one of the first mechanism and the second mechanism, intermittent, uniform or oscillating braking forces are generated that act upon the print sheet; and a control unit that controls the braking forces based on at least one of changeable control profiles resulting from queried operating parameters and stored control profiles.
[0017] According to a further embodiment of the invention, there is provided a combination comprising the above described device for braking and positioning a print sheet in a processing machine and the aforementioned downstream-arranged processing station, wherein the downstream-arranged processing station comprises at least one longitudinal folding device and/or cross folding device.
[0018] According to another embodiment of the invention there is provided a method for operating a device for braking and positioning a print sheet in a processing machine, wherein along the feeding direction for the print sheet at least one mechanism exerts a braking force onto the print sheet causing a positioning of the print sheet in connection with the operation of a downstream-arranged processing station, the method comprising: generating, with at least one first mechanism, pneumatic, braking-force triggering pulses to act upon the print sheet; generating, with at least a second mechanism, a braking-force triggering frictional force to act upon the print sheet; acting upon the print sheet with intermittent, uniform or oscillating braking forces generated with the first and second mechanisms; and controlling the braking forces generated by the first and second mechanisms by a control unit which is operated with changeable control profiles based on at least one of queried operating parameters and on stored control profiles.
[0019] According to yet another embodiment of the invention there is provided a method for operating a device for the braking and positioning of a print sheet in a processing machine, wherein along the feeding direction for the print sheet at least one mechanism exerts a braking force onto the print sheet to position the print sheet in connection with operation of a downstream-arranged processing station, the method comprising: positioning to a standstill at a precise point for the print sheet by at least one of braking-force triggering pulses and an additional mechanism that introduces a braking force by at least one of generating a vacuum acting upon the print sheet and the use of at least one mechanical element.
[0020] In most cases, this precisely positioned stopping is tightly connected to a further processing of the print sheets, for which the precise positioning is a precondition to achieve the desired quality.
[0021] However, there are also cases where the braking at a precise position of the print sheets only represents an intermediate step which need not be directly or absolutely connected to the operation of a further processing operation.
[0022] Regardless of which final purpose is served with this precisely positioned stopping, the invention is based on the goal of preventing damage to the print sheets, as well as to maintain a precise positioning of the sheets over the complete production process.
[0023] Starting with a preferably driven further processing, the print sheets are supplied to a folding device, following the precisely positioned stopping, wherein such a further processing should not be understood to be exclusively and absolutely required, as previously mentioned.
[0024] The invention is intended to propose a qualitative and economic modification of the prior art, referring to a device and a method with the goal of achieving a precisely positioned stopping of the print sheet.
[0025] Pneumatic means are preferably used for this stopping operation, which inject braking-force triggering air pulses and for which the resulting braking force in a broader sense acts directly and/or indirectly onto the print sheet.
[0026] With the direct application, the braking-force triggering air pulses are focused directly onto the print sheet where the effect is implemented, wherein the number, strength and effective location of these air pulses are adapted to the present conditions.
[0027] With the indirect transformation, the braking-force triggering air pulses act upon at least one mechanical element, arranged in-between the print sheet and the ejection source for the air pulses, such that the effective braking effect on the print sheet occurs through the aforementioned element, wherein such an element can have varied dynamic configurations.
[0028] In addition, the precisely positioned stopping of the print sheet in the feeding direction can at least partially be achieved with a vacuum acting upon the print sheet, which is generated with suitable means within the table-type support, arranged for the most part below the transport belts. As a result, the friction between the surface of the table-type supports and the underside of the print sheet is increased such that this frictional force can advantageously also be used for the precise adjustment for an exact final positioning of the print sheet. As previously mentioned in connection with the air pulses, the number, strength and effective location thereof for generating the vacuum can be adapted to the given conditions.
[0029] The two braking forces, meaning the braking-force triggering pulses acting either directly or indirectly upon the print sheet, as well as the increase in friction caused by the vacuum can be controlled interdependent, relative to each other, or independent of each other, wherein the braking force share of the two can be changed from case to case and/or adapted.
[0030] Of course, at least one mechanically activated element can also be used to provide an additional braking force which can be used for the precise adjustment in addition to the pneumatic braking-force triggering pulses that act upon the print sheet. A mechanical element of this type can be controlled without problem through an autonomous control, or solely with the aid of air pulses within the above meaning.
[0031] The aforementioned braking-force triggering means acting upon the print sheet make it possible to achieve a continuous optimization of the effective braking forces and frictional forces in that a controlled mode of operation is used for which the aforementioned means are operated either interdependently or separately.
[0032] This type of operation, which calls for the integration of the direct and/or indirect braking force, as well as the braking by triggering additional frictional effects on the print sheet, is particularly advantageous if the print sheets are to be supplied before or after the folding operation to an overlapping flow or to achieve a corresponding removal from or separating out of the overlapping flow.
[0033] Thus, according to the invention several options can be provided for the precisely positioned stopping alone, within the meaning of a standstill at a precise point for the print sheet in feeding direction:
1. The precisely positioned stopping within the meaning of a standstill at a precise point for the print sheet is effected solely with the aid of braking-force triggering pulses and/or the introduction of additional braking forces. With the latter means, this can be achieved by generating a vacuum acting upon the print sheet and/or by using at least one mechanical element. 2. The precisely positioned stopping within the meaning of a standstill at a precise point for the print sheet can be effected solely with the aid of braking-force triggering pulses and/or by introducing additional braking forces, as described in the above No. 1, wherein these measures ensure that the print sheet feeding speed is slowed down relative to the specified end position, enough so that the speed is approximately zero or tends towards zero. The final standstill of the print sheet at a precise point is then determined by including an end stop which the print sheet hits with the remaining speed. Since this remaining speed is microscopically low, there is no danger that the front edge of the print sheet in feeding direction is damaged on impact with the stop surface or could bounce and/or spring back from this stop surface. This soft end positioning of the print sheet furthermore has the advantage that the print sheet can adapt completely to the contour of the stop surface, thus resulting in a maximized, precise alignment of the print sheet relative to the stop surface.
[0036] The following steps are relevant: The speed of the print sheet is slowed approximately 10 cm before reaching the end stop by using a print sheet brake, such that the sheet arrives only with a low kinematic rest energy at the end stop, wherein during the impact, the speed of the print sheet is <1 m/s. With such an end speed, no damage to the print sheet is possible, and the print sheet also does not experience a bouncing back because of an excessively high impact speed.
[0037] The course of the delay in the feeding speed for the print sheet can advantageously be determined according to an e-function or quasi (similar) e-function, wherein a truncating of the original course progression through another mathematical course is possible. Truncating is understood to mean in general the cutting off or separating from something, mostly in an imaginary sense. An example for this could be that the course of the e-function is not continued monotonously, but is continued with another mathematical function.
[0038] In both described cases, options 1 and 2, it applies that the dynamic of the force-triggering measures must take into consideration the manner in which the print sheet is transported. If transport belts are used for the print sheet transport, the control of all force-triggering measures must operatively be connected to the kinematic force exerted by the transport belts onto the print sheets. Thus, the braking effect of the means provided in principle should not collide with the kinematic force exerted by the transport belts, wherein for a specific constellation, it is not excluded that an at least partial superimposition of the two forces (braking force and transport force) is purposely desired.
[0039] Concerning the technical nature of the braking forces as well as their introduction and use relative to a precise positioning of the print sheet according to the invention in feeding direction, the following connections are obvious:
a) Intermittent, uniform or oscillating braking force triggering pulses can be applied, which apply the braking force directly, semi-directly or indirectly to the print sheet. These pulses can preferably be achieved with the necessary intensity and force by using a controlled supplying of air. b) The braking-force triggering pulses can advantageously be generated with pneumatic air pulses or friction-triggering elements, wherein autonomously driven electronic or hydraulic elements can also be used. These last-mentioned elements can furthermore exert a direct or indirect braking force on the print sheets. c) The pneumatic braking-force triggering pulses are preferably generated by at least one air stream that is directed toward the print sheet and blows onto a flexible element, arranged intermediary above the print sheet, wherein this element in the form of a lever yields as a direct result of the air stream or is movable via a bearing. d) If the lever effect of the aforementioned element is converted directly, for example, it is advantageous if this element is composed of a fiber-reinforced textile-type belt, thus resulting in flexibility depending on its spring constant. e) If the air pulse acts upon a lever arm when using a lever, the normal force and consequently the resulting braking force can be increased owing to the lever principle. f) With the above-described measures, asymmetrically composed folded sheets can advantageously also be processed, starting with the premise that these folding sheets have the disadvantage of having different weight values on the left and on the right. According to the invention, the force of the air pulse and consequently also the resulting braking force can thus be adjusted with automatic pressure controllers. The necessary adjustment values for this are automatically calculated and converted by the control unit and/or the super-imposed process control system. g) The braking-force triggering pulses can simultaneously or at different points in time act upon a front and/or a rear edge of the print sheet in feeding direction with the same or different braking force variables, which makes it possible to simultaneously achieve a smoothing and/or stretching of the print sheet with this measure.
[0047] Accordingly, the system for braking and precisely positioning a print sheet in a processing machine is provided with mechanisms which exert along the feeding direction for the print sheet a pneumatic and/or mechanical braking force effect and/or a different frictional force acting upon the print sheet.
[0048] The precise positioning of the print sheet is connected to the operation of a downstream processing station and must thus be adapted such that the precise positioning is interdependent with the operational requirements of the downstream processing station.
[0049] In particular, the pneumatically operated braking-force triggering pulses as well as the vacuum-induced frictional forces can be used optimally if the goal is to generate intermittent, uniform or oscillating braking forces acting upon the print sheet.
[0050] A control unit is advantageously provided for this which makes available control profiles resulting from queried operating parameters, wherein it is also possible for stored control profiles to be called up if necessary.
[0051] The intermittent, uniform or oscillating braking-force triggering pulses exerted onto the print sheet, which cannot be generated by supplying air, are configured for a direct, semi-direct or indirect braking effect on the print sheet, meaning the braking forces can be achieved in connection with mechanically, electronically or hydraulically operated components.
[0052] In particular if the goal is to configure the braking and the positioning of print sheets deposited in an overlapping flow, the use of a vacuum that acts upon the lower surface of the print sheet in feeding direction has proven to be especially advantageous since the overlapping flow formed with the print sheets is not destroyed, so as to interfere, which is always a danger if only a perpendicular or quasi-perpendicular air supply is provided. A vacuum of this type can also be controlled easily, so that the introduced friction can finely adjust the print sheets in a stable position, wherein this method does not exclude the use of additional complementary braking forces.
[0053] A further option is thus provided for a targeted braking of the print sheet along the feeding direction, which consists of generating a vacuum on the underside of the print sheet, thereby causing the print sheet to be pressed against the support owing to suction effect that develops and thus ensure a further slowing down due to friction.
[0054] The active nozzle-injection of air onto the print sheet as well as the slowing down of said sheet as a result of the vacuum suction effect can be used either separately or in combination, wherein an intermittent control between these two is also possible.
[0055] Thus, if the braking forces depend on air, it is advantageous if each air-operated nozzle is controlled separately by a switching valve, taking into consideration the feeding speed and the composition of the print sheet.
[0056] A controlled interdependence between the individual switching valves increases the targeted effect of the air jets, so that it is possible to proactively remedy additional operational incongruences developing on the print sheet during the downstream processing operations.
[0057] The invention also relates to a method for a braking at a precise position of the print sheet within the meaning of a standstill at a precise point, as described in the above options 1 or 2, wherein the operational processes of downstream arranged processing stations are to be summarily included for a better understanding:
[0058] The air pressure needed for the braking is calculated based on the specified production data such as folding pattern, paper weight, paper width, cutting length, and the information is then sent to the automatic print controller. The print sheets can have different values for the left side and the right side, depending on the folding pattern.
[0059] The pressure reservoir that is located upstream of the pneumatic switching valve, as seen in flow direction, is filled by the pressure controller to the computed pressure level.
[0060] Insofar as the downstream processing station is a folding station, the print sheet arriving in/being supplied to the folding region is detected with the aid of a light barrier at the back edge. The light barrier simultaneously functions to synchronize the folding sword with the clock speed and thus compensates for all possible irregularities during the sheet transport.
[0061] Owing to the activated trigger signal, a signal for activating the pneumatic switching valve is triggered by taking into consideration dead time and speed compensation.
[0062] The air stored in the pressure reservoir is then released abruptly, whereupon the air nozzle releases a pulse-type blast of air.
[0063] The released air blast then can act either directly (not reinforced) onto the print sheet or indirectly (reinforced) onto a lever (in the present case a fiber-reinforced textile material) which transfers the force triggered by the air blast to the print sheet.
[0064] In the process, the print sheet is pressed against a table-type support and thus generates as a result of friction an inherent braking force that can be transferred to the print sheet.
[0065] A braking force can be exerted, if needed, either simultaneously or with a time delay onto the back edge of the print sheet. The bulk of the leading print sheet section (kinetic energy) thus causes a stretching of the material owing to the energy triggered by the braking effect, which results in a stiffening of the print sheet.
[0066] The braking force dynamic is selected such that the print sheet is safely stopped within the meaning of the two previously explained options 1 or 2, or if it rests against the sheet end stop, or if the folding sword takes over the print sheet. If a sheet end stop is activated, the point of insertion for the folding sword can occur with a slight delay.
[0067] A further option according to the invention makes it possible to achieve the precise positioning of the print sheet within the meaning of a standstill at a precise point even without the end stop, as a result of the described braking forces and their control.
[0068] Following the release of the air pulse, the pneumatic switching valve is closed immediately and the pressure controller fills up the air reservoir once more to the specified pressure, thus readying it for the following cycle.
[0069] However, the operation with an air reservoir is not absolutely required. The pulsed release of a specific amount of air, which depends on the clock speed, under a specified pressure can be achieved with a dynamically configured control which directly ensures the continuous availability of compressed air.
[0070] The method according to the invention for a precisely positioned stopping of the print sheet can thus also be supplemented by activating a vacuum acting upon the print sheet.
[0071] The essential advantages of the invention can be summarized point by point as follows:
[0072] 1. As compared to traditional solutions, the invention is distinguished in that it uses practically no mechanically moving parts and no wear is thus generated, not even with high clock speeds.
[0073] 2. The fast-switching valves needed for generating the short air pulses are tested components and are therefore operatively stable, in contrast to the braking brushes according to the prior art which must always be adjusted precisely to the paper thickness of the print sheets and are therefore subjected to constant wear.
[0074] 3. It is furthermore advantageous that the means according to the invention for achieving a precisely positioned stopping, within the meaning of a standstill of the print sheet at a precise point, are not restricted by the space conditions in the region of the folding sword, which ensures easy access for correcting a problem in case of a backup.
[0075] 4. The print sheets are not subjected to any damage during the described operations.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0076] In the following, the invention is explained in further detail with reference to the drawings, to which we expressly refer for all details not emphasized further in the description. All elements not absolutely necessary for the direct understanding of the invention have been omitted. The same elements in different figures are provided with the same reference numbers.
[0077] FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a complete overview of a longitudinal folding device, including a transport belt for supplying print sheets according to an embodiment of the invention.
[0078] FIG. 2 is shows an enlarged area of FIG. 1 with a modification including an intermediary mechanical element used for braking and positioning of the print sheet in connection with applying an air pulse as braking force.
[0079] FIG. 3 is shows an enlarged area of FIG. 2 and further including geometric conditions and resulting forces during a braking operation.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0080] FIG. 1 shows an area surrounding a longitudinal folding device 100 , which essentially consists of a longitudinal folding device 101 which can be operated using a sword 102 . FIG. 1 also shows the configuration of a folding roller pair 103 . The operation of longitudinal folding device 101 is illustrated by a print sheet 104 that is folded in a longitudinal direction. Of course, the print sheets can also be folded inside a cross folding device, not shown further herein, wherein this device is operatively connected to the shown longitudinal folding device 101 or can be operated as an autonomous unit. The print sheet 105 is supplied via transport belts 106 and is stopped in the precise folding position 107 , either with the aid of a first measure involving:
[0081] 1) a precisely positioned stopping within the meaning of a standstill for the print sheet at a precise point, achieved solely through braking-force triggering pulses and/or by introducing additional braking forces, such as by generating a vacuum that acts upon the print sheet and/or the use of at least one mechanical element; or with aid of a second measure, involving:
[0082] 2) a precisely positioned stopping within the meaning of a standstill of the print sheet at a precise point, owing to braking-force triggering pulses and/or the introduction of additional braking forces, as described in the above, which ensure that the feeding speed of the print sheet relative to the specified end position is slowed down enough so that it is near zero or tends toward zero. The final standstill at a precise point for the print sheet is then determined by taking into account an end stop that is not shown further in the figures and which the print sheet hits with the remaining speed.
[0083] Since this remaining speed is microscopically small, there is no danger that the front edge of the print sheet is damaged in the feeding direction once it hits the stop surface or could bounce back or spring back from this stop surface. This soft arrival in the end position for the print sheet additionally has the advantage that the print sheet can adapt completely to the stop surface, thus resulting in a maximized, precise alignment of the front edge of the print sheet with the stop surface.
[0084] The following steps are relevant with the latter measure:
[0085] The speed of the print sheet is slowed down approximately 10 cm prior to reaching the end stop, which is not shown herein but is familiar to one skilled in the art. The speed is slowed enough so that the sheet only hits the end stop with low kinematic residual energy, wherein the speed of the print sheet is <1 m/s during the impact. With an end speed of this type, no damage can occur to the print sheet and the print sheet also does not spring back as a result of an excessively high impact speed.
[0086] The course of the delay of the sheet feeding speed can advantageously be provided based on an e-function or quasi e-function (similar), wherein a truncating of the original course through other mathematical progressions is also possible. Truncating is understood to mean in general the cutting off or separating of something, mostly in a figurative sense. For an example, the course of the e-function may no longer be continued at one point and after which the breaking course is continued based on a different mathematical function.
[0087] However, for both described measures it is important that the dynamic of the braking-force triggering measures must take into consideration the manner in which the print sheets are transported. If transport belts are used for transporting the sheets, then a control unit 117 of all braking-force triggering measures must be considered in an operative connection with the kinematic force which is exerted by the transport belts onto the print sheets. The braking effect resulting from the specified means basically should not collide with the kinematic forces of the transport belts, wherein with specific constellations it is not impossible to purposely strive for an at least partial super-imposition of the two forces (braking force and transport force).
[0088] FIG. 1 furthermore shows a trailing print sheet 108 , intended to show the operation with a clock speed of the longitudinal folding device 100 .
[0089] The operation of the longitudinal folding device in an operative connection with a precise positioning of the print sheet 105 is configured as follows:
[0090] The air pressure needed for the braking is computed based on the specified production data such as folding pattern, paper weight, paper width and cut-off length. The information is then sent to an automatic controller, taking into consideration that depending on the folding pattern, the print sheet has different values on the left and the right side.
[0091] Furthermore, based on the specified production data such as folding pattern, paper weight, paper width and cut-off length, the air pressure required for decelerating the print sheet 105 is computed and the information is then sent to the automatic pressure controller 109 , taking into consideration that depending on the folding pattern, the print sheet may have different values for the left and the right side.
[0092] The illustrated air nozzle 110 is used to blow an amount of air directly onto the print sheet. When computing the necessary amount of air, it is simultaneously taken into consideration that an additional amount of air may be necessary to neutralize the possibly occurring fluttering movements during the intake of the print sheet 105 . Of course, it should also be considered that even after a complete stop of the print sheet 105 , introducing additional amounts of air may be required for stabilizing the print sheet 105 .
[0093] Thus, the pressure reservoir 111 , arranged in a flow direction in front of a pneumatic switching valve, is filled to a required pressure with the aid of a pressure controller 109 .
[0094] The print sheet 105 entering/fed into the folding region is detected at the back edge with the aid of a light barrier, not shown in further detail here, wherein this light barrier simultaneously functions to synchronize the clock speed of the folding sword 102 , wherein the operation of the light barrier also detects irregularities within the belt transport of the print sheet 105 and compensates these via the control unit 117 .
[0095] As a result of an activated trigger signal, a signal for activating the pneumatic switching valve is triggered, taking into consideration the dead time and speed compensation.
[0096] Following this, the air stored in the pressure reservoir 111 is released abruptly, whereupon the air nozzle 110 blows a pulse-type air jet onto the print sheet 105 .
[0097] The released air blast can act directly upon the print sheet 105 , or upon a lever (see FIG. 2 , Position 112 ) which transmits the air blast and the corresponding resulting force to the print sheet. Of course, a configuration is also conceivable for which the air blast acts upon the print sheet 105 as well as the lever 112 , wherein the directly and the indirectly introduced braking force can also be controlled intermittently and with differing pulse strengths of the air pulses (see FIG. 2 , Position 114 ).
[0098] During the feeding operation and/or during the folding process, the print sheet 105 is pressed onto a table-type support owing to the pneumatically triggered forces, thus generating a braking force for the print sheet as a result of friction.
[0099] If necessary, an additional braking force can be directed simultaneously or phase-displaced onto the back edge of the print sheet 105 , wherein a material stretching triggered by the braking effect results in reinforcing the print sheet 105 .
[0100] The braking instant (see FIG. 3 , Position 115 ) is selected such that the print sheet 105 is securely slowed to 0 and, in an imaginary sense, also when using a print sheet end stop, as described in the above. This specification can also be met if the slowing down of the print sheet 105 to 0 has reached the imaginary stopping point ( FIG. 3 , Position 113 ) where the folding sword 102 takes over the print sheet as intended. The takeover of the print sheet 105 by the folding sword 102 can thus be coordinated such that it coincides with the imaginary stopping point 113 for the print sheet end.
[0101] One option for a braking at a precise position of the print sheet 105 , which is not shown further, can be achieved by activating an additional braking force based on friction. This can be achieved advantageously through generating a vacuum that acts upon the underside of the print sheet, wherein this option can without problem also be used together with the other previously explained braking forces. FIG. 2 furthermore shows the folding position 116 of the print sheet 105 .
[0102] FIG. 3 shows the geometric conditions and the resulting forces during the course of the braking operation for the print sheet. These values, namely the distances 230 and 240 , as well as the forces F pulse ( 200 ), F braking ( 210 ) and F normal ( 220 ), which occur during the braking operation, are of a qualitative nature and are used as a basis for a controlled braking operation, wherein it is also possible to parameterize these values for control/regulation of the braking operation.
[0103] Following the release of the air pulses ( FIG. 2 , Position 114 ), the pneumatic switching valve is closed immediately and the pressure controller 109 again fills the compressed air reservoir 111 to the predetermined pressure, thus making it available for the next cycle.
[0104] The invention has been described in detail with respect to exemplary embodiments, and it will now be apparent from the foregoing to those skilled in the art, that changes and modifications may be made without departing from the invention in its broader aspects, and the invention, therefore, as defined in the appended claims, is intended to cover all such changes and modifications that fall within the true spirit of the invention. | A device for braking and positioning a print sheet in a processing machine, wherein, along a feeding direction for the print sheet, at least one mechanism exerts a braking force onto the print sheet, to position the print sheet in connection with an operation of a downstream-arranged processing station. The device includes at least a first mechanism operative to release pneumatic, braking-force triggering pulses that act upon the print sheet. At least a second mechanism is operative to generate at last one frictional force that acts upon the print sheet, wherein with aid of at least one of the first mechanism and the second mechanism, intermittent, uniform or oscillating braking forces are generated that act upon the print sheet. A control unit controls the braking forces based on at least one of changeable control profiles resulting from queried operating parameters and stored control profiles. | Condense the core contents of the given document. | [
"CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS [0001] Priority is claimed with respect to Swiss Patent Application No. 01500/14, filed Oct. 1, 2014, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.",
"BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION [0002] 1.",
"Technical Field [0003] The present application relates to a device and a method for the braking and positioning of a print sheet in a processing machine, using at least one braking-force generating means.",
"[0004] This braking and positioning of the print sheet is available for a basic operation, preferably in connection with the production of folded print sheets in a folding apparatus, wherein the folding apparatus is typically provided with a cross folding and/or a longitudinal folding device.",
"[0005] The print sheets are typically processed starting with a paper roll which is first printed on in a printing press (digital or offset) and is then guided inline into the folding apparatus, wherein the braking and the positioning of the print sheets initially creates the prerequisites for maintaining a uniform and high quality folding operation throughout the production, even at high clock speeds.",
"[0006] With the print sheet being securely positioned upstream of the folding operation, previously printed paper rolls can also be used.",
"Loose sheets can furthermore be supplied individually to the folding apparatus, wherein it must be ensured in this case as well that the sheets are securely positioned before reaching the folding device.",
"[0007] 2.",
"Prior Art [0008] The folding of different substrates (papers), in particular the longitudinal folding, is especially challenging from a technical view since the print sheets coming from the feed device are redirected by 90° with the aid of a sword and must be supplied to a so-called pair of folding rollers.",
"Before the sheet sections are supplied with the aid of a sword or other folding device to the folding roller pair, the sheet section which typically arrives from a cross folding device, must be decelerated within a very short time (a few milliseconds or fractions of milliseconds) from the feeding speed to 0.",
"With the presently known longitudinal folding devices, this is achieved either with an end stop for the print sheet, or a combination of print sheet end stop and brush.",
"[0009] The purpose of the brush is to stop and smooth the incoming sheet sections within the brush width.",
"The sheet sections mostly arrive in the longitudinal folding device with the folding edge (cross fold) in the lead.",
"However, non-folded (meaning without cross fold) sections can also be supplied to the longitudinal folding device.",
"[0010] The longitudinal folding process is basically prior art.",
"The main problem with the sheet redirection or deflection into the folding rollers primarily relates to the stopping of the print sheets at the so-called print sheet end stop.",
"For this, the complete delaying energy is generated abruptly once the print sheet hits the end stop, thus causing the individual sheet to be compressed in the region of the sheet end stop or, in the case of rigid sheets, a portion of the energy is converted to a bouncing back.",
"[0011] The compressing of the print sheets can result in damage to the folding edge and thus result in deficient products, depending on the speed and the type of paper.",
"When the sheets bounce back, they can furthermore rotate slightly, relative to the optimum geometric position, resulting in slanted or parallel folds during the following instant of inserting the sword.",
"To reduce or eliminate these negative effects, numerous measures have already been proposed which are part of the prior art.",
"[0012] The braking brush or brushes are located, for example, in front of the sheet stop and must be adjusted respectively to the product thickness.",
"The disadvantage of this solution is that the braking brushes are subject to strong mechanical wear and the thickness adjustment to the paper is generally very involved.",
"The feeding upper belts furthermore can only be guided to the end of the print sheet section.",
"A bouncing back is thus prevented or the product is returned to the end stop.",
"However, damage to the sheet at the end stop is not prevented in this way.",
"Also conceivable is a combination with other solutions.",
"Further known systems are actively controlled braking devices which stop the print sheet at the end, such that the sheet is only aligned at the end stop.",
"[0013] A system for stopping paper sheets is known from the German patent document DE 199 21 169 C2.",
"With this system, the products are advantageously slowed and stopped from the back, so that they can be stretched and fit flush on the base, e.g. a folding table.",
"The systems have a compact and easy design with few components and is easy to control.",
"According to the description, the system can be used as a sheet brake on folding tables, as a brake for slowing-down stations or in front of the paddles of paddle wheels, so that the products can be processed further without damage.",
"By means of a support, paper sheets are conveyed on transport belts, for example to a folding table for printing presses.",
"These paper sheets can be products cut from paper webs in cross cutters, can be non-folded or single-folded or multiple folded and can be gathered or non-gathered products.",
"A carrier is attached to a frame extending above the paper movement direction.",
"At the end facing away from the frame, an electromagnet is arranged on the carrier.",
"An armature moves inside its coil body, preferably perpendicular to the movement direction and surface of the paper sheets.",
"At the end directed toward the movement track, the armature is provided with a brake shoe with attached brake lining.",
"The brake shoe moves with spring action with the aid of a spring element, e.g. a leaf spring of resilient steel or plastic, and is connected to the carrier through a receptacle.",
"Also conceivable would be a screw spring which is directly accommodated by the armature and supports itself on the housing for the electromagnet as well as an indentation of the armature.",
"By electrically triggering the electromagnet, a magnetic flux field is generated, the force effect of which causes the armature to press the paper sheet via the brake shoe with the lining against another brake lining that is fixedly attached to the support.",
"[0014] German patent document DE 43 07 383 A1 discloses a system for stopping sheets, in particular paper sheets.",
"The sheets are successively transported to a braking device by a fast-moving series of belts, consisting of several spaced-apart, parallel-arranged lower belts and upper belts.",
"While the discharge-side deflection rollers of the lower belts are positioned in front of the braking system, the upper belts extend further into the region of the braking system.",
"The braking system consists of a guide metal, arranged below the intake plane, which extends past the working width.",
"Arranged at the track discharge end of the sheet metal is a slot nozzle through which compressed air is blown counter to the sheet movement across the top of the guide sheet and is directed upward by the sheet end that is curved upward.",
"The air flow generates a low pressure which pulls the back edge of the sheets downward and simultaneously slows down the sheets.",
"The air nozzle is followed directly by a circulating overlap blanket which extends over the width of the machine and moves at the slower depositing speed.",
"The sheets deflected downward by the airflow from the nozzle detach from the upper belts and are deposited on the blanket.",
"In the process, the front edge of the following, not yet slowed down sheet slides over its back edge and an overlapping flow is created which is then transported further at a slower speed.",
"SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION [0015] It is an object of the invention to reliably and completely stop print sheets moving at high speed within a short period of time in a precise position, using a method and apparatus of the aforementioned type, before these print sheets are subjected to further processing as intended.",
"[0016] According to one embodiment of the invention there is provided a device for braking and positioning a print sheet in a processing machine, wherein, along a feeding direction for the print sheet, at least one mechanism exerts a braking force onto the print sheet, to position the print sheet in connection with an operation of a downstream-arranged processing station, the device comprising: at least a first mechanism operative to release pneumatic, braking-force triggering pulses that act upon the print sheet;",
"at least a second mechanism operative to generate at last one frictional force that acts upon the print sheet, wherein with aid of at least one of the first mechanism and the second mechanism, intermittent, uniform or oscillating braking forces are generated that act upon the print sheet;",
"and a control unit that controls the braking forces based on at least one of changeable control profiles resulting from queried operating parameters and stored control profiles.",
"[0017] According to a further embodiment of the invention, there is provided a combination comprising the above described device for braking and positioning a print sheet in a processing machine and the aforementioned downstream-arranged processing station, wherein the downstream-arranged processing station comprises at least one longitudinal folding device and/or cross folding device.",
"[0018] According to another embodiment of the invention there is provided a method for operating a device for braking and positioning a print sheet in a processing machine, wherein along the feeding direction for the print sheet at least one mechanism exerts a braking force onto the print sheet causing a positioning of the print sheet in connection with the operation of a downstream-arranged processing station, the method comprising: generating, with at least one first mechanism, pneumatic, braking-force triggering pulses to act upon the print sheet;",
"generating, with at least a second mechanism, a braking-force triggering frictional force to act upon the print sheet;",
"acting upon the print sheet with intermittent, uniform or oscillating braking forces generated with the first and second mechanisms;",
"and controlling the braking forces generated by the first and second mechanisms by a control unit which is operated with changeable control profiles based on at least one of queried operating parameters and on stored control profiles.",
"[0019] According to yet another embodiment of the invention there is provided a method for operating a device for the braking and positioning of a print sheet in a processing machine, wherein along the feeding direction for the print sheet at least one mechanism exerts a braking force onto the print sheet to position the print sheet in connection with operation of a downstream-arranged processing station, the method comprising: positioning to a standstill at a precise point for the print sheet by at least one of braking-force triggering pulses and an additional mechanism that introduces a braking force by at least one of generating a vacuum acting upon the print sheet and the use of at least one mechanical element.",
"[0020] In most cases, this precisely positioned stopping is tightly connected to a further processing of the print sheets, for which the precise positioning is a precondition to achieve the desired quality.",
"[0021] However, there are also cases where the braking at a precise position of the print sheets only represents an intermediate step which need not be directly or absolutely connected to the operation of a further processing operation.",
"[0022] Regardless of which final purpose is served with this precisely positioned stopping, the invention is based on the goal of preventing damage to the print sheets, as well as to maintain a precise positioning of the sheets over the complete production process.",
"[0023] Starting with a preferably driven further processing, the print sheets are supplied to a folding device, following the precisely positioned stopping, wherein such a further processing should not be understood to be exclusively and absolutely required, as previously mentioned.",
"[0024] The invention is intended to propose a qualitative and economic modification of the prior art, referring to a device and a method with the goal of achieving a precisely positioned stopping of the print sheet.",
"[0025] Pneumatic means are preferably used for this stopping operation, which inject braking-force triggering air pulses and for which the resulting braking force in a broader sense acts directly and/or indirectly onto the print sheet.",
"[0026] With the direct application, the braking-force triggering air pulses are focused directly onto the print sheet where the effect is implemented, wherein the number, strength and effective location of these air pulses are adapted to the present conditions.",
"[0027] With the indirect transformation, the braking-force triggering air pulses act upon at least one mechanical element, arranged in-between the print sheet and the ejection source for the air pulses, such that the effective braking effect on the print sheet occurs through the aforementioned element, wherein such an element can have varied dynamic configurations.",
"[0028] In addition, the precisely positioned stopping of the print sheet in the feeding direction can at least partially be achieved with a vacuum acting upon the print sheet, which is generated with suitable means within the table-type support, arranged for the most part below the transport belts.",
"As a result, the friction between the surface of the table-type supports and the underside of the print sheet is increased such that this frictional force can advantageously also be used for the precise adjustment for an exact final positioning of the print sheet.",
"As previously mentioned in connection with the air pulses, the number, strength and effective location thereof for generating the vacuum can be adapted to the given conditions.",
"[0029] The two braking forces, meaning the braking-force triggering pulses acting either directly or indirectly upon the print sheet, as well as the increase in friction caused by the vacuum can be controlled interdependent, relative to each other, or independent of each other, wherein the braking force share of the two can be changed from case to case and/or adapted.",
"[0030] Of course, at least one mechanically activated element can also be used to provide an additional braking force which can be used for the precise adjustment in addition to the pneumatic braking-force triggering pulses that act upon the print sheet.",
"A mechanical element of this type can be controlled without problem through an autonomous control, or solely with the aid of air pulses within the above meaning.",
"[0031] The aforementioned braking-force triggering means acting upon the print sheet make it possible to achieve a continuous optimization of the effective braking forces and frictional forces in that a controlled mode of operation is used for which the aforementioned means are operated either interdependently or separately.",
"[0032] This type of operation, which calls for the integration of the direct and/or indirect braking force, as well as the braking by triggering additional frictional effects on the print sheet, is particularly advantageous if the print sheets are to be supplied before or after the folding operation to an overlapping flow or to achieve a corresponding removal from or separating out of the overlapping flow.",
"[0033] Thus, according to the invention several options can be provided for the precisely positioned stopping alone, within the meaning of a standstill at a precise point for the print sheet in feeding direction: 1.",
"The precisely positioned stopping within the meaning of a standstill at a precise point for the print sheet is effected solely with the aid of braking-force triggering pulses and/or the introduction of additional braking forces.",
"With the latter means, this can be achieved by generating a vacuum acting upon the print sheet and/or by using at least one mechanical element.",
"The precisely positioned stopping within the meaning of a standstill at a precise point for the print sheet can be effected solely with the aid of braking-force triggering pulses and/or by introducing additional braking forces, as described in the above No. 1, wherein these measures ensure that the print sheet feeding speed is slowed down relative to the specified end position, enough so that the speed is approximately zero or tends towards zero.",
"The final standstill of the print sheet at a precise point is then determined by including an end stop which the print sheet hits with the remaining speed.",
"Since this remaining speed is microscopically low, there is no danger that the front edge of the print sheet in feeding direction is damaged on impact with the stop surface or could bounce and/or spring back from this stop surface.",
"This soft end positioning of the print sheet furthermore has the advantage that the print sheet can adapt completely to the contour of the stop surface, thus resulting in a maximized, precise alignment of the print sheet relative to the stop surface.",
"[0036] The following steps are relevant: The speed of the print sheet is slowed approximately 10 cm before reaching the end stop by using a print sheet brake, such that the sheet arrives only with a low kinematic rest energy at the end stop, wherein during the impact, the speed of the print sheet is <1 m/s.",
"With such an end speed, no damage to the print sheet is possible, and the print sheet also does not experience a bouncing back because of an excessively high impact speed.",
"[0037] The course of the delay in the feeding speed for the print sheet can advantageously be determined according to an e-function or quasi (similar) e-function, wherein a truncating of the original course progression through another mathematical course is possible.",
"Truncating is understood to mean in general the cutting off or separating from something, mostly in an imaginary sense.",
"An example for this could be that the course of the e-function is not continued monotonously, but is continued with another mathematical function.",
"[0038] In both described cases, options 1 and 2, it applies that the dynamic of the force-triggering measures must take into consideration the manner in which the print sheet is transported.",
"If transport belts are used for the print sheet transport, the control of all force-triggering measures must operatively be connected to the kinematic force exerted by the transport belts onto the print sheets.",
"Thus, the braking effect of the means provided in principle should not collide with the kinematic force exerted by the transport belts, wherein for a specific constellation, it is not excluded that an at least partial superimposition of the two forces (braking force and transport force) is purposely desired.",
"[0039] Concerning the technical nature of the braking forces as well as their introduction and use relative to a precise positioning of the print sheet according to the invention in feeding direction, the following connections are obvious: a) Intermittent, uniform or oscillating braking force triggering pulses can be applied, which apply the braking force directly, semi-directly or indirectly to the print sheet.",
"These pulses can preferably be achieved with the necessary intensity and force by using a controlled supplying of air.",
"b) The braking-force triggering pulses can advantageously be generated with pneumatic air pulses or friction-triggering elements, wherein autonomously driven electronic or hydraulic elements can also be used.",
"These last-mentioned elements can furthermore exert a direct or indirect braking force on the print sheets.",
"c) The pneumatic braking-force triggering pulses are preferably generated by at least one air stream that is directed toward the print sheet and blows onto a flexible element, arranged intermediary above the print sheet, wherein this element in the form of a lever yields as a direct result of the air stream or is movable via a bearing.",
"d) If the lever effect of the aforementioned element is converted directly, for example, it is advantageous if this element is composed of a fiber-reinforced textile-type belt, thus resulting in flexibility depending on its spring constant.",
"e) If the air pulse acts upon a lever arm when using a lever, the normal force and consequently the resulting braking force can be increased owing to the lever principle.",
"f) With the above-described measures, asymmetrically composed folded sheets can advantageously also be processed, starting with the premise that these folding sheets have the disadvantage of having different weight values on the left and on the right.",
"According to the invention, the force of the air pulse and consequently also the resulting braking force can thus be adjusted with automatic pressure controllers.",
"The necessary adjustment values for this are automatically calculated and converted by the control unit and/or the super-imposed process control system.",
"g) The braking-force triggering pulses can simultaneously or at different points in time act upon a front and/or a rear edge of the print sheet in feeding direction with the same or different braking force variables, which makes it possible to simultaneously achieve a smoothing and/or stretching of the print sheet with this measure.",
"[0047] Accordingly, the system for braking and precisely positioning a print sheet in a processing machine is provided with mechanisms which exert along the feeding direction for the print sheet a pneumatic and/or mechanical braking force effect and/or a different frictional force acting upon the print sheet.",
"[0048] The precise positioning of the print sheet is connected to the operation of a downstream processing station and must thus be adapted such that the precise positioning is interdependent with the operational requirements of the downstream processing station.",
"[0049] In particular, the pneumatically operated braking-force triggering pulses as well as the vacuum-induced frictional forces can be used optimally if the goal is to generate intermittent, uniform or oscillating braking forces acting upon the print sheet.",
"[0050] A control unit is advantageously provided for this which makes available control profiles resulting from queried operating parameters, wherein it is also possible for stored control profiles to be called up if necessary.",
"[0051] The intermittent, uniform or oscillating braking-force triggering pulses exerted onto the print sheet, which cannot be generated by supplying air, are configured for a direct, semi-direct or indirect braking effect on the print sheet, meaning the braking forces can be achieved in connection with mechanically, electronically or hydraulically operated components.",
"[0052] In particular if the goal is to configure the braking and the positioning of print sheets deposited in an overlapping flow, the use of a vacuum that acts upon the lower surface of the print sheet in feeding direction has proven to be especially advantageous since the overlapping flow formed with the print sheets is not destroyed, so as to interfere, which is always a danger if only a perpendicular or quasi-perpendicular air supply is provided.",
"A vacuum of this type can also be controlled easily, so that the introduced friction can finely adjust the print sheets in a stable position, wherein this method does not exclude the use of additional complementary braking forces.",
"[0053] A further option is thus provided for a targeted braking of the print sheet along the feeding direction, which consists of generating a vacuum on the underside of the print sheet, thereby causing the print sheet to be pressed against the support owing to suction effect that develops and thus ensure a further slowing down due to friction.",
"[0054] The active nozzle-injection of air onto the print sheet as well as the slowing down of said sheet as a result of the vacuum suction effect can be used either separately or in combination, wherein an intermittent control between these two is also possible.",
"[0055] Thus, if the braking forces depend on air, it is advantageous if each air-operated nozzle is controlled separately by a switching valve, taking into consideration the feeding speed and the composition of the print sheet.",
"[0056] A controlled interdependence between the individual switching valves increases the targeted effect of the air jets, so that it is possible to proactively remedy additional operational incongruences developing on the print sheet during the downstream processing operations.",
"[0057] The invention also relates to a method for a braking at a precise position of the print sheet within the meaning of a standstill at a precise point, as described in the above options 1 or 2, wherein the operational processes of downstream arranged processing stations are to be summarily included for a better understanding: [0058] The air pressure needed for the braking is calculated based on the specified production data such as folding pattern, paper weight, paper width, cutting length, and the information is then sent to the automatic print controller.",
"The print sheets can have different values for the left side and the right side, depending on the folding pattern.",
"[0059] The pressure reservoir that is located upstream of the pneumatic switching valve, as seen in flow direction, is filled by the pressure controller to the computed pressure level.",
"[0060] Insofar as the downstream processing station is a folding station, the print sheet arriving in/being supplied to the folding region is detected with the aid of a light barrier at the back edge.",
"The light barrier simultaneously functions to synchronize the folding sword with the clock speed and thus compensates for all possible irregularities during the sheet transport.",
"[0061] Owing to the activated trigger signal, a signal for activating the pneumatic switching valve is triggered by taking into consideration dead time and speed compensation.",
"[0062] The air stored in the pressure reservoir is then released abruptly, whereupon the air nozzle releases a pulse-type blast of air.",
"[0063] The released air blast then can act either directly (not reinforced) onto the print sheet or indirectly (reinforced) onto a lever (in the present case a fiber-reinforced textile material) which transfers the force triggered by the air blast to the print sheet.",
"[0064] In the process, the print sheet is pressed against a table-type support and thus generates as a result of friction an inherent braking force that can be transferred to the print sheet.",
"[0065] A braking force can be exerted, if needed, either simultaneously or with a time delay onto the back edge of the print sheet.",
"The bulk of the leading print sheet section (kinetic energy) thus causes a stretching of the material owing to the energy triggered by the braking effect, which results in a stiffening of the print sheet.",
"[0066] The braking force dynamic is selected such that the print sheet is safely stopped within the meaning of the two previously explained options 1 or 2, or if it rests against the sheet end stop, or if the folding sword takes over the print sheet.",
"If a sheet end stop is activated, the point of insertion for the folding sword can occur with a slight delay.",
"[0067] A further option according to the invention makes it possible to achieve the precise positioning of the print sheet within the meaning of a standstill at a precise point even without the end stop, as a result of the described braking forces and their control.",
"[0068] Following the release of the air pulse, the pneumatic switching valve is closed immediately and the pressure controller fills up the air reservoir once more to the specified pressure, thus readying it for the following cycle.",
"[0069] However, the operation with an air reservoir is not absolutely required.",
"The pulsed release of a specific amount of air, which depends on the clock speed, under a specified pressure can be achieved with a dynamically configured control which directly ensures the continuous availability of compressed air.",
"[0070] The method according to the invention for a precisely positioned stopping of the print sheet can thus also be supplemented by activating a vacuum acting upon the print sheet.",
"[0071] The essential advantages of the invention can be summarized point by point as follows: [0072] 1.",
"As compared to traditional solutions, the invention is distinguished in that it uses practically no mechanically moving parts and no wear is thus generated, not even with high clock speeds.",
"[0073] 2.",
"The fast-switching valves needed for generating the short air pulses are tested components and are therefore operatively stable, in contrast to the braking brushes according to the prior art which must always be adjusted precisely to the paper thickness of the print sheets and are therefore subjected to constant wear.",
"[0074] 3.",
"It is furthermore advantageous that the means according to the invention for achieving a precisely positioned stopping, within the meaning of a standstill of the print sheet at a precise point, are not restricted by the space conditions in the region of the folding sword, which ensures easy access for correcting a problem in case of a backup.",
"[0075] 4.",
"The print sheets are not subjected to any damage during the described operations.",
"BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS [0076] In the following, the invention is explained in further detail with reference to the drawings, to which we expressly refer for all details not emphasized further in the description.",
"All elements not absolutely necessary for the direct understanding of the invention have been omitted.",
"The same elements in different figures are provided with the same reference numbers.",
"[0077] FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a complete overview of a longitudinal folding device, including a transport belt for supplying print sheets according to an embodiment of the invention.",
"[0078] FIG. 2 is shows an enlarged area of FIG. 1 with a modification including an intermediary mechanical element used for braking and positioning of the print sheet in connection with applying an air pulse as braking force.",
"[0079] FIG. 3 is shows an enlarged area of FIG. 2 and further including geometric conditions and resulting forces during a braking operation.",
"DETAILED DESCRIPTION [0080] FIG. 1 shows an area surrounding a longitudinal folding device 100 , which essentially consists of a longitudinal folding device 101 which can be operated using a sword 102 .",
"FIG. 1 also shows the configuration of a folding roller pair 103 .",
"The operation of longitudinal folding device 101 is illustrated by a print sheet 104 that is folded in a longitudinal direction.",
"Of course, the print sheets can also be folded inside a cross folding device, not shown further herein, wherein this device is operatively connected to the shown longitudinal folding device 101 or can be operated as an autonomous unit.",
"The print sheet 105 is supplied via transport belts 106 and is stopped in the precise folding position 107 , either with the aid of a first measure involving: [0081] 1) a precisely positioned stopping within the meaning of a standstill for the print sheet at a precise point, achieved solely through braking-force triggering pulses and/or by introducing additional braking forces, such as by generating a vacuum that acts upon the print sheet and/or the use of at least one mechanical element;",
"or with aid of a second measure, involving: [0082] 2) a precisely positioned stopping within the meaning of a standstill of the print sheet at a precise point, owing to braking-force triggering pulses and/or the introduction of additional braking forces, as described in the above, which ensure that the feeding speed of the print sheet relative to the specified end position is slowed down enough so that it is near zero or tends toward zero.",
"The final standstill at a precise point for the print sheet is then determined by taking into account an end stop that is not shown further in the figures and which the print sheet hits with the remaining speed.",
"[0083] Since this remaining speed is microscopically small, there is no danger that the front edge of the print sheet is damaged in the feeding direction once it hits the stop surface or could bounce back or spring back from this stop surface.",
"This soft arrival in the end position for the print sheet additionally has the advantage that the print sheet can adapt completely to the stop surface, thus resulting in a maximized, precise alignment of the front edge of the print sheet with the stop surface.",
"[0084] The following steps are relevant with the latter measure: [0085] The speed of the print sheet is slowed down approximately 10 cm prior to reaching the end stop, which is not shown herein but is familiar to one skilled in the art.",
"The speed is slowed enough so that the sheet only hits the end stop with low kinematic residual energy, wherein the speed of the print sheet is <1 m/s during the impact.",
"With an end speed of this type, no damage can occur to the print sheet and the print sheet also does not spring back as a result of an excessively high impact speed.",
"[0086] The course of the delay of the sheet feeding speed can advantageously be provided based on an e-function or quasi e-function (similar), wherein a truncating of the original course through other mathematical progressions is also possible.",
"Truncating is understood to mean in general the cutting off or separating of something, mostly in a figurative sense.",
"For an example, the course of the e-function may no longer be continued at one point and after which the breaking course is continued based on a different mathematical function.",
"[0087] However, for both described measures it is important that the dynamic of the braking-force triggering measures must take into consideration the manner in which the print sheets are transported.",
"If transport belts are used for transporting the sheets, then a control unit 117 of all braking-force triggering measures must be considered in an operative connection with the kinematic force which is exerted by the transport belts onto the print sheets.",
"The braking effect resulting from the specified means basically should not collide with the kinematic forces of the transport belts, wherein with specific constellations it is not impossible to purposely strive for an at least partial super-imposition of the two forces (braking force and transport force).",
"[0088] FIG. 1 furthermore shows a trailing print sheet 108 , intended to show the operation with a clock speed of the longitudinal folding device 100 .",
"[0089] The operation of the longitudinal folding device in an operative connection with a precise positioning of the print sheet 105 is configured as follows: [0090] The air pressure needed for the braking is computed based on the specified production data such as folding pattern, paper weight, paper width and cut-off length.",
"The information is then sent to an automatic controller, taking into consideration that depending on the folding pattern, the print sheet has different values on the left and the right side.",
"[0091] Furthermore, based on the specified production data such as folding pattern, paper weight, paper width and cut-off length, the air pressure required for decelerating the print sheet 105 is computed and the information is then sent to the automatic pressure controller 109 , taking into consideration that depending on the folding pattern, the print sheet may have different values for the left and the right side.",
"[0092] The illustrated air nozzle 110 is used to blow an amount of air directly onto the print sheet.",
"When computing the necessary amount of air, it is simultaneously taken into consideration that an additional amount of air may be necessary to neutralize the possibly occurring fluttering movements during the intake of the print sheet 105 .",
"Of course, it should also be considered that even after a complete stop of the print sheet 105 , introducing additional amounts of air may be required for stabilizing the print sheet 105 .",
"[0093] Thus, the pressure reservoir 111 , arranged in a flow direction in front of a pneumatic switching valve, is filled to a required pressure with the aid of a pressure controller 109 .",
"[0094] The print sheet 105 entering/fed into the folding region is detected at the back edge with the aid of a light barrier, not shown in further detail here, wherein this light barrier simultaneously functions to synchronize the clock speed of the folding sword 102 , wherein the operation of the light barrier also detects irregularities within the belt transport of the print sheet 105 and compensates these via the control unit 117 .",
"[0095] As a result of an activated trigger signal, a signal for activating the pneumatic switching valve is triggered, taking into consideration the dead time and speed compensation.",
"[0096] Following this, the air stored in the pressure reservoir 111 is released abruptly, whereupon the air nozzle 110 blows a pulse-type air jet onto the print sheet 105 .",
"[0097] The released air blast can act directly upon the print sheet 105 , or upon a lever (see FIG. 2 , Position 112 ) which transmits the air blast and the corresponding resulting force to the print sheet.",
"Of course, a configuration is also conceivable for which the air blast acts upon the print sheet 105 as well as the lever 112 , wherein the directly and the indirectly introduced braking force can also be controlled intermittently and with differing pulse strengths of the air pulses (see FIG. 2 , Position 114 ).",
"[0098] During the feeding operation and/or during the folding process, the print sheet 105 is pressed onto a table-type support owing to the pneumatically triggered forces, thus generating a braking force for the print sheet as a result of friction.",
"[0099] If necessary, an additional braking force can be directed simultaneously or phase-displaced onto the back edge of the print sheet 105 , wherein a material stretching triggered by the braking effect results in reinforcing the print sheet 105 .",
"[0100] The braking instant (see FIG. 3 , Position 115 ) is selected such that the print sheet 105 is securely slowed to 0 and, in an imaginary sense, also when using a print sheet end stop, as described in the above.",
"This specification can also be met if the slowing down of the print sheet 105 to 0 has reached the imaginary stopping point ( FIG. 3 , Position 113 ) where the folding sword 102 takes over the print sheet as intended.",
"The takeover of the print sheet 105 by the folding sword 102 can thus be coordinated such that it coincides with the imaginary stopping point 113 for the print sheet end.",
"[0101] One option for a braking at a precise position of the print sheet 105 , which is not shown further, can be achieved by activating an additional braking force based on friction.",
"This can be achieved advantageously through generating a vacuum that acts upon the underside of the print sheet, wherein this option can without problem also be used together with the other previously explained braking forces.",
"FIG. 2 furthermore shows the folding position 116 of the print sheet 105 .",
"[0102] FIG. 3 shows the geometric conditions and the resulting forces during the course of the braking operation for the print sheet.",
"These values, namely the distances 230 and 240 , as well as the forces F pulse ( 200 ), F braking ( 210 ) and F normal ( 220 ), which occur during the braking operation, are of a qualitative nature and are used as a basis for a controlled braking operation, wherein it is also possible to parameterize these values for control/regulation of the braking operation.",
"[0103] Following the release of the air pulses ( FIG. 2 , Position 114 ), the pneumatic switching valve is closed immediately and the pressure controller 109 again fills the compressed air reservoir 111 to the predetermined pressure, thus making it available for the next cycle.",
"[0104] The invention has been described in detail with respect to exemplary embodiments, and it will now be apparent from the foregoing to those skilled in the art, that changes and modifications may be made without departing from the invention in its broader aspects, and the invention, therefore, as defined in the appended claims, is intended to cover all such changes and modifications that fall within the true spirit of the invention."
] |
INTRODUCTION
The present invention is directed to a water saving toilet system controller, and, more particularly, to a controller providing improved control of the timing of the operation of the discharge and flushing stages of the toilet system.
BACKGROUND
In U.S. Pat. No. 4,516,280, dated May 14, 1985, there is shown and described a water saving toilet system. The system herein illustrated is similar in many respects to that shown in the aforesaid patent, but improved in certain aspects, particularly in that it is provided with an improved timing device to control operation of the discharge and flushing stages of the toilet system's operation.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a water saving toilet system which reduces or wholly overcomes some or all of the difficulties inherent in prior known devices. Particular objects and advantages of the invention will be apparent to those skilled in the art, that is, those who are knowledgeable or experienced in this field of technology, in view of the following disclosure of the invention and detailed description of preferred embodiments.
SUMMARY
The principles of the invention may be used to advantage to provide improved control of operation of the discharge and flushing stages of the toilet system.
In accordance with a first aspect, a toilet system controller includes a toilet bowl having at its bottom a discharge opening. A treating chamber has an intake opening connected to the discharge opening of the bowl. A macerator and discharge pump are located in the treating chamber, with the discharge pump discharging treated effluent to a waste pipe. A motor is operably connected to the macerator and discharge pump for effecting simultaneous operation of the macerator and discharge pump. A valve connects the toilet bowl to a source of water in order to admit water to the bowl to flush the bowl. A timer regulates operation of the motor and the valve during a flushing cycle. The flushing cycle is initiated by operation of the motor starting at time zero and continues for five seconds, followed by opening of the valve starting at time zero plus one and one half seconds and continuing for six and one half seconds.
From the foregoing disclosure, it will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art, that is, those who are knowledgeable or experienced in this area of technology, that the present invention provides a significant advance. Preferred embodiments of the toilet system controller of the present invention can provide improved control of the timing sequence of the various stages of the toilet system. These and additional features and advantages of the invention disclosed here will be further understood from the following detailed disclosure of preferred embodiments.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
Preferred embodiments are described in detail below with reference to the appended drawings.
FIG. 1 is a side elevation partly in section of the toilet system of the present invention.
FIG. 2 is a top plan view of the toilet system of FIG. 1 .
FIG. 2A is a fragmentary section of a spray head nozzle of the toilet system FIG. 1 .
FIG. 3 is a plan view, of the treating chamber of the toilet system of FIG. 1, showing a bypass conductor and a conduit connecting the pump to the bypass conductor.
FIG. 4 is an elevation view of the conduit of FIG. 3 .
FIG. 5 is an elevation of the treating chamber of FIG. 1, showing the bypass conductor partly in section.
FIG. 6 is a fragmentary elevation, with a portion in section, of a trap pipe of the toilet system of FIG. 1 connecting the bowl to the treating chamber.
FIG. 7 is a top view of the trap pipe of FIG. 6 .
FIG. 8 is a plan view in section of the pump rotor of the pump of the toilet system of FIG. 1 .
FIG. 9 is a control circuit diagram for controlling the sequence of operation of components of the toilet system of FIG. 1 .
The figures referred to above are not drawn necessarily to scale and should be understood to present a representation of the invention, illustrative of the principles involved. Some features of the toilet system depicted in the drawings have been enlarged or distorted relative to others to facilitate explanation and understanding. The same reference numbers are used in the drawings for similar or identical components and features shown in various alternative embodiments. Toilet systems as disclosed herein, will have configurations and components determined, in part, by the intended application and environment in which they are used.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
Referring to the drawings, in FIG. 1 there is shown a toilet bowl 10 supported on a suitable base 12 , to which flush water is supplied by a solenoid-operated valve V and from which effluent is discharged through a trap 14 into a treating chamber 16 where it is macerated by a macerator 16 A and then pumped by means of a pump 18 through a discharge conductor 20 to a soil pipe.
The toilet bowl 10 is of generally conventional configuration, has at the top a cored passage 22 which, as shown in FIG. 2, extends peripherally around the rear half of the bowl, through which flush water is delivered to the bowl for flushing, and a discharge opening 24 at the bottom through which effluent is discharged. The rear end of the cored passage is connected by a feeder tube 26 and suitable plumbing 28 to the valve V which, in turn, is connected to a water supply, not shown, so that operation of the valve will supply flush water to the cored passage. The forward ends of the cored passage terminate diametrically opposite each other approximately halfway between the front and rear ends of the bowl in openings 30 — 30 within which there are fixed spray nozzles 32 — 32 through which water delivered into the cored passage is ejected downwardly on the surface of the bowl. The nozzles 32 — 32 comprise, FIG. 2A, cylindrical plugs 34 containing ports 36 which are in communication with the cored passage 22 and downwardly-open slots 38 designed to eject the flush water downwardly in fan shape against the surface of the bowl so as to wash the surface down.
The trap 14 for conducting the effluent from the bowl to the treating chamber, as shown in FIG. 5, has an upwardly-inclined leg 40 , the lower end of which is flanged at 42 to fit over an extension 44 defining the opening 24 , and a vertical leg 46 connected at its upper end to the inclined leg 40 and at its lower end to the treating tank 16 .
The treating chamber 16 , as seen in FIG. 1, is mounted on the supporting structure for the bowl, behind the bowl, is of generally circular cross section, is closed at the bottom, and has an open top, peripherally of which there is a beveled rim 48 . A cover plate 50 having a beveled edge 52 is mounted on the rim 48 and detachably secured thereto by a locking band 54 , the upper and lower edges 56 and 58 of which overlap the beveled portions of the rim and edge. The locking band 54 provides for easy removal of the cover plate from the treating chamber. The cover plate supports the macerator 16 A, the pump 18 and the drive means therefor. To this end, the cover plate 50 is provided with a top opening 60 in which there is mounted a vertical bearing assembly 62 which supports a shaft 64 in a vertical position with a portion extending above the treating chamber and a portion extending into the treating chamber. The portion of the shaft 64 extending above the treating chamber is fixed by a coupling 66 to the drive shaft 68 of a motor M. The portion of the shaft 64 extending into the treating chamber has fixed to it a macerator blade 70 disposed in a horizontal position at right angles to the axis of the shaft. Below the macerator blade, the bottom of the treating chamber is structured to provide an annular toroidal surface 72 . The blade 70 and the subjacent toroidal surface 72 provide for hydraulic attrition of effluent delivered into the treating chamber. The macerator operates by hydraulic attrition rather than cutting to disperse and particulate the solids in the effluent.
The cover plate 50 is also provided with an opening 74 for receiving the pump assembly 18 and the latter is mounted in the opening by means of a ring 76 fastened by bolts 78 to the top plate and comprises a sealed housing 80 within which there is a stator 82 and a rotor 84 . The upper end of the rotor is fixed to a shaft 86 journaled in a bearing 88 mounted on the ring 78 . The stator and rotor 82 and 84 constitute, in conjunction, a worm pump.
A pulley 90 is fixed to the upper end of the shaft 64 , a pulley 92 is fixed to the upper end of the shaft 86 , and a belt 94 is trained about pulleys 90 , 92 so that the motor M drives the macerator and the pump simultaneously. A control module 95 is mounted at the back of a housing 97 of the toilet system.
The pump 18 has an intake port 96 within treating chamber 16 and a discharge port 98 externally of the treating chamber. Discharge port 98 is connected by a coupling 100 to a length of pipe 101 as seen in FIGS. 3 and 4, which is in turn connected by a coupling 103 to an inlet port 105 on discharge conductor 20 which, as previously mentioned, is connected to a waste pipe. The combination of discharge port 98 , pipe 101 , and inlet port 105 are coaxial such that discharge from pump 18 flows in a straight line to conductor 20 , reducing the chance of blockage as effluent is discharged from pump 18 . Thus, effluent flows from pump 18 in an improved manner through a conduit, free of bends along its length, to conductor 20 , the conduit being formed, in a preferred embodiment, of discharge port 98 , pipe 101 , and inlet port 105 , connected to one another by couplings. This alleviates a problem encountered in prior art systems wherein effluent exiting the discharge pipe encountered a first 90° elbow, flowed downwardly, and then encountered a second 90° elbow before entering the conductor in horizontal fashion. When large amounts of waste and paper were flushed through such a configuration, the discharge force of the pump caused the waste and paper to impact the 90° elbows and lead to plugging of the system. To clear such clogs is a difficult and time consuming process, and includes dismantling a major portion of the system. Consequently, the improved flow of effluent from the pump to conductor 20 of the present invention realizes a significant improvement in the operation and efficiency of the toilet system.
As shown in FIGS. 3 and 5, the discharge conductor 20 is connected at one end directly to the vertical leg of the trap by means of a valve assembly 106 comprising a beveled plate 108 which defines an opening 110 , a plate 112 which defines an opening 114 and a flexible valve member 116 positioned therebetween and clamped in place by a circumferential clamping ring 118 . The plate 108 is fixed to a branch pipe 119 stemming from the leg 46 , the axis of which is inclined upwardly with respect to the vertical axis of the leg 46 so that the plate 108 slopes downwardly at a diverging angle with respect to the axis of the vertical leg. The plate 112 is fixed to the discharge pipe 20 at an angle such as to be parallel to the plate 108 . As thus constructed, the valve assembly slopes downwardly and divergently with respect to the axis of the vertical leg of the trap. The flexible valve member 116 is arranged to open inwardly with respect to the conductor 20 by a pressure head within the vertical leg of the trap and to close by gravity in the absence of a head in the vertical portion of the trap. Normally, when the pump is in operation, it produces a low pressure in the vertical portion of the trap so that the low pressure, in conjunction with the gravitational disposition of the valve member 116 , ensures that the valve will be held closed under normal conditions. An angular disposition of the valve is of importance to prevent siphoning of the effluent from the vertical leg of the trap when the system is at rest. When the system is in use and, for some reason) the pump becomes disabled, a pressure head developed in the vertical leg of the trap will open the valve 116 and allow the effluent to flow directly through the conductor 20 to the waste pipe. The pressure head can be provided by dumping water into the bowl or, if the valve V is operative, supplying water to the bowl through the valve.
In prior toilet systems of this kind, diaphragm and gear pumps have been used for effecting discharge of effluent. However, in accordance with this invention, it has been found that a screw pump is considerably more satisfactory and effective insofar as the flush cycle is concerned. The stator 82 is comprised of flexible rubber and the rotor is plastic. In order to reduce the friction load of the plastic rotor in the flexible rubber stator, a portion of the worm at one end has been reduced to the root diameter of the worm. As herein illustrated, FIG. 8, the rotor 84 , which is comprised of Bakelite, is 4.28 inches axial length. The diameter of the worm is 1.12 inches and has a helix angle of 25 degrees with a lead of 1.648 and at one end a portion a 1.12 inches in length reduced to a uniform diameter of 0.0875 inches. By reducing the portion a at the one end to the root diameter of the worm, the friction between the rotor and stator can be materially reduced, thus reducing the power input necessary to drive the pump.
A flushing cycle of the toilet system in normal operation is sequenced by the control circuitry of control module 95 so that motor M is started first, simultaneously driving macerator 16 A and discharge pump 18 , followed by energization of a solenoid to open the valve V for supplying flush water to the bowl. In a preferred embodiment, the bowl is flushed with approximately 2 and ½ quarts of water during the flushing cycle. While the valve is still open and flushing is still occurring, the discharge pump 18 stops. The flushing operation is subsequently stopped by closing of the valve V. Macerator 16 A is in operation during the entire time that discharge pump 18 is in operation.
FIG. 9 is a wiring diagram showing a timer T which provides for sequencing the operation of the valve V and motor M during the flushing cycle, so as to start the motor before opening the valve and to stop the motor before closing the valve. In the circuit, there is shown a normally open switch SW for energizing the circuit, the motor M for driving the macerator and pump, a solenoid S for activating the valve V, and a timer T powered by a power source P and controlling the sequenced operation of motor M and solenoid actuated valve V. Timer T is preferably sealed in epoxy in module 95 to protect it from moisture, heat, and other environmental conditions.
In a preferred embodiment, the timing of the sequence of the steps during the flushing cycle of the system is as follows. The total operation run time of the flushing cycle is eight seconds, and during that time, timer T of the control circuit performs three separate functions. At the start of the sequence, that is, time zero, the timer first energizes motor M, which then runs for the first five seconds of the cycle and is then deenergized. The timer also provides a delay of one and a half seconds from time zero, at which time the solenoid is opened, opening valve V to provide rinsing of toilet bowl 10 . The timer then provides for the solenoid and valve V to remain open until the end of the eight second run cycle. Such a combination of timing sequences has been found to be particularly advantageous. The particular timing of the components of the toilet system described herein utilizes a minimum of water to efficiently evacuate and rinse the bowl, as well as efficiently treat and discharge the waste from the toilet system. Closing the normally open switch SW during the flushing cycle preferably does not affect operation of the either of the delay cycles, that is, the first delay of 1½ seconds before the solenoid and valve open, or the second delay of 6½ seconds during which the valve remains open and the bowl is flushed.
In a preferred embodiment, timer T is calibrated to an accuracy of ±2%. Motor M preferably is a ¼ HP motor with a 20 amp in-rush, 10 amp run capacity, and in-rush time of approximately 1 second. Solenoid S preferably has a 2 amp in-rush, a 0.45 amp run capacity, and an in-rush time of approximately 0.2 seconds. The supply voltage from power source P to timer T is preferably unfiltered 115 V.A.C. at 60 Hz, with a voltage variation of ±10%, with transients not to exceed 400 volts for 1 milli-second.
It is to be appreciated that although timer T is shown here in conjunction with a specific configuration of a water saving toilet, other constructions of toilets appropriate for the use of such a timer having the performance characteristics described herein are considered within the scope of the invention.
In a preferred embodiment, the power to motor M is supplied initially to the starting circuit of the motor, preferably for approximately 400-600 milliseconds, more preferably approximately 500 milliseconds, and then the power is switched to the running circuit of motor M for the remainder of the five second period during which motor M runs. By switching power from the starting circuit to the running circuit in this manner, the expense of a separate starting switch in the motor is eliminated.
In light of the foregoing disclosure of the invention and description of the preferred embodiments, those skilled in this area of technology will readily understand that various modifications and adaptations can be made without departing from the scope and spirit of the invention. All such modifications and adaptations are intended to be covered by the following claims. | A toilet system controller including a toilet bowl having at the bottom a discharge opening. A treating chamber has an intake opening connected to the discharge opening of the bowl. A macerator and discharge pump are located in the treating chamber, with the discharge pump discharging treated effluent to a waste pipe. A motor is operably connected to the macerator and discharge pump for effecting simultaneous operation of the macerator and discharge pump. A valve connects the toilet bowl to a source of water in order to admit water to the bowl to flush the bowl. A timer regulates operation of the motor and the valve during a flushing cycle. The flushing cycle is initiated by operation of the motor starting at time zero and continues for five seconds, followed by opening of the valve starting at time zero plus one and one half seconds and continuing for six and one half seconds. | Summarize the patent document, focusing on the invention's functionality and advantages. | [
"INTRODUCTION The present invention is directed to a water saving toilet system controller, and, more particularly, to a controller providing improved control of the timing of the operation of the discharge and flushing stages of the toilet system.",
"BACKGROUND In U.S. Pat. No. 4,516,280, dated May 14, 1985, there is shown and described a water saving toilet system.",
"The system herein illustrated is similar in many respects to that shown in the aforesaid patent, but improved in certain aspects, particularly in that it is provided with an improved timing device to control operation of the discharge and flushing stages of the toilet system's operation.",
"It is an object of the present invention to provide a water saving toilet system which reduces or wholly overcomes some or all of the difficulties inherent in prior known devices.",
"Particular objects and advantages of the invention will be apparent to those skilled in the art, that is, those who are knowledgeable or experienced in this field of technology, in view of the following disclosure of the invention and detailed description of preferred embodiments.",
"SUMMARY The principles of the invention may be used to advantage to provide improved control of operation of the discharge and flushing stages of the toilet system.",
"In accordance with a first aspect, a toilet system controller includes a toilet bowl having at its bottom a discharge opening.",
"A treating chamber has an intake opening connected to the discharge opening of the bowl.",
"A macerator and discharge pump are located in the treating chamber, with the discharge pump discharging treated effluent to a waste pipe.",
"A motor is operably connected to the macerator and discharge pump for effecting simultaneous operation of the macerator and discharge pump.",
"A valve connects the toilet bowl to a source of water in order to admit water to the bowl to flush the bowl.",
"A timer regulates operation of the motor and the valve during a flushing cycle.",
"The flushing cycle is initiated by operation of the motor starting at time zero and continues for five seconds, followed by opening of the valve starting at time zero plus one and one half seconds and continuing for six and one half seconds.",
"From the foregoing disclosure, it will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art, that is, those who are knowledgeable or experienced in this area of technology, that the present invention provides a significant advance.",
"Preferred embodiments of the toilet system controller of the present invention can provide improved control of the timing sequence of the various stages of the toilet system.",
"These and additional features and advantages of the invention disclosed here will be further understood from the following detailed disclosure of preferred embodiments.",
"BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS Preferred embodiments are described in detail below with reference to the appended drawings.",
"FIG. 1 is a side elevation partly in section of the toilet system of the present invention.",
"FIG. 2 is a top plan view of the toilet system of FIG. 1 .",
"FIG. 2A is a fragmentary section of a spray head nozzle of the toilet system FIG. 1 .",
"FIG. 3 is a plan view, of the treating chamber of the toilet system of FIG. 1, showing a bypass conductor and a conduit connecting the pump to the bypass conductor.",
"FIG. 4 is an elevation view of the conduit of FIG. 3 .",
"FIG. 5 is an elevation of the treating chamber of FIG. 1, showing the bypass conductor partly in section.",
"FIG. 6 is a fragmentary elevation, with a portion in section, of a trap pipe of the toilet system of FIG. 1 connecting the bowl to the treating chamber.",
"FIG. 7 is a top view of the trap pipe of FIG. 6 .",
"FIG. 8 is a plan view in section of the pump rotor of the pump of the toilet system of FIG. 1 .",
"FIG. 9 is a control circuit diagram for controlling the sequence of operation of components of the toilet system of FIG. 1 .",
"The figures referred to above are not drawn necessarily to scale and should be understood to present a representation of the invention, illustrative of the principles involved.",
"Some features of the toilet system depicted in the drawings have been enlarged or distorted relative to others to facilitate explanation and understanding.",
"The same reference numbers are used in the drawings for similar or identical components and features shown in various alternative embodiments.",
"Toilet systems as disclosed herein, will have configurations and components determined, in part, by the intended application and environment in which they are used.",
"DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Referring to the drawings, in FIG. 1 there is shown a toilet bowl 10 supported on a suitable base 12 , to which flush water is supplied by a solenoid-operated valve V and from which effluent is discharged through a trap 14 into a treating chamber 16 where it is macerated by a macerator 16 A and then pumped by means of a pump 18 through a discharge conductor 20 to a soil pipe.",
"The toilet bowl 10 is of generally conventional configuration, has at the top a cored passage 22 which, as shown in FIG. 2, extends peripherally around the rear half of the bowl, through which flush water is delivered to the bowl for flushing, and a discharge opening 24 at the bottom through which effluent is discharged.",
"The rear end of the cored passage is connected by a feeder tube 26 and suitable plumbing 28 to the valve V which, in turn, is connected to a water supply, not shown, so that operation of the valve will supply flush water to the cored passage.",
"The forward ends of the cored passage terminate diametrically opposite each other approximately halfway between the front and rear ends of the bowl in openings 30 — 30 within which there are fixed spray nozzles 32 — 32 through which water delivered into the cored passage is ejected downwardly on the surface of the bowl.",
"The nozzles 32 — 32 comprise, FIG. 2A, cylindrical plugs 34 containing ports 36 which are in communication with the cored passage 22 and downwardly-open slots 38 designed to eject the flush water downwardly in fan shape against the surface of the bowl so as to wash the surface down.",
"The trap 14 for conducting the effluent from the bowl to the treating chamber, as shown in FIG. 5, has an upwardly-inclined leg 40 , the lower end of which is flanged at 42 to fit over an extension 44 defining the opening 24 , and a vertical leg 46 connected at its upper end to the inclined leg 40 and at its lower end to the treating tank 16 .",
"The treating chamber 16 , as seen in FIG. 1, is mounted on the supporting structure for the bowl, behind the bowl, is of generally circular cross section, is closed at the bottom, and has an open top, peripherally of which there is a beveled rim 48 .",
"A cover plate 50 having a beveled edge 52 is mounted on the rim 48 and detachably secured thereto by a locking band 54 , the upper and lower edges 56 and 58 of which overlap the beveled portions of the rim and edge.",
"The locking band 54 provides for easy removal of the cover plate from the treating chamber.",
"The cover plate supports the macerator 16 A, the pump 18 and the drive means therefor.",
"To this end, the cover plate 50 is provided with a top opening 60 in which there is mounted a vertical bearing assembly 62 which supports a shaft 64 in a vertical position with a portion extending above the treating chamber and a portion extending into the treating chamber.",
"The portion of the shaft 64 extending above the treating chamber is fixed by a coupling 66 to the drive shaft 68 of a motor M. The portion of the shaft 64 extending into the treating chamber has fixed to it a macerator blade 70 disposed in a horizontal position at right angles to the axis of the shaft.",
"Below the macerator blade, the bottom of the treating chamber is structured to provide an annular toroidal surface 72 .",
"The blade 70 and the subjacent toroidal surface 72 provide for hydraulic attrition of effluent delivered into the treating chamber.",
"The macerator operates by hydraulic attrition rather than cutting to disperse and particulate the solids in the effluent.",
"The cover plate 50 is also provided with an opening 74 for receiving the pump assembly 18 and the latter is mounted in the opening by means of a ring 76 fastened by bolts 78 to the top plate and comprises a sealed housing 80 within which there is a stator 82 and a rotor 84 .",
"The upper end of the rotor is fixed to a shaft 86 journaled in a bearing 88 mounted on the ring 78 .",
"The stator and rotor 82 and 84 constitute, in conjunction, a worm pump.",
"A pulley 90 is fixed to the upper end of the shaft 64 , a pulley 92 is fixed to the upper end of the shaft 86 , and a belt 94 is trained about pulleys 90 , 92 so that the motor M drives the macerator and the pump simultaneously.",
"A control module 95 is mounted at the back of a housing 97 of the toilet system.",
"The pump 18 has an intake port 96 within treating chamber 16 and a discharge port 98 externally of the treating chamber.",
"Discharge port 98 is connected by a coupling 100 to a length of pipe 101 as seen in FIGS. 3 and 4, which is in turn connected by a coupling 103 to an inlet port 105 on discharge conductor 20 which, as previously mentioned, is connected to a waste pipe.",
"The combination of discharge port 98 , pipe 101 , and inlet port 105 are coaxial such that discharge from pump 18 flows in a straight line to conductor 20 , reducing the chance of blockage as effluent is discharged from pump 18 .",
"Thus, effluent flows from pump 18 in an improved manner through a conduit, free of bends along its length, to conductor 20 , the conduit being formed, in a preferred embodiment, of discharge port 98 , pipe 101 , and inlet port 105 , connected to one another by couplings.",
"This alleviates a problem encountered in prior art systems wherein effluent exiting the discharge pipe encountered a first 90° elbow, flowed downwardly, and then encountered a second 90° elbow before entering the conductor in horizontal fashion.",
"When large amounts of waste and paper were flushed through such a configuration, the discharge force of the pump caused the waste and paper to impact the 90° elbows and lead to plugging of the system.",
"To clear such clogs is a difficult and time consuming process, and includes dismantling a major portion of the system.",
"Consequently, the improved flow of effluent from the pump to conductor 20 of the present invention realizes a significant improvement in the operation and efficiency of the toilet system.",
"As shown in FIGS. 3 and 5, the discharge conductor 20 is connected at one end directly to the vertical leg of the trap by means of a valve assembly 106 comprising a beveled plate 108 which defines an opening 110 , a plate 112 which defines an opening 114 and a flexible valve member 116 positioned therebetween and clamped in place by a circumferential clamping ring 118 .",
"The plate 108 is fixed to a branch pipe 119 stemming from the leg 46 , the axis of which is inclined upwardly with respect to the vertical axis of the leg 46 so that the plate 108 slopes downwardly at a diverging angle with respect to the axis of the vertical leg.",
"The plate 112 is fixed to the discharge pipe 20 at an angle such as to be parallel to the plate 108 .",
"As thus constructed, the valve assembly slopes downwardly and divergently with respect to the axis of the vertical leg of the trap.",
"The flexible valve member 116 is arranged to open inwardly with respect to the conductor 20 by a pressure head within the vertical leg of the trap and to close by gravity in the absence of a head in the vertical portion of the trap.",
"Normally, when the pump is in operation, it produces a low pressure in the vertical portion of the trap so that the low pressure, in conjunction with the gravitational disposition of the valve member 116 , ensures that the valve will be held closed under normal conditions.",
"An angular disposition of the valve is of importance to prevent siphoning of the effluent from the vertical leg of the trap when the system is at rest.",
"When the system is in use and, for some reason) the pump becomes disabled, a pressure head developed in the vertical leg of the trap will open the valve 116 and allow the effluent to flow directly through the conductor 20 to the waste pipe.",
"The pressure head can be provided by dumping water into the bowl or, if the valve V is operative, supplying water to the bowl through the valve.",
"In prior toilet systems of this kind, diaphragm and gear pumps have been used for effecting discharge of effluent.",
"However, in accordance with this invention, it has been found that a screw pump is considerably more satisfactory and effective insofar as the flush cycle is concerned.",
"The stator 82 is comprised of flexible rubber and the rotor is plastic.",
"In order to reduce the friction load of the plastic rotor in the flexible rubber stator, a portion of the worm at one end has been reduced to the root diameter of the worm.",
"As herein illustrated, FIG. 8, the rotor 84 , which is comprised of Bakelite, is 4.28 inches axial length.",
"The diameter of the worm is 1.12 inches and has a helix angle of 25 degrees with a lead of 1.648 and at one end a portion a 1.12 inches in length reduced to a uniform diameter of 0.0875 inches.",
"By reducing the portion a at the one end to the root diameter of the worm, the friction between the rotor and stator can be materially reduced, thus reducing the power input necessary to drive the pump.",
"A flushing cycle of the toilet system in normal operation is sequenced by the control circuitry of control module 95 so that motor M is started first, simultaneously driving macerator 16 A and discharge pump 18 , followed by energization of a solenoid to open the valve V for supplying flush water to the bowl.",
"In a preferred embodiment, the bowl is flushed with approximately 2 and ½ quarts of water during the flushing cycle.",
"While the valve is still open and flushing is still occurring, the discharge pump 18 stops.",
"The flushing operation is subsequently stopped by closing of the valve V. Macerator 16 A is in operation during the entire time that discharge pump 18 is in operation.",
"FIG. 9 is a wiring diagram showing a timer T which provides for sequencing the operation of the valve V and motor M during the flushing cycle, so as to start the motor before opening the valve and to stop the motor before closing the valve.",
"In the circuit, there is shown a normally open switch SW for energizing the circuit, the motor M for driving the macerator and pump, a solenoid S for activating the valve V, and a timer T powered by a power source P and controlling the sequenced operation of motor M and solenoid actuated valve V. Timer T is preferably sealed in epoxy in module 95 to protect it from moisture, heat, and other environmental conditions.",
"In a preferred embodiment, the timing of the sequence of the steps during the flushing cycle of the system is as follows.",
"The total operation run time of the flushing cycle is eight seconds, and during that time, timer T of the control circuit performs three separate functions.",
"At the start of the sequence, that is, time zero, the timer first energizes motor M, which then runs for the first five seconds of the cycle and is then deenergized.",
"The timer also provides a delay of one and a half seconds from time zero, at which time the solenoid is opened, opening valve V to provide rinsing of toilet bowl 10 .",
"The timer then provides for the solenoid and valve V to remain open until the end of the eight second run cycle.",
"Such a combination of timing sequences has been found to be particularly advantageous.",
"The particular timing of the components of the toilet system described herein utilizes a minimum of water to efficiently evacuate and rinse the bowl, as well as efficiently treat and discharge the waste from the toilet system.",
"Closing the normally open switch SW during the flushing cycle preferably does not affect operation of the either of the delay cycles, that is, the first delay of 1½ seconds before the solenoid and valve open, or the second delay of 6½ seconds during which the valve remains open and the bowl is flushed.",
"In a preferred embodiment, timer T is calibrated to an accuracy of ±2%.",
"Motor M preferably is a ¼ HP motor with a 20 amp in-rush, 10 amp run capacity, and in-rush time of approximately 1 second.",
"Solenoid S preferably has a 2 amp in-rush, a 0.45 amp run capacity, and an in-rush time of approximately 0.2 seconds.",
"The supply voltage from power source P to timer T is preferably unfiltered 115 V.A.C. at 60 Hz, with a voltage variation of ±10%, with transients not to exceed 400 volts for 1 milli-second.",
"It is to be appreciated that although timer T is shown here in conjunction with a specific configuration of a water saving toilet, other constructions of toilets appropriate for the use of such a timer having the performance characteristics described herein are considered within the scope of the invention.",
"In a preferred embodiment, the power to motor M is supplied initially to the starting circuit of the motor, preferably for approximately 400-600 milliseconds, more preferably approximately 500 milliseconds, and then the power is switched to the running circuit of motor M for the remainder of the five second period during which motor M runs.",
"By switching power from the starting circuit to the running circuit in this manner, the expense of a separate starting switch in the motor is eliminated.",
"In light of the foregoing disclosure of the invention and description of the preferred embodiments, those skilled in this area of technology will readily understand that various modifications and adaptations can be made without departing from the scope and spirit of the invention.",
"All such modifications and adaptations are intended to be covered by the following claims."
] |
BACKGROUND
Within digital and optical communications systems, a carrier frequency offset may refer to a difference between the carrier frequency at a transmitter and the carrier frequency at the receiver. For instance, the transmitter may transmit at the nominal carrier frequency. At the receiver, an unmodulated frequency may be required for reception of the transmission, however it may not be physically possible to have the carrier frequency at the receiver exactly match the carrier frequency at the transmitter. Thus, this offset between frequencies may be described as the carrier frequency offset. Causes for this offset may include temperature change, mechanical vibration and etc. Accordingly, reduction of the carrier frequency offset through frequency and phase tracking (e.g., frequency recovery) may greatly improve the overall performance of the digital communications system.
Typically, a carrier recovery system may be used to estimate and compensate for frequency and phase differences between a carrier wave of a received signal and a local oscillator of the receiver for the purpose of coherent demodulation. While carrier recovery may be accomplished with an optical phase-locked loop (“PLL”), these methods are very complex. Conventional digital PLL-based blind carrier recovery algorithms have the capability to recover carrier phase and frequency simultaneously, and thus, is widely used for wireless systems. However, these types of algorithms cannot be used for high-speed optical system.
Unlike the wireless system in which the frequency and phase offset changes are relatively similar and slow, the characteristics of frequency and phase offsets in the optical system are very different. For example, frequency change is relatively slow (e.g., typically in the milliseconds for high-quality lasers) but the range may be large (e.g., more than 100 MHz), while the carrier phase varies much faster as compared to the wireless systems (e.g., within the nanosecond). Such characteristics will make PLL-based algorithms perform poor due to the intrinsic feedback delay. Furthermore, optical systems typically require heavily parallel processing that may further degrade the performance of these PLL-based algorithms.
SUMMARY
Described herein are systems and methods for accurately estimating and removing a carrier frequency offset. One exemplary embodiment relates to a system comprising a frequency offset detection circuit detecting a carrier frequency offset in an optical signal, and a frequency testing circuit calculating an estimated frequency offset value of the carrier frequency offset, wherein the frequency testing circuit removes a carrier phase based on the estimated frequency offset value and recovers the optical signal.
Another exemplary embodiment relates to a method comprising detecting a carrier frequency offset in an optical signal, calculating an estimated frequency offset value of the carrier frequency offset, removing a carrier phase based on the estimated frequency offset value, and recovering the optical signal.
A further exemplary embodiment relates to a circuit comprising a detecting means detecting a carrier frequency offset in an optical signal, a calculating means calculating an estimated frequency offset value of the carrier frequency offset, a phase removal means removing a carrier phase based on the estimated frequency offset value, and a signal recovering means recovering the optical signal.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG. 1 shows an illustration of the basic structure of carrier recovery for an optical system according to an exemplary embodiment described herein.
FIG. 2 shows an illustration of a first embodiment of a carrier frequency offset detection system according to systems and methods described herein.
FIG. 3 shows an exemplary graph including the calculated mean square error versus test frequencies at 1 MHz frequency step according to an exemplary embodiment.
FIG. 4 shows an illustration of a second embodiment of a carrier frequency offset detection system according to systems and methods described herein.
FIG. 5 shows an illustration of a third embodiment of a carrier frequency offset detection system according to systems and methods described herein.
FIG. 6 shows an illustration of a further embodiment of a carrier frequency offset detection system according to systems and methods described herein.
FIG. 7 shows an exemplary method for accurately estimating and removing a carrier frequency offset according to an exemplary embodiment described herein.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
The exemplary embodiments described herein may be further understood with reference to the following description and the related appended drawings, wherein like elements are provided with the same reference numerals. The exemplary embodiments are related to systems and methods for accurately estimating and removing a carrier frequency offset.
The exemplary systems and methods described herein provide for a multi-stage blind frequency search process for a universal blind carrier frequency recovery method for a coherent receiver. As will be described below, the coherent receiver may employ any type of modulation format, such as an arbitrary quadrature amplitude modulation (“QAM”) format, a polarized-multiplexed QAM format, etc. The exemplary embodiments may accurately estimate the carrier frequency offset by using only tens of continuous symbols, and therefore may be implemented with either a parallel processing-based architecture or a sequential processing-based architecture. While the parallel processing architecture may allow for relatively faster carrier frequency recovery, the sequential processing architecture may allow for very hardware-efficient carrier frequency recovery. Furthermore, by using a combination of both the parallel and sequential processing architectures, the tracking speed as well as hardware-efficiency may therefore be adjusted in order to meet the needs of different system applications.
In order to meet the growing capacity demands in the core optical network, spectrally efficient techniques, such as digital coherent detection may be implemented. While these techniques allow the use of advanced modulation formats (e.g., QAM-modulated systems), high order QAM modulation formats, such as M>4, have smaller tolerance toward frequency and phase noise due to decreases in the Euclidian distance, and thus require more robust frequency and phase tracking (e.g., carrier recovery). Although frequency and phase tracking may be realized by using training based algorithms, these algorithms require extra overhead and thus reduce the achievable spectral efficiency (“SE”). On the other hand, blind carrier recovery does not require overhead and may be more attractive for an optical system.
For optical systems, most of the proposed carrier recovery algorithms may only be applicable to phase-shift-keying (“PSK”) systems. For instance, a fast Fourier transform (“FFT”) based carrier frequency recovery algorithm may be extended from a PSK system to a high-order QAM system, but the required FFT size would be very large. An improved algorithm may be created by proposing a ring-based classification and down-sampling method that can significantly reduce the required FFT size. Accordingly, this improved method may provide a solution for a continuously operational receiver using a high-quality laser (e.g., such as external cavity lasers) with very slow frequency noise. However, this method may not be used for a system using lasers having fast frequency noise, such as some distributed Bragg reflector (“DBR”) lasers. Even with such high-quality lasers, there exists a need for fast carrier recovery for a fully dynamic optical network, wherein fast wavelength provisioning may be necessary, or for an optical packet network requiring burst-mode receivers. The exemplary embodiments described herein provide a more universal blind carrier recovery technique within a variety of networks and applications.
FIG. 1 shows an illustration of the basic structure of carrier frequency recovery for an optical system 100 according to an exemplary embodiment described herein. As is shown in FIG. 1 , carrier frequency recovery 110 may include a circuit 115 for the detection of carrier frequency offset and its removal to achieve efficient carrier phase recovery 120 . However, the challenging part is how to accurately estimate the carrier frequency offset.
According to the exemplary systems and methods, the optical system 100 may use a multi-stage based blind frequency search method to detect the carrier frequency offset. As will be described in greater detail below, this system 100 may utilize a variety of frequency testing components to accurately estimate carrier frequency offset. Specifically, these frequency-testing components may use a small number of symbols (e.g., on the order of only tens of symbols), which may only account for nanoseconds for the high-speed optical system 100 . Therefore, the number of symbols used is much less than any conventional carrier recovery algorithm, wherein thousands of symbols are typically required to achieve a reliable carrier frequency. Thus, if the exemplary method is realized by using a parallel processing-based architecture, very fast carrier frequency recovery may be achieved. In addition, since the exemplary method may only need a short piece of data information for carrier frequency offset extraction, it may also be implemented with a sequential processing architecture to achieve very hardware-efficient carrier frequency recovery. By using a combination of parallel and sequential processing architecture, the tracking speed as well as hardware-efficiency can therefore be adjusted to meet the needs of different system applications.
FIG. 2 shows an illustration of a first embodiment of a carrier frequency offset detection system 200 according to systems and methods described herein. As shown in FIG. 2 , a two-stage based blind frequency search method may be utilized with a parallel processing architecture. The two stages may include a coarse frequency search stage 210 and a fine frequency search stage 220 . For descriptive purposes, “X 1 , X 2 , . . . X K ” may denote the received modulated signal samples after equalization (e.g., one sample per symbol) to be used for frequency offset detection. In addition, “K” denotes the data block length, and “f 1 , f 2 , . . . f N ” denotes the N different test frequencies used in the first coarse frequency search stage 210 . According to the example depicted in FIG. 2 , if the allowable maximum carrier frequency offset is F max , then the test frequency f k that is used for the coarse frequency recovery may be selected as:
f k =−F max +kΔF,
Wherein ΔF is the coarse frequency resolution, and k is an integer number taken from 0 to the nearest integer number closest to F max /ΔF.
For each frequency test unit, the K received signal samples are rotated by a phase angle given by −2πf k t wherein t denotes the sample instant. Accordingly, such a phase rotation operation may remove the frequency offset if the tested frequency f k is equal to the actual frequency offset. The phase-rotated signal may then go through a phase recovery stage to remove the carrier phase and recover the original signal (e.g., in a best effort). The exemplary phase recovery stage may include either a single-stage based blind phase search (“BPS”) method 230 or a multi-stage hybrid BPS and maximum likelihood (ML) method in order to remove the carrier phase.
Furthermore, a mean square error may then calculated by:
∑ i = 1 K X k - X k D 2 K
wherein X k D denotes the decided signal. By using the parallel processing depicted in FIG. 2 , each of the N frequencies may be tested at the same time and the N output mean square errors may then be compared. The test frequency that gives the minimum mean square error value may output to the next fine frequency search stage. For the fine frequency search stage 220 , the M fine test frequencies may be chosen as f n =f min c +Δf n wherein Δf n is given by:
Δ f n = - 0.5 Δ F + n Δ F M
Wherein n is an integer number taken from [0,M]. The mean square errors calculated from the M fine test frequencies may be compared and the test frequency that gives the minimum mean square error value may be determined as the final estimated frequency offset. Specifically, an exemplary circuit within the system 200 may perform the calculations and estimations of the frequency offset.
FIG. 3 shows an exemplary graph 300 including the calculated mean square error versus test frequencies at 1 MHz frequency steps according to an exemplary embodiment. As shown in FIG. 3 , the Y-axis includes normalized mean square error while the X-axis includes the test frequencies at 1 MHz frequency step using different number of continuous data symbols based on a 10.7 Gbaud 36 QAM experimental result.
The graph 300 of FIG. 3 represents the results of a 107 Gb/s PDM-36QAM transmission experiment using external excavity lasers having a linewidth of ˜100 kHz as the laser sources. In order to observe the allowable minimum data length and the allowable maximum coarse frequency search step (e.g., resolution), the graph 300 illustrates the calculated mean square error versus test frequencies at 1 MHz frequency steps using a different number of continuous data symbols (e.g., block length) for a 10.7 Gbaud 36QAM experiment operating with an optical signal-to-noise ratio (“OSNR”) of 20.3 dB, corresponding to a BER of 1.3e −3 . It can be seen that by using 64 continuous data symbols with a coarse frequency resolution of about 20 MHz and a fine frequency resolution 1 MHz, reliable carrier recovery may be achieved to within 1-2 MHz. Accordingly, estimating the frequency offset to within 2 MHz allows for very efficient carrier phase recovery. If the maximum carrier frequency offset is controlled to be below 200 MHz, such as some commercial products, the proposed two-stage blind frequency search systems and methods may only need to test a small number (e.g., about 40) of different frequencies by using the above introduced two-stage frequency search technique. Furthermore, the required number of test frequencies may be further reduced by introducing additional cascaded stages. For instance, if a frequency step of 20 MHz is selected for the first stage, a frequency step of 5 MHz is selected for the second stage and a frequency step of 1 MHz is selected for the final fine-tuning stage, then the required number of test frequencies may be reduced from 40 to 29.
Since the data length for detecting carrier frequency offset (e.g., K) may be small (on the order of tens of symbols), the parallel processing embodiment of the frequency offset detection method may be much faster than any of the known carrier frequency recovery methods, such as the FFT-based methods discussed above. Accordingly, the parallel processing embodiment may be of significant use to system applications, such as a burst-mode receiver, any continuously operational receiver requiring fast acquisition time, etc.
FIG. 4 shows an illustration a second embodiment of a carrier frequency offset detection system 400 according to systems and methods described herein. The exemplary system 400 may include a single frequency test unit 410 , a frequency table 420 , a timing control 430 , an on/off switch 440 , and a plurality of registers 450 .
Unlike the previous parallel processing architecture, detailed in the system 200 of FIG. 2 , where the number of frequency test units is equal to the number of the used test frequencies, the system 400 may utilize the single frequency test unit 410 . Furthermore, the mean square errors of different test frequencies may be calculated sequentially, at different time slots, by using the same frequency test unit 410 . This exemplary sequential design may dramatically reduce the required hardware complexity due to a significant reduction in the amount of multiplier operations. An exemplary circuit within the system 400 may perform the calculations and estimations of the frequency offset.
Although this sequential processing architecture may use additional memory and a timing control unit, the complexity of the implementation is much less than that of the extra multiplier operation used in the parallel processing architecture of system 200 . Accordingly, the exemplary system 400 depicted in FIG. 4 may use fewer components (e.g., complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor (“CMOS”) gates, etc.) than the parallel processing architecture of the system 200 . Thus, the system 400 may be described as very efficient in terms of its hardware design, although its frequency tracking speed may be reduced. Therefore, the sequential processing embodiment illustrated in FIG. 4 may be of significant use in a continuously operational receiver that does not require fast acquisition.
FIG. 5 shows an illustration a third embodiment of a carrier frequency offset detection system 500 according to systems and methods described herein. The exemplary system 500 may include a plurality of parallel carrier frequency test units 510 , a frequency table 520 , a timing control 530 , an on/off switch 540 , and a plurality of registers 550 .
As shown in FIG. 5 , the exemplary system 500 utilizes a combination of the parallel processing architecture with the sequential processing architecture. The system 500 may provide a carrier recovery circuit design with various frequency tracking speed, and hardware-efficiency, that falls between the parallel processing structure of the system 200 and the sequential processing structure of the system 400 . An exemplary circuit within the system 500 may perform the calculations and estimations of the frequency offset.
FIG. 6 shows an illustration a further embodiment of a carrier frequency offset detection system 600 according to systems and methods described herein. The exemplary system 600 may include a single frequency and phase test unit 610 , a frequency and phase tables 620 , a timing control 630 , an on/off switch 640 , and a plurality of registers 650 .
As shown in FIG. 6 , the system 600 employs a single frequency and phase test unit in order to calculate the mean square errors of different test frequencies and test phases. The estimated carrier offset may then be the test frequency that gives the minimum mean square error. For the case that the phase recovery is achieved by using blind phase search based methods, the hardware implementation efficiency may be further improved by using the architecture of the system 600 , as depicted in FIG. 6 . An exemplary circuit within the system 600 may perform the calculations and estimations of the frequency offset.
FIG. 7 shows an exemplary method 700 for accurately estimating and removing a carrier frequency offset according to an exemplary embodiment described herein. It should be noted that method 700 will be discussed with reference to various exemplary systems and components described above.
It should be noted that the exemplary method may be stored as a set of instructions or software code on a non-transitory computer readable storage medium, such as a computer memory. This set of instructions may be executable by a processor and may be operable at least to perform the steps of the exemplary method 700 depicted in FIG. 7 .
Beginning with step 710 , a frequency offset detection circuit may detect a carrier frequency offset in an optical signal. As noted above, the frequency offset detection circuit may utilize digital coherent detection to detect the carrier frequency offset.
In step 720 , a frequency testing circuit may calculate an estimated frequency offset value of the carrier frequency offset. Specifically, the frequency testing circuit may utilize one or more frequency testing units, depending on the architecture of the system. In the event the system includes a parallel processing architecture, the frequency testing circuit may determine a minimum mean square error for each of the multiple tests simultaneously. In the event the system includes a sequential processing architecture, the frequency testing circuit may determine a minimum mean square error for each of the multiple tests at different intervals. In the event the system includes a combination processing architecture, the frequency testing circuit may use any combination of tests described above.
In step 730 , the frequency testing circuit may utilize a first coarse frequency search stage for multi-stage frequency search techniques. As noted above, the frequency testing circuit may calculate mean square error versus test frequencies at a coarse frequency resolution of about 20 MHz frequency step using different number of continuous data symbols (i.e. block length). The frequency testing circuit may compare the results of the coarse frequency search and the test frequency that provides the minimum mean square error may be output to the next fine frequency search stage in step 740 .
In step 740 , the frequency testing circuit may utilize a next fine frequency search stage for multi-stage frequency search techniques. As noted above, the frequency testing circuit may calculate mean square error versus test frequencies at a fine frequency resolution of about 1 MHz frequency steps using different number of continuous data symbols (i.e. block length). The frequency testing circuit may compare the results of the fine frequency search and the test frequency that provides the minimum mean square error may be final estimated carrier frequency offset to be used in step 750 .
In step 750 , the frequency testing circuit may remove a carrier phase based on the estimated frequency offset value in order to recover the optical signal. As described above, the frequency testing circuit may remove a carrier phase using a phase rotation operation to generate a phase rotated signal.
Intradyne detection-based digital coherent receivers may allow for the carrier frequency of the received signal source different from the local oscillator while avoiding the need for complex optical phase locked loop (“PLL”) in the optical system. As noted above, such a frequency offset may be estimated and removed in the digital domain (e.g., digital carrier frequency recovery) by way of any of the exemplary embodiments described herein.
As detailed above, these embodiments provide a multi-stage based blind frequency search method to accurately estimate the carrier frequency offset and remove the frequency offset. These embodiments may be implemented either with parallel processing based architecture to achieve very fast carrier frequency recovery, or with a sequential processing architecture to maximize hardware-efficient during carrier frequency recovery. Furthermore, a combination of parallel and sequential processing may be implemented in order to customize the tracking speed, as well as hardware-efficiency, to meet the needs of different system applications. For example, a burst-mode receiver may require very fast carrier recovery of the parallel embodiment while the normal continuous-operational receiver with high-quality laser may allow for relatively slow frequency recovery of the sequential embodiment. Furthermore, each of the embodiments described herein may be applicable to any modulation formats, such as QAM or polarization-multiplexed QAM, and for arbitrary frequency offset.
According to the exemplary methods and systems described above, digital coherent detection combined with the use of high-order QAM is an advantageous technique for achieving high-spectral efficiency optical transmission at a data rate beyond 100-Gb/s. In addition to higher speed and higher spectral efficiency, future optical networks may also require fast receiver acquisition time to provide fast wavelength provision. Furthermore, statistical multiplexing based optical packet network may be needed in the future transport network. For these advanced optical networks, fast carrier recovery in the coherent receiver is critical important.
Accordingly, the exemplary embodiments propose a blind carrier frequency recovery technique that may be used in these advanced optical networks for arbitrary modulation formats and having any frequency offset. Moreover, the exemplary embodiments not only can be implemented with parallel processing to achieve very fast frequency tracking speed, they may also be implemented with sequential processing to achieve very good hardware efficiency. By using a combination of parallel processing and sequential processing, different tracking speed, as well as hardware efficiency, may be realized by the various embodiments described above to meet the needs of different applications. Thus, the exemplary embodiments may provide universal carrier frequency recovery for any coherent receiver.
It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various modifications may be made the exemplary embodiments, without departing from the spirit or the scope of the systems and methods described herein. Thus, it is intended that the exemplary embodiments cover modifications and variations of these systems and methods provided they come within the scope of the appended claimed and their equivalents. | Described herein are systems and methods for accurately estimating and removing a carrier frequency offset. One exemplary embodiment relates to a system comprising a frequency offset detection circuit detecting a carrier frequency offset in an optical signal, and a frequency testing circuit calculating an estimated frequency offset value of the carrier frequency offset, wherein the frequency testing circuit removes a carrier phase based on the estimated frequency offset value and recovers the optical signal. Another exemplary embodiment relates to a method comprising detecting a carrier frequency offset in an optical signal, calculating an estimated frequency offset value of the carrier frequency offset, removing a carrier phase based on the estimated frequency offset value, and recovering the optical signal. | Condense the core contents of the given document. | [
"BACKGROUND Within digital and optical communications systems, a carrier frequency offset may refer to a difference between the carrier frequency at a transmitter and the carrier frequency at the receiver.",
"For instance, the transmitter may transmit at the nominal carrier frequency.",
"At the receiver, an unmodulated frequency may be required for reception of the transmission, however it may not be physically possible to have the carrier frequency at the receiver exactly match the carrier frequency at the transmitter.",
"Thus, this offset between frequencies may be described as the carrier frequency offset.",
"Causes for this offset may include temperature change, mechanical vibration and etc.",
"Accordingly, reduction of the carrier frequency offset through frequency and phase tracking (e.g., frequency recovery) may greatly improve the overall performance of the digital communications system.",
"Typically, a carrier recovery system may be used to estimate and compensate for frequency and phase differences between a carrier wave of a received signal and a local oscillator of the receiver for the purpose of coherent demodulation.",
"While carrier recovery may be accomplished with an optical phase-locked loop (“PLL”), these methods are very complex.",
"Conventional digital PLL-based blind carrier recovery algorithms have the capability to recover carrier phase and frequency simultaneously, and thus, is widely used for wireless systems.",
"However, these types of algorithms cannot be used for high-speed optical system.",
"Unlike the wireless system in which the frequency and phase offset changes are relatively similar and slow, the characteristics of frequency and phase offsets in the optical system are very different.",
"For example, frequency change is relatively slow (e.g., typically in the milliseconds for high-quality lasers) but the range may be large (e.g., more than 100 MHz), while the carrier phase varies much faster as compared to the wireless systems (e.g., within the nanosecond).",
"Such characteristics will make PLL-based algorithms perform poor due to the intrinsic feedback delay.",
"Furthermore, optical systems typically require heavily parallel processing that may further degrade the performance of these PLL-based algorithms.",
"SUMMARY Described herein are systems and methods for accurately estimating and removing a carrier frequency offset.",
"One exemplary embodiment relates to a system comprising a frequency offset detection circuit detecting a carrier frequency offset in an optical signal, and a frequency testing circuit calculating an estimated frequency offset value of the carrier frequency offset, wherein the frequency testing circuit removes a carrier phase based on the estimated frequency offset value and recovers the optical signal.",
"Another exemplary embodiment relates to a method comprising detecting a carrier frequency offset in an optical signal, calculating an estimated frequency offset value of the carrier frequency offset, removing a carrier phase based on the estimated frequency offset value, and recovering the optical signal.",
"A further exemplary embodiment relates to a circuit comprising a detecting means detecting a carrier frequency offset in an optical signal, a calculating means calculating an estimated frequency offset value of the carrier frequency offset, a phase removal means removing a carrier phase based on the estimated frequency offset value, and a signal recovering means recovering the optical signal.",
"BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 shows an illustration of the basic structure of carrier recovery for an optical system according to an exemplary embodiment described herein.",
"FIG. 2 shows an illustration of a first embodiment of a carrier frequency offset detection system according to systems and methods described herein.",
"FIG. 3 shows an exemplary graph including the calculated mean square error versus test frequencies at 1 MHz frequency step according to an exemplary embodiment.",
"FIG. 4 shows an illustration of a second embodiment of a carrier frequency offset detection system according to systems and methods described herein.",
"FIG. 5 shows an illustration of a third embodiment of a carrier frequency offset detection system according to systems and methods described herein.",
"FIG. 6 shows an illustration of a further embodiment of a carrier frequency offset detection system according to systems and methods described herein.",
"FIG. 7 shows an exemplary method for accurately estimating and removing a carrier frequency offset according to an exemplary embodiment described herein.",
"DETAILED DESCRIPTION The exemplary embodiments described herein may be further understood with reference to the following description and the related appended drawings, wherein like elements are provided with the same reference numerals.",
"The exemplary embodiments are related to systems and methods for accurately estimating and removing a carrier frequency offset.",
"The exemplary systems and methods described herein provide for a multi-stage blind frequency search process for a universal blind carrier frequency recovery method for a coherent receiver.",
"As will be described below, the coherent receiver may employ any type of modulation format, such as an arbitrary quadrature amplitude modulation (“QAM”) format, a polarized-multiplexed QAM format, etc.",
"The exemplary embodiments may accurately estimate the carrier frequency offset by using only tens of continuous symbols, and therefore may be implemented with either a parallel processing-based architecture or a sequential processing-based architecture.",
"While the parallel processing architecture may allow for relatively faster carrier frequency recovery, the sequential processing architecture may allow for very hardware-efficient carrier frequency recovery.",
"Furthermore, by using a combination of both the parallel and sequential processing architectures, the tracking speed as well as hardware-efficiency may therefore be adjusted in order to meet the needs of different system applications.",
"In order to meet the growing capacity demands in the core optical network, spectrally efficient techniques, such as digital coherent detection may be implemented.",
"While these techniques allow the use of advanced modulation formats (e.g., QAM-modulated systems), high order QAM modulation formats, such as M>4, have smaller tolerance toward frequency and phase noise due to decreases in the Euclidian distance, and thus require more robust frequency and phase tracking (e.g., carrier recovery).",
"Although frequency and phase tracking may be realized by using training based algorithms, these algorithms require extra overhead and thus reduce the achievable spectral efficiency (“SE”).",
"On the other hand, blind carrier recovery does not require overhead and may be more attractive for an optical system.",
"For optical systems, most of the proposed carrier recovery algorithms may only be applicable to phase-shift-keying (“PSK”) systems.",
"For instance, a fast Fourier transform (“FFT”) based carrier frequency recovery algorithm may be extended from a PSK system to a high-order QAM system, but the required FFT size would be very large.",
"An improved algorithm may be created by proposing a ring-based classification and down-sampling method that can significantly reduce the required FFT size.",
"Accordingly, this improved method may provide a solution for a continuously operational receiver using a high-quality laser (e.g., such as external cavity lasers) with very slow frequency noise.",
"However, this method may not be used for a system using lasers having fast frequency noise, such as some distributed Bragg reflector (“DBR”) lasers.",
"Even with such high-quality lasers, there exists a need for fast carrier recovery for a fully dynamic optical network, wherein fast wavelength provisioning may be necessary, or for an optical packet network requiring burst-mode receivers.",
"The exemplary embodiments described herein provide a more universal blind carrier recovery technique within a variety of networks and applications.",
"FIG. 1 shows an illustration of the basic structure of carrier frequency recovery for an optical system 100 according to an exemplary embodiment described herein.",
"As is shown in FIG. 1 , carrier frequency recovery 110 may include a circuit 115 for the detection of carrier frequency offset and its removal to achieve efficient carrier phase recovery 120 .",
"However, the challenging part is how to accurately estimate the carrier frequency offset.",
"According to the exemplary systems and methods, the optical system 100 may use a multi-stage based blind frequency search method to detect the carrier frequency offset.",
"As will be described in greater detail below, this system 100 may utilize a variety of frequency testing components to accurately estimate carrier frequency offset.",
"Specifically, these frequency-testing components may use a small number of symbols (e.g., on the order of only tens of symbols), which may only account for nanoseconds for the high-speed optical system 100 .",
"Therefore, the number of symbols used is much less than any conventional carrier recovery algorithm, wherein thousands of symbols are typically required to achieve a reliable carrier frequency.",
"Thus, if the exemplary method is realized by using a parallel processing-based architecture, very fast carrier frequency recovery may be achieved.",
"In addition, since the exemplary method may only need a short piece of data information for carrier frequency offset extraction, it may also be implemented with a sequential processing architecture to achieve very hardware-efficient carrier frequency recovery.",
"By using a combination of parallel and sequential processing architecture, the tracking speed as well as hardware-efficiency can therefore be adjusted to meet the needs of different system applications.",
"FIG. 2 shows an illustration of a first embodiment of a carrier frequency offset detection system 200 according to systems and methods described herein.",
"As shown in FIG. 2 , a two-stage based blind frequency search method may be utilized with a parallel processing architecture.",
"The two stages may include a coarse frequency search stage 210 and a fine frequency search stage 220 .",
"For descriptive purposes, “X 1 , X 2 , . . . X K ”",
"may denote the received modulated signal samples after equalization (e.g., one sample per symbol) to be used for frequency offset detection.",
"In addition, “K”",
"denotes the data block length, and “f 1 , f 2 , . . . f N ”",
"denotes the N different test frequencies used in the first coarse frequency search stage 210 .",
"According to the example depicted in FIG. 2 , if the allowable maximum carrier frequency offset is F max , then the test frequency f k that is used for the coarse frequency recovery may be selected as: f k =−F max +kΔF, Wherein ΔF is the coarse frequency resolution, and k is an integer number taken from 0 to the nearest integer number closest to F max /ΔF.",
"For each frequency test unit, the K received signal samples are rotated by a phase angle given by −2πf k t wherein t denotes the sample instant.",
"Accordingly, such a phase rotation operation may remove the frequency offset if the tested frequency f k is equal to the actual frequency offset.",
"The phase-rotated signal may then go through a phase recovery stage to remove the carrier phase and recover the original signal (e.g., in a best effort).",
"The exemplary phase recovery stage may include either a single-stage based blind phase search (“BPS”) method 230 or a multi-stage hybrid BPS and maximum likelihood (ML) method in order to remove the carrier phase.",
"Furthermore, a mean square error may then calculated by: ∑ i = 1 K X k - X k D 2 K wherein X k D denotes the decided signal.",
"By using the parallel processing depicted in FIG. 2 , each of the N frequencies may be tested at the same time and the N output mean square errors may then be compared.",
"The test frequency that gives the minimum mean square error value may output to the next fine frequency search stage.",
"For the fine frequency search stage 220 , the M fine test frequencies may be chosen as f n =f min c +Δf n wherein Δf n is given by: Δ f n = - 0.5 Δ F + n Δ F M Wherein n is an integer number taken from [0,M].",
"The mean square errors calculated from the M fine test frequencies may be compared and the test frequency that gives the minimum mean square error value may be determined as the final estimated frequency offset.",
"Specifically, an exemplary circuit within the system 200 may perform the calculations and estimations of the frequency offset.",
"FIG. 3 shows an exemplary graph 300 including the calculated mean square error versus test frequencies at 1 MHz frequency steps according to an exemplary embodiment.",
"As shown in FIG. 3 , the Y-axis includes normalized mean square error while the X-axis includes the test frequencies at 1 MHz frequency step using different number of continuous data symbols based on a 10.7 Gbaud 36 QAM experimental result.",
"The graph 300 of FIG. 3 represents the results of a 107 Gb/s PDM-36QAM transmission experiment using external excavity lasers having a linewidth of ˜100 kHz as the laser sources.",
"In order to observe the allowable minimum data length and the allowable maximum coarse frequency search step (e.g., resolution), the graph 300 illustrates the calculated mean square error versus test frequencies at 1 MHz frequency steps using a different number of continuous data symbols (e.g., block length) for a 10.7 Gbaud 36QAM experiment operating with an optical signal-to-noise ratio (“OSNR”) of 20.3 dB, corresponding to a BER of 1.3e −3 .",
"It can be seen that by using 64 continuous data symbols with a coarse frequency resolution of about 20 MHz and a fine frequency resolution 1 MHz, reliable carrier recovery may be achieved to within 1-2 MHz.",
"Accordingly, estimating the frequency offset to within 2 MHz allows for very efficient carrier phase recovery.",
"If the maximum carrier frequency offset is controlled to be below 200 MHz, such as some commercial products, the proposed two-stage blind frequency search systems and methods may only need to test a small number (e.g., about 40) of different frequencies by using the above introduced two-stage frequency search technique.",
"Furthermore, the required number of test frequencies may be further reduced by introducing additional cascaded stages.",
"For instance, if a frequency step of 20 MHz is selected for the first stage, a frequency step of 5 MHz is selected for the second stage and a frequency step of 1 MHz is selected for the final fine-tuning stage, then the required number of test frequencies may be reduced from 40 to 29.",
"Since the data length for detecting carrier frequency offset (e.g., K) may be small (on the order of tens of symbols), the parallel processing embodiment of the frequency offset detection method may be much faster than any of the known carrier frequency recovery methods, such as the FFT-based methods discussed above.",
"Accordingly, the parallel processing embodiment may be of significant use to system applications, such as a burst-mode receiver, any continuously operational receiver requiring fast acquisition time, etc.",
"FIG. 4 shows an illustration a second embodiment of a carrier frequency offset detection system 400 according to systems and methods described herein.",
"The exemplary system 400 may include a single frequency test unit 410 , a frequency table 420 , a timing control 430 , an on/off switch 440 , and a plurality of registers 450 .",
"Unlike the previous parallel processing architecture, detailed in the system 200 of FIG. 2 , where the number of frequency test units is equal to the number of the used test frequencies, the system 400 may utilize the single frequency test unit 410 .",
"Furthermore, the mean square errors of different test frequencies may be calculated sequentially, at different time slots, by using the same frequency test unit 410 .",
"This exemplary sequential design may dramatically reduce the required hardware complexity due to a significant reduction in the amount of multiplier operations.",
"An exemplary circuit within the system 400 may perform the calculations and estimations of the frequency offset.",
"Although this sequential processing architecture may use additional memory and a timing control unit, the complexity of the implementation is much less than that of the extra multiplier operation used in the parallel processing architecture of system 200 .",
"Accordingly, the exemplary system 400 depicted in FIG. 4 may use fewer components (e.g., complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor (“CMOS”) gates, etc.) than the parallel processing architecture of the system 200 .",
"Thus, the system 400 may be described as very efficient in terms of its hardware design, although its frequency tracking speed may be reduced.",
"Therefore, the sequential processing embodiment illustrated in FIG. 4 may be of significant use in a continuously operational receiver that does not require fast acquisition.",
"FIG. 5 shows an illustration a third embodiment of a carrier frequency offset detection system 500 according to systems and methods described herein.",
"The exemplary system 500 may include a plurality of parallel carrier frequency test units 510 , a frequency table 520 , a timing control 530 , an on/off switch 540 , and a plurality of registers 550 .",
"As shown in FIG. 5 , the exemplary system 500 utilizes a combination of the parallel processing architecture with the sequential processing architecture.",
"The system 500 may provide a carrier recovery circuit design with various frequency tracking speed, and hardware-efficiency, that falls between the parallel processing structure of the system 200 and the sequential processing structure of the system 400 .",
"An exemplary circuit within the system 500 may perform the calculations and estimations of the frequency offset.",
"FIG. 6 shows an illustration a further embodiment of a carrier frequency offset detection system 600 according to systems and methods described herein.",
"The exemplary system 600 may include a single frequency and phase test unit 610 , a frequency and phase tables 620 , a timing control 630 , an on/off switch 640 , and a plurality of registers 650 .",
"As shown in FIG. 6 , the system 600 employs a single frequency and phase test unit in order to calculate the mean square errors of different test frequencies and test phases.",
"The estimated carrier offset may then be the test frequency that gives the minimum mean square error.",
"For the case that the phase recovery is achieved by using blind phase search based methods, the hardware implementation efficiency may be further improved by using the architecture of the system 600 , as depicted in FIG. 6 .",
"An exemplary circuit within the system 600 may perform the calculations and estimations of the frequency offset.",
"FIG. 7 shows an exemplary method 700 for accurately estimating and removing a carrier frequency offset according to an exemplary embodiment described herein.",
"It should be noted that method 700 will be discussed with reference to various exemplary systems and components described above.",
"It should be noted that the exemplary method may be stored as a set of instructions or software code on a non-transitory computer readable storage medium, such as a computer memory.",
"This set of instructions may be executable by a processor and may be operable at least to perform the steps of the exemplary method 700 depicted in FIG. 7 .",
"Beginning with step 710 , a frequency offset detection circuit may detect a carrier frequency offset in an optical signal.",
"As noted above, the frequency offset detection circuit may utilize digital coherent detection to detect the carrier frequency offset.",
"In step 720 , a frequency testing circuit may calculate an estimated frequency offset value of the carrier frequency offset.",
"Specifically, the frequency testing circuit may utilize one or more frequency testing units, depending on the architecture of the system.",
"In the event the system includes a parallel processing architecture, the frequency testing circuit may determine a minimum mean square error for each of the multiple tests simultaneously.",
"In the event the system includes a sequential processing architecture, the frequency testing circuit may determine a minimum mean square error for each of the multiple tests at different intervals.",
"In the event the system includes a combination processing architecture, the frequency testing circuit may use any combination of tests described above.",
"In step 730 , the frequency testing circuit may utilize a first coarse frequency search stage for multi-stage frequency search techniques.",
"As noted above, the frequency testing circuit may calculate mean square error versus test frequencies at a coarse frequency resolution of about 20 MHz frequency step using different number of continuous data symbols (i.e. block length).",
"The frequency testing circuit may compare the results of the coarse frequency search and the test frequency that provides the minimum mean square error may be output to the next fine frequency search stage in step 740 .",
"In step 740 , the frequency testing circuit may utilize a next fine frequency search stage for multi-stage frequency search techniques.",
"As noted above, the frequency testing circuit may calculate mean square error versus test frequencies at a fine frequency resolution of about 1 MHz frequency steps using different number of continuous data symbols (i.e. block length).",
"The frequency testing circuit may compare the results of the fine frequency search and the test frequency that provides the minimum mean square error may be final estimated carrier frequency offset to be used in step 750 .",
"In step 750 , the frequency testing circuit may remove a carrier phase based on the estimated frequency offset value in order to recover the optical signal.",
"As described above, the frequency testing circuit may remove a carrier phase using a phase rotation operation to generate a phase rotated signal.",
"Intradyne detection-based digital coherent receivers may allow for the carrier frequency of the received signal source different from the local oscillator while avoiding the need for complex optical phase locked loop (“PLL”) in the optical system.",
"As noted above, such a frequency offset may be estimated and removed in the digital domain (e.g., digital carrier frequency recovery) by way of any of the exemplary embodiments described herein.",
"As detailed above, these embodiments provide a multi-stage based blind frequency search method to accurately estimate the carrier frequency offset and remove the frequency offset.",
"These embodiments may be implemented either with parallel processing based architecture to achieve very fast carrier frequency recovery, or with a sequential processing architecture to maximize hardware-efficient during carrier frequency recovery.",
"Furthermore, a combination of parallel and sequential processing may be implemented in order to customize the tracking speed, as well as hardware-efficiency, to meet the needs of different system applications.",
"For example, a burst-mode receiver may require very fast carrier recovery of the parallel embodiment while the normal continuous-operational receiver with high-quality laser may allow for relatively slow frequency recovery of the sequential embodiment.",
"Furthermore, each of the embodiments described herein may be applicable to any modulation formats, such as QAM or polarization-multiplexed QAM, and for arbitrary frequency offset.",
"According to the exemplary methods and systems described above, digital coherent detection combined with the use of high-order QAM is an advantageous technique for achieving high-spectral efficiency optical transmission at a data rate beyond 100-Gb/s.",
"In addition to higher speed and higher spectral efficiency, future optical networks may also require fast receiver acquisition time to provide fast wavelength provision.",
"Furthermore, statistical multiplexing based optical packet network may be needed in the future transport network.",
"For these advanced optical networks, fast carrier recovery in the coherent receiver is critical important.",
"Accordingly, the exemplary embodiments propose a blind carrier frequency recovery technique that may be used in these advanced optical networks for arbitrary modulation formats and having any frequency offset.",
"Moreover, the exemplary embodiments not only can be implemented with parallel processing to achieve very fast frequency tracking speed, they may also be implemented with sequential processing to achieve very good hardware efficiency.",
"By using a combination of parallel processing and sequential processing, different tracking speed, as well as hardware efficiency, may be realized by the various embodiments described above to meet the needs of different applications.",
"Thus, the exemplary embodiments may provide universal carrier frequency recovery for any coherent receiver.",
"It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various modifications may be made the exemplary embodiments, without departing from the spirit or the scope of the systems and methods described herein.",
"Thus, it is intended that the exemplary embodiments cover modifications and variations of these systems and methods provided they come within the scope of the appended claimed and their equivalents."
] |
TECHNICAL FIELD
The present invention relates to a resin composition excellent in absorbing property and deodorant property and particularly suited for use in absorbent articles for absorbing urine, blood, body fluids, menstrual blood and so forth, and to a method of producing the same.
BACKGROUND ART
Water absorbent resins are used owing to their absorbing property, water retaining property and gelling ability, in various fields, for example in absorbent articles such as paper diapers, incontinence pads, sanitary napkins and breast milk pads, and in drip absorbents, freshness preservatives, sheets for pets, excretion treatment agents, waste blood gelling agents, etc. However, while absorbent resins are excellent in the ability to absorb and retain urine, blood, body fluids, menstrual blood and the like, they can hardly show deodorant function. Therefore, since such liquids as urine, blood and body fluids have unpleasant characteristic odors and, further, are apt to readily rot under the influence of air and/or bacteria to give off offensive odors due to decay, the advent of a material capable of producing both absorbent and deodorant effects has been awaited from a hygienic viewpoint.
As means of satisfying both these requirements, the following have been proposed, among others: a mixture of an absorbent resin in powder form and zeolite in powder form (Japanese Kokai Publication Sho-57-25813, Sho-59-179114 and Sho-59-189854), a composition comprising active carbon coated with an absorbent resin (Japanese Kokoku Publication Sho-56-31425), a composition comprising an absorbent resin and an antimicrobial agent (Japanese Kokai Publication Hei-03-14867) and like compositions to be applied in absorbent articles; and an absorbent material prepared by admixing a zeolite slurry with a polymerization solution prior to polymerization and, after effecting polymerization, spraying the reaction mixture to a nonwoven fabric, followed by drying (Japanese Kokai Publication Hei-02-84957).
However, when these compositions are applied to absorbent articles, the deodorant effect obtained is not always satisfactory. That is to say, in the case of the mixture of an absorbent resin and zeolite, body fluids such as urine, blood, body fluid, menstrual blood is mostly absorbed and retained by the absorbent resin, since zeolite has little absorbent function. Therefore, in spite of the fact that the body fluid occurring within the absorbent resin is an odor source, the deodorant component zeolite exists apart from the odor source. This is presumably the reason why the deodorant effect cannot be produced to a satisfactory extent. Furthermore, the mixture of an absorbent resin and zeolite powder, when given vibrations or shock, may possibly separate into both components or, when applied to absorbent articles, may possibly allow localization of the absorbent resin and, therefore, of zeolite, with the result that the deodorant effect can be produced only to an unsatisfactory extent. For the production of a much better deodorant effect, it is desirable that the deodorant component should be disposed in contact with the body fluid odor source.
As for the composition comprising active carbon coated with an absorbent resin, active carbon itself is scanty in deodorant effect and, in addition, there is a problem that only limited kinds of odors can be adsorbed.
As regards the composition comprising an absorbent resin and an antimicrobial agent, those containing certain kinds of antimicrobial agents are effective to a certain extent in preventing bacteria and the like from causing decay but are scarcely effective against the characteristic odors intrinsic to body fluids itself. In addition, it is a draw back of such composition that no effect can be observed at all against those odors which result from the oxidative action of air.
Finally, a problem of the absorbent material prepared by admixing a zeolite slurry with a polymerization solution prior to polymerization and, after effecting polymerization, spraying the reaction mixture to a nonwoven fabric, followed by drying is that since the polymerization is carried out after dispersing zeolite in the polymerization solution, low-molecular-weight polymerizable monomers are adsorbed on pore inside surfaces of zeolite particles and thereafter polymerized to block up the pores and thus decrease the deodorant effect.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
In view of the foregoing, the present inventors made intensive investigations in an attempt to develop a deodorant resin composition excellent in both absorbent performance and deodorant performance, in particular suited for use in absorbent articles intended to absorb urine, blood, body fluids, menstrual blood, etc. and a method of producing the same and, as a result, they have now completed the present invention.
Thus, the present invention consists in a deodorant resin composition in powder or granular form which comprises particles of a water absorbent resin (A) and a zeolite powder (B) dispersed within said particles, and a method for producing a deodorant resin composition in powder or granular form comprising particles of a water absorbent resin (A) and a zeolite powder (B) dispersed within said particles, which method comprises kneading together said resin (A) and said zeolite powder (B) in the presence of water, followed by drying and grinding.
While the zeolite powder (B) is dispersed within particles of the absorbent resin (A), the production method involves grinding of the dried resin composition, so that the zeolite partly occurs fixedly on the particle interface or particle surface as well.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
The water absorbent resin (A) to be used in the practice of the present invention may be any of those water absorbent resins which contain, as constituent units thereof, hydrophilic groups such as carboxylic acid (salt) groups [i.e. carboxylic acid groups and/or its salt groups; hereinafter the same shall apply], sulfonic acid (salt) groups, tertiary amino groups, quaternary ammonium salt groups, hydroxyl groups, amide groups, polyethylene oxide groups and the like. The resin species and production method are not critical. Examples of resin (A) which are suited for use in the practice of the present invention are such crosslinked starch-acrylic acid (salt) copolymers as those described in Japanese Kokoku Publications Sho-53-46199 and Sho-53-46200 and elsewhere, such crosslinked or self-crosslinked polyacrylic acid salts prepared by reversed phase suspension polymerization as those described in Japanese Kokoku Publication Sho-54-30710, Japanese Kokai Publication Sho-56-26909 and elsewhere, such crosslinked polyacrylic acids (salts) prepared by aqueous solution polymerization (adiabatic polymerization, thin film polymerization, spray polymerization, etc.) as those described in Japanese Kokai Publication Sho-55-133413 and elsewhere, such saponified copolymers of a vinyl ester and an unsaturated carboxylic acid or a derivative thereof as those described in Japanese Kokai Publication Sho-52-14689 and Sho-52-27455 and elsewhere, such sulfonic acid (salt) group-containing water absorbent resins as those described in Japanese Kokai Publication Sho-58-2312 and Sho-61-36309 and elsewhere, crosslinked isobutylene-maleic anhydride copolymers, hydrolyzed starch-acrylonitrile copolymers, crosslinked carboxymethylcellulose derivatives, crosslinked polyethylene oxide derivatives, crosslinked polyvinyl alcohol derivatives, partially hydrolyzed polyacrylamides and the like. Two or more of such water absorbent resins may be used combinedly. Water absorbent resins derived from such water absorbent resins by further surface crosslinking are also suited for use in the practice of the present invention.
Preferred water absorbent resins are waster-insoluble ones whose main constituent units are acrylic acid and an acrylic acid salt because such resins show relatively high absorbency.
In the case of water-insoluble water absorbent resins whose main constituent units are acrylic acid and an acrylic acid salt, the mole ratio between the acrylic acid component and acrylic acid salt component is preferably in the range of 50:50 to 10:90, more preferably 40:60 to 25:75. When acrylic acid units remain in the absorbent resin in that manner, the carboxyl groups of such acrylic acid units exhibit the effect of adsorbing ammonia or the like which is one of odor constituents. In cases where the mole ratio of acrylic acid units relative to the sum of the acrylic acid component plus acrylic acid salt component exceeds 50%, the absorbent performance becomes poor and, in addition, the deodorant resin composition obtained has an acidic pH, which is unfavorable from the dermal safety hazard viewpoint. When said mole ratio of acrylic acid units is below 10%, the deodorant resin composition obtained has an alkaline pH and, in this case, too, dermal safety hazard is a matter of concern.
The water absorbent resin (A) mentioned above generally has an absorbency under normal pressure of not less than 30 g/g, preferably 35 to 80 g/g, more preferably 40 to 75 g/g, for physiological saline solution (0.9% aqueous solution of sodium chloride). The absorbency under load of said resin for physiological saline solution is generally not less than 10 g/g, preferably 15 to 60 g/g, more preferably 20 to 50 g/g. The absorbency under normal pressure and absorbency under load are measured by the methods mentioned later herein.
The resin (A) and the deodorant resin composition have a powder or granular form without any particular limitation imposed thereon. Thus, they may have a granular, agglomerated, granulated, lamellar, lump-like, pearl-like or fine powder form, for instance. Preferred are powder or granular forms with a particle size distribution such that not less than 90% by weight of the particles have a size less than 1 mm. Particularly preferred are granular, agglomerated, granulated, lamellar and lump-like forms having a particle size distribution such that not less than 90% by weight of the particles have a size of 0.1 to 0.9 mm.
In the practice of the present invention, the zeolite powder (B) may be either a natural species or a synthetic one. Those synthetic zeolites which are commercially available and stably obtainable are preferred, however. Generally, zeolites are alumino silicates having a three-dimensional skeletal structure and may be represented by the general formula aM 2/n O.xAl 2 O 3 .ySiO 2 .zH 2 O, wherein a, x, y and z respectively represents the numbers of units or molecules of a metal oxide, aluminum oxide, silicon oxide and water of crystallization and each is an integer, and M is a cation. As said cation, there may be mentioned alkali metal ions (sodium ion, potassium ion), alkaline earth metal ions (calcium ion, magnesium ion), ammonium ion, etc. Preferred cations are alkali metal ions, and the sodium ion is particularly preferred. The number n is the valence of the cation. The proportions of x:y are not critical but are generally within the range of 1:1 to 1:10, preferably about 1:2 to 1:5. Although water of crystallization is included in synthetic zeolites for reasons concerned with the synthetic process, the number z has no critical importance.
Examples of such zeolites include, but are not limited to, zeolite A, zeolite X, zeolite Y, zeolite T, zeolite containing high level of silica, and the like. Among these, zeolite A, zeolite X and zeolite Y are preferred because of their high deodorant effect; and zeolite A is most preferred.
The particle size of (B) is not critical. From the viewpoint that a more stable deodorant effect should be obtained, however, relatively small particle sizes are preferred. Generally, the mean particle size of (B) is 0.1 to 10 μm, preferably 0.5 to 5 μm, more preferably 1 to 4 μm. When the mean particle size is smaller than 0.1 μm, dusting and other powder handling-related problems tend to arise, although the deodorant effect may increase. When the mean particle size is over 10 μm, the surface area becomes small, so that the deodorant effect will be decreased. The term "mean particle size" as used herein is that of primary particles. Granules with a size larger than 10 μm as prepared from such primary particles by an appropriate granulation procedure are also suited for use in the practice of the present invention.
As regards the pore size of (B), a smaller size is preferred from the viewpoint that a better deodorant effect could be produced. The pore size is generally 1 to 9 angstroms, preferably 3 to 5 angstroms. Pore sizes exceeding 9 angstroms lead to a decreased deodorant effect since the surface area of (B) becomes small. When the pore size is smaller than 1 angstrom, the ability to adsorb odor-emitting substances having a molecule size larger than the pore size is insufficient, hence the range of application with respect to deodorization is restricted.
In the practice of the present invention, the proportions of (A) and (B) may be varied depending on the desired balance between the absorbent performance and deodorant performance. Generally, the proportions of (A):(B) on the weight basis are 90:10 to 50:50, preferably 80:20 to 60:40, more preferably 75:25 to 65:35. When the proportion of (B) relative to the sum total of (A) plus (B) is below 10% by weight, the composition obtained will have a poor deodorant effect. Conversely, when the proportion of (B) relative to the sum total of (A) plus (B) is 50%, the deodorant effect is already enough. Even when the proportion of (B) is further increased, the deodorant effect will not increase any longer but the absorbent effect will only decrease and, therefore, for securing a certain absorbent performance by application of such composition in absorbent articles, it is necessary to use the composition in large amounts, which is uneconomical. Another problem is that dropping of (B) out of the composition occurs.
As the method of producing the deodorant resin composition comprising (A) and (B) dispersed within particles of (A), there may be mentioned, for example, (1) the method comprising mixing up, by kneading, (B) with a hydrous gel of (A) obtained by allowing (A) to absorb water, followed by drying and grinding, (2) the method comprising mixing up, by kneading, (B) with a hydrous gel-like polymer obtained in the process for producing (A), followed by drying and grinding, and (3) the method comprising preliminarily mixing up (A) in powder form with (B) in powder form, further adding water and kneading the mixture, followed by drying and grinding. The method comprising dispersing (B) in a liquid polymerization mixture in the process of producing (A) and then effecting polymerization, followed by drying and grinding also can give a composition with (B) dispersed within particles of (A), but this method is unfavorable since the problem arises that polymerizable low-molecular-weight monomers are adsorbed on pore inside surfaces of (B) and, upon polymerization, block up zeolite pores, impairing the deodorant effect intrinsic to zeolite.
In the step of adding (B) to a hydrous gel of (A) in the above method (1) or (2), (B) in powder form may be added to the hydrous gel, followed by kneading, or an aqueous dispersion of (B) may be prepared in advance and then added to the hydrous gel of (A), followed by kneading, for instance. Either method may suitably be employed without any particular limitation.
No particular limitation is imposed on the apparatus for kneading (A) with (B) in the presence of water. Thus known conventional apparatuses can be used, for example kneaders, universal mixers, single- or twin-axial kneader-extruders, and meat choppers.
The apparatus for drying the kneaded mixture of the hydrous gel of (A) and (B) is not limited to any particular species, either, but known conventional apparatuses may be used. Mention may be made of, for instance, hot air driers, fluidized bed driers, belt driers, drum driers, Nauta driers, paddle driers, rotary kiln driers and infrared driers. The moisture content after drying is of no critical importance but generally is not higher than 7%.
As the apparatus for grinding the dried material obtained after drying of the kneaded mixture of the hydrous gel of (A) and (B), any known conventional apparatuses can be used, for example hammer mills, pin mills, roll mills, pulverizers, feather mills and cutter mills. After grinding, particle size adjustment may be carried out if necessary. The method of particle size adjustment is not critical. For example, the particle size can be adjusted by sieving, agglomeration, or air classification.
The shape and particle size distribution of the deodorant resin composition of the present invention are of no critical importance. As regards the shape, a granular, agglomerated, granulated, lamellar, lump-like, fine powder or like form may be employed. While no particular limitation is imposed thereon, the particle size distribution is generally such that not less than 90% by weight of particles are within the range of 0.01 mm to 1 mm, preferably 0.1 mm to 0.9 mm.
In the composition of the present invention, there may be incorporated, when necessary or where appropriate, one or more of extenders and additives, such as organic powders (e.g. pulp powder, cellulose derivatives, natural polysaccharides, etc.), inorganic powders (e.g. silica, alumina, bentonite, active carbon, etc.), antioxidants, preservatives, biocides, surfactants, colorants and perfumes. The proportion of these is generally not more than 10% by weight relative to the weight of the deodorant resin composition.
By using the deodorant resin composition of the present invention in various absorbent articles, both the absorbent effect and deodorant effect can be produced each to a satisfactory extent. As regards the method of applying the deodorant resin composition to absorbent articles, mention may be made of, for example, the method comprising scattering the particles between layers, arranged in strata, of a fibrous material, such as pulp or heat-adhesive fiber, the method comprising mixing the particles with a fibrous material, such as pulp or heat-adhesive fiber, and the method comprising sandwiching the particles between two or more sheets of absorbent paper and/or nonwoven fabric.
The level of addition of the resin composition to the absorbent articles may be varied over a wide range according to the species of absorbent article, the size thereof and the desired absorbent performance. When the absorbent article is a paper diaper or an incontinence pad, said level is generally 3 to 20 g/sheet. In the case of sanitary napkins, panty liners, breast milk pads and the like, said level is generally 0.2 to 3 g/piece. In the case of sheet-form articles composed of two or more sheets of absorbent paper or nonwoven fabric sandwiching said composition, about 10 to 80 g/m 2 is a suitable addition level.
BEST MODES FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION
The following working examples and comparative examples further illustrate the present invention but are by no means limitative of the scope of the present invention. The absorbency under normal pressure, the absorbency under load, the deodorant effect of each resin composition as such and the deodorant effect of each absorbent article containing such resin composition were determined by the methods mentioned below. Hereinafter, unless otherwise specified, "%" means "% by weight".
(1) Absorbency under normal pressure: One gram of the sample is placed in a tea bag made of a 250-mesh nylon net. The bag is immersed in an excessive amount of physiological saline solution (0.9% aqueous solution of sodium chloride) for 1 hour to allow saline solution absorption, then drawn up and, after 15 minutes of draining, weighed to assess the weight increase.
(2) Absorbency under load: In an acrylic resin cylinder (inside diameter 30 mm, height 60 mm) with a 250-mesh nylon net attached to the bottom, there is placed and uniformly spread 0.1 g of the sample and a load of 20 g/cm 2 is applied thereto by placing thereon a weight with an outside diameter of 30 mm. The cylinder is immersed in a petri-dish (diameter: 9 cm) containing 25 ml of physiological saline solution, with the nylon net side on the bottom, for 60 minutes. The value 10 times the weight increase after 60 minutes of immersion is reported as the absorbency under load.
(3) Deodorization test of resin compositions: The sample (0.5 g) and 10 ml of fresh human adult urine are placed in a 30-cc beaker for effecting absorption. This beaker is placed in a 5-liter container, which is then tightly closed. The whole is kept in a constant-temperature chamber maintained at 40° C. for 15 hours. Thereafter, the container is opened in an odor-free room for odor evaluation. The odor intensity is evaluated according to the 6-level criteria mentioned below. The evaluation is performed by 10 panelists who have proved to be capable of judging odors in a T&T olfactometer test. The mean value is reported.
0 No odor.
1 Barely perceptible odor (perception threshold concentration).
2 Slight odor the kind of which is barely recognizable (recognition threshold concentration).
3 Readily perceptible odor.
4 Strong odor.
5 very strong, powerful odor.
(4) Deodorization test of absorbent articles in which the resin compositions are applied:
Preparation of absorbent articles: On a polyethylene sheet cut to a rectangle of 14 cm×35 cm, there is laid a tissue paper sheet of the same size and then, further, a fluff pulp layer having a basis weight of 100 g/cm 2 . Then, 9.8 g of the sample is scattered uniformly on the fluff pulp layer and, further, a fluff pulp layer having a basis weight of 50 g/cm 2 , a tissue paper sheet and a nonwoven sheet are laid thereon in that order. This absorbent articles is pressed under a pressure of 5 kg/cm 2 for 90 seconds to give a model paper diaper.
Deodorization test of the absorbent articles: Fresh urine (80 ml) was applied to the resin composition-containing absorbent article, the whole is placed in a 5-liter wide-mouthed bottle and the bottle is hermetically closed and kept for 15 hours in a constant-temperature chamber maintained at 40° C. Thereafter, the bottle is opened in an odor-free room for odor evaluation. The odor intensity is evaluated according to the same 6-level criteria as employed in the deodorization test of resin compositions.
(5) Performance testing of absorbent articles:
Absorbency: The absorbent article to be tested is immersed in a large excess of physiological saline solution for 30 minutes, then placed on a wire gauze, drained under a load of 10 kg for 20 minutes, and weighed. The weight increase is reported as the absorbency.
Absorbing speed: Artificial urine (50 ml) is poured, from above, into a cylinder (diameter 30 mm) placed on the test article, and the time required for the liquid to disappear from the top sheet is reported as the absorbing speed.
Rewet quantity: Artificial urine (50 ml) is poured onto the center of the model paper diaper. Ten minutes later, 10 sheets of filter paper (10 cm×10 cm) are piled up on the central part of the paper diaper and placed under a load of 3.5 kg. Three minutes later, the total weight increase of the filter paper sheets is determined and this value is reported as the rewet quantity.
EXAMPLE 1
A one-liter glass reaction vessel was charged with 76.6 g of sodium acrylate, 23 g of acrylic acid, 0.4 g of N,N'-methylenebisacrylamide and 295 g of deionized water, and the vessel contents were maintained at 5° C. with stirring and mixing. Nitrogen gas was blown through the contents to reduce the dissolved oxygen content to 1 ppm or below, and then polymerization was initiated by adding 1 g of a 1% aqueous solution of hydrogen peroxide, 1.2 g of a 0.2% aqueous solution of ascorbic acid and 2.4 g of a 2% aqueous solution of 2,2'-azobisamidinopropane dihydrochloride and conducted the polymerization for about 5 hours to give a hydrous gel-like polymer (I) with an absorbent resin concentration of 25%. A 50% aqueous dispersion (20 parts) of zeolite A ("Toyobuilder", product of Toyo Soda; pore size 4 angstroms, mean particle size 1.5 μm) was added to 100 parts of said hydrous gel-like polymer while kneading in a kneader, and the mixture was kneaded to give a homogeneous mixture. This mixture was subjected to hot air drying at 130° C. to 150° C., then to grinding on a roll mill, and to particle size adjustment such that particles of 850 μm to 150 μm accounted for about 98%, to give a deodorant resin composition. This deodorant resin composition was measured for absorbency under normal pressure, absorbency under load and deodorant effect. The results are shown below in Table 1.
EXAMPLE 2
A one-liter glass reaction vessel was charged with 99.5 g of acrylic acid, 0.5 g of tetraallyloxyethane and 270 g of deionized water and the contents were maintained at 5° C. with stirring. Nitrogen gas was blown through the contents to reduce the dissolved oxygen content to 1 ppm or below and then polymerization was initiated by adding 1 g of a 1% aqueous solution of hydrogen peroxide, 1.2 g of a 0.2% aqueous solution of ascorbic acid and 2.4 g of a 2% aqueous solution of 2,2'-azobisamidinopropane dihydrochloride were added and conducted the polymerization for about 5 hours to give a hydrous gel-like polymer. While kneading this hydrous gel-like polymer on an extruder equipped with a perforated plate, 115 g of a 35% aqueous solution of sodium hydroxide was added, and uniform kneading was effected to give a hydrous gel-like neutralized polymer (II) with an absorbent resin concentration of 25%, with about 73 mole % of acrylic acid units being neutralized. While kneading 100 parts of this gel-like polymer (II) in a kneader, 20 parts of the same 50% aqueous dispersion of zeolite A as used in Example 1 was added and uniform kneading was effected. This mixture was subjected to hot air drying at 130° C. to 150° C., then to grinding on a roll mill, and to particle size adjustment such that particles of 850 μm to 150 μm accounted for about 98%, to give a deodorant resin composition. The results of performance characteristics measurement of this deodorant resin composition are shown in Table 1.
EXAMPLE 3
Water (100 parts) was allowed to be absorbed by 10 parts of a commercial absorbent resin ("Sanwet IM-1000", product of Sanyo Chemical Industries; crosslinked starch-sodium acrylate copolymer) to give a hydrous gel-like substance (III). Thereto was added 80 parts of the same 50% aqueous dispersion of zeolite A as used in Example 1, and uniform kneading was effected. While kneading this hydrous gel on a kneader, 20 parts of the same 50% aqueous dispersion of zeolite A as used in Example 1 was added and uniform kneading was effected. This mixture was subjected to hot air drying at 130° C. to 150° C., then to grinding on a roll mill, and to particle size adjustment such that particles of 850 μm to 150 μm accounted for about 98%, to give a deodorant resin composition. The results of performance characteristics measurement of this deodorant resin composition are shown in Table 1.
EXAMPLE 4
A deodorant resin composition was obtained in the same manner as in Example 2 except that the 50% aqueous dispersion of zeolite was used in an amount of 10 parts in lieu of 20 parts. The performance characteristics measurement results of this deodorant resin composition are shown in Table 1.
EXAMPLE 5
A deodorant resin composition was obtained in the same manner as in Example 2 except that the 50% aqueous dispersion of zeolite was used in an amount of 30 parts in lieu of 20 parts. The results of performance characteristics measurement of this deodorant resin composition are shown in Table 1.
EXAMPLE 6
A deodorant resin composition was obtained in the same manner as in Example 2 except that the zeolite species used was molecular sieve 3A (Nakalai Tesque reagent grade; pore size 3 angstroms, mean particle size 10 μm or less). The results of performance characteristics measurement of this deodorant resin composition are shown in Table 1.
EXAMPLE 7
A deodorant resin composition was obtained in the same manner as in Example 2 except that the zeolite species used was molecular sieve 5A (Nakalai Tesque reagent grade; pore size 5 angstroms, mean particle size 10 μm or less). The results of performance characteristics measurement of this deodorant resin composition are shown in Table 1.
EXAMPLE 8
An absorbent article was produced using the deodorant resin composition of Example 1. The results of performance characteristics measurement of this absorbent article are shown in Table 2.
EXAMPLE 9
An absorbent article was produced using the deodorant resin composition of Example 2. The results of performance characteristics measurement of this absorbent article are shown in Table 2.
EXAMPLE 10
An absorbent article was produced using the deodorant resin composition of Example 3. The results of performance characteristics measurement of this absorbent article are shown in Table 2.
COMPARATIVE EXAMPLE 1
The hydrous gel-like polymer (I) obtained in Example 1 was subjected to hot air drying at 130° C. to 150° C., then to grinding on a roll mill and to particle size adjustment such that particles of 850 μm to 150 μm accounted for about 98%, to give a resin powder for comparison. The results of performance characteristics measurement of this powder are shown in Table 1.
COMPARATIVE EXAMPLE 2
The hydrous gel-like neutralized polymer (II) obtained in Example 2 was subjected to hot air drying at 130° C. to 150° C. then to grinding on a roll mill and to particle size adjustment such that particles of 850 μm to 150 μm accounted for about 98%, to give a resin powder for comparison. The results of performance characteristics measurement of this powder are shown in Table 1.
COMPARATIVE EXAMPLE 3
The results of performance characteristics measurement of "Sanwet IM-1000" are shown in Table 1 under Comparative Example 3.
COMPARATIVE EXAMPLE 4
A resin composition for comparison was prepared by powder-powder blending of 100 parts of the resin powder obtained in Comparative Example 1 and 40 parts of the same zeolite A species as used in Example 1. The results of performance characteristics measurement of this composition are shown in Table 1.
COMPARATIVE EXAMPLE 5
A resin composition for comparison was prepared by powder-powder blending of 100 parts of the resin powder obtained in Comparative Example 2 and 40 parts of the same zeolite A species as used in Example 1. The results of performance characteristics measurement of this composition are shown in Table 1.
COMPARATIVE EXAMPLE 6
A resin composition for comparison was prepared in the same manner as in Example 2 except that the 50% aqueous dispersion of zeolite was used in an amount of 2 parts in lieu of 20 parts. The performance characteristics measurement results of this composition are shown in Table 1.
COMPARATIVE EXAMPLE 7
A resin composition for comparison was prepared in the same manner as in Example 2 except that the 50% aqueous dispersion of zeolite was used in an amount of 70 parts in lieu of 20 parts. The performance characteristics measurement results of this composition are shown in Table 1.
COMPARATIVE EXAMPLE 8
A resin composition for comparison was prepared in the same manner as in Example 2 except that the zeolite species used was zeolite X with a pore size of 10 angstroms. The results of performance characteristics measurement of this composition are shown in Table 1.
COMPARATIVE EXAMPLE 9
An absorbent article was produced using the resin powder of Comparative Example 1. The results of performance characteristics measurement of this absorbent article for comparison are shown in Table 2.
COMPARATIVE EXAMPLE 10
An absorbent article was produced using the resin powder of Comparative Example 2. The results of performance characteristics measurement of this absorbent article for comparison are shown in Table 2.
COMPARATIVE EXAMPLE 11
An absorbent article was produced using the resin composition of Comparative Example 4. The results of performance characteristics measurement of this absorbent article for comparison are shown in Table 2.
COMPARATIVE EXAMPLE 12
An absorbent article was produced using the resin composition of Comparative Example 5. The results of performance characteristics measurement of this absorbent article for comparison are shown in Table 2.
TABLE 1______________________________________ Absorbency under normal Absorbency pressure under load Deodoriza- (g/g) (g/g) tion test______________________________________Example 1 44 24 1.8 2 46 26 1.6 3 50 25 1.9 4 53 22 2.8 5 41 28 1.6 6 47 26 2.5 7 46 25 2.4 Comparative Example 1 55 14 4.2 2 58 16 4.0 3 63 9 4.1 4 35 11 2.6 5 38 12 2.5 6 55 15 4.2 7 25 8 1.5 8 45 21 3.9______________________________________
TABLE 2______________________________________ Absorbing Rewet Deodori- Absorbency speed quantity zation (g/sheet) (sec) (g) test______________________________________Example 8 408 26 0.3 2.0 9 420 25 0.2 1.9 10 430 29 0.3 2.1 Comparative Example 9 440 29 0.2 4.4 10 450 28 0.1 4.2 11 320 30 2.2 3.0 12 330 27 2.0 2.9______________________________________
INDUSTRIAL APPLICABILITY
The deodorant resin composition of the present invention has the following features and effects:
1 It performs not only an absorbent function but also an excellent deodorant function.
2 Since the deodorant component zeolite is dispersed in the odor source body fluid absorbed by the absorbent resin, the zeolite adsorbs the odor efficiently and exhibits an excellent deodorant effect.
3 Unlike the powder-powder mixture of (A) and (B), the deodorant resin composition with (B) dispersed within particles of (A) shows an improved absorbency under load.
4 Unlike the powder-powder mixture of (A) and (B), it will not cause such troubles as separation into both components upon vibrations or shock, or localization of the absorbent resin and zeolite in absorbent articles when said composition is applied thereto.
5 It can be applied to absorbent articles in the same manner as the conventional absorbent resins.
6 When applied to absorbent articles, it provides the absorbent articles with a deodorant function and at the same time reduces the rewet quantity. On the contrary, in the case of a powder-powder mixture of (A) and (B), a deodorant function may be provided but the rewet quantity increases.
7 It can be produced by a simple process which comprises kneading (B) with a hydrous gel of (A), drying and grinding.
The deodorant resin composition of the present invention, which exhibits the effects mentioned above, is particularly suited for use in paper diapers, incontinence pads, sanitary napkins, panty liners, breast milk pads, labor bed (puerperal) mats, underpads for medical use and other various absorbent articles.
Furthermore, it is useful as a gelling agent for various liquids which, upon decay, generate an offensive odor, for example pet urine and waste blood, and it is also useful in the production of sheets for pets, drip absorbents and like sheet or tape form absorbents. | A particulate deodorant resin composition comprising a water-absorbent resin and powdery zeolite dispersed within the resin particles. The composition exhibits the effect of deodorizing the absorbed body fluid while retaining the water-absorbent function inherent in water-absorbent resins. When, therefore, used as sanitary materials such as paper diaper or sanitary goods, it is featured by not only the inherent absorbent effect, but also the deodorant effect. | Analyze the document's illustrations and descriptions to summarize the main idea's core structure and function. | [
"TECHNICAL FIELD The present invention relates to a resin composition excellent in absorbing property and deodorant property and particularly suited for use in absorbent articles for absorbing urine, blood, body fluids, menstrual blood and so forth, and to a method of producing the same.",
"BACKGROUND ART Water absorbent resins are used owing to their absorbing property, water retaining property and gelling ability, in various fields, for example in absorbent articles such as paper diapers, incontinence pads, sanitary napkins and breast milk pads, and in drip absorbents, freshness preservatives, sheets for pets, excretion treatment agents, waste blood gelling agents, etc.",
"However, while absorbent resins are excellent in the ability to absorb and retain urine, blood, body fluids, menstrual blood and the like, they can hardly show deodorant function.",
"Therefore, since such liquids as urine, blood and body fluids have unpleasant characteristic odors and, further, are apt to readily rot under the influence of air and/or bacteria to give off offensive odors due to decay, the advent of a material capable of producing both absorbent and deodorant effects has been awaited from a hygienic viewpoint.",
"As means of satisfying both these requirements, the following have been proposed, among others: a mixture of an absorbent resin in powder form and zeolite in powder form (Japanese Kokai Publication Sho-57-25813, Sho-59-179114 and Sho-59-189854), a composition comprising active carbon coated with an absorbent resin (Japanese Kokoku Publication Sho-56-31425), a composition comprising an absorbent resin and an antimicrobial agent (Japanese Kokai Publication Hei-03-14867) and like compositions to be applied in absorbent articles;",
"and an absorbent material prepared by admixing a zeolite slurry with a polymerization solution prior to polymerization and, after effecting polymerization, spraying the reaction mixture to a nonwoven fabric, followed by drying (Japanese Kokai Publication Hei-02-84957).",
"However, when these compositions are applied to absorbent articles, the deodorant effect obtained is not always satisfactory.",
"That is to say, in the case of the mixture of an absorbent resin and zeolite, body fluids such as urine, blood, body fluid, menstrual blood is mostly absorbed and retained by the absorbent resin, since zeolite has little absorbent function.",
"Therefore, in spite of the fact that the body fluid occurring within the absorbent resin is an odor source, the deodorant component zeolite exists apart from the odor source.",
"This is presumably the reason why the deodorant effect cannot be produced to a satisfactory extent.",
"Furthermore, the mixture of an absorbent resin and zeolite powder, when given vibrations or shock, may possibly separate into both components or, when applied to absorbent articles, may possibly allow localization of the absorbent resin and, therefore, of zeolite, with the result that the deodorant effect can be produced only to an unsatisfactory extent.",
"For the production of a much better deodorant effect, it is desirable that the deodorant component should be disposed in contact with the body fluid odor source.",
"As for the composition comprising active carbon coated with an absorbent resin, active carbon itself is scanty in deodorant effect and, in addition, there is a problem that only limited kinds of odors can be adsorbed.",
"As regards the composition comprising an absorbent resin and an antimicrobial agent, those containing certain kinds of antimicrobial agents are effective to a certain extent in preventing bacteria and the like from causing decay but are scarcely effective against the characteristic odors intrinsic to body fluids itself.",
"In addition, it is a draw back of such composition that no effect can be observed at all against those odors which result from the oxidative action of air.",
"Finally, a problem of the absorbent material prepared by admixing a zeolite slurry with a polymerization solution prior to polymerization and, after effecting polymerization, spraying the reaction mixture to a nonwoven fabric, followed by drying is that since the polymerization is carried out after dispersing zeolite in the polymerization solution, low-molecular-weight polymerizable monomers are adsorbed on pore inside surfaces of zeolite particles and thereafter polymerized to block up the pores and thus decrease the deodorant effect.",
"SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In view of the foregoing, the present inventors made intensive investigations in an attempt to develop a deodorant resin composition excellent in both absorbent performance and deodorant performance, in particular suited for use in absorbent articles intended to absorb urine, blood, body fluids, menstrual blood, etc.",
"and a method of producing the same and, as a result, they have now completed the present invention.",
"Thus, the present invention consists in a deodorant resin composition in powder or granular form which comprises particles of a water absorbent resin (A) and a zeolite powder (B) dispersed within said particles, and a method for producing a deodorant resin composition in powder or granular form comprising particles of a water absorbent resin (A) and a zeolite powder (B) dispersed within said particles, which method comprises kneading together said resin (A) and said zeolite powder (B) in the presence of water, followed by drying and grinding.",
"While the zeolite powder (B) is dispersed within particles of the absorbent resin (A), the production method involves grinding of the dried resin composition, so that the zeolite partly occurs fixedly on the particle interface or particle surface as well.",
"DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The water absorbent resin (A) to be used in the practice of the present invention may be any of those water absorbent resins which contain, as constituent units thereof, hydrophilic groups such as carboxylic acid (salt) groups [i.e. carboxylic acid groups and/or its salt groups;",
"hereinafter the same shall apply], sulfonic acid (salt) groups, tertiary amino groups, quaternary ammonium salt groups, hydroxyl groups, amide groups, polyethylene oxide groups and the like.",
"The resin species and production method are not critical.",
"Examples of resin (A) which are suited for use in the practice of the present invention are such crosslinked starch-acrylic acid (salt) copolymers as those described in Japanese Kokoku Publications Sho-53-46199 and Sho-53-46200 and elsewhere, such crosslinked or self-crosslinked polyacrylic acid salts prepared by reversed phase suspension polymerization as those described in Japanese Kokoku Publication Sho-54-30710, Japanese Kokai Publication Sho-56-26909 and elsewhere, such crosslinked polyacrylic acids (salts) prepared by aqueous solution polymerization (adiabatic polymerization, thin film polymerization, spray polymerization, etc.) as those described in Japanese Kokai Publication Sho-55-133413 and elsewhere, such saponified copolymers of a vinyl ester and an unsaturated carboxylic acid or a derivative thereof as those described in Japanese Kokai Publication Sho-52-14689 and Sho-52-27455 and elsewhere, such sulfonic acid (salt) group-containing water absorbent resins as those described in Japanese Kokai Publication Sho-58-2312 and Sho-61-36309 and elsewhere, crosslinked isobutylene-maleic anhydride copolymers, hydrolyzed starch-acrylonitrile copolymers, crosslinked carboxymethylcellulose derivatives, crosslinked polyethylene oxide derivatives, crosslinked polyvinyl alcohol derivatives, partially hydrolyzed polyacrylamides and the like.",
"Two or more of such water absorbent resins may be used combinedly.",
"Water absorbent resins derived from such water absorbent resins by further surface crosslinking are also suited for use in the practice of the present invention.",
"Preferred water absorbent resins are waster-insoluble ones whose main constituent units are acrylic acid and an acrylic acid salt because such resins show relatively high absorbency.",
"In the case of water-insoluble water absorbent resins whose main constituent units are acrylic acid and an acrylic acid salt, the mole ratio between the acrylic acid component and acrylic acid salt component is preferably in the range of 50:50 to 10:90, more preferably 40:60 to 25:75.",
"When acrylic acid units remain in the absorbent resin in that manner, the carboxyl groups of such acrylic acid units exhibit the effect of adsorbing ammonia or the like which is one of odor constituents.",
"In cases where the mole ratio of acrylic acid units relative to the sum of the acrylic acid component plus acrylic acid salt component exceeds 50%, the absorbent performance becomes poor and, in addition, the deodorant resin composition obtained has an acidic pH, which is unfavorable from the dermal safety hazard viewpoint.",
"When said mole ratio of acrylic acid units is below 10%, the deodorant resin composition obtained has an alkaline pH and, in this case, too, dermal safety hazard is a matter of concern.",
"The water absorbent resin (A) mentioned above generally has an absorbency under normal pressure of not less than 30 g/g, preferably 35 to 80 g/g, more preferably 40 to 75 g/g, for physiological saline solution (0.9% aqueous solution of sodium chloride).",
"The absorbency under load of said resin for physiological saline solution is generally not less than 10 g/g, preferably 15 to 60 g/g, more preferably 20 to 50 g/g.",
"The absorbency under normal pressure and absorbency under load are measured by the methods mentioned later herein.",
"The resin (A) and the deodorant resin composition have a powder or granular form without any particular limitation imposed thereon.",
"Thus, they may have a granular, agglomerated, granulated, lamellar, lump-like, pearl-like or fine powder form, for instance.",
"Preferred are powder or granular forms with a particle size distribution such that not less than 90% by weight of the particles have a size less than 1 mm.",
"Particularly preferred are granular, agglomerated, granulated, lamellar and lump-like forms having a particle size distribution such that not less than 90% by weight of the particles have a size of 0.1 to 0.9 mm.",
"In the practice of the present invention, the zeolite powder (B) may be either a natural species or a synthetic one.",
"Those synthetic zeolites which are commercially available and stably obtainable are preferred, however.",
"Generally, zeolites are alumino silicates having a three-dimensional skeletal structure and may be represented by the general formula aM 2/n O.xAl 2 O 3 .",
"ySiO 2 .",
"zH 2 O, wherein a, x, y and z respectively represents the numbers of units or molecules of a metal oxide, aluminum oxide, silicon oxide and water of crystallization and each is an integer, and M is a cation.",
"As said cation, there may be mentioned alkali metal ions (sodium ion, potassium ion), alkaline earth metal ions (calcium ion, magnesium ion), ammonium ion, etc.",
"Preferred cations are alkali metal ions, and the sodium ion is particularly preferred.",
"The number n is the valence of the cation.",
"The proportions of x:y are not critical but are generally within the range of 1:1 to 1:10, preferably about 1:2 to 1:5.",
"Although water of crystallization is included in synthetic zeolites for reasons concerned with the synthetic process, the number z has no critical importance.",
"Examples of such zeolites include, but are not limited to, zeolite A, zeolite X, zeolite Y, zeolite T, zeolite containing high level of silica, and the like.",
"Among these, zeolite A, zeolite X and zeolite Y are preferred because of their high deodorant effect;",
"and zeolite A is most preferred.",
"The particle size of (B) is not critical.",
"From the viewpoint that a more stable deodorant effect should be obtained, however, relatively small particle sizes are preferred.",
"Generally, the mean particle size of (B) is 0.1 to 10 μm, preferably 0.5 to 5 μm, more preferably 1 to 4 μm.",
"When the mean particle size is smaller than 0.1 μm, dusting and other powder handling-related problems tend to arise, although the deodorant effect may increase.",
"When the mean particle size is over 10 μm, the surface area becomes small, so that the deodorant effect will be decreased.",
"The term "mean particle size"",
"as used herein is that of primary particles.",
"Granules with a size larger than 10 μm as prepared from such primary particles by an appropriate granulation procedure are also suited for use in the practice of the present invention.",
"As regards the pore size of (B), a smaller size is preferred from the viewpoint that a better deodorant effect could be produced.",
"The pore size is generally 1 to 9 angstroms, preferably 3 to 5 angstroms.",
"Pore sizes exceeding 9 angstroms lead to a decreased deodorant effect since the surface area of (B) becomes small.",
"When the pore size is smaller than 1 angstrom, the ability to adsorb odor-emitting substances having a molecule size larger than the pore size is insufficient, hence the range of application with respect to deodorization is restricted.",
"In the practice of the present invention, the proportions of (A) and (B) may be varied depending on the desired balance between the absorbent performance and deodorant performance.",
"Generally, the proportions of (A):(B) on the weight basis are 90:10 to 50:50, preferably 80:20 to 60:40, more preferably 75:25 to 65:35.",
"When the proportion of (B) relative to the sum total of (A) plus (B) is below 10% by weight, the composition obtained will have a poor deodorant effect.",
"Conversely, when the proportion of (B) relative to the sum total of (A) plus (B) is 50%, the deodorant effect is already enough.",
"Even when the proportion of (B) is further increased, the deodorant effect will not increase any longer but the absorbent effect will only decrease and, therefore, for securing a certain absorbent performance by application of such composition in absorbent articles, it is necessary to use the composition in large amounts, which is uneconomical.",
"Another problem is that dropping of (B) out of the composition occurs.",
"As the method of producing the deodorant resin composition comprising (A) and (B) dispersed within particles of (A), there may be mentioned, for example, (1) the method comprising mixing up, by kneading, (B) with a hydrous gel of (A) obtained by allowing (A) to absorb water, followed by drying and grinding, (2) the method comprising mixing up, by kneading, (B) with a hydrous gel-like polymer obtained in the process for producing (A), followed by drying and grinding, and (3) the method comprising preliminarily mixing up (A) in powder form with (B) in powder form, further adding water and kneading the mixture, followed by drying and grinding.",
"The method comprising dispersing (B) in a liquid polymerization mixture in the process of producing (A) and then effecting polymerization, followed by drying and grinding also can give a composition with (B) dispersed within particles of (A), but this method is unfavorable since the problem arises that polymerizable low-molecular-weight monomers are adsorbed on pore inside surfaces of (B) and, upon polymerization, block up zeolite pores, impairing the deodorant effect intrinsic to zeolite.",
"In the step of adding (B) to a hydrous gel of (A) in the above method (1) or (2), (B) in powder form may be added to the hydrous gel, followed by kneading, or an aqueous dispersion of (B) may be prepared in advance and then added to the hydrous gel of (A), followed by kneading, for instance.",
"Either method may suitably be employed without any particular limitation.",
"No particular limitation is imposed on the apparatus for kneading (A) with (B) in the presence of water.",
"Thus known conventional apparatuses can be used, for example kneaders, universal mixers, single- or twin-axial kneader-extruders, and meat choppers.",
"The apparatus for drying the kneaded mixture of the hydrous gel of (A) and (B) is not limited to any particular species, either, but known conventional apparatuses may be used.",
"Mention may be made of, for instance, hot air driers, fluidized bed driers, belt driers, drum driers, Nauta driers, paddle driers, rotary kiln driers and infrared driers.",
"The moisture content after drying is of no critical importance but generally is not higher than 7%.",
"As the apparatus for grinding the dried material obtained after drying of the kneaded mixture of the hydrous gel of (A) and (B), any known conventional apparatuses can be used, for example hammer mills, pin mills, roll mills, pulverizers, feather mills and cutter mills.",
"After grinding, particle size adjustment may be carried out if necessary.",
"The method of particle size adjustment is not critical.",
"For example, the particle size can be adjusted by sieving, agglomeration, or air classification.",
"The shape and particle size distribution of the deodorant resin composition of the present invention are of no critical importance.",
"As regards the shape, a granular, agglomerated, granulated, lamellar, lump-like, fine powder or like form may be employed.",
"While no particular limitation is imposed thereon, the particle size distribution is generally such that not less than 90% by weight of particles are within the range of 0.01 mm to 1 mm, preferably 0.1 mm to 0.9 mm.",
"In the composition of the present invention, there may be incorporated, when necessary or where appropriate, one or more of extenders and additives, such as organic powders (e.g. pulp powder, cellulose derivatives, natural polysaccharides, etc.), inorganic powders (e.g. silica, alumina, bentonite, active carbon, etc.), antioxidants, preservatives, biocides, surfactants, colorants and perfumes.",
"The proportion of these is generally not more than 10% by weight relative to the weight of the deodorant resin composition.",
"By using the deodorant resin composition of the present invention in various absorbent articles, both the absorbent effect and deodorant effect can be produced each to a satisfactory extent.",
"As regards the method of applying the deodorant resin composition to absorbent articles, mention may be made of, for example, the method comprising scattering the particles between layers, arranged in strata, of a fibrous material, such as pulp or heat-adhesive fiber, the method comprising mixing the particles with a fibrous material, such as pulp or heat-adhesive fiber, and the method comprising sandwiching the particles between two or more sheets of absorbent paper and/or nonwoven fabric.",
"The level of addition of the resin composition to the absorbent articles may be varied over a wide range according to the species of absorbent article, the size thereof and the desired absorbent performance.",
"When the absorbent article is a paper diaper or an incontinence pad, said level is generally 3 to 20 g/sheet.",
"In the case of sanitary napkins, panty liners, breast milk pads and the like, said level is generally 0.2 to 3 g/piece.",
"In the case of sheet-form articles composed of two or more sheets of absorbent paper or nonwoven fabric sandwiching said composition, about 10 to 80 g/m 2 is a suitable addition level.",
"BEST MODES FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION The following working examples and comparative examples further illustrate the present invention but are by no means limitative of the scope of the present invention.",
"The absorbency under normal pressure, the absorbency under load, the deodorant effect of each resin composition as such and the deodorant effect of each absorbent article containing such resin composition were determined by the methods mentioned below.",
"Hereinafter, unless otherwise specified, "%"",
"means "% by weight".",
"(1) Absorbency under normal pressure: One gram of the sample is placed in a tea bag made of a 250-mesh nylon net.",
"The bag is immersed in an excessive amount of physiological saline solution (0.9% aqueous solution of sodium chloride) for 1 hour to allow saline solution absorption, then drawn up and, after 15 minutes of draining, weighed to assess the weight increase.",
"(2) Absorbency under load: In an acrylic resin cylinder (inside diameter 30 mm, height 60 mm) with a 250-mesh nylon net attached to the bottom, there is placed and uniformly spread 0.1 g of the sample and a load of 20 g/cm 2 is applied thereto by placing thereon a weight with an outside diameter of 30 mm.",
"The cylinder is immersed in a petri-dish (diameter: 9 cm) containing 25 ml of physiological saline solution, with the nylon net side on the bottom, for 60 minutes.",
"The value 10 times the weight increase after 60 minutes of immersion is reported as the absorbency under load.",
"(3) Deodorization test of resin compositions: The sample (0.5 g) and 10 ml of fresh human adult urine are placed in a 30-cc beaker for effecting absorption.",
"This beaker is placed in a 5-liter container, which is then tightly closed.",
"The whole is kept in a constant-temperature chamber maintained at 40° C. for 15 hours.",
"Thereafter, the container is opened in an odor-free room for odor evaluation.",
"The odor intensity is evaluated according to the 6-level criteria mentioned below.",
"The evaluation is performed by 10 panelists who have proved to be capable of judging odors in a T&T olfactometer test.",
"The mean value is reported.",
"0 No odor.",
"1 Barely perceptible odor (perception threshold concentration).",
"2 Slight odor the kind of which is barely recognizable (recognition threshold concentration).",
"3 Readily perceptible odor.",
"4 Strong odor.",
"5 very strong, powerful odor.",
"(4) Deodorization test of absorbent articles in which the resin compositions are applied: Preparation of absorbent articles: On a polyethylene sheet cut to a rectangle of 14 cm×35 cm, there is laid a tissue paper sheet of the same size and then, further, a fluff pulp layer having a basis weight of 100 g/cm 2 .",
"Then, 9.8 g of the sample is scattered uniformly on the fluff pulp layer and, further, a fluff pulp layer having a basis weight of 50 g/cm 2 , a tissue paper sheet and a nonwoven sheet are laid thereon in that order.",
"This absorbent articles is pressed under a pressure of 5 kg/cm 2 for 90 seconds to give a model paper diaper.",
"Deodorization test of the absorbent articles: Fresh urine (80 ml) was applied to the resin composition-containing absorbent article, the whole is placed in a 5-liter wide-mouthed bottle and the bottle is hermetically closed and kept for 15 hours in a constant-temperature chamber maintained at 40° C. Thereafter, the bottle is opened in an odor-free room for odor evaluation.",
"The odor intensity is evaluated according to the same 6-level criteria as employed in the deodorization test of resin compositions.",
"(5) Performance testing of absorbent articles: Absorbency: The absorbent article to be tested is immersed in a large excess of physiological saline solution for 30 minutes, then placed on a wire gauze, drained under a load of 10 kg for 20 minutes, and weighed.",
"The weight increase is reported as the absorbency.",
"Absorbing speed: Artificial urine (50 ml) is poured, from above, into a cylinder (diameter 30 mm) placed on the test article, and the time required for the liquid to disappear from the top sheet is reported as the absorbing speed.",
"Rewet quantity: Artificial urine (50 ml) is poured onto the center of the model paper diaper.",
"Ten minutes later, 10 sheets of filter paper (10 cm×10 cm) are piled up on the central part of the paper diaper and placed under a load of 3.5 kg.",
"Three minutes later, the total weight increase of the filter paper sheets is determined and this value is reported as the rewet quantity.",
"EXAMPLE 1 A one-liter glass reaction vessel was charged with 76.6 g of sodium acrylate, 23 g of acrylic acid, 0.4 g of N,N'-methylenebisacrylamide and 295 g of deionized water, and the vessel contents were maintained at 5° C. with stirring and mixing.",
"Nitrogen gas was blown through the contents to reduce the dissolved oxygen content to 1 ppm or below, and then polymerization was initiated by adding 1 g of a 1% aqueous solution of hydrogen peroxide, 1.2 g of a 0.2% aqueous solution of ascorbic acid and 2.4 g of a 2% aqueous solution of 2,2'-azobisamidinopropane dihydrochloride and conducted the polymerization for about 5 hours to give a hydrous gel-like polymer (I) with an absorbent resin concentration of 25%.",
"A 50% aqueous dispersion (20 parts) of zeolite A ("Toyobuilder", product of Toyo Soda;",
"pore size 4 angstroms, mean particle size 1.5 μm) was added to 100 parts of said hydrous gel-like polymer while kneading in a kneader, and the mixture was kneaded to give a homogeneous mixture.",
"This mixture was subjected to hot air drying at 130° C. to 150° C., then to grinding on a roll mill, and to particle size adjustment such that particles of 850 μm to 150 μm accounted for about 98%, to give a deodorant resin composition.",
"This deodorant resin composition was measured for absorbency under normal pressure, absorbency under load and deodorant effect.",
"The results are shown below in Table 1.",
"EXAMPLE 2 A one-liter glass reaction vessel was charged with 99.5 g of acrylic acid, 0.5 g of tetraallyloxyethane and 270 g of deionized water and the contents were maintained at 5° C. with stirring.",
"Nitrogen gas was blown through the contents to reduce the dissolved oxygen content to 1 ppm or below and then polymerization was initiated by adding 1 g of a 1% aqueous solution of hydrogen peroxide, 1.2 g of a 0.2% aqueous solution of ascorbic acid and 2.4 g of a 2% aqueous solution of 2,2'-azobisamidinopropane dihydrochloride were added and conducted the polymerization for about 5 hours to give a hydrous gel-like polymer.",
"While kneading this hydrous gel-like polymer on an extruder equipped with a perforated plate, 115 g of a 35% aqueous solution of sodium hydroxide was added, and uniform kneading was effected to give a hydrous gel-like neutralized polymer (II) with an absorbent resin concentration of 25%, with about 73 mole % of acrylic acid units being neutralized.",
"While kneading 100 parts of this gel-like polymer (II) in a kneader, 20 parts of the same 50% aqueous dispersion of zeolite A as used in Example 1 was added and uniform kneading was effected.",
"This mixture was subjected to hot air drying at 130° C. to 150° C., then to grinding on a roll mill, and to particle size adjustment such that particles of 850 μm to 150 μm accounted for about 98%, to give a deodorant resin composition.",
"The results of performance characteristics measurement of this deodorant resin composition are shown in Table 1.",
"EXAMPLE 3 Water (100 parts) was allowed to be absorbed by 10 parts of a commercial absorbent resin ("Sanwet IM-1000", product of Sanyo Chemical Industries;",
"crosslinked starch-sodium acrylate copolymer) to give a hydrous gel-like substance (III).",
"Thereto was added 80 parts of the same 50% aqueous dispersion of zeolite A as used in Example 1, and uniform kneading was effected.",
"While kneading this hydrous gel on a kneader, 20 parts of the same 50% aqueous dispersion of zeolite A as used in Example 1 was added and uniform kneading was effected.",
"This mixture was subjected to hot air drying at 130° C. to 150° C., then to grinding on a roll mill, and to particle size adjustment such that particles of 850 μm to 150 μm accounted for about 98%, to give a deodorant resin composition.",
"The results of performance characteristics measurement of this deodorant resin composition are shown in Table 1.",
"EXAMPLE 4 A deodorant resin composition was obtained in the same manner as in Example 2 except that the 50% aqueous dispersion of zeolite was used in an amount of 10 parts in lieu of 20 parts.",
"The performance characteristics measurement results of this deodorant resin composition are shown in Table 1.",
"EXAMPLE 5 A deodorant resin composition was obtained in the same manner as in Example 2 except that the 50% aqueous dispersion of zeolite was used in an amount of 30 parts in lieu of 20 parts.",
"The results of performance characteristics measurement of this deodorant resin composition are shown in Table 1.",
"EXAMPLE 6 A deodorant resin composition was obtained in the same manner as in Example 2 except that the zeolite species used was molecular sieve 3A (Nakalai Tesque reagent grade;",
"pore size 3 angstroms, mean particle size 10 μm or less).",
"The results of performance characteristics measurement of this deodorant resin composition are shown in Table 1.",
"EXAMPLE 7 A deodorant resin composition was obtained in the same manner as in Example 2 except that the zeolite species used was molecular sieve 5A (Nakalai Tesque reagent grade;",
"pore size 5 angstroms, mean particle size 10 μm or less).",
"The results of performance characteristics measurement of this deodorant resin composition are shown in Table 1.",
"EXAMPLE 8 An absorbent article was produced using the deodorant resin composition of Example 1.",
"The results of performance characteristics measurement of this absorbent article are shown in Table 2.",
"EXAMPLE 9 An absorbent article was produced using the deodorant resin composition of Example 2.",
"The results of performance characteristics measurement of this absorbent article are shown in Table 2.",
"EXAMPLE 10 An absorbent article was produced using the deodorant resin composition of Example 3.",
"The results of performance characteristics measurement of this absorbent article are shown in Table 2.",
"COMPARATIVE EXAMPLE 1 The hydrous gel-like polymer (I) obtained in Example 1 was subjected to hot air drying at 130° C. to 150° C., then to grinding on a roll mill and to particle size adjustment such that particles of 850 μm to 150 μm accounted for about 98%, to give a resin powder for comparison.",
"The results of performance characteristics measurement of this powder are shown in Table 1.",
"COMPARATIVE EXAMPLE 2 The hydrous gel-like neutralized polymer (II) obtained in Example 2 was subjected to hot air drying at 130° C. to 150° C. then to grinding on a roll mill and to particle size adjustment such that particles of 850 μm to 150 μm accounted for about 98%, to give a resin powder for comparison.",
"The results of performance characteristics measurement of this powder are shown in Table 1.",
"COMPARATIVE EXAMPLE 3 The results of performance characteristics measurement of "Sanwet IM-1000"",
"are shown in Table 1 under Comparative Example 3.",
"COMPARATIVE EXAMPLE 4 A resin composition for comparison was prepared by powder-powder blending of 100 parts of the resin powder obtained in Comparative Example 1 and 40 parts of the same zeolite A species as used in Example 1.",
"The results of performance characteristics measurement of this composition are shown in Table 1.",
"COMPARATIVE EXAMPLE 5 A resin composition for comparison was prepared by powder-powder blending of 100 parts of the resin powder obtained in Comparative Example 2 and 40 parts of the same zeolite A species as used in Example 1.",
"The results of performance characteristics measurement of this composition are shown in Table 1.",
"COMPARATIVE EXAMPLE 6 A resin composition for comparison was prepared in the same manner as in Example 2 except that the 50% aqueous dispersion of zeolite was used in an amount of 2 parts in lieu of 20 parts.",
"The performance characteristics measurement results of this composition are shown in Table 1.",
"COMPARATIVE EXAMPLE 7 A resin composition for comparison was prepared in the same manner as in Example 2 except that the 50% aqueous dispersion of zeolite was used in an amount of 70 parts in lieu of 20 parts.",
"The performance characteristics measurement results of this composition are shown in Table 1.",
"COMPARATIVE EXAMPLE 8 A resin composition for comparison was prepared in the same manner as in Example 2 except that the zeolite species used was zeolite X with a pore size of 10 angstroms.",
"The results of performance characteristics measurement of this composition are shown in Table 1.",
"COMPARATIVE EXAMPLE 9 An absorbent article was produced using the resin powder of Comparative Example 1.",
"The results of performance characteristics measurement of this absorbent article for comparison are shown in Table 2.",
"COMPARATIVE EXAMPLE 10 An absorbent article was produced using the resin powder of Comparative Example 2.",
"The results of performance characteristics measurement of this absorbent article for comparison are shown in Table 2.",
"COMPARATIVE EXAMPLE 11 An absorbent article was produced using the resin composition of Comparative Example 4.",
"The results of performance characteristics measurement of this absorbent article for comparison are shown in Table 2.",
"COMPARATIVE EXAMPLE 12 An absorbent article was produced using the resin composition of Comparative Example 5.",
"The results of performance characteristics measurement of this absorbent article for comparison are shown in Table 2.",
"TABLE 1______________________________________ Absorbency under normal Absorbency pressure under load Deodoriza- (g/g) (g/g) tion test______________________________________Example 1 44 24 1.8 2 46 26 1.6 3 50 25 1.9 4 53 22 2.8 5 41 28 1.6 6 47 26 2.5 7 46 25 2.4 Comparative Example 1 55 14 4.2 2 58 16 4.0 3 63 9 4.1 4 35 11 2.6 5 38 12 2.5 6 55 15 4.2 7 25 8 1.5 8 45 21 3.9______________________________________ TABLE 2______________________________________ Absorbing Rewet Deodori- Absorbency speed quantity zation (g/sheet) (sec) (g) test______________________________________Example 8 408 26 0.3 2.0 9 420 25 0.2 1.9 10 430 29 0.3 2.1 Comparative Example 9 440 29 0.2 4.4 10 450 28 0.1 4.2 11 320 30 2.2 3.0 12 330 27 2.0 2.9______________________________________ INDUSTRIAL APPLICABILITY The deodorant resin composition of the present invention has the following features and effects: 1 It performs not only an absorbent function but also an excellent deodorant function.",
"2 Since the deodorant component zeolite is dispersed in the odor source body fluid absorbed by the absorbent resin, the zeolite adsorbs the odor efficiently and exhibits an excellent deodorant effect.",
"3 Unlike the powder-powder mixture of (A) and (B), the deodorant resin composition with (B) dispersed within particles of (A) shows an improved absorbency under load.",
"4 Unlike the powder-powder mixture of (A) and (B), it will not cause such troubles as separation into both components upon vibrations or shock, or localization of the absorbent resin and zeolite in absorbent articles when said composition is applied thereto.",
"5 It can be applied to absorbent articles in the same manner as the conventional absorbent resins.",
"6 When applied to absorbent articles, it provides the absorbent articles with a deodorant function and at the same time reduces the rewet quantity.",
"On the contrary, in the case of a powder-powder mixture of (A) and (B), a deodorant function may be provided but the rewet quantity increases.",
"7 It can be produced by a simple process which comprises kneading (B) with a hydrous gel of (A), drying and grinding.",
"The deodorant resin composition of the present invention, which exhibits the effects mentioned above, is particularly suited for use in paper diapers, incontinence pads, sanitary napkins, panty liners, breast milk pads, labor bed (puerperal) mats, underpads for medical use and other various absorbent articles.",
"Furthermore, it is useful as a gelling agent for various liquids which, upon decay, generate an offensive odor, for example pet urine and waste blood, and it is also useful in the production of sheets for pets, drip absorbents and like sheet or tape form absorbents."
] |
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates generally to a non-steady flow device utilizing pulse combustion to produce thrust. More particularly, in one embodiment of the present invention a wave rotor utilizing pulse detonation compresses an energy transfer gas disposed within the wave rotor flow passages. The compressed energy transfer gas is routed out of a first port of the wave rotor and reintroduced through a second port into the wave rotor to forcefully discharge and scavenge the latter stages of combustion gases within the wave rotor flow passages. Although the present invention was developed for use with wave rotor based pulsed detonation engines, certain applications may be outside of this field.
A wave rotor is generally thought of as a generic term and describes a class of machines utilizing transient internal fluid flow to efficiently accomplish a desired flow process. Since the 1940's wave rotors have been studied by engineers and scientists and thought of as particularly suitable for a propulsion system. Wave rotors depend on wave phenomena as the basis of their operation, and these wave phenomena have the potential to be exploited in novel propulsion systems which include benefits such as higher specific power and lower specific fuel consumption.
There are a variety of wave rotor devices that have been conceived of over the years. While these prior wave rotors and methods of using transient gas flows are steps in the right direction the need for additional improvement still remains. The present invention satisfies this need in a novel and unobvious way.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
One form of the present invention contemplates a pulsed combustion wave rotor engine utilizing a flow of buffer gas to scavenge the latter stages of the expansion and enhance the discharge of combusted gas from the rotor. The present invention contemplates a device having rotatable passageways or rotatable endplates with ports therein.
Another form of the present invention contemplates a method, comprising: introducing a quantity of working fluid into a passageway of a wave rotor; placing a fuel within one end of the passageway; combusting the fuel within the passageway and creating a quantity of combusted gas adjacent the one end of the passageway and compressing a portion of the working fluid within the passageway to define a high pressure buffer gas adjacent the combusted gas within the passageway; discharging the high pressure buffer gas out of the passageway; discharging a first portion of the combusted gas out of the passageway; and routing the high pressure buffer gas from the discharging back into the passageway to purge a second portion of the combusted gas out of the passageway.
In another form of the present invention there is contemplated a method, comprising: providing a wave rotor device including a rotatable rotor with a plurality cells adapted for the passage of fluid therethrough, the rotor having a direction of rotation; rotating the rotor to pass the plurality of cells by a plurality of inlet ports and a plurality of outlet ports; flowing a working fluid through one of the plurality of inlet ports and into at least one of the cells; introducing a fuel into the at least one of the cells at the inlet end portion; detonating the fuel and a first portion of the working fluid within the at least one of the cells, the detonating forming combusted gas and compressing a second portion of the working fluid to define a high pressure buffer gas; discharging the high pressure buffer gas through one of the plurality of outlet ports; discharging a first portion of the combusted gas through another of the plurality of outlet ports; and routing in the direction of rotation of the rotor the high pressure buffer gas from the one of the plurality of outlet ports and reintroducing through another of the plurality of inlet ports into the at least one of the cells to discharge a second portion of the combusted gas from the cell.
In a further form of the present invention there is contemplated a method, comprising: providing a wave rotor device including a plurality of stationary passageways adapted for the passage of fluid therethrough; rotating a plurality of inlet ports and a plurality of outlet ports by the plurality of stationary passageways to control the passage of fluid into and out of the stationary passageways, the plurality of ports having a direction of rotation; flowing a working fluid through one of the plurality of inlet ports and into at least one of the stationary passageways; introducing a fuel into the at least one of the stationary passageways; detonating the fuel and a first portion of the working fluid within the at least one of the stationary passageways, said detonating forming combusted gas and compressing a second portion of the working fluid to define a high pressure buffer gas; discharging the high pressure buffer gas through one of the plurality of outlet ports; discharging a first portion of the combusted gas through another of the plurality of outlet ports; and routing in the direction of rotation of the ports the high pressure buffer gas from the one of the plurality of outlet ports and reintroducing through another of the plurality of inlet ports into the at least one of the stationary passageways to discharge a second portion of the combusted gas from the passageway.
One object of the present invention is to provide a unique pulsed combustion engine wave rotor.
Related objects and advantages of the present invention will be apparent from the following description.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG. 1 is a schematic representation of a propulsion system comprising a compressor, a pulsed combustion engine wave rotor, a turbine, a nozzle and an output power shaft.
FIG. 1 a is a schematic representation of an alternate embodiment of a propulsion system comprising a compressor, a pulsed combustion engine wave rotor, a turbine, a nozzle and an output power shaft.
FIG. 2 is a partially exploded view of one embodiment of a pulsed combustion engine wave rotor comprising a portion of FIG. 1 .
FIG. 3 is a space-time (wave) diagram for one embodiment of a pulsed detonation engine wave rotor of the present invention wherein the high-pressure energy transfer gas outlet port and the exhaust gas to-turbine port are on the same end of the device.
FIG. 4 is a schematic representation of a pulsed combustion engine wave rotor intended to be used as a direct thrust-producing propulsion system without conventional turbomachinery components.
FIG. 5 is a schematic representation of another embodiment of a pulsed combustion engine wave rotor intended to be used as a direct thrust-producing propulsion system without conventional turbomachinery components.
FIG. 6 is a schematic representation of an alternate embodiment of a propulsion system comprising a compressor, a pulsed combustion engine wave rotor, a turbine, a nozzle and an output power shaft.
FIG. 6 a is a schematic representation of another embodiment of a propulsion system comprising a compressor, a pulsed combustion engine wave rotor, a turbine, a nozzle and an output power shaft.
FIG. 7 is a partially exploded view of one embodiment of a pulsed combustion engine wave rotor comprising a portion of FIG. 6 .
FIG. 8 is a space-time (wave) diagram for an alternate embodiment of a pulsed detonation engine wave rotor wherein the high-pressure energy transfer gas outlet port and the combustion gas exit port are on opposite ends of the device.
FIG. 9 is a schematic representation of a pulsed combustion engine wave rotor intended to be used as a direct thrust-producing propulsion system without conventional turbomachinery components.
FIG. 10 is a schematic representation of another embodiment of a pulsed combustion engine wave rotor intended to be used as a direct thrust-producing propulsion system without conventional turbomachinery components.
FIG. 11 is a partially exploded view of another embodiment of a pulsed combustion engine wave rotor comprising stationary fluid flow passageways between rotatable endplates having inlet and outlet ports.
DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
For the purpose 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. Any alterations and further modifications in the described embodiments, and any further applications of the principles of the invention as described herein are contemplated as would normally occur to one skilled in the art to which the invention relates.
With reference to FIG. 1, there is illustrated a schematic representation of a propulsion system 20 which includes a compressor 21 , a pulsed combustion wave rotor 22 , a turbine 23 , a nozzle 32 , and an output power shaft 26 . The compressor 21 delivers a precompressed working fluid to the pulsed combustion wave rotor device 22 . Wave rotor device 22 has occurring within its passageways the combustion of a fuel and air mixture, and thereafter the combusted gases are delivered to the turbine 23 . The working fluid that is precompressed by the compressor 21 and delivered to the wave rotor device 22 is selected from a group including oxygen, nitrogen, carbon dioxide, helium or a mixture thereof, and more preferably is air. In one embodiment the pulsed combustion wave rotor device 22 replaces the compressor diffuser and combustor of a conventional gas turbine engine. The present invention contemplates both a pulsed detonation combustion process and a pulsed deflagration combustion process. While the present invention will generally be described in terms of a pulsed detonation combustion process, it also contemplates a pulsed deflagration combustion process.
In one embodiment the components of the propulsion system 20 have been integrated together to produce an aircraft flight propulsion engine capable of producing either shaft power or direct thrust or both. The term aircraft is generic and includes helicopters, airplanes, missiles, unmanned space devices and other substantially similar devices. It is important to realize that there are multitudes of ways in which the propulsion engine components can be linked together. Additional compressors and turbines could be added with inter-coolers connected between the compressors and reheat combustion chambers could be added between the turbines. The propulsion system of the present invention is suited to be used for industrial applications, such as but not limited to pumping sets for gas or oil transmission lines, electricity generation and naval propulsion. Further, the propulsion system of the present invention is also suitable to be used for ground vehicular propulsion requiring the use of shaft power such as automobiles and trucks.
With reference to FIGS. 1-3, further aspects of the propulsion system 20 will be described. Compressor 21 is operable to increase the pressure of the working fluid between the compressor inlet 24 and the compressor outlet 25 . The increase in working fluid pressure is represented by a pressure ratio (pressure at outlet/pressure at inlet) and the working fluid is delivered to a first wave rotor inlet port 42 . The first wave rotor inlet port 42 generally defines a working fluid inlet port and is not intended to be limited to an inlet port that is coupled to the outlet of a conventional turbomachinery component. A second wave rotor inlet port 43 is referred to as a buffer gas inlet port, and is located adjacent to and sequentially prior to the first wave rotor inlet port 42 . Wave rotor inlet ports 42 and 43 form an inlet port sequence, and multiple inlet port sequences can be integrated into a waver rotor device. In one preferred embodiment there are two inlet port sequences disposed along the circumference of the wave rotor device.
Wave rotor device 22 has an outlet port sequence that includes an outlet port 45 and a buffer gas outlet port 44 . The outlet port 45 generally defines a combusted gas outlet port and is not intended to be limited to an outlet port that is coupled to a turbine. In the preferred embodiment of propulsion system 20 the outlet port 45 is defined as to-turbine outlet port 45 . The to-turbine outlet port 45 in propulsion system 20 allows the combusted gases to exit the wave rotor device 22 and pass to the turbine 23 . Compressed buffer gas exits the buffer gas outlet port 44 and is reintroduced into the rotor passageways 41 through the second wave rotor inlet port 43 . In one embodiment the buffer gas outlet port 44 and the second wave rotor inlet port 43 are connected in fluid communication by a duct. In one form the duct between the outlet port 44 and outlet port 43 is integral with the wave rotor device 22 and passes through the interior of rotor 40 . In another form the duct passes through the center of shaft 48 . In another form of the present invention the duct is physically external to the wave rotor device 22 .
The reintroduced compressed buffer gas does work on the remaining combusted gases within the rotor passageways 41 and causes the pressure in region 70 to remain at an elevated level. The relatively high energy flow of combusted gases from the to-turbine port 45 is maintained in region 74 by the reintroduction of the high pressure buffer gas entering through the second wave rotor inlet port 43 . The flow of the high pressure buffer gas from buffer gas outlet port 44 to the second wave rotor inlet port 43 is illustrated schematically by arrow B in FIG. 3 . In one form of the present invention a portion of the high pressure buffer gas exiting through outlet port 44 can be used as a source of turbine cooling fluid. More specifically, in certain forms of a propulsion system of the present invention the pressure of the gas stream going to the turbine 23 through exit port 45 is higher than the pressure of the working fluid at the compressor discharge 25 . Therefore, the requirement for higher pressure cooling fluid can be met by taking a portion of the high pressure buffer gas exiting port 44 and delivering to the appropriate location(s) within the turbine. With reference to FIG. 1 a , there is illustrated the delivery of the high pressure buffer gas exiting through outlet port 44 and being delivered through passageway 510 to the turbine.
Wave rotor outlet ports 44 and 45 form the outlet port sequence, and multiple outlet port sequences can be integrated into a waver rotor device. In one preferred embodiment there are two outlet port sequences disposed along the circumference of the wave rotor device. The inlet port sequence and the outlet port sequence are combined with the rotatable rotor to form a pulsed combustion wave rotor engine. Routing of the compressed buffer gas from the buffer gas outlet port 44 into the wave rotor passageways 41 via port 43 provides for: high pressure flow issuing generally uniformly from the to-turbine outlet port 45 ; and/or, a cooling effect delivered rapidly and in a prolonged fashion to the rotor walls defining the rotor passageways 41 following the combustion process; and/or, a reduction and smoothing of pressure in the inlet port 42 thereby aiding in the rapid and substantially uniform drawing in of working fluid from the compressor 21 .
Combusted gasses exiting through the to-turbine outlet port 45 pass to the turbine 23 where shaft power is produced to power the compressor 21 . Additional power may be produced to be used in the form of output shaft power. Further, combusted gas leaves the turbine 23 and enters the nozzle 32 where thrust is produced. The construction and details related to the utilization of a nozzle to produce thrust will not be described herein as it is believed known to one of ordinary skill in the art of engine design.
Referring to FIG. 2, there is illustrated a partially exploded view of one embodiment of the wave rotor device 22 . Wave rotor device 22 comprises a rotor 40 that is rotatable about a centerline X and passes a plurality of fluid passageways 41 by a plurality of inlet ports 42 , 43 and outlet ports 44 , 45 that are formed in end plates 46 and 47 . Preferably, the rotor is cylindrical, however other geometric shapes are contemplated herein. In one embodiment the end plates 46 and 47 are coupled to stationary ducted passages between the compressor 21 and the turbine 23 . The pluralities of fluid passageways 41 are positioned about the circumference of the wave rotor device 22 .
In one form the rotation of the rotor 40 is accomplished through a conventional rotational device. In another form the gas turbine 23 can be used as the means to cause rotation of the wave rotor 40 . In another embodiment the wave rotor is a self-turning, freewheeling design; wherein freewheeling indicates no independent drive means are required. In one form the freewheeling design is contemplated with angling and/or curving of the rotor passageways. In another form the freewheeling design is contemplated to be driven by the angling of the inlet duct 42 a so as to allow the incoming fluid flow to impart angular momentum to the rotor 40 . In yet another form the freewheeling design is contemplated to be driven by angling of the inlet duct 43 a so as to allow the incoming fluid flow to impart angular momentum to the rotor. Further, it is contemplated that the inlet ducts 42 a and 43 a can both be angled, one of the inlet ducts is angled or neither is angled. The use of curved or angled rotor passageways within the rotor and/or by imparting momentum to the rotor through one of the inlet flow streams, the wave rotor may produce useful shaft power. This work can be used for purposes such as but not limited to, driving an upstream compressor, powering engine accessories (fuel pump, electrical power generator, engine hydraulics) and/or to provide engine output shaft power. The types of rotational devices and methods for causing rotation of the rotor 40 is not intended to be limited herein and include other methods and devices for causing rotation of the rotor 40 as occur to one of ordinary skill in the art. One form of the present invention contemplates rotational speeds of the rotor within a range of about 1,000 to about 100,000 revolutions per minute, and more preferably about 10,000 revolutions per minute. However, the present invention is not intended to be limited to these rotational speeds unless specifically stated herein.
The wave rotor/cell rotor 40 is fixedly coupled to a shaft 48 that is rotatable on a pair of bearings (not illustrated). In one form of the present invention the wave rotor/cell rotor rotates about the centerline X in the direction of arrow Z. While the present invention has been described based upon rotation in the direction of arrow Z, a system having the appropriate modifications to rotate in the opposite direction is contemplated herein. The direction Z may be concurrent with or counter to the rotational direction of the gas turbine engine rotors. In one embodiment the plurality of circumferentially spaced passageways 41 extend along the length of the wave rotor device 22 parallel to the centerline X and are formed between an outer wall member 49 and an inner wall member 50 . The plurality of passageways 41 define a peripheral annulus 51 wherein adjacent passageways share a common wall member 52 that connects between the outer wall member 49 and the inner wall member 50 so as to separate the fluid flow within each of the passageways. In an alternate embodiment each of the plurality of circumferentially spaced passageways are non-parallel to the centerline, but are placed on a cone having differing radii at the opposite ends of the rotor. In another embodiment, each of the plurality of circumferentially spaced passageways are placed on a surface of smoothly varying radial placement first toward lower radius and then toward larger radius over their axial extent. In yet another embodiment, a dividing wall member divides each of the plurality of circumferentially spaced passageways, and in one form is located at a substantially mid-radial position of the passageway. In yet another embodiment, each of the plurality of circumferentially spaced passages form a helical rather than straight axial passageway.
The pair of wave rotor end plates 46 and 47 are fixedly positioned very closely adjacent the rotor 40 so as to control the passage of working fluid into and out of the plurality of passageways 41 as the rotor 40 rotates. End plates 46 and 47 are designed to be disposed in a sealing arrangement with the rotor 40 in order to minimize the leakage of fluid between the plurality of passageways 41 and the end plates. In an alternate embodiment auxiliary seals are included between the end plates and the rotor to enhance sealing efficiency. Seal types, such as but not limited to, labrynth, gland or sliding seals are contemplated herein, however the application of seals to a wave rotor is believed known to one of skill in the art.
With reference to FIG. 3, there is illustrated a space-time (wave) diagram for a pulsed detonation wave rotor engine. A pulsed detonation combustion process is a substantially constant volume combustion process. The pulsed detonation engine wave rotor described with the assistance of FIG. 3 has: the high pressure energy transfer gas outlet port 44 and the to-turbine outlet port 45 located on the same end of the device; and the high pressure energy transfer gas inlet port 43 and the from-compressor inlet port 42 on the same end of the device. In one form of the present invention there is defined a two port wave rotor cycle including one fluid flow inlet port and one fluid flow outlet port and having a high pressure buffer gas transfer recirculation loop that may be considered internal to the wave rotor device. The high pressure energy transfer inlet port 43 is prior to and adjacent the from-compressor inlet port 42 . Arrow Q indicates the direction of rotation of the rotor 40 . It can be observed that upon the rotation of rotor 40 , each of the plurality of passageways 41 are sequentially brought into registration with the inlet ports 42 , 43 and the outlet ports 44 , 45 and the path of a typical charge of fluid is along the respective passageway 41 . The wave diagram for the purpose of description may be started at any point, however for convenience the description is started at 60 wherein the low-pressure working fluid is admitted from the compressor. The concept of low pressure should not be understood in an absolute manner, it is only low in comparison with the rest of the pressure levels of gas within the pulsed detonation engine wave rotor.
The low-pressure portion 60 of the wave rotor engine receives a supply of low-pressure working fluid from compressor 21 . The working fluid enters passageways 41 upon the from-compressor inlet port 42 being aligned with the respective passageways 41 . In one embodiment fuel is introduced into the low-pressure portion 60 by: stationary continuously operated spray nozzles (liquid) 61 or supply tubes (gas) 61 located within the inlet duct 42 a leading to the from-compressor inlet port 42 ; or, into region 62 by intermittently actuated spray nozzles (liquid) 61 ″ or supply tubes (gas) 61 ′ located within the rotor; or, into region 62 by spray nozzles (liquid) 61 ″ or supply tubes (gas) 61 ″ located within the rotor endplate 46 . Separating region 60 and 62 is a pressure wave 73 originating from the closure of the to-turbine outlet port 45 . In this way, a region 62 exists at one end of the rotor and the region has a fuel content such that the mixture of fuel and working fluid is combustable. The fuel air mixture in one end of the rotor, regions 60 and 62 , is thus separated from hot residual combustion gas within regions 68 and 69 by the buffer gas entering the rotor through port 43 and traveling through regions 70 , 71 , 72 and 64 . In this way undesirable pre-ignition of the fuel air mixture of regions 60 and 62 is inhibited.
A detonation is initiated from an end portion of the rotor 40 adjacent the region 62 and a detonation wave 63 travels through the fuel air mixture within the region 62 toward the opposite end of the rotor containing a working-fluid-without-fuel region 64 . In one form of the present invention the detonation is initiated by a detonation initiator 80 such as but not limited to a high energy spark discharge device. However, in an alternate form of the present invention the detonation is initiated as an auto-detonation process and does not include a detonation initiator. The detonation wave 63 travels along the length of the passageway and ceases with the absence of fuel at the gas interface 65 . Thereafter, a pressure wave 66 travels into the working-fluid-without-fuel region 64 of the passageway and compresses this working fluid to define a high-pressure buffer/energy transfer gas within region 67 . The concept of high pressure should not be understood in an absolute manner, it is only high in comparison with the rest of the pressure level of gas within the pulsed detonation engine wave rotor.
In one embodiment the high pressure buffer/energy transfer gas is a non-vitiated working fluid. In another embodiment the high pressure buffer/energy transfer gas is comprised of working fluid having experienced the combustion of fuel (vitiated) regardless of what other compression or expansion process have taken place after the combustion. Working fluid of this type would generally be characterized as having a portion of the oxygen depleted, the products of combustion present and the associated entropy increase remaining relative to the non-combusted working fluid starting from the same initial state and undergoing the same post combustion processes. An incomplete mixing can take place between the vitiated and non-vitiated gas portions adjoining each other in the passageway and thus realize a mixture of the two which thus comprises the high pressure buffer/energy transfer gas.
The high pressure buffer/energy transfer gas within region 67 exits the wave rotor device 22 through the buffer gas outlet port 44 . The combustion gases within the region 68 exit the wave rotor through the to-turbine outlet port 45 . Expansion of the combusted gas prior to entering the turbine results in a lower turbine inlet temperature without reducing the effective peak cycle temperature. As the combusted gas exits the outlet port 45 , the expansion process continues within the passageway 41 of the rotor and travels toward the opposite end of the passageway. As the expansion arrives at the end of the passage, the pressure of the gas within the region 69 at the end of the rotor opposite the to-turbine outlet port 45 declines. The wave rotor inlet port 43 opens and allows the flow of the high pressure buffer/energy transfer working fluid into the rotor at region 70 and causes the recompression of a portion of the combustion gases within the rotor. In one embodiment, the admission of gas via port 43 can be accomplished by a shock wave. However, in another embodiment the admission is accomplished without a shock wave. The flow of the high pressure buffer gas adds energy to the exhaust process of the combustion gas and allows the expansion of the combusted gas to be accomplished in a controlled uniform energy process in one form of the invention. Thus, in one form the introduction of the high pressure buffer/energy transfer gas is adapted to maintain the high velocity flow of combusted gases exiting the wave rotor until substantially all of the combusted gas within the rotor is exhausted.
In one embodiment, the wave rotor inlet port 43 , which allows the introduction of the high-pressure buffer/energy transfer gas, closes before the to-turbine outlet port 45 is closed. The closing of the wave rotor inlet port 43 causes an expansion process to occur within the high pressure buffer/energy transfer air within region 71 and lowers the pressure of the gas and creates a region 72 . Following the creation of this lowered pressure gas region 72 , a passageway 41 is in registration with port 42 and gas flowing within port 42 enters the passageway 41 creating region 60 . The strong and compact nature of the expansion process in region 71 causes a beneficially large pressure difference between the pressure in port 45 and the pressure in port 42 . In one embodiment the pressure of the gas delivered to the turbine 23 is higher than the pressure delivered from the compressor 21 and hence the power output of the engine enhanced and/or the quantity of fuel required to generate power in the turbine is reduced. The term enhanced and reduced are in reference to an engine utilizing a combustion device of common practice, having constant or lowering pressure, located between the compressor and turbine in the place of the present invention. The expansion process 71 occurs within the buffer/energy transfer gas and allows substantially all of the combustion gases of region 68 to exit the rotor leaving the lowest pressure region of the rotor consisting essentially of expanded buffer/energy transfer gas. The to-turbine outlet port 45 is closed as the expansion in region 71 reaches the exit end of the passageway. In one form of the present invention as illustrated in region 75 a portion of the high-pressure buffer/energy transfer gas exits through the outlet port 45 . This gas acts to insulate the duct walls 45 a from the hot combusted gas within region 74 of the duct 45 b. In an alternate embodiment the high pressure buffer/energy transfer gas is not directed to insulate and cool the duct walls 45 a . The pressure in region 72 has been lowered, and the from-compressor inlet port 42 allows pre-compressed low-pressure air to enter the rotor passageway in the region 60 having the lowered pressure. The entering motion of the precompressed low-pressure air through port 42 is stopped by the arrival of a pressure wave 73 originating from the exit end of the rotor and traveling toward the inlet end. The pressure wave 73 originated from the closure of the to-turbine outlet port 45 . The design and construction of the wave rotor is such that the arrival of pressure wave 73 corresponds with the closing of the from-compressor inlet port 42 .
With reference to FIG. 4, there is illustrated schematically an alternate embodiment of a propulsion system 30 . In one embodiment the propulsion system 30 includes a fluid inlet 31 , a pulsed combustion detonation engine wave rotor 22 and nozzle 32 . The wave rotor device 22 is identical to the wave rotor described in propulsion system 20 and like feature number will be utilized to describe like features. In one form propulsion system 30 is adapted to produce thrust without incorporation of conventional turbomachinery components. In one embodiment the combustion gases exiting the wave rotor are directed through the nozzle 32 to produce motive power. The working fluid passing through inlet 31 is conveyed through the first wave rotor inlet port 42 and into the wave rotor device 22 . High pressure buffer gas is discharged through wave rotor outlet port 44 and passes back into the wave rotor device through wave rotor inlet port 43 . The relatively high energy flow of combusted gases flows out of outlet port 45 and exits nozzle 32 .
With reference to FIG. 5, there is illustrated schematically an alternate embodiment of a rocket type propulsion system 100 . In one embodiment, the propulsion system 100 includes an oxidizer and working gas storage tank 101 , a pulsed combustion detonation engine wave rotor 22 and nozzle 32 . The wave rotor device 22 is identical to the wave rotor device discussed previously for propulsion system 20 and like feature numbers will be utilized to describe like features. In one form propulsion system 100 is adapted to produce thrust without incorporation of conventional turbomachinery components. The first wave rotor inlet port 42 is in fluid communication with the oxidizer and working gas storage tank 100 and receives a quantity of working fluid therefrom. High pressure buffer gas is discharged through the wave rotor outlet port 44 and passes back into the wave rotor device through wave rotor inlet port 43 . The relatively high energy flow of combusted gases pass out of the outlet port 45 and exits nozzle 32 to produce motive power.
A few additional alternate embodiments (not illustrated) contemplated herein will be described in comparison to the embodiment of FIG. 4 . The use of like feature numbers is intended to represent like features. One of the alternate embodiments is a propulsion system including a turbomachine type compressor placed immediately ahead of the wave rotor 22 and adapted to supply a compressed fluid to inlet 42 . The turbomachine type compressor is driven by shaft power derived from the wave rotor 22 . Another of the alternate embodiments includes a conventional turbine placed downstream of the wave rotor 22 and adapted to be supplied with the gas exiting port 45 . The second type of alternate embodiment does not include a nozzle and delivers only engine output shaft power. A third embodiment contemplated herein is similar to the embodiment of FIG. 1, but the nozzle 32 has been removed and is utilized for delivering output shaft power. The prior list of alternate embodiments is not intended to be limiting to the types of alternate embodiments contemplated herein.
With reference to FIG. 6, there is illustrated a schematic representation of an alternate embodiment of propulsion system 200 which includes compressor 21 , a pulsed combustion wave rotor 220 , a turbine 23 , a nozzle 32 and an output power shaft 26 . The propulsion system 200 is substantially similar to the propulsion system 20 and like features numbers will be utilized to describe like elements. More specifically, the propulsion system 200 is substantially similar to the propulsion system 20 and the details relating to system 200 will focus on the alternative pulsed detonation engine wave rotor 220 .
With reference to FIGS. 6-8, further aspects of the propulsion system 200 will be described. As discussed previously, a substantial portion of the propulsion system 200 is identical to the propulsion system 20 and this information will not be repeated as it has been set forth previously. A pressurized working fluid passes through the compressor outlet 25 and is delivered to a first wave rotor inlet port 221 . A second wave rotor inlet port 222 is referred to as a buffer gas inlet port, and is located adjacent to and sequentially prior to the first wave rotor inlet port 221 . Wave rotor inlet ports 221 and 222 form an inlet port sequence, and multiple inlet port sequences can be integrated into a wave rotor device. In one preferred embodiment there are two inlet port sequences disposed along the circumference of the wave rotor device 220 .
Wave rotor device 220 has an outlet port sequence that includes an outlet port 223 and a buffer gas outlet port 224 . In one embodiment of propulsion system 200 the outlet port 223 is defined as a to-turbine outlet port 223 . The to-turbine outlet port 223 of propulsion system 200 allows the combusted gases to exit the wave rotor device 220 and pass to the turbine 223 . Compressed buffer gas exits the buffer gas outlet port 224 and is reintroduced into the rotor passageways 41 through the second wave rotor inlet port 222 . In one embodiment, the buffer gas outlet port 224 and the second wave rotor inlet port 222 are connected in fluid communication by a duct. In a further alternate embodiment, the duct functions as a high pressure buffer gas reservoir and/or is connected to an auxiliary reservoir which is designed and constructed to hold a quantity of high pressure buffer gas. This reintroduced buffer gas does work on the remaining combusted gases within the rotor passageways 41 and causes the pressure in region 225 to remain at an elevated level. The relatively high energy flow of combusted gases from the to-turbine port 223 is maintained in region 226 by the reintroduction of the high pressure buffer gas entering through the second wave rotor inlet port 222 . The flow of the high pressure buffer gas from buffer gas outlet port 224 to the second wave rotor inlet port 222 is illustrated schematically by arrows C in FIG. 8 .
Wave rotor device 220 has an outlet port sequence that includes an outlet port 223 and a buffer gas outlet port 224 . In one embodiment of propulsion system 200 the outlet port 223 is defined as a to-turbine outlet port 223 . The to-turbine outlet port 223 of propulsion system 200 allows the combusted gases to exit the wave rotor device 220 and pass to the turbine 223 . Compressed buffer gas exits the buffer gas outlet port 224 and is reintroduced into the rotor passageways 41 through the second wave rotor inlet port 222 . In one embodiment, the buffer gas outlet port 224 and the second wave rotor inlet port 222 are connected in fluid communication by a duct. In a further alternate embodiment, the duct functions as a high pressure buffer gas reservoir and/or is connected to an auxiliary reservoir which is designed and constructed to hold a quantity of high pressure buffer gas. With reference to FIG. 6 a , there is illustrated an auxiliary reservoir 500 for receiving a quantity of the high pressure buffer gas. This reintroduced buffer gas does work on the remaining combusted gases within the rotor passageways 41 and causes the pressure in region 225 to remain at an elevated level. The relatively high energy flow of combusted gases from the to-turbine port 223 is maintained in region 226 by the reintroduction of the high pressure buffer gas entering through the second wave rotor inlet port 222 . The flow of the high pressure buffer gas from buffer gas outlet port 224 to the second wave rotor inlet port 222 is illustrated schematically by arrows C in FIG. 8 .
Referring to FIG. 7, there is illustrated a partially exploded view of one embodiment of the wave rotor device 220 . Wave rotor 220 comprises a cylindrical rotor 40 that is rotatable about a centerline X and passes a plurality of fluid passageways 41 by a plurality of ports 221 , 222 and 224 formed in end plate 225 and outlet ports 223 formed in end plate 226 . In one embodiment, the end plates 225 and 226 are coupled to stationery ducted passages between the compressor 21 and the turbine 23 . The plurality of fluid passageways 41 is positioned about the circumference of the wave rotor device 220 .
In one form a conventional rotational device accomplishes the rotation of rotor 40 . In another form the gas turbine 23 can be used as the means to cause rotation of the wave rotor 40 . In another embodiment the wave rotor is a self-turning, freewheeling design; wherein freewheeling indicates no independent drive means are required. In one form, the freewheeling design is contemplated with angling and/or curving of the rotor passageways. In another form, the freewheeling design is contemplated to be driven by the angling of the inlet duct 221 a so as to allow the incoming fluid flow to impart angular momentum to the rotor 40 . In yet another form, the free-wheeling design is contemplated to be driven by angling of the inlet duct 222 a so as to allow the incoming fluid flow to impart angular momentum to the rotor. Further, it is contemplated that the inlet ducts 222 a and 221 a can both be angled, one of the inlet ducts is angled or neither is angled. The use of curved or angled rotor passageways within the rotor and/or by imparting of momentum to the rotor through one of the inlet flow streams, the wave rotor may produce useful shaft power.
The wave rotor/cell rotor 40 is fixedly coupled to a shaft 48 that is rotatable on a pair of bearings (not illustrated). In one form of the present invention, the wave rotor/cell rotor rotates about the center line X in the direction of arrows Z. While the present invention has been described based upon rotation in the direction of arrow Z, a system having the appropriate modifications to rotate in the opposite direction is contemplated herein. The direction Z may be concurrent with or counter to the rotational direction of the gas turbine engine rotors. In one embodiment the plurality of circumferentially spaced passageways 41 extend along the length of the wave rotor device 220 parallel to the center line X and are formed between the outer wall member 49 and an inner wall member 50 . The plurality of passageways 41 define a peripheral annulus 51 wherein adjacent passageways share a common wall member 52 that connects between the outer wall member 49 and the inner wall 50 so as to separate the fluid flow within each of the passageways. In an alternate embodiment each of the plurality of circumferentially spaced passageways are non-parallel to the center line, but are placed on a cone having different radii at the opposite ends of the rotor. In another embodiment, a dividing wall member divides each of the plurality of circumferentially spaced passageways, and in one form is located at a substantially mid-radial position. In yet another embodiment, each of the plurality of circumferentially spaced passageways form a helical rather than straight passageway. Further, in another embodiment, each of the plurality of circumferentially spaced passageways are placed on a surface of smoothly varying radial placement first toward lower radius and then toward larger radius over their axial extent.
The pair of wave rotor end plates 225 and 226 are fixedly positioned very closely adjacent to rotor 40 so as to control the passage of working fluid into and out of the plurality of passageways 41 as the rotor 40 rotates. End plates 225 and 226 are designed to be disposed in a sealing arrangement with the rotor 40 in order to minimize the leakage of fluid between the plurality of passageways 41 and the end plates. In an alternate embodiment, auxiliary seals are included between the end plates and the rotor to enhance sealing efficiency. Seal types, such as but not limited to, labrynth, gland or sliding seals are contemplated herein, however, the application of seals to a wave rotor is believed known to one of skill in the art.
With reference to FIG. 8, there is illustrated a space-time (wave) diagram for a pulsed detonation wave rotor engine. The pulsed detonation engine wave rotor described with the assistance of FIG. 8 has: the high pressure energy transfer gas outlet port 224 , the high pressure energy transfer gas inlet port 222 and the from-compressor inlet port 221 on the same end of the device; and the to-turbine outlet port 223 located on the opposite end of the device. In one form of the present invention there is defined a two port wave rotor cycle including one fluid flow inlet port and one fluid flow outlet port and having a high pressure buffer gas recirculation loop that may be considered internal to the wave rotor device. The high pressure energy transfer inlet port 222 is prior to and adjacent the from-compressor inlet port 221 . It can be observed that upon the rotation of rotor 40 each of the plurality of passageways 41 are sequentially brought in registration with the inlet ports 221 and 222 and the outlet ports 223 and 224 , and the path of a typical charge of fluid is along the respective passageways 41 . The wave diagram for the purpose of description may be started at any point, however, for convenience, the description is started at 227 wherein the low-pressure working fluid is admitted from the compressor. The concept of low pressure should not be understood in absolute manner, it is only low in comparison with the rest of the pressure level of gas within the pulsed detonation engine wave rotor.
The low pressure portion 227 of the wave rotor engine receives a supply of low-pressure working fluid from compressor 21 . The working fluid enters passageways 41 upon the from-compressor inlet port 221 being aligned with the respective passageways 41 . In one embodiment fuel is introduced into the region 225 by: stationery continuously operated spray nozzles (liquid) 227 or supply tubes (gas) 227 located within the duct 222 a leading to the high pressure energy transfer gas inlet port 222 ; or, into region 228 by intermittently actuated spray nozzles (liquid) 227 ′ or supply tubes (gas) 227 ′ located within the rotor; or, into region 228 by spray nozzles (liquid) 227 ″ or supply tubes (gas) 227 ″ located within the rotor end plate 226 . Region 228 exists at the end of the rotor and the region has a fuel content such that the mixture of fuel and working fluid is combustable.
A detonation is initiated from an end portion of the wave rotor 40 adjacent the region 228 and a detonation wave 232 travels through the fuel-working-fluid air mixture within the region 228 toward the opposite end of the rotor containing a working-fluid-without-fuel region 230 . In one form of the present invention, the detonation is initiated by a detonation initiator 233 , such as but not limited to a high energy spark discharge device. However, in an alternate form of the present invention the detonation is initiated by an auto-detonation process and does not include a detonation initiator. The detonation wave 232 travels along the length of the passageway and ceases with the absence of fuel at the gas interface 234 . Thereafter, a pressure wave 235 travels into the working-fluid-without-fuel region 230 of the passageway and compresses this working fluid to define a high-pressure buffer/energy transfer gas within region 236 . The concept of high pressure should not be understood in an absolute manner, it is only high in comparison with the rest of the pressure level of gas within the pulsed detonation engine wave rotor.
The high pressure buffer/energy transfer gas within region 236 exits the wave rotor device 220 through the buffer gas outlet port 224 . The combusted gases within the region 237 exits the wave rotor through the to-turbine outlet port 223 . Expansion of the combusted gas prior to entering the turbine results in a lower turbine inlet temperature without reducing the effective peak cycle temperature. As the combusted gas exits the outlet port 223 , the expansion process continues within the passageways 41 of the rotor and travels toward the opposite end of the passageway. As the expansion arrives at the end of the passage, the pressure of the gas within the region 238 at the end of the rotor opposite the to-turbine outlet port 223 declines. The wave rotor inlet port 222 opens and allows the flow of the high pressure buffer/energy transfer working fluid into the rotor at region 225 and causes the recompression of a portion of the combusted gases within the rotor. The admission of gas via port 222 can be accomplished by a shock wave. The flow of the high pressure buffer gas adds energy to the exhaust process of the combustion gas and allows the expansion of the combusted gas to be accomplished in a controlled, uniform energy process in one form of the invention. Thus, in one form the introduction of the high pressure buffer/energy transfer gas is adapted to maintain the high velocity flow of combusted gases exiting the wave rotor until substantially all of the combusted gas within the rotor is exhausted.
In one embodiment, the wave rotor inlet port 222 , which allows the introduction of the high pressure buffer/energy transfer gas, closes before the to-turbine outlet port 223 is closed. The closing of the wave rotor inlet port 222 causes an expansion process to occur within the high pressure buffer/energy transfer air within region 240 and lowers the pressure of the gas and creates a region 241 . This expansion process occurs within the buffer/energy transfer gas and allows this gas to preferentially remain within the rotor at the lowest pressure region of the rotor. The to-turbine outlet port 223 is closed as the expansion in region 240 reaches the exit end of the passageway. In one form of the present invention as illustrated in region 242 , a portion of the high pressure buffer/energy transfer gas exits through the outlet port 223 . This exiting buffer/energy transfer gas functions to insulate the duct wall 223 a from the hot combusted gas within region 226 of the duct 223 b . The pressure in region 241 has been lowered and the from-compressor inlet port 221 allows pre-compressed low pressure working fluid to enter the rotor passageways in the region 227 having the lowered pressure. The entering motion of the pre-compressed low-pressure working fluid through port 221 is stopped by the arrival of pressure wave 231 originating from the exit end of the rotor and traveling toward the inlet end. The pressure wave 231 originated from the closure of the to-turbine outlet port 223 . The design and construction of the wave rotor is such that the arrival of the pressure wave 231 corresponds with the closing of the from-compressor inlet port 221 .
With reference to FIG. 9, there is illustrated schematically an alternate embodiment of a propulsion system 300 . In one embodiment the propulsion system 300 includes a fluid inlet 31 , a pulsed combustion detonation engine wave rotor 220 and a nozzle 32 . The wave rotor device 220 is identical to the wave rotor described in propulsion system 200 and like feature numbers will be utilized to indicate like features. In one form propulsion system 30 is adapted to produce thrust without incorporation of conventional turbomachinery components. The working fluid passing through the inlet 31 is conveyed through the first wave rotor inlet port 221 and into the wave rotor 220 . High pressure buffer gas is discharged through wave rotor outlet port 224 and passes back into the wave rotor device through wave rotor inlet port 222 . The relatively high energy flow of combusted gases flows out of the outlet port 223 and exits through nozzle 32 to produce motive power.
With reference to FIG. 10, there is illustrated schematically an alternate embodiment of a rocket type propulsion system 400 . In one embodiment, the propulsion system 400 includes an oxidizer and working gas storage tank 101 , a pulsed combustion detonation engine wave rotor 220 and a nozzle 32 . The wave rotor device 220 is identical to the wave rotor described in propulsion system 200 and like feature numbers will be utilized to indicate like features. In one form propulsion system 400 is adapted to produce thrust without incorporation of conventional turbomachinery components. The first wave rotor inlet port 221 is in fluid communication with the oxidizer and working gas storage tank 101 and receives a quantity of working fluid therefrom. High pressure buffer gas is discharged through the wave rotor outlet port 224 and passes back into the wave rotor device through wave rotor inlet port 222 . The relatively high energy flow of combusted gases pass out of the outlet port 223 and exits nozzle 32 to produce motive power.
A few of the additional alternate embodiments (not illustrated) contemplated herein will be described in comparison to the embodiment of FIG. 9 . The utilization of like feature numbers is intended to represent like features. One of the alternate embodiments includes a turbomachine type compressor placed immediately ahead of the wave rotor 220 and adapted to supply a compressed fluid to inlet 221 . The turbomachine type compressor is driven by shaft power derived from the wave rotor 220 . A second alternate embodiment includes a conventional turbine placed downstream of the wave rotor 220 and adapted to be supplied with the gas exiting port 223 . The second type of alternate embodiment does not include a nozzle and delivers only engine output shaft power.
The present invention is also applicable to a mechanical device wherein the plurality of fluid flow passageways are stationery, the inlet and outlet ports are rotatable, and the gas flows and processes occurring within the fluid flow passageways are substantially similar to those described previously in this document. Referring to FIG. 11, there is illustrated a partially exploded view of one embodiment of the wave rotor device 320 . The description of a wave rotor device having rotatable inlet and outlet ports is not limited to the embodiment of device 320 , and is applicable to other wave rotors including but not limited to the embodiments associated with FIGS. 1-5 and 9 - 10 . The utilization of like feature numbers will be utilized to describe like features. In one form wave rotor device 320 comprises a stationary portion 340 centered about a centerline X and having a plurality of fluid passageways 41 positioned between two rotatable endplates 325 and 326 . The endplates 325 and 326 are rotated to pass by the fluid passageways a plurality of inlet ports 221 and 222 and outlet ports 224 and 223 . Endplates 325 and 326 are connected to shaft 348 and form a rotatable endplate assembly. In one embodiment a member 349 mechanically fixes the endplates 325 and 326 to the shaft 348 . Further, the endplate assembly is rotatably supported by bearings, which are not illustrated. In one embodiment the endplates 325 and 326 are fitted adjacent to stationary ducted passages between the compressor 21 and turbine 23 . Sealing between the stationary ducts and the rotating endplates is accomplished by methods and devices believed known of those skilled in the art. In a preferred form the stationary portion 340 defines a ring and the plurality of fluid passageways 41 are positioned about the circumference of the ring.
In one form a conventional rotational device is utilized to accomplish the rotation of the endplate assembly including endplates 325 and 326 . In another form the gas turbine 23 can be used as the means to cause rotation of the endplates 325 and 326 . In another embodiment the endplate assembly is a self-turning, freewheeling design; wherein freewheeling indicates no independent drive means are required. In one form the freewheeling design is contemplated with the use of an endplate designed so as to capture a portion of the momentum energy of the fluid exit stream of port 224 and hence provide motive force for rotation of the endplate. In another form the freewheeling design is contemplated to be driven by a portion of the momentum energy of the exit stream of port 223 . In another form the freewheeling design is contemplated to be driven by a portion of the momentum energy of the inlet stream of port 222 . In yet another form the freewheeling design is contemplated to be driven by a portion of the momentum energy of the inlet stream of port 221 . In all cases a portion of the endplate port flowpath may contain features turning the fluid stream within one or two exit endplate port flowpaths and one or two inlet endplate port flowpaths in the tangential direction hence converting fluid momentum energy to power to rotate the endplate. The use of curved or angled passageways within the stationary portion 340 may aid in this process by imparting tangential momentum to the exit flow streams which may be captured within the endplate through turning of the fluid stream back to the axial direction. In each of these ways the rotating endplate assembly may also provide useful shaft power beyond that required to turn the endplate assembly. This work can be used for purposes such as but not limited to, driving an upstream compressor, powering engine accessories (fuel pump, electrical power generator, engine hydraulics) and/or to provide engine output shaft power. The types of rotational devices and methods for causing rotation of the endplate assembly is not intended to be limited herein and include other methods and devices for causing rotation of the endplate assembly as occur to one of ordinary skill in the art. One form of the present invention contemplates rotational speeds of the endplate assembly within a range of about 1,000 to about 100,000 revolutions per minute, and more preferably about 10,000 revolutions per minute. However, the present invention is not intended to be limited to these rotational speeds unless specifically stated herein.
The endplates 325 and 326 are fixedly coupled to the shaft 348 that is rotatable on a pair of bearings (not illustrated). In one form of the present invention the endplates rotate about the centerline X in the direction of arrow C. While the present invention has been described based upon rotation in the direction of arrow C, a system having the appropriate modifications to rotate in the opposite direction is contemplated herein. The direction C may be concurrent with or counter to the rotational direction of the gas turbine engine rotors.
The pair of rotating endplates 325 and 326 are fixedly positioned very closely adjacent the stationary portion 340 so as to control the passage of working fluid into and out of the plurality of passageways 41 as the endplates rotate. Endplates 325 and 326 are designed to be disposed in a sealing arrangement with the stationary portion 340 in order to minimize the leakage of fluid between the plurality of passageways 41 and the endplates. In an alternate embodiment auxiliary seals are included between the end plates and the rotor to enhance sealing efficiency. Seal types, such as but not limited to, labrynth, gland or sliding seals are contemplated herein, however the application of seals to a wave rotor is believed known to one of skill in the art.
All publications, patents, and patent applications cited in this specification are herein incorporated by reference as if each individual publication, patent, or patent application were specifically and individually indicated to be incorporated by reference and set forth in its entirety herein. 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 embodiment has been shown and described and that all changes, equivalents, and modifications that come within the spirit of the invention are desired to be protected. | A pulsed detonation engine wave rotor apparatus and method of using a pressure wave to compress a buffer gas disposed within the engine flow passages. The high pressure buffer gas is routed out of the wave rotor and subsequently reintroduced to the wave rotor to discharge and scavenge the latter stages of the combustion gas remaining under the engine flow passages. | Analyze the document's illustrations and descriptions to summarize the main idea's core structure and function. | [
"BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates generally to a non-steady flow device utilizing pulse combustion to produce thrust.",
"More particularly, in one embodiment of the present invention a wave rotor utilizing pulse detonation compresses an energy transfer gas disposed within the wave rotor flow passages.",
"The compressed energy transfer gas is routed out of a first port of the wave rotor and reintroduced through a second port into the wave rotor to forcefully discharge and scavenge the latter stages of combustion gases within the wave rotor flow passages.",
"Although the present invention was developed for use with wave rotor based pulsed detonation engines, certain applications may be outside of this field.",
"A wave rotor is generally thought of as a generic term and describes a class of machines utilizing transient internal fluid flow to efficiently accomplish a desired flow process.",
"Since the 1940's wave rotors have been studied by engineers and scientists and thought of as particularly suitable for a propulsion system.",
"Wave rotors depend on wave phenomena as the basis of their operation, and these wave phenomena have the potential to be exploited in novel propulsion systems which include benefits such as higher specific power and lower specific fuel consumption.",
"There are a variety of wave rotor devices that have been conceived of over the years.",
"While these prior wave rotors and methods of using transient gas flows are steps in the right direction the need for additional improvement still remains.",
"The present invention satisfies this need in a novel and unobvious way.",
"SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION One form of the present invention contemplates a pulsed combustion wave rotor engine utilizing a flow of buffer gas to scavenge the latter stages of the expansion and enhance the discharge of combusted gas from the rotor.",
"The present invention contemplates a device having rotatable passageways or rotatable endplates with ports therein.",
"Another form of the present invention contemplates a method, comprising: introducing a quantity of working fluid into a passageway of a wave rotor;",
"placing a fuel within one end of the passageway;",
"combusting the fuel within the passageway and creating a quantity of combusted gas adjacent the one end of the passageway and compressing a portion of the working fluid within the passageway to define a high pressure buffer gas adjacent the combusted gas within the passageway;",
"discharging the high pressure buffer gas out of the passageway;",
"discharging a first portion of the combusted gas out of the passageway;",
"and routing the high pressure buffer gas from the discharging back into the passageway to purge a second portion of the combusted gas out of the passageway.",
"In another form of the present invention there is contemplated a method, comprising: providing a wave rotor device including a rotatable rotor with a plurality cells adapted for the passage of fluid therethrough, the rotor having a direction of rotation;",
"rotating the rotor to pass the plurality of cells by a plurality of inlet ports and a plurality of outlet ports;",
"flowing a working fluid through one of the plurality of inlet ports and into at least one of the cells;",
"introducing a fuel into the at least one of the cells at the inlet end portion;",
"detonating the fuel and a first portion of the working fluid within the at least one of the cells, the detonating forming combusted gas and compressing a second portion of the working fluid to define a high pressure buffer gas;",
"discharging the high pressure buffer gas through one of the plurality of outlet ports;",
"discharging a first portion of the combusted gas through another of the plurality of outlet ports;",
"and routing in the direction of rotation of the rotor the high pressure buffer gas from the one of the plurality of outlet ports and reintroducing through another of the plurality of inlet ports into the at least one of the cells to discharge a second portion of the combusted gas from the cell.",
"In a further form of the present invention there is contemplated a method, comprising: providing a wave rotor device including a plurality of stationary passageways adapted for the passage of fluid therethrough;",
"rotating a plurality of inlet ports and a plurality of outlet ports by the plurality of stationary passageways to control the passage of fluid into and out of the stationary passageways, the plurality of ports having a direction of rotation;",
"flowing a working fluid through one of the plurality of inlet ports and into at least one of the stationary passageways;",
"introducing a fuel into the at least one of the stationary passageways;",
"detonating the fuel and a first portion of the working fluid within the at least one of the stationary passageways, said detonating forming combusted gas and compressing a second portion of the working fluid to define a high pressure buffer gas;",
"discharging the high pressure buffer gas through one of the plurality of outlet ports;",
"discharging a first portion of the combusted gas through another of the plurality of outlet ports;",
"and routing in the direction of rotation of the ports the high pressure buffer gas from the one of the plurality of outlet ports and reintroducing through another of the plurality of inlet ports into the at least one of the stationary passageways to discharge a second portion of the combusted gas from the passageway.",
"One object of the present invention is to provide a unique pulsed combustion engine wave rotor.",
"Related objects and advantages of the present invention will be apparent from the following description.",
"BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a schematic representation of a propulsion system comprising a compressor, a pulsed combustion engine wave rotor, a turbine, a nozzle and an output power shaft.",
"FIG. 1 a is a schematic representation of an alternate embodiment of a propulsion system comprising a compressor, a pulsed combustion engine wave rotor, a turbine, a nozzle and an output power shaft.",
"FIG. 2 is a partially exploded view of one embodiment of a pulsed combustion engine wave rotor comprising a portion of FIG. 1 .",
"FIG. 3 is a space-time (wave) diagram for one embodiment of a pulsed detonation engine wave rotor of the present invention wherein the high-pressure energy transfer gas outlet port and the exhaust gas to-turbine port are on the same end of the device.",
"FIG. 4 is a schematic representation of a pulsed combustion engine wave rotor intended to be used as a direct thrust-producing propulsion system without conventional turbomachinery components.",
"FIG. 5 is a schematic representation of another embodiment of a pulsed combustion engine wave rotor intended to be used as a direct thrust-producing propulsion system without conventional turbomachinery components.",
"FIG. 6 is a schematic representation of an alternate embodiment of a propulsion system comprising a compressor, a pulsed combustion engine wave rotor, a turbine, a nozzle and an output power shaft.",
"FIG. 6 a is a schematic representation of another embodiment of a propulsion system comprising a compressor, a pulsed combustion engine wave rotor, a turbine, a nozzle and an output power shaft.",
"FIG. 7 is a partially exploded view of one embodiment of a pulsed combustion engine wave rotor comprising a portion of FIG. 6 .",
"FIG. 8 is a space-time (wave) diagram for an alternate embodiment of a pulsed detonation engine wave rotor wherein the high-pressure energy transfer gas outlet port and the combustion gas exit port are on opposite ends of the device.",
"FIG. 9 is a schematic representation of a pulsed combustion engine wave rotor intended to be used as a direct thrust-producing propulsion system without conventional turbomachinery components.",
"FIG. 10 is a schematic representation of another embodiment of a pulsed combustion engine wave rotor intended to be used as a direct thrust-producing propulsion system without conventional turbomachinery components.",
"FIG. 11 is a partially exploded view of another embodiment of a pulsed combustion engine wave rotor comprising stationary fluid flow passageways between rotatable endplates having inlet and outlet ports.",
"DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS For the purpose 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.",
"Any alterations and further modifications in the described embodiments, and any further applications of the principles of the invention as described herein are contemplated as would normally occur to one skilled in the art to which the invention relates.",
"With reference to FIG. 1, there is illustrated a schematic representation of a propulsion system 20 which includes a compressor 21 , a pulsed combustion wave rotor 22 , a turbine 23 , a nozzle 32 , and an output power shaft 26 .",
"The compressor 21 delivers a precompressed working fluid to the pulsed combustion wave rotor device 22 .",
"Wave rotor device 22 has occurring within its passageways the combustion of a fuel and air mixture, and thereafter the combusted gases are delivered to the turbine 23 .",
"The working fluid that is precompressed by the compressor 21 and delivered to the wave rotor device 22 is selected from a group including oxygen, nitrogen, carbon dioxide, helium or a mixture thereof, and more preferably is air.",
"In one embodiment the pulsed combustion wave rotor device 22 replaces the compressor diffuser and combustor of a conventional gas turbine engine.",
"The present invention contemplates both a pulsed detonation combustion process and a pulsed deflagration combustion process.",
"While the present invention will generally be described in terms of a pulsed detonation combustion process, it also contemplates a pulsed deflagration combustion process.",
"In one embodiment the components of the propulsion system 20 have been integrated together to produce an aircraft flight propulsion engine capable of producing either shaft power or direct thrust or both.",
"The term aircraft is generic and includes helicopters, airplanes, missiles, unmanned space devices and other substantially similar devices.",
"It is important to realize that there are multitudes of ways in which the propulsion engine components can be linked together.",
"Additional compressors and turbines could be added with inter-coolers connected between the compressors and reheat combustion chambers could be added between the turbines.",
"The propulsion system of the present invention is suited to be used for industrial applications, such as but not limited to pumping sets for gas or oil transmission lines, electricity generation and naval propulsion.",
"Further, the propulsion system of the present invention is also suitable to be used for ground vehicular propulsion requiring the use of shaft power such as automobiles and trucks.",
"With reference to FIGS. 1-3, further aspects of the propulsion system 20 will be described.",
"Compressor 21 is operable to increase the pressure of the working fluid between the compressor inlet 24 and the compressor outlet 25 .",
"The increase in working fluid pressure is represented by a pressure ratio (pressure at outlet/pressure at inlet) and the working fluid is delivered to a first wave rotor inlet port 42 .",
"The first wave rotor inlet port 42 generally defines a working fluid inlet port and is not intended to be limited to an inlet port that is coupled to the outlet of a conventional turbomachinery component.",
"A second wave rotor inlet port 43 is referred to as a buffer gas inlet port, and is located adjacent to and sequentially prior to the first wave rotor inlet port 42 .",
"Wave rotor inlet ports 42 and 43 form an inlet port sequence, and multiple inlet port sequences can be integrated into a waver rotor device.",
"In one preferred embodiment there are two inlet port sequences disposed along the circumference of the wave rotor device.",
"Wave rotor device 22 has an outlet port sequence that includes an outlet port 45 and a buffer gas outlet port 44 .",
"The outlet port 45 generally defines a combusted gas outlet port and is not intended to be limited to an outlet port that is coupled to a turbine.",
"In the preferred embodiment of propulsion system 20 the outlet port 45 is defined as to-turbine outlet port 45 .",
"The to-turbine outlet port 45 in propulsion system 20 allows the combusted gases to exit the wave rotor device 22 and pass to the turbine 23 .",
"Compressed buffer gas exits the buffer gas outlet port 44 and is reintroduced into the rotor passageways 41 through the second wave rotor inlet port 43 .",
"In one embodiment the buffer gas outlet port 44 and the second wave rotor inlet port 43 are connected in fluid communication by a duct.",
"In one form the duct between the outlet port 44 and outlet port 43 is integral with the wave rotor device 22 and passes through the interior of rotor 40 .",
"In another form the duct passes through the center of shaft 48 .",
"In another form of the present invention the duct is physically external to the wave rotor device 22 .",
"The reintroduced compressed buffer gas does work on the remaining combusted gases within the rotor passageways 41 and causes the pressure in region 70 to remain at an elevated level.",
"The relatively high energy flow of combusted gases from the to-turbine port 45 is maintained in region 74 by the reintroduction of the high pressure buffer gas entering through the second wave rotor inlet port 43 .",
"The flow of the high pressure buffer gas from buffer gas outlet port 44 to the second wave rotor inlet port 43 is illustrated schematically by arrow B in FIG. 3 .",
"In one form of the present invention a portion of the high pressure buffer gas exiting through outlet port 44 can be used as a source of turbine cooling fluid.",
"More specifically, in certain forms of a propulsion system of the present invention the pressure of the gas stream going to the turbine 23 through exit port 45 is higher than the pressure of the working fluid at the compressor discharge 25 .",
"Therefore, the requirement for higher pressure cooling fluid can be met by taking a portion of the high pressure buffer gas exiting port 44 and delivering to the appropriate location(s) within the turbine.",
"With reference to FIG. 1 a , there is illustrated the delivery of the high pressure buffer gas exiting through outlet port 44 and being delivered through passageway 510 to the turbine.",
"Wave rotor outlet ports 44 and 45 form the outlet port sequence, and multiple outlet port sequences can be integrated into a waver rotor device.",
"In one preferred embodiment there are two outlet port sequences disposed along the circumference of the wave rotor device.",
"The inlet port sequence and the outlet port sequence are combined with the rotatable rotor to form a pulsed combustion wave rotor engine.",
"Routing of the compressed buffer gas from the buffer gas outlet port 44 into the wave rotor passageways 41 via port 43 provides for: high pressure flow issuing generally uniformly from the to-turbine outlet port 45 ;",
"and/or, a cooling effect delivered rapidly and in a prolonged fashion to the rotor walls defining the rotor passageways 41 following the combustion process;",
"and/or, a reduction and smoothing of pressure in the inlet port 42 thereby aiding in the rapid and substantially uniform drawing in of working fluid from the compressor 21 .",
"Combusted gasses exiting through the to-turbine outlet port 45 pass to the turbine 23 where shaft power is produced to power the compressor 21 .",
"Additional power may be produced to be used in the form of output shaft power.",
"Further, combusted gas leaves the turbine 23 and enters the nozzle 32 where thrust is produced.",
"The construction and details related to the utilization of a nozzle to produce thrust will not be described herein as it is believed known to one of ordinary skill in the art of engine design.",
"Referring to FIG. 2, there is illustrated a partially exploded view of one embodiment of the wave rotor device 22 .",
"Wave rotor device 22 comprises a rotor 40 that is rotatable about a centerline X and passes a plurality of fluid passageways 41 by a plurality of inlet ports 42 , 43 and outlet ports 44 , 45 that are formed in end plates 46 and 47 .",
"Preferably, the rotor is cylindrical, however other geometric shapes are contemplated herein.",
"In one embodiment the end plates 46 and 47 are coupled to stationary ducted passages between the compressor 21 and the turbine 23 .",
"The pluralities of fluid passageways 41 are positioned about the circumference of the wave rotor device 22 .",
"In one form the rotation of the rotor 40 is accomplished through a conventional rotational device.",
"In another form the gas turbine 23 can be used as the means to cause rotation of the wave rotor 40 .",
"In another embodiment the wave rotor is a self-turning, freewheeling design;",
"wherein freewheeling indicates no independent drive means are required.",
"In one form the freewheeling design is contemplated with angling and/or curving of the rotor passageways.",
"In another form the freewheeling design is contemplated to be driven by the angling of the inlet duct 42 a so as to allow the incoming fluid flow to impart angular momentum to the rotor 40 .",
"In yet another form the freewheeling design is contemplated to be driven by angling of the inlet duct 43 a so as to allow the incoming fluid flow to impart angular momentum to the rotor.",
"Further, it is contemplated that the inlet ducts 42 a and 43 a can both be angled, one of the inlet ducts is angled or neither is angled.",
"The use of curved or angled rotor passageways within the rotor and/or by imparting momentum to the rotor through one of the inlet flow streams, the wave rotor may produce useful shaft power.",
"This work can be used for purposes such as but not limited to, driving an upstream compressor, powering engine accessories (fuel pump, electrical power generator, engine hydraulics) and/or to provide engine output shaft power.",
"The types of rotational devices and methods for causing rotation of the rotor 40 is not intended to be limited herein and include other methods and devices for causing rotation of the rotor 40 as occur to one of ordinary skill in the art.",
"One form of the present invention contemplates rotational speeds of the rotor within a range of about 1,000 to about 100,000 revolutions per minute, and more preferably about 10,000 revolutions per minute.",
"However, the present invention is not intended to be limited to these rotational speeds unless specifically stated herein.",
"The wave rotor/cell rotor 40 is fixedly coupled to a shaft 48 that is rotatable on a pair of bearings (not illustrated).",
"In one form of the present invention the wave rotor/cell rotor rotates about the centerline X in the direction of arrow Z. While the present invention has been described based upon rotation in the direction of arrow Z, a system having the appropriate modifications to rotate in the opposite direction is contemplated herein.",
"The direction Z may be concurrent with or counter to the rotational direction of the gas turbine engine rotors.",
"In one embodiment the plurality of circumferentially spaced passageways 41 extend along the length of the wave rotor device 22 parallel to the centerline X and are formed between an outer wall member 49 and an inner wall member 50 .",
"The plurality of passageways 41 define a peripheral annulus 51 wherein adjacent passageways share a common wall member 52 that connects between the outer wall member 49 and the inner wall member 50 so as to separate the fluid flow within each of the passageways.",
"In an alternate embodiment each of the plurality of circumferentially spaced passageways are non-parallel to the centerline, but are placed on a cone having differing radii at the opposite ends of the rotor.",
"In another embodiment, each of the plurality of circumferentially spaced passageways are placed on a surface of smoothly varying radial placement first toward lower radius and then toward larger radius over their axial extent.",
"In yet another embodiment, a dividing wall member divides each of the plurality of circumferentially spaced passageways, and in one form is located at a substantially mid-radial position of the passageway.",
"In yet another embodiment, each of the plurality of circumferentially spaced passages form a helical rather than straight axial passageway.",
"The pair of wave rotor end plates 46 and 47 are fixedly positioned very closely adjacent the rotor 40 so as to control the passage of working fluid into and out of the plurality of passageways 41 as the rotor 40 rotates.",
"End plates 46 and 47 are designed to be disposed in a sealing arrangement with the rotor 40 in order to minimize the leakage of fluid between the plurality of passageways 41 and the end plates.",
"In an alternate embodiment auxiliary seals are included between the end plates and the rotor to enhance sealing efficiency.",
"Seal types, such as but not limited to, labrynth, gland or sliding seals are contemplated herein, however the application of seals to a wave rotor is believed known to one of skill in the art.",
"With reference to FIG. 3, there is illustrated a space-time (wave) diagram for a pulsed detonation wave rotor engine.",
"A pulsed detonation combustion process is a substantially constant volume combustion process.",
"The pulsed detonation engine wave rotor described with the assistance of FIG. 3 has: the high pressure energy transfer gas outlet port 44 and the to-turbine outlet port 45 located on the same end of the device;",
"and the high pressure energy transfer gas inlet port 43 and the from-compressor inlet port 42 on the same end of the device.",
"In one form of the present invention there is defined a two port wave rotor cycle including one fluid flow inlet port and one fluid flow outlet port and having a high pressure buffer gas transfer recirculation loop that may be considered internal to the wave rotor device.",
"The high pressure energy transfer inlet port 43 is prior to and adjacent the from-compressor inlet port 42 .",
"Arrow Q indicates the direction of rotation of the rotor 40 .",
"It can be observed that upon the rotation of rotor 40 , each of the plurality of passageways 41 are sequentially brought into registration with the inlet ports 42 , 43 and the outlet ports 44 , 45 and the path of a typical charge of fluid is along the respective passageway 41 .",
"The wave diagram for the purpose of description may be started at any point, however for convenience the description is started at 60 wherein the low-pressure working fluid is admitted from the compressor.",
"The concept of low pressure should not be understood in an absolute manner, it is only low in comparison with the rest of the pressure levels of gas within the pulsed detonation engine wave rotor.",
"The low-pressure portion 60 of the wave rotor engine receives a supply of low-pressure working fluid from compressor 21 .",
"The working fluid enters passageways 41 upon the from-compressor inlet port 42 being aligned with the respective passageways 41 .",
"In one embodiment fuel is introduced into the low-pressure portion 60 by: stationary continuously operated spray nozzles (liquid) 61 or supply tubes (gas) 61 located within the inlet duct 42 a leading to the from-compressor inlet port 42 ;",
"or, into region 62 by intermittently actuated spray nozzles (liquid) 61 ″ or supply tubes (gas) 61 ′ located within the rotor;",
"or, into region 62 by spray nozzles (liquid) 61 ″ or supply tubes (gas) 61 ″ located within the rotor endplate 46 .",
"Separating region 60 and 62 is a pressure wave 73 originating from the closure of the to-turbine outlet port 45 .",
"In this way, a region 62 exists at one end of the rotor and the region has a fuel content such that the mixture of fuel and working fluid is combustable.",
"The fuel air mixture in one end of the rotor, regions 60 and 62 , is thus separated from hot residual combustion gas within regions 68 and 69 by the buffer gas entering the rotor through port 43 and traveling through regions 70 , 71 , 72 and 64 .",
"In this way undesirable pre-ignition of the fuel air mixture of regions 60 and 62 is inhibited.",
"A detonation is initiated from an end portion of the rotor 40 adjacent the region 62 and a detonation wave 63 travels through the fuel air mixture within the region 62 toward the opposite end of the rotor containing a working-fluid-without-fuel region 64 .",
"In one form of the present invention the detonation is initiated by a detonation initiator 80 such as but not limited to a high energy spark discharge device.",
"However, in an alternate form of the present invention the detonation is initiated as an auto-detonation process and does not include a detonation initiator.",
"The detonation wave 63 travels along the length of the passageway and ceases with the absence of fuel at the gas interface 65 .",
"Thereafter, a pressure wave 66 travels into the working-fluid-without-fuel region 64 of the passageway and compresses this working fluid to define a high-pressure buffer/energy transfer gas within region 67 .",
"The concept of high pressure should not be understood in an absolute manner, it is only high in comparison with the rest of the pressure level of gas within the pulsed detonation engine wave rotor.",
"In one embodiment the high pressure buffer/energy transfer gas is a non-vitiated working fluid.",
"In another embodiment the high pressure buffer/energy transfer gas is comprised of working fluid having experienced the combustion of fuel (vitiated) regardless of what other compression or expansion process have taken place after the combustion.",
"Working fluid of this type would generally be characterized as having a portion of the oxygen depleted, the products of combustion present and the associated entropy increase remaining relative to the non-combusted working fluid starting from the same initial state and undergoing the same post combustion processes.",
"An incomplete mixing can take place between the vitiated and non-vitiated gas portions adjoining each other in the passageway and thus realize a mixture of the two which thus comprises the high pressure buffer/energy transfer gas.",
"The high pressure buffer/energy transfer gas within region 67 exits the wave rotor device 22 through the buffer gas outlet port 44 .",
"The combustion gases within the region 68 exit the wave rotor through the to-turbine outlet port 45 .",
"Expansion of the combusted gas prior to entering the turbine results in a lower turbine inlet temperature without reducing the effective peak cycle temperature.",
"As the combusted gas exits the outlet port 45 , the expansion process continues within the passageway 41 of the rotor and travels toward the opposite end of the passageway.",
"As the expansion arrives at the end of the passage, the pressure of the gas within the region 69 at the end of the rotor opposite the to-turbine outlet port 45 declines.",
"The wave rotor inlet port 43 opens and allows the flow of the high pressure buffer/energy transfer working fluid into the rotor at region 70 and causes the recompression of a portion of the combustion gases within the rotor.",
"In one embodiment, the admission of gas via port 43 can be accomplished by a shock wave.",
"However, in another embodiment the admission is accomplished without a shock wave.",
"The flow of the high pressure buffer gas adds energy to the exhaust process of the combustion gas and allows the expansion of the combusted gas to be accomplished in a controlled uniform energy process in one form of the invention.",
"Thus, in one form the introduction of the high pressure buffer/energy transfer gas is adapted to maintain the high velocity flow of combusted gases exiting the wave rotor until substantially all of the combusted gas within the rotor is exhausted.",
"In one embodiment, the wave rotor inlet port 43 , which allows the introduction of the high-pressure buffer/energy transfer gas, closes before the to-turbine outlet port 45 is closed.",
"The closing of the wave rotor inlet port 43 causes an expansion process to occur within the high pressure buffer/energy transfer air within region 71 and lowers the pressure of the gas and creates a region 72 .",
"Following the creation of this lowered pressure gas region 72 , a passageway 41 is in registration with port 42 and gas flowing within port 42 enters the passageway 41 creating region 60 .",
"The strong and compact nature of the expansion process in region 71 causes a beneficially large pressure difference between the pressure in port 45 and the pressure in port 42 .",
"In one embodiment the pressure of the gas delivered to the turbine 23 is higher than the pressure delivered from the compressor 21 and hence the power output of the engine enhanced and/or the quantity of fuel required to generate power in the turbine is reduced.",
"The term enhanced and reduced are in reference to an engine utilizing a combustion device of common practice, having constant or lowering pressure, located between the compressor and turbine in the place of the present invention.",
"The expansion process 71 occurs within the buffer/energy transfer gas and allows substantially all of the combustion gases of region 68 to exit the rotor leaving the lowest pressure region of the rotor consisting essentially of expanded buffer/energy transfer gas.",
"The to-turbine outlet port 45 is closed as the expansion in region 71 reaches the exit end of the passageway.",
"In one form of the present invention as illustrated in region 75 a portion of the high-pressure buffer/energy transfer gas exits through the outlet port 45 .",
"This gas acts to insulate the duct walls 45 a from the hot combusted gas within region 74 of the duct 45 b. In an alternate embodiment the high pressure buffer/energy transfer gas is not directed to insulate and cool the duct walls 45 a .",
"The pressure in region 72 has been lowered, and the from-compressor inlet port 42 allows pre-compressed low-pressure air to enter the rotor passageway in the region 60 having the lowered pressure.",
"The entering motion of the precompressed low-pressure air through port 42 is stopped by the arrival of a pressure wave 73 originating from the exit end of the rotor and traveling toward the inlet end.",
"The pressure wave 73 originated from the closure of the to-turbine outlet port 45 .",
"The design and construction of the wave rotor is such that the arrival of pressure wave 73 corresponds with the closing of the from-compressor inlet port 42 .",
"With reference to FIG. 4, there is illustrated schematically an alternate embodiment of a propulsion system 30 .",
"In one embodiment the propulsion system 30 includes a fluid inlet 31 , a pulsed combustion detonation engine wave rotor 22 and nozzle 32 .",
"The wave rotor device 22 is identical to the wave rotor described in propulsion system 20 and like feature number will be utilized to describe like features.",
"In one form propulsion system 30 is adapted to produce thrust without incorporation of conventional turbomachinery components.",
"In one embodiment the combustion gases exiting the wave rotor are directed through the nozzle 32 to produce motive power.",
"The working fluid passing through inlet 31 is conveyed through the first wave rotor inlet port 42 and into the wave rotor device 22 .",
"High pressure buffer gas is discharged through wave rotor outlet port 44 and passes back into the wave rotor device through wave rotor inlet port 43 .",
"The relatively high energy flow of combusted gases flows out of outlet port 45 and exits nozzle 32 .",
"With reference to FIG. 5, there is illustrated schematically an alternate embodiment of a rocket type propulsion system 100 .",
"In one embodiment, the propulsion system 100 includes an oxidizer and working gas storage tank 101 , a pulsed combustion detonation engine wave rotor 22 and nozzle 32 .",
"The wave rotor device 22 is identical to the wave rotor device discussed previously for propulsion system 20 and like feature numbers will be utilized to describe like features.",
"In one form propulsion system 100 is adapted to produce thrust without incorporation of conventional turbomachinery components.",
"The first wave rotor inlet port 42 is in fluid communication with the oxidizer and working gas storage tank 100 and receives a quantity of working fluid therefrom.",
"High pressure buffer gas is discharged through the wave rotor outlet port 44 and passes back into the wave rotor device through wave rotor inlet port 43 .",
"The relatively high energy flow of combusted gases pass out of the outlet port 45 and exits nozzle 32 to produce motive power.",
"A few additional alternate embodiments (not illustrated) contemplated herein will be described in comparison to the embodiment of FIG. 4 .",
"The use of like feature numbers is intended to represent like features.",
"One of the alternate embodiments is a propulsion system including a turbomachine type compressor placed immediately ahead of the wave rotor 22 and adapted to supply a compressed fluid to inlet 42 .",
"The turbomachine type compressor is driven by shaft power derived from the wave rotor 22 .",
"Another of the alternate embodiments includes a conventional turbine placed downstream of the wave rotor 22 and adapted to be supplied with the gas exiting port 45 .",
"The second type of alternate embodiment does not include a nozzle and delivers only engine output shaft power.",
"A third embodiment contemplated herein is similar to the embodiment of FIG. 1, but the nozzle 32 has been removed and is utilized for delivering output shaft power.",
"The prior list of alternate embodiments is not intended to be limiting to the types of alternate embodiments contemplated herein.",
"With reference to FIG. 6, there is illustrated a schematic representation of an alternate embodiment of propulsion system 200 which includes compressor 21 , a pulsed combustion wave rotor 220 , a turbine 23 , a nozzle 32 and an output power shaft 26 .",
"The propulsion system 200 is substantially similar to the propulsion system 20 and like features numbers will be utilized to describe like elements.",
"More specifically, the propulsion system 200 is substantially similar to the propulsion system 20 and the details relating to system 200 will focus on the alternative pulsed detonation engine wave rotor 220 .",
"With reference to FIGS. 6-8, further aspects of the propulsion system 200 will be described.",
"As discussed previously, a substantial portion of the propulsion system 200 is identical to the propulsion system 20 and this information will not be repeated as it has been set forth previously.",
"A pressurized working fluid passes through the compressor outlet 25 and is delivered to a first wave rotor inlet port 221 .",
"A second wave rotor inlet port 222 is referred to as a buffer gas inlet port, and is located adjacent to and sequentially prior to the first wave rotor inlet port 221 .",
"Wave rotor inlet ports 221 and 222 form an inlet port sequence, and multiple inlet port sequences can be integrated into a wave rotor device.",
"In one preferred embodiment there are two inlet port sequences disposed along the circumference of the wave rotor device 220 .",
"Wave rotor device 220 has an outlet port sequence that includes an outlet port 223 and a buffer gas outlet port 224 .",
"In one embodiment of propulsion system 200 the outlet port 223 is defined as a to-turbine outlet port 223 .",
"The to-turbine outlet port 223 of propulsion system 200 allows the combusted gases to exit the wave rotor device 220 and pass to the turbine 223 .",
"Compressed buffer gas exits the buffer gas outlet port 224 and is reintroduced into the rotor passageways 41 through the second wave rotor inlet port 222 .",
"In one embodiment, the buffer gas outlet port 224 and the second wave rotor inlet port 222 are connected in fluid communication by a duct.",
"In a further alternate embodiment, the duct functions as a high pressure buffer gas reservoir and/or is connected to an auxiliary reservoir which is designed and constructed to hold a quantity of high pressure buffer gas.",
"This reintroduced buffer gas does work on the remaining combusted gases within the rotor passageways 41 and causes the pressure in region 225 to remain at an elevated level.",
"The relatively high energy flow of combusted gases from the to-turbine port 223 is maintained in region 226 by the reintroduction of the high pressure buffer gas entering through the second wave rotor inlet port 222 .",
"The flow of the high pressure buffer gas from buffer gas outlet port 224 to the second wave rotor inlet port 222 is illustrated schematically by arrows C in FIG. 8 .",
"Wave rotor device 220 has an outlet port sequence that includes an outlet port 223 and a buffer gas outlet port 224 .",
"In one embodiment of propulsion system 200 the outlet port 223 is defined as a to-turbine outlet port 223 .",
"The to-turbine outlet port 223 of propulsion system 200 allows the combusted gases to exit the wave rotor device 220 and pass to the turbine 223 .",
"Compressed buffer gas exits the buffer gas outlet port 224 and is reintroduced into the rotor passageways 41 through the second wave rotor inlet port 222 .",
"In one embodiment, the buffer gas outlet port 224 and the second wave rotor inlet port 222 are connected in fluid communication by a duct.",
"In a further alternate embodiment, the duct functions as a high pressure buffer gas reservoir and/or is connected to an auxiliary reservoir which is designed and constructed to hold a quantity of high pressure buffer gas.",
"With reference to FIG. 6 a , there is illustrated an auxiliary reservoir 500 for receiving a quantity of the high pressure buffer gas.",
"This reintroduced buffer gas does work on the remaining combusted gases within the rotor passageways 41 and causes the pressure in region 225 to remain at an elevated level.",
"The relatively high energy flow of combusted gases from the to-turbine port 223 is maintained in region 226 by the reintroduction of the high pressure buffer gas entering through the second wave rotor inlet port 222 .",
"The flow of the high pressure buffer gas from buffer gas outlet port 224 to the second wave rotor inlet port 222 is illustrated schematically by arrows C in FIG. 8 .",
"Referring to FIG. 7, there is illustrated a partially exploded view of one embodiment of the wave rotor device 220 .",
"Wave rotor 220 comprises a cylindrical rotor 40 that is rotatable about a centerline X and passes a plurality of fluid passageways 41 by a plurality of ports 221 , 222 and 224 formed in end plate 225 and outlet ports 223 formed in end plate 226 .",
"In one embodiment, the end plates 225 and 226 are coupled to stationery ducted passages between the compressor 21 and the turbine 23 .",
"The plurality of fluid passageways 41 is positioned about the circumference of the wave rotor device 220 .",
"In one form a conventional rotational device accomplishes the rotation of rotor 40 .",
"In another form the gas turbine 23 can be used as the means to cause rotation of the wave rotor 40 .",
"In another embodiment the wave rotor is a self-turning, freewheeling design;",
"wherein freewheeling indicates no independent drive means are required.",
"In one form, the freewheeling design is contemplated with angling and/or curving of the rotor passageways.",
"In another form, the freewheeling design is contemplated to be driven by the angling of the inlet duct 221 a so as to allow the incoming fluid flow to impart angular momentum to the rotor 40 .",
"In yet another form, the free-wheeling design is contemplated to be driven by angling of the inlet duct 222 a so as to allow the incoming fluid flow to impart angular momentum to the rotor.",
"Further, it is contemplated that the inlet ducts 222 a and 221 a can both be angled, one of the inlet ducts is angled or neither is angled.",
"The use of curved or angled rotor passageways within the rotor and/or by imparting of momentum to the rotor through one of the inlet flow streams, the wave rotor may produce useful shaft power.",
"The wave rotor/cell rotor 40 is fixedly coupled to a shaft 48 that is rotatable on a pair of bearings (not illustrated).",
"In one form of the present invention, the wave rotor/cell rotor rotates about the center line X in the direction of arrows Z. While the present invention has been described based upon rotation in the direction of arrow Z, a system having the appropriate modifications to rotate in the opposite direction is contemplated herein.",
"The direction Z may be concurrent with or counter to the rotational direction of the gas turbine engine rotors.",
"In one embodiment the plurality of circumferentially spaced passageways 41 extend along the length of the wave rotor device 220 parallel to the center line X and are formed between the outer wall member 49 and an inner wall member 50 .",
"The plurality of passageways 41 define a peripheral annulus 51 wherein adjacent passageways share a common wall member 52 that connects between the outer wall member 49 and the inner wall 50 so as to separate the fluid flow within each of the passageways.",
"In an alternate embodiment each of the plurality of circumferentially spaced passageways are non-parallel to the center line, but are placed on a cone having different radii at the opposite ends of the rotor.",
"In another embodiment, a dividing wall member divides each of the plurality of circumferentially spaced passageways, and in one form is located at a substantially mid-radial position.",
"In yet another embodiment, each of the plurality of circumferentially spaced passageways form a helical rather than straight passageway.",
"Further, in another embodiment, each of the plurality of circumferentially spaced passageways are placed on a surface of smoothly varying radial placement first toward lower radius and then toward larger radius over their axial extent.",
"The pair of wave rotor end plates 225 and 226 are fixedly positioned very closely adjacent to rotor 40 so as to control the passage of working fluid into and out of the plurality of passageways 41 as the rotor 40 rotates.",
"End plates 225 and 226 are designed to be disposed in a sealing arrangement with the rotor 40 in order to minimize the leakage of fluid between the plurality of passageways 41 and the end plates.",
"In an alternate embodiment, auxiliary seals are included between the end plates and the rotor to enhance sealing efficiency.",
"Seal types, such as but not limited to, labrynth, gland or sliding seals are contemplated herein, however, the application of seals to a wave rotor is believed known to one of skill in the art.",
"With reference to FIG. 8, there is illustrated a space-time (wave) diagram for a pulsed detonation wave rotor engine.",
"The pulsed detonation engine wave rotor described with the assistance of FIG. 8 has: the high pressure energy transfer gas outlet port 224 , the high pressure energy transfer gas inlet port 222 and the from-compressor inlet port 221 on the same end of the device;",
"and the to-turbine outlet port 223 located on the opposite end of the device.",
"In one form of the present invention there is defined a two port wave rotor cycle including one fluid flow inlet port and one fluid flow outlet port and having a high pressure buffer gas recirculation loop that may be considered internal to the wave rotor device.",
"The high pressure energy transfer inlet port 222 is prior to and adjacent the from-compressor inlet port 221 .",
"It can be observed that upon the rotation of rotor 40 each of the plurality of passageways 41 are sequentially brought in registration with the inlet ports 221 and 222 and the outlet ports 223 and 224 , and the path of a typical charge of fluid is along the respective passageways 41 .",
"The wave diagram for the purpose of description may be started at any point, however, for convenience, the description is started at 227 wherein the low-pressure working fluid is admitted from the compressor.",
"The concept of low pressure should not be understood in absolute manner, it is only low in comparison with the rest of the pressure level of gas within the pulsed detonation engine wave rotor.",
"The low pressure portion 227 of the wave rotor engine receives a supply of low-pressure working fluid from compressor 21 .",
"The working fluid enters passageways 41 upon the from-compressor inlet port 221 being aligned with the respective passageways 41 .",
"In one embodiment fuel is introduced into the region 225 by: stationery continuously operated spray nozzles (liquid) 227 or supply tubes (gas) 227 located within the duct 222 a leading to the high pressure energy transfer gas inlet port 222 ;",
"or, into region 228 by intermittently actuated spray nozzles (liquid) 227 ′ or supply tubes (gas) 227 ′ located within the rotor;",
"or, into region 228 by spray nozzles (liquid) 227 ″ or supply tubes (gas) 227 ″ located within the rotor end plate 226 .",
"Region 228 exists at the end of the rotor and the region has a fuel content such that the mixture of fuel and working fluid is combustable.",
"A detonation is initiated from an end portion of the wave rotor 40 adjacent the region 228 and a detonation wave 232 travels through the fuel-working-fluid air mixture within the region 228 toward the opposite end of the rotor containing a working-fluid-without-fuel region 230 .",
"In one form of the present invention, the detonation is initiated by a detonation initiator 233 , such as but not limited to a high energy spark discharge device.",
"However, in an alternate form of the present invention the detonation is initiated by an auto-detonation process and does not include a detonation initiator.",
"The detonation wave 232 travels along the length of the passageway and ceases with the absence of fuel at the gas interface 234 .",
"Thereafter, a pressure wave 235 travels into the working-fluid-without-fuel region 230 of the passageway and compresses this working fluid to define a high-pressure buffer/energy transfer gas within region 236 .",
"The concept of high pressure should not be understood in an absolute manner, it is only high in comparison with the rest of the pressure level of gas within the pulsed detonation engine wave rotor.",
"The high pressure buffer/energy transfer gas within region 236 exits the wave rotor device 220 through the buffer gas outlet port 224 .",
"The combusted gases within the region 237 exits the wave rotor through the to-turbine outlet port 223 .",
"Expansion of the combusted gas prior to entering the turbine results in a lower turbine inlet temperature without reducing the effective peak cycle temperature.",
"As the combusted gas exits the outlet port 223 , the expansion process continues within the passageways 41 of the rotor and travels toward the opposite end of the passageway.",
"As the expansion arrives at the end of the passage, the pressure of the gas within the region 238 at the end of the rotor opposite the to-turbine outlet port 223 declines.",
"The wave rotor inlet port 222 opens and allows the flow of the high pressure buffer/energy transfer working fluid into the rotor at region 225 and causes the recompression of a portion of the combusted gases within the rotor.",
"The admission of gas via port 222 can be accomplished by a shock wave.",
"The flow of the high pressure buffer gas adds energy to the exhaust process of the combustion gas and allows the expansion of the combusted gas to be accomplished in a controlled, uniform energy process in one form of the invention.",
"Thus, in one form the introduction of the high pressure buffer/energy transfer gas is adapted to maintain the high velocity flow of combusted gases exiting the wave rotor until substantially all of the combusted gas within the rotor is exhausted.",
"In one embodiment, the wave rotor inlet port 222 , which allows the introduction of the high pressure buffer/energy transfer gas, closes before the to-turbine outlet port 223 is closed.",
"The closing of the wave rotor inlet port 222 causes an expansion process to occur within the high pressure buffer/energy transfer air within region 240 and lowers the pressure of the gas and creates a region 241 .",
"This expansion process occurs within the buffer/energy transfer gas and allows this gas to preferentially remain within the rotor at the lowest pressure region of the rotor.",
"The to-turbine outlet port 223 is closed as the expansion in region 240 reaches the exit end of the passageway.",
"In one form of the present invention as illustrated in region 242 , a portion of the high pressure buffer/energy transfer gas exits through the outlet port 223 .",
"This exiting buffer/energy transfer gas functions to insulate the duct wall 223 a from the hot combusted gas within region 226 of the duct 223 b .",
"The pressure in region 241 has been lowered and the from-compressor inlet port 221 allows pre-compressed low pressure working fluid to enter the rotor passageways in the region 227 having the lowered pressure.",
"The entering motion of the pre-compressed low-pressure working fluid through port 221 is stopped by the arrival of pressure wave 231 originating from the exit end of the rotor and traveling toward the inlet end.",
"The pressure wave 231 originated from the closure of the to-turbine outlet port 223 .",
"The design and construction of the wave rotor is such that the arrival of the pressure wave 231 corresponds with the closing of the from-compressor inlet port 221 .",
"With reference to FIG. 9, there is illustrated schematically an alternate embodiment of a propulsion system 300 .",
"In one embodiment the propulsion system 300 includes a fluid inlet 31 , a pulsed combustion detonation engine wave rotor 220 and a nozzle 32 .",
"The wave rotor device 220 is identical to the wave rotor described in propulsion system 200 and like feature numbers will be utilized to indicate like features.",
"In one form propulsion system 30 is adapted to produce thrust without incorporation of conventional turbomachinery components.",
"The working fluid passing through the inlet 31 is conveyed through the first wave rotor inlet port 221 and into the wave rotor 220 .",
"High pressure buffer gas is discharged through wave rotor outlet port 224 and passes back into the wave rotor device through wave rotor inlet port 222 .",
"The relatively high energy flow of combusted gases flows out of the outlet port 223 and exits through nozzle 32 to produce motive power.",
"With reference to FIG. 10, there is illustrated schematically an alternate embodiment of a rocket type propulsion system 400 .",
"In one embodiment, the propulsion system 400 includes an oxidizer and working gas storage tank 101 , a pulsed combustion detonation engine wave rotor 220 and a nozzle 32 .",
"The wave rotor device 220 is identical to the wave rotor described in propulsion system 200 and like feature numbers will be utilized to indicate like features.",
"In one form propulsion system 400 is adapted to produce thrust without incorporation of conventional turbomachinery components.",
"The first wave rotor inlet port 221 is in fluid communication with the oxidizer and working gas storage tank 101 and receives a quantity of working fluid therefrom.",
"High pressure buffer gas is discharged through the wave rotor outlet port 224 and passes back into the wave rotor device through wave rotor inlet port 222 .",
"The relatively high energy flow of combusted gases pass out of the outlet port 223 and exits nozzle 32 to produce motive power.",
"A few of the additional alternate embodiments (not illustrated) contemplated herein will be described in comparison to the embodiment of FIG. 9 .",
"The utilization of like feature numbers is intended to represent like features.",
"One of the alternate embodiments includes a turbomachine type compressor placed immediately ahead of the wave rotor 220 and adapted to supply a compressed fluid to inlet 221 .",
"The turbomachine type compressor is driven by shaft power derived from the wave rotor 220 .",
"A second alternate embodiment includes a conventional turbine placed downstream of the wave rotor 220 and adapted to be supplied with the gas exiting port 223 .",
"The second type of alternate embodiment does not include a nozzle and delivers only engine output shaft power.",
"The present invention is also applicable to a mechanical device wherein the plurality of fluid flow passageways are stationery, the inlet and outlet ports are rotatable, and the gas flows and processes occurring within the fluid flow passageways are substantially similar to those described previously in this document.",
"Referring to FIG. 11, there is illustrated a partially exploded view of one embodiment of the wave rotor device 320 .",
"The description of a wave rotor device having rotatable inlet and outlet ports is not limited to the embodiment of device 320 , and is applicable to other wave rotors including but not limited to the embodiments associated with FIGS. 1-5 and 9 - 10 .",
"The utilization of like feature numbers will be utilized to describe like features.",
"In one form wave rotor device 320 comprises a stationary portion 340 centered about a centerline X and having a plurality of fluid passageways 41 positioned between two rotatable endplates 325 and 326 .",
"The endplates 325 and 326 are rotated to pass by the fluid passageways a plurality of inlet ports 221 and 222 and outlet ports 224 and 223 .",
"Endplates 325 and 326 are connected to shaft 348 and form a rotatable endplate assembly.",
"In one embodiment a member 349 mechanically fixes the endplates 325 and 326 to the shaft 348 .",
"Further, the endplate assembly is rotatably supported by bearings, which are not illustrated.",
"In one embodiment the endplates 325 and 326 are fitted adjacent to stationary ducted passages between the compressor 21 and turbine 23 .",
"Sealing between the stationary ducts and the rotating endplates is accomplished by methods and devices believed known of those skilled in the art.",
"In a preferred form the stationary portion 340 defines a ring and the plurality of fluid passageways 41 are positioned about the circumference of the ring.",
"In one form a conventional rotational device is utilized to accomplish the rotation of the endplate assembly including endplates 325 and 326 .",
"In another form the gas turbine 23 can be used as the means to cause rotation of the endplates 325 and 326 .",
"In another embodiment the endplate assembly is a self-turning, freewheeling design;",
"wherein freewheeling indicates no independent drive means are required.",
"In one form the freewheeling design is contemplated with the use of an endplate designed so as to capture a portion of the momentum energy of the fluid exit stream of port 224 and hence provide motive force for rotation of the endplate.",
"In another form the freewheeling design is contemplated to be driven by a portion of the momentum energy of the exit stream of port 223 .",
"In another form the freewheeling design is contemplated to be driven by a portion of the momentum energy of the inlet stream of port 222 .",
"In yet another form the freewheeling design is contemplated to be driven by a portion of the momentum energy of the inlet stream of port 221 .",
"In all cases a portion of the endplate port flowpath may contain features turning the fluid stream within one or two exit endplate port flowpaths and one or two inlet endplate port flowpaths in the tangential direction hence converting fluid momentum energy to power to rotate the endplate.",
"The use of curved or angled passageways within the stationary portion 340 may aid in this process by imparting tangential momentum to the exit flow streams which may be captured within the endplate through turning of the fluid stream back to the axial direction.",
"In each of these ways the rotating endplate assembly may also provide useful shaft power beyond that required to turn the endplate assembly.",
"This work can be used for purposes such as but not limited to, driving an upstream compressor, powering engine accessories (fuel pump, electrical power generator, engine hydraulics) and/or to provide engine output shaft power.",
"The types of rotational devices and methods for causing rotation of the endplate assembly is not intended to be limited herein and include other methods and devices for causing rotation of the endplate assembly as occur to one of ordinary skill in the art.",
"One form of the present invention contemplates rotational speeds of the endplate assembly within a range of about 1,000 to about 100,000 revolutions per minute, and more preferably about 10,000 revolutions per minute.",
"However, the present invention is not intended to be limited to these rotational speeds unless specifically stated herein.",
"The endplates 325 and 326 are fixedly coupled to the shaft 348 that is rotatable on a pair of bearings (not illustrated).",
"In one form of the present invention the endplates rotate about the centerline X in the direction of arrow C. While the present invention has been described based upon rotation in the direction of arrow C, a system having the appropriate modifications to rotate in the opposite direction is contemplated herein.",
"The direction C may be concurrent with or counter to the rotational direction of the gas turbine engine rotors.",
"The pair of rotating endplates 325 and 326 are fixedly positioned very closely adjacent the stationary portion 340 so as to control the passage of working fluid into and out of the plurality of passageways 41 as the endplates rotate.",
"Endplates 325 and 326 are designed to be disposed in a sealing arrangement with the stationary portion 340 in order to minimize the leakage of fluid between the plurality of passageways 41 and the endplates.",
"In an alternate embodiment auxiliary seals are included between the end plates and the rotor to enhance sealing efficiency.",
"Seal types, such as but not limited to, labrynth, gland or sliding seals are contemplated herein, however the application of seals to a wave rotor is believed known to one of skill in the art.",
"All publications, patents, and patent applications cited in this specification are herein incorporated by reference as if each individual publication, patent, or patent application were specifically and individually indicated to be incorporated by reference and set forth in its entirety herein.",
"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 embodiment has been shown and described and that all changes, equivalents, and modifications that come within the spirit of the invention are desired to be protected."
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[0001] This invention refers to a floor and wall cleaner specially designed to be used in critical areas with difficult accessibility or restricted access, such as pools for housing a reactor vessel at a nuclear power station, in which human presence must be avoided as far as possible and, should this be necessary, this must be for the shortest possible time.
[0002] According to the invention, the floor cleaner comprises:
A casing or housing provided with a suction mouth; Drive belts on each side, driven by respective motors; Inner rollers, provided with mutually independent drive media; A set of outer rollers with permanent opposite rotation; At least one elastic hinge of at least one axle carrying the rollers; Gear motor assemblies for the roller movement A set of sealed connections and a first control body; Lighting systems; At least one camera for taking pictures; A float or buoy of variable volume; A set of turbines for gripping the wall; A set of turbines with lateral movement; and An anchorage for holding the float or buoy to the body of the casing or housing.
[0016] The pools in which the reactor of a nuclear power station is housed are made up of a cubicle which may be in a regular or irregular shape and have dimensions that can range from one or two dozen metres on the smallest horizontal side to several dozen metres on the larger side, with a height of several metres, able to temporarily house a large number of the components of the reactor in the dismantling stage.
[0017] The base of the pools tends to be of irregular shape. On one hand there are small-sized recesses which have to be cleaned preferably before emptying the pool, as these could contain radioactive material, and there are also uneven parts of the floor, amongst other reasons due to the bolts for holding the vessel of the reactor.
[0018] This thus requires a device for cleaning the floors of the pools in which reactors of nuclear power stations are housed which is able to clean narrow spaces, to the maximum width of the apparatus and which is able to get over any small obstacles which it might come up against.
[0019] As well as the floors, particles are deposited on the walls of these pools. Conventional devices are not nevertheless able to clean the walls, as if they did so it would be the suction force of the absorption system which would have to keep the device attached to the wall. Since these devices have to be made as far as possible of stainless steel or some other material able to be decontaminated, they have a high minimum weight, and the absorption systems conventionally used are not able to maintain their grip. Furthermore, even when the absorption capacity is enough to maintain a grip, any irregularity or space would cause loss of adherence, and the device would fall to the floor and have to be positioned again. Since the positioning task is extremely delicate, this risk in an installation of this sort makes such a system inoperative.
STATE OF THE ART
[0020] There are different types of floor cleaners. First of all there are manual cleaners, which have a rod with which the cleaning head is moved; this head is connected by means of a suction hose to a pump and normally to a filter to be returned to the pool. This type of cleaners cannot be used in the vessel of a nuclear reactor due to several problems:
The floor tends to be located more than ten metres below the surface and there is an even greater distance to the accessible upper edge; The pool may not have an upper perimeter strip from which the rod can be handled; The visibility of the floor from the height at which this must be handled is very limited or none at all. This requires a person to be handling the rod, which is not feasible through the height at which this is handled, the lack of visibility and the dose of radiation that the person in question would receive.
[0025] EP 1472425 describes an independent floor cleaner for pools which comprises a set of support wheels and is provided with filtration and pumping means. It does not have means of controlling the movement at will.
[0026] A robot device known on the market as “ZODIAC Sweepy M3”, comprises a pair of lateral drive chains driven by motors and also comprises a motor for pumping water through a filter. The cleaning width is nevertheless interior, between the drive chains, for which reason it ends far from the outer edges. Furthermore, since this is conceived for cleaning swimming pools, it is not designed to get over obstacles.
[0027] In the nuclear industry, the “WEDA N600” device is also a compact device able to be handled in remote control or in automatic mode, which has, like the previous one, a pair of drive chains, in this case with front and rear brushes of a width roughly equal to that of the body of the device and in which the extraction system installed in the apparatus itself expels the water through filter bags.
[0028] The “ATOX underwater bottom cleaner” device has a structure similar to the previous ones, in that this is provided with lateral drive chains, with a filtration body operated with an exterior pump. One major disadvantage of this device is its weight, apart from the difficulties of cleaning the side zones, for the reasons given above.
[0029] Other devices, even whilst complying with some of the characteristics described in the devices mentioned, are machines with a greater size, weight, cost and with the disadvantages also described above, without the manoeuvring capacity which is intended to be solved with this invention.
[0030] Furthermore, any of these can be held up by a small obstacle, such as a bolt head two or three centimetres high, when said obstacle is not directly confronted by one of the drive chains.
[0031] An automated pool cleaning vehicle has been disclosed by US 2012/102664 A1, with a housing defining an interior having a pump and a filter bag. The bottom is normally concave. It includes a first and a second pair of wheels connected to the chassis, and also at least a middle roller. Contrary to the teachings of the present invention where the central rollers have a cleaning function in addition to the translation function, the rollers in US 2012/102664 A1 do not have a cleaning (bristling) function but just a translation function, and operate to overcome some kind of obstacles such as steps in a swimming pool. Since it is not conceived for nuclear installations, plastic parts can be used creating a light weight, so the suction force can keep it adhered to the walls. When failure of adherence is encountered, for example when a void portion is found and the suction do not keep the vehicle attached to the wall, the vehicle falls down to the bottom of the pool. The structure therefore does not contain a floater to approximate the resultant density when submerged to that of the water, and have not government means which allow the device to be positioned in a desired position. The rollers are at traction device not having a rotatable roller cleaner different than the traction system
[0032] WO 2013/30005 A1 discloses a device for use in nuclear installations. Since it must be manufactured with metal parts it has a substantial high weight. It comprises a pump with a nozzle connected to it and arranged to face surfaces to be cleaned. It comprises adjustable flotation means. The floater as designed is not capable to keep the centre of gravity of the device, so when found an obstacle or a void portion in the pool which reduces the suction this device also falls down to the bottom of the pool or must be supported by an external crane.
[0033] There are light swimming pool cleaners made of plastic materials which are able to go up the walls of pleasure swimming pools, but which are not usable in the pool of a nuclear power plant reactor for the reasons stated above, since plastic is not an acceptable material for said use, and neither do they have devices for controlling their movement.
[0034] None of said devices is able to efficiently clean the walls of the vessel of a nuclear power plant reactor in a controlled manner.
[0035] It is furthermore desirable for the same apparatus which is able to clean the walls to be able to clean the floor. This has advantages in the cost of the device, since instead of two (one for the walls and one for the floor) one will be enough and the operations can be performed consecutively with no need to perform two decontamination processes; one of these is enough at the end of both operations, for cleaning the floor and the walls.
[0036] It is furthermore desirable for the same apparatus to be suitable for cleaning sloping surfaces.
DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
[0037] The invention being proposed consists of a floor cleaner which comprises a structure carrying the other items, which are as follows:
A front roller; the front roller is held on a central support, securely held in turn to one of the side elements forming said structure; this roller is elastically hinged to said central support; it is divided into two halves or bodies, each of these being on one side of the central support; A rear roller, essentially identical to the front roller; A front central roller, preferably the front roller and the front central roller should be driven by a single motor, but they could also be driven by means of separate motors; A rear central roller; the rear roller and the rear central roller should preferably be driven by a single motor, but they could also be driven by means of separate motors; A suction bell placed on the casing, with an upper intake (on the side opposite that of the support for the rollers) and a linear suction mouth which is placed between the central rollers; Two sets of drive wheels or belts, one on each side, in which each set of drive wheels or belts is driven by an independent motor; it is preferable for the movement to take place by means of belts, as the possibility of the device being held up on an obstacle, such as a bolt head, is lower if this option is used. The pulling takes place by means of independent motors, with variable speed and rotation direction, meaning that, depending on the rotation direction of the motors, the cleaner can move forward when both belts rotate at the same speed in one direction, move in reverse when they rotate inversely in respect of the above or with displacement when the speeds of the belts are different.
[0044] For proper cleaning of the floor, there are central interior rollers and front and rear exterior rollers. In particular, according to the preferred embodiment, two interior rollers are used, with the suction bell between them, and two exterior rollers, each of these, the front and rear ones, being placed on a hinged support in a normally central position. The interior rollers have a smaller size than the width of the cleaner, insofar as these are driven from at least one of their sides and between the drive system. The outer rollers are divided into two portions, and driven from the centre, so that the free end of each side reaches the maximum width of the cleaner; in particular the length of the rollers is slightly greater than the width of the cleaner casing.
[0045] The rollers are made up of a core and a sheath. It has been found that an ideal sheathing for proper cleaning is made up of rubber strips, arranged radially (in a transversal direction to the movement). Hence, at least some of the strips will have to be positioned radially in respect of the roller axis. These transversal strips may be joined to strips arranged on a plane perpendicular to the axle of the roller without impeding their operation.
[0046] In normal operation, with no obstacles, the exterior rollers and interior rollers turn in a direction so as to move the dirt towards the interior of the suction bell, that is, they drag the dirt along the floor towards the interior of the suction bell. The displacement is caused by the drive belts. The movement of the front belts and of the rear belts in this normal operation will be in mutually opposite rotation directions; however, when they come up against an obstacle, one of the rollers may possibly have a support which exerts significant force, so that the movement inverse to its displacement could block the floor cleaner, without the drive belts having sufficient support. For this reason, since the front rollers and the rear rollers are driven by independent motors, in the event of their coming up against an obstacle, such as a bolt head or a drop or rise in level of some centimetres, all the rollers may be made to run in forward motion, that is, in the same rotation direction as the wheels or drive belts, which helps to get over the obstacle in question.
[0047] The movement of the rollers is separate from the displacement movement of the cleaner, and is driven by two independent motors, as has already been said. The control device can nevertheless synchronise the motors for optimum operation.
[0048] For the movement of the rollers and the drive belts, there are respectively motors and mechanical transmission assemblies, each formed of a plurality of pinions engaging each other.
[0049] As has already been stated, the exterior rollers are driven from the central part; this central drive is made up of an arm or support which houses a mechanism, and sustains the corresponding parts of the lateral roller projecting outward, up to a width slightly over that of the casing. This means that the exterior rollers do not properly clean a central zone in which the support and the drive mechanism for the front and rear rollers are located, which is why this zone has to be cleaned by the interior rollers. The sheath of the interior rollers must thus be continuous on the longitudinal plane on which the mechanism for driving the exterior rollers is located, especially the front rollers.
[0050] Throughout the cleaning process different obstacles may come up, such as screw heads, bolt covers, etc. These obstacles do not tend to be over 2 or 3 cm in height but no compact conventional system is able to overcome these without getting jammed. If the arm carrying the front or rear rollers were rigidly fixed to with the housing of the cleaner, this would make it jam, since on rising up the obstacle, it also undesirably raises the drive belts, and the device loses traction. For this reason it has been designed for both the front arm and the rear arm to have a hinged support, and be subject to an elastic retaining tension, so that the elevation tension is lower than the cleaner's effective weight in the water and so that when an obstacle is reached said arm rises over the obstacle and the cleaner continues its travel and after the obstacle is reached by the drive belts, these are indeed able to get over this with no further problems, the arm returning to the normal working position when the elastic tension caused on reaching the obstacle has been released.
[0051] Sometimes small obstacles are nevertheless located in the centre of the cleaner and are not reached by the drive belts. To solve this drawback, at least one of the rollers, and in particular all of these, have been provided with a set of wheels joined to their axle, so that when the cleaner comes up against an obstacle, these wheels continue to pull. The wheels have a smaller diameter than that of the corresponding brush, so that they will not have contact with the floor unless an obstacle with sufficient height is found. This guarantees that the cleaning is correct in routes with no obstacles. Since the rollers are driven by independent motors, two by two (one for the front ones and one for the rear ones) when an obstacle is reached which holds up the floor cleaner, all the rollers will rotate in the same direction, the wheels of said rollers thus pressing on the obstacle and easily getting over this.
[0052] According to a less preferred option for embodiment, the wheels of one of the rollers can be freely rotating, independently of the roller movement.
[0053] The alignment of the support wheels of the interior rollers with the position of the arm holding the mechanism for driving the exterior rollers should be avoided, insofar as said exterior rollers do not reach the position of said supporting arm.
[0054] The suction head is placed held on the cover of the structure, and comprises an upper suction mouth which is connected to a suction pump, either directly or through a conduit; if this is joined to a conduit, a connector is provided, freely rotating at both ends and in a central zone also at 45°, allowing the positioning of the conduit with no restriction both from the upper head and from any lateral position.
[0055] The structure is made up of lateral elements and means of joining said elements; it also comprises an upper cover holding the suction head, and protectors or covers at the front and rear, essentially symmetrical except for the holes for the corresponding connectors. The structure is closed at the front and rear by the corresponding rollers. According to one option each of the lateral elements is formed of a pair of separate parallel plates which define a chamber housing mechanical transmission and possibly drive assemblies.
[0056] Even when a turbine has been used for the cleaner to grip the floor in embodiments prior to this invention, this is insufficient. Furthermore, since the suction bell is in a central position, a turbine has to be displaced from said centre, and although this is not critical in cleaning floors, it causes unwanted imbalances when this has to clean walls, which could make the cleaner fall to the floor, requiring further repositioning. The floor and wall cleaner of the invention is thus provided with at least a pair of turbines, which may run simultaneously or independently. The use of turbines for adherence placed symmetrically in respect of the longitudinal and/or transversal central plane has been shown to have a satisfactory result, which cannot be achieved with a single one.
[0057] Since the device may be used in a dark zone, such as the pool of reactor vessel at a nuclear power plant, the cleaner is designed to have lighting means, at least in the forward motion direction, but possibly also for reverse movement.
[0058] It is also designed for this to have at least one camera and possible two, one at the front and one at the rear, so that the state of cleaning achieved can be known at all times as well as the directions to be taken.
[0059] One of the problems for keeping the cleaner on a wall is the weight of the device. As already stated, plastic materials cannot be used in operations in radioactive zones, for which reason the cleaner has a significant weight, of several dozen kilograms.
[0060] For this reason the casing has been provided on both sides with two supports for joining this to a float. The float has the aim of compensating part of the cleaner's weight. In particular, it has been designed to have a pair of supports on each side, so that when only walls have to be cleaned, the alignment of the float is roughly over the centre of gravity of the cleaner. When this has to clean sloping surfaces the anchorage could nevertheless be hinged, or arranged in any other position.
[0061] The float comprises a normally prismatic sealed body, with a fixed volume, when the apparatus is operating. This sealed body can also comprise an inflatable interior membrane. It is designed to have inlet/outlet valves for cleaning or ballast, normally with water, when the volume required for the specific application is lower than the total volume of the chamber. This float exerts an upward force of from 40% to 90% of the weight of the cleaner, according to the design specifications, apart from overcoming its own weight. Furthermore, to regulate proper operation of the ascending and descending operations it has also been designed for the body to be provided with a second chamber fitted with an inflatable membrane, with a variable body which totally neutralises the weight of the body or even which makes this float. This second chamber is made with perforated sheet metal, so that when the membrane inflates, any water found inside said second chamber can easily be drained out.
[0062] The cleaner comprises an electronic control system. The electronic control system determines the actions of speeds and movement directions of each of the motors for driving the displacement or movement of the rollers and the turbine, of the lighting and picture-taking elements, or indicates any fault which might arise in the device. The electronic system comprises a sealed connection plate for connecting electric supply and control cables of the device.
[0063] The control body is placed outside the device, and joined to this by means of supply cables for the different elements, insofar as it been shown that the radiation received in the pool quickly disables some of the functions. The governing system is normally placed in a remote control unit, which is normally a computer. This could possibly have an intermediate unit, for example a float which minimises the requirements of control cable sections, when the distances are too long, and which also enables control by means of wireless means.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0064] In order to illustrate the following explanation, ten sheets of drawings are attached to this descriptive report, representing the essence of this invention in eleven figures, and in which:
[0065] FIG. 1 shows a general schematic view in perspective of the floor and wall cleaner of the invention, not including the float;
[0066] FIG. 2 shows a general schematic view in perspective of a float able to be connected to the floor and wall cleaner of the invention;
[0067] FIG. 3 shows a general schematic view in perspective of the floor and wall cleaner assembly of FIG. 1 with the float of FIG. 2 ;
[0068] FIG. 4 shows a schematic front view of the floor and wall cleaner of the invention not including the float;
[0069] FIG. 5 shows a schematic view along a central longitudinal section of the floor and wall cleaner of the invention not including the float;
[0070] FIG. 6 shows a schematic lower view of the floor and wall cleaner of the invention, not including the float;
[0071] FIG. 7 shows a schematic view in perspective of the suction bell which is fitted in the cleaner;
[0072] FIG. 8 shows a schematic exploded view of an example of an embodiment of one of the interior rollers;
[0073] FIG. 9 shows a schematic exploded view of an example of one of the exterior rollers, with a body for securing to the chassis and an elastically hinged arm for holding said rollers;
[0074] FIG. 10 shows a schematic view in perspective of the flat development of one form of covering the rollers;
[0075] FIG. 11 shows a section view of a cleaning roller provided with the sheathing of FIG. 10 ; and
[0076] FIG. 12 shows a schematic view in perspective of a scraper fitted on the float.
[0077] The following reference numbers are used in said figures:
1 upper cover 4 gripping turbines 8 turbine or autonomous external suction pump 11 lateral elements 12 front and rear covers 30 suction mouth or nozzle 51 front exterior cleaning roller 52 rear exterior cleaning roller 53 front interior cleaning roller 54 rear interior cleaning roller 55 traction device 56 roller sheathing 100 drive and cleaning body 121 engagement opening 150 suction bell 151 rectangular section of the suction bell 200 floatation body 201 casing or housing of the floatation body 202 coupling arms of the floatation body 203 securing holes of the coupling arms 204 lateral turbines of the floatation body 205 second variable volume chamber 206 connection of the second chamber 210 scraper 211 soft strip 212 sustaining part 521 pivot axis of the exterior arms 525 support of the exterior rollers 526 hinged arm of the support of the exterior rollers 527 spring of the hinged arm 538 core of the interior roller 539 support wheels of the rollers 551 pulleys of the drive device 552 drive belt 558 transmission items 559 drive motor 561 lamellae of the roller housing
DESCRIPTION OF THE FORMS OF EMBODIMENT OF THE INVENTION
[0115] The invention being proposed consists, as stated in the heading, of a floor and wall cleaner, governed by remote control, suitable for use in cleaning the floors and walls of the pools housing the vessel of nuclear power stations.
[0116] This is made up of a drive and cleaning body ( 100 ) and a floatation body ( 200 ).
[0117] The drive and cleaning body ( 100 ) is mainly made up of components of stainless steel and comprises the following elements:
Lateral elements ( 11 ), joined together to form a structure; according to a preferred embodiment the lateral elements ( 11 ) are made up of a double wall on each of their sides, inside which transmission elements ( 558 ) are housed; An upper cover ( 1 ) provided with a suction mouth ( 30 ); Front and rear covers ( 12 ); at least one of these will normally be provided with an engagement opening ( 121 ), made in the end emerging over the upper cover ( 1 ); A traction device ( 55 ); the traction device is made up of at least one drive motor ( 559 ) with adjustable speed on each side of the drive and cleaning body ( 100 ); normally each of the sides will have a gear motor mechanism for distributing the movement to a pair of pulleys ( 551 ), one front and one rear, which sustain and move a drive belt ( 552 ) or band or chain. The drive motors ( 559 ) as well as the transmission mechanisms are independent on each of the sides and are governed by a control system which could determine whether one or both move, the speed of the movement and the rotation direction, so as to enable the following states:
The cleaner is at rest, when the motors ( 559 ) are idle The cleaner moves in a forward direction, with a variable speed depending on the rotation speed of the motors ( 559 ), synchronized by the control body; The cleaner will rotate, by inverting the rotation direction of the motors ( 559 ) for a static rotation, or by variation of the speed of one of the motors in respect of the other, when the rotation takes place while moving;
Hence, an axle moved by the drive motor ( 559 ) transmits the rotation movement to each of the sides, and a mechanical system of gears (transmission elements 558 ) transmits this to at least one of a pair of pulleys ( 551 ) or drive crown wheels set on the corresponding side; the movement is preferably transmitted to the two front and rear pulleys or crown wheels on each of the sides; the belt ( 552 ) may have a toothed interior matching the outside of the pulleys ( 551 ), so as to guarantee absolute control of the movement with no unwanted sliding; A set of cleaning rollers ( 51 , 52 , 53 , 54 ), the rollers are made up of a core ( 538 ) and a sheath ( 56 ); the sheath is made of an elastic material, such as rubber, formed of or comprising in its outer surface at least one set of tabs or lamellae ( 561 ) arranged in a radial position, i.e. transversal in respect of the rotation direction; said lamellae ( 561 ) may be complemented by others arranged in planes transversal to the roller axis ( 51 , 52 , 53 , 54 ), or in other directions, this cleaning roller assembly comprises:
Exterior cleaning rollers ( 51 , 52 ) which are located at the front and rear edges of the casing; Interior cleaning rollers ( 53 , 54 ) which are located inside the casing, between the drive belts or between the lateral elements ( 11 ) which sustain these; The front rollers ( 51 , 53 ) are driven by means of a single motor which transmits the movement to the motor axles of both of these by means of the corresponding transmission mechanism, but, within the scope of the invention, they could also be driven by means of independent motors; and the rear cleaning rollers ( 52 , 54 ) are driven by means of a single motor which transmits the movement to the motor axles of both of these by means of the corresponding transmission mechanism, but they could also be driven, within the scope of the invention, by means of independent motors; In the ordinary cleaning operation, on flat surfaces or with fairly low obstacles, the front (exterior and interior) rollers and the rear (interior and exterior) rollers will rotate in opposite directions, dragging the dirt towards the centre of the device; there are nevertheless times at which it is necessary to get over an obstacle of some height; for this purpose the exterior rollers are arranged on a support ( 525 ) with an elastically hinged arm ( 526 ) which tends to be placed in the lower position, for cleaning, but which is able to rise against the elastic force when an obstacle forces it to do so; also in view of any change in position of the cleaning device, particularly through its forward or backward tilting, it has been seen that it is useful for the rear exterior roller also to be arranged on an elastically rotated arm ( 526 ); it has nevertheless been designed for the cleaning of smooth surfaces, especially walls, that the arm ( 526 ) can be secured to prevent any movement; a securing pin is enough to do this; The rollers will normally rotate in opposite directions, dragging the dirt towards the suction zone; to assist in getting over obstacles, it is nevertheless designed for the rollers to be able to all turn in the same direction as the drive means; The width of the interior rollers is thus limited by the width of the casing; it is nevertheless a requisite for the cleaning to be carried out at the maximum width of the devices, without a wall or any other similar obstacle being able to limit the lateral cleaning capacity; for this reason the exterior cleaning rollers ( 51 , 52 ) reach the required width on the outside, at the limit of or outside the width of the device; for this purpose they are fitted on respective central arms ( 526 ) which support these, and which have the corresponding transmission mechanisms, with the cleaning roller ( 51 , 52 ) formed of two separate portions and sustained only by its central part (by one end of each of the portions); in accordance with one option, the separate portions may be independently sustained, so that the corresponding arm ( 526 ) is independent for each side, and in the event of there being any type of hinge of said arm ( 526 ) the axis of the two portions could become out of alignment; said option is not nevertheless considered preferential due to its mechanical complexity, even though it is considered within the scope of the invention; as a general rule, the two front and rear arms are elastically hinged so that they can pivot on respective axles ( 521 ) located in the body of the casing ( 1 ); when an obstacle is reached the elastic retaining of the arm ( 526 ) which keeps this in a position aligned with the floor (as for the rest of the rollers) is overcome, so that the arm allows the cleaning roller ( 51 , 52 ) which this sustains to rise, thus preventing the cleaner from becoming jammed on said obstacle; in FIG. 9 , one can see a configuration of the hinged arm ( 526 ) with elastic retention by means of a spring ( 527 ), the power shafts for the movement are represented and in a preferential embodiment the support ( 525 ) of the arm ( 526 ) is normally held to just one of the lateral elements ( 11 ) of the structure; the interior rollers ( 53 , 54 ) have a core made up of a single continuous rigid body, and their sheathing divided into portions and the drive mechanism is placed on at least one of their sides; on the other hand, the exterior rollers ( 51 , 52 ) are divided so that these have two external portions, with a central drive mechanism in the arms ( 526 ) which constitute the sole support of each of said portions; The housing of the interior rollers ( 53 , 54 ) is made up of several portions, between which there are one or more support wheels, with movement linked to the roller on which these are located, or free in respect of this, in a less preferred embodiment; it is intended for the support wheels ( 539 ) of the interior rollers not to be aligned with the wheels ( 526 ) and drive mechanisms for the exterior rollers, in which there is no exterior cleaning, and these are not aligned either with the support wheels ( 539 ) of the other of the interior rollers; The exterior rollers also preferably have support wheels ( 539 );
The casing ( 1 ) also comprises at least one pair of gripping turbines ( 4 ); the gripping turbines ( 4 ) take the water from the outside of the casing and drive this in normal direction (perpendicular) and in the opposite direction to the support surface of the rollers (normally horizontal); the greater the discharge force (flow, speed), the greater the adherence to the surface will be; in particular there are two turbines located on the longitudinal symmetry plane and symmetrically in respect of the transversal symmetry plane; The structure also comprises, according to a preferred option, a suction turbine or pump ( 8 ) (represented in FIG. 4 ), independent and linked with the suction mouth ( 30 ); the suction turbine or pump ( 8 ) is set on the outside of the suction mouth ( 30 ), integrated in the cleaner, allowing independent operation with no need for any external suction source; it can be provided with filtration media or not; The casing ( 1 ) comprises a suction mouth ( 30 ); in the event of this having to be connected to an external inlet with a suction tube, said suction mouth will be provided with rotating elements and with a rotation body at a 45° angle; The casing ( 1 ) also comprises at least a light source and a camera for taking pictures; The casing ( 1 ) is provided with a sealed connection plate or sealed connectors; the cleaner comprises a control and governing body; due to the sensitivity of the semi-conductors to radiation, it is intended for the control body to be placed outside the device, preferably outside the intense radiation zone, and joined to this from the outside (in the area around the pool) by means of connection cables; this control and governing body will provide remote control for each of the elements controlled, such as stop-start and speeds and direction of rotation of each of the motors, as well as the light, camera, turbines, etc. The upper cover ( 1 ) holds a suction bell ( 150 ); in its upper portion it forms the suction mouth ( 30 ), and in the lower zone it forms a rectangular section ( 151 ) set between the interior rollers at the height of the geometrical plane joining their corresponding axes.
[0143] In this configuration, the drive and cleaning body ( 100 ) has a maximum width of roughly 32 cm and a length of roughly 41 cm, and has a floatation body roughly 90 cm long, which allows great manoeuvring capacity and can reach recesses which would be impossible for other devices due to their dimensions and structure.
[0144] To give the cleaner the required floatability to be able to move along a wall or sloping surface, normally from the top downwards, it has been designed for said cleaner to comprise a floatation body ( 200 ). The floatation body ( 200 ) is formed of a casing or housing ( 201 ) with at least one first sealed chamber, which can also be provided with an interior inflatable membrane. This first chamber is provided with inlet/outlet connections for filling/emptying and interior cleaning. This will normally be full of air, but in some applications, or to be used with a lighter body, it may be partly full of water, the rest being air, which means that the float force can be regulated. The floatation body ( 200 ) is provided with coupling arms ( 202 ) on both sides of one of its ends. These coupling arms ( 202 ) comprise at least two holes ( 203 ) or means of connection to other corresponding ones on the outer walls of the lateral elements ( 11 ). These arms will preferably hold the lateral walls by means of securing screws in all their holes. However, especially when used for cleaning sloping surfaces, the arms will be secured with a single screw on each side, allowing the floatation body to tilt ( 200 ) in respect of the drive and cleaning body ( 100 ), held by the coupling arms ( 202 ).
[0145] The floatation body comprises lateral impulsion turbines ( 204 ). In a preferential embodiment, the lateral impulsion turbines ( 204 ) are attached to the coupling arms ( 202 ), along with the first chamber ( 201 ). The activation of these turbines when the cleaner is in a state of weightlessness through the compensation of the weight with the corresponding floating force will enable a lateral displacement to a new cleaning position. The turbines for securing the cleaner body will return the cleaner to the surface of the wall so that the assembly has free travel in all degrees since it is provided with forward and reverse movements, rotation, gripping and withdrawing from the surface to be cleaned, and lateral displacement.
[0146] According to a preferential embodiment, the floatation body ( 200 ) also comprises a second chamber ( 205 ) with variable volume, provided with an interior inflatable membrane. Filling/emptying said second chamber ( 205 ) with air is done by means of a connection ( 206 ) to an external compressor. Depending on whether greater or lesser floatation of the cleaner is needed, the variable volume chamber will be totally empty, thus meaning that the effective weight of the cleaner will be the maximum or will be partly full, or totally full of air, and the effective weight will therefore be the minimum. The second chamber comprises at least one perforated wall, so that when the inner balloon inside this is filled (totally or partly) with air, the water that the volume of air displaces can be drained out. According to a particular embodiment, the first fixed volume chamber and the second variable volume chamber constitute a prismatic body to which the coupling arms ( ) are linked; the chamber with variable volume is preferably located in the portion furthest from said prismatic body.
[0147] Furthermore, insofar as the floatation body ( 200 ) will when cleaning walls always be located at the top of the drive and cleaning body ( 100 ), it has been designed for the floatation body ( 200 ) to be provided in the portion furthest from said drive and cleaning body ( 100 ) with a scraper ( 210 ). The scraper is formed of a soft strip ( 211 ), normally made of rubber, arranged on a holding part ( 212 ); in accordance with a preferential embodiment this support is made up of a tube with circular section made of a light material and filled with injected foam, thus minimizing its density and constituting a further floating part. In a preferred embodiment, the holding part is set on one or more supports joined to the floatation body ( 200 ) which allow the scraper to take up different angular positions, modifying the distance to the wall in the same way in accordance with operating requirements. | A cleaner includes an external casing forming a suction hood, an upper suction mouth, the casing also being provided with a drive arranged on each side and equipped with independent motors and corresponding transmission mechanisms on each side, and cleaning rollers; sets of internal cleaning rollers disposed close to the center of the hollow interior of the casing and having a width approximately equal to the distance between the side elements of the casing; sets of external cleaning rollers located close to the front and rear edges of the casing of the cleaning device and having a total width slightly greater than the width of the casing; a resilient joint at the support for the external rollers; a pair of adhesion turbines; auxiliary drive wheels on the internal cleaning rollers; a flotation body connected to the casing and having a fixed and/or variable volume; and laterally mobile turbines. | Concisely explain the essential features and purpose of the concept presented in the passage. | [
"[0001] This invention refers to a floor and wall cleaner specially designed to be used in critical areas with difficult accessibility or restricted access, such as pools for housing a reactor vessel at a nuclear power station, in which human presence must be avoided as far as possible and, should this be necessary, this must be for the shortest possible time.",
"[0002] According to the invention, the floor cleaner comprises: A casing or housing provided with a suction mouth;",
"Drive belts on each side, driven by respective motors;",
"Inner rollers, provided with mutually independent drive media;",
"A set of outer rollers with permanent opposite rotation;",
"At least one elastic hinge of at least one axle carrying the rollers;",
"Gear motor assemblies for the roller movement A set of sealed connections and a first control body;",
"Lighting systems;",
"At least one camera for taking pictures;",
"A float or buoy of variable volume;",
"A set of turbines for gripping the wall;",
"A set of turbines with lateral movement;",
"and An anchorage for holding the float or buoy to the body of the casing or housing.",
"[0016] The pools in which the reactor of a nuclear power station is housed are made up of a cubicle which may be in a regular or irregular shape and have dimensions that can range from one or two dozen metres on the smallest horizontal side to several dozen metres on the larger side, with a height of several metres, able to temporarily house a large number of the components of the reactor in the dismantling stage.",
"[0017] The base of the pools tends to be of irregular shape.",
"On one hand there are small-sized recesses which have to be cleaned preferably before emptying the pool, as these could contain radioactive material, and there are also uneven parts of the floor, amongst other reasons due to the bolts for holding the vessel of the reactor.",
"[0018] This thus requires a device for cleaning the floors of the pools in which reactors of nuclear power stations are housed which is able to clean narrow spaces, to the maximum width of the apparatus and which is able to get over any small obstacles which it might come up against.",
"[0019] As well as the floors, particles are deposited on the walls of these pools.",
"Conventional devices are not nevertheless able to clean the walls, as if they did so it would be the suction force of the absorption system which would have to keep the device attached to the wall.",
"Since these devices have to be made as far as possible of stainless steel or some other material able to be decontaminated, they have a high minimum weight, and the absorption systems conventionally used are not able to maintain their grip.",
"Furthermore, even when the absorption capacity is enough to maintain a grip, any irregularity or space would cause loss of adherence, and the device would fall to the floor and have to be positioned again.",
"Since the positioning task is extremely delicate, this risk in an installation of this sort makes such a system inoperative.",
"STATE OF THE ART [0020] There are different types of floor cleaners.",
"First of all there are manual cleaners, which have a rod with which the cleaning head is moved;",
"this head is connected by means of a suction hose to a pump and normally to a filter to be returned to the pool.",
"This type of cleaners cannot be used in the vessel of a nuclear reactor due to several problems: The floor tends to be located more than ten metres below the surface and there is an even greater distance to the accessible upper edge;",
"The pool may not have an upper perimeter strip from which the rod can be handled;",
"The visibility of the floor from the height at which this must be handled is very limited or none at all.",
"This requires a person to be handling the rod, which is not feasible through the height at which this is handled, the lack of visibility and the dose of radiation that the person in question would receive.",
"[0025] EP 1472425 describes an independent floor cleaner for pools which comprises a set of support wheels and is provided with filtration and pumping means.",
"It does not have means of controlling the movement at will.",
"[0026] A robot device known on the market as “ZODIAC Sweepy M3”, comprises a pair of lateral drive chains driven by motors and also comprises a motor for pumping water through a filter.",
"The cleaning width is nevertheless interior, between the drive chains, for which reason it ends far from the outer edges.",
"Furthermore, since this is conceived for cleaning swimming pools, it is not designed to get over obstacles.",
"[0027] In the nuclear industry, the “WEDA N600”",
"device is also a compact device able to be handled in remote control or in automatic mode, which has, like the previous one, a pair of drive chains, in this case with front and rear brushes of a width roughly equal to that of the body of the device and in which the extraction system installed in the apparatus itself expels the water through filter bags.",
"[0028] The “ATOX underwater bottom cleaner”",
"device has a structure similar to the previous ones, in that this is provided with lateral drive chains, with a filtration body operated with an exterior pump.",
"One major disadvantage of this device is its weight, apart from the difficulties of cleaning the side zones, for the reasons given above.",
"[0029] Other devices, even whilst complying with some of the characteristics described in the devices mentioned, are machines with a greater size, weight, cost and with the disadvantages also described above, without the manoeuvring capacity which is intended to be solved with this invention.",
"[0030] Furthermore, any of these can be held up by a small obstacle, such as a bolt head two or three centimetres high, when said obstacle is not directly confronted by one of the drive chains.",
"[0031] An automated pool cleaning vehicle has been disclosed by US 2012/102664 A1, with a housing defining an interior having a pump and a filter bag.",
"The bottom is normally concave.",
"It includes a first and a second pair of wheels connected to the chassis, and also at least a middle roller.",
"Contrary to the teachings of the present invention where the central rollers have a cleaning function in addition to the translation function, the rollers in US 2012/102664 A1 do not have a cleaning (bristling) function but just a translation function, and operate to overcome some kind of obstacles such as steps in a swimming pool.",
"Since it is not conceived for nuclear installations, plastic parts can be used creating a light weight, so the suction force can keep it adhered to the walls.",
"When failure of adherence is encountered, for example when a void portion is found and the suction do not keep the vehicle attached to the wall, the vehicle falls down to the bottom of the pool.",
"The structure therefore does not contain a floater to approximate the resultant density when submerged to that of the water, and have not government means which allow the device to be positioned in a desired position.",
"The rollers are at traction device not having a rotatable roller cleaner different than the traction system [0032] WO 2013/30005 A1 discloses a device for use in nuclear installations.",
"Since it must be manufactured with metal parts it has a substantial high weight.",
"It comprises a pump with a nozzle connected to it and arranged to face surfaces to be cleaned.",
"It comprises adjustable flotation means.",
"The floater as designed is not capable to keep the centre of gravity of the device, so when found an obstacle or a void portion in the pool which reduces the suction this device also falls down to the bottom of the pool or must be supported by an external crane.",
"[0033] There are light swimming pool cleaners made of plastic materials which are able to go up the walls of pleasure swimming pools, but which are not usable in the pool of a nuclear power plant reactor for the reasons stated above, since plastic is not an acceptable material for said use, and neither do they have devices for controlling their movement.",
"[0034] None of said devices is able to efficiently clean the walls of the vessel of a nuclear power plant reactor in a controlled manner.",
"[0035] It is furthermore desirable for the same apparatus which is able to clean the walls to be able to clean the floor.",
"This has advantages in the cost of the device, since instead of two (one for the walls and one for the floor) one will be enough and the operations can be performed consecutively with no need to perform two decontamination processes;",
"one of these is enough at the end of both operations, for cleaning the floor and the walls.",
"[0036] It is furthermore desirable for the same apparatus to be suitable for cleaning sloping surfaces.",
"DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [0037] The invention being proposed consists of a floor cleaner which comprises a structure carrying the other items, which are as follows: A front roller;",
"the front roller is held on a central support, securely held in turn to one of the side elements forming said structure;",
"this roller is elastically hinged to said central support;",
"it is divided into two halves or bodies, each of these being on one side of the central support;",
"A rear roller, essentially identical to the front roller;",
"A front central roller, preferably the front roller and the front central roller should be driven by a single motor, but they could also be driven by means of separate motors;",
"A rear central roller;",
"the rear roller and the rear central roller should preferably be driven by a single motor, but they could also be driven by means of separate motors;",
"A suction bell placed on the casing, with an upper intake (on the side opposite that of the support for the rollers) and a linear suction mouth which is placed between the central rollers;",
"Two sets of drive wheels or belts, one on each side, in which each set of drive wheels or belts is driven by an independent motor;",
"it is preferable for the movement to take place by means of belts, as the possibility of the device being held up on an obstacle, such as a bolt head, is lower if this option is used.",
"The pulling takes place by means of independent motors, with variable speed and rotation direction, meaning that, depending on the rotation direction of the motors, the cleaner can move forward when both belts rotate at the same speed in one direction, move in reverse when they rotate inversely in respect of the above or with displacement when the speeds of the belts are different.",
"[0044] For proper cleaning of the floor, there are central interior rollers and front and rear exterior rollers.",
"In particular, according to the preferred embodiment, two interior rollers are used, with the suction bell between them, and two exterior rollers, each of these, the front and rear ones, being placed on a hinged support in a normally central position.",
"The interior rollers have a smaller size than the width of the cleaner, insofar as these are driven from at least one of their sides and between the drive system.",
"The outer rollers are divided into two portions, and driven from the centre, so that the free end of each side reaches the maximum width of the cleaner;",
"in particular the length of the rollers is slightly greater than the width of the cleaner casing.",
"[0045] The rollers are made up of a core and a sheath.",
"It has been found that an ideal sheathing for proper cleaning is made up of rubber strips, arranged radially (in a transversal direction to the movement).",
"Hence, at least some of the strips will have to be positioned radially in respect of the roller axis.",
"These transversal strips may be joined to strips arranged on a plane perpendicular to the axle of the roller without impeding their operation.",
"[0046] In normal operation, with no obstacles, the exterior rollers and interior rollers turn in a direction so as to move the dirt towards the interior of the suction bell, that is, they drag the dirt along the floor towards the interior of the suction bell.",
"The displacement is caused by the drive belts.",
"The movement of the front belts and of the rear belts in this normal operation will be in mutually opposite rotation directions;",
"however, when they come up against an obstacle, one of the rollers may possibly have a support which exerts significant force, so that the movement inverse to its displacement could block the floor cleaner, without the drive belts having sufficient support.",
"For this reason, since the front rollers and the rear rollers are driven by independent motors, in the event of their coming up against an obstacle, such as a bolt head or a drop or rise in level of some centimetres, all the rollers may be made to run in forward motion, that is, in the same rotation direction as the wheels or drive belts, which helps to get over the obstacle in question.",
"[0047] The movement of the rollers is separate from the displacement movement of the cleaner, and is driven by two independent motors, as has already been said.",
"The control device can nevertheless synchronise the motors for optimum operation.",
"[0048] For the movement of the rollers and the drive belts, there are respectively motors and mechanical transmission assemblies, each formed of a plurality of pinions engaging each other.",
"[0049] As has already been stated, the exterior rollers are driven from the central part;",
"this central drive is made up of an arm or support which houses a mechanism, and sustains the corresponding parts of the lateral roller projecting outward, up to a width slightly over that of the casing.",
"This means that the exterior rollers do not properly clean a central zone in which the support and the drive mechanism for the front and rear rollers are located, which is why this zone has to be cleaned by the interior rollers.",
"The sheath of the interior rollers must thus be continuous on the longitudinal plane on which the mechanism for driving the exterior rollers is located, especially the front rollers.",
"[0050] Throughout the cleaning process different obstacles may come up, such as screw heads, bolt covers, etc.",
"These obstacles do not tend to be over 2 or 3 cm in height but no compact conventional system is able to overcome these without getting jammed.",
"If the arm carrying the front or rear rollers were rigidly fixed to with the housing of the cleaner, this would make it jam, since on rising up the obstacle, it also undesirably raises the drive belts, and the device loses traction.",
"For this reason it has been designed for both the front arm and the rear arm to have a hinged support, and be subject to an elastic retaining tension, so that the elevation tension is lower than the cleaner's effective weight in the water and so that when an obstacle is reached said arm rises over the obstacle and the cleaner continues its travel and after the obstacle is reached by the drive belts, these are indeed able to get over this with no further problems, the arm returning to the normal working position when the elastic tension caused on reaching the obstacle has been released.",
"[0051] Sometimes small obstacles are nevertheless located in the centre of the cleaner and are not reached by the drive belts.",
"To solve this drawback, at least one of the rollers, and in particular all of these, have been provided with a set of wheels joined to their axle, so that when the cleaner comes up against an obstacle, these wheels continue to pull.",
"The wheels have a smaller diameter than that of the corresponding brush, so that they will not have contact with the floor unless an obstacle with sufficient height is found.",
"This guarantees that the cleaning is correct in routes with no obstacles.",
"Since the rollers are driven by independent motors, two by two (one for the front ones and one for the rear ones) when an obstacle is reached which holds up the floor cleaner, all the rollers will rotate in the same direction, the wheels of said rollers thus pressing on the obstacle and easily getting over this.",
"[0052] According to a less preferred option for embodiment, the wheels of one of the rollers can be freely rotating, independently of the roller movement.",
"[0053] The alignment of the support wheels of the interior rollers with the position of the arm holding the mechanism for driving the exterior rollers should be avoided, insofar as said exterior rollers do not reach the position of said supporting arm.",
"[0054] The suction head is placed held on the cover of the structure, and comprises an upper suction mouth which is connected to a suction pump, either directly or through a conduit;",
"if this is joined to a conduit, a connector is provided, freely rotating at both ends and in a central zone also at 45°, allowing the positioning of the conduit with no restriction both from the upper head and from any lateral position.",
"[0055] The structure is made up of lateral elements and means of joining said elements;",
"it also comprises an upper cover holding the suction head, and protectors or covers at the front and rear, essentially symmetrical except for the holes for the corresponding connectors.",
"The structure is closed at the front and rear by the corresponding rollers.",
"According to one option each of the lateral elements is formed of a pair of separate parallel plates which define a chamber housing mechanical transmission and possibly drive assemblies.",
"[0056] Even when a turbine has been used for the cleaner to grip the floor in embodiments prior to this invention, this is insufficient.",
"Furthermore, since the suction bell is in a central position, a turbine has to be displaced from said centre, and although this is not critical in cleaning floors, it causes unwanted imbalances when this has to clean walls, which could make the cleaner fall to the floor, requiring further repositioning.",
"The floor and wall cleaner of the invention is thus provided with at least a pair of turbines, which may run simultaneously or independently.",
"The use of turbines for adherence placed symmetrically in respect of the longitudinal and/or transversal central plane has been shown to have a satisfactory result, which cannot be achieved with a single one.",
"[0057] Since the device may be used in a dark zone, such as the pool of reactor vessel at a nuclear power plant, the cleaner is designed to have lighting means, at least in the forward motion direction, but possibly also for reverse movement.",
"[0058] It is also designed for this to have at least one camera and possible two, one at the front and one at the rear, so that the state of cleaning achieved can be known at all times as well as the directions to be taken.",
"[0059] One of the problems for keeping the cleaner on a wall is the weight of the device.",
"As already stated, plastic materials cannot be used in operations in radioactive zones, for which reason the cleaner has a significant weight, of several dozen kilograms.",
"[0060] For this reason the casing has been provided on both sides with two supports for joining this to a float.",
"The float has the aim of compensating part of the cleaner's weight.",
"In particular, it has been designed to have a pair of supports on each side, so that when only walls have to be cleaned, the alignment of the float is roughly over the centre of gravity of the cleaner.",
"When this has to clean sloping surfaces the anchorage could nevertheless be hinged, or arranged in any other position.",
"[0061] The float comprises a normally prismatic sealed body, with a fixed volume, when the apparatus is operating.",
"This sealed body can also comprise an inflatable interior membrane.",
"It is designed to have inlet/outlet valves for cleaning or ballast, normally with water, when the volume required for the specific application is lower than the total volume of the chamber.",
"This float exerts an upward force of from 40% to 90% of the weight of the cleaner, according to the design specifications, apart from overcoming its own weight.",
"Furthermore, to regulate proper operation of the ascending and descending operations it has also been designed for the body to be provided with a second chamber fitted with an inflatable membrane, with a variable body which totally neutralises the weight of the body or even which makes this float.",
"This second chamber is made with perforated sheet metal, so that when the membrane inflates, any water found inside said second chamber can easily be drained out.",
"[0062] The cleaner comprises an electronic control system.",
"The electronic control system determines the actions of speeds and movement directions of each of the motors for driving the displacement or movement of the rollers and the turbine, of the lighting and picture-taking elements, or indicates any fault which might arise in the device.",
"The electronic system comprises a sealed connection plate for connecting electric supply and control cables of the device.",
"[0063] The control body is placed outside the device, and joined to this by means of supply cables for the different elements, insofar as it been shown that the radiation received in the pool quickly disables some of the functions.",
"The governing system is normally placed in a remote control unit, which is normally a computer.",
"This could possibly have an intermediate unit, for example a float which minimises the requirements of control cable sections, when the distances are too long, and which also enables control by means of wireless means.",
"BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS [0064] In order to illustrate the following explanation, ten sheets of drawings are attached to this descriptive report, representing the essence of this invention in eleven figures, and in which: [0065] FIG. 1 shows a general schematic view in perspective of the floor and wall cleaner of the invention, not including the float;",
"[0066] FIG. 2 shows a general schematic view in perspective of a float able to be connected to the floor and wall cleaner of the invention;",
"[0067] FIG. 3 shows a general schematic view in perspective of the floor and wall cleaner assembly of FIG. 1 with the float of FIG. 2 ;",
"[0068] FIG. 4 shows a schematic front view of the floor and wall cleaner of the invention not including the float;",
"[0069] FIG. 5 shows a schematic view along a central longitudinal section of the floor and wall cleaner of the invention not including the float;",
"[0070] FIG. 6 shows a schematic lower view of the floor and wall cleaner of the invention, not including the float;",
"[0071] FIG. 7 shows a schematic view in perspective of the suction bell which is fitted in the cleaner;",
"[0072] FIG. 8 shows a schematic exploded view of an example of an embodiment of one of the interior rollers;",
"[0073] FIG. 9 shows a schematic exploded view of an example of one of the exterior rollers, with a body for securing to the chassis and an elastically hinged arm for holding said rollers;",
"[0074] FIG. 10 shows a schematic view in perspective of the flat development of one form of covering the rollers;",
"[0075] FIG. 11 shows a section view of a cleaning roller provided with the sheathing of FIG. 10 ;",
"and [0076] FIG. 12 shows a schematic view in perspective of a scraper fitted on the float.",
"[0077] The following reference numbers are used in said figures: 1 upper cover 4 gripping turbines 8 turbine or autonomous external suction pump 11 lateral elements 12 front and rear covers 30 suction mouth or nozzle 51 front exterior cleaning roller 52 rear exterior cleaning roller 53 front interior cleaning roller 54 rear interior cleaning roller 55 traction device 56 roller sheathing 100 drive and cleaning body 121 engagement opening 150 suction bell 151 rectangular section of the suction bell 200 floatation body 201 casing or housing of the floatation body 202 coupling arms of the floatation body 203 securing holes of the coupling arms 204 lateral turbines of the floatation body 205 second variable volume chamber 206 connection of the second chamber 210 scraper 211 soft strip 212 sustaining part 521 pivot axis of the exterior arms 525 support of the exterior rollers 526 hinged arm of the support of the exterior rollers 527 spring of the hinged arm 538 core of the interior roller 539 support wheels of the rollers 551 pulleys of the drive device 552 drive belt 558 transmission items 559 drive motor 561 lamellae of the roller housing DESCRIPTION OF THE FORMS OF EMBODIMENT OF THE INVENTION [0115] The invention being proposed consists, as stated in the heading, of a floor and wall cleaner, governed by remote control, suitable for use in cleaning the floors and walls of the pools housing the vessel of nuclear power stations.",
"[0116] This is made up of a drive and cleaning body ( 100 ) and a floatation body ( 200 ).",
"[0117] The drive and cleaning body ( 100 ) is mainly made up of components of stainless steel and comprises the following elements: Lateral elements ( 11 ), joined together to form a structure;",
"according to a preferred embodiment the lateral elements ( 11 ) are made up of a double wall on each of their sides, inside which transmission elements ( 558 ) are housed;",
"An upper cover ( 1 ) provided with a suction mouth ( 30 );",
"Front and rear covers ( 12 );",
"at least one of these will normally be provided with an engagement opening ( 121 ), made in the end emerging over the upper cover ( 1 );",
"A traction device ( 55 );",
"the traction device is made up of at least one drive motor ( 559 ) with adjustable speed on each side of the drive and cleaning body ( 100 );",
"normally each of the sides will have a gear motor mechanism for distributing the movement to a pair of pulleys ( 551 ), one front and one rear, which sustain and move a drive belt ( 552 ) or band or chain.",
"The drive motors ( 559 ) as well as the transmission mechanisms are independent on each of the sides and are governed by a control system which could determine whether one or both move, the speed of the movement and the rotation direction, so as to enable the following states: The cleaner is at rest, when the motors ( 559 ) are idle The cleaner moves in a forward direction, with a variable speed depending on the rotation speed of the motors ( 559 ), synchronized by the control body;",
"The cleaner will rotate, by inverting the rotation direction of the motors ( 559 ) for a static rotation, or by variation of the speed of one of the motors in respect of the other, when the rotation takes place while moving;",
"Hence, an axle moved by the drive motor ( 559 ) transmits the rotation movement to each of the sides, and a mechanical system of gears (transmission elements 558 ) transmits this to at least one of a pair of pulleys ( 551 ) or drive crown wheels set on the corresponding side;",
"the movement is preferably transmitted to the two front and rear pulleys or crown wheels on each of the sides;",
"the belt ( 552 ) may have a toothed interior matching the outside of the pulleys ( 551 ), so as to guarantee absolute control of the movement with no unwanted sliding;",
"A set of cleaning rollers ( 51 , 52 , 53 , 54 ), the rollers are made up of a core ( 538 ) and a sheath ( 56 );",
"the sheath is made of an elastic material, such as rubber, formed of or comprising in its outer surface at least one set of tabs or lamellae ( 561 ) arranged in a radial position, i.e. transversal in respect of the rotation direction;",
"said lamellae ( 561 ) may be complemented by others arranged in planes transversal to the roller axis ( 51 , 52 , 53 , 54 ), or in other directions, this cleaning roller assembly comprises: Exterior cleaning rollers ( 51 , 52 ) which are located at the front and rear edges of the casing;",
"Interior cleaning rollers ( 53 , 54 ) which are located inside the casing, between the drive belts or between the lateral elements ( 11 ) which sustain these;",
"The front rollers ( 51 , 53 ) are driven by means of a single motor which transmits the movement to the motor axles of both of these by means of the corresponding transmission mechanism, but, within the scope of the invention, they could also be driven by means of independent motors;",
"and the rear cleaning rollers ( 52 , 54 ) are driven by means of a single motor which transmits the movement to the motor axles of both of these by means of the corresponding transmission mechanism, but they could also be driven, within the scope of the invention, by means of independent motors;",
"In the ordinary cleaning operation, on flat surfaces or with fairly low obstacles, the front (exterior and interior) rollers and the rear (interior and exterior) rollers will rotate in opposite directions, dragging the dirt towards the centre of the device;",
"there are nevertheless times at which it is necessary to get over an obstacle of some height;",
"for this purpose the exterior rollers are arranged on a support ( 525 ) with an elastically hinged arm ( 526 ) which tends to be placed in the lower position, for cleaning, but which is able to rise against the elastic force when an obstacle forces it to do so;",
"also in view of any change in position of the cleaning device, particularly through its forward or backward tilting, it has been seen that it is useful for the rear exterior roller also to be arranged on an elastically rotated arm ( 526 );",
"it has nevertheless been designed for the cleaning of smooth surfaces, especially walls, that the arm ( 526 ) can be secured to prevent any movement;",
"a securing pin is enough to do this;",
"The rollers will normally rotate in opposite directions, dragging the dirt towards the suction zone;",
"to assist in getting over obstacles, it is nevertheless designed for the rollers to be able to all turn in the same direction as the drive means;",
"The width of the interior rollers is thus limited by the width of the casing;",
"it is nevertheless a requisite for the cleaning to be carried out at the maximum width of the devices, without a wall or any other similar obstacle being able to limit the lateral cleaning capacity;",
"for this reason the exterior cleaning rollers ( 51 , 52 ) reach the required width on the outside, at the limit of or outside the width of the device;",
"for this purpose they are fitted on respective central arms ( 526 ) which support these, and which have the corresponding transmission mechanisms, with the cleaning roller ( 51 , 52 ) formed of two separate portions and sustained only by its central part (by one end of each of the portions);",
"in accordance with one option, the separate portions may be independently sustained, so that the corresponding arm ( 526 ) is independent for each side, and in the event of there being any type of hinge of said arm ( 526 ) the axis of the two portions could become out of alignment;",
"said option is not nevertheless considered preferential due to its mechanical complexity, even though it is considered within the scope of the invention;",
"as a general rule, the two front and rear arms are elastically hinged so that they can pivot on respective axles ( 521 ) located in the body of the casing ( 1 );",
"when an obstacle is reached the elastic retaining of the arm ( 526 ) which keeps this in a position aligned with the floor (as for the rest of the rollers) is overcome, so that the arm allows the cleaning roller ( 51 , 52 ) which this sustains to rise, thus preventing the cleaner from becoming jammed on said obstacle;",
"in FIG. 9 , one can see a configuration of the hinged arm ( 526 ) with elastic retention by means of a spring ( 527 ), the power shafts for the movement are represented and in a preferential embodiment the support ( 525 ) of the arm ( 526 ) is normally held to just one of the lateral elements ( 11 ) of the structure;",
"the interior rollers ( 53 , 54 ) have a core made up of a single continuous rigid body, and their sheathing divided into portions and the drive mechanism is placed on at least one of their sides;",
"on the other hand, the exterior rollers ( 51 , 52 ) are divided so that these have two external portions, with a central drive mechanism in the arms ( 526 ) which constitute the sole support of each of said portions;",
"The housing of the interior rollers ( 53 , 54 ) is made up of several portions, between which there are one or more support wheels, with movement linked to the roller on which these are located, or free in respect of this, in a less preferred embodiment;",
"it is intended for the support wheels ( 539 ) of the interior rollers not to be aligned with the wheels ( 526 ) and drive mechanisms for the exterior rollers, in which there is no exterior cleaning, and these are not aligned either with the support wheels ( 539 ) of the other of the interior rollers;",
"The exterior rollers also preferably have support wheels ( 539 );",
"The casing ( 1 ) also comprises at least one pair of gripping turbines ( 4 );",
"the gripping turbines ( 4 ) take the water from the outside of the casing and drive this in normal direction (perpendicular) and in the opposite direction to the support surface of the rollers (normally horizontal);",
"the greater the discharge force (flow, speed), the greater the adherence to the surface will be;",
"in particular there are two turbines located on the longitudinal symmetry plane and symmetrically in respect of the transversal symmetry plane;",
"The structure also comprises, according to a preferred option, a suction turbine or pump ( 8 ) (represented in FIG. 4 ), independent and linked with the suction mouth ( 30 );",
"the suction turbine or pump ( 8 ) is set on the outside of the suction mouth ( 30 ), integrated in the cleaner, allowing independent operation with no need for any external suction source;",
"it can be provided with filtration media or not;",
"The casing ( 1 ) comprises a suction mouth ( 30 );",
"in the event of this having to be connected to an external inlet with a suction tube, said suction mouth will be provided with rotating elements and with a rotation body at a 45° angle;",
"The casing ( 1 ) also comprises at least a light source and a camera for taking pictures;",
"The casing ( 1 ) is provided with a sealed connection plate or sealed connectors;",
"the cleaner comprises a control and governing body;",
"due to the sensitivity of the semi-conductors to radiation, it is intended for the control body to be placed outside the device, preferably outside the intense radiation zone, and joined to this from the outside (in the area around the pool) by means of connection cables;",
"this control and governing body will provide remote control for each of the elements controlled, such as stop-start and speeds and direction of rotation of each of the motors, as well as the light, camera, turbines, etc.",
"The upper cover ( 1 ) holds a suction bell ( 150 );",
"in its upper portion it forms the suction mouth ( 30 ), and in the lower zone it forms a rectangular section ( 151 ) set between the interior rollers at the height of the geometrical plane joining their corresponding axes.",
"[0143] In this configuration, the drive and cleaning body ( 100 ) has a maximum width of roughly 32 cm and a length of roughly 41 cm, and has a floatation body roughly 90 cm long, which allows great manoeuvring capacity and can reach recesses which would be impossible for other devices due to their dimensions and structure.",
"[0144] To give the cleaner the required floatability to be able to move along a wall or sloping surface, normally from the top downwards, it has been designed for said cleaner to comprise a floatation body ( 200 ).",
"The floatation body ( 200 ) is formed of a casing or housing ( 201 ) with at least one first sealed chamber, which can also be provided with an interior inflatable membrane.",
"This first chamber is provided with inlet/outlet connections for filling/emptying and interior cleaning.",
"This will normally be full of air, but in some applications, or to be used with a lighter body, it may be partly full of water, the rest being air, which means that the float force can be regulated.",
"The floatation body ( 200 ) is provided with coupling arms ( 202 ) on both sides of one of its ends.",
"These coupling arms ( 202 ) comprise at least two holes ( 203 ) or means of connection to other corresponding ones on the outer walls of the lateral elements ( 11 ).",
"These arms will preferably hold the lateral walls by means of securing screws in all their holes.",
"However, especially when used for cleaning sloping surfaces, the arms will be secured with a single screw on each side, allowing the floatation body to tilt ( 200 ) in respect of the drive and cleaning body ( 100 ), held by the coupling arms ( 202 ).",
"[0145] The floatation body comprises lateral impulsion turbines ( 204 ).",
"In a preferential embodiment, the lateral impulsion turbines ( 204 ) are attached to the coupling arms ( 202 ), along with the first chamber ( 201 ).",
"The activation of these turbines when the cleaner is in a state of weightlessness through the compensation of the weight with the corresponding floating force will enable a lateral displacement to a new cleaning position.",
"The turbines for securing the cleaner body will return the cleaner to the surface of the wall so that the assembly has free travel in all degrees since it is provided with forward and reverse movements, rotation, gripping and withdrawing from the surface to be cleaned, and lateral displacement.",
"[0146] According to a preferential embodiment, the floatation body ( 200 ) also comprises a second chamber ( 205 ) with variable volume, provided with an interior inflatable membrane.",
"Filling/emptying said second chamber ( 205 ) with air is done by means of a connection ( 206 ) to an external compressor.",
"Depending on whether greater or lesser floatation of the cleaner is needed, the variable volume chamber will be totally empty, thus meaning that the effective weight of the cleaner will be the maximum or will be partly full, or totally full of air, and the effective weight will therefore be the minimum.",
"The second chamber comprises at least one perforated wall, so that when the inner balloon inside this is filled (totally or partly) with air, the water that the volume of air displaces can be drained out.",
"According to a particular embodiment, the first fixed volume chamber and the second variable volume chamber constitute a prismatic body to which the coupling arms ( ) are linked;",
"the chamber with variable volume is preferably located in the portion furthest from said prismatic body.",
"[0147] Furthermore, insofar as the floatation body ( 200 ) will when cleaning walls always be located at the top of the drive and cleaning body ( 100 ), it has been designed for the floatation body ( 200 ) to be provided in the portion furthest from said drive and cleaning body ( 100 ) with a scraper ( 210 ).",
"The scraper is formed of a soft strip ( 211 ), normally made of rubber, arranged on a holding part ( 212 );",
"in accordance with a preferential embodiment this support is made up of a tube with circular section made of a light material and filled with injected foam, thus minimizing its density and constituting a further floating part.",
"In a preferred embodiment, the holding part is set on one or more supports joined to the floatation body ( 200 ) which allow the scraper to take up different angular positions, modifying the distance to the wall in the same way in accordance with operating requirements."
] |
RELATED APPLICATIONS AND INCORPORATION BY REFERENCE
This application claims benefit of European patent application Serial No. 12164775.4 filed 19 Apr. 2012.
The foregoing applications, and all documents cited therein or during their prosecution (“appln cited documents”) and all documents cited or referenced in the appln cited documents, and all documents cited or referenced herein (“herein cited documents”), and all documents cited or referenced in herein cited documents, together with any manufacturer's instructions, descriptions, product specifications, and product sheets for any products mentioned herein or in any document incorporated by reference herein, are hereby incorporated herein by reference, and may be employed in the practice of the invention. More specifically, all referenced documents are incorporated by reference to the same extent as if each individual document was specifically and individually indicated to be incorporated by reference.
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to Brassica plants, in particular Brassica oleracea plants resistant to Thrips tabaci , to seeds and progeny from the seeds and plants, and to a method for producing such a plant.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to Brassica plants, in particular Brassica oleracea plants which are resistant to Thrips tabaci and herein display agronomically desirable traits.
Thrips tabaci (also known as Onion thrips, or simply thrips) is a highly polyphagous insect and considered as an economically harmful pest for many cultivated crops especially for crops from the Liliaceae, Solanaceae, and Brassicaceae plant families, such as onion, leek, tomato, cabbage, but also in crops from outside these families, such as e.g. cucumber, melon and snap beans (Toda & Murai, 2007, Applied Entomology and Zoology 42: 309-316; Trdan et al., 2005, African Entomology 13: 85-95).
Thrips harm the plant directly by feeding on the plant tissue and indirectly by being a vector for lethal plant viruses such as tomato spotted wild virus (Toda & Murai, 2007, Applied Entomology and Zoology 42: 309-316). Thrips occur worldwide and due to climate change and trade the frequency of thrips infestation is increasing (Trdan et al., 2005; African Entomology 13: 85-95).
Cabbage plants ( Brassica oleracea var. capitata L.) belong to the plant family Brassicaceae. The family has a cosmopolitan distribution and consists of approximately 3500 to 4000 species. The family and especially the genus Brassica contains many agronomically important crops such as broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cauliflower, Chinese cabbage, curly cabbage, kale, kohlrabi, mustard, oxheart cabbage, radish, rapeseed, red cabbage, Savoy cabbage, turnip, and white cabbage.
In tissue of Brassica oleracea var. capitata plants affected by thrips callus growths will form. Over time these callus growths become brown making it necessary to remove several layers of leaves from the cabbage head before marketing. Even in storage the development of symptoms caused by thrips may increase. The reduction in head size and weight ultimately leads to a loss in yield. For Brassica oleracea var. capitata it is estimated that 75% of its total acreage suffers from thrips.
Controlling thrips in cabbage by means of applying insecticide is considered environmentally unfriendly and ineffective, because the closed leaves of the cabbage heads provide protection to the thrips, and because thrips are hard to detect, sometimes even only at harvest stage. Thrips infestation in cabbages may occur from the second exterior leaf up to the fifteenth exterior leaf, while insecticides are usually only effective up to the sixth exterior leaf of the head (Trdan et al., 2005; African Entomology 13: 85-95). Therefore, there is an urgent need for cabbage plants which are resistant against this pest.
Although no highly thrips resistant Brassica oleraceae varieties are known, huge differences in susceptibility exist among varieties. Certain varieties show an intermediate level of resistance, but no varieties are known that are highly resistant against Thrips tabaci . The genetic background of this intermediate resistance against thrips is still poorly understood and it is thought that this is a polygenic trait, inherited as a gene complex in which many genes are involved (Voorrips et al., 2008; Euphytica 163: 409-415).
Citation or identification of any document in this application is not an admission that such document is available as prior art to the present invention.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
Because in the present state of the art no highly thrips resistant cabbage varieties are known, it is the object of the present invention to provide a Brassica plants, in particular Brassica oleracea plant with a high resistance to Thrips tabaci.
In the research that led to the present invention novel Brassica oleracea plants were developed that are highly resistant against thrips.
The said resistance of the invention is controlled by a genetic determinant, the inheritance of which is consistent with that of a monogenic additive trait. ‘Additive trait’ in this case means that the fully achievable resistance is only observable in plants which may comprise the genetic determinant in homozygous state, however plants which may comprise the genetic determinant in heterozygous state will show an intermediate level of resistance.
Since the inheritance of the resistance is comparable to that of a monogenic trait, it has a second advantage over the prior art, because the resistance level is not only higher but also easier to incorporate in new Brassica varieties as compared to the complex polygenic traits from the prior art which led to plants with only an intermediate resistance against thrips.
Accordingly, it is an object of the invention to not encompass within the invention any previously known product, process of making the product, or method of using the product such that Applicants reserve the right and hereby disclose a disclaimer of any previously known product, process, or method. It is further noted that the invention does not intend to encompass within the scope of the invention any product, process, or making of the product or method of using the product, which does not meet the written description and enablement requirements of the USPTO (35 U.S.C. §112, first paragraph) or the EPO (Article 83 of the EPC), such that Applicants reserve the right and hereby disclose a disclaimer of any previously described product, process of making the product, or method of using the product.
It is noted that in this disclosure and particularly in the claims and/or paragraphs, terms such as “comprises”, “comprised”, “comprising” and the like can have the meaning attributed to it in U.S. patent law; e.g., they can mean “includes”, “included”, “including”, and the like; and that terms such as “consisting essentially of” and “consists essentially of” have the meaning ascribed to them in U.S. patent law, e.g., they allow for elements not explicitly recited, but exclude elements that are found in the prior art or that affect a basic or novel characteristic of the invention.
These and other embodiments are disclosed or are obvious from and encompassed by, the following Detailed Description.
DEPOSITS
Seeds of Brassica oleracea plants resistant to Thrips tabaci were deposited under NCIMB deposit accession number 41760 on 29 Sep. 2010 with NCIMB Ltd. (Ferguson Building, Craibstone Estate, Bucksburn, Aberdeen, AB21 9YA). All seeds of the deposit comprise the genetic determinant homozygously. Plants grown from these seeds are thus highly resistant against Thrips tabaci.
The Deposits with NCIMB Ltd, Ferguson Building, Craibstone Estate, Bucksburn, Aberdeen AB21 9YA, UK, under deposit accession number 41760 were made pursuant to the terms of the Budapest Treaty. Upon issuance of a patent, all restrictions upon the deposit will be removed, and the deposit is intended to meet the requirements of 37 CFR §§1.801-1.809. The deposit will be irrevocably and without restriction or condition released to the public upon the issuance of a patent and for the enforceable life of the patent. The deposit will be maintained in the depository for a period of 30 years, or 5 years after the last request, or for the effective life of the patent, whichever is longer, and will be replaced if necessary during that period.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
The following detailed description, given by way of example, but not intended to limit the invention solely to the specific embodiments described, may best be understood in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.
FIG. 1 . Schematic overview of a part of chromosome two indicating markers (in bold) that may be linked to the genetic determinant conferring thrips resistance (SEQ ID NO 1, 2, 3, and 5) together with flanking markers (SEQ ID NO: 4, 6, and 7). On the left side the genetic distance indicated in centiMorgans. On the right side, the markers are indicated.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
The present invention thus relates to a Brassica plant, in particular a Brassica oleracea plant, which may comprise a genetic determinant, which when homozygously present confers high resistance against Thrips tabaci , and which is as found in plants grown from seeds of which a representative sample is deposited with the NCIMB under NCIMB accession number 41760.
The present invention also relates to a Brassica plant, in particular a Brassica oleracea plant, which may comprise the genetic determinant heterozygously, and thus showing intermediate resistance against Thrips tabaci , and which genetic determinant is obtainable from plants grown from seeds of which a representative sample is deposited with the NCIMB under NCIMB accession number 41760.
The invention furthermore relates to a Brassica plant which may comprise the genetic determinant homozygously, and therefore is highly resistant against Thrips tabaci.
In one embodiment the invention provides a Brassica plant, in particular a Brassica oleracea plant, that is resistant to Thrips tabaci , obtainable by crossing a resistant plant of which representative seed was deposited under NCIMB number 41760 with another cabbage plant to produce an F1 and subsequently selfing the F1 to obtain an F2 and selecting a plant therefrom that shows resistance to Thrips tabaci.
Furthermore, it was found during the research leading to the present invention that the genetic determinant conferring resistance to Thrips tabaci , is located on chromosome 2 and linked to marker BO00200 (SEQ ID NO: 1) and/or marker BO00277 (SEQ ID NO: 2) and/or BO00602 (SEQ ID NO: 5).
More in particular, in the deposit NCIMB 41760 the genetic determinant conferring resistance to Thrips tabaci , is located on chromosome 2 between marker BO00458 (SEQ ID NO: 7) and marker BO01225 (SEQ ID NO: 6) and linked to marker BO00200 (SEQ ID NO: 1) and/or marker BO00277 (SEQ ID NO: 2) and/or marker BO00602 (SEQ ID NO: 5).
Most in particular the genetic determinant conferring resistance to Thrips tabaci , is located on chromosome 2 between marker BO01146 (SEQ ID NO: 3) and marker BO00310 (SEQ ID NO: 4) and linked to marker BO00200 (SEQ ID NO: 1) and/or marker BO00277 (SEQ ID NO: 2) in seeds deposited under NCIMB accession number 41760, see also FIG. 1 .
Alternatively the genetic determinant conferring resistance to Thrips tabaci , is located on chromosome 2 between markers BO00310 (SEQ ID NO: 4) and BO00458 (SEQ ID NO: 7) and linked to BO00200 (SEQ ID NO: 1) and/or marker BO00277 (SEQ ID NO: 2) and/or marker BO01146 (SEQ ID NO: 3) and/or marker BO00602 (SEQ ID NO: 5), in particular between marker BO00458 (SEQ ID NO: 7) and marker BO01146 (SEQ ID NO: 3) and linked to marker BO00602 (SEQ ID NO: 5).
Therefore, the invention also relates to a Brassica plant resistant to Thrips tabaci , which may comprise a genetic determinant that confers resistance to Thrips tabaci , wherein said genetic determinant is obtainable by introgression from a plant grown from seeds of which a representative sample was deposited with the NCIMB under NCIMB accession number 41760, and wherein the said genetic determinant in the seeds of the seed deposit number NCIMB 41760 is positioned on chromosome 2 and linked to marker BO00200 (SEQ ID NO: 1), and/or BO00277 (SEQ ID NO: 2), and/or marker BO00602 (SEQ ID NO: 5).
A Brassica plant carrying the genetic determinant conferring resistance against thrips may suitably be identified among descendants from a cross between a plant susceptible for thrips, and a plant that does carry the genetic determinant in homozygous state, by growing F2 plants from seeds that are the result from the initial cross and a selfing step, and selecting plants showing the desired trait. Selecting the plants may be done phenotypically, or may be done through identification of the genetic determinant, for example by means of one or more of the markers defined herein.
In the absence of molecular markers or in the event that recombination between the molecular markers and the genetic determinant have taken place and thus are not predictive anymore, equivalence of genetic determinants may still be determined by an allelism test. To perform an allelism test, material that is homozygous for the known determinant, a tester plant, is crossed with material that is homozygous for the genetic determinant that is to be tested. This latter plant is referred to as the donor plant. The donor plant to be tested should be or should be made homozygous for the genetic determinant to be tested. The skilled person knows how to obtain a plant that is homozygous for the genetic determinant to be tested. When in the F2 of the cross between a donor plant and a tester plant no segregation for the phenotype related to the genetic determinant is observed, the genetic determinants of the donor plant and the tester plant have been proven to be equivalent or the same.
The invention also relates to a Brassica plant that may comprise a genetic determinant conferring resistance to Thrips tabaci , wherein plants of first generation progeny (F1) of a cross of the said plant with a tester plant, that may comprise the said genetic determinant and of which representative seed was deposited with the NCIMB under accession number NCIMB 41760, or a progeny plant thereof that may comprise the said genetic determinant, or a plant derived therefrom and which may comprise the said genetic determinant, show a 1:0 segregation for the resistance against Thrips tabaci . In both the tester plant and the plant of the invention the genetic determinant is present in homozygous form. Plants of the second and further generations, if obtained by selfing also show a 1:0 segregation for the said resistance pattern. The tester plant may be a plant of which representative seed was deposited with the NCIMB under accession number NCIMB 41760.
The Brassica plant of the invention is preferably a Brassica oleracea plant, but may also be any other plant of the genus Brassica into which the skilled person may introgress the genetic determinant of the invention, e.g. the following Brassica species: Brassica oleracea, Brassica napus, Brassie campestris, Brassica cretica, Brassica rapa, Brassica juncea , and Brassica nigra . The skilled person knows how to make interspecific crosses with these species, e.g. by means of embryo rescue, protoplast fusion, and other related technologies.
In another embodiment the invention relates to seeds which may comprise the said genetic determinant conferring resistance against Thrips tabaci . A plant grown from the seeds is highly resistant to thrips when the genetic determinant is present in homozygous state.
The invention thus further relates to seeds which may comprise said genetic determinant and which seeds are capable of growing into plants that are highly resistant against Thrips tabaci.
According to a further aspect thereof, the invention relates to propagation material capable of growing into a plant of the invention.
In one embodiment, such propagation material is formed by seed of a Brassica plant of the invention, wherein the plant that may be grown from the seed may comprise a genetic determinant of the invention.
In another embodiment the propagation material capable of growing into a plant of the invention is selected from the group consisting of microspores, pollen, ovaries, ovules, embryos, embryo sacs, egg cells, cuttings, roots, root tips, hypocotyls, cotyledons, stems, leaves, flowers, anthers, seeds, meristematic cells, protoplasts, and cells.
In a further embodiment the invention relates to tissue culture of propagation material capable of growing into a plant of the invention.
Suitably, the plant produced from the propagation material may comprise the genetic determinant as found in Brassica plants grown from seeds of seed lot AG6359-35/39, a representative sample of which was deposited with the NCIMB under NCIMB accession number 41760. When the genetic determinant is present in homozygous state the plant produced shows high resistance to Thrips tabaci , in particular the resistance as observed in Brassica plants grown from seeds of seed lot AG6359-35/39, a representative of which was deposited with the NCIMB under NCIMB accession number 41760. When the genetic determinant is present in heterozygous state the plant shows intermediate resistance.
The invention also relates to progeny of the plants, cells, tissues and seeds of the invention. Such progeny may in itself be plants, cells, tissues or seeds.
As used herein the word “progeny” is intended to mean the first and all further descendants from a cross with a plant of the invention that may comprise the said genetic determinant. “Progeny” also encompasses plants that carry the trait of the invention and are obtained from other plants or progeny of plants of the invention by vegetative propagation or multiplication.
Therefore, in one embodiment the invention relates to progeny of a Brassica plant which may comprise the genetic determinant of the invention.
In a further embodiment the invention relates to progeny of Brassica plants of the invention that are resistant against Thrips tabaci . These progeny plants thus may comprise the genetic determinant conferring resistance against thrips.
In one aspect the invention relates to the harvested part of a Brassica plant which may comprise the genetic determinant conferring thrips resistance.
The invention furthermore relates to a food product which may comprise one or more harvested parts of a Brassica plant which may comprise the genetic determinant conferring thrips resistance.
The harvested part or food product may be or may comprise a cabbage head, a curd, a stem, a leaf, a root, a sprout, a seed, or any other part of a Brassica plant. The harvested part may also be used for the production of bio-fuel. The food product or harvested part, may have undergone one or more processing steps. Such a processing step might comprise but is not limited to any one of the following treatments or combinations thereof: cutting, washing, cooking, steaming, baking, frying, pasteurizing, freezing, grinding, extracting oil, pickling, or fermenting. The processed form that is obtained is also part of this invention.
Another aspect of this invention relates to a nucleic acid molecule which is causative of resistance against Thrips tabaci . The said DNA molecule may comprise a DNA sequence which is positioned on chromosome 2 between markers BO00458 (SEQ ID NO: 7) and BO01225 (SEQ ID NO: 6), more in particular between markers BO00458 (SEQ ID NO: 7) and BO00146 (SEQ ID NO: 3), or between markers BO00146 (SEQ ID NO: 3) and BO00310 (SEQ ID NO: 4), or a part thereof.
Yet another aspect of the invention relates to use of the markers and said nucleic acid molecule to identify plants which are resistant against Thrips tabaci , and/or carry the genetic determinant conferring resistance to Thrips tabaci.
Therefore, in one embodiment the invention relates to the use of marker BO00200 (SEQ ID NO: 1), or marker BO00277 (SEQ ID NO: 2), or marker BO00602 (SEQ ID NO: 5), or the said DNA molecule which may comprise a DNA sequence which is positioned on chromosome 2 between markers BO00458 (SEQ ID NO: 7) and BO01225 (SEQ ID NO: 6), or BO00146 (SEQ ID NO: 3) and BO00310 (SEQ ID NO: 4), or BO00458 (SEQ ID NO: 7) and BO00146 (SEQ ID NO: 3), or part thereof, to identify plants resistant against Thrips tabaci , and/or carrying the genetic determinant conferring resistance to Thrips tabaci.
The skilled person knows how to develop new markers linked to a trait using already known markers, QTLs, alleles, genes or other DNA molecules that are associated with a certain trait.
Thus, the invention also relates to the use of markers BO00200 (SEQ ID NO: 1), BO00277 (SEQ ID NO: 2), and BO00602 (SEQ ID NO: 5), and the said DNA molecule, or part thereof, for developing other markers linked to the genetic determinant conferring thrips resistance.
In one embodiment, the genetic determinant conferring resistance to Thrips tabaci also confers resistance against other sap sucking insect species, wherein the sap sucking insect species is selected from, but not limited to the group consisting of Aleyrodes proletella, Myzus persicae , and Brevicoryne brassicae.
In one aspect the invention relates to a process for producing Brassica plants which may comprise a genetic determinant that confers resistance to Thrips tabaci , which may comprise the step of selecting said Brassica plants from a population of Brassica plants segregating for the said genetic determinant using marker BO00200 (SEQ ID NO: 1) and/or marker BO00277 (SEQ ID NO: 2) and/or BO00602 (SEQ ID NO: 5).
The term ‘genetic determinant’ as used herein encompasses one or more QTLs, genes, or alleles. These terms are used interchangeably. A genetic determinant may be identified by the use of a molecular marker. A genetic determinant may alternatively be identified by the position on a genetic map, or by indication of the location on a linkage group or chromosome. When a genetic determinant is not linked to a specific molecular marker any longer, but its position on a chromosome as defined on a genetic map is unaltered, this genetic determinant is still the same as when it was linked to the molecular marker. The genetic trait that it confers is therefore also still the same. The ‘genetic trait’ is the trait or characteristic that is conferred by the genetic determinant. The genetic trait may be identified phenotypically, for example by performing a bio-assay. However, also plant stages for which no phenotypic assay may be performed do carry the genetic information that leads to the genetic trait. ‘Trait’ or ‘phenotypic trait’ may be used instead of ‘genetic trait’.
In one embodiment, the invention relates to Brassica plants of the invention that carry the genetic determinant conferring resistance to Thrips tabaci , and having acquired said determinant by introduction of the genetic information that is responsible for the trait from a suitable source, either by conventional breeding, or genetic modification, in particular by cisgenesis or transgenesis. Cisgenesis is genetic modification of plants with a natural gene, coding for an (agricultural) trait, from the crop plant itself or from a sexually compatible donor plant. Transgenesis is genetic modification of a plant with a gene from a noncrossable species or a synthetic gene.
The invention also relates to the germplasm of plants of the invention. The germplasm is constituted by all inherited characteristics of an organism and according to the invention encompasses at least the genetic determinant of the invention. The germplasm may be used in a breeding program for the development of thrips resistant Brassica plants.
In one aspect the invention relates to a method for production of a Brassica plant is resistant against Thrips tabaci , which may comprise:
a) crossing a plant which may comprise a genetic determinant that leads to resistance against Thrips tabaci with another plant; b) selfing the resulting F1 for obtaining F2 plants; c) selecting plants resistant to Thrips tabaci in the F2; d) optionally performing one or more additional rounds of selfing or crossing, and subsequently selecting, for a plant which may comprise said resistance against Thrips tabaci.
It is clear that the parent that provides the trait of the invention is not necessarily a plant grown directly from the deposited seeds. The parent may also be a progeny plant from the seed or a progeny plant from seeds that are identified to have the trait of the invention by other means.
In one aspect, the invention relates to a method for production of a Brassica plant resistant against Thrips tabaci , which may comprise:
a) crossing a plant which may comprise the genetic determinant that leads to resistance against Thrips tabaci with another plant; b) optionally backcrossing the resulting F1 with the preferred parent; c) selecting for plants resistant to Thrips tabaci in the F2; d) optionally performing one or more additional rounds of selfing or crossing, and subsequently selecting, for a plant which may comprise the said resistance is performed.
The invention additionally provides a method of introducing a desired trait into a Brassica plant resistant against Thrips tabaci , which may comprise:
a) crossing a Brassica plant resistant to Thrips tabaci , representative seed of which were deposited with the NCIMB under deposit number NCIMB 41760, with a second Brassica plant that may comprise a desired trait to produce F1 progeny; b) selecting an F1 progeny that may comprise said resistance and the desired trait; c) crossing the selected F1 progeny with either parent, to produce backcross progeny; d) selecting backcross progeny which may comprise the desired trait and resistance against Thrips tabaci ; and e) optionally repeating steps c) and d) one or more times in succession to produce selected fourth or higher backcross progeny that may comprise the desired trait and resistance against Thrips tabaci . The invention includes a Brassica plant produced by this method.
In one embodiment selection for plants resistant against Thrips tabaci is done in the F1 by using marker BO00200 (SEQ ID NO: 1) and/or marker BO00277 (SEQ ID NO: 2) and/or BO00602 (SEQ ID NO: 5). In another aspect selection for the trait of the invention is started in the F2 of a cross or alternatively of a backcross. Selection of plants in the F2 can be done phenotypically as well as by using the said markers.
In one embodiment selection for plants resistant against Thrips tabaci is started in the F3 or a later generation.
In one embodiment the plant which may comprise the genetic determinant is a plant of an inbred line, a hybrid, a doubled haploid, or of a segregating population.
The invention further provides a method for the production of a Brassica plant resistant against Thrips tabaci by using a doubled haploid generation technique to generate a doubled haploid line which may comprise the said resistance.
The invention furthermore relates to hybrid seed that may be grown into a thrips resistant plant and to a method for producing such hybrid seed which may comprise crossing a first parent plant with a second parent plant and harvesting the resultant hybrid seed, wherein said first parent plant and/or said second parent plant is the plant as claimed.
In one embodiment, the invention relates to a method for producing a hybrid Brassica plant that is resistant to thrips, which may comprise crossing a first parent Brassica plant with a second parent Brassica plant and harvesting the resultant hybrid seed, of which the first parent plant and/or the second parent plant is resistant against Thrips tabaci , and growing said hybrid seeds into thrips resistant hybrid plants.
The invention also relates to a method for the production of a Brassica plant resistant against Thrips tabaci by using a seed that may comprise a genetic determinant in its genome that leads to resistance against Thrips tabaci for growing the said Brassica plant. The seeds are suitably seeds of which a representative sample was deposited with the NCIMB under deposit number NCIMB 41760.
The invention also relates to a method for seed production which may comprise growing Brassica plants from seeds of which a representative sample was deposited with the NCIMB under deposit number NCIMB 41760, allowing the plants to produce seeds, and harvesting those seeds. Production of the seeds is suitably done by crossing or selfing.
In one embodiment, the invention relates to a method for the production of a Brassica plant resistant against Thrips tabaci by using tissue culture.
The invention furthermore relates to a method for the production of a Brassica plant resistant against Thrips tabaci by using vegetative reproduction.
In one embodiment, the invention relates to a method for the production of a Brassica plant resistant against Thrips tabaci by using a method for genetic modification to introgress the said resistance into the Brassica plant. Genetic modification may comprise transgenic modification or transgenesis, using a gene from a non-crossable species or a synthetic gene, and cisgenic modification or cisgenesis, using a natural gene, coding for an (agricultural) trait, from the crop plant itself or from a sexually compatible donor plant.
The invention also relates to a breeding method for the development of Brassica plants that are resistant against Thrips tabaci wherein germplasm which may comprise said resistance is used. Representative seed of said plant which may comprise the genetic determinant and being representative for the germplasm was deposited with the NCIMB under deposit number NCIMB 41760.
In a further embodiment the invention relates to a method for the production of a Brassica plant resistant against Thrips tabaci wherein progeny or propagation material of a plant which may comprise the genetic determinant conferring said resistance is used as a source to introgress the said resistance into another Brassica plant. Representative seed of said plant which may comprise the genetic determinant was deposited with the NCIMB under deposit number NCIMB 41760.
The invention provides preferably a Brassica plant resistant to Thrips tabaci , which plant is obtainable by any of the methods herein described and/or familiar to the skilled person.
SEQUENCE DATA
TABLE 1
Sequence data of the SNP markers of FIG. 1. In NCIMB
deposit 41760 the markers BO00200, BO00277,
and BO00602 are linked to the genetic
determinant conferring resistance against Thrips.
BO00200
TTGTCCGGAAAATAAGCCCTTCCTTCTCCATGAGCCGCCCAA
SEQ ID NO: 1
ACTCCTAAAGTACTTACC[T/C]TCCATTCCTTTCAGCACTATTG
ACGGACAGTCCTTGATGGTCACGCTTGTGAACCTGCAG
BO00277
GCTTGTCCAGCTTATGAGCATTTTGTAATACATGTTTGCTTGG
SEQ ID NO: 2
ATGGTCAAACCTGAAAA[A/C]ACACACAAGTTCAACAATTCT
CAGAAGATGGATAAACCTGCAG
BO01146
TTAAAAACAAATNATGTTTTGTTTTACCTGCTTTTTCCTCTTCT
SEQ ID NO: 3
CGCTNNTTGNCAGCTTCTTCTCTCTGTTGGCGAATCAGAGCCA
AACGATCTGTACACAAACACACACAAGGGATAAGATAATCA
A[A/*]TAGGCTCATCTGGTAACAAAGAAAGAGAACAAGAGGT
CCATTGTTTTTTTACNNAANTCCTTNNTTGNTTGCTCGGTTTT
NNCNTGNNNCTGCAACCTCATGTATCGCTCATGAGCTCGTTG
CTTCTCTAGCTCCTCCCTGCAG
BO00310
CATGTCATCTTTCGTNAGGTTTGTTATTTCTATGCCTCGTTTG
SEQ ID NO: 4
AGAGCTTCCCTCAATGG[A/C]CCCATAGTTGCATCTTTCACTA
GGTTCTTCATGTCTGATCCCGAGTACCCTGCAG
BO00602
TTAAATATGTGAATGCTGAAATRTTTGTTTAGCAGA[C/G]GAG
SEQ ID NO: 5
ACACAGGAAGAAGATCATCTCATGTTGTTCGCTCTCTCAGCA
GAGAGTTTGAAGTTGCAAGTACTCCTGCAG
BO01225
CCCTGTTWAAGGAGCCTCCTTGGAGCTTGTTGATACCTCAAA
SEQ ID NO: 6
GTTAGGTAGTGACAATGTGGATAATGAAAGTTTGAAGCTT
T[A/C]TCAACAATTAGCTGATAAGAGAGGTTCTTGTGAAGAGGA
TTTGATGAGAATCTCTATGAAGAAACGAGGTGTAATCAGCAA
TGTCTCCACCTCTYTGATGGAARATGCTRGTTTYGATGGAAT
ATTGGCTTCTCCTGCAG
BO00458
TAAAGAACCTGATGAAGAAAGTGAAGAGCTAGGTGGAAACC
SEQ ID NO: 6
TACTTGACCTGCTCCTAAG[T/G]TTCTTCACTTCCGGGATCTTC
TCCTCTTTTGATCTCACCTGCCTCACCTTTGCCTCGTTC
Although the present invention and its advantages have been described in detail, it should be understood that various changes, substitutions and alterations can be made herein without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as defined in the appended claims.
The present invention will be further illustrated in the following Examples which are given for illustration purposes only and are not intended to limit the invention in any way.
EXAMPLES
Example 1
Thrips resistant plants of the invention were compared with susceptible plants and plants with an intermediate resistance in an open field trial. Plants were naturally infected by using an attractant species. In this trial leek plants were used as a natural attractant for thrips. For the skilled person it is known that also other plants can be used as an attractant for Thrips tabaci , such as onion or shallots.
Plants from variety Rinda and Hurricane were used in this trial as susceptible control plants. Plants from varieties Langendijker Bewaar, Tacoma, and Multima were included in this trial since they are known to be intermediately resistant against Thrips tabaci . As highly resistant plants of the invention, plants grown from seeds of seed lot AG6359-35/39 of which a representative sample was deposited with the NCIMB under NCIMB accession number 41760, as well as plants of three lines derived from plants grown from seed of the seed deposit that were selfed, were used. These lines are AG2971, AG2973, and AG3086.
Each plant was scored for the amount of thrips infestation, based on the scale explained in Table 2. Symptoms were scored when the cabbage heads were mature. The skilled person is not bound to using this scale but can also use a scale with another subdivision of categories as long as the scoring will be done at the same stage, i.e. when the cabbage head is mature. This is not of influence on the final result of the screening.
TABLE 2
Scoring of thrips infestation.
Score
Symptoms
1
No symptoms/no damage
High
resistance
2
Occasional small symptoms on outer leaves
3
Minor damage. Max. 20% of head's surface is
Intermediate
covered by symptoms, only outer leaves are
resistance
infected.
4
Medium damage. Max. 50% of the head's surface
(all leaves accumulated) is covered by symptoms.
The symptoms are max. in the second and third
layer.
5
Heavy damage. More than 50% of the head's
Susceptible
surface (all leaves accumulated) is covered by
symptoms. Damage also observed in deeper leaf
layers
In Table 3 the scores of the trial are summarized. It is clear that all plants of the invention display a significantly higher resistance against thrips.
In field trials with a high disease pressure, even highly resistant plants show occasional symptoms of thrips infection. This can e.g. be the case when attractant plant species are used. In order to make a fair comparison between different trials using natural infection the same comparison varieties should be used, because the relative differences in damage observed by thrips infestation will approximately be the same while the mean scores of same plants in different trials can deviate substantially.
TABLE 3
Score of thrips resistance field trial.
Number of plants
Material
screened
Mean score
AG6359-35/39
17
1
Resistant
(NCIMB 41760)
AG2971
14
1.1
Resistant
AG2973
16
1.2
Resistant
AG3086
4
1.2
Resistant
Langendijker
22
3.1
Intermediate
Bewaar
Tacoma
6
3
Intermediate
Multima
6
3
Intermediate
Hurricane
10
4.4
Susceptible
Rinda
10
5
Susceptible
Example 2
Transfer of Thrips Resistance to Susceptible Plants
A thrips resistant plants of the invention AG 2973-35 (see Table 2 for resistance scores), was crossed with a susceptible plant FM 2979-01. Plants of the F1 were observed in a field trial as described in Example 1. No highly thrips resistant plants were observed.
From the F1 population a plant was selected which was selfed to obtain a population of F2 plants. The F2 was placed in a field trial as described in Example 1. Resistance scores are summarized in Table 4.
The segregation of the F2 population demonstrates that the inheritance of the resistance of the invention is comparable with that of a monogenic additive trait (highly resistant: intermediate resistant: susceptible=1:2:1). Depending on the genetic background of the susceptible parent plant there can be a different distribution between intermediately resistant and susceptible plants observed in the F2.
TABLE 4
Resistant
Intermediately
Susceptible
F2 population
plants
resistant plants
plants
Chi-square
F2(AG 2973-35 ×
24
59
32
1.24
FM 2979-01)
The invention is further described by the following numbered paragraphs:
1. A Brassica plant in particular a Brassica oleracea plant comprising a genetic determinant, which when homozygously present confers high resistance against Thrips tabaci , and which is as found in plants grown from seeds of which a representative sample is deposited with the NCIMB under NCIMB accession number 41760.
2. A Brassica plant of paragraph 1, which is homozygous for the genetic determinant and resistant against Thrips tabaci.
3. The Brassica plant of paragraph 1 or paragraph 2, wherein the said genetic determinant in the seeds of NCIMB deposit 41760 is located on chromosome 2 and linked to marker BO00200 (SEQ ID NO: 1) and/or marker BO00277 (SEQ ID NO: 2) and/or marker BO00602 (SEQ ID NO: 5).
4. Seed comprising the genetic determinant as defined in any one of the paragraphs 1 to 3.
5. Seed of paragraph 4, wherein the plant that can be grown from the seed is resistant to Thrips tabaci.
6. Progeny of a Brassica plant of anyone of the paragraphs 1 to 3 or progeny of plants grown from seeds of paragraph 4 or paragraph 5, wherein the plant comprises the genetic determinant as defined in any one of the paragraphs 1-3.
7. Progeny plant of paragraph 6 wherein the progeny plant is resistant against Thrips tabaci.
8. Propagation material derived from a plant of any one of the paragraphs 1 to 3, wherein the propagation material comprises the genetic determinant as defined in any one of the paragraph 1 to 3.
9. Propagation material capable of growing into a plant as claimed in any one of the paragraphs 1 to 3.
10. Propagation material of paragraph 8 or paragraph 9, wherein the propagation material is selected from the group consisting of microspores, pollen, ovaries, ovules, embryos, embryo sacs, egg cells, cuttings, roots, root tips, hypocotyls, cotyledons, stems, leaves, flowers, anthers, seeds, meristematic cells, protoplasts, and cells.
11. Tissue culture of propagation material of any one of the paragraphs 8 to 10.
12. Harvested part of a Brassica plant of any one of the paragraphs 1-3, 6 or 7, which harvested part is in particular selected from the group consisting of cabbage head, curd, stem, leaf, sprout, root and seed, optionally in processed form.
13. Harvested part of paragraph 12, wherein the harvested part is a food product.
14. A nucleic acid molecule causative of resistance against Thrips tabaci , comprising a DNA sequence, which is linked to marker BO00200 (SEQ ID NO: 1) and/or marker BO00277 (SEQ ID NO: 2) and/or BO00602 (SEQ ID NO: 5) located on chromosome 2, in particular located on chromosome 2 between marker BO00458 (SEQ ID NO: 7) and marker BO01225 (SEQ ID NO: 6), or a resistance conferring part of said nucleic acid molecule.
15. Use of the markers as defined in paragraph 3, and/or use of the nucleic acid molecule of paragraph 14, to identify or develop Thrips tabaci resistant plants, or develop other markers linked to the genetic determinant as defined in anyone of the paragraphs 1 to 3.
16. Use of the markers of paragraph 2, or use of the nucleic acid molecule of paragraph 13, to develop other markers linked to the genetic determinant as defined in paragraph 2.
Having thus described in detail preferred embodiments of the present invention, it is to be understood that the invention defined by the above paragraphs is not to be limited to particular details set forth in the above description as many apparent variations thereof are possible without departing from the spirit or scope of the present invention. | The present invention relates to a tomato plant ( Solanum lycopersicum L.) which may comprise a genetic determinant that confers resistance to Pepino Mosaic Virus (PepMV), wherein the resistance is characterised by the presence of at least QTL1 and/or QTL2. The invention also relates to sources for obtaining said genetic determinant, representative seed of which were deposited with the NCIMB under accession numbers NCIMB 41927, NCIMB 41928, NCIMB 42068, and NCIMB 42069. The invention further relates to seeds and progeny of the plant and to its fruits and processed fruits. In addition the invention relates to molecular markers linked to PepMV resistance conferring QTLs and the use thereof. | Summarize the information, clearly outlining the challenges and proposed solutions. | [
"RELATED APPLICATIONS AND INCORPORATION BY REFERENCE This application claims benefit of European patent application Serial No. 12164775.4 filed 19 Apr. 2012.",
"The foregoing applications, and all documents cited therein or during their prosecution (“appln cited documents”) and all documents cited or referenced in the appln cited documents, and all documents cited or referenced herein (“herein cited documents”), and all documents cited or referenced in herein cited documents, together with any manufacturer's instructions, descriptions, product specifications, and product sheets for any products mentioned herein or in any document incorporated by reference herein, are hereby incorporated herein by reference, and may be employed in the practice of the invention.",
"More specifically, all referenced documents are incorporated by reference to the same extent as if each individual document was specifically and individually indicated to be incorporated by reference.",
"FIELD OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to Brassica plants, in particular Brassica oleracea plants resistant to Thrips tabaci , to seeds and progeny from the seeds and plants, and to a method for producing such a plant.",
"BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to Brassica plants, in particular Brassica oleracea plants which are resistant to Thrips tabaci and herein display agronomically desirable traits.",
"Thrips tabaci (also known as Onion thrips, or simply thrips) is a highly polyphagous insect and considered as an economically harmful pest for many cultivated crops especially for crops from the Liliaceae, Solanaceae, and Brassicaceae plant families, such as onion, leek, tomato, cabbage, but also in crops from outside these families, such as e.g. cucumber, melon and snap beans (Toda &",
"Murai, 2007, Applied Entomology and Zoology 42: 309-316;",
"Trdan et al.",
", 2005, African Entomology 13: 85-95).",
"Thrips harm the plant directly by feeding on the plant tissue and indirectly by being a vector for lethal plant viruses such as tomato spotted wild virus (Toda &",
"Murai, 2007, Applied Entomology and Zoology 42: 309-316).",
"Thrips occur worldwide and due to climate change and trade the frequency of thrips infestation is increasing (Trdan et al.",
", 2005;",
"African Entomology 13: 85-95).",
"Cabbage plants ( Brassica oleracea var.",
"capitata L.) belong to the plant family Brassicaceae.",
"The family has a cosmopolitan distribution and consists of approximately 3500 to 4000 species.",
"The family and especially the genus Brassica contains many agronomically important crops such as broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cauliflower, Chinese cabbage, curly cabbage, kale, kohlrabi, mustard, oxheart cabbage, radish, rapeseed, red cabbage, Savoy cabbage, turnip, and white cabbage.",
"In tissue of Brassica oleracea var.",
"capitata plants affected by thrips callus growths will form.",
"Over time these callus growths become brown making it necessary to remove several layers of leaves from the cabbage head before marketing.",
"Even in storage the development of symptoms caused by thrips may increase.",
"The reduction in head size and weight ultimately leads to a loss in yield.",
"For Brassica oleracea var.",
"capitata it is estimated that 75% of its total acreage suffers from thrips.",
"Controlling thrips in cabbage by means of applying insecticide is considered environmentally unfriendly and ineffective, because the closed leaves of the cabbage heads provide protection to the thrips, and because thrips are hard to detect, sometimes even only at harvest stage.",
"Thrips infestation in cabbages may occur from the second exterior leaf up to the fifteenth exterior leaf, while insecticides are usually only effective up to the sixth exterior leaf of the head (Trdan et al.",
", 2005;",
"African Entomology 13: 85-95).",
"Therefore, there is an urgent need for cabbage plants which are resistant against this pest.",
"Although no highly thrips resistant Brassica oleraceae varieties are known, huge differences in susceptibility exist among varieties.",
"Certain varieties show an intermediate level of resistance, but no varieties are known that are highly resistant against Thrips tabaci .",
"The genetic background of this intermediate resistance against thrips is still poorly understood and it is thought that this is a polygenic trait, inherited as a gene complex in which many genes are involved (Voorrips et al.",
", 2008;",
"Euphytica 163: 409-415).",
"Citation or identification of any document in this application is not an admission that such document is available as prior art to the present invention.",
"SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Because in the present state of the art no highly thrips resistant cabbage varieties are known, it is the object of the present invention to provide a Brassica plants, in particular Brassica oleracea plant with a high resistance to Thrips tabaci.",
"In the research that led to the present invention novel Brassica oleracea plants were developed that are highly resistant against thrips.",
"The said resistance of the invention is controlled by a genetic determinant, the inheritance of which is consistent with that of a monogenic additive trait.",
"‘Additive trait’ in this case means that the fully achievable resistance is only observable in plants which may comprise the genetic determinant in homozygous state, however plants which may comprise the genetic determinant in heterozygous state will show an intermediate level of resistance.",
"Since the inheritance of the resistance is comparable to that of a monogenic trait, it has a second advantage over the prior art, because the resistance level is not only higher but also easier to incorporate in new Brassica varieties as compared to the complex polygenic traits from the prior art which led to plants with only an intermediate resistance against thrips.",
"Accordingly, it is an object of the invention to not encompass within the invention any previously known product, process of making the product, or method of using the product such that Applicants reserve the right and hereby disclose a disclaimer of any previously known product, process, or method.",
"It is further noted that the invention does not intend to encompass within the scope of the invention any product, process, or making of the product or method of using the product, which does not meet the written description and enablement requirements of the USPTO (35 U.S.C. §112, first paragraph) or the EPO (Article 83 of the EPC), such that Applicants reserve the right and hereby disclose a disclaimer of any previously described product, process of making the product, or method of using the product.",
"It is noted that in this disclosure and particularly in the claims and/or paragraphs, terms such as “comprises”, “comprised”, “comprising”",
"and the like can have the meaning attributed to it in U.S. patent law;",
"e.g., they can mean “includes”, “included”, “including”, and the like;",
"and that terms such as “consisting essentially of”",
"and “consists essentially of”",
"have the meaning ascribed to them in U.S. patent law, e.g., they allow for elements not explicitly recited, but exclude elements that are found in the prior art or that affect a basic or novel characteristic of the invention.",
"These and other embodiments are disclosed or are obvious from and encompassed by, the following Detailed Description.",
"DEPOSITS Seeds of Brassica oleracea plants resistant to Thrips tabaci were deposited under NCIMB deposit accession number 41760 on 29 Sep. 2010 with NCIMB Ltd. (Ferguson Building, Craibstone Estate, Bucksburn, Aberdeen, AB21 9YA).",
"All seeds of the deposit comprise the genetic determinant homozygously.",
"Plants grown from these seeds are thus highly resistant against Thrips tabaci.",
"The Deposits with NCIMB Ltd, Ferguson Building, Craibstone Estate, Bucksburn, Aberdeen AB21 9YA, UK, under deposit accession number 41760 were made pursuant to the terms of the Budapest Treaty.",
"Upon issuance of a patent, all restrictions upon the deposit will be removed, and the deposit is intended to meet the requirements of 37 CFR §§1.801-1.809.",
"The deposit will be irrevocably and without restriction or condition released to the public upon the issuance of a patent and for the enforceable life of the patent.",
"The deposit will be maintained in the depository for a period of 30 years, or 5 years after the last request, or for the effective life of the patent, whichever is longer, and will be replaced if necessary during that period.",
"BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS The following detailed description, given by way of example, but not intended to limit the invention solely to the specific embodiments described, may best be understood in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.",
"FIG. 1 .",
"Schematic overview of a part of chromosome two indicating markers (in bold) that may be linked to the genetic determinant conferring thrips resistance (SEQ ID NO 1, 2, 3, and 5) together with flanking markers (SEQ ID NO: 4, 6, and 7).",
"On the left side the genetic distance indicated in centiMorgans.",
"On the right side, the markers are indicated.",
"DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The present invention thus relates to a Brassica plant, in particular a Brassica oleracea plant, which may comprise a genetic determinant, which when homozygously present confers high resistance against Thrips tabaci , and which is as found in plants grown from seeds of which a representative sample is deposited with the NCIMB under NCIMB accession number 41760.",
"The present invention also relates to a Brassica plant, in particular a Brassica oleracea plant, which may comprise the genetic determinant heterozygously, and thus showing intermediate resistance against Thrips tabaci , and which genetic determinant is obtainable from plants grown from seeds of which a representative sample is deposited with the NCIMB under NCIMB accession number 41760.",
"The invention furthermore relates to a Brassica plant which may comprise the genetic determinant homozygously, and therefore is highly resistant against Thrips tabaci.",
"In one embodiment the invention provides a Brassica plant, in particular a Brassica oleracea plant, that is resistant to Thrips tabaci , obtainable by crossing a resistant plant of which representative seed was deposited under NCIMB number 41760 with another cabbage plant to produce an F1 and subsequently selfing the F1 to obtain an F2 and selecting a plant therefrom that shows resistance to Thrips tabaci.",
"Furthermore, it was found during the research leading to the present invention that the genetic determinant conferring resistance to Thrips tabaci , is located on chromosome 2 and linked to marker BO00200 (SEQ ID NO: 1) and/or marker BO00277 (SEQ ID NO: 2) and/or BO00602 (SEQ ID NO: 5).",
"More in particular, in the deposit NCIMB 41760 the genetic determinant conferring resistance to Thrips tabaci , is located on chromosome 2 between marker BO00458 (SEQ ID NO: 7) and marker BO01225 (SEQ ID NO: 6) and linked to marker BO00200 (SEQ ID NO: 1) and/or marker BO00277 (SEQ ID NO: 2) and/or marker BO00602 (SEQ ID NO: 5).",
"Most in particular the genetic determinant conferring resistance to Thrips tabaci , is located on chromosome 2 between marker BO01146 (SEQ ID NO: 3) and marker BO00310 (SEQ ID NO: 4) and linked to marker BO00200 (SEQ ID NO: 1) and/or marker BO00277 (SEQ ID NO: 2) in seeds deposited under NCIMB accession number 41760, see also FIG. 1 .",
"Alternatively the genetic determinant conferring resistance to Thrips tabaci , is located on chromosome 2 between markers BO00310 (SEQ ID NO: 4) and BO00458 (SEQ ID NO: 7) and linked to BO00200 (SEQ ID NO: 1) and/or marker BO00277 (SEQ ID NO: 2) and/or marker BO01146 (SEQ ID NO: 3) and/or marker BO00602 (SEQ ID NO: 5), in particular between marker BO00458 (SEQ ID NO: 7) and marker BO01146 (SEQ ID NO: 3) and linked to marker BO00602 (SEQ ID NO: 5).",
"Therefore, the invention also relates to a Brassica plant resistant to Thrips tabaci , which may comprise a genetic determinant that confers resistance to Thrips tabaci , wherein said genetic determinant is obtainable by introgression from a plant grown from seeds of which a representative sample was deposited with the NCIMB under NCIMB accession number 41760, and wherein the said genetic determinant in the seeds of the seed deposit number NCIMB 41760 is positioned on chromosome 2 and linked to marker BO00200 (SEQ ID NO: 1), and/or BO00277 (SEQ ID NO: 2), and/or marker BO00602 (SEQ ID NO: 5).",
"A Brassica plant carrying the genetic determinant conferring resistance against thrips may suitably be identified among descendants from a cross between a plant susceptible for thrips, and a plant that does carry the genetic determinant in homozygous state, by growing F2 plants from seeds that are the result from the initial cross and a selfing step, and selecting plants showing the desired trait.",
"Selecting the plants may be done phenotypically, or may be done through identification of the genetic determinant, for example by means of one or more of the markers defined herein.",
"In the absence of molecular markers or in the event that recombination between the molecular markers and the genetic determinant have taken place and thus are not predictive anymore, equivalence of genetic determinants may still be determined by an allelism test.",
"To perform an allelism test, material that is homozygous for the known determinant, a tester plant, is crossed with material that is homozygous for the genetic determinant that is to be tested.",
"This latter plant is referred to as the donor plant.",
"The donor plant to be tested should be or should be made homozygous for the genetic determinant to be tested.",
"The skilled person knows how to obtain a plant that is homozygous for the genetic determinant to be tested.",
"When in the F2 of the cross between a donor plant and a tester plant no segregation for the phenotype related to the genetic determinant is observed, the genetic determinants of the donor plant and the tester plant have been proven to be equivalent or the same.",
"The invention also relates to a Brassica plant that may comprise a genetic determinant conferring resistance to Thrips tabaci , wherein plants of first generation progeny (F1) of a cross of the said plant with a tester plant, that may comprise the said genetic determinant and of which representative seed was deposited with the NCIMB under accession number NCIMB 41760, or a progeny plant thereof that may comprise the said genetic determinant, or a plant derived therefrom and which may comprise the said genetic determinant, show a 1:0 segregation for the resistance against Thrips tabaci .",
"In both the tester plant and the plant of the invention the genetic determinant is present in homozygous form.",
"Plants of the second and further generations, if obtained by selfing also show a 1:0 segregation for the said resistance pattern.",
"The tester plant may be a plant of which representative seed was deposited with the NCIMB under accession number NCIMB 41760.",
"The Brassica plant of the invention is preferably a Brassica oleracea plant, but may also be any other plant of the genus Brassica into which the skilled person may introgress the genetic determinant of the invention, e.g. the following Brassica species: Brassica oleracea, Brassica napus, Brassie campestris, Brassica cretica, Brassica rapa, Brassica juncea , and Brassica nigra .",
"The skilled person knows how to make interspecific crosses with these species, e.g. by means of embryo rescue, protoplast fusion, and other related technologies.",
"In another embodiment the invention relates to seeds which may comprise the said genetic determinant conferring resistance against Thrips tabaci .",
"A plant grown from the seeds is highly resistant to thrips when the genetic determinant is present in homozygous state.",
"The invention thus further relates to seeds which may comprise said genetic determinant and which seeds are capable of growing into plants that are highly resistant against Thrips tabaci.",
"According to a further aspect thereof, the invention relates to propagation material capable of growing into a plant of the invention.",
"In one embodiment, such propagation material is formed by seed of a Brassica plant of the invention, wherein the plant that may be grown from the seed may comprise a genetic determinant of the invention.",
"In another embodiment the propagation material capable of growing into a plant of the invention is selected from the group consisting of microspores, pollen, ovaries, ovules, embryos, embryo sacs, egg cells, cuttings, roots, root tips, hypocotyls, cotyledons, stems, leaves, flowers, anthers, seeds, meristematic cells, protoplasts, and cells.",
"In a further embodiment the invention relates to tissue culture of propagation material capable of growing into a plant of the invention.",
"Suitably, the plant produced from the propagation material may comprise the genetic determinant as found in Brassica plants grown from seeds of seed lot AG6359-35/39, a representative sample of which was deposited with the NCIMB under NCIMB accession number 41760.",
"When the genetic determinant is present in homozygous state the plant produced shows high resistance to Thrips tabaci , in particular the resistance as observed in Brassica plants grown from seeds of seed lot AG6359-35/39, a representative of which was deposited with the NCIMB under NCIMB accession number 41760.",
"When the genetic determinant is present in heterozygous state the plant shows intermediate resistance.",
"The invention also relates to progeny of the plants, cells, tissues and seeds of the invention.",
"Such progeny may in itself be plants, cells, tissues or seeds.",
"As used herein the word “progeny”",
"is intended to mean the first and all further descendants from a cross with a plant of the invention that may comprise the said genetic determinant.",
"“Progeny”",
"also encompasses plants that carry the trait of the invention and are obtained from other plants or progeny of plants of the invention by vegetative propagation or multiplication.",
"Therefore, in one embodiment the invention relates to progeny of a Brassica plant which may comprise the genetic determinant of the invention.",
"In a further embodiment the invention relates to progeny of Brassica plants of the invention that are resistant against Thrips tabaci .",
"These progeny plants thus may comprise the genetic determinant conferring resistance against thrips.",
"In one aspect the invention relates to the harvested part of a Brassica plant which may comprise the genetic determinant conferring thrips resistance.",
"The invention furthermore relates to a food product which may comprise one or more harvested parts of a Brassica plant which may comprise the genetic determinant conferring thrips resistance.",
"The harvested part or food product may be or may comprise a cabbage head, a curd, a stem, a leaf, a root, a sprout, a seed, or any other part of a Brassica plant.",
"The harvested part may also be used for the production of bio-fuel.",
"The food product or harvested part, may have undergone one or more processing steps.",
"Such a processing step might comprise but is not limited to any one of the following treatments or combinations thereof: cutting, washing, cooking, steaming, baking, frying, pasteurizing, freezing, grinding, extracting oil, pickling, or fermenting.",
"The processed form that is obtained is also part of this invention.",
"Another aspect of this invention relates to a nucleic acid molecule which is causative of resistance against Thrips tabaci .",
"The said DNA molecule may comprise a DNA sequence which is positioned on chromosome 2 between markers BO00458 (SEQ ID NO: 7) and BO01225 (SEQ ID NO: 6), more in particular between markers BO00458 (SEQ ID NO: 7) and BO00146 (SEQ ID NO: 3), or between markers BO00146 (SEQ ID NO: 3) and BO00310 (SEQ ID NO: 4), or a part thereof.",
"Yet another aspect of the invention relates to use of the markers and said nucleic acid molecule to identify plants which are resistant against Thrips tabaci , and/or carry the genetic determinant conferring resistance to Thrips tabaci.",
"Therefore, in one embodiment the invention relates to the use of marker BO00200 (SEQ ID NO: 1), or marker BO00277 (SEQ ID NO: 2), or marker BO00602 (SEQ ID NO: 5), or the said DNA molecule which may comprise a DNA sequence which is positioned on chromosome 2 between markers BO00458 (SEQ ID NO: 7) and BO01225 (SEQ ID NO: 6), or BO00146 (SEQ ID NO: 3) and BO00310 (SEQ ID NO: 4), or BO00458 (SEQ ID NO: 7) and BO00146 (SEQ ID NO: 3), or part thereof, to identify plants resistant against Thrips tabaci , and/or carrying the genetic determinant conferring resistance to Thrips tabaci.",
"The skilled person knows how to develop new markers linked to a trait using already known markers, QTLs, alleles, genes or other DNA molecules that are associated with a certain trait.",
"Thus, the invention also relates to the use of markers BO00200 (SEQ ID NO: 1), BO00277 (SEQ ID NO: 2), and BO00602 (SEQ ID NO: 5), and the said DNA molecule, or part thereof, for developing other markers linked to the genetic determinant conferring thrips resistance.",
"In one embodiment, the genetic determinant conferring resistance to Thrips tabaci also confers resistance against other sap sucking insect species, wherein the sap sucking insect species is selected from, but not limited to the group consisting of Aleyrodes proletella, Myzus persicae , and Brevicoryne brassicae.",
"In one aspect the invention relates to a process for producing Brassica plants which may comprise a genetic determinant that confers resistance to Thrips tabaci , which may comprise the step of selecting said Brassica plants from a population of Brassica plants segregating for the said genetic determinant using marker BO00200 (SEQ ID NO: 1) and/or marker BO00277 (SEQ ID NO: 2) and/or BO00602 (SEQ ID NO: 5).",
"The term ‘genetic determinant’ as used herein encompasses one or more QTLs, genes, or alleles.",
"These terms are used interchangeably.",
"A genetic determinant may be identified by the use of a molecular marker.",
"A genetic determinant may alternatively be identified by the position on a genetic map, or by indication of the location on a linkage group or chromosome.",
"When a genetic determinant is not linked to a specific molecular marker any longer, but its position on a chromosome as defined on a genetic map is unaltered, this genetic determinant is still the same as when it was linked to the molecular marker.",
"The genetic trait that it confers is therefore also still the same.",
"The ‘genetic trait’ is the trait or characteristic that is conferred by the genetic determinant.",
"The genetic trait may be identified phenotypically, for example by performing a bio-assay.",
"However, also plant stages for which no phenotypic assay may be performed do carry the genetic information that leads to the genetic trait.",
"‘Trait’ or ‘phenotypic trait’ may be used instead of ‘genetic trait’.",
"In one embodiment, the invention relates to Brassica plants of the invention that carry the genetic determinant conferring resistance to Thrips tabaci , and having acquired said determinant by introduction of the genetic information that is responsible for the trait from a suitable source, either by conventional breeding, or genetic modification, in particular by cisgenesis or transgenesis.",
"Cisgenesis is genetic modification of plants with a natural gene, coding for an (agricultural) trait, from the crop plant itself or from a sexually compatible donor plant.",
"Transgenesis is genetic modification of a plant with a gene from a noncrossable species or a synthetic gene.",
"The invention also relates to the germplasm of plants of the invention.",
"The germplasm is constituted by all inherited characteristics of an organism and according to the invention encompasses at least the genetic determinant of the invention.",
"The germplasm may be used in a breeding program for the development of thrips resistant Brassica plants.",
"In one aspect the invention relates to a method for production of a Brassica plant is resistant against Thrips tabaci , which may comprise: a) crossing a plant which may comprise a genetic determinant that leads to resistance against Thrips tabaci with another plant;",
"b) selfing the resulting F1 for obtaining F2 plants;",
"c) selecting plants resistant to Thrips tabaci in the F2;",
"d) optionally performing one or more additional rounds of selfing or crossing, and subsequently selecting, for a plant which may comprise said resistance against Thrips tabaci.",
"It is clear that the parent that provides the trait of the invention is not necessarily a plant grown directly from the deposited seeds.",
"The parent may also be a progeny plant from the seed or a progeny plant from seeds that are identified to have the trait of the invention by other means.",
"In one aspect, the invention relates to a method for production of a Brassica plant resistant against Thrips tabaci , which may comprise: a) crossing a plant which may comprise the genetic determinant that leads to resistance against Thrips tabaci with another plant;",
"b) optionally backcrossing the resulting F1 with the preferred parent;",
"c) selecting for plants resistant to Thrips tabaci in the F2;",
"d) optionally performing one or more additional rounds of selfing or crossing, and subsequently selecting, for a plant which may comprise the said resistance is performed.",
"The invention additionally provides a method of introducing a desired trait into a Brassica plant resistant against Thrips tabaci , which may comprise: a) crossing a Brassica plant resistant to Thrips tabaci , representative seed of which were deposited with the NCIMB under deposit number NCIMB 41760, with a second Brassica plant that may comprise a desired trait to produce F1 progeny;",
"b) selecting an F1 progeny that may comprise said resistance and the desired trait;",
"c) crossing the selected F1 progeny with either parent, to produce backcross progeny;",
"d) selecting backcross progeny which may comprise the desired trait and resistance against Thrips tabaci ;",
"and e) optionally repeating steps c) and d) one or more times in succession to produce selected fourth or higher backcross progeny that may comprise the desired trait and resistance against Thrips tabaci .",
"The invention includes a Brassica plant produced by this method.",
"In one embodiment selection for plants resistant against Thrips tabaci is done in the F1 by using marker BO00200 (SEQ ID NO: 1) and/or marker BO00277 (SEQ ID NO: 2) and/or BO00602 (SEQ ID NO: 5).",
"In another aspect selection for the trait of the invention is started in the F2 of a cross or alternatively of a backcross.",
"Selection of plants in the F2 can be done phenotypically as well as by using the said markers.",
"In one embodiment selection for plants resistant against Thrips tabaci is started in the F3 or a later generation.",
"In one embodiment the plant which may comprise the genetic determinant is a plant of an inbred line, a hybrid, a doubled haploid, or of a segregating population.",
"The invention further provides a method for the production of a Brassica plant resistant against Thrips tabaci by using a doubled haploid generation technique to generate a doubled haploid line which may comprise the said resistance.",
"The invention furthermore relates to hybrid seed that may be grown into a thrips resistant plant and to a method for producing such hybrid seed which may comprise crossing a first parent plant with a second parent plant and harvesting the resultant hybrid seed, wherein said first parent plant and/or said second parent plant is the plant as claimed.",
"In one embodiment, the invention relates to a method for producing a hybrid Brassica plant that is resistant to thrips, which may comprise crossing a first parent Brassica plant with a second parent Brassica plant and harvesting the resultant hybrid seed, of which the first parent plant and/or the second parent plant is resistant against Thrips tabaci , and growing said hybrid seeds into thrips resistant hybrid plants.",
"The invention also relates to a method for the production of a Brassica plant resistant against Thrips tabaci by using a seed that may comprise a genetic determinant in its genome that leads to resistance against Thrips tabaci for growing the said Brassica plant.",
"The seeds are suitably seeds of which a representative sample was deposited with the NCIMB under deposit number NCIMB 41760.",
"The invention also relates to a method for seed production which may comprise growing Brassica plants from seeds of which a representative sample was deposited with the NCIMB under deposit number NCIMB 41760, allowing the plants to produce seeds, and harvesting those seeds.",
"Production of the seeds is suitably done by crossing or selfing.",
"In one embodiment, the invention relates to a method for the production of a Brassica plant resistant against Thrips tabaci by using tissue culture.",
"The invention furthermore relates to a method for the production of a Brassica plant resistant against Thrips tabaci by using vegetative reproduction.",
"In one embodiment, the invention relates to a method for the production of a Brassica plant resistant against Thrips tabaci by using a method for genetic modification to introgress the said resistance into the Brassica plant.",
"Genetic modification may comprise transgenic modification or transgenesis, using a gene from a non-crossable species or a synthetic gene, and cisgenic modification or cisgenesis, using a natural gene, coding for an (agricultural) trait, from the crop plant itself or from a sexually compatible donor plant.",
"The invention also relates to a breeding method for the development of Brassica plants that are resistant against Thrips tabaci wherein germplasm which may comprise said resistance is used.",
"Representative seed of said plant which may comprise the genetic determinant and being representative for the germplasm was deposited with the NCIMB under deposit number NCIMB 41760.",
"In a further embodiment the invention relates to a method for the production of a Brassica plant resistant against Thrips tabaci wherein progeny or propagation material of a plant which may comprise the genetic determinant conferring said resistance is used as a source to introgress the said resistance into another Brassica plant.",
"Representative seed of said plant which may comprise the genetic determinant was deposited with the NCIMB under deposit number NCIMB 41760.",
"The invention provides preferably a Brassica plant resistant to Thrips tabaci , which plant is obtainable by any of the methods herein described and/or familiar to the skilled person.",
"SEQUENCE DATA TABLE 1 Sequence data of the SNP markers of FIG.",
"In NCIMB deposit 41760 the markers BO00200, BO00277, and BO00602 are linked to the genetic determinant conferring resistance against Thrips.",
"BO00200 TTGTCCGGAAAATAAGCCCTTCCTTCTCCATGAGCCGCCCAA SEQ ID NO: 1 ACTCCTAAAGTACTTACC[T/C]TCCATTCCTTTCAGCACTATTG ACGGACAGTCCTTGATGGTCACGCTTGTGAACCTGCAG BO00277 GCTTGTCCAGCTTATGAGCATTTTGTAATACATGTTTGCTTGG SEQ ID NO: 2 ATGGTCAAACCTGAAAA[A/C]ACACACAAGTTCAACAATTCT CAGAAGATGGATAAACCTGCAG BO01146 TTAAAAACAAATNATGTTTTGTTTTACCTGCTTTTTCCTCTTCT SEQ ID NO: 3 CGCTNNTTGNCAGCTTCTTCTCTCTGTTGGCGAATCAGAGCCA AACGATCTGTACACAAACACACACAAGGGATAAGATAATCA A[A/*]TAGGCTCATCTGGTAACAAAGAAAGAGAACAAGAGGT CCATTGTTTTTTTACNNAANTCCTTNNTTGNTTGCTCGGTTTT NNCNTGNNNCTGCAACCTCATGTATCGCTCATGAGCTCGTTG CTTCTCTAGCTCCTCCCTGCAG BO00310 CATGTCATCTTTCGTNAGGTTTGTTATTTCTATGCCTCGTTTG SEQ ID NO: 4 AGAGCTTCCCTCAATGG[A/C]CCCATAGTTGCATCTTTCACTA GGTTCTTCATGTCTGATCCCGAGTACCCTGCAG BO00602 TTAAATATGTGAATGCTGAAATRTTTGTTTAGCAGA[C/G]GAG SEQ ID NO: 5 ACACAGGAAGAAGATCATCTCATGTTGTTCGCTCTCTCAGCA GAGAGTTTGAAGTTGCAAGTACTCCTGCAG BO01225 CCCTGTTWAAGGAGCCTCCTTGGAGCTTGTTGATACCTCAAA SEQ ID NO: 6 GTTAGGTAGTGACAATGTGGATAATGAAAGTTTGAAGCTT T[A/C]TCAACAATTAGCTGATAAGAGAGGTTCTTGTGAAGAGGA TTTGATGAGAATCTCTATGAAGAAACGAGGTGTAATCAGCAA TGTCTCCACCTCTYTGATGGAARATGCTRGTTTYGATGGAAT ATTGGCTTCTCCTGCAG BO00458 TAAAGAACCTGATGAAGAAAGTGAAGAGCTAGGTGGAAACC SEQ ID NO: 6 TACTTGACCTGCTCCTAAG[T/G]TTCTTCACTTCCGGGATCTTC TCCTCTTTTGATCTCACCTGCCTCACCTTTGCCTCGTTC Although the present invention and its advantages have been described in detail, it should be understood that various changes, substitutions and alterations can be made herein without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as defined in the appended claims.",
"The present invention will be further illustrated in the following Examples which are given for illustration purposes only and are not intended to limit the invention in any way.",
"EXAMPLES Example 1 Thrips resistant plants of the invention were compared with susceptible plants and plants with an intermediate resistance in an open field trial.",
"Plants were naturally infected by using an attractant species.",
"In this trial leek plants were used as a natural attractant for thrips.",
"For the skilled person it is known that also other plants can be used as an attractant for Thrips tabaci , such as onion or shallots.",
"Plants from variety Rinda and Hurricane were used in this trial as susceptible control plants.",
"Plants from varieties Langendijker Bewaar, Tacoma, and Multima were included in this trial since they are known to be intermediately resistant against Thrips tabaci .",
"As highly resistant plants of the invention, plants grown from seeds of seed lot AG6359-35/39 of which a representative sample was deposited with the NCIMB under NCIMB accession number 41760, as well as plants of three lines derived from plants grown from seed of the seed deposit that were selfed, were used.",
"These lines are AG2971, AG2973, and AG3086.",
"Each plant was scored for the amount of thrips infestation, based on the scale explained in Table 2.",
"Symptoms were scored when the cabbage heads were mature.",
"The skilled person is not bound to using this scale but can also use a scale with another subdivision of categories as long as the scoring will be done at the same stage, i.e. when the cabbage head is mature.",
"This is not of influence on the final result of the screening.",
"TABLE 2 Scoring of thrips infestation.",
"Score Symptoms 1 No symptoms/no damage High resistance 2 Occasional small symptoms on outer leaves 3 Minor damage.",
"Max.",
"20% of head's surface is Intermediate covered by symptoms, only outer leaves are resistance infected.",
"4 Medium damage.",
"Max.",
"50% of the head's surface (all leaves accumulated) is covered by symptoms.",
"The symptoms are max.",
"in the second and third layer.",
"5 Heavy damage.",
"More than 50% of the head's Susceptible surface (all leaves accumulated) is covered by symptoms.",
"Damage also observed in deeper leaf layers In Table 3 the scores of the trial are summarized.",
"It is clear that all plants of the invention display a significantly higher resistance against thrips.",
"In field trials with a high disease pressure, even highly resistant plants show occasional symptoms of thrips infection.",
"This can e.g. be the case when attractant plant species are used.",
"In order to make a fair comparison between different trials using natural infection the same comparison varieties should be used, because the relative differences in damage observed by thrips infestation will approximately be the same while the mean scores of same plants in different trials can deviate substantially.",
"TABLE 3 Score of thrips resistance field trial.",
"Number of plants Material screened Mean score AG6359-35/39 17 1 Resistant (NCIMB 41760) AG2971 14 1.1 Resistant AG2973 16 1.2 Resistant AG3086 4 1.2 Resistant Langendijker 22 3.1 Intermediate Bewaar Tacoma 6 3 Intermediate Multima 6 3 Intermediate Hurricane 10 4.4 Susceptible Rinda 10 5 Susceptible Example 2 Transfer of Thrips Resistance to Susceptible Plants A thrips resistant plants of the invention AG 2973-35 (see Table 2 for resistance scores), was crossed with a susceptible plant FM 2979-01.",
"Plants of the F1 were observed in a field trial as described in Example 1.",
"No highly thrips resistant plants were observed.",
"From the F1 population a plant was selected which was selfed to obtain a population of F2 plants.",
"The F2 was placed in a field trial as described in Example 1.",
"Resistance scores are summarized in Table 4.",
"The segregation of the F2 population demonstrates that the inheritance of the resistance of the invention is comparable with that of a monogenic additive trait (highly resistant: intermediate resistant: susceptible=1:2:1).",
"Depending on the genetic background of the susceptible parent plant there can be a different distribution between intermediately resistant and susceptible plants observed in the F2.",
"TABLE 4 Resistant Intermediately Susceptible F2 population plants resistant plants plants Chi-square F2(AG 2973-35 × 24 59 32 1.24 FM 2979-01) The invention is further described by the following numbered paragraphs: 1.",
"A Brassica plant in particular a Brassica oleracea plant comprising a genetic determinant, which when homozygously present confers high resistance against Thrips tabaci , and which is as found in plants grown from seeds of which a representative sample is deposited with the NCIMB under NCIMB accession number 41760.",
"A Brassica plant of paragraph 1, which is homozygous for the genetic determinant and resistant against Thrips tabaci.",
"The Brassica plant of paragraph 1 or paragraph 2, wherein the said genetic determinant in the seeds of NCIMB deposit 41760 is located on chromosome 2 and linked to marker BO00200 (SEQ ID NO: 1) and/or marker BO00277 (SEQ ID NO: 2) and/or marker BO00602 (SEQ ID NO: 5).",
"Seed comprising the genetic determinant as defined in any one of the paragraphs 1 to 3.",
"Seed of paragraph 4, wherein the plant that can be grown from the seed is resistant to Thrips tabaci.",
"Progeny of a Brassica plant of anyone of the paragraphs 1 to 3 or progeny of plants grown from seeds of paragraph 4 or paragraph 5, wherein the plant comprises the genetic determinant as defined in any one of the paragraphs 1-3.",
"Progeny plant of paragraph 6 wherein the progeny plant is resistant against Thrips tabaci.",
"Propagation material derived from a plant of any one of the paragraphs 1 to 3, wherein the propagation material comprises the genetic determinant as defined in any one of the paragraph 1 to 3.",
"Propagation material capable of growing into a plant as claimed in any one of the paragraphs 1 to 3.",
"10.",
"Propagation material of paragraph 8 or paragraph 9, wherein the propagation material is selected from the group consisting of microspores, pollen, ovaries, ovules, embryos, embryo sacs, egg cells, cuttings, roots, root tips, hypocotyls, cotyledons, stems, leaves, flowers, anthers, seeds, meristematic cells, protoplasts, and cells.",
"11.",
"Tissue culture of propagation material of any one of the paragraphs 8 to 10.",
"12.",
"Harvested part of a Brassica plant of any one of the paragraphs 1-3, 6 or 7, which harvested part is in particular selected from the group consisting of cabbage head, curd, stem, leaf, sprout, root and seed, optionally in processed form.",
"13.",
"Harvested part of paragraph 12, wherein the harvested part is a food product.",
"14.",
"A nucleic acid molecule causative of resistance against Thrips tabaci , comprising a DNA sequence, which is linked to marker BO00200 (SEQ ID NO: 1) and/or marker BO00277 (SEQ ID NO: 2) and/or BO00602 (SEQ ID NO: 5) located on chromosome 2, in particular located on chromosome 2 between marker BO00458 (SEQ ID NO: 7) and marker BO01225 (SEQ ID NO: 6), or a resistance conferring part of said nucleic acid molecule.",
"15.",
"Use of the markers as defined in paragraph 3, and/or use of the nucleic acid molecule of paragraph 14, to identify or develop Thrips tabaci resistant plants, or develop other markers linked to the genetic determinant as defined in anyone of the paragraphs 1 to 3.",
"16.",
"Use of the markers of paragraph 2, or use of the nucleic acid molecule of paragraph 13, to develop other markers linked to the genetic determinant as defined in paragraph 2.",
"Having thus described in detail preferred embodiments of the present invention, it is to be understood that the invention defined by the above paragraphs is not to be limited to particular details set forth in the above description as many apparent variations thereof are possible without departing from the spirit or scope of the present invention."
] |
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] This application claims the benefit of U.S. provisional patent application No. 61/456,292 and filed on Nov. 3, 2010.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0002] Following and during the harvesting of corn and cutting of the corn stalks, a stubble remains attached to the soil and will frequently extend 4 to 6 inches above the surface of the earth. The presence of stubble extending upwardly from the earth has been a significant problem for the tires of tractors and combines passing there over in that it can damage the tires or reduce the serviceable life of the tractor tires. This is especially true of some newer varieties of corn which produce larger yields but also have stalks which are stiffer than a typical corn stalk of, say, ten years ago or earlier. Additionally, as pointed out in U.S. Pat. No. 6,648,078 corn stalk stubble cures in the field all winter thereby resulting in an extremely stiff stalk by the time of spring planting. The aforesaid U.S. Pat. No. 6,648,078 discloses one type of apparatus for folding over corn stalk stubble. Another prior art device for folding over stubble is one sold under the name Stalk Stomper, by May Wes Manufacturing, Hutchinson, Minn.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0003] The present invention is directed to a new and simplified device for controlling residual agricultural products. In particular, the device is useful for folding over corn stalk stubble or other stubble which may be protruding from the surface of the earth. In contrast to the prior art which discloses apparatus having a large number of components and/or complex features, the device of the present invention has significantly fewer components than prior art apparatus for folding over agricultural products such as corn stalk stubble. Some prior art apparatus includes a complex arrangement of supporting members and chains while others include pivotally mounted stomping shoes with compression springs for urging the shoes downwardly to maintain pressure on the stubble. In contrast, the device of the present invention does not require a separate coil spring for urging the flattening shoe against the corn stalk stubble. Additionally, the end of the flattening shoe which contacts the corn stubble is provided with an angled or radius section which insures that the flattening shoe will not dig into the earth as it is advanced by the vehicle and, if the device should become unattached, it will not damage tires that are immediately following.
[0004] The present invention has three basic components, namely a shoe for contacting and bending over the stubble, a connecting spring strap engaged to the tractor or combine and a mounting bracket to connect the flat spring to the vehicle. The spring strap, in addition, to provide support for the flattening shoe, is designed to urge the shoe downwardly to maintain pressure on the stubble being bent over.
IN THE DRAWINGS
[0005] FIG. 1 is an elevational view looking in the direction as viewed with the tractor and the flattening shoe approaching toward the viewer.
[0006] FIG. 2 is a side view showing the device of the present invention in position to be attached to the frame of a tractor.
[0007] FIG. 3 is a sectional view taken through line 3 - 3 of FIG. 1 .
[0008] FIG. 4 is a side elevational view of an additional feature of the invention.
[0009] FIG. 5 is a side elevational view of an additional feature of the invention.
[0010] FIG. 6 is a side elevational view of a mounting bracket that can be used with the device.
[0011] FIG. 7 is a side elevational view of the opposite side of the bracket of FIG. 6 .
[0012] FIG. 8 is a side elevational view of a mounting bracket that can be used with the device.
[0013] FIG. 9 is a side elevational view of a mounting bracket that can be used with the device.
[0014] FIG. 10 is a top view of the bracket shown in FIG. 9 .
[0015] FIG. 11 is a perspective view of the bracket of FIG. 6 shown mounted on a vehicle.
[0016] FIG. 12 is a top view of a mounting bracket that can be used with the device.
[0017] FIG. 13 is a side elevational view of the bracket of FIG. 12 .
[0018] FIG. 14 is a side elevation view of a mounting bracket that can be used with the device of the present invention.
[0019] FIG. 15 is a front elevation view of the mounting bracket of FIG. 14 .
[0020] FIG. 16 is a partial top view of the mounting bracket of FIG. 14 .
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
[0021] The present invention is directed to a device for controlling residual agricultural products. In particular, the device is useful for flattening corn stalks and other agricultural products that are present in a form field after the crop has been harvested. Such residual agricultural products are very strong, especially if left in place over the winter, and can cause damage to farm equipment and the tires associated with such farm equipment. The device of the present invention can be used to flatten the residual agricultural products during the harvesting of the crop or, if the stalks are left in the field, while preparing the field for planting. The features of the invention will be more fully understood by reference to the attached drawings in connection with the following description.
[0022] Referring to the drawings, the device 1 of the present invention includes a flattening shoe 10 and a steel spring strap 20 engaged to and supporting the shoe 10 . As shown in FIG. 2 , the end of the spring strap 20 spaced from the shoe 10 may be bolted or otherwise fastened to a head or other structural member 40 of a vehicle such as a combine or tractor. Such structural member 40 may be raised and lowered. The spring strap can also be attached to a pivot bracket that allows the shoe to be pivoted to different locations with respect to the vehicle when the shoe is not being utilized to engage agricultural products.
[0023] The shoe includes a body section 12 having a pair of parallel spaced apart edges 13 extending to a curled toe 14 . As can be seen in FIG. 1 , the curled toe 14 extends to an end 15 . As the shoe extends from the body section 12 to form curved leading end or toe 14 towards the end 15 , it narrows down so that the width of the end 15 is significantly shorter than the distance between the edges 13 on the body section 12 . This may be seen in FIG. 1 .
[0024] As may be seen in FIG. 2 , the shoe 10 has a generally flat portion 16 extending toward the spring strap 20 and in a direction toward the tractor. The flat portion 16 , which is intended to contact the ground, is followed by a short arcuate section 17 and finally by a flat section 18 forming the engagement end with the spring strap 20 which is engaged to the vehicle, such as a tractor or combine. For example, the flat section 16 could be on the order of from about 2 to about 8 in length, the curve section 17 could be on the order of from about 1½ to about 4 inches in length and the flat engagement end section could be on the order of from about 3 to about 8 inches in length. As can be seen in FIG. 1 the flat engagement section 18 extends to an end edge 19 which has a length on the order of from about 2 to about 3 inches. Edge portions 19 A and 19 B, each disposed at an angle of approximately 45 degrees from the respective edges 13 , join the end edge 19 with the respective side edges 13 . The flat portion 16 and arcuate section 17 are disposed for engaging the residual agricultural products, such as corn stalk stubble. The shoe 10 is usually formed of steel having a thickness from about ⅛ of an inch to about ¾ of an inch.
[0025] Welded or otherwise attached to the surface of the shoe 10 opposite the surface intended to contact the ground are a pair of spaced apart support members 22 . The space between the support members 22 is such as to snuggly receive therebetween the spring strap 20 . As may be seen in FIGS. 2 and 3 a wedge member 24 having a face 25 disposed at an angle in the range of from about 20° to about 30° is positioned between the support members 22 and rests on the surface of the flat section 18 . The wedge increases in thickness as it moves away from such end 19 . The wedge 24 , the shoe 10 and the spring strap each have a hole for receiving a bolt 27 for connecting the shoe 10 to the spring strap 20 .
[0026] It will be appreciated that the flat portion 16 and the arcuate section 17 of the shoe are intended to engage and bend over the stalk stubble. The curled end 14 , by virtue of its curved orientation, will not dig into the ground as it is moved along by the vehicle or when the tractor or combine is placed in reverse motion. In addition, the curved shape of the leading edge 14 will prevent this portion of the shoe 10 from damaging the tires of the vehicle if the device is displaced from the vehicle. The curved shape of the leading edge 14 also allows the device 10 to bend over stalk stubble if the vehicle is moving in the opposite or reverse direction.
[0027] FIG. 2 shows an edge view of the spring strap 20 and its various sections. The strap is preferably on the order of from about ⅛ to about ½ inch in thickness and has a preferred width of from about 1 to about 4. The spring strap is preferably made from spring steel. The design of the strap 20 with its curves is such as to provide a spring action to hold the shoe snuggly but resiliently against the surface of the ground as the shoe is being moved there along to fold over the stubble. As such the strap 20 extends from a connection end 32 followed by a generally straight section 33 having a length on the order of 9 inches plus or minus 1 inch. The straight section 33 merges to an enlarged curved section 35 having a radius on the order of 12 inches, plus or minus 1 inch, followed by a smaller curved section 37 disposed at a radius of 3 inches, plus or minus ½ inch. The smaller curved section 37 leads to a flat vehicle connecting end portion 38 . The connecting end portion 38 is provided with an aperture 39 for receiving bolts for fastening the connecting end portion 38 to a structural member 40 of a vehicle such as a tractor or combine.
[0028] A device 1 of the present invention is easily attached to a vehicle such as a tractor or combine as it weighs only about 35 pounds and can be readily handled by a single person. The device is usually positioned on the front of the vehicle and bends over the stalk stubble before the vehicle encounters the stubble. The device can, however, also be positioned to engage and bend over the stalk stubble after the vehicle has moved over the stubble. Additionally, because of the fact that so few parts are needed for the device of the present invention compared to the prior art, it is much less expensive than other devices for flattening residual agricultural products such as corn stalk stubble.
[0029] A protective layer 45 can be positioned on the flat portion 16 and the arcuate section 17 of the shoe. A protective layer 49 can also be positioned on the straight section 33 of the spring strap 20 . The protective layers 45 , 49 can be made of a material that protects the shoe and spring strap from abrasion from the residual agricultural products. The protective layer 45 , 49 can also be made of a material that assists in having the shoe and spring strap slide over the residual agricultural products. An example of a material that works particularly well for the protective layer is ultra high molecular weight plastic such as polyethylene and nylon.
[0030] FIG. 4 shows additional features that can be used with the device of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 4 , the shoe 60 is essentially the same as the shoe 10 previously described. The shoe 60 varies in that the shoe has a curved section 71 with a substantially constant radius of curvature from the end 72 where the shoe is secured to the spring strap to the beginning of the curled toe 73 adjacent the end 74 . The constant radius curved section 71 has a radius of 9 to 15 inches, and a length from about 6 to about 15 inches. The total length of the shoe is from about 15 to about 30 inches and the width is from about 6 to about 15 inches. The preferred length of the shoe is from about 18 to 22 inches and the preferred width is from about 9 to about 12 inches. Also an L-shaped bracket 63 is welded or secured to the shoe. The L-shaped bracket is used to mount a spring strap 70 to the shoe. A flange 65 is positioned on each side of the L-shaped bracket 63 to snuggly receive the spring strap. A hole 67 is provided in the L-shaped bracket to receive a bolt 69 for securing the spring strap 70 to the shoe 60 . The spring strap 70 is similar to the previously described spring strap 20 . The spring strap 70 has a first hole 76 and a second hole 77 for mounting the spring strap to the shoe 60 in the manner previously described. The holes 76 and 77 disposed between the end 72 of the spring strap and the curved section 71 . The first hole 76 provides a mounting point for the spring strap 70 that applies the most biasing force on the shoe 60 in a direction towards the residual agricultural products. The second hole 77 is closer to the end 72 and proves less biasing force on the shoe 60 . Additional holes can be provided on the spring strap if it is desired to provide more adjustability for the biasing force that the spring strap provided to the shoe. The first and second holes 76 and 77 are positioned in the spring strap so that a portion of the spring strap extends over the shoe 60 .
[0031] FIG. 4 shows another feature that can be used with the stalk bending device. The spring strap 70 has a second curved section 79 that is positioned between the curved section 71 and the first hole 76 . The second curved section provides additional spring force that assists in biasing the shoe 60 in a direction towards the residual agricultural products.
[0032] FIG. 5 shows additional features that can be used with the device of the present invention. The device shown in this figure is essentially the same as the device shown in FIG. 4 . The mounting of the spring strap 80 to the vehicle 85 has been modified. The mounting location 87 on the vehicle 85 has been moved to a vertical orientation which results in a greater curvature for the curved section 83 . The increased curvature for the spring strap 80 increases the biasing force that the spring strap places on the shoe 60 . In addition, one or more holes 86 can be provided on the spring strap to secure the spring strap to the vehicle 85 . If multiple holes 86 are provided in the spring stop the position of the spring strap with respect to the vehicle can be adjusted.
[0033] FIGS. 6 , 7 and 8 show additional features that can be used with the device of the present invention. As show in FIG. 6 pivot bracket 100 is mounted on the vehicle 105 . The pivot bracket has a mounting surface 107 for securing the spring strap 20 , 70 , 80 to the vehicle. The pivot bracket has a side wall 109 that extends from the mounting surface in a direction toward the vehicle 105 . The sidewall 109 has a first section 108 and a second section 110 . A mounting flange 111 is positioned on the end of the sidewall 109 that is spaced apart from the mounting surface 107 for the spring strap. The mounting flange is used to removably secure the pivot bracket 100 to the vehicle 105 . A hinge 115 is positioned on the sidewall 109 between the first section 108 and the second section 110 . The hinge allows the sidewall to pivot to move the device in a direction that allows for more clearance with regard to the vehicle. As shown in FIGS. 6 and 7 the hinge is located in a generally vertical orientation and in FIG. 8 in a generally horizontal location. The orientation of the hinge 115 dictates the direction that the device can be moved to provide additional clearance with the vehicle. A locking means 119 can be operatively connected to the sidewall 109 to secure the sidewall in the desired location with respect to the vehicle. The locking device 119 has at least a first member 123 that is connected to the first section 108 and a second member 125 positioned on the second section 110 of the sidewall 109 . A hole 127 is positioned in each of the first and second members and a pin 131 is positioned in the holes 127 to secure the sidewall in a straight orientation. To change the position of the device, the pin 131 is removed and the hinge 115 can be used to change the location of the shoe and spring strap. A second hole 135 is positioned in the first member 123 and when the pivot bracket is moved the pin 131 can be positioned in the second hole 135 in the first member and hole 127 in the second member to hold the pivot bracket in the new pivoted location. As shown in the drawings more than one first 123 and second 125 members can be positioned on the sidewall 109 to provide additional strength for the locking mechanism. The pin 131 can extend through all of the first and second member. As shown in FIG. 8 the orientation of the sidewall 139 is changed to allow the shoe and spring strap to pivot in a different direction. As shown in FIG. 7 , the pivot bracket allows the shoe and spring strap to pivot in a generally sideways direction and in FIG. 8 the shoe and spring strap move in a generally vertical direction. The locking device for the device of FIG. 8 functions in the same manner as the locking device shown in FIG. 7 with the understanding that the orientation of the locking device has been rotated. When the hinge has been utilized, the device is usually no longer in an orientation where it can contact the residual agricultural products.
[0034] FIG. 11 shows one example where the pivot bracket 100 has been rotated to provide a different location for the device with respect to the vehicle 105 . Also in this figure the mounting surface 107 can have more than one hole 106 for securing the spring strap 80 to the pivot bracket 100 . This allows for additional adjustment for the position of the shoe 60 with respect to the vehicle and the ground.
[0035] FIGS. 9 and 10 show another feature that can be used with the device of the present invention. As shown in these Figures a different mounting bracket 151 is used to secure the spring strap 80 to the vehicle. The mounting bracket has a first support member 153 and a second support member 155 that are positioned in substantially parallel spaced apart relationship. An aperture 159 is positioned in the first end 160 of each of the first and second support members. A bolt 163 can be positioned in the apertures 159 to secure the mounting bracket to the vehicle. A tab 165 is positioned on each of the first and second support members adjacent the aperture 159 . The tabs are disposed to engage the vehicle and hold the first and second support members in the desired location with respect to the vehicle.
[0036] The second end 161 of the first and second support members also has an aperture 169 . A pivoting securing bracket 171 is pivotably secured to the first and second support members by a bolt 173 that extends between the apertures 169 in the first and second support members. The securing bracket has a plate 176 and a passageway 175 is defined in the plate. A bolt 173 extends through the passageway to pivotably secure the securing bracket to the first and second support members. The plate 176 has a first end 177 and a second end 179 . A flange 181 is positioned on each side of the first end of the plate and the flanges are disposed to securely engage the sides of the spring strap 80 . A hole 183 is positioned in the plate to be in alignment with the hole in the end of the spring strap 80 . A bolt 185 is positioned in the hole in the plate and the hole in the spring strap to secure the spring strap to the plate. The flanges 181 assist in locating the spring strap with respect to the plate.
[0037] A threaded aperture 189 is positioned on the second end of the plate 176 . A threaded bolt 191 is rotatably positioned in the threaded aperture. The threaded bolt is disposed for engaging a surface on the vehicle whereby the bolt can be rotated to adjust the position of the plate with respect to the vehicle. The adjustment for the plate 176 allows the position of the spring strap 80 and shoe 60 that attached to the plate, to be adjusted with respect to the vehicle.
[0038] FIGS. 12 and 13 show another feature that can be used with the device of the present invention. As shown in the figures a different support bracket 201 is used to secure the spring strap to the vehicle. The support bracket has a base 207 with a block 209 positioned on the center of the base. A threaded aperture 215 is disposed in the block 209 and is positioned substantially parallel with the base. A notch 217 is positioned in the base on each side of the block 209 . A curved section 221 is located on each end of the base 207 . The ends 225 of each curved section are disposed to be substantially parallel with the base and extending in a direction towards the block 209 . A threaded bolt extends from a vehicle to engage the threaded aperture 215 in the block 209 . The threaded bolt secures the support bracket to the vehicle.
[0039] As shown in FIGS. 14 , 15 and 16 the support brackets 201 are positioned on each side of a frame member 233 of a vehicle 236 . The support brackets are held in place by bolts 237 that extend into threaded apertures 236 on the vehicle. Shackles 241 are positioned on the bolts 237 and the shackles engage the notches 217 on the base 207 on each side of the block 209 . The shackles, by engaging the notches, prevent the support bracket from moving with respect to the bolts 237 and the vehicle 235 .
[0040] An extension arm 245 having a mounting yoke 249 is secured to the support brackets 201 . The yoke 249 has two passageways 255 that are disposed to be in alignment with the threaded apertures 215 in the block 209 of the support bracket. Bolts 257 are positioned to extend through the passageways 255 and to threadingly engage the threaded apertures 215 in the support brackets. The bolts 257 effectively secure the extension arm 245 to the support brackets and therefore to the vehicle 235 . A mounting flange 259 is secured to the end of the extension arm 245 that is spaced apart from the yoke 249 . The mounting flange is disposed to mount the stalk crusher device 1 to the vehicle in a manner previously described.
[0041] The above detailed description of the present invention is given for explanatory purposes. It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that numerous changes and modifications can be made without departing from the scope of the invention. Accordingly, the whole of the foregoing description is to be construed in an illustrative and not a limitative sense. | The present invention is directed to a new and simplified device for controlling residual agricultural products. In particular, the device is useful for folding over corn stalk stubble or other stubble which may be protruding from the surface of the earth. The end of the flattening shoe which contacts the corn stubble is provided with an angled or radius section which insures that the flattening shoe will not dig into the earth as it is advanced by the vehicle and, if the device should become unattached, it will not damage tires that are immediately following. | Briefly describe the main idea outlined in the provided context. | [
"CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS [0001] This application claims the benefit of U.S. provisional patent application No. 61/456,292 and filed on Nov. 3, 2010.",
"BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION [0002] Following and during the harvesting of corn and cutting of the corn stalks, a stubble remains attached to the soil and will frequently extend 4 to 6 inches above the surface of the earth.",
"The presence of stubble extending upwardly from the earth has been a significant problem for the tires of tractors and combines passing there over in that it can damage the tires or reduce the serviceable life of the tractor tires.",
"This is especially true of some newer varieties of corn which produce larger yields but also have stalks which are stiffer than a typical corn stalk of, say, ten years ago or earlier.",
"Additionally, as pointed out in U.S. Pat. No. 6,648,078 corn stalk stubble cures in the field all winter thereby resulting in an extremely stiff stalk by the time of spring planting.",
"The aforesaid U.S. Pat. No. 6,648,078 discloses one type of apparatus for folding over corn stalk stubble.",
"Another prior art device for folding over stubble is one sold under the name Stalk Stomper, by May Wes Manufacturing, Hutchinson, Minn.",
"SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION [0003] The present invention is directed to a new and simplified device for controlling residual agricultural products.",
"In particular, the device is useful for folding over corn stalk stubble or other stubble which may be protruding from the surface of the earth.",
"In contrast to the prior art which discloses apparatus having a large number of components and/or complex features, the device of the present invention has significantly fewer components than prior art apparatus for folding over agricultural products such as corn stalk stubble.",
"Some prior art apparatus includes a complex arrangement of supporting members and chains while others include pivotally mounted stomping shoes with compression springs for urging the shoes downwardly to maintain pressure on the stubble.",
"In contrast, the device of the present invention does not require a separate coil spring for urging the flattening shoe against the corn stalk stubble.",
"Additionally, the end of the flattening shoe which contacts the corn stubble is provided with an angled or radius section which insures that the flattening shoe will not dig into the earth as it is advanced by the vehicle and, if the device should become unattached, it will not damage tires that are immediately following.",
"[0004] The present invention has three basic components, namely a shoe for contacting and bending over the stubble, a connecting spring strap engaged to the tractor or combine and a mounting bracket to connect the flat spring to the vehicle.",
"The spring strap, in addition, to provide support for the flattening shoe, is designed to urge the shoe downwardly to maintain pressure on the stubble being bent over.",
"IN THE DRAWINGS [0005] FIG. 1 is an elevational view looking in the direction as viewed with the tractor and the flattening shoe approaching toward the viewer.",
"[0006] FIG. 2 is a side view showing the device of the present invention in position to be attached to the frame of a tractor.",
"[0007] FIG. 3 is a sectional view taken through line 3 - 3 of FIG. 1 .",
"[0008] FIG. 4 is a side elevational view of an additional feature of the invention.",
"[0009] FIG. 5 is a side elevational view of an additional feature of the invention.",
"[0010] FIG. 6 is a side elevational view of a mounting bracket that can be used with the device.",
"[0011] FIG. 7 is a side elevational view of the opposite side of the bracket of FIG. 6 .",
"[0012] FIG. 8 is a side elevational view of a mounting bracket that can be used with the device.",
"[0013] FIG. 9 is a side elevational view of a mounting bracket that can be used with the device.",
"[0014] FIG. 10 is a top view of the bracket shown in FIG. 9 .",
"[0015] FIG. 11 is a perspective view of the bracket of FIG. 6 shown mounted on a vehicle.",
"[0016] FIG. 12 is a top view of a mounting bracket that can be used with the device.",
"[0017] FIG. 13 is a side elevational view of the bracket of FIG. 12 .",
"[0018] FIG. 14 is a side elevation view of a mounting bracket that can be used with the device of the present invention.",
"[0019] FIG. 15 is a front elevation view of the mounting bracket of FIG. 14 .",
"[0020] FIG. 16 is a partial top view of the mounting bracket of FIG. 14 .",
"DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [0021] The present invention is directed to a device for controlling residual agricultural products.",
"In particular, the device is useful for flattening corn stalks and other agricultural products that are present in a form field after the crop has been harvested.",
"Such residual agricultural products are very strong, especially if left in place over the winter, and can cause damage to farm equipment and the tires associated with such farm equipment.",
"The device of the present invention can be used to flatten the residual agricultural products during the harvesting of the crop or, if the stalks are left in the field, while preparing the field for planting.",
"The features of the invention will be more fully understood by reference to the attached drawings in connection with the following description.",
"[0022] Referring to the drawings, the device 1 of the present invention includes a flattening shoe 10 and a steel spring strap 20 engaged to and supporting the shoe 10 .",
"As shown in FIG. 2 , the end of the spring strap 20 spaced from the shoe 10 may be bolted or otherwise fastened to a head or other structural member 40 of a vehicle such as a combine or tractor.",
"Such structural member 40 may be raised and lowered.",
"The spring strap can also be attached to a pivot bracket that allows the shoe to be pivoted to different locations with respect to the vehicle when the shoe is not being utilized to engage agricultural products.",
"[0023] The shoe includes a body section 12 having a pair of parallel spaced apart edges 13 extending to a curled toe 14 .",
"As can be seen in FIG. 1 , the curled toe 14 extends to an end 15 .",
"As the shoe extends from the body section 12 to form curved leading end or toe 14 towards the end 15 , it narrows down so that the width of the end 15 is significantly shorter than the distance between the edges 13 on the body section 12 .",
"This may be seen in FIG. 1 .",
"[0024] As may be seen in FIG. 2 , the shoe 10 has a generally flat portion 16 extending toward the spring strap 20 and in a direction toward the tractor.",
"The flat portion 16 , which is intended to contact the ground, is followed by a short arcuate section 17 and finally by a flat section 18 forming the engagement end with the spring strap 20 which is engaged to the vehicle, such as a tractor or combine.",
"For example, the flat section 16 could be on the order of from about 2 to about 8 in length, the curve section 17 could be on the order of from about 1½ to about 4 inches in length and the flat engagement end section could be on the order of from about 3 to about 8 inches in length.",
"As can be seen in FIG. 1 the flat engagement section 18 extends to an end edge 19 which has a length on the order of from about 2 to about 3 inches.",
"Edge portions 19 A and 19 B, each disposed at an angle of approximately 45 degrees from the respective edges 13 , join the end edge 19 with the respective side edges 13 .",
"The flat portion 16 and arcuate section 17 are disposed for engaging the residual agricultural products, such as corn stalk stubble.",
"The shoe 10 is usually formed of steel having a thickness from about ⅛ of an inch to about ¾ of an inch.",
"[0025] Welded or otherwise attached to the surface of the shoe 10 opposite the surface intended to contact the ground are a pair of spaced apart support members 22 .",
"The space between the support members 22 is such as to snuggly receive therebetween the spring strap 20 .",
"As may be seen in FIGS. 2 and 3 a wedge member 24 having a face 25 disposed at an angle in the range of from about 20° to about 30° is positioned between the support members 22 and rests on the surface of the flat section 18 .",
"The wedge increases in thickness as it moves away from such end 19 .",
"The wedge 24 , the shoe 10 and the spring strap each have a hole for receiving a bolt 27 for connecting the shoe 10 to the spring strap 20 .",
"[0026] It will be appreciated that the flat portion 16 and the arcuate section 17 of the shoe are intended to engage and bend over the stalk stubble.",
"The curled end 14 , by virtue of its curved orientation, will not dig into the ground as it is moved along by the vehicle or when the tractor or combine is placed in reverse motion.",
"In addition, the curved shape of the leading edge 14 will prevent this portion of the shoe 10 from damaging the tires of the vehicle if the device is displaced from the vehicle.",
"The curved shape of the leading edge 14 also allows the device 10 to bend over stalk stubble if the vehicle is moving in the opposite or reverse direction.",
"[0027] FIG. 2 shows an edge view of the spring strap 20 and its various sections.",
"The strap is preferably on the order of from about ⅛ to about ½ inch in thickness and has a preferred width of from about 1 to about 4.",
"The spring strap is preferably made from spring steel.",
"The design of the strap 20 with its curves is such as to provide a spring action to hold the shoe snuggly but resiliently against the surface of the ground as the shoe is being moved there along to fold over the stubble.",
"As such the strap 20 extends from a connection end 32 followed by a generally straight section 33 having a length on the order of 9 inches plus or minus 1 inch.",
"The straight section 33 merges to an enlarged curved section 35 having a radius on the order of 12 inches, plus or minus 1 inch, followed by a smaller curved section 37 disposed at a radius of 3 inches, plus or minus ½ inch.",
"The smaller curved section 37 leads to a flat vehicle connecting end portion 38 .",
"The connecting end portion 38 is provided with an aperture 39 for receiving bolts for fastening the connecting end portion 38 to a structural member 40 of a vehicle such as a tractor or combine.",
"[0028] A device 1 of the present invention is easily attached to a vehicle such as a tractor or combine as it weighs only about 35 pounds and can be readily handled by a single person.",
"The device is usually positioned on the front of the vehicle and bends over the stalk stubble before the vehicle encounters the stubble.",
"The device can, however, also be positioned to engage and bend over the stalk stubble after the vehicle has moved over the stubble.",
"Additionally, because of the fact that so few parts are needed for the device of the present invention compared to the prior art, it is much less expensive than other devices for flattening residual agricultural products such as corn stalk stubble.",
"[0029] A protective layer 45 can be positioned on the flat portion 16 and the arcuate section 17 of the shoe.",
"A protective layer 49 can also be positioned on the straight section 33 of the spring strap 20 .",
"The protective layers 45 , 49 can be made of a material that protects the shoe and spring strap from abrasion from the residual agricultural products.",
"The protective layer 45 , 49 can also be made of a material that assists in having the shoe and spring strap slide over the residual agricultural products.",
"An example of a material that works particularly well for the protective layer is ultra high molecular weight plastic such as polyethylene and nylon.",
"[0030] FIG. 4 shows additional features that can be used with the device of the present invention.",
"As shown in FIG. 4 , the shoe 60 is essentially the same as the shoe 10 previously described.",
"The shoe 60 varies in that the shoe has a curved section 71 with a substantially constant radius of curvature from the end 72 where the shoe is secured to the spring strap to the beginning of the curled toe 73 adjacent the end 74 .",
"The constant radius curved section 71 has a radius of 9 to 15 inches, and a length from about 6 to about 15 inches.",
"The total length of the shoe is from about 15 to about 30 inches and the width is from about 6 to about 15 inches.",
"The preferred length of the shoe is from about 18 to 22 inches and the preferred width is from about 9 to about 12 inches.",
"Also an L-shaped bracket 63 is welded or secured to the shoe.",
"The L-shaped bracket is used to mount a spring strap 70 to the shoe.",
"A flange 65 is positioned on each side of the L-shaped bracket 63 to snuggly receive the spring strap.",
"A hole 67 is provided in the L-shaped bracket to receive a bolt 69 for securing the spring strap 70 to the shoe 60 .",
"The spring strap 70 is similar to the previously described spring strap 20 .",
"The spring strap 70 has a first hole 76 and a second hole 77 for mounting the spring strap to the shoe 60 in the manner previously described.",
"The holes 76 and 77 disposed between the end 72 of the spring strap and the curved section 71 .",
"The first hole 76 provides a mounting point for the spring strap 70 that applies the most biasing force on the shoe 60 in a direction towards the residual agricultural products.",
"The second hole 77 is closer to the end 72 and proves less biasing force on the shoe 60 .",
"Additional holes can be provided on the spring strap if it is desired to provide more adjustability for the biasing force that the spring strap provided to the shoe.",
"The first and second holes 76 and 77 are positioned in the spring strap so that a portion of the spring strap extends over the shoe 60 .",
"[0031] FIG. 4 shows another feature that can be used with the stalk bending device.",
"The spring strap 70 has a second curved section 79 that is positioned between the curved section 71 and the first hole 76 .",
"The second curved section provides additional spring force that assists in biasing the shoe 60 in a direction towards the residual agricultural products.",
"[0032] FIG. 5 shows additional features that can be used with the device of the present invention.",
"The device shown in this figure is essentially the same as the device shown in FIG. 4 .",
"The mounting of the spring strap 80 to the vehicle 85 has been modified.",
"The mounting location 87 on the vehicle 85 has been moved to a vertical orientation which results in a greater curvature for the curved section 83 .",
"The increased curvature for the spring strap 80 increases the biasing force that the spring strap places on the shoe 60 .",
"In addition, one or more holes 86 can be provided on the spring strap to secure the spring strap to the vehicle 85 .",
"If multiple holes 86 are provided in the spring stop the position of the spring strap with respect to the vehicle can be adjusted.",
"[0033] FIGS. 6 , 7 and 8 show additional features that can be used with the device of the present invention.",
"As show in FIG. 6 pivot bracket 100 is mounted on the vehicle 105 .",
"The pivot bracket has a mounting surface 107 for securing the spring strap 20 , 70 , 80 to the vehicle.",
"The pivot bracket has a side wall 109 that extends from the mounting surface in a direction toward the vehicle 105 .",
"The sidewall 109 has a first section 108 and a second section 110 .",
"A mounting flange 111 is positioned on the end of the sidewall 109 that is spaced apart from the mounting surface 107 for the spring strap.",
"The mounting flange is used to removably secure the pivot bracket 100 to the vehicle 105 .",
"A hinge 115 is positioned on the sidewall 109 between the first section 108 and the second section 110 .",
"The hinge allows the sidewall to pivot to move the device in a direction that allows for more clearance with regard to the vehicle.",
"As shown in FIGS. 6 and 7 the hinge is located in a generally vertical orientation and in FIG. 8 in a generally horizontal location.",
"The orientation of the hinge 115 dictates the direction that the device can be moved to provide additional clearance with the vehicle.",
"A locking means 119 can be operatively connected to the sidewall 109 to secure the sidewall in the desired location with respect to the vehicle.",
"The locking device 119 has at least a first member 123 that is connected to the first section 108 and a second member 125 positioned on the second section 110 of the sidewall 109 .",
"A hole 127 is positioned in each of the first and second members and a pin 131 is positioned in the holes 127 to secure the sidewall in a straight orientation.",
"To change the position of the device, the pin 131 is removed and the hinge 115 can be used to change the location of the shoe and spring strap.",
"A second hole 135 is positioned in the first member 123 and when the pivot bracket is moved the pin 131 can be positioned in the second hole 135 in the first member and hole 127 in the second member to hold the pivot bracket in the new pivoted location.",
"As shown in the drawings more than one first 123 and second 125 members can be positioned on the sidewall 109 to provide additional strength for the locking mechanism.",
"The pin 131 can extend through all of the first and second member.",
"As shown in FIG. 8 the orientation of the sidewall 139 is changed to allow the shoe and spring strap to pivot in a different direction.",
"As shown in FIG. 7 , the pivot bracket allows the shoe and spring strap to pivot in a generally sideways direction and in FIG. 8 the shoe and spring strap move in a generally vertical direction.",
"The locking device for the device of FIG. 8 functions in the same manner as the locking device shown in FIG. 7 with the understanding that the orientation of the locking device has been rotated.",
"When the hinge has been utilized, the device is usually no longer in an orientation where it can contact the residual agricultural products.",
"[0034] FIG. 11 shows one example where the pivot bracket 100 has been rotated to provide a different location for the device with respect to the vehicle 105 .",
"Also in this figure the mounting surface 107 can have more than one hole 106 for securing the spring strap 80 to the pivot bracket 100 .",
"This allows for additional adjustment for the position of the shoe 60 with respect to the vehicle and the ground.",
"[0035] FIGS. 9 and 10 show another feature that can be used with the device of the present invention.",
"As shown in these Figures a different mounting bracket 151 is used to secure the spring strap 80 to the vehicle.",
"The mounting bracket has a first support member 153 and a second support member 155 that are positioned in substantially parallel spaced apart relationship.",
"An aperture 159 is positioned in the first end 160 of each of the first and second support members.",
"A bolt 163 can be positioned in the apertures 159 to secure the mounting bracket to the vehicle.",
"A tab 165 is positioned on each of the first and second support members adjacent the aperture 159 .",
"The tabs are disposed to engage the vehicle and hold the first and second support members in the desired location with respect to the vehicle.",
"[0036] The second end 161 of the first and second support members also has an aperture 169 .",
"A pivoting securing bracket 171 is pivotably secured to the first and second support members by a bolt 173 that extends between the apertures 169 in the first and second support members.",
"The securing bracket has a plate 176 and a passageway 175 is defined in the plate.",
"A bolt 173 extends through the passageway to pivotably secure the securing bracket to the first and second support members.",
"The plate 176 has a first end 177 and a second end 179 .",
"A flange 181 is positioned on each side of the first end of the plate and the flanges are disposed to securely engage the sides of the spring strap 80 .",
"A hole 183 is positioned in the plate to be in alignment with the hole in the end of the spring strap 80 .",
"A bolt 185 is positioned in the hole in the plate and the hole in the spring strap to secure the spring strap to the plate.",
"The flanges 181 assist in locating the spring strap with respect to the plate.",
"[0037] A threaded aperture 189 is positioned on the second end of the plate 176 .",
"A threaded bolt 191 is rotatably positioned in the threaded aperture.",
"The threaded bolt is disposed for engaging a surface on the vehicle whereby the bolt can be rotated to adjust the position of the plate with respect to the vehicle.",
"The adjustment for the plate 176 allows the position of the spring strap 80 and shoe 60 that attached to the plate, to be adjusted with respect to the vehicle.",
"[0038] FIGS. 12 and 13 show another feature that can be used with the device of the present invention.",
"As shown in the figures a different support bracket 201 is used to secure the spring strap to the vehicle.",
"The support bracket has a base 207 with a block 209 positioned on the center of the base.",
"A threaded aperture 215 is disposed in the block 209 and is positioned substantially parallel with the base.",
"A notch 217 is positioned in the base on each side of the block 209 .",
"A curved section 221 is located on each end of the base 207 .",
"The ends 225 of each curved section are disposed to be substantially parallel with the base and extending in a direction towards the block 209 .",
"A threaded bolt extends from a vehicle to engage the threaded aperture 215 in the block 209 .",
"The threaded bolt secures the support bracket to the vehicle.",
"[0039] As shown in FIGS. 14 , 15 and 16 the support brackets 201 are positioned on each side of a frame member 233 of a vehicle 236 .",
"The support brackets are held in place by bolts 237 that extend into threaded apertures 236 on the vehicle.",
"Shackles 241 are positioned on the bolts 237 and the shackles engage the notches 217 on the base 207 on each side of the block 209 .",
"The shackles, by engaging the notches, prevent the support bracket from moving with respect to the bolts 237 and the vehicle 235 .",
"[0040] An extension arm 245 having a mounting yoke 249 is secured to the support brackets 201 .",
"The yoke 249 has two passageways 255 that are disposed to be in alignment with the threaded apertures 215 in the block 209 of the support bracket.",
"Bolts 257 are positioned to extend through the passageways 255 and to threadingly engage the threaded apertures 215 in the support brackets.",
"The bolts 257 effectively secure the extension arm 245 to the support brackets and therefore to the vehicle 235 .",
"A mounting flange 259 is secured to the end of the extension arm 245 that is spaced apart from the yoke 249 .",
"The mounting flange is disposed to mount the stalk crusher device 1 to the vehicle in a manner previously described.",
"[0041] The above detailed description of the present invention is given for explanatory purposes.",
"It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that numerous changes and modifications can be made without departing from the scope of the invention.",
"Accordingly, the whole of the foregoing description is to be construed in an illustrative and not a limitative sense."
] |
BACKGROUND
[0001] 1. Technical Field
[0002] The present invention relates to a printer capable of updating software including firmware and set data.
[0003] 2. Related Art
[0004] A related-art printer is implemented as a device having a function (hereinafter described as an “update function”) of updating various types of software, which includes firmware and set data, installed in the device in accordance with received data or data on a portable recording medium attached to the device. Specifically, the related-art printer is embodied as a device that can simply undergo correction of a malfunction, functional improvements, and the like without a necessity of sending a device to a manufacturer. However, the update function of such printer is realized as a function of updating software, so long as a version update (upgrade) is available (see, for instance, JP-A-2001-51844).
[0005] Therefore, the related-art printer has become a device that might update software which should not be updated (e.g., software that is not provided for the common user and that has been developed for a specific client).
SUMMARY
[0006] An advantage of some aspects of the invention is to provide a printer capable of updating various types of software more accurately so as not to update software that should not be updated.
[0007] According to an aspect of the invention, there is provided a printer comprising:
[0008] a nonvolatile storage unit, storing a plurality of types of software and enable keys for the respective pieces of the software; and
[0009] a software update unit, when update information including several pieces of software and verification keys and new enable keys for the respective pieces of the software is provided,
determining, whether or not the enable key in the nonvolatile storage unit pertaining to the corresponding software has a predetermined relationship with the verification key in the update information, with respect to each of the pieces of the software in the update information, and performing rewrite processing for rewriting the software and the enable key in the nonvolatile storage unit respectively to the software and the new enable key in the update information, with respect to each of the pieces of the software for which the enable key has the predetermined relationship with the verification key.
[0012] The present disclosure relates to the subject matter contained in Japanese patent application No. 2007-219478 filed on Aug. 27, 2007 which is expressly incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0013] The invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings, wherein like numbers reference like elements.
[0014] FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a printer of an embodiment.
[0015] FIG. 2 is a descriptive view of a data configuration of an update package processed by the printer of the embodiment.
[0016] FIG. 3 is a flowchart of update processing executed by the printer of the embodiment.
[0017] FIG. 4 is a view showing an example of operation performed at the time of an update of software of the printer of the embodiment.
DESCRIPTION OF EXEMPLARY EMBODIMENTS
[0018] The best mode for implementing the present invention will be described in detail hereunder by reference to the drawings.
[0019] First, the configuration of a printer 10 of an embodiment of the present invention will be described by reference to FIG. 1 .
[0020] As shown in FIG. 1 , the printer 10 of the present embodiment is a device having a scanner 11 , an operation panel 12 , a controller 13 , and a print engine 14 , which is a so-called multifunction machine.
[0021] The operation panel 12 is a unit provided on the printer 10 for receiving various instructions from the user and submitting the status of the printer 10 to the user. The operation panel 12 includes an LCD, a plurality of LEDs, a plurality of push button switches, and the like.
[0022] The print engine 14 is a unit for subjecting a sheet to printing. The scanner 11 generates image data pertaining to an original by means of scanning the original set on the scanner.
[0023] The controller 13 controls respective sections in the printer 10 in a consolidated manner for causing the printer 10 to act as a multifunction machine. The controller 13 has the same hardware configuration as that of the related-art controller. Therefore, descriptions about the specific hardware configuration of the controller 13 are omitted, but the printer 10 includes a slot for USB memory provided in a housing thereof. The controller 13 is arranged so as to be able to subject USB memory inserted into the slot to reading/writing. Further, the controller 13 includes a restarting circuit, which is a circuit that is constituted of a power IC having ON/OFF function, a capacitor, and the like, for restarting the printer 10 .
[0024] Operation of the printer 10 of the embodiment will now be described by reference to FIGS. 2 and 3 .
[0025] The controller 12 provided in the printer 10 is a unit programmed in such a way that version information about respective pieces of software which is information showing versions of software and an enable key (which will be described in detail later) are stored (saved) in ROM which is flash ROM along with various types of software including firmware and set data for various applications for controlling a print engine, for controlling a scanner, and the like.
[0026] The controller 12 is embodied as a unit programmed so as to commence update processing for updating various types of software when an update package is transmitted from a PC and when USB memory where an update package is stored is attached (inserted into the slot formed in the housing).
[0027] The update package is information having a data configuration shown in FIG. 2 .
[0028] Specifically, the update package is information configured so as to be able to enable appending of several pairs, each of which includes a firm header and firm data (software itself to be updated) including the designation of data, a data version, a version management target flag, and the like, to a package header including a write enable verification key, a save-write enable key, and the like; and to include restart instruction data of predetermined specifics in the end of the package.
[0029] The write enable verification key included in the package header of the update package is information, in which each byte is used as a verification key (to be described in detail later) pertaining to each of pieces of software (hereinafter described as “packaged software”) whose firm headers and firm data are included in the update package. The write enable verification key is 8-byte information in the embodiment. The save-write enable key included in the package header is information, in which each of bytes is used as a new enable key (details of which will be described later) pertaining to respective pieces of the packaged software. The save-write enable key is 8-byte information in the present embodiment. The designation of data included in the firm header of the update package is the designation of firm data appended to the firm header and is identification information about the firmware to be updated, and the data version is information showing the version of the firm data. The version management target flag is information for designating whether or not to ascertain version update at the time of updating of the corresponding firmware.
[0030] The controller 13 performs processing whose basic processing procedures are provided in FIG. 3 as the foregoing update processing. In the following descriptions, software is depicted simply as “soft.”
[0031] Specifically, when imparted with an update package to be processed, the controller 13 ascertains various types of information in the package header of the update package (step S 101 ) and performs processing (step S 102 ) for specifying the first software which is soft indicated by the designation of data in the first firm header in the update package, as processing target software.
[0032] Subsequently, the controller 13 determines whether or not a combination of an enable key pertaining to processing target software which is information recorded in ROM and a verification key pertaining to the processing target software, which is 1-byte information about the processing target software in the write enable verification key in the package header, fulfills update enable conditions (step S 103 ).
[0033] The update enable conditions correspond to conditions [“(a verification key AND an enable key) EOR enable key=“000000000”]; (a verification key AND an enable key) EOR enable key is a result of logical operation acquired for each bit) in the present embodiment) defined in software which is software that can be updated through update processing for causing the controller 13 to execute update processing. Any conditions can be used as the update enable conditions, so long as the conditions are sometimes not fulfilled depending on a combination of the enable key and the verification key. As used in the present embodiment, it is desirable that a verification key, by means of which conditions are fulfilled regardless of a value of an enable key, is present (ALL 1 at (a verification key AND an enable key) EOR enable key=“000000000”).
[0034] When the combination of the enable key and the verification key does not fulfill the update enable conditions (NO in step S 103 ), the controller 13 determines whether or not unprocessed software (an unprocessed firm header and unprocessed firm data) are left (step S 107 ). When unprocessed software is left (YES in step S 107 ), processing returns to step S 102 , where processing for the next software is commenced.
[0035] When the combination of the enable key and the verification key fulfills the update enable conditions (YES in step S 103 ), the controller 13 determines whether or not it is necessary to perform a version check (step S 104 ). On the other words, the controller 13 determines whether or not aversion processing target flag pertaining to processing target software is information designating a necessity for ascertaining that version processing is version update.
[0036] When it is not necessary to perform the version check (NO in step S 104 ), the controller 13 actually updates the processing target software and performs processing (step S 106 ) for rewriting an enable key pertaining to processing target software to a new enable key, which is 1-byte information about processing target software in a save-write enable key in the package header, and subsequently commences processing pertaining to step S 107 and subsequent steps. Processing pertaining to step S 106 is embodied as processing for which the number of times processing is performed is counted.
[0037] In contrast, when it is necessary to perform the version check (YES in step S 104 ), the controller 13 compares the current version information (information in the ROM) pertaining to the processing target software with the new version information (a data version in the firm header), thereby determining whether or not a software update performed on the basis of the firm data in the update package corresponds to a version update of the processing target software (step S 105 ). When the software update corresponds to the version update (YES in step S 105 ), the controller 13 performs processing pertaining to step S 106 , and processing subsequent to step S 107 is commenced. When the software update does not correspond to the version update (NO in step S 105 ), processing pertaining to step S 107 and subsequent steps is initiated without performance of processing pertaining to step S 106 .
[0038] When completed processing of software in all of the packages (NO in step S 107 ), the controller 13 determines whether or not the update package being processed includes restart instruction data (step S 108 ).
[0039] When the update package includes restart instruction data (YES in step S 108 ), the controller 13 determines whether or not the number of pieces of updated software is one or more (whether or not the number of times processing pertaining to step S 106 is performed is one or more) (step S 109 ). When the number of pieces of updated software is one or more (YES in step S 109 ), automatic restart processing that is processing for causing the restart circuit to operate (step S 110 ) is performed, and update processing is completed.
[0040] When the restart instruction data are not included in the update package (NO in step S 108 ) and when the number of pieces of updated software is zero despite the fact that the update package includes the restart instruction data (NO in step S 109 ), the controller 13 completes update processing without performance of automatic restart processing.
[0041] As is evident from the above descriptions, the printer 10 of the embodiment is embodied as a device that, when an update package to be processed is imparted, determines software to be actually updated (software taken as a target of processing pertaining to step S 106 ) on the basis of a verification key pertaining to each of pieces of software in the update package and an enable key pertaining to each of pieces of software in the apparatus (in the ROM of the controller). The printer 10 is also embodied as a device that, when updating certain software, rewrites an enable key in the apparatus pertaining to the software to a new enable key pertaining to the software (a value of a specific one byte of the save-write enable key in the package header).
[0042] Therefore, so long as the printer 10 is designated such that, every time an update package is generated, a new enable key pertaining to each of pieces of software comes to an appropriate value (a value conforming to specifics of an update to be subsequently performed), the printer can be said to be a device (i.e., a device enabling a more accurate software update) capable of generating a package during subsequent generation of an update package, such as that exemplified in FIG. 4 ; namely, a device capable of generating a package for updating software to a version 2.10 and a package for updating software to version 2.110 (a package for not updating software of a specific version/a package for updating only software of a specific version).
[0043] <<Modified Mode>>
[0044] Various modifications can be made to the printer 10 . For instance, the printer 10 or the software for causing the printer 10 to perform update processing (hereinafter described as “update processing software”) can be modified into a device or software that makes a determination as to step S 105 (a determination as to whether or not update processing is a version update) at all times (a device or software that does not make a determination pertaining to step S 104 ) or a device or software that does not make a determination as to step S 105 (and S 104 ) at all times. When the printer 10 /the update processing software is arranged so as to make a determination as to step S 105 at all times, intentional version downgrade of software cannot be carried out. When the printer 10 /the update processing software is arranged so as not to make a determination as to step S 105 at all times, an undesirable version downgrade of software may also be performed. For these reasons, it is desirable that the printer 10 /the update processing software is arranged so as to make a determination as to steps S 104 and S 105 .
[0045] Naturally, the printer 10 /the update processing software can also be modified so as to take, as a processing target, an update package having a data configuration differing from that mentioned above (e.g., an update package whose new enable key is information in a firm header or an update package whose restart instruction data correspond to information in a package header), or the printer 10 can also be modified so as to have a hardware configuration differing from that mentioned above. | A printer includes: a nonvolatile storage unit, storing a plurality of types of software and enable keys for the respective pieces of the software; and a software update unit, when update information including several pieces of software and verification keys and new enable keys for the respective pieces of the software is provided, determining, whether or not the enable key in the nonvolatile storage unit pertaining to the corresponding software has a predetermined relationship with the verification key in the update information, with respect to each of the pieces of the software in the update information, and performing rewrite processing for rewriting the software and the enable key in the nonvolatile storage unit respectively to the software and the new enable key in the update information, with respect to each of the pieces of the software for which the enable key has the predetermined relationship with the verification key. | Provide a concise summary of the essential information conveyed in the given context. | [
"BACKGROUND [0001] 1.",
"Technical Field [0002] The present invention relates to a printer capable of updating software including firmware and set data.",
"[0003] 2.",
"Related Art [0004] A related-art printer is implemented as a device having a function (hereinafter described as an “update function”) of updating various types of software, which includes firmware and set data, installed in the device in accordance with received data or data on a portable recording medium attached to the device.",
"Specifically, the related-art printer is embodied as a device that can simply undergo correction of a malfunction, functional improvements, and the like without a necessity of sending a device to a manufacturer.",
"However, the update function of such printer is realized as a function of updating software, so long as a version update (upgrade) is available (see, for instance, JP-A-2001-51844).",
"[0005] Therefore, the related-art printer has become a device that might update software which should not be updated (e.g., software that is not provided for the common user and that has been developed for a specific client).",
"SUMMARY [0006] An advantage of some aspects of the invention is to provide a printer capable of updating various types of software more accurately so as not to update software that should not be updated.",
"[0007] According to an aspect of the invention, there is provided a printer comprising: [0008] a nonvolatile storage unit, storing a plurality of types of software and enable keys for the respective pieces of the software;",
"and [0009] a software update unit, when update information including several pieces of software and verification keys and new enable keys for the respective pieces of the software is provided, determining, whether or not the enable key in the nonvolatile storage unit pertaining to the corresponding software has a predetermined relationship with the verification key in the update information, with respect to each of the pieces of the software in the update information, and performing rewrite processing for rewriting the software and the enable key in the nonvolatile storage unit respectively to the software and the new enable key in the update information, with respect to each of the pieces of the software for which the enable key has the predetermined relationship with the verification key.",
"[0012] The present disclosure relates to the subject matter contained in Japanese patent application No. 2007-219478 filed on Aug. 27, 2007 which is expressly incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.",
"BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS [0013] The invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings, wherein like numbers reference like elements.",
"[0014] FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a printer of an embodiment.",
"[0015] FIG. 2 is a descriptive view of a data configuration of an update package processed by the printer of the embodiment.",
"[0016] FIG. 3 is a flowchart of update processing executed by the printer of the embodiment.",
"[0017] FIG. 4 is a view showing an example of operation performed at the time of an update of software of the printer of the embodiment.",
"DESCRIPTION OF EXEMPLARY EMBODIMENTS [0018] The best mode for implementing the present invention will be described in detail hereunder by reference to the drawings.",
"[0019] First, the configuration of a printer 10 of an embodiment of the present invention will be described by reference to FIG. 1 .",
"[0020] As shown in FIG. 1 , the printer 10 of the present embodiment is a device having a scanner 11 , an operation panel 12 , a controller 13 , and a print engine 14 , which is a so-called multifunction machine.",
"[0021] The operation panel 12 is a unit provided on the printer 10 for receiving various instructions from the user and submitting the status of the printer 10 to the user.",
"The operation panel 12 includes an LCD, a plurality of LEDs, a plurality of push button switches, and the like.",
"[0022] The print engine 14 is a unit for subjecting a sheet to printing.",
"The scanner 11 generates image data pertaining to an original by means of scanning the original set on the scanner.",
"[0023] The controller 13 controls respective sections in the printer 10 in a consolidated manner for causing the printer 10 to act as a multifunction machine.",
"The controller 13 has the same hardware configuration as that of the related-art controller.",
"Therefore, descriptions about the specific hardware configuration of the controller 13 are omitted, but the printer 10 includes a slot for USB memory provided in a housing thereof.",
"The controller 13 is arranged so as to be able to subject USB memory inserted into the slot to reading/writing.",
"Further, the controller 13 includes a restarting circuit, which is a circuit that is constituted of a power IC having ON/OFF function, a capacitor, and the like, for restarting the printer 10 .",
"[0024] Operation of the printer 10 of the embodiment will now be described by reference to FIGS. 2 and 3 .",
"[0025] The controller 12 provided in the printer 10 is a unit programmed in such a way that version information about respective pieces of software which is information showing versions of software and an enable key (which will be described in detail later) are stored (saved) in ROM which is flash ROM along with various types of software including firmware and set data for various applications for controlling a print engine, for controlling a scanner, and the like.",
"[0026] The controller 12 is embodied as a unit programmed so as to commence update processing for updating various types of software when an update package is transmitted from a PC and when USB memory where an update package is stored is attached (inserted into the slot formed in the housing).",
"[0027] The update package is information having a data configuration shown in FIG. 2 .",
"[0028] Specifically, the update package is information configured so as to be able to enable appending of several pairs, each of which includes a firm header and firm data (software itself to be updated) including the designation of data, a data version, a version management target flag, and the like, to a package header including a write enable verification key, a save-write enable key, and the like;",
"and to include restart instruction data of predetermined specifics in the end of the package.",
"[0029] The write enable verification key included in the package header of the update package is information, in which each byte is used as a verification key (to be described in detail later) pertaining to each of pieces of software (hereinafter described as “packaged software”) whose firm headers and firm data are included in the update package.",
"The write enable verification key is 8-byte information in the embodiment.",
"The save-write enable key included in the package header is information, in which each of bytes is used as a new enable key (details of which will be described later) pertaining to respective pieces of the packaged software.",
"The save-write enable key is 8-byte information in the present embodiment.",
"The designation of data included in the firm header of the update package is the designation of firm data appended to the firm header and is identification information about the firmware to be updated, and the data version is information showing the version of the firm data.",
"The version management target flag is information for designating whether or not to ascertain version update at the time of updating of the corresponding firmware.",
"[0030] The controller 13 performs processing whose basic processing procedures are provided in FIG. 3 as the foregoing update processing.",
"In the following descriptions, software is depicted simply as “soft.”",
"[0031] Specifically, when imparted with an update package to be processed, the controller 13 ascertains various types of information in the package header of the update package (step S 101 ) and performs processing (step S 102 ) for specifying the first software which is soft indicated by the designation of data in the first firm header in the update package, as processing target software.",
"[0032] Subsequently, the controller 13 determines whether or not a combination of an enable key pertaining to processing target software which is information recorded in ROM and a verification key pertaining to the processing target software, which is 1-byte information about the processing target software in the write enable verification key in the package header, fulfills update enable conditions (step S 103 ).",
"[0033] The update enable conditions correspond to conditions [“(a verification key AND an enable key) EOR enable key=“000000000”];",
"(a verification key AND an enable key) EOR enable key is a result of logical operation acquired for each bit) in the present embodiment) defined in software which is software that can be updated through update processing for causing the controller 13 to execute update processing.",
"Any conditions can be used as the update enable conditions, so long as the conditions are sometimes not fulfilled depending on a combination of the enable key and the verification key.",
"As used in the present embodiment, it is desirable that a verification key, by means of which conditions are fulfilled regardless of a value of an enable key, is present (ALL 1 at (a verification key AND an enable key) EOR enable key=“000000000”).",
"[0034] When the combination of the enable key and the verification key does not fulfill the update enable conditions (NO in step S 103 ), the controller 13 determines whether or not unprocessed software (an unprocessed firm header and unprocessed firm data) are left (step S 107 ).",
"When unprocessed software is left (YES in step S 107 ), processing returns to step S 102 , where processing for the next software is commenced.",
"[0035] When the combination of the enable key and the verification key fulfills the update enable conditions (YES in step S 103 ), the controller 13 determines whether or not it is necessary to perform a version check (step S 104 ).",
"On the other words, the controller 13 determines whether or not aversion processing target flag pertaining to processing target software is information designating a necessity for ascertaining that version processing is version update.",
"[0036] When it is not necessary to perform the version check (NO in step S 104 ), the controller 13 actually updates the processing target software and performs processing (step S 106 ) for rewriting an enable key pertaining to processing target software to a new enable key, which is 1-byte information about processing target software in a save-write enable key in the package header, and subsequently commences processing pertaining to step S 107 and subsequent steps.",
"Processing pertaining to step S 106 is embodied as processing for which the number of times processing is performed is counted.",
"[0037] In contrast, when it is necessary to perform the version check (YES in step S 104 ), the controller 13 compares the current version information (information in the ROM) pertaining to the processing target software with the new version information (a data version in the firm header), thereby determining whether or not a software update performed on the basis of the firm data in the update package corresponds to a version update of the processing target software (step S 105 ).",
"When the software update corresponds to the version update (YES in step S 105 ), the controller 13 performs processing pertaining to step S 106 , and processing subsequent to step S 107 is commenced.",
"When the software update does not correspond to the version update (NO in step S 105 ), processing pertaining to step S 107 and subsequent steps is initiated without performance of processing pertaining to step S 106 .",
"[0038] When completed processing of software in all of the packages (NO in step S 107 ), the controller 13 determines whether or not the update package being processed includes restart instruction data (step S 108 ).",
"[0039] When the update package includes restart instruction data (YES in step S 108 ), the controller 13 determines whether or not the number of pieces of updated software is one or more (whether or not the number of times processing pertaining to step S 106 is performed is one or more) (step S 109 ).",
"When the number of pieces of updated software is one or more (YES in step S 109 ), automatic restart processing that is processing for causing the restart circuit to operate (step S 110 ) is performed, and update processing is completed.",
"[0040] When the restart instruction data are not included in the update package (NO in step S 108 ) and when the number of pieces of updated software is zero despite the fact that the update package includes the restart instruction data (NO in step S 109 ), the controller 13 completes update processing without performance of automatic restart processing.",
"[0041] As is evident from the above descriptions, the printer 10 of the embodiment is embodied as a device that, when an update package to be processed is imparted, determines software to be actually updated (software taken as a target of processing pertaining to step S 106 ) on the basis of a verification key pertaining to each of pieces of software in the update package and an enable key pertaining to each of pieces of software in the apparatus (in the ROM of the controller).",
"The printer 10 is also embodied as a device that, when updating certain software, rewrites an enable key in the apparatus pertaining to the software to a new enable key pertaining to the software (a value of a specific one byte of the save-write enable key in the package header).",
"[0042] Therefore, so long as the printer 10 is designated such that, every time an update package is generated, a new enable key pertaining to each of pieces of software comes to an appropriate value (a value conforming to specifics of an update to be subsequently performed), the printer can be said to be a device (i.e., a device enabling a more accurate software update) capable of generating a package during subsequent generation of an update package, such as that exemplified in FIG. 4 ;",
"namely, a device capable of generating a package for updating software to a version 2.10 and a package for updating software to version 2.110 (a package for not updating software of a specific version/a package for updating only software of a specific version).",
"[0043] <<Modified Mode>>",
"[0044] Various modifications can be made to the printer 10 .",
"For instance, the printer 10 or the software for causing the printer 10 to perform update processing (hereinafter described as “update processing software”) can be modified into a device or software that makes a determination as to step S 105 (a determination as to whether or not update processing is a version update) at all times (a device or software that does not make a determination pertaining to step S 104 ) or a device or software that does not make a determination as to step S 105 (and S 104 ) at all times.",
"When the printer 10 /the update processing software is arranged so as to make a determination as to step S 105 at all times, intentional version downgrade of software cannot be carried out.",
"When the printer 10 /the update processing software is arranged so as not to make a determination as to step S 105 at all times, an undesirable version downgrade of software may also be performed.",
"For these reasons, it is desirable that the printer 10 /the update processing software is arranged so as to make a determination as to steps S 104 and S 105 .",
"[0045] Naturally, the printer 10 /the update processing software can also be modified so as to take, as a processing target, an update package having a data configuration differing from that mentioned above (e.g., an update package whose new enable key is information in a firm header or an update package whose restart instruction data correspond to information in a package header), or the printer 10 can also be modified so as to have a hardware configuration differing from that mentioned above."
] |
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION
Not Applicable
FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT
Not Applicable
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
This invention relates to floating offshore storage, drilling or production platforms and more particularly, platforms of the Spar type. More specifically, the invention relates to an improved interface connection assembly between the Spar hull and a caisson extending downwardly therefrom.
Floating platforms are typically employed in water depths of about 500 ft. (approximately 152 m) and greater, and are held in position over a seabed well site by mooring lines anchored to the sea floor, or by motorized thrusters located on the sides of the platform, or both. Although floating platforms are more complex to operate because of their movement in response to wind and water conditions, they are capable of operating in substantially greater water depths than are fixed platforms, and are also more mobile, and hence, easier to move to other well sites. There are several different types of known floating platforms, including so-called “drill ships,” tension-leg platforms (“TLPs”), “semi-submersibles,” and “Spar” platforms.
Spar-type platforms comprise an elongate, substantially cylindrical (or multi-cylindrical) buoyant hull that supports one or more decks above the surface of the water when floating in an upright operating position, in which an upper portion of the platform hull extends above the waterline and a lower portion is submerged below it. Because part of the platform hull is above the water, it is subject to forces of wind, waves, and water currents which cause a constant movement of the platform. Generally, a Spar-type floating platform is designed to be installed for a 25 to 30 year service life.
Despite their relative success, Spar-type platforms include some aspects that need improvement to accommodate various applications and/or a larger spectrum of environmental conditions. For example, in typical Spar designs and configurations, at least one tubular caisson extends downwardly from the bottom of the Spar hull. The caisson(s) may extend some distance below the Spar, or to the sea floor. Often the inside of the caisson will include a plurality of tubulars and/or control bundles. Because the caisson extends below the floating spar hull, there is typically relative, flexing motion at the interface connection area between the Spar hull and the caisson. Currently existing hull-to-caisson interface connections do not accommodate very high tensile loads, the bending/flexing relative motion between the spar hull and the caisson for the life of the installation, and the very demanding fatigue life. Since the wind, waves, and water currents are always present in various intensities, the hull/caisson interface connection must be designed to accommodate the very demanding fatigue life due to the high loads and constant relative motion.
It would therefore be desirable for an improved Spar hull-to-caisson interface connection that accommodates high tension loads between the spar hull and the caisson while still facilitating angular, flexing motion (rotation) while also simultaneously constraining lateral movement and vertical axial movement. The result would be highly-improved fatigue characteristics of the interface between the Spar hull and the caisson.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
In accordance with the present invention, a Spar hull-to-caisson interface connection assembly is provided that accommodates high tension loads between the hull and caisson of a Spar-type platform, while facilitating angular, flexing motion (rotation) and simultaneously constraining lateral movement and vertical axial movement. Broadly, the interface connection assembly comprises an annular bearing shoulder provided at the top end of caisson, and a laminated bearing assembly mounted in the bottom end of the hull and defining a passage through which the upper portion of the caisson passes, so that the caisson shoulder seats against the upper end of the bearing assembly. The bearing assembly comprises a laminated structure of alternating steel and elastomer flex elements that are bonded to each other so that they flex together as a unit, rather than sliding relative to each other. The laminated structure of the bearing assembly supports the vertical tensile loads applied by the weight of the caisson on the hull, while also allowing a smooth and efficient accommodation of the angular and rotational loads applied between the caisson and the hull, so as to reduce fatigue at the hull/caisson interface.
A more complete understanding of the invention can be obtained by reference to the following detailed description of the preferred embodiments thereof in connection with the attached drawings.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG. 1 is an elevational view of a Spar-type platform, of a type that may incorporate a hull/caisson interface connection in accordance with the present invention;
FIG. 2 is an elevational view of the portion of FIG. 1 enclosed within the dashed outline 2 in FIG. 1 , partially broken away to show a Spar hull/caisson interface connection assembly in accordance with a first preferred embodiment if the present invention;
FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view taken along line 3 - 3 of FIG. 2 ;
FIG. 4 is a longitudinal cross-section view of a hull/caisson interface connection assembly according to the first preferred embodiment of the present invention;
FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view taken along line 5 - 5 of FIG. 4 ;
FIG. 6 is top perspective view of an elastomeric element of the hull/caisson interface connection assembly of FIG. 4 ;
FIG. 7 is a semi-schematic cross-sectional view of the hull/caisson interface connection assembly of FIG. 4 , showing the relative flexing motion between the hull and the caisson facilitated by the present invention;
FIG. 8 is a longitudinal cross-section view of a hull/caisson interface connection assembly according to a second preferred embodiment of the present invention; and
FIG. 9 is a top plan view of the hull/caisson interface connection of FIG. 8
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
Referring first to FIGS. 1-3 , an elevational view of a Spar-type offshore oil and gas drilling and production platform 10 is illustrated in FIG. 1 , in which the platform 10 is shown floating upright in a deep body of water. The platform 10 comprises a hull 12 , a substantial portion of which is submerged below the surface 14 of the body of water. The hull 12 extends above the surface 14 of the water to support a deck 16 that carries drilling and production equipment, crew living quarters, etc., as is conventional. Fixed or variable ballast elements (not illustrated) may be disposed within the submerged portion of the hull 12 to lower the center of gravity of the platform 10 substantially below its center of buoyancy, thereby enhancing the stability of the platform 10 by increasing its natural period above the period of waves in the body of water. The hull 12 advantageously includes one or more helical strakes 18 that extend radially outwardly from the hull 12 , and that are arranged so as to define at least one generally helical band extending around the periphery of the submerged portion of the hull 12 . The purpose of the helical strake or strakes 18 is to prevent or minimize vortex-induced vibrations, as is well-known in the art.
The platform 10 further comprises at least one cylindrical caisson 20 that extends vertically down from the hull 12 . The caisson 20 is coupled to the hull 12 by means of an interface bearing assembly 22 ( FIG. 2 ), in accordance with the present invention. The bearing assembly 22 , which will be described in detail below, is seated in an annular receptacle 24 mounted in the open bottom end of the hull 12 , as shown in FIG. 2 . The bearing assembly 22 defines a central passage 23 (see FIGS. 4 and 5 ) through which the upper portion of the caisson 20 passes as it enters the bottom of the hull 12 through a central opening 25 in the receptacle 24 (see FIG. 4 ), so that the bearing assembly 22 is disposed coaxially around the upper portion of the caisson 20 . As will be discussed below, the diameter of the passage 23 increases from the upper end of the bearing assembly 22 to the lower end thereof. The caisson 20 may advantageously include a flared rim 26 around its upper end. The weight of the caisson 20 applies a vertical tensile load (indicated by arrow “A” in FIG. 1 ) on the hull 12 , while wind, waves, and currents apply angular flexing loads (indicated by arrow “B” in FIG. 1 ) between the hull 12 and the caisson 20 .
Drilling, production, and export from the platform 10 all require vertical conduits through the water column between the seabed 28 and the platform 10 . These conduits are typically provided by a plurality of risers 30 that extend from the seabed 28 , upwardly through the caisson 20 and the hull 12 to the deck 16 . In a typical Spar-type platform, the risers 30 may be secured to the deck 16 by tensioning devices (not shown), or they may be supported on the deck and descend therefrom in a modified catenary shape to the seabed 28 . Other means, well-known in the art, may be employed to support individual risers, especially those of a smaller diameter.
Turning now to FIG. 4 , the interface connection assembly in accordance with a first preferred embodiment of the present invention includes an annular shoulder 32 extending radially outward from the top end of the caisson 20 . The bearing assembly 22 coaxially surrounds the upper portion of the caisson 20 just below the shoulder 32 . The uppermost part of the bearing assembly 22 is a steel top bearing ring 34 , disposed so that the bottom surface of the shoulder 32 rests on top of the top bearing ring 34 . The lowermost part of the bearing assembly 22 is a steel bottom support ring 36 that is seated in the receptacle 24 in the bottom end of the hull 12 , as described above. Arranged between the top bearing ring 34 and the bottom support ring 36 of the bearing assembly 22 is a plurality of flex elements, comprising a plurality of steel flex rings 38 alternating with, and separated by, elastomeric flex rings 40 . Both the steel flex rings 38 and the elastomeric flex rings 40 are formed in a “dished” or arcuate configuration, defined by a common radius of curvature, as are the bottom surface of the top bearing ring 34 and the top surface of the bottom support ring 36 . The steel rings 38 , the elastomeric rings 40 , the top bearing ring 34 , and the bottom support ring 38 are bonded together by well-known techniques. The flex elements 38 , 40 are enclosed within an elastomeric outer sleeve 41 , preferably about 1-2 cm in thickness, that is fixed between the top bearing ring 34 and the bottom support ring 36 .
The configuration of one of the steel flex rings 38 is illustrated in FIG. 5 , which also shows the interior of the caisson 20 and the risers 30 passing through it. The configuration of one of the elastomeric flex rings 40 is shown in FIG. 6 . The elastomeric flex rings 40 are preferably made of a nitrile copolymer of butadiene and acrylonitrile, marketed under the tradename “BUNA-N.” Other suitable elastomeric materials include copolymers of tetrafluoroethylene marketed by DuPont Performance Elastomers under the trademark “VITON®”, and by Seals Eastern, Inc. under the trademark “AFLAS®.” Other suitable elastomeric materials will suggest themselves to those of ordinary skill in the pertinent arts. The particular elastomer selected will depend on the environmental conditions to be encountered and the physical characteristics desired in the bearing assembly 22 . Thus, the elastomeric material may be selected for its specific physical characteristics, such as hardness and shear modulus. Likewise, the physical dimensions of the flex elements 38 , 40 will be selected depending on the specific application and environment.
Although the flex elements 38 , 40 are shown, in this first exemplary embodiment, as being continuous annular elements, they may be configured as a plurality of discrete cylindrical flex element stacks disposed in an annular arrangement, as discussed below in connection with the embodiment shown in FIGS. 8 and 9 .
From FIG. 4 it can be seen that the inside diameter of each successive flex element 38 , 40 (going from the upper end of the bearing assembly 22 to the lower end thereof) is slightly greater than the inside diameter of the flex element 38 or 40 immediately above it, thereby resulting in the diameter of the central passage 23 of the bearing assembly 22 increasing from the top of the bearing assembly 22 to the bottom thereof. This tapered configuration of the central passage 23 facilitates the relative angular motion between the caisson 20 and the receptacle, which is affixed to the hull 12 , and which supports the bearing assembly 22 , as mentioned above.
In a preferred embodiment of the invention, there are preferably about ten to about thirty each of the steel rings 38 and the elastomeric rings 40 , vulcanized and bonded together (and to the upper bearing ring 34 and the lower support ring 36 ) by any suitable means known in the art to form a laminated structure in which the flex elements 38 , 40 flex together, instead of sliding, in response to angular motions of the caisson 20 relative to the hull. By thus flexing, instead of sliding, the flex elements 38 , 40 avoid the so-called “slip-stick” effect, in which relative motion between the caisson 20 and the hull 12 would only occur only when the static friction forces between adjacent flex elements are overcome by the angular flexing and bending loads to which the caisson 18 and the hull 12 are subject. This “slip-stick” effect would thus cause a “jerking” action, inducing erratic bending moments in the caisson, with a resultant reduction in the fatigue life of the hull/caisson interface. By eliminating this “slip-stick” effect, the bearing assembly 22 , with its laminated flex elements 38 , 40 , starts to flex with any flex-inducing load applied to the caisson 20 and/or the hull 12 , instead of requiring a load that exceeds the friction forces between unbonded flex elements. Thus, the laminated (bonded) flex element arrangement in the bearing assembly 22 substantially eliminates erratic bending moments.
The upper end of the caisson 20 may advantageously include a stress joint portion 42 where the caisson 20 joins the shoulder 32 . The stress joint portion 42 is formed with a tapered wall thickness that gradually increases as it approaches the shoulder 32 along a radiused juncture 44 . This feature provides an improved distribution of stress within a bending tubular member, such as the caisson 20 .
The function of the hull/caisson interface connection assembly of the present invention is illustrated in FIG. 7 . As mentioned above, the interface connection assembly comprises the shoulder 32 at the top end of the caisson 20 and the bearing assembly 22 . As the caisson 20 is subject to an angular flexing load, indicated by the arrow “B”, the caisson 20 pivots relative to a vertical axis 50 , bringing the caisson shoulder 32 to bear against the bearing assembly 22 , which flexes in response to the loads applied thereto by the shoulder, as indicated by the arrow “C”, to accommodate these loads. The tapered internal diameter of the bearing element central passage 23 provides the leeway for the pivoting action of the caisson 22 . Tensile loads along the axis 50 , indicated by the arrow “A” in FIG. 1 , are likewise absorbed by the bearing assembly 22 .
A hull/caisson interface connection assembly, in accordance with a second preferred embodiment of the invention, is illustrated in FIGS. 8 and 9 . In this embodiment, a caisson 60 includes an annular shoulder 62 extending radially from the caisson 60 near the upper end thereof. The shoulder 62 includes a sloped or angled lower surface 64 that is provided with a plurality of upper sockets 66 that are equidistantly spaced in an annular arrangement. The upper end of the caisson 60 passes through a central opening 68 in an annular receptacle 70 mounted in the open bottom end of the hull 12 . The receptacle 70 includes a sloped or angled support surface 72 having a plurality of lower sockets 74 , each of which is circumferentially located so as to correspond with one of the upper sockets 66 . The lower sockets 74 are at a greater radial distance from a caisson central axis 76 than are the upper sockets 66 .
A bearing assembly, comprising a plurality of substantially cylindrical flex element stacks or blocks 78 , is mounted between the lower surface 64 of the caisson shoulder 62 and the support surface 72 of the receptacle 70 , so as to surround coaxially the upper portion of the caisson 60 that is above the receptacle 70 . Specifically, each of the flex element stacks or blocks 78 has a steel top bearing element 77 that is seated in one of the upper sockets 66 , and a steel bottom support element 79 that is seated in a corresponding one of the lower sockets 74 , so that the stacks or blocks 78 are arranged around the periphery of the caisson 60 and extend radially outward therefrom, much like spokes on a wheel, as best shown in FIG. 9 .
As shown in FIG. 8 , each of the flex element stacks or blocks 78 includes, between the top bearing element 77 and the bottom support element 79 , a laminated structure comprising a plurality of disc—like steel flex elements 80 alternating with a plurality of similarly-shaped elastomeric flex elements 82 . The flex elements 80 , 82 may advantageously be concave or dish-shaped, when viewed from the top, with a common radius of curvature, thereby resembling small versions of the flex rings 38 , 40 that are used in the above-described first embodiment, but without a central aperture. The flex elements 80 , 82 may be made of materials that are the same as, or similar to, the annular flex elements 38 , 40 of the above-described first embodiment, and they are vulcanized and bonded together by any suitable means, as discussed above in connection with the first embodiment. Each of the flex element stacks or blocks 78 is encased in an elastomeric sleeve 84 , which is similar to the sleeve 41 described above in connection with the first embodiment.
Each of the flex element stacks or blocks 78 flexes as a unit, as does the above-described arrangement of annular flex element rings 38 , 40 in the first embodiment. Furthermore, the above-described advantages of the first embodiment are also achieved in this second embodiment. Although eight flex element stacks or blocks 78 are shown in the illustrated embodiment, the number of the stacks or blocks 78 , their specific physical dimensions, and the number of individual flex elements 80 , 82 forming each stack or block 78 , will vary according to the specific needs and demands of the Spar structure in which they are employed. One advantage of this second embodiment is that the use of multiple flex element stacks or blocks removes constraints on the size of the individual flex elements.
Although an exemplary embodiment of the invention has been described above by way of example only, it will be understood by those skilled in the field that modifications may be made to the disclosed embodiment without departing from the scope of the invention, which is defined by the claims that follow. | A hull-to-caisson interface connection assembly accommodates high tension loads between the hull and a caisson of a Spar-type platform, while facilitating angular flexing motion and constraining lateral and axial movement. The interface connection assembly includes an annular bearing shoulder at the top end of caisson, and a laminated bearing assembly mounted in the bottom of the hull and defining a passage through which the upper portion of the caisson passes, so that the caisson shoulder seats against the upper end of the bearing assembly. The bearing assembly includes a laminated structure of alternating steel and elastomeric flex elements, bonded to each other to flex together as a unit, rather than sliding relative to each other. The laminated structure of the bearing assembly supports the vertical tensile loads applied by the weight of the caisson on the hull, while also accommodating the angular loads applied between the caisson and the hull. | Provide a concise summary of the essential information conveyed in the given context. | [
"CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION Not Applicable FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT Not Applicable BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION This invention relates to floating offshore storage, drilling or production platforms and more particularly, platforms of the Spar type.",
"More specifically, the invention relates to an improved interface connection assembly between the Spar hull and a caisson extending downwardly therefrom.",
"Floating platforms are typically employed in water depths of about 500 ft.",
"(approximately 152 m) and greater, and are held in position over a seabed well site by mooring lines anchored to the sea floor, or by motorized thrusters located on the sides of the platform, or both.",
"Although floating platforms are more complex to operate because of their movement in response to wind and water conditions, they are capable of operating in substantially greater water depths than are fixed platforms, and are also more mobile, and hence, easier to move to other well sites.",
"There are several different types of known floating platforms, including so-called “drill ships,” tension-leg platforms (“TLPs”), “semi-submersibles,” and “Spar”",
"platforms.",
"Spar-type platforms comprise an elongate, substantially cylindrical (or multi-cylindrical) buoyant hull that supports one or more decks above the surface of the water when floating in an upright operating position, in which an upper portion of the platform hull extends above the waterline and a lower portion is submerged below it.",
"Because part of the platform hull is above the water, it is subject to forces of wind, waves, and water currents which cause a constant movement of the platform.",
"Generally, a Spar-type floating platform is designed to be installed for a 25 to 30 year service life.",
"Despite their relative success, Spar-type platforms include some aspects that need improvement to accommodate various applications and/or a larger spectrum of environmental conditions.",
"For example, in typical Spar designs and configurations, at least one tubular caisson extends downwardly from the bottom of the Spar hull.",
"The caisson(s) may extend some distance below the Spar, or to the sea floor.",
"Often the inside of the caisson will include a plurality of tubulars and/or control bundles.",
"Because the caisson extends below the floating spar hull, there is typically relative, flexing motion at the interface connection area between the Spar hull and the caisson.",
"Currently existing hull-to-caisson interface connections do not accommodate very high tensile loads, the bending/flexing relative motion between the spar hull and the caisson for the life of the installation, and the very demanding fatigue life.",
"Since the wind, waves, and water currents are always present in various intensities, the hull/caisson interface connection must be designed to accommodate the very demanding fatigue life due to the high loads and constant relative motion.",
"It would therefore be desirable for an improved Spar hull-to-caisson interface connection that accommodates high tension loads between the spar hull and the caisson while still facilitating angular, flexing motion (rotation) while also simultaneously constraining lateral movement and vertical axial movement.",
"The result would be highly-improved fatigue characteristics of the interface between the Spar hull and the caisson.",
"SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In accordance with the present invention, a Spar hull-to-caisson interface connection assembly is provided that accommodates high tension loads between the hull and caisson of a Spar-type platform, while facilitating angular, flexing motion (rotation) and simultaneously constraining lateral movement and vertical axial movement.",
"Broadly, the interface connection assembly comprises an annular bearing shoulder provided at the top end of caisson, and a laminated bearing assembly mounted in the bottom end of the hull and defining a passage through which the upper portion of the caisson passes, so that the caisson shoulder seats against the upper end of the bearing assembly.",
"The bearing assembly comprises a laminated structure of alternating steel and elastomer flex elements that are bonded to each other so that they flex together as a unit, rather than sliding relative to each other.",
"The laminated structure of the bearing assembly supports the vertical tensile loads applied by the weight of the caisson on the hull, while also allowing a smooth and efficient accommodation of the angular and rotational loads applied between the caisson and the hull, so as to reduce fatigue at the hull/caisson interface.",
"A more complete understanding of the invention can be obtained by reference to the following detailed description of the preferred embodiments thereof in connection with the attached drawings.",
"BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is an elevational view of a Spar-type platform, of a type that may incorporate a hull/caisson interface connection in accordance with the present invention;",
"FIG. 2 is an elevational view of the portion of FIG. 1 enclosed within the dashed outline 2 in FIG. 1 , partially broken away to show a Spar hull/caisson interface connection assembly in accordance with a first preferred embodiment if the present invention;",
"FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view taken along line 3 - 3 of FIG. 2 ;",
"FIG. 4 is a longitudinal cross-section view of a hull/caisson interface connection assembly according to the first preferred embodiment of the present invention;",
"FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view taken along line 5 - 5 of FIG. 4 ;",
"FIG. 6 is top perspective view of an elastomeric element of the hull/caisson interface connection assembly of FIG. 4 ;",
"FIG. 7 is a semi-schematic cross-sectional view of the hull/caisson interface connection assembly of FIG. 4 , showing the relative flexing motion between the hull and the caisson facilitated by the present invention;",
"FIG. 8 is a longitudinal cross-section view of a hull/caisson interface connection assembly according to a second preferred embodiment of the present invention;",
"and FIG. 9 is a top plan view of the hull/caisson interface connection of FIG. 8 DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION Referring first to FIGS. 1-3 , an elevational view of a Spar-type offshore oil and gas drilling and production platform 10 is illustrated in FIG. 1 , in which the platform 10 is shown floating upright in a deep body of water.",
"The platform 10 comprises a hull 12 , a substantial portion of which is submerged below the surface 14 of the body of water.",
"The hull 12 extends above the surface 14 of the water to support a deck 16 that carries drilling and production equipment, crew living quarters, etc.",
", as is conventional.",
"Fixed or variable ballast elements (not illustrated) may be disposed within the submerged portion of the hull 12 to lower the center of gravity of the platform 10 substantially below its center of buoyancy, thereby enhancing the stability of the platform 10 by increasing its natural period above the period of waves in the body of water.",
"The hull 12 advantageously includes one or more helical strakes 18 that extend radially outwardly from the hull 12 , and that are arranged so as to define at least one generally helical band extending around the periphery of the submerged portion of the hull 12 .",
"The purpose of the helical strake or strakes 18 is to prevent or minimize vortex-induced vibrations, as is well-known in the art.",
"The platform 10 further comprises at least one cylindrical caisson 20 that extends vertically down from the hull 12 .",
"The caisson 20 is coupled to the hull 12 by means of an interface bearing assembly 22 ( FIG. 2 ), in accordance with the present invention.",
"The bearing assembly 22 , which will be described in detail below, is seated in an annular receptacle 24 mounted in the open bottom end of the hull 12 , as shown in FIG. 2 .",
"The bearing assembly 22 defines a central passage 23 (see FIGS. 4 and 5 ) through which the upper portion of the caisson 20 passes as it enters the bottom of the hull 12 through a central opening 25 in the receptacle 24 (see FIG. 4 ), so that the bearing assembly 22 is disposed coaxially around the upper portion of the caisson 20 .",
"As will be discussed below, the diameter of the passage 23 increases from the upper end of the bearing assembly 22 to the lower end thereof.",
"The caisson 20 may advantageously include a flared rim 26 around its upper end.",
"The weight of the caisson 20 applies a vertical tensile load (indicated by arrow “A”",
"in FIG. 1 ) on the hull 12 , while wind, waves, and currents apply angular flexing loads (indicated by arrow “B”",
"in FIG. 1 ) between the hull 12 and the caisson 20 .",
"Drilling, production, and export from the platform 10 all require vertical conduits through the water column between the seabed 28 and the platform 10 .",
"These conduits are typically provided by a plurality of risers 30 that extend from the seabed 28 , upwardly through the caisson 20 and the hull 12 to the deck 16 .",
"In a typical Spar-type platform, the risers 30 may be secured to the deck 16 by tensioning devices (not shown), or they may be supported on the deck and descend therefrom in a modified catenary shape to the seabed 28 .",
"Other means, well-known in the art, may be employed to support individual risers, especially those of a smaller diameter.",
"Turning now to FIG. 4 , the interface connection assembly in accordance with a first preferred embodiment of the present invention includes an annular shoulder 32 extending radially outward from the top end of the caisson 20 .",
"The bearing assembly 22 coaxially surrounds the upper portion of the caisson 20 just below the shoulder 32 .",
"The uppermost part of the bearing assembly 22 is a steel top bearing ring 34 , disposed so that the bottom surface of the shoulder 32 rests on top of the top bearing ring 34 .",
"The lowermost part of the bearing assembly 22 is a steel bottom support ring 36 that is seated in the receptacle 24 in the bottom end of the hull 12 , as described above.",
"Arranged between the top bearing ring 34 and the bottom support ring 36 of the bearing assembly 22 is a plurality of flex elements, comprising a plurality of steel flex rings 38 alternating with, and separated by, elastomeric flex rings 40 .",
"Both the steel flex rings 38 and the elastomeric flex rings 40 are formed in a “dished”",
"or arcuate configuration, defined by a common radius of curvature, as are the bottom surface of the top bearing ring 34 and the top surface of the bottom support ring 36 .",
"The steel rings 38 , the elastomeric rings 40 , the top bearing ring 34 , and the bottom support ring 38 are bonded together by well-known techniques.",
"The flex elements 38 , 40 are enclosed within an elastomeric outer sleeve 41 , preferably about 1-2 cm in thickness, that is fixed between the top bearing ring 34 and the bottom support ring 36 .",
"The configuration of one of the steel flex rings 38 is illustrated in FIG. 5 , which also shows the interior of the caisson 20 and the risers 30 passing through it.",
"The configuration of one of the elastomeric flex rings 40 is shown in FIG. 6 .",
"The elastomeric flex rings 40 are preferably made of a nitrile copolymer of butadiene and acrylonitrile, marketed under the tradename “BUNA-N.”",
"Other suitable elastomeric materials include copolymers of tetrafluoroethylene marketed by DuPont Performance Elastomers under the trademark “VITON®”, and by Seals Eastern, Inc. under the trademark “AFLAS®.”",
"Other suitable elastomeric materials will suggest themselves to those of ordinary skill in the pertinent arts.",
"The particular elastomer selected will depend on the environmental conditions to be encountered and the physical characteristics desired in the bearing assembly 22 .",
"Thus, the elastomeric material may be selected for its specific physical characteristics, such as hardness and shear modulus.",
"Likewise, the physical dimensions of the flex elements 38 , 40 will be selected depending on the specific application and environment.",
"Although the flex elements 38 , 40 are shown, in this first exemplary embodiment, as being continuous annular elements, they may be configured as a plurality of discrete cylindrical flex element stacks disposed in an annular arrangement, as discussed below in connection with the embodiment shown in FIGS. 8 and 9 .",
"From FIG. 4 it can be seen that the inside diameter of each successive flex element 38 , 40 (going from the upper end of the bearing assembly 22 to the lower end thereof) is slightly greater than the inside diameter of the flex element 38 or 40 immediately above it, thereby resulting in the diameter of the central passage 23 of the bearing assembly 22 increasing from the top of the bearing assembly 22 to the bottom thereof.",
"This tapered configuration of the central passage 23 facilitates the relative angular motion between the caisson 20 and the receptacle, which is affixed to the hull 12 , and which supports the bearing assembly 22 , as mentioned above.",
"In a preferred embodiment of the invention, there are preferably about ten to about thirty each of the steel rings 38 and the elastomeric rings 40 , vulcanized and bonded together (and to the upper bearing ring 34 and the lower support ring 36 ) by any suitable means known in the art to form a laminated structure in which the flex elements 38 , 40 flex together, instead of sliding, in response to angular motions of the caisson 20 relative to the hull.",
"By thus flexing, instead of sliding, the flex elements 38 , 40 avoid the so-called “slip-stick”",
"effect, in which relative motion between the caisson 20 and the hull 12 would only occur only when the static friction forces between adjacent flex elements are overcome by the angular flexing and bending loads to which the caisson 18 and the hull 12 are subject.",
"This “slip-stick”",
"effect would thus cause a “jerking”",
"action, inducing erratic bending moments in the caisson, with a resultant reduction in the fatigue life of the hull/caisson interface.",
"By eliminating this “slip-stick”",
"effect, the bearing assembly 22 , with its laminated flex elements 38 , 40 , starts to flex with any flex-inducing load applied to the caisson 20 and/or the hull 12 , instead of requiring a load that exceeds the friction forces between unbonded flex elements.",
"Thus, the laminated (bonded) flex element arrangement in the bearing assembly 22 substantially eliminates erratic bending moments.",
"The upper end of the caisson 20 may advantageously include a stress joint portion 42 where the caisson 20 joins the shoulder 32 .",
"The stress joint portion 42 is formed with a tapered wall thickness that gradually increases as it approaches the shoulder 32 along a radiused juncture 44 .",
"This feature provides an improved distribution of stress within a bending tubular member, such as the caisson 20 .",
"The function of the hull/caisson interface connection assembly of the present invention is illustrated in FIG. 7 .",
"As mentioned above, the interface connection assembly comprises the shoulder 32 at the top end of the caisson 20 and the bearing assembly 22 .",
"As the caisson 20 is subject to an angular flexing load, indicated by the arrow “B”, the caisson 20 pivots relative to a vertical axis 50 , bringing the caisson shoulder 32 to bear against the bearing assembly 22 , which flexes in response to the loads applied thereto by the shoulder, as indicated by the arrow “C”, to accommodate these loads.",
"The tapered internal diameter of the bearing element central passage 23 provides the leeway for the pivoting action of the caisson 22 .",
"Tensile loads along the axis 50 , indicated by the arrow “A”",
"in FIG. 1 , are likewise absorbed by the bearing assembly 22 .",
"A hull/caisson interface connection assembly, in accordance with a second preferred embodiment of the invention, is illustrated in FIGS. 8 and 9 .",
"In this embodiment, a caisson 60 includes an annular shoulder 62 extending radially from the caisson 60 near the upper end thereof.",
"The shoulder 62 includes a sloped or angled lower surface 64 that is provided with a plurality of upper sockets 66 that are equidistantly spaced in an annular arrangement.",
"The upper end of the caisson 60 passes through a central opening 68 in an annular receptacle 70 mounted in the open bottom end of the hull 12 .",
"The receptacle 70 includes a sloped or angled support surface 72 having a plurality of lower sockets 74 , each of which is circumferentially located so as to correspond with one of the upper sockets 66 .",
"The lower sockets 74 are at a greater radial distance from a caisson central axis 76 than are the upper sockets 66 .",
"A bearing assembly, comprising a plurality of substantially cylindrical flex element stacks or blocks 78 , is mounted between the lower surface 64 of the caisson shoulder 62 and the support surface 72 of the receptacle 70 , so as to surround coaxially the upper portion of the caisson 60 that is above the receptacle 70 .",
"Specifically, each of the flex element stacks or blocks 78 has a steel top bearing element 77 that is seated in one of the upper sockets 66 , and a steel bottom support element 79 that is seated in a corresponding one of the lower sockets 74 , so that the stacks or blocks 78 are arranged around the periphery of the caisson 60 and extend radially outward therefrom, much like spokes on a wheel, as best shown in FIG. 9 .",
"As shown in FIG. 8 , each of the flex element stacks or blocks 78 includes, between the top bearing element 77 and the bottom support element 79 , a laminated structure comprising a plurality of disc—like steel flex elements 80 alternating with a plurality of similarly-shaped elastomeric flex elements 82 .",
"The flex elements 80 , 82 may advantageously be concave or dish-shaped, when viewed from the top, with a common radius of curvature, thereby resembling small versions of the flex rings 38 , 40 that are used in the above-described first embodiment, but without a central aperture.",
"The flex elements 80 , 82 may be made of materials that are the same as, or similar to, the annular flex elements 38 , 40 of the above-described first embodiment, and they are vulcanized and bonded together by any suitable means, as discussed above in connection with the first embodiment.",
"Each of the flex element stacks or blocks 78 is encased in an elastomeric sleeve 84 , which is similar to the sleeve 41 described above in connection with the first embodiment.",
"Each of the flex element stacks or blocks 78 flexes as a unit, as does the above-described arrangement of annular flex element rings 38 , 40 in the first embodiment.",
"Furthermore, the above-described advantages of the first embodiment are also achieved in this second embodiment.",
"Although eight flex element stacks or blocks 78 are shown in the illustrated embodiment, the number of the stacks or blocks 78 , their specific physical dimensions, and the number of individual flex elements 80 , 82 forming each stack or block 78 , will vary according to the specific needs and demands of the Spar structure in which they are employed.",
"One advantage of this second embodiment is that the use of multiple flex element stacks or blocks removes constraints on the size of the individual flex elements.",
"Although an exemplary embodiment of the invention has been described above by way of example only, it will be understood by those skilled in the field that modifications may be made to the disclosed embodiment without departing from the scope of the invention, which is defined by the claims that follow."
] |
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